Restuarnt: Babek 	Vocabulary	
Although there are  regional variations, the essential formula of an Indian meal hasn't changed for years. You have a curry dish, maybe some tandoori meat and some side dishes. You mix and match with a few friends and mop it all up with nan bread or rice. 

It is a formula that is loved by Indian food enthusiasts all over the world and it would be a brave chef indeed that tried something different. Babek, which opened at the bottom of Elgin Street just a few weeks ago has such a chef and I stopped by to check it out. 

The decor is modern and sitar music playing softly in the background gave the only hint of the cuisine that was to be served. The staff were friendly and more than happy to explain the items on the menu. 

The menu is built around the idea of a set dinner. For a very reasonable $250 you get a steady flow of courses until you have sampled a small portion of everything. 

A la carte is also available where you can order larger servings of just the dishes you choose. I decided to go for the set. I ordered a Kingfisher beer to go with it. 

First up was Mutter Ki Tikki, two small cakes of spiced peas pâté followed by a small rack containing three cute little test tube shaped vessels containing, regular, strawberry and mango flavoured lassi. 

After the lassi came  fresh mackerel marinated in cream cheese and dill, and spicy jumbo prawn on a sizzling hot plate. 

Tandoori chicken was followed by deliciously spiced char-grilled lamb chops, and lastly tender duck breast flavoured with cinnamon and orange peel. These were served with nan bread. 
The duck was  excellent but I wasn't disappointed with any of the dishes. 

Finally there were two desserts including home made ice cream flavoured with green cardamon. 

It had been a most enjoyable meal and while I doubt the classic formula will ever lose it's popularity, Babek shows that there is plenty of room for new ideas. 

For people with smaller appetites, a variation of the set dinner is available for $175 which includes four of the six main dishes. 

Restaurant: Baci 	Vocabulary	
I wanted my friend to come with me to Baci but we couldn't find a mutually agreeable date before she flew out. So I went alone. 

The restaurant is on the 2nd and 3rd floors. The decor is sleek and chic with gold and mirrored walls and simple but comfortable furniture. Neither of the floors are big - on my floor there were only seven tables offering seating for a maximum of 18 people. I settled into my chair and ordered a glass of fruity Vale Viognier ($78). The bread basket arrived and I delved into the menu. 

For starters I was tempted to oder the Crab salad with carrots and mango ($108) but in the end I plumped for the Carpaccio Arcobaleno ($118). This is very thinly sliced pieces of smoked salmon, tuna and swordfish with extra virgin olive oil and salad. I was pleased. The fish was tasty and melted in the mouth. It didn't last long and soon I was mopping up the olive oil with the remains of the bread basket. 

For the main course I'd narrowed my choices down to home made ravioli stuffed with Duck and goose liver ($198) and roasted lamb loin in mushroom sauce ($228). I opted for the lamb. 

The dish took rather longer to arrive than I would have expected. I put this down to the chefs pursuit of excellence for when it did arrive it proved to be well worth waiting for. The lamb, rolled in herbs and bread crumbs, was both tender and juicy. Served with a deliciously creamy creamed potatoes and, of course, the mushroom sauce. In light of this it seemed silly to worry about a few extra minutes wait. 

For dessert I ordered baked custard tart  and also asked for coffee to be served with the dessert. It was another long wait. This time, after the dish had arrived, I couldn't help thinking that perhaps I should have opted for the home made ice cream. The tart was pleasant enough but I didn't know I would have to wait twenty minutes for it.

It was a shame the delays spoiled what would otherwise have been a very pleasant meal indeed. I prefer to think these are just minor issues that are associated with the kitchen staff getting used to preparing a whole new menu and before long everything will be running smoothly. 

Restaurant: Balalaika	Vocabulary	
We arrived about 7.45pm on a weekday - we didn't have a reservation and we were probably lucky to get a table. The restaurant resembles a traditional Russian  hunting lodge complete with wooden beams and Russian  folk art decorations. 

The tables are arranged in a way that makes it easy to accommodate large groups as well as small groups and seating for two. Though intimacy, it has to be admitted, is not one of the restaurants main selling points. The emphasis is strictly on fun.

The music starts at 8pm and by then the place was packed. The menu boasts three different kinds of caviar, for those that really want to spoil themselves. Prices start at $280 and rise to a princely $700 for 30 grams of top-of-the-line Iranian beluga. 

But if caviar is beyond your budget (and it was certainly beyond ours), you can still order a bliny ... or two. These are the small pancakes that caviar is traditionally served with but they can also be served with any number of other things. We ordered a crab meat and mushroom and a smoked salmon at $25 each. 

