Spring Moon・嘉麟樓
chineseCantonese・
Tsim Sha Tsui
Review
Date of review: September 26, 2016 | Reviewed by: Esther Wong
Setting
Situated on the first floor of the iconic Peninsula Hotel, Spring Moon pays homage to a bygone era, reminiscent of late-1920s old Shanghai. The restaurant is designed to emulate a courtyard house, with the main dining area overlooked by a private dining room. Stained glass windows feature prominently in the space, along with antiqued teak floors and Art Deco-inspired lines. Miniature clay teapots and other curios are displayed around the well-spaced tables.
Food
Traditional Cantonese fare is the name of the game here, with dishes made for sharing. To whet the appetite, the well-portioned hot and sour lobster soup finely balances the opposing flavours and adds an element of indulgence by including generous chunks of the crustacean. A restaurant signature, the juicy meat and crispy skin of the roasted Peking duck is exquisitely prepared and expertly carved table-side, and paired with steamed buns and other accoutrements; the rest of the bird is then taken to be prepared into a dish of your choosing. For a sweet ending, the double-boiled papaya with snow fungus and red dates is a classic combination of ingredients for a dessert that leaves you wanting more, and is served in a light syrup that helps to enhance the flavour of all the ingredients in the dish. However, less successful is the chilled sesame pudding—although we enjoyed the playful yin yang presentation of the pudding with white and black sesame, we felt that the sesame flavour was rather light, making the dish disappointingly bland.
Wine
The carefully curated wine list comprises bottles from most of the world’s wine-producing regions. A range of Chinese liquors and spirits are also available, but don’t skip over the excellent selection of premium Chinese teas, which are neatly categorised by style to make it easier to find one to your liking.
Service
Service is excellent and staff show great knowledge of the food and wine menus, as is expected with The Peninsula hotel. Used dishes are swiftly changed, and tea cups are never left empty.
Price $$$$
A filling dinner for two including a drink each comes to approximately HK$2,000, which is good value considering the level of service and quality of food.