Eat & Drink

Hot Tables

Nicholini's—One of the ten best Italian restaurants outside of Italy

Italian food is highly popular in Hong Kong, and the city offers myriad Italian cuisines with a price range to match. For elegant, fine Italian dining, Nicholini’s at the Conrad Hotel – billed one of the ten best Italian restaurants outside of Italy – is one of our favourites.

We chose dinner for our tasting occasion – a tough decision as Nicholini’s famous appetiser lunch buffet, widely recognized as one of the best in the city, would have been a fabulous choice also. But we were not complaining, especially as the dinner would be paired with an excellent selection of Italian wines.

Nicholini’s décor is opulent but classical, with a spacious table arrangement to enhance the exclusive dining ambience. The service, as expected, is impeccably attentive and helpful. Executive Chef, Luca De Berardinis, who hails from the Abruzzo region of Italy, has created a brandnew menu using fresh, quality ingredients from Italy with all the dishes prepared the authentic traditional manner. Chef Luca, who grew up in rural Italy and was exposed to the rich farm products from his region, believes strongly in “paying homage to traditional cooking” and chooses only the finest ingredients from Italy, a philosophy that is readily apparent in all his dishes.

We chose courses from the tasting menu, which are priced $850 and $1138 for a four- and a six-course dinner respectively. Our welcome starter was Scrambled Eggs White Truffle, which is light and aromatic – it certainly helped set the stage for a sumptuous meal. The Duck Liver, Caramelized, Smoked Eel, Green Apple Stockcame next. The creative combination of ingredients used makes for a light and sweet-tasting liver that is refreshing, with the lightly pan-fried liver contrasting nicely with the smoked eel.

Next was one of Nicholini’s signature dishes – the Angel Hair, Boston Lobster, Tomato Sauce, Basil– which is always eagerly anticipated. The pasta was cooked just right, and the tender but firm lobster meat in tomato sauce quickly consumed with the pasta – truly a dish to be savoured.

The meat entrée was the Wagyu Beef, Loin, Cheek, Potato Puree, Barolo Sauceand another interesting mix of food elements. We ordered the loin medium rare, as it should be to highlight the meat flavour and texture. The cheek is well cooked and provides an entirely different taste and texture, a sort of crusted end cut. We liked the combination, and the Barolo wine sauce brings out the meat flavour wonderfully.

We were smart enough to save gustatorial space for the dessert – the classic Tiramisu, White Chocolate, Hazelnuts Ice Cream. Equally delightful is the Italian Cheese Platterwith an array of excellent fine Italian cheeses. Together, they make a fitting end to a most enjoyable and delicious dinner, and adds another memorable dining experience in Asia’s culinary capital.

(Edited on 08/12/2016)