TOP TABLES
Nostalgia, comfort, and honest produce-driven food define this quintet of new restaurants in Hong Kong.
Five must-visit restaurants on Hong Kong Island.
CORNERSTONE
Given his recent star turn on the Netflix show “The Final Table,” one might expect Shane Osborn’s new restaurant to be a splashy affair. After all, Osborn was also the first Australian chef to gain a Michelin star when heading the kitchen at fine-dining institution Pied à Terre in London, while his Hong Kong flagship, Arcane, is usually booked solid. Yet Cornerstone has quietly opened on Hollywood Road, with no phone or website, and a discreetly signed marble entrance that’s easy to miss. With seating for just 24 people, the stylish interiors are as concise as the menu, which changes regularly under the watch of head chef Neal Ledesma. Top-notch produce shines in dishes such as oxheart tomato and burrata with pesto, and red prawn with lemon thyme and olive oil. The smoked Scottish salmon (from London’s H. Forman & Son) served with malt bread is exceptional, and the wagyu bavette is a winner in the steak-sandwich stakes. With no dish over HK$200 (US$25) and no service charge, Cornerstone is a restaurant that merits seeking out any time of day, or even every day (49 Hollywood Rd., Central).
KINSHIP
Chris Grare and Arron Rhodes are strapping chefs. This is relevant to understanding the meals that await at Kinship, the offspring of a bromance that began when they met soon after arriving in Hong Kong seven years ago. Both came from finedining backgrounds but shared a vision to cook home-style meals for friends and family. With American Grare primarily in the kitchen and Englishman Rhodes overseeing the front of house, the food has a global outlook with a States-side bent: beef tartare with fresh lime sambal, roasted carrots served with almond butter and fresh curd, roasted spring chicken, sticky barbecue pork belly, a 20-ounce steak with blue cheese potato, and a classic-in-the-making Mr. Whippy dessert with salted caramel sauce. This is dude food for the #metoo era. Done up in international hipster style, Kinship is a place that’s as good for small groups as it is date night, with enough buzz to hide awkward silences, but not so loud that you can’t hear yourself talk ( 2-4 Shelley St., Central; 852/2520-0899; kinshiphk.com).
LOUISE
Julien Royer’s Odette restaurant in Singapore topped the Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants list in 2019 with boundary-pushing, Asianinfluenced modern French cuisine. Louise, his first venture in Hong Kong, is different. Here, Royer mines his childhood and roots