Messina iL Ristorante  

A long due review, but one which should not be missed. Give a chance a chance.

I confess I am very much a Hong Kong Island girl and often avoid going to the "dark side". However, Messina, being the "Best Restaurant of the Week" for the Restaurant Week Winter Edition 2013, undoubtedly caught my eyes and I decided to venture to Hung Hom for a dinner treat. A short walk to the Star Ferry pier from my office, a swift ferry ride across the beautiful Victoria Harbour and I hopped on a taxi which brought me straight to the Whampoa harbourfront tower which Messina is situated. Messina along with Yu Lei (Shanghainese restaurant) and Kazuo Okada (Japanese restaurant) make up the K.O. Dinning Group's three-restaurant gourmet hub in Hung Hom.

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Messina is named after a city in the northeast of Sicily, Italy. Not surprising that it serves Southern Italian cuisine, but (thanks to the head chef Francesco Greco) prepare to be pleasantly surprised by a blend of French teniques.

The restaurant itself is very spacious (key for an effective wind-down), with majestic cosy décor (loved the warm beige colour predominating the dinning area which contrasted well against the stunning harbourview at night), and we were certainly very glad to find good personal space for each table (you see, this is luxury in Hong Kong; not surprised to see many couples around romancing ).

To me, bread is one very significant aspect of each dinning experience (what may appear to be simplest is actually most testing). We were not disappointed here. A basket of warm, freshly baked bread was brought and introduced to us. I was particularly intrigued to find croissants which I guess ties in with the French influences. The soft and fluffy focaccia with the distinct rosemary aroma was a perfect match with the olive oil and balsamicAmuse Bouche. Pumpkin soup with balsamic elegantly drizzled on top. This welcome "shot" was much appreciated. Creamy, full body, scrumptiously rich in pumpkin, warm and a kick of balsamic. One fine example of a non-pretentious and seemingly simple amuse bouche which impresses. Hearty!As antipasto, we were presented the colourful and beautifully presented Sicilian Tomatoes Terrine and Burrata Cheese Salad. I particularly enjoyed the tomato terrine, which was a lovely twist from its usual form. The terrine filled me with pleasant tomato tang. It was rather sensational. Burrata was fresh, but could be better (I would prefer a creamier "heart"); but it served its role well balancing the tangy element of the dish. Nice caramelised onion beneath the salad on the left; the hints of balsamic added an extra dimension.Dry paccheri from Gragnano, Sicilian Red Prawns and Pachino Tomatoes as primo. Not many restaurants would readily "market" / openly "classify" that its pasta is "dry pasta"; this admittedly comes with certain unexciting connotation. But well, it is from Gragnano (a comune in Naples), so I guess we can excuse this (LOL). This pasta dish was splendid. Each paccheri was cooked to perfection; distinctive, al dente, full of character, rich in flavours and each generously absorbed up the Mediterranean goodness backed with the sweetness of Pachino tomatoes. Each spoonful displayed endless depth. A dish which deserves to be savoured with your eyes shut and let your mind dift. Very appetising. Memorable.For secondo, we had one of its signature dishes - Crispy Suckling Pig, braised lentils, Tropea onions marmalade and natural jus. Nice. The meat was flavourful, juicy and tender, good fat level, thick roasted skin but I wouldn't mind it crispier. The bed of lentils and onions soaked up the jus, were incredibly delicious and acted as the soul to the dish. To end as dolce, tiramisu - the very classic Italian dessert. I have a general preference for the very traditional type of tiramisu (good amount of liquor is a must). Nonetheless, I believe that it is important to keep an open mind and embrace other forms or interpretations of each dish ; as with Messina's take of "tiramisu". Nicely presented. Each spoonful was heavenly creamy; I loved the interplay of the almond gelato, rich mascarpone and aromatic coffee powder. Made my heart sing. (I wouldn't have appreciated it as much if I pigeon-holed this as a "tiramisu" per se.)



It was a delightful dinner and we ended with more philosophical discussions as I sipped up my earl grey tea.. not uncommon for my meals with Dr N. I guess -

Just as many aspects in life; sometimes a restaurant needs an opportunity. A chance to be known. A chance to be savoured. A chance to be appreciated.

