Beijing's Excellent Okra 1949 Has a Hong Kong Sibling

Whenever anyone asks me what my favorite Japanese restaurant in Beijing is, Okra 1949 in the Hidden City comes up. It's the perfect place to take your loved one, your best friend, or your visitor for a relaxed, high-quality Japanese meal paired with sake and cocktails to match. Imagine my excitement when I discovered that Okra has a sibling in Hong Kong, also run by Chef Max Levy, in Hong Kong's hip Sai Ying Pun.

The Hong Kong izakaya Okra Kitchen has been open for just over a year, and business is going strong. The atmosphere is intimate thanks to dimmed lighting and is made up of a bar, tables for couples downstairs, and more seating upstairs. We recommend going in a pair, as sitting at the bar with more than two becomes a little awkward.

The menu is a different concept to the Beijing location; the smaller menu pushes you a little bit outside of your comfort zone, to try things you wouldn't otherwise try. The dishes are divided into two sections, sides A, smaller plates, and sides B, larger plates. Between two we were satisfied after three smaller plates, and two larger plates.

Chicken fried hamachi

A favorite was the chicken fried hamachi (wild yellowtail from Sea of Japan with Crystal hot sauce and daikon, HKD 258, approximately RMB 230), which, while having a crispy exterior, the fish remained moist and smooth on the inside. The daikon and Crystal hot sauce combination added sour notes to the dish that keeps you craving the next bite. This dish alone is worth returning for.

Roasted beef love handle

Another dish that exceeded my already-high expectations was the roasted beef love handle (grass fed black angus prime chuck tail flap and burnt olive oil soy sauce, HKD 208, approximately RMB 185), tender cuts of meat served with roast garlic, as well as pickled daikon. As with the Beijing location, there's also a homemade tofu option on the menu (nigari sai farmhouse tofu at HKD 98, approximately RMB 87).

We recommend booking in advance, as the restaurant is very small and very popular. You can do so by calling [phone] or emailing [e-mail]. The best way to get there is by subway to Sai Ying Pun on the Island Line, and getting off at exit A1 and turning left.

Okra Kitchen
Open Mon-Fri 12pm-4pm, Mon-Wed 6pm-11.30pm, Thu-Sat 6pm-late. 110 Queen's Road West, Sai Ying Pun, Hong Kong ([phone])
香港皇后大道西110號地下

Images: OpenRice.com, Margaux Schreurs

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