I had had a dinner at Aqua restaurant 15 years ago. It may have had a different name, but the concept was the same as today: Italian and Japanese food under one roof. They are my favorite cuisines, so it seemed a good idea to go back at least once. I went for brunch on a Sunday in June 2019 that they call “Because”. Why I cannot say.
The visit
The restaurant is located on the 29th and 30th floor of One Peking, a skyscraper on 1 Peking street in Kowloon. It sports a beautiful view of Victoria harbor.
The brunch started with a dish of Italian cold cuts and roasted vegetables. Quite good.
There was also a bread basket with a nice hummus dip. It was not replenished during the meal though.
The second appetizer was a generous portion of burrata cheese. Also very good.
They had a station where the burrata was prepared on the spot.
One oyster.
More sashimi: botan ebi, salmon, hamachi, kampachi, a futomaki roll. Good quality. I am not sure that they also included the diced tuna with caviar that was included on the menu (I am noticing this only now that I am writing the review).
Then there was a truffle risotto with Grana Padano cheese. This tasted a bit weird, too sour. I am not sure if this was the expected taste.
The cheese was grated from a big cheese wheel.
Back to Japanese cuisine, with a pair of pan-fried gyoza. Quite forgettable.
Next was prawn tempura (really basic) and an acceptable lamb chop.
The dessert platter was quite nice, it included also a couple of ice cream scoops.
The check
Final check 647 HKD (82.50 USD). There were some good dishes, but most of them were actually pretty mediocre. So the check is not really justified if not for the view. At least water was included.
I was really hoping Aqua would challenge the law of heights in restaurants: the higher you go, the more expensive the check and worse the food. It is a pity because if they had invested just a little bit on one or two dishes, it could have been a good brunch overall.
Where in Hong Kong:
One Peking Road, TST.
Website: aqua.com.hk.