桃花緣（原題）

（撰自KC在報章上的專欄文章）

蛇羹，絕對是地道正宗的粵菜。每年秋季，都會在飯局圈內辦蛇宴，今年也不例外，適逢桃花源搬了新店子後也未試過，就來這裡。



其實筆者是由黎師傅當年主理，由恒生博愛堂的年代已經開始吃他出品的蛇羹，說來已是已是近二十年前的事了。那時在銀行的信貸部工作，打從重陽過後，便要陸續的相約所有手下負責跟進的公司客戶來吃蛇宴。那時可以被邀請出席博愛堂蛇宴的客戶，也是身份的象徵，因為只有被重視的戶口，才會接受邀請。「你去左食蛇未？」，是客戶們見面時常說的話題。那時等閒也會一星期吃十餐八餐蛇羹，加上後生精壯，難免火燥氣旺，令人吃不消。所以通常兩週過後，餐廳會安排一些沒有下蛇羹的「假蛇羹」給我們頂替，箇中苦處不足為外人道。



大概十年前，黎師傅於蘇杭街開立自己的店子。店子小小只佔一個舖位，但菜色好，無論午市及晚市也都座無虛席。早在2005年，筆者已在這裡辦公開飲食網站的蛇宴。至近年，這裡也先後獲得港澳版米芝蓮2009年及2010年的一星及二星榮譽，至2011年也能保有二星之名，此乃後話。



說回現在於文咸東街的新店子，樓高兩層裝修簡單，但典雅具派度。蛇羹之妙，在於所有材料都要做得幼細勻稱才可稱好。故坊間「大大條」蛇肉的，其實是粗疏之作。是晚再吃這裡的蛇羹，仍然出色。蛇絲、肉絲、雞絲、筍絲、冬菇絲等等材料都處理得很仔細，加上甜美的蛇湯底，賣八十元一客，是市面上最昂貴的價錢，但也是水準最好的。



未吃過的話，來吃一次，就會知道什麼才是最好的蛇羹。

Sushi Sase (鮨 佐瀨)

(Posted in Timeout Hong Kong on)

The arrival of Satoshi Sase, the former head chef at Sapporo’s Sushi Zen, is exciting news for all sushi fans. The new venue, named after the chef in question, has already become a hot dining spot in Soho, and reservations for a table must be made at least two weeks in advance.



The decor is almost the same as that at Sushi Zen, including a large open kitchen. The juniper and bamboo have the feel of Japanese authenticity.

Three kinds of dinner menu were on offer: the Chef Omakase Course ($1,380) included a kaiseki set with dishes recommended by the chef according to the freshest seasonal ingredients of the day, the Sushi Omakase Course ($1,380) which mainly offered sushi made by the chef with some dishes selected in the kaiseki set, and the Omakase Sushi set ($950), which included 15 pieces of sushi. Having requested to be served by Sase, I went with the Chef Omakase Course.



To start, Sase passed us crab leg and bonito jelly with herring fish roe. The crab leg was sweet and the texture of the roe was crunchy and full of oceanic flavour. However, it could have been smoother and finer if only the crab meat had been shredded instead.



Sase then started to work on different sashimi and seafood dishes – including natural snapper, kinki, sanma (Pacific suary), and Hokkaido hairy crab (with its roe). The ingredients were fresh and of good quality, especially by Hong Kong standards. The snapper was soft and juicy, with a relatively mild flavour, which Sase cleverly enhanced with lime juice.



The kinki sashimi was the star of the night. It was moist and fatty, with a tender and chewy texture. It was lightly grilled for a smoky flavour. The sanma was crunchy and rich. The meat, however, was not fatty enough since it wasn’t in season. And although Hokkaido hairy crab is not usually my favourite type of crab (I prefer Zuwai-kani), the in-season crabs were fresh and very tasty.



