Imperial Kitchen

Address: 5/F, The Lee Gardens, 33 Hysan Avenue, Causeway Bay
Tel: 2577 2018, 2882 3002

A growing number of Chinese restaurants in Hong Kong blend together cuisines from different regions of the country. At Imperial Kitchen, the menu encompasses both Peking and Shanghainese specialities, including its signature Peking Duck that puts the restaurant on the dining map.

Imperial Kitchen is unfailingly popular with both locals and tourists. It takes up a large space that is consistently full of loud conversation and the sound of serving. Private dining rooms are available and even come with their own televisions. Servers decked out in pink coats and ear microphones swiftly refill tables' teapots with grace and experience.

The picture-based, bilingual menu offers pages and pages of dining options. Lunch or dinner can easily turn into a Chinese feast. For starters, the chicken thoroughly marinated in rice wine sauce and served cold is a star, and the hot and sour soup, a Shanghainese favourite, is warm and hearty with a spicy kick.

The Peking duck, with its beautifully crisp dark brown skin, is a royal dish at Imperial Kitchen, carved at the table after being air-dried, coated in syrup and soy sauce and roasted. After the carved meat is placed on a plate, diners immediately reach into it with their chopsticks. The duck slices are then wrapped in this pancakes with onion, cucumber and thick Hoisin sauce. The balance of sweet and succulent is an ultimate pleaser. Don't be surprised when the duck disappears as quickly as it is cut.

Lung King Heen

Address: Podium 4, Four Seasons Hotel, 8 Finance Street, Central
Tel: 3196 8888

Cantonese takes on a contemporary edge at Lung King Heen. Meaning 'View of the Dragon', the open restaurant overlooks Victoria Harbour and the Central ferry piers. This theme is present throughout the space; even the show plates, specially designed for the restaurant, symbolise light reflecting off the harbour. The restaurant's feel is subtle and chic, with little touches like colourful, fine Indonesian silk thread wall coverings and silver Italian silk foil ceiling, all handcrafted.

The understated yet sophisticated design not only enhances the refined atmosphere of the restaurant, but also brings the cultural heritage of Hong Kong into Lung King Heen in a novel way, much like its menu. In a number of dishes, some Western ingredients are used with Chinese cooking methods, like truffles with steamed lobster and Chilean sea bass with ginger and spring onions.

The cross-boundary fusion is also present in the dim sum selection. The baked whole abalone puffs with diced chicken are glowing sweet and savoury delights, while the signature steamed lobster and scallop dumplings are wrapped in naturally green spinach.

For other starters and mains, dishes become heartier. The barbequed suckling pig, served with thick, curly, crunchy jellyfish, encases soft, succulent meat with a crisp outside. The baked crab offers loads of creamy, uninhibited crab meat, one mouthful after another, while the braised fresh abalone and goose liver in abalone sauce combine typical Cantonese and French fare.

At Lung King Heen, dining is a enchanting journey through Cantonese heritage and Chinese modern cuisine. The innovative dishes easily please, creatively enhancing traditional Cantonese specialities and offering a delectable meal with a view fit for a dragon.

Yunyan Szechuan Restaurant

Address: 4/F, Miramar Shopping Centre, 132-134 Nathan Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon.
Tel: 2375 0800

Yunyan is all about the food - authentic Sichuan cuisine at its best. The decor isn't the swankiest, the view isn't the most stunning, but none of this matters when the plates arrive at your table.

Located in the Miramar Shopping Centre, the restaurant is open and welcoming, with a traditional Eight Treasure Teapot, fit with its thin, lengthy spout, displayed at the entrance. In Sichuan cuisine, each dish has its own single taste. The Appetizer Platter with warm, pan-fried vegetarian beancurd sheet rolls, shredded chicken with spicy sesame sauce, sliced pork with garlic and chilli soya sauce and spicy crispy thin-cut beef slices is a good example to start off the meal.

It is hard to find an unsatisfying dish at Yunyan and contrary to common belief, not everything is overwhelmingly spicy. The king prawns, topped with a typical Sichuan sauce made to taste fishy for a landlocked region, are superb, while the signature Mandarin fish slices covered in yellow beans are soft, warm and absolutely delightful.

The Sichuan reputation for zing comes out with the chicken covered in bright red chillies. After a small bite, a gradual tingle rolls through the mouth until it feels like an exploding firecracker. This is an addictive dish. Another steamy dish is the bowl of small, scrumptious pork wontons topped with dark chilli sauce.

If you're overcome by the heat, order the house Chinese herbal drink, a soothing red combination of Chinese herbs, lemon juice and sugar, and end the meal with the moon-shaped, jello-like milk pudding and striped sesame dumplings.

Time and time again, Yungan Szechuan Restaurant is voted one of the best in Hong Kong, and after over a decade of operation, it hasn't lost its touch.