First look: Mustard Bar & Grill
A new American and Aussie-inspired neighbourhood spot in Tai Hang
Mustard Bar & Grill is a new addition to Tai Hang’s food scene, by chef-turned-restaurateur Kong Wai Sing, who also owns Tipsy Tai Hang. It’s located on the 3rd floor of Golden Wheel Plaza, in the space that used to occupy Etna. The main dining room is dark and sleek, and there is outdoor seating on both sides of the restaurant — dogs are welcome to sit outside.
As its name describes, Mustard is a neighbourhood bar and grill, and has both American and Australian influences. Chef Kong spent time working at former American hotspot Lily & Bloom in Hong Kong as well as various venues under Melbourne Pub Group in Melbourne. Essentially it’s aiming for comfort food with some sophisticated twists.
We start with the Grilled Romaine Lettuce ($108) with a mustard bacon dressing, pine nuts, and croutons. This is surprisingly good. The dressing is a hit — a great balance of salt, fat, and acid and the texture of each element is just right.
Another good starter is the Swimmer Crab Cake ($188), served with red pepper chutney and sriracha mayo. This is on the pricier side but comes loaded with fresh crab, giving it a softer crust and very meaty texture.
The Grilled Octopus ($198) comes with pickled beetroot, confit potatoes, crispy lotus root, and paprika mayo. This one is more inventive, and would be good for guests wanting to try new flavour combinations.
While all the starters were good, my favourite was the Pancetta-wrapped Scallops ($198) which were fresh, large, and seared to the perfect ‘just cooked’ texture and came with a lovely sweet corn puree and dressed with some tarragon oil.
For the mains, we shared a US Ribeye ($468 for 400 grams), Australian Wagyu M6 Sirloin ($488 for 400 grams), and Australian Lamb Rack ($328). Perhaps this is where Chef’s experience shines, with quality cuts with good flavours on offer for fair prices. There are three sauces available for the steaks (mushroom cream, red wine shallot, honey soy), as well as mint jelly for the lamb, though the meats didn’t need them.
Highly recommend the Homemade Fat Chips with Garlic Aioli ($88). They are pricey but good — came out piping hot and crispy.
One dish that didn’t work for us was the Spanish Red Prawn Pasta ($398). The flavour was a bit one-dimensional, the pasta too soft, and the prawns high quality but small in portion. For the price, we expected more.
For dessert we tried the Apple Crumble Pie ($98), Vanilla Panna Cotta ($98) and the Baked Truffle Alaska ($128). Unfortunately the desserts weren’t to our taste with the apple crumble and baked alaska both tasting oddly salty and the panna cotta being too jello-like in texture. However we visited when the restaurant was just opening so our concerns may just be teething issues.
Verdict
While Mustard may have a lot of competition in its category, the appetizers and meats are executed well and will likely satisfy discerning diners looking for a comfort food meal. Some dishes could use refining but again it’s still early days for the restaurant. Those working around Tai Hang may like to check out their lunch sets price from $138 for two courses.
3/F, Golden Wheel Plaza, 68 Electric Road, Tin Hau, 3462 2700
Comments