mos burger and agnès b. le pain grillé - worth the wait?

After months of complaining, I, Dai Bun's husband, have been given permission to write today's blog.

We had marked today in our diary more than a month ago. DB had been calling and calling a certain French bistro (opened last year) and, after literally 15 phone calls, she had finally secured a table. While the day was filled with other things (more of which later), this was the highlight of the week. We pass by the restaurant every day, to and from work, and often gazed longingly through the windows wondering whether the restaurant really can deliver the perfect onion soup and duck confit...

Our first task of the day was to clear out my old flat in Island East in preparation for its sale. So we grabbed a taxi back to our old neighbourhood and, since it was lunch time, went to the newly opened Mos Burger just outside Jusco. There were 20 people queuing outside... so first we went to our old hang-out (Jusco) and ordered siu mai and curry fish balls. $10 each. Ever dependable, full and flavour and bringing back many happy memories of my time there.

We then decided to queue for a Mos Burger and, after 15 minutes, ordered our burger and chicken set. DB said that when it first opened, people were queuing for 2 hours! Mad, but this is HK where people queue for anything and everything. The chicken burger was pretty decent but the fried chicken was much better (excellent piece of meat, dusted in seasoned flour and deep fried). It's what I'd call the Japanese equivalent of Triple O and KFC. But, being a Japanese sensation, it has more "delicate" (i.e. smaller) portions. It was pretty tasty, but it's hard to beat the filling sensation that a Triple O burger or finger licking good KFC meal delivers.

Back to Agnes B. Soon. I dragged DB to a body combat class (my 2nd time) to pre-emptively burn off some calories. All credit to the instructor for giving us a great work out. At the end of the class (I had admitted at the start I was a novice), she gave me a few words of encouragement. Then again, it could have been sympathy when she saw how shattered I looked. DB and I spent the next three hours back at home recovering, too tired to even talk to each other.

So, the main event. For such an auspicious occasion, we had invited Mr & Mrs S. Where there's good food or a new restaurant, rest assured that they will be there! The menu (classic French bistro) looked great. Everything you could want. So we ordered everything. Soups (bisque, onion soup), salads (grilled bacon, grilled lobster), mussels (the smaller, sweeter ones rather than the over-sized green lips normally found in Asia), grilled lobster, duck confit (my choice - meat was succulent, falling off the bone), sole and more lobster, soufflés (very generous portions - by the end we were all stuffed) and a delicious looking apple tart tatin (ordered by Mrs S). Even though my chocolate soufflé was pretty good, the proverbial grass is always greener on the other side, and with hindsight I would have preferred Mrs S' tart tatin which Mrs S admitted was excellent. So excellent, in fact, that I noticed Mr S only managed to get a bite right at the end.
































I ought to wrap up and gather my thoughts as to what really has been a day of gluttony and, thank God, a carefree day where I have been able to rest and chill out with my wife and dear friends. What I will remember is just how damn difficult it was to book a place at Agnes B. What I have learned is that (and this is where I try to be Anthony Bourdain) food isn't necessarily about trying the most recent fad (be it Japanese or French). It's about what satisfies the soul. And for me, it was the humble siu mai/fish ball food stall which brought back so many happy memories of my time in Island East with, coming around full circle, Mr & Mrs S and DB.

One final note: thanks for DB for letting me write today.

BB