8½ Otto e Mezzo BOMBANA

funny thing is a few weeks before eating at otto, someone emailed me a critical article from SCMP last dec (www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-wine/article/1373754/food-critic-andy-hayler-says-local-michelin-guide-gets-it-badly). andy hayler's suspicion matches mine when i looked at the michelin list prior to the article...

i brought it up here to emphasize my impression after eating there is already precautionary in not biased 1 way or the other. afterall, a self-respecting foodie will never be influenced by other reviews or critiques, or whether there are stars or not.

1st, as expected, each dish is high priced w/o logical reasoning. 2nd, as expected, each dish is meticulously created & executed. 3rd, as expected, the food is tiny but tastes wonderful if u ignore the physical & price shortcomings! 4th, as expected, the place is comfy & the service is unimpeachable!

but but, why did i feel like eating in a high class cafeteria? was it the mechanical demeaner of the staff, including bombana himself who happened to be chatting w/ staff at the front door just as we entered & who only made a polite nod to us? (that definitely is not italian warmth.) or was it the contemporary, oversized yet stone-cold interior & decor that alienate the italian culture?

not only that, but but i did not sense, see or taste abundance of creativity nor wow factor in what we ate. as they say so often, the body beauty is there but w/o adorable soul!

yes, the roast duck foie gras was tasty, the crab caviar salad was unusual yet plain, the king prawn chitarra was awesome in size, the veal agnolotti w/ black truffle was fantastic... everything is a foodie's delight, except i saw little difference or distinction from a high end "contemporary" or "california" or "fusion" cuisine elsewhere in any major global city.

if u have eaten at L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon, u know what i mean & u should be able to tell the difference too! so far in this hk match, french 1, italian 0!