影片
从小到大，都是妈照顾我们的起居饮食、温习功课。爸嘛，专门对抗妈的零用钱管制，考试时间带我们去游山玩水，抱著我们上山下海。嬉皮笑脸的背后，爸负起养活一家的经济压力，其实有苦自己知。五月给一家之煮庆祝完母亲节，来到六月的父亲节，又是慰劳我们的一家之主的时候。想吃中菜，又不想忍受酒楼的嘈吵和过时过节、贵夹不好吃的套餐，除了贵价的中菜厅，可以选择美味又抵食的私房菜。爱私房菜，欣赏店方的用心、对食物的认真，集亲切的气氛，贴心的服务，高质的食物于一身。订座时，订好十道菜的餐牌。老板先给我们建议，再按照我们的要求作更改，共有80道菜可供选择。这天来到，餐牌已印制好，放在宽阔的圆桌上，迎接我们。醉鲍鱼拌沙律第一道先来一大碟沙律，一人一只，共八只鲍鱼，派头十足。鲍鱼都几大只，猜每只有7－8cm长。偏硬的弹牙，很有嚼劲，散发著阵阵清新而柔和的酒香。切成小块，逐少细嚼，享受满口腔的细腻花雕香，醉鲍鱼实在醉人。沙律新鲜，以软身的叶为主，跟鲍鱼的弹牙成对比。以少量的橄㰖油和黑醋调味，还有粒粒爽口、清甜的石榴。蜜汁鸡膶叉烧找到冲菜，全因这道叉烧。试过的同事对它赞口不绝，而极力推介。长形碟子载满叉烧，一旁是鸡膶。叉烧配鸡膶，第一时间就想到金钱鸡。一块叉烧，一层肥膏，一片鸡膶，有肉的咬口、脂肪溶成的油、肝脏的口感，堪称最邪恶的人间美食之一。想吃好，又不想放緃，这道菜正合心意。叉烧切成细细块，跟一般的叉烧相比，甚至可视其为叉烧粒。蜜味十足，够甜而不过份，入口自然。叉烧不算肥，但不嚡不韧，颇有嚼劲，又够湿润。偶尔夹到连著白色部份的叉烧，入口却没有化成油香，而是带香的软韧，健康又滋味。来自厚度的口感，比大块的叉烧更集中，细细粒亦使人不知不觉地更留神地品味。再兴的叉烧较腍、蜜汁甜而黏，粤轩的较有嚼劲、蜜味较浓、烧得较香，冲菜的叉烧较爽，味道细腻。鸡膶带轻轻的湿润，口感少少实而丰盈。慢慢咀嚼，享受它在口里黏黏实实的口感。黄金锅巴以蛋黄炸的锅巴，看似某日本牌子的朱古力。咬下去极脆，边听著耳边传来的咔嚓声，边吃到浓郁的蛋黄香，天然地为锅巴调味。除了味道，蛋黄的粉、锅巴的脆，原来是完美的配搭。青芥辣西芹拌手撕鸡讲到芥辣手撕鸡，不禁想起陈根记。清新的芥辣加上大排档的风味，叫人回味。登堂入室来到冲菜，换个充满线条美的碟子，整齐地堆成一座小山，同一道菜变得优雅脱俗。青瓜和西芹切成手指般粗，混了适量的wasabi沙律酱，沙律酱控制整个酱汁的湿度和浓稠度，芥辣则为其调味。颇呛，但不过份，泪水就在那流与未流的边界，十分惹味。青瓜和西芹很爽，甚为清新。新鲜鸡造的鸡丝，嫩滑、鲜味十足。突然吃到久违的鲜味，感慨生活水平改善，世界却变得复杂。有些人为了图利而不惜偷工减料、剥削员工，失去了简单、原始的味道、人情味。有心的餐厅，在成本上涨的环境里，挣扎求存，更值得支持。杏汁雪耳白肺汤虽然杏汁味不算出，但在清淡的汤里，喝到啖啖心机。长时间熬制，用了金华火腿，完全没有下盐。又清又稀，不似一般老火汤，表层浮著一层黄色的油。白肺洗得干净，毫无腥味，入口滑溜溜，沾点轻轻带辣的豉油，味道一流。从汤渣里滋润的雪耳、熬得又腍又香的猪骨、白肺和金华火腿，证实汤的真材实料。香草胡椒虾虾用热辣辣的铁锅上，仍有一丝丝柔弱的白烟，让胡椒和虾的香在空气中传开。大大只虾，脚已去掉，只需简单地用刀叉把虾壳扯开，完整的虾身呈现眼前。新鲜虾的肉特别爽口，带虾的清甜。碰巧咬到一粒胡椒粒，那阵香气更是惹味，跟虾亦衬。虾头内藏不少膏，嗓出啖啖鲜味，顺道吃到腌到虾壳里的金不换和胡椒香，味道一流。豆酥桂鱼上菜时，店员著我们留心吃豆酥，是这道菜的精萃。何谓豆酥？店员请来大厨兼老板向我们讲解。一般豆酥以黄豆渣做，黄豆的香都去了渣出来的汁，渣会淡而无味。这个豆酥的做法是把黄豆稍为打烂，保持咬口，同时保留黄豆味，然后加不同的调味，再经过炒和炸。蒸好的桂鱼去掉水，铺上豆酥，既增加口感，又有调味之效。干爽又脆的豆酥，咸咸甜甜的，为嫩滑无比的桂鱼肉轻轻地调味，两者很夹，入口柔和。桂鱼两旁去了骨，只剩下中间最大那条骨，使其成型。吃下去啖啖肉，又鲜又嫩又湿润。蜜汁火方第一眼以为是东坡肉，竟是金华火腿。虽然脂肪看似很厚，但经过多小时的熬制，油都被熬出来。熬出来的油，加入各种调味料，制成带甜的酱汁。老板说，怕肥的话，脂肪可以照吃，汁吃少一点就好了。脂肪部份，入口即溶，却没化成油脂，毫不油腻，口里只遗下一阵猪肉的鲜味。肉则偏咸。毕竟是金华火腿。浸过糖水的莲子，炆得腍，少少粉，带点甜，可以中和火腿的咸。馒头夹脂肪，莲子配火腿，一啖又一啖。讲好只能浅尝，最后却全碟清光。瑶柱焖节瓜吃完最浓味的蜜汁火方，来个清淡的焖节瓜，让味蕾从高潮冷静下来。爽口的节瓜，以瑶柱的鲜稍作调味，清而不淡。腰果露汤圆来到尾声，以腰果露作结。浓稠的腰果露煮得幼滑，入口顺喉。只带微甜，腰果味明显。内有两粒芝麻汤圆，皮薄馅多。入口滑溜溜，皮薄得任舌头搓圆按扁，又烟韧得不易弄破。咬开爆出芝麻蓉，够香。不过，汤圆的甜使腰果露变得淡味。吃完汤圆得喝啖水，不然腰果露便吃之无味了。从每一道菜的选材、调味、做法，都吃到店方的心思。每道呈上的菜，都有种珍而重之的感觉，此感觉只有在私房菜才找得到。老板除了在厨房当大厨，还抽空到各枱跟客人谈几句，介绍菜式，毫不吝啬地分享烹调的方法。爸的好评，让我为选对餐厅而沾沾自喜。感谢店方让我们大饱口福，亦心满意足。
继续阅读
For the Lunar Near Year reunion dinner on my dad's side this year, my dad decided to choose a new restaurant for us to try out. It was a little difficult to find George Private Kitchen as it is located inside a small hotel, and the private kitchen shares the space of a Korean restaurant. Apparently, the Korean restaurant doesn't get a lot of business in the evening, so George Private Kitchen could use the space.As the restaurant is a private kitchen, my dad set the menu when he made the reservation.In lieu of a corkage fee, George charges patrons who wish to bring their own wine by the number of glasses required, which is an interesting concept and understandable as it is a private kitchen.The place setting is quite standard, but the waiters were quite efficient in replacing our bowls and plates throughout the