The Press Room - (Hong Kong)

  The Press Room is predominantly a French Bistro and part of a larger consortium which also owns a chain of Classified cheese rooms and restaurants as well as The Pawn and the News Room,  and one of their investors owns one of the largest wine auction houses in town.  One of my favourite venues within their group is the bar section of The Pawn,  where one finds an array of British staple foods and reminds me of gastro pub British/Australian fare!   The Press Room serves solid French food and with an emphasis on both fresh seafood and shellfish as well as meat. 

 

 

Inside -

 

 

Front Seafood Bar -

 

 

Bread with Olive Oil -
The bread was ok but the olive oil was a little bland..

 

 

Salmon and Cod Fish Cake, wilted Spinach and Beurre Blanc -  HKD $89
This was done pretty well,  although there was way too much garlic hiding in the spinach pile.  The sauce was a little too buttery,  but overall this was an enjoyable dish bar the garlic!  ~  7/10

 

 

 

Moules Mariniere Frites -  HKD $189
The mussels are from Australia and pretty plump compared to French Blue mussels,  but the latter has slightly more sea sweetness -  I like them both!   This dish however was a little too garlicky once again and the wine within was a bit bitter,  the soup was also a little thin.  Not bad,  but wasn’t overly balanced compared to the best moules marinieres I’ve had ~  6/10

 

 

Frites -
Pomme Frites as described by others are the ‘it’ here in town.  There is simply no comparison when it comes to fries as these were crispy-powdery but had a nice potato taste with skin on.  The only other version I remember which was on level with here is the ones served at Bettys Kitschen.  ~ 10/10

 

 

Lobster Risotto (Half Portion) -  HKD $155
This is a bargain!!  There are a lot of boston lobster meat and a strong crustacean taste in the well cooked risotto which was al dente.  But there were 2 problems,  this was overly herbed with both dill and thyme which really distracted from the flavour,  and most importantly much like the mussels dish above this was too bitter from alcohol input.   Lobster risotto has been a signature at The Press Room for many years even before one of their chefs had left,  and on this occasion it seemed promising but that bitterness and herbalness made it unbalanced…    ~    6.9/10

 

Oysters and Clams seem really fresh and of the better Varieties -
Will come back to try these one day!

Price: $200 to 300 per person + 10%
Food:  ♕♕♕ 1/2  (pretty promising actually, minus the slight executional balance!)

Address: 上環荷里活道108號
108 Hollywood Road, Sheung Wan
Ph: 2525 3444