Sase also served grilled matsutake mushrooms. This was an ideal way to kick start the sushi part of the night. Ten pieces were served, including samegarei (shark skin flounder), botan ebi (spot prawn), otoro (tuna belly) and bafun uni (sea urchin). Sase skilfully made the sushi; the rice was seasoned nicely with rice vinegar and the standard here was high. The otoro sushi is highly recommended. It was, in fact, “Kamatoro” – one of the most premium parts in the whole tuna belly. The otoro was lightly torched, melting the fat to give it an extremely delicious, explosive flavour. To finish we were served the signature green tea pudding, which was silky smooth with an intense taste and a well-balanced sweetness.



It’s safe to say that the experience was one of the best at any Japanese restaurant in Hong Kong. And yet it’s still not up to the standards of any Michelin-starred restaurants in Tokyo or Kyoto. When Chef Sase was asked where the matsutake mushrooms came from, he had to ask his colleague. We were subsequently told that they were from Yunnan, not Japan. This is quite unacceptable for an omakase chef who is expected to know everything about the ingredients he is using – especially at this price.

創意與本地化

(轉載自KC在報章上的專欄文章)

當一個飲食品牌打進全新的地域，無可避免地要做一點「本地化」的功夫。大抵各地的飲食，皆與當地文化的關係濃得化不開。要接受另一地方的文化，一點點的適應是免不了。

Godiva在上海新天地的旗艦店（上海市盧灣區興業路123弄5號106號店）於上前周開幕，筆者有幸被邀請參與其中。貴為這個比利時朱古力名牌在中國的第一個進駐地，加上全球的第一間Godiva Café，開幕典禮當然是隆重其事，此乃後話。於典禮上，跟專誠調派去當地主理業務的朱古力大師（Chocolatier）David Funaro談了幾句，說到「本地化」這個話題，這當然也是他時刻想著的任務。

就在第二天，David跟所有與會者來了一堂朱古力課，也跟大家分享了他的創作，就是利用了幾款當地的食材，去研發出新口味的朱古力。先是用上山桃仁，是當地人最愛吃的「炒貨」之一。炒過的核桃仁香口帶點苦味，配上甜美的香朱古力，對味。再來就是桃酥，也是很便宜地道的小吃。配上牛奶朱古力，塗上多彩的可可牛油，是跟這個老派餅食的一個有趣的cross-over。最後就是經典的滬式調味料 ~ 辣椒醬，混上了花生醬，加入黑朱古力，甜中隱透辣香，創意及玩味十足，效果也十分好。



相信面對中國這個極具潛力的朱古力市場，未來會有更多「新發明」，作為食界中人，KC引頸以待。

原味，才是王道

(轉載自KC在報章上的專欄文章)

曾經說過，意大利菜是我最喜歡吃的地方的料理之一。原因簡單，意大利人是懂吃的民族，他們懂得用最簡單的烹煮技巧，將食材最好的味道，毫不掩飾的表達出來。食材質素好，做出來的效果就自然出色。就以最出名的意大利薄餅Margherita為例，材料是說不出的簡單，只是水牛芝士、鮮蕃茄及羅勒葉。但只要用上最新鮮的材料，芝士的滑，蕃茄的甜及羅勒葉的幽香，味道配合得絲絲入扣，自然的好吃，這就是意大利菜的精髓。



可惜在本地，總找不到合意的意大利菜。材料是一個問題，再加上有時還要遷就本地人的口味，做出來的效果自然更面目模糊。

還好，我總是「食神常伴」，最近就吃得一頓頗為滿意的意大利菜。得葡京酒店公關大員的邀請，去了其酒店內的意大利餐廳Don Alfonso吃了一回。雖然吃的都是餐牌內的時令菜色，但食物無論在賣相及效果都相當不錯，一味「小青瓜汁海蜆配粗螺絲粉」尤其令我留下深刻印象。粗螺絲粉是我最喜歡吃的意大利麵種類之一，仗著其粗略的表面，是「沾醬」高手。這裡的，是自家製，也煮得相當的「al dente」。而醬汁尤其精彩，由意大利小青瓜打成汁，清鮮無比。配上充滿海洋味道的海蜆，味道是意想不到的搭檔。據大廚Chef Vincenzo的親自解說，這個鮮美的醬汁，是一顆鹽也沒下的，靠的全是食材本身的原味。



