Mango Tree was supposed to originate from Thailand where the original restaurant is also very popular and a hit with many. That wasnt a main draw, I just wanted some decent Thai food and the reviews for this place seemed to indicate that it was living up to its authentic Thai cuisine reputation.
When we arrived on the 5th floor, the place was jammed pack. All the staff are Thai, and speak pretty good English. I guess this place is targeted at expats or well, not the "local local" people I suppose. I think they speak cantonese too but it wasnt heard frequently here.
The first impression when we glanced through the menu was "Hold crap, this place has a pricey price tag!" Everything is like above the Hk150 range and some way higher...My grilled pork neck starter dish is at a whopping HK98, and fresh coconut juice HK45. Fresh lime soda also at HK45 a glass.
Not cheap....
I wanted to try curry, so I ordered the lamb shank curry, together with some mixed vegetables. My partner wanted to have his fish maw soup (HK150 for 1-2 pax portion) and so I didnt get my grilled squid since I didnt want to over order.
His pricey fish maw came and ooooo...it came with big chunks of fresh crab meat! I dont mean pathetic few scattered pieces, I meant SOLID big chunks. I think I am getting the drift.
Next came our grilled pork neck with spicy sauce. Ooooo so delightful juicy tender good. I really am getting the drift....While waiting, I looked around other orders from other table, esp the Chinese table next to us who had the seafood food, and some curry crab. The reason for the price tag was that they served diners with fresh, HUGE sizeable seafood. It looked so good and yummy! I suppose u pay what u get, fresh seafood of top quality.
It was a long wait though for the main dish. We had arrived at about 7pm and by the time our main came, it was close to 8.15pm. By then, I was through one coconut and almost through my lime soda. However, at this note, I have to admit, the main dish was spectacularly good, beyond my expectation. the lamb shank was utterly melting in my mouth and the curry was just right, not overly sweet like some other Thai joints I had been to.
Desserts however would be something to avoid here.
I felt rather cheated with my waterchestnut in coconut cream. True it was a huge serving, prob meant for 2. true it had plenty of coconut strips and jackfruit. HOWEVER, where the hell is my water chestnut? All I had were blob and blob of gluey pink gelatine which I absolutely hate. There was no crunch, hell, there wasnt even a pin sized chestnut in the pinky jelly ball. Disappointing, utterly disappointing. Of course when the server came to take the bill, she asked how did I find it and I told her truthfully, I hated it because there were no water chestnut. She was taken back, and she said that was the top hit here. I explained that there were NO water chestnut so i was let down. She said she will inform the chef about my feedback, but she didnt take the item off the bill.
My hubby had the banana fritters with brownie. Errr...I can honestly say I make better brownie than this. The brownie was dry, not moist and taste worse than those sara lee pound cake reheated. You get the idea. It just looked better than it taste.
So all in all, will I return for the food? Yes when I feel like splurging since this dinner alone cost me close to HK1000 just for two. However I will avoid the dessert the next time at all cost, esp when I can get very good cakes from Zoe cafe just a stone's throw across the street.
My god, come to think of it, its almost the same price as Nadaman dinner I had at Shangri-la. Something doesnt add up I think considering I had meat, seafood and 3 course meal at the latter.
that food looks great so does the pictures what kind of camera did you use?
ReplyDeleteThanks Alan. Actually the shots for this post was taken with just my Apple 3GS Iphone. Lol :)
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