Where to Eat: Top Restaurants to Try This October

This month, we welcome autumn with new menus showcasing the best of what this cosy season has to offer.

Embla Welcomes Autumn With Seasonal Menu

One of the few Nordic restaurants in Hong Kong – and the best, we’d argue – Embla has now introduced a new seasonal menu for autumn and it’s definitely something gastronomes across the city shouldn’t miss. Priced at $1,288, the dinner menu starts with a few Nordic snacks before introducing apPetisers such as cured rainbow trout with black radish, essence of tomato and coffee oil or female mud cram with shiitake, kohlrabi and apple espuma. Next up is a choice of king oyster mushroom, toasted yeast bouillon, dulse and sweet and sour pumpkin purée or a North Atlantic cod with baby leeks and razor clams in Sandefjord sauce and pike roe, before moving to the mains: aged duck with spring carrots, orange and sea buckthorn sauce or A4 Wagyu striploin with variations of turnip, cinnamon and coffee jus. Finally, conclude your meal with a rapeseed sorbet with poached rhubarb, meringue and vanilla and rose mousse as well as a inspired take on Fika. Most of the same dishes are also available for lunch as part of a smaller tasting menu, which goes for $688. For something a little extra, we also recommend going for the Gubbröra, an Embla signature for sharing. Translating to “Gentleman’s Delight,” the dish is a traditional Swedish creation featuring a mixture of smoked eel, pickled herring, eggs, dill, chives and crisp bread, all of which are topped with Ossetra Caviar and enjoyed alongside a small glass of Gustav dill vodka. – Jeff Yeung

Udatsu Sushi Opens First Location Outside of Tokyo in Hong Kong

With a Michelin star under his belt in Tokyo, sushi chef and owner Hisashi Udatsu has now opened his first location outside of the Japanese city. Located in Tsim Sha Tsui’s scenic FWD House 1881, Udatsu Sushi is a cosy 12-seater omakase experience offering the best of what the Land of the Rising Sun has to offer, from its two distinct batches of premium sushi rice and blends of brewed vinegars to the 150-year-old Yoshino cypress counter you get to enjoy your meal on. The Hong Kong branch is helmed by chef Hiroki Nakamura, a protégé of chef Udatsu’s who has worked for him for 13 years in Tokyo, reaching the rank of sous chef. The menu for our evening visit featured both classics and innovative dishes, such as double sea urchin with seaweed tempura nigiri, white fish sashimi with ponzu, local eel nigiri, abalone with dashi soup, fried horse mackerel with tartare, satsuma-age, double smoked fatty tuna, sea urchin gunkan, tuna futomaki, and the restaurants signature: the seasonal herb roll. – Jeff Yeung

Cornerstone Offers a Taste of Chef Neal Ledesma’s Heritage

Under the leadership of Hong Kong-born Filipino Neal Ledesma, The Arcane Collective’s contemporary bistro Cornerstone has now launched a new menu inspired by the chef de cuisine’s Asian heritage and roots whilst celebrating the core tenets of Shane Osborn’s cooking philosophy: seasonal produce and bold flavours. The menu now offers refreshingly exciting creations such as white asparagus with moringa pesto, macadamia salted duck egg and creamy avocade; beef carpaccio peppered with Sichuan spice, pickled celery, black garlic purée and fresh watercress; Sakura prawn fritter with pumpkin purée, crisp lettuce, radish and calamansi mayonnaise; Cantonese-inspired “char siu” glazed octopus; and jumbo quail risotto with Yunan morels and madeira jus. Enjoy them as part of a three-course set dinner menu available from Monday to Wednesday every week for $488, or a la carte all week. – Jeff Yeung

Hutong Puts a Spin on Traditional Dim Sum

Award-winning Northern Chinese restaurant Hutong is back with a new seasonal menu. The Bei Fang Dim Sum Series, which features the addition of unique dishes curated by talented Hutong chefs all over the world, seamlessly blends the comforting taste of Northern Chinese flavours with the beloved Cantonese dimsum– a first of its kind. The menu will feature the addition of eight modern-style dim sum–eight because of its symbolic and virtuous meaning in Chinese– from the Pan-fried Lamb Bamboo Charcoal Bao, to the Wagyu Beef and Black Truffle Siu Mai, each dish is designed to take your tastebuds on a unique culinary adventure. When it comes to the signature dish of Hutong, the flaming Peking duck reigns supreme. It has now been reimagined as the Shredded Duck and Foie Gras Spring Roll, with a decadently tender duck filling and juicy foie gras as garnish. This, among the many other dimsum in the series, delivers the taste of beloved Chinese dishes in the form of a quick bite. The menu will be available beginning 8 October and can be ordered at lunch like traditional dim sum, or during the evening time in a tasting platter or a la carte. – Shada Vijitkasemkij

Veda Has a Secret Menu … For Kids

I thought this was an incredibly fun concept – what better way to introduce children to new foods (anything other than chicken tenders or mac & cheese, please) than with a fun, interactive, “secret” menu? Veda Cafe & Bar, serving vegetarian Indian cuisine, might not always be on our radar, but their hearty flavours and light, crispy dosas are so mouthwateringly good it keeps a loyal clientele coming back. And now, with its new hidden menu, they’ve attracted a new bunch of loyal customers, young guests who delight in using red perspex glasses or magnifying glass to decipher a menu full of fun new flavours and surprises. The secret menu is thoughtfully curated and designed to introduce children to Indian cuisine through simple, yet flavourful dishes that are typical of an Indian household. Yellow Dhal and Rice, Cheese Dosa and Spinach and Ricotta Momo that’s served with a Coconut Chutney were all greatly received by our young taster (his grubby hands pictured here). The adults delighted in the standard menu too – not to be missed are the Gunpowder Cheese Dosa (comes with a slight kick), the Roasted Cauliflower and Potatoes in a Coconut and Lentil sauce, as well as the Pani Puri, served with a deliciously vibrant cilantro and lime sauce. – Stephanie Ip