用麵包去幹掉所有餘下的醬汁之時，我想，用最直接的烹調方法及配搭，去突顯食材的真味道，這就是意大利菜的精髓了。

Ginza Okura (銀座大倉)

(Posted in Timeout Hong Kong on 4 Aug 2010)

When Ginza, a teppanyaki restaurant located in the former New World Harbour Center, closed down in April this year after 30 odd years (due to the renovation of the building), it may have felt like the end of a great journey. But not satisfied with calling it a day so soon, Chef Okura Masataka led his team and set up another Japanese restaurant in a new commercial center on Chatham Road South and called it “Ginza Okura”.



And on one relatively unspectacular weeknight we visited the new establishment, slightly surprised to see that only half the tables were occupied, and that almost all the patrons were Japanese. We later found out that most of them were old customers of Chef Okura. It seems loyalty is alive and well in this town.



Taking our place among the veterans, and before the ‘teppanyaki show’ started, we were keen to try some of the other items on the menu – and so we started with cold bean curd ($60) and the jackfish (aji鯵, $200), which came fresh and whole, served together with the bone. The raw fish was nicely cut and springy when bitten into, with a delicately sweet aftertaste. We also had assorted tempura ($250) which included shrimps, eggplant, sweet potato and green pepper. All were served searing hot with a light batter. The shrimp meat was tender and juicy, while the vegetable was crisp and refreshing.



We then left the regular table and moved over to a U-shaped teppanyaki table to meet our grill chef, Wong Yan Kit, one of the teppanyaki chefs from the former New World Plaza Ginza, for the second part of the dinner. Three menus were offered to us, each a step up in price, quality and quantity. We selected the Matsu ($560) and Sakura ($650), both served seafood, while the Sakura set also had Matsu beef and the Take set US steak.



We marvelled at Chef Wong’s supreme dexterity in handling his knife, as he sliced and diced live abalone, king prawn, sweet scallop and cod fish, which were immediately thrown onto the grill. By this stage the scallops were the undisputed stars of the evening: thickly cut, lightly caramelized, sweet and juicy. The live abalone were sliced into thin layers, slightly cooked with soya bean sauce and Japanese wine using the abalone shell as a cooking pot. The texture of the sliced abalone was a little crunchy, and the balance between chewy and firm was just right. The shrimp was fresh as expected, but the shrimp head could have been prepared in a way that the hard and sharp shell was removed so that the entire head was edible.



When it came to the beef, Chef Wong stacked strips of steak doused with whiskey and set them alight. Then he got the thinly sliced Wagyu beef and stuffed it with deep fried garlic and finely chopped spring onion, acting as a sort of beef roll. Personally I preferred the thickly sliced US beef steak. With its tender texture and rich flavor, it certainly surpassed the Wagyu beef we had that night.



The feast ended with classic Japanese fried rice and ice cream for dessert, and everybody left the restaurant adequately stuffed. It may well be a pricier option in an area filled with Japanese diners, but given the quality of the food and the attentive service it was well worth it.

（中文食評，請按此　Please press here for Chinese review）

Yakichi （天地旬鮮‧八吉）

(Posted in Timeout Hong Kong 1 Sep 2010)

The latest addition to the Toy House in Tsim Sha Tsui is an establishment that hails all the way from the bright lights of Tokyo and goes by the catchy name of Yakichi. Acquired by the ever mercurial EN Group to replace Chura, Yakichi is the first branch of this famous Japanese chain to arrive in Hong Kong; and having more than 80 outlets in Japan means that Yakichi has enough bargaining power to get first dibs at the Tsukiji Fish Market, importing fresh and rare catch that are not easy to find elsewhere in this city.



