Lunch – Friday, May 26, 2023 On my flight back from London, I was re-watching “The Menu” – in one scene, the chef Julian Slowik (Ralph Fiennes) tells foodie Tyler Ledford (Nicholas Hoult), in an utterly disappointed tone, that people like him (with their incessant “research”) have taken all the mystery out of the art. […]
Read more "Ikoyi"Dinner – Friday, November 25, 2022 This was a meal that nearly didn’t happen – I’d originally planned a lunch at Bjorn Frantzen’s Zen for this day, but made an 11th hour substitution due to the length of the experience at Zen and the conflicting need to accommodate other activities. I am so glad though, […]
Read more "Meta"Dinner – Friday, April 15, 2022 I’ve had my eye on Miro since they opened – when Chris Kajioka and Mourad Lahlou partner up, expectations are high. We finally made our first visit back in February, but unfortunately Chris was off-island during that trip and we missed each other. When we found ourselves returning to […]
Read more "Miro Kaimuki"Dinner – Thursday, February 3, 2022 When I posted about our end-of-2021 meal at Aubergine, I had already planned a visit to Bar Maze, where former Aubergine chef de cuisine Ki Chung has assumed the position of head chef. Given how Omicron reared its head, all I can say is… boy, was I glad I […]
Read more "Bar Maze"Dinner – Wednesday, December 29, 2021 It’s been over a year since I last wrote about a meal at Aubergine. We ate at the restaurant three times in 2021, and I’m rather glad I held off posting about the previous dinners – this was the strongest of the year. Admittedly, with surging Omicron cases, we […]
Read more "Aubergine"Dinner – Friday, December 17, 2021 Nisei opened back in August, the brainchild of former Californios chef de cuisine David Yoshimura. True to its name, it (and its sister establishment Bar Iris next door) espouses a modern Japanese-American cuisine. I’d been quite interested in checking out both spots, but waited to schedule a dinner with […]
Read more "Nisei"Dinner – Wednesday, November 3, 2021 Finally, my favourite restaurant in the city received a much-deserved (and IMHO overdue) second Michelin star. I was happy to celebrate with a meal, naturally. As usual, I opted for a seat at the live-edge kitchen counter, settled in, and enjoyed the ride. Sweet onion, Golden Osetra caviarSoured cream, […]
Read more "Birdsong"Dinner – Sunday, October 24, 2021 This 15-month period has been the longest interval between my meals at Single Thread since it first opened – no thanks to Covid. We missed the entirety of their outdoor dining residency, but with an unvaccinated toddler, it was the most prudent choice. I was very glad to be […]
Read more "Single Thread"Dinner – Tuesday, September 7, 2021 My first (and only) visit to Californios was over four years ago, back when they were a modest operation in a small, dimly lit space. Revisiting those dinner notes now is instructive – it seems I saw promise, but evidently not enough to return anytime in the intervening period. […]
Read more "Californios"Dinner – Wednesday, June 30, 2021 A month ago, word that Nightbird was finally reopening piqued my interest. I hadn’t visited since July 2017, when we attended a collaboration dinner between Kim Alter and Johnny Spero to preview his then-upcoming restaurant, Reverie (which, even though I never wrote about my 2019 meal there, is outstanding). […]
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