Dining Alfresco

Find yourself an outdoor dining spot to relax and enjoy Hong Kong’s November weather. Here are three of our favourites.

The Grill at Plateau

Address: 11th Floor, Grand Hyatt, 1 Harbour Road, Wan Chai
Tel: 2584 7623

The dim lights, the airiness, the muted sound of the pool’s rushing waterfall… they all work together to create a romantic and relaxing ambience perfect for a cool night in the city. Everything about Grand Hyatt’s poolside dinner buffet is impressive, from the evocative atmosphere of the outdoor deck to the attentive service and the ceaselessly replenished fresh seafood. You will not want to leave.

The buffet is quartered off into sections, and food selections differ by the day. Your first stop should be the salad bar, which has practically every kind of salad imaginable. This is no do-it-yourself table piled with raw vegetables. Apart from standard green lettuce and numerous dressings, there are about a dozen pre-mixed salads, including such choices as tomato and basil and string beans with zucchini and onions.

You might not notice the few plates of cold cuts and cheese as your eye will certainly be drawn towards the large display of fresh seafood on mounds of ice that never seems to become depleted due to the diligence of the staff. Steamed Boston lobsters and crab claws easily slide out of their shells. Other cold seafood items are poached prawns, mussels and sea snails.

The main attraction is the grill, giving off intense heat and smoke amid the display of grilled selections. A carnivore’s delight, the meat selection includes lamb chops, three types of homemade sausage (lamb, chicken and pork), fish, chicken wings, wagyu beef and surprisingly tender and tasty short ribs. Heated pots of grilled vegetables offer up corn, potatoes, sweet potato, broccoli with cream and mushrooms, so vegetarians need not fret.

The dessert table has several cakes with unusual ingredients, such as baked figs and raspberry cake or zucchini and walnut cake. Passion fruit madeleines and the chocolate hazelnut friands are safe bets for any serious sweet tooth.

The Grill’s barbecue dinner buffet is available daily from 6.30pm to 10pm.

Saigon at Stanley

Address: Shop 101, Murray House, Stanley
Tel: 2899 0999

Saigon at Stanley offers the perfect location for a relaxing outdoor dining experience. Murray House is a beautiful colonial building built in 1844, and the restaurant’s thoughtful design keeps in line with the building’s architecture. The large outdoor terrace with a sweeping view of the South China Sea is a soothing spot to kick back with some Vietnamese food as old-style rattan ceiling fans lazily sway back and forth. The colonial design continues into the décor of the inside dining area with the lush colours, elegant curves and refined mouldings of a bygone era.

American chef Jeffrey LeBon spent time in Hanoi becoming a connoisseur of its street foods, and the dishes are inspirations from his travels. Signature starters have an upscale feel, such as the deep fried duck pâté; the crunchy battered pâté pieces are reminiscent of Vietnam’s history as a French colony. The grilled baby squid stuffed with chopped vegetables and seafood is beautifully presented, and the accompanying fish sauce brings out all the flavours.

Fresh rice paper rolls are a typical Vietnamese food, and the decadent type, such as the ones made here, uses soft-shell crab and avocado, creating what looks and tastes like a Vietnamese version of a spider sushi roll. The green papaya and rare beef salad is a bit spicy and very refreshing with its crunchy strips of papaya and carrot and flavours of lime, peanuts and mint – perfect for a warm outdoor setting.

For mains, try the ‘Hanoi-style hotpot’ with fillet of garoupa and rice vermicelli, which is a take on a famous Vietnamese dish called cha ca. The fish is marinated and then cooked with spring onions, dill and peanuts. The pork with rice vermicelli is also highly recommended. Two types of pork – sliced pork belly and minced pork cake – are served with a flavourful caramel sauce.

Vietnamese coffee is a must, and to go along with it are some fabulous desserts. The barbequed pineapple crepe is served with diced fruit, sticky sweet caramel sauce and apricot-ginger ice cream created by the chef. If you just can’t get enough of the strong coffee, the Viet ca phe crème brulée is for you.

Manta Ray

Address: Shop G08B, Block A, The Plaza, Discovery Bay
Tel: 2987 2298

Discovery Bay is only a 30-minute boat ride away from Central, but the journey will transport you to an immaculate beach and the beautiful D Deck promenade, the largest seafront alfresco dining promenade in Hong Kong. D Deck's restaurants range from fast food to fine dining to unusual concepts (such as eating on an outdoor bed), but all have alfresco setups for a relaxing meal under the sun facing the water. Disneyland’s nightly fireworks display is in full view to make a casual night out extra special.

Manta Ray is a newer establishment that offers excellent Mediterranean seafood. Almost all of its ingredients are imported, including the seafood and meats, and all the bread and pasta is homemade. Executive chef Gregory Arbib and enthusiastic owner Stephane Billerot live in Discovery Bay and both hail from France.

The selection of freshly chucked oysters changes according to seasonal availability. The restaurant currently serves five different oysters: Tasmanian, Coffin Bay, Sydney rock and Fines de Claire numbers 3 and 4 from France. The mussels, cooked in a flavourful white wine sauce, are of the Tasmanian and French bouchot varieties at this time.

The prawn soup with saffron has the fragrance of herbs, a meaty texture with large chunks of prawn and an appetising golden colour to boot. The most highly recommended starter is tartar of fresh tuna and crab meat, which is mixed with coriander, capers, shallots, lemon and virgin olive oil and served with rocket salad and balsamic vinegar. The result is tart, light and delicious.

For mains, try the grilled wild barramundi fillet served with saffron aioli. The meat is soft with subtle flavours. Another recommended dish is the amazingly light homemade gnocchi ‘del mar’, which uses rich tomato sauce, spinach and whole shrimps.

If you have room for dessert, the floating island (meringue with custard sauce) and homemade profiteroles will not disappoint. Manta Ray is not open for lunch on weekdays. It is open from 5pm on Monday to Thursday, and from noon on Fridays and weekends.