We visited on a busy Friday, but found the interior to be rather dim – albeit neat and cosy. Upon entering we spotted some inviting private booths off to one side, but were instead led straight to the large tatami seating area (traditional Japanese flooring made with woven straw mats) located in the middle of the restaurant.



Dinner started with some traditional Okinawan cold appetisers, such as the sea grapes ($58), which on first bite felt similar to the crunchy texture you get when eating fish roe, despite it actually being a kind of seaweed. But still, it tasted fresh and sweet with a distinct oceanic flavor and was a good little dish to kick-start dinner.



Next in line was raw shrimp marinated with salt ($30), another authentic Okinawan appetiser. The shrimp was certainly fresh – it’s texture being perfectly chewy, juicy and bouncy – but other than it being overpowered with the taste of the sea, the salt simply drove us to drink more sake. This traditional dish, also known as “shiokara”, is certainly something of an acquired taste.



Then came the ‘big reveal’ as the waitress brought out the various ‘catch of the day’ for us to survey. After a brief introduction from our waitress we plumped for three kinds of fish, so that we could sample the three distinct ways of cooking them: isaki for sashimi, houbou for braised and nodoguro for grilled. Isaki ($250) is one of those summer seasonal fish that are commonly caught in Tokyo Bay. In terms of preparation, the whole fillet was cut into two parts, fish back and fish belly. The meat in the fish back was relatively lean and thinly sliced, which kept it crispy and slightly chewy, while the belly part was cut in thicker slices in order to maintain its soft and tender texture (kudos must also be given to the chef for his precise knife skills when cutting the raw meat. It’s an art that takes years to master). Finally, the main bone was used to make the legendary, but oh so simple, miso soup.



Next up was the whole houbou ($230), which was braised with soya bean sauce, sake and mirin (Japanese cooking wine). The flesh was meltingly tender with a superbly rich flavour, and together with the slightly sweet sauce was undoubtedly the star of the show. The grilled Nodoguro ($290) was perhaps a bit too salty and the fish skin was not nearly crispy enough. Luckily we were compensated by the tender, succulent and delicious flesh under the skin.



Outside of our oceanic adventures, we also tried the braised pork belly with miso ($72), which tasted delicious but was a little rubbery in texture. The steamed Australia wagyu beef with vegetable ($128) was simply tasteless, and was a real disappointment compared with the near flawlessness of the fish dishes.



And talking of their fish, they only get delivered twice a week – on Tuesdays and Thursdays. So make sure you make a reservation on the right day in order to taste the very freshest catch.

（中文食評，請按此　Please press here for Chinese review）

菌量甚高的一晚

(轉載自KC在報章上的專欄文章)

每年六、七月，雨季來臨的時候，各式菇菌也是當造期。以菇菌入饌，可塑性甚高，效果好。加上菇菌本身熱量底，也有各種益處，也是健康食物。所以每逢夏天，就有不少的本地食肆以菇菌作主題的時令餐單，往年就在天后的彩雲南吃過一頓很精彩的。今年得到喜來登酒店天寶閣（尖沙咀彌敦道20號香港喜來登酒店2樓 2732 6991）的公關大員邀請，來試試他們的菇菌餐。



會下廚的朋友都知，菇菌本身不是容易處理的材料，做得太乾，口感不佳；做得過濕時，香味不出。當中尤其以「耳」字輩的菌類為甚，如黃耳、榆耳、木耳等，要作長時間浸水才可以再作處理，不然的話會有一股惱人的酸味。如上次在尖沙咀的另一間米芝蓮二星的中菜廳，以帶酸澀味的黃耳作伴菜，令人吃得掃興之極，想必是偷減了準備時間所致。



