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Ying Jee Club

Add Ying Jee Club to the list of impressive fine dining Cantonese restaurants in the city, one that offers an elegant ambience, attentive service and exquisitely prepared Cantonese dishes. This recently opened establishment, located in Central, has the impressive distinction of earning a One-Michelin Star award after only three months of operation, thanks in part to its head chef Siu Hin Chi, who has earned cumulatively 15 Michelin stars in his endeavours prior to taking control of Ying Jee Club’s culinary operation.

Befitting of a fine-dining restaurant, Ying Jee’s decor is upscale, contemporary Chinese; its dominant emerald and gold theme conveying an air of prosperity and elegance. Subtle touches, including jade-like serving plates, fine cutlery, and subtle wooden panel floors exude an understated opulence. Ying Jee Club provides several private rooms, and a carefully chosen wine list with over 300 offerings rounds out the set-up.

We tried the Executive Lunch ($620 per person) which is the full-on menu for lunch. The restaurant also offers a regular lunch set available for $380 per person. Two additional signature dishes were ordered, augmenting an already sumptuous meal.

Our lunch started with some light and refreshing appetisers: a combo of Marinated Pork with Jellyfish and Marinated Japanese Cucumber with Balsamic Vinegar. Next came the Ying Jee Dim Sum Combination. We should note that Ying Jee serves a full complement of dim sum dishes. We would have happily partaken of a dim-sum–only meal, judging from the quality of our dim sum platter, which consists of Har Gao – the steamed shrimp dumpling, a very special Pineapple Roasted Pork Bun, and the crispy Deep-fried Spring Roll.

The Steamed Spotted Garoupa with Egg White in Chicken Broth came next – a creatively concocted dish – the fish fillet is tender, and the egg white contrasts nicely with the fish.

We then had the two signature dishes not included in the lunch set: Stir-fried Sliced Lobster with Shallot, Red Onion and Spring Onion ($380 per person), the preparation of which involves dipping the lobster in hot oil and then wok frying it for just a few seconds, ensuring that the lobster meat remains juicy on the inside; and Crispy Salted Chicken ($280/half), another delicacy involving an elaborate sequence of air-drying, baking and deep frying the skin – the result is tasty-moist chicken meat, crispy skin and deliciously salty flavour.

Back to our set lunch and the Pan-fried Diced Australian Wagyu Beef with Soy Sauce. The portion is generous, and the beef cubes are succulent and tender, accented by the subtle soy flavour. Then we had Poached Chinese Lettuce with Wonton in Fish Soup and Fried Rice with Scallops and Avocado. Both dishes exemplified the refined nature of Cantonese cooking. Our dessert of the day was a trio of Baked sago pudding filled with lotus seed paste ($55 per person), Glutinous rolls filled with custard egg yolk cream and shredded coconut ($54 per dish /3 pieces) and Baked pastries filled with kumquat and pineapple ($54 per dish /3 pieces), which pretty much maxed us out.

Our visit to Ying Jee Club was amply rewarded – we appreciate why the restaurant is so highly touted. It represents Cantonese fine dining at its best, and we unreservedly recommend it if you are looking for a special gourmet treat.

Ying Jee Club
Shop G05 & 107-108, Nexxus Building, 41 Connaught Road Central
2801 6882

(Edited on 9 Apr 2018)