Give a chance a chance.

Being a Hong-Kong-Islander, I do not often venture out of the island. However, when I was browsing through the list of restaurants on Restaurant Week, Messina caught my eyes right away! I have read articles on it but never had the motivation to go all the way to Hung Hom. Now that there was such a great deal for dinner (HKD 428 each), I decided to be adventurous and signed up! (It was until that day when I realized ferry service to Hung Hom had actually ceased 2 years ago lol)

We cabbed to the building but still it took us a while before we figured out its actual location. When we entered into the restaurant, the decor immediately brought me out of Hong Kong to an Euoprean Villa. Messina, named after a city in Sicily and located in the Central Mediterranean and south of Italy, raised my eagerness for a scrumptious meal for the night.

We were first served with a bread basket that the manager of the restaurant told us that these were all freshly made twice a day. I just could not hold back and finished the buttery croissant that was crispy on the surface and smelled so good inside. We were first offered olive oil and balsamic, later when the manager realized we were fans of balsamic, he brought a bit of Truffle Balsamic to us! The truffle smell flowed gently to me and it was indeed quite a surprise treat from the restaurant!Amuse Bouche - Pumpkin Soup was presented to the table not long after bread was served. There was a bit of balsamic on the top and it was rich with pumpkin. We gobbled it up in almost one go!Starting with the antipasti, it was Sicilian Tomatoes Terrine and Burrata Cheese Salad. Tomato with creamy Burrata has always been one of my all-time-favorites, and having the tomatoes prepared in terrine form was still good, while the mashed onion marinated with balsmic was quite special (beneath the vege).The first hot dish for the night was Dry paccheri from Gragnano, Sicilian Red Prawns and Pachino Tomatoes. Paccheri absorbed the taste of tomatoes and garlic well, a strong flavor of the Mediterranea, the prawn was not bad just that there was a comparison with other scampi on the plate which tasted better since they had absorbed more of the sauce.We have ordered the two choices of main so we could try out everything on the set menu. In fact I was a bit disappointed with the Crispy Suckling Pig, braised lentils, Tropea onions marmalade and natural jus. The skin was not cripsy enough and I did not find the meat to be particularly tender. I have had different styles of roasted suckling pigs before and this was among the less tasty ones. Seabass, artichokes and black Truffle was not bad. Texture was fine.The portion of each course was not huge, it was actually quite filling. Well, girls had an alternative stomach for dessert, and here it came! Tiramisu! It was very nicely presented and I loved the creaminess. We were also served with petit fours and tea as a lovely wrap-up for the dinner.Even though I am a foodie, this is actually the first year I try out restaurants during Restaurant Week and Messina was the only restaurant I have picked. It was overall a great experience, with decent food and excellent service. The manager talked us through the dinner, explaining descriptively every course and answering our questions with patience. Would definitely love to come again to try out its a la carte menu, perhaps there are other tasty mains!

This year’s Hong Kong Restaurant Week was the city's fourth one, and was held from 25 February to 3 March 2013 by Dining City and American Express. With over 70 restaurants participating, the idea was that an affordable, fixed-price menu would be available to give diners a chance to try out some of these places. There were three pricing categories: Category A (lunch HK$248/dinner HK$438), Category B (lunch HK$158/dinner HK$328) and Category C (lunch HK$98/dinner HK$258).

Restaurant Week is a concept that started in New York in 1998 and is now popular globally. My first Restaurant Week experience was during a trip to New York. My friends and I had a fabulous dinner at the high-end French restaurant Le Cirque for just around US$30 per head! In Hong Kong, the popular restaurants tend to be booked out as soon as the reservation period starts. The best things don’t come easy, so in order to get the best deals, be sure to check the Restaurant Week menu against the restaurant’s normal menu while making reservations. While bargains can be found, some “sneaky” restaurants may offer menus which are not priced much lower than their normal sets, or may only offer a very simple selection of dishes!

Visited Messina on Restaurant Week discount. Have to say this is one of the best dining experience i ever had in HK.

