A HONG KONG KIND OF DECEMBER
This month: food, glorious food
PUTTING ON THE pounds at Christmas is as natural as putting on sunscreen in summer, so get a head start on your festive padding with these new restaurant openings: The Black Sheep Restaurants group adds another outlet to its international flock – this time bringing the soulful flavours of Tuscany to trattoria-style Associazione Chianti (1) in Wan Chai. Nearby, new casual Thai restaurant Ruam (2) serves up a classic menu of favourites on a leafy al fresco terrace. Across the harbour, droves of diners are heading to Tsim Sha Tsui to check out a flurry of new dining destinations. The Araki (3) at House 1881 in Tsim Sha Tsui opens this month, led by Mitsuhiro Araki – the only Japanese chef to achieve three Michelin stars in both Tokyo and London. Expect locally sourced seafood, such as mantis shrimp and fish maw, plus premium seafood imported from Japan. Or if you prefer more casual environs: Kido (4) has opened on Minden Avenue with a traditional Fukuoka-style hakata-ku skewer bar: yes, there will be all the yakitori chicken skewers you can handle, alongside vegetable and healthy options. Hong Kong’s newest luxury hotel, the Rosewood, has also debuted a host of new dining options. There’s the nutritious and sustainable menu options in Asaya Kitchen (5) for wellness seekers; all- day dining with a food-market feel at Bayfare Social (6); and American steakhouse Henry for serious carnivores. The hotel has also welcomed XX (7) -a women-only speakeasy (named after the pair of XX chromosomes) housed in a luxurious velvet- draped parlour for which you’ll need password access. Ready for dessert? Head over to new bakery Dang Wen Li in TST by Dominique Ansel, the French pastry chef and inventor of the famous cronut (a croissant- doughnut hybrid).在聖誕佳節盡情吃喝，添上一點幸福肥，就像在夏天塗防曬品那樣自然不過。以下幾間新開業的餐廳，是你快樂地增磅的好去處。
Black Sheep Restaurants餐飲集團旗下擁有多間提供不同國家菜式的食府，最近更再添一員：在灣仔開設的意大利托斯卡尼小餐館Associazione
Chianti( 1)呈奉窩心家鄉菜。附近則有另一家全新的泰國餐廳Ruam(2)，那裡氣氛輕鬆舒適，設有一個綠蔭下的室外用餐區，讓客人享用各式大受歡迎的經典美食。
一海之隔，尖沙咀同樣教一眾食客趨之若鶩。尖沙咀1881公館本月迎來壽司大師荒木水都弘的江戶前壽司店
The Araki(3)，他是唯一一名先後在東京和倫敦均摘下米芝蓮三星的日本大廚，他除了會從日本進口頂級海產，更會利用瀨尿蝦和花膠等香港食材炮製壽司。至於同區的棉登徑則開設傳統福岡博多串燒專門店
Kido( 4)，除了燒雞串燒讓你填飽肚子，還有不少蔬菜和其他輕怡選擇。
最近開業的豪華酒店香港瑰麗酒店多間餐廳和酒吧亦陸續開業： Asaya Kitchen( 5)主打營養豐富和可持續發展食材的菜式，專為講求健康養生的食客而設； Bayfare Social(6)則在猶如美食市場的環境全天候提供餐飲；還有美式牛扒餐廳Henry可滿足嗜肉的老饕；而只招待女士的酒吧XX( 7) （名字來自女性的染色體），如想造訪這間裝潢華麗的酒吧，你要先掀起絲絨布幕，並輸入密碼才可進入。
盛載甜品的胃蠢蠢欲動了？法國糕餅大師Dominique Ansel在尖沙咀剛開設當文歷餅店，人氣甜品牛角冬甩就是由他創製的。