Review: Beefbar in Central

Beefbar specialises in beef (would you believe?) was created by Giraudi (a high quality meat trading company), and initially began in Monaco. Brought to Hong Kong by Lai Sun F&B Management (the same group who brought us Tang2, Otto e Mezzo and Howard's Gourmet) in October 2015, the beef bar is located in the beating heart of Central, serving meat sourced from the United States, Australia, Japan and Europe.

Entrance to Beefbar

Here's the scoop; Beefbar have such good relationships with meat suppliers internationally (given they are under Giraudi Group who have been doing this for over a decade) they can literally source the best cuts in the world. Executive chef Andrea Spagoni has expertly crafted the menu to offer an impressive array of these top grade ingredients (which are directly sourced from the producers) in non-boring, varied ways like in burger form, as a tartare, simply seared and served with salt or mustard, and as part of a charcuterie platter, to name a few.

Black Angus Beef

Kobe beef

Veal tartare

Before we start, we have to make mention of the knowledgeable staff at Beefbar who make heart-warming wine suggestions that pair with each dish very well. We suggest consulting them before embarking on your meaty journey.

The kobe beef (100g filet $590) might be some of the best meat we have had–ever–and least sits in the top three steaks in Hong Kong. The veal tartare ($200), a dish we tried to skip but were pressed to order, was velvety and seasoned just right (well pressed madame waitress).

Octopus ceviche

Kale salad

Jalapeno mash

For non-red-meat dishes; the octopus ceviche is tender and punchy ($150), the kale salad with avocado, parmesan cheese & lemon zests ($150) redeems the ubiquitous cruciferous vegetable and the pak choi is nothing outrageous but pleasant enough as far as pak choi goes. The only thing we felt let us down was the jalapeño mash ($80) (although it was listed as 'unrivalled' on the menu, so perhaps we just expected too much too soon) which possessed only a whisper of heat and no real flavour of jalapêno (the potatoes were whipped to perfection, however).

The chocolate, sesame & caramel soufflé with yuzu ice cream (for two at $180), while a little on the blander, sloppier side, but the yuzu ice cream was everything good in the world.

Chocolate souffle

No doubt this will become a hot favourite with Hong Kongers. It’s got all the things this city loves like a cellar that’s stocked with a vast collection of international wines, a considerable group of very impressive meats and a vibe that says ‘I am slick and minimalist but I'm also a banker’. A restaurant that serves mainly meats in Hong Kong takes on the tricky task of differentiation in a saturated market, but Beefbar have done it well.