SKYLINE CELEBRITY FINE DINING

Chef Ken, who was born and raised in Hong Kong, lived with his grandmother chef since he was young and thus fell in love with cooking.

As the situation of the coronavirus epidemic has gradually improved, the market is once again flourishing with new fine dining restaurants. West Kowloon has been the city’s buzziest hotspot to soak up the skyline of late, and this new opening of Asian French celebrity dining restaurant PANO, the only standalone two-storey restaurant on the museum strip, is sure to impress us with its unobstructed, high-rise view of the harbour.

The founder and executive chef of PANO, Ken Lau, is a young veteran with 26 years of cooking experience. Previously held successive posts at Verandah, Chesa, Felix and Gaddi’s in the Peninsula Hotel, Lau is best at Italian and French cuisine. With a keen sense of taste and culinary art, he opened his first restaurant Mia Trattoria, followed by Palco Ristorante, a collaboration with famous artist manager, Palco in 2010.

In just a few years since its opening, PANO has become enduringly popular among the celebrity and executive circles, including Chow Yun Fat, Tony Leung, Louis Koo, Sammi Cheng, Jay Chou, Leon Lai, Jacky Cheung and Eason Chan, turning Lau into a celebrity chef.

With a wide and spacious entrance, PANO beckons you into a deep coloured indoor space that extends to an alfresco area, creating a glamourous, stylish dining atmosphere. The centerpiece is a stunning standalone marble bar that is held together by a five-storey, floor-to-ceiling wine rack and quietly shimmers in the dark as the focus of the main dining area.

Homemade Linguine with Spanish Red Prawn

At PANO, Lau moulds Asian flavours and local, seasonal ingredients with the technique and flair of fine French cuisine. The signature seven or ten-course ‘Celebrity Tasting Menu’ is only served for dinner, including dishes like the appetizer amuse bouche, vegetables, seafood, meat and desserts.

Favorites from the menu include the artistically presented Apple Wood Smoked Organic Broccoli Royale with Hokkaido Sea Urchin, where the organic broccoli deep-fried then puréed, preserving a delicate burst of vegetable flavor, perfectly balanced with the rich saltiness of the uni. The dish arrives at the table as a bell jar is removed to reveal its splendid smoke — stimulating the senses of sight and smell before taste.

Allspice Maltose French Pigeon with Shallot Puree combines French culinary arts with premium local and Asian ingredients. Chef Ken first picks out the tendons in the French pigeon legs, then seasons with salt, pepper, garlic and herbs, and slowly cooks with duck oil. Instead of using traditional honey, Ken chooses to sweep a layer of local maltose mixed with 7 spices on the pigeon, and finishes them on the stove to make the skin more crispy and sweet, then pairing ingeniously with Indonesian sweet potato puree and rose liqueur sautéed bean sprouts.