說回這一晚，陳師傅以各式的烹調方式去炮製從雲南「直送」的不同菇菌，如以鹽調味的燒牛肝菌、老人頭菌及雞瑽菌，放下去燉白山雪雁的鮮竹笙，混入野米飯去釀乳豬的黑松露，代替金針菜作富貴雞釀料的松茸，刴得幼細，加入雲腿作包子餡料的干巴菌等等。各式的處理手法，旨在將菌類的特有味道帶出來，而這裡是做得相當不錯的。也經大廚解說，在處理不同菇菌時背後所花的人力物力，要吃得如是晚水準的菇菌宴，不簡單。



據聞這個以菇菌為主題的餐單只做至九月中，但幾味招牌菜如「黑松露野米燒釀乳豬」及「松茸野菌富貴雞」仍會保留在餐牌內，大家還可再續「菌」緣。

出色薄餅，也不易找

（轉載自KC在報章上的專欄文章）

約了飲食網站及雜誌的的高層吃晚飯，談談最近的飲食大況之餘，也看看有什麼合作的機會。地點由我選，來了208 Duocento Otto（上環蘇豪荷李活道208號舖2549 0208）。因為傳聞這裡的薄餅是「全城最好」，那沒有不試的道理吧。



坊間有不少的店子會做意式薄餅，做得好的很少。要做得好，麵糰當然要自家搓製及發酵，用上新鮮麵糰去焗製的話，當中的小麥香氣也「活」很多。還有的是要在磚爐上焗製，其高溫可以在短時間內將麵糰烘成外邊脆口，內裡還保持韌性的最佳口感。



在香港能符合以上兩個條件的地方不多，這裡就行了，難怪開業只兩、三個月，已是很旺場的店子，座位在一星期前訂滿已是司空見慣的事。樓高兩層，二樓是餐廳的部份，樓下就是酒吧，我們先在樓下喝一杯意大利氣酒，正談得興起，食物就陸續的送上來。



我的焦點也當然是放在薄餅上，是日選了個芝士野菌薄餅。看上來薄身，邊位烤得焦香，很對辦。但一拿起來就知不對頭了，中間的餡料放得太多，薄餅是不能一手拿起的，要將之摺疊又或是用叉去輔助才成功的將之移進碟內。吃起來外邊脆口，但中間就顯得濕了一點，對於我來說，不是及格的意式薄餅。



薄餅以外，其他的菜色可不錯，尤其喜歡這裡的水牛芝士，口感煙韌軟熟，與甜香的蕃茄是天仙配。將意見如實告之經理，希望其續有改善，因為這裡是有成功的條件，而香港能做得出對辦的薄餅的地方，也真太少。

「在乎你感受」的服務態度

(轉載自KC報章上的專欄文章)


不知道大家心目中有沒有這樣的餐廳：尤以一眾五、六星級的中菜廳而言，外表看來富麗堂皇，感覺可望而不可即，總不知如何接近，簡單講句，就是「門高狗大」。萬一要在那裡設居，拿起餐牌，又要從那些看來似是而非的菜名中估一估是做什麼菜色。看著已經不便宜的價錢，也不知其份量如何（不是說笑，我就曾遇過一味索價六百三的蔥爆龍蝦，份量只足夠二至三人的！）。要不就請部長寫幾味菜吧，誰知這就是最兇險的情況。很多時隨手寫幾味，炒碟海蔘，蒸尾海魚，來窩魚翅，已給刴得混身淌血。而最大問題的還是，錢是花了，但走出店子，卻還未嚐過那裡師傅的拿手菜呢。

有些地方，氣派不凡，令人難以接近

筆者辦局多年，有豐富的應對經驗。門再高，狗再大，都有信心處理得好，在預算內試到店子的拿手菜。加上有時，也會真的遇到服務很好的地方，港麗酒店的金葉庭（金鐘太古廣場港麗酒店大堂低座　2521 3838）就是一個好例子。

服務水平很好的地方

那裡貴為六星級酒店的中菜廳，也是米芝蓮的一星推介，客人多是中上階層或商家應酬的客戶。早前在設局，還要是兩周內辦兩局。我們的飯局，都想用有限的預算去多試幾味店子的拿手菜。經理得知我們的來意都在菜色的份量及選擇中，作出不少的協調及建議，真正做到少吃多嚐，食友們也都對安排滿意非常。

