A rich and relaxing lunch

I'm back in Hong Kong and trying hard to cut back on my food intake, but a friend wanted to meet up for lunch at her new favorite restaurant, so I grudgingly obliged... and dragged my fat ass up to ON Dining Kitchen and Lounge.

Philippe came over to say hello and thanked me for the preview I wrote for the South China Morning Post.  Apparently they got a lot of calls after it got published, and he joked that there are no more pigeons in Brittany...  Well, many of my friends have enjoyed that dish as much as I did, and I'm glad they are doing well.

I'm taking it easy today, so I tried to pick a two-course set lunch.  While there were certainly choices which appeared more healthy, I guess I'm still just a pig at heart because... guess what?  All the dishes which sounded more appetizing were the ones which were rich and fatty!

Poached egg, crab meat, Parma ham, mushrooms, baby spinach - this sounds relatively healthy... no?  One could never go wrong with a poached egg here, and all the other ingredients worked very well together.

Iberico pork cheek, French beans and chorizo jus - I just couldn't resist... This was very, very tender... and a little less rich than your average beef cheek.  Wonderful sauce forestière with the French beans, mushrooms, chorizo, and flavored with cumin.

I didn't need any dessert, but with Jeremy in the house, how do we refuse any cheese?  He suggested that we take the simple selection of 3 cheeses from the set lunch menu.

Tomme de l'Ariège - the taste of goat's milk was definitely familiar, and it seemed like a more solid version of my favorite Cabri d'Ariègeois... Creamy and rich, salty, a little strong and stinky, but not quite ammonia.  Soft on the tongue.

Comté, aged 4 years - as good as it ever was.  Jeremy gave us a little bit of the passion fruit jam from Christine Ferber.

Époisses de Bourgogne - soooooo ripe and runny.  Wonderful.

Well, I guess if I had to break my fast, this would be the place to do it!  Such a relaxing afternoon...