The restaurant is world class with the nicest ocean view you can ask for, and the food is just excellent. The kitchen is open so we got to see the busy chefs preparing our dishes, which is always amazing. The two managers both were very patient and descriptive with the offerings. We had a Three course meal but it was really a five course (3 appetizers, one maincourse and a dessert)

I had a pumpkin soup which was creamy and rich. the salad with tomato and mozarella (it was called another cheese but basically a sweeter mozarella) was lovely. for main course i had a sea bass which is again very well prepared.

the biggest surprise was the dessert- tiramisu which i think is the best one i ever had.

We had to pay around $500 per head after Restaurant Week discount. I think a normal dinner would cost more than this, and i think is pretty expensive - well worth the price based on the quality of this meal.

However they have set lunches that only start at $150, so i willl come back to try their lunches again for sure.

Messina iL Ristorante is an Italian restaurant located on the Whampoa waterfront. This is a rather unusual location for a fine dining restaurant considering that Whampoa is more of a low-profile residential area. There are major construction work going on in this area in preparation for the 2015 launch of a new metro line. So to avoid any hassles, taking a taxi there would be the safest bet.

The restaurant is situated on the fifth floor of a tall residential and office tower. There are all together 3 fine dining restaurants under the same group on that floor - Yu Lei (a Shanghainese restaurant), Kazuo Okada (a Japanese restaurant specializing in kaiseki) and Messina.

The restaurant is decorated predominantly in white and beige color with small patches of red and yellow. From its cozy design, we knew up front that this is not a family restaurant serving meatball spaghetti and pizza but a serious no-nonsense fine dining place billed to serve high-quality modern Italian cuisine.

The reception was attentive. I booked the table 2 days ago for lunch and they rang again this morning to confirm the booking again. Doors were opened for us when we entered the building and reception was waiting at the door to greet us.
This is my 2nd time to this restaurant and both visits were amazing.

Food, service and atmosphere are all great. Cannot ask for more.

If I have to pick the best dish, I think the Sicillian prawns pasta is amazing. My partner went for the Wagyu beef cheek, slowed cooked for 17 hours. Tender and juicy.

Lunch sets are at affordable prices and really quiet on weekdays which is great for customers!

A high class restaurant may symbolize many things, for example, proper service, interesting decor and good food, but Messina has surpassed all these mediocre expectations and presented itself with exemplary results.

First of all, I would like to mention its amiable hospitality. It starts once you exit the elevator doors and extremely welcoming members of staff are just waiting to guide you to your reserved seats. Throughout the entire meal everyone is just so helpful and willing to provide any type of service for you and your companions.

Secondly, I want to mention the restaurant’s interior design. I love the way the restaurant is partitioned into two seating sections. The first ‘room’ is slightly bigger, and is facing a magnifient view, highlighting Hong Kong harbour's majestic grandeur. The second space is a bit more private, and on Fridays, Saturdays and Sunday nights at 8 o’clock or so, a guitar and singer duo will come out to serenade you amongst the other diners. I would also like to draw attention to the partitions themselves. They use beautiful lampshades, of soft yet bright colors to partition. They not only functionally separate the spaces but also give a more romantic lighting source. Apart from those, there are large fixtures on the ceiling whichgive enough brightness.

Last but not certainly not least, is the gourmet delicacies of Messina. The night started off with a basket of the freshest bread you've ever tasted. I personally enjoyed the one with a cherry tomato on top the best. Waiters introduced the olive oil of the night, and poured it into the ceramic container in front of you.

The first course was a little palate cleanser which was a small portion of fennel jelly, topped with a few slices of blood orange and a dollop of orange foam. It was terribly refreshing and made you look forward to the rest of the meal.

The second course were the appetizers. Yup, it’s a plural, because from the menu, you got to choose three kinds of hot or cold portions out of:

Cold:
- Italian tomato and Taggiasche olive terrine
- yellow fin tuna carpaccio with Sicilian oranges
Hot:
- sardine in “Beccafico” served with candied cedro
- Sicilian red prawn, garlic and parsley

I chose the tomato terrine and 2 portions of the prawn. The tomatoes used in the terrine were terribly refreshing. The flavors blended into the olive mash perfectly. I certainly enjoyed that dish. But I really had a great time with the Sicilian prawns. I had previously tasted this dish before, so therefore, I knew in advance to order two portions, as they only served 1 prawn per order. I definitely recommend you to do the same. The prawns were served in a drizzle of a sensational tomato and garlic sauce, and the garlic was incorporated to give it that little wave of heat on your palate. The prawn itself was so tender and fresh, it tasted as if it was just caught out of the Sicilian waters! It certainly deserved some extra attention.