令大家也吃得開心

除了服務，當晚吃過的幾味「金葉庭經典」仍然值得推薦的。如鮮嫩甜美的薑汁米酒蒸鮮蟹拑，香口好吃的鮮鮑焗釀響螺，濃香撲鼻的雞湯浸雞，至今仍令人回味。

（相關的網誌文章在此）

舊食評重溫 ~ 民聲冰室

題目：夠晒「鬆」的肉餅

日期：2006年5月8日

個人覺得，蒸肉餅來說，除了要夠味及肥肉/廋肉的比例合度之外，還要夠「鬆」。夠「鬆」的肉餅才有肉汁，口感才好，相反，「實的的」的肉餅就不合個人口味。這裡的肉餅，是有水準的。

來了大坑找個朋友幫手，原本想去附近食薄餅，點知星期一關門，去另一間街角西餐，又係是日休息。想起肉餅，就拿拿林來了這裡。

找了個卡位坐下，呢度係的士佬加附近工友的飯堂，環境會差一點點，如個個都人手一支煙的。肉餅幾時都係這裡的頭牌，是日就是配鹹蛋，如不喜歡，亦有幾款蒸魚可以選擇，都不錯的。肉餅仍舊好味又夠鬆，肉汁豐富，用來下

蠔王的新店

﹝轉載自KC在報章上的專欄文章﹞

遊法國，不可不吃的是生蠔。還記得往南法一遊，早上在普羅旺斯市場的蠔檔，看到剛從諾曼第運來最新鮮的speciales de claires。選了個子最大，品質最好，養殖期12周的貨色。蠔肉身爽脆，味道甘甜，海水味不過鹹，帶有淡淡的獨特海藻味兼富有榛果的aftertaste。一吃就是兩打，價錢只是區區26歐羅，便宜得令人發笑。

法國的魚市場

在香港，反而不常吃蠔，除了價錢較貴以外，蠔手的普遍不濟，才是令我卻步的原因。不知是技術所限，還是習慣使然，很多本地蠔手也有「洗蠔」的手法。即是開了蠔，卻還會用沾了海水的掃子去刷蠔。不是說笑的，我甚至錯見過，有店子的蠔手是將開了的蠔放進盛了鹹水的桶子內洗一洗才拿出來。不知是否開蠔的都怕有蠔殼碎，還是其他原因，但蠔本身獨有的海水味給沖洗盡淨。所以大家可以留意一下，有時要了好幾款蠔，為何海水味都是大同小異的？原因就在這一下「洗蠔」的手法上。

雖然庸手眾多，尤幸高手還在，當中John Steward就是我最欣賞的蠔手。他開蠔手法乾淨俐落，吃了多年他開的蠔，一粒蠔殼也沒吃過。而且還會「反蠔」，即將蠔的貝柱位割開，將蠔身反過來，可以檢查蠔本身的質素之餘，也令客人吃得方便一點，是不多蠔手懂得及會做的手法。早前他消失了一陣子，最近在鰂魚涌的The Codfaher Oyster and Seafood Bar（鰂魚涌海灣街23號地下 2856 5000）又重遇這位蠔王。健談的他，豐釆依然。可惜現時不是蠔季，好一點的選擇只有澳洲石蠔。吃了幾只Fannybay及Sister Point，還不錯。筆者更期待的，就是兩個月後蠔季再臨之時，再來找蠔至John，吃一頓「蠔盛宴」。

蠔王

怎樣將米芝蓮星帶進機艙？

（轉載自KC在報章的專欄文章）

實不相瞞，一向對在機艙內提供的餐點不大感興趣。試問誰會對餐盤上那些厚厚沒味的雞肉，或是鹹鹹兼韌的牛肉粒，又或是粗嚡卻帶點腥味的魚柳有興趣？所以每次要面對飛機餐，總是要求不要送來了，只要杯冷飲就算，以免浪費食物。