meal.Sautéed Morchella Mushrooms with Kaofu: The kaofu was a little bland to my liking, as I prefer the sweeter Shanghainese version of kaofu. But, the rest of the dish was really nice. The edamame was really toothsome, and the morchella mushroom had a delightful woody flavor.Char Siu & Chicken Liver in Maltose Sauce: Everyone's hands shot up when asked if we wanted some rice when this dish arrived. The char siu was tender but not overly soft, and the chicken liver was tender throughout without any tough pieces. The sauce was the highlight of the dish; with the maltose in the sauce, it had a pleasant sweetness that was not harsh and overwhelming!Yangzhou-style Lion's Head in Clear Broth: The Lion's Head meatball was a tad greasy for me and my brother, where we thought that they could have probably had a smaller ratio of fat to meat ratio in the meatball. Other than that, the broth was really delectable.Stewed Thread Fin Fish: This preparion of fish is different from the ordinary steamed fish, and the fish turned out to be very tender. The ginger and spring onions were very aromatic and made the fish even more savory!Double Boiled Ham Hock Stuffed with Chinese Golden Ham: I'm not a big fan of pork but decided to try the ham hock anyway, as it is stuffed with Chinese ham which would cover up the pork flavor that I don't like. The Chinese ham made the ham hock very fragrant, and the skin of the ham hock has melted a bit in the cooking process which made the meat quite succulent!Steamed Greens with Pickled Mustard Hearts: This dish was so good that I was talking about it to the rest of my friends and family throughout the Lunar Near Year celebration period! The steamed vegetables were perfectly crunchy, and the best part of the dish was the pickled mustard hearts! I haven't had mui choy that tastes this good in years! It was prepared perfectly with just the right amount of sweetness and crunch!Classic Chicken with Scalions: As soon as this dish arrived at our table, the delightful aroma of the scallions caught the attention of our noses! Chef George told us that this is a very traditional preparation, and even though, he's not very particular about which type of chicken he uses, he makes sure the fresh chicken he uses is of high quality. The chicken was very tender, and scallions and sauces mixture in the bottom of the pot was really delicious!Tofu Skin & Coix Seed Sweet Soup: Tofu Skin sweet soup is not on my list of favorites when it comes to Chinese desserts, but this one really surprised me! All of the tofu skin had already melted, so, along with the job's tears, they gave the sweet soup a smooth, velvety texture. My brother and I usually pick out the ginkgo nuts from everything, but we finished them in this sweet soup as the ginkgo nuts were really soft and were not bitter at all!George Private Kitchen emphasizes on high quality, yet simple, ingredients combined with excellent cooking techniques, which delivers delicious dishes with complex flavor profiles! It is a gem hidden in the midst of Wanchai!
继续阅读