The third course was a beautiful Malvasia wine deglazed seafood soup in a crunchy bread crust. I enjoyed this soup a lot because of the pieces of seafood in the soup. I especially loved the scallop. It was tasty and tender, it’s shell must be so proud! The abalone and fish pieces were exceptional as well. I liked the crust on top of the soup too, the aroma of the olive oil was very strong and it complemented the flavors in the soup.

Next up was the dry paccheri pasta from Gragnano, served with lobster, scampi, Sicilian red prawns and Pachino tomatoes. I loved this dish. I did. It made your taste buds tingle every time the pasta landed on your tongue. It was cooked to perfection, not too soft, and I simply adored the seafood that went along with it. Most of all the lobster. You’ve GOT to try it! It was so beautiful that I simply could not explain it’s magnificence in words. I loved the tenderness and juiciness of the meat. Yum!

The fourth course was the main course. You had to choose between these three mains:
- black Angus prime rib with spring vegetables and a black truffle reduction. It is served with a plate of black truffle mashed potatoes.
- Japanese sea bream fillet cooked at a low temperature, with caramelized caponata and baby spinach
- Suckling pig on a bed of braised lentils, tropes onion marmalade and some natural jus

I chose the suckling pig because it was the signature dish of Messina. It was evidently a good choice. The skin was the best bit about the pork. It was so crunchy, that you could hear the skin cracking loud and clear when you bit into it! The meat itself literally melted in my mouth! P.S., my piece of pork had a little smiley face on the end! (coincidence?...)

A complimentary blood orange sorbet to cool your tongue was then served. Eat the candied orange slice, it was NOT a garnish, it was delicious! It was nice to get a more fruity citrus flavour after all the heavy courses. Totally refreshing and completely delightful.

Finally, we had arrived at my favorite course of any meal: DESSERT! This time, it was a Passito wine souffle served with a scoop of Bronte pistachio gelato covered with hazelnuts and almonds. I mildly enjoyed the souffle, but only because I was too young to get used to the alcohol. Nevertheless, I found the souffle itself nice and fluffy. The ice cream was not too hard or too soft, so that was good too.

So there you have it, my experience at Messina il Ristorante, and I hope I have convinced you of it’s superiority. Oops, I have forgotten to mention the price. For this menu, it costed around $1000 per head. Pricey, but taking everything into account, it definitely worths every penny.

When you talk about Italian restaurant, most people would think of pasta and pizza, but this restaurant is somewhat different. Read about this fine dining Italian restaurant in a magazine which serves Sicilian (southern Italian) cuisine and pasta and pizza isn't the main focus, so decided to try it.

The decor is very chic and spacious, with an open kitchen and big window overlooking the Victoria Harbour, the atmosphere is quite romantic.

Both my bf and I had the testing menu which has 5course + coffee / tea.Tuna with blood orange and flower petals. First time having fresh flower petals in a meal.Paccheri pasta with lobster, scampi & sicilian red prawns. This was so good, probably the best pasta I ever had.The outside skin was so cripy and the actual meat was so tender, literarily melt in the mouth. It's very different from the Chinese style sucking pig. Higly recommend!The fig and mandarin paired so well with the different kinds of chinese.Souffle and hazelnuts, almonds & pistachio ice-cream. The warm souffle was so light, if you like souffle then you'll fall in love with it, espand also to my surpise, it paired extrodinary well with the ice-cream.These little snacks/chcoclate came with the coffee or tea, it's such a perfect way to finish off the meal.

The waiters and restaurant manager were very friendly and would explain every dish to you. Very good service! The restaurant atmosphere was very romantic and quiet, perfect for couple or friends gathering. Definitely would come back again!