別開生面的試菜局

最近得港龍的公關大員邀請，出席了他們與米芝蓮一星的利苑酒家合作，推出的最新飛機餐膳的試菜會，地點就在圓方的利苑分店（柯士甸道西1號圓方2樓2068-70號舖　2196 8133）。當天的菜色，包括兩道前菜及八道主菜，一如所料，在味道及賣相也有一定的水準。據悉是日的餐點，也都會在各個級別的機艙中提供。

全新的餐點，由利苑協助研發

在吃的同時，其實我心裡也有「大問號」。就是就算當天的食物表現是幾好都好，怎能將之帶進機艙？需知飛機餐飲的準備，跟在酒家是完全天共地的差別。在酒家裡，菜色可以即叫即做。但在航機上，食物就只可以加熱保溫。這對講求火侯的中菜而言，要將之轉成相同水準的飛機餐點，難度尤高。

賣相很不錯

好奇之下，找負責的利苑副總廚寶哥一問，原來解決方法有三。一就是用上適當的醬汁去提味，如金榜提名醬（椰汁蝦醬）去煮蝦，又或是宮廷醬去烤骨。輔以醬汁及香草的菜色，經翻熱後，味道會保持得到。二就是煮法方面，避開了蒸、煎、炸，集中在炆、燴、燉，那麼就將不是「即叫即煮」的影響，降到最低。第三就是在選材方面下功夫，多選件頭較大的肉類或蔬菜，避開纖幼細嫩的食物，那麼在質量的控制上，就會容易一點。

以是日的餐點推算，值得期待

究竟配合寶哥的「三招」，能否將這個味道帶進機艙，實在令人期待。

（相關的食評網誌在此）

大阪日本料理 ~

因為食評文章不短，食物相也太多，所以就將所有的短片放在這裡（想看食評文章，請按這裡）：

1. 師傅處理虎蝦的俐落手法：



2. 炒飯：

雞先？定飯先？

（轉載自KC在報章的專欄文章）

很少在這個專欄寫東南亞菜，原因簡單，因為賣東南亞菜的店子雖多，但做得出色的，似乎是少之又少。就以筆者喜歡吃的海南雞飯為例，能留下印象的，數來數去也只是那一、兩間。

文華東方酒店的海南雞（唔得！）

好的海南雞飯，應先以飯行先。也多次在我的食評中提出，海南雞飯的精華是在飯內，而非雞本身。因為最正宗海南雞飯的做法，是先將雞浸熟，浸出來帶雞油及雞汁就拿去做飯，做出來的飯，可口又帶油香，「油飯」之名由此而來。至於雞會拿去川水（浸凍水），再斬件奉客。而浸過的雞，味道當然較淡，因為精華都已浸了出來。這也是為何吃海南雞會附上薑茸、辣椒汁及黑醬油的原因，就是用來增強雞肉的風味的。

泰國人海南雞（算係咁）

可惜時下的食肆，大多也忽略了油飯這一環，大多也是以罐頭雞湯充當雞汁，蒙混過關。這樣做出來的油飯，當然不會有油香，連乾身爽口的口感也欠奉，叫人吃得「一頭煙」。

大少爺（食得過）

最近吃過幾間賣海南雞飯的新店子，當中不乏飲食雜誌及飲食網站也大力推薦的人氣店，但這一碗油飯，總是吃得不滿意。數市面上最好的雞油飯，我的心水還是好時沙爹（尖沙咀麼地道63號好時中心144-148號舖　2739 9808）。用上的是長身的泰國米，先用雞油及香料爆炒過，再用雞汁去煮。飯呈棕色，表面泛油光，吃起來香氣盎然，很對胃口。

這裡的海南雞飯套餐，午市只賣三十多元，是便宜得令人發笑的價錢。如果你問我，只給我這碗雞油飯，也值這個套餐的價錢。