10 Hong Kong date night restaurants with fine-dining menus at less than US$250 a head

March has been the unofficial restaurant awards month in Hong Kong, with the Post’s 100 Top Tables awards and the Michelin Guide Hong Kong & Macau 2024 unveiling held in the same week. What’s more, the Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2024 list will soon have its grand reveal in Seoul, adding more venues to diners’ must-visit lists. While we love to see old favourites such as Amber and Caprice retain their credentials, some lesser-known restaurants offer great value when compared to fine-dining heavyweights. Here is our pick of places in Hong Kong to enjoy a fine-dining date night in the city for under HK$2,000 per person. 1. Racines It’s amazing what chefs Adrien Castillo and Romain Dupeyre, and general manager Pooja Rana, do behind the tiny counter of this narrow restaurant tucked away on a quiet Sheung Wan street. The six-course menu (HK$1,688) changes seasonally, but on our visit we loved the duck – which is cooked sous vide and then roasted and paired with a persimmon sauce. Expertly executed dishes with interesting flavours characterise the restaurant, and considering it has just received its first Michelin star, getting a table here could soon become difficult. 22 Upper Station Street, Sheung Wan 2. Donovan Chef Donovan Cooke, formerly of the Hong Kong Jockey Club, returned to the city to open his eponymous restaurant in Causeway Bay. It is all about technique and precision at Donovan, as shown in his salmon, wagyu and pigeon dishes. The brioche, served in the middle of the meal, is a signature dish for a reason, and the rotating line-up of desserts often features surprising combinations, such as tonka bean panna cotta with ginger jelly. An eight-course menu costs about HK$1,580, while a condensed menu goes for HK$1,280. Wine pairings are available. 16/F, Cubus, 1 Hoi Ping Road, Causeway Bay 3. Aera Aera in Wan Chai dishes up Nordic-style cuisine prepared by head chef Chevalier Yau. The kitchen combines local ingredients with traditional Nordic techniques such as pickling, smoking, air-drying, and fermentation to elevate their natural umami flavour. A nine-course tasting menu costs HK$1,188, with popular favourites including Pattes/Malt/Lemon, which comprises locally sourced three-yellow chicken feet prepared over three days, during which the chicken feet are marinated in maltose and herbs, air-dried, then prepared with lemon juice. An eight-course dinner with amuse-bouches and petits fours is priced at HK$1,188. A wine pairing option is available. 6 Stewart Road, Wan Chai 4. 1111 Ones This contemporary restaurant is a good example of East-meets-West-style cuisine. One of the highlights of The Expedition menu (HK$1,688) is a dish in which a morel mushroom is stuffed with bouncy cuttlefish paste. Another favourite is the fish maw, which is grilled over Japanese binchotan (charcoal) to give it a crispy texture and charred flavour. Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2024: Singapore, Tokyo lead 51-100 ‘long list’ 11/F, 18 On Lan Street, Central 5. Dolos Dolos offers affordable, high-quality dining. Chef Sean Yuen – who single-handedly runs the kitchen – recently won the rising star award from The Post’s 100 Top Tables, and for good reason. His seven-course menu (HK$980) changes regularly. On our visit the presentation stood out in dishes such as abalone with sansho koji, zucchini and basil, and amadai (tilefish) with clam, curry leaf and peanut. 60 Staunton Street, Central 6. Ankoma Ankoma is headed by Frankie Wong, the former sous chef of two-Michelin-star Ecriture, now closed. Popular favourites here include a pasta dish with a generous dollop of sturgeon caviar resting atop angel hair pasta, which is infused with white truffle and dotted with shiso flowers. Michelin hands out 7 more Bib Gourmands for good-value food in Hong Kong The lobster course features a tender lava stone grilled lobster tail with sakura ebi kabocha sauce. The 10-course seasonal tasting menu costs HK$1,480. 5/F, Kam Lung Commercial Centre, 2 Hart Avenue, Tsim Sha Tsui 7. Posso Everything from Posso’s storefront to its relaxed interior communicates that it is a place for a great time. The highlights here are the cicchetti, or Italian small plates, and the great wine list. Popular dishes include arancini deep-fried Italian rice balls (HK$60) and bucatini with clams and anchovies in garlic butter (HK$105). The intimate space’s convivial vibe makes it the perfect place for a second or third date. 12 Kau U Fong, Sheung Wan 8. Testina Testina gives diners the chance to enjoy Italian-style nose-to-tail dining at its finest. Chef Diego Rossi of Michelin-recommended Trippa Trattoria in Milan is a consultant for the restaurant. Must-try dishes include Trippa’s famous honeycomb tripe (HK$218) and the pappardelle with chicken offal ragù (HK$298). The decent-sized portions are great for sharing. This restaurant is for those with an adventurous palate and a fondness for new experiences. 3/F, 8 Lyndhurst Terrace, Central 9. Juno This Mediterranean-themed restaurant in Sheung Wan has bright and airy decor that helps diners relax as they enjoy their meal. The seven-course menu (HK$498) includes three kinds of home-baked bread, burrata, and fried Padrón peppers. Truffle tagliolini, pork ribs or seafood fideos can be added on for an extra HK$80. 88 Wing Lok Street, Sheung Wan 10. Rêveri This cute family-run restaurant in Sheung Wan features dishes with Asian flavours prepared using European cooking techniques. The restaurant offers tasting menus of six courses (HK$1,280) and eight courses (HK$1,580). The truffle brioche with seared scallops, scallion oil and aged cheddar is a crowd-pleaser, as is the shredded chicken rice with foie gras, Chinese preserved sausage, sesame sauce and cucumber. 20-24 Mercer Street, Sheung Wan