Mom's HK Michelin tour day 4: white truffle shower

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It's day 4, and that means another PCR test for the Parental Units. Not much to note during the day as we tried to finish some of the leftover food from the last few days for lunch.

Dinner tonight was at Caprice. Hairy Legs is back in town for literally a couple of days, and I made sure that I take mom to see him again. After all, her first visit to Caprice only months after Hairy Legs' arrival remains one of her most memorable meals - partly because how much white truffle she got on her dishes. And Hairy Legs knows we're here (again) for the white truffle...

First up was the usual jewel box with three canapés:

Balik salmon with Kristal caviar

Mushroom and foie gras tart

Pita with curry chicken mousse

Alaskan king crab and white truffe - love, love, love this dish as always... both the white truffle version as well as the black truffle version. Tonight we had mint leaves on top which really perked up the dish.

The crustacean gelée at the bottom was beautiful as I remembered, and the "crab salad" made with Japanese mayo was very, very intense - possibly more than all the other times I've had it. Also sprinkled with plankton powder to turn the color green. Hitting it outta the park right off the bat!

Brittany blue lobster, pumpkin, white truffle, saffron sauce - the homard bleu was perfectly poached in lobster butter, and still mi-cuit. The pumpkin worked pretty well with the saffron sauce, as the combination produced fruity flavors with sweetness from the pumpkin. Thanks to Hairy Legs who vigorously shaved the beautiful white truffle on top, the wonderful fragrance of the tuber was further enhanced by the saffron.

Nodoguro, fennel, Kristal caviar, Champagne sauce - what a beautiful dish! The rosy seabass (喉黒) was oh-so-soft... like touching a bloc of jiggly jelly. In fact, it was nearly as beautiful as the piece of fish which made me almost cry at Sushi Saito (鮨さいとう). It was perched on top of a thin layer of mousse, then topped with a quenelle of Kaviari Kristal caviar along with some shaved lemon zest.

On the side was a mix of diced fennel along with a small proportion of diced razor clams together with lemon peel and fennel fronds. This was really perfect with the Champagne sauce, as the combination was so delicate and elegant.

Roe deer, pear, salsify - this was not a small chunk of venison, and while it looked fairly rare, I thought the execution was just right. Seasoned with "trappers' spice", I could certainly taste a hint of sweetness from maple syrup. We have bits of raw and cooked European pear on the side along with the salty salsify.

Baked Mont d'Or with truffle - I was pretty sure that Hairy Legs would serve this up, and I was so happy that he did. OF COURSE he shaved so much white truffle on top that it was covered in a few layers.

I always love how the cheese is stuffed with diced onions which are left to marinade for a while, as it adds so much complexity. Of course the white truffle was wonderful and worked beautifully with the ripe and slightly pungent cheese. This was right up mom's alley, and she actually asked for seconds!

Millefeuille with figs - a beautiful and crispy millefeuille, served with fresh figs and fig jam.

And of course, gold foil!

No surprise that we were too full by now to enjoy the mignardises, so they were all packed for takeaway in the pretty and new boxes. The only one I decided to nibble on tonight was the raspberry and lychee tart.

I brought two bottles of wine for us to enjoy:

2016 Cos d'Estournel Blanc - nose of green apple and muscat grapes. Some ripeness on the palate as expected.

1940 Canon, ex-château 2021 - served undecanted. Very minty nose with lots of smoke, a little earthy. Lighter and thinner on the palate, especially compared to the 1940 Pichon Lalande from yesterday. A bit savory on the nose with more acidity on the palate. With the second pour 45 minutes later showed more tannins, with tons of sediment.

I wanted to have some dessert wines, mainly so that mom could have a taste.

2002 Yquem, en imperial - very fragrant nose of citrus and mandarin, apricot, beeswax, acetone, and a little honeydew melon. Just beautiful. If only I had remembered to ask for a slice of white truffle to be dropped in my glass...

1929 Toro Albalá Don PX Convento Selección, bottled November 2014, from double-magnum - nose of preserved prunes, exotic spices. Very rich and incredibly unctuous, really sweet and jammy on palate like syrup. Mom really loved this much more than the Yquem.

What a fantastic meal! Mom loved the white truffle showers, and the venison, the cheese, the sauces... And we had plenty to pack home, too! A big "THANK YOU" to Hairy Legs, Suveg, and the rest of the team at Caprice for making this a very memorable evening.

Michelin stars this meal: 3

Total Michelin stars so far this trip: 7