For main course we had ordered a seafood shashlik ($135) and duck stew ($125). Shashlik is essentially a kebab. The seafood option included a large tiger prawn plus generous salmon, sturgeon and cod steaks. They arrive at the table  and are flamed. They came with rice potatoes and vegetables. 

The duck, stewed with apples, prunes, apricots and potatoes, was very tender with a delicious fruity tang. 

We decided a little rest was in order before dessert so we took the opportunity to visit the walk-in vodka freezer. The temperature in the freezer is kept so low that visitors are provided with snug fur coats to go inside and admire the roughly 30 different vodkas from all around the world, including arctic fruit flavoured vodkas. They also serve vodka jelly and an oyster shooter. 

The most interesting of the desserts are fruit based. We ordered a Russian mixed fruit pudding, which included raspberries and cranberries. It had a very sharp flavour, and while I found it most enjoyable it probably wouldn't appeal to someone who was expecting something sweet.

Balalaika also has a VIP room which deserves a mention. Whilst the main dining area has rustic feel to it, the VIP room is straight from one of the TzarsÕ Palaces, with ornate furnishing and a huge chandelier. The VIP room can seat up to 14 people at a minimum charge of $300 each. 

Balalaika is open from 5.00pm to midnight on weekdays, and until 1.00am Saturdays and Sundays.

Restaurant:Cammino	Vocabulary	
Cammino with it's wooden shuttered windows and terra cotta tiling, is a little corner of Tuscany. The atmosphere is informal and the staff friendly, attentive and indeed prompt. A glass of fruity Primitivo di Puglia ($80 for a large one) was produced before I'd even made up my mind on a starter.

I'd narrowed the choices down to either the Antipasto Toscano which consisted of cured meats, goats cheese and marinated vegetables ($138) or the Forest Mushroom Ragout on a baked Portobello Mushroom ($108). 

The cured meats won the day and I was treated to a selection of salami and parma ham and cheese served on an impressively large glass plate with salad, artichokes, sun-dried tomato and a generous slice of chilled  melon. 

The bread basket was also generous. Five different types served with roasted garlic, butter and balsamic vinegar and olive oil. 

For a main course I ordered the oven roasted rack of lamb ($248). The dish was handsomely presented with creamed potato and a balsamic sauce. The lamb was tender and juicy and was again, a generous portion. 

Two other items on the menu that were jostling for attention were the pan fried sole ($288) and the linguine (pasta) with Boston lobster which can be ordered as a starter ($128) or as a main course ($188). 

Personally I prefer to have pasta at lunch times. If I eat pasta at dinner I often find I'm too full and lose interest in dessert. 

I finished with a woodland berry dessert and a cheese mouse. Although it is called a cheese it's flavour is very creamy and is a perfect accompaniment for the tartness of the fruit. 

I rounded off with a coffee.

Name of restaurant		
Location		
Decor / Atmosphere		
Size		
Starters		
Main courses		
Deserts		
Drinks		
Service		
Other comments		

Name of restaurant		
Location		
Decor / Atmosphere		
Size		
Starters		
Main courses		
Deserts		
Drinks		
Service		
Other comments		

Malouf's Arabesque Cuisine 

The great thing about new malls is that there is always a brief window of time before the public at large cottons on. I guessed that Elements, being stuck out in a part of Kowloon that nobody goes to anyway, may take a little bit longer. So the other evening I hopped aboard the Tung Chung line in search of second helpings. 

I was right. I was able to glide up the escalator and through the maze of shops without bumping into anyone or even having to take evasive action. This time I had a pretty good idea of where I wanted to go to but it still took me a while to find it. 

Malouf's Arabesque Cuisine makes Australian chef Greg Malouf's presence in Hong Kong a little more visible though he has been consulting for Olive in Soho for a few years. I've enjoyed my visits to Olive so I was keen to try this one out. 

It's a long narrow restaurant, more spacious than Olive. The decor is modern. A long sofa runs along one side and windows on the other. 

There was some inoffensive but otherwise rather bland wallpaper music playing softly but this was occasionally punctuated by some rather more traditional sounds that I would like to have heard more of. Unfortunately none of the staff knew what it was called. 

I ordered a Turkish beer called Efes which was delivered along with bread and olives. I buried my nose in the menu. 

It all looked pretty good and I could have happily sat back and let someone else order, safe in the knowledge that whatever they ordered would be interesting and pleasing. But I had to make the decision and after much thought opted to start with the Crispy Poached Duck with Moroccan Carrot salad ($98). 

It was a good choice. The meat was tender and delicious, rich bit not gamey. It slipped from the bone with very little effort. 

Main course was Black Bream and Tiger Prawns in green Chermoula ($228). Black bream live in the seas to the south of Australia but the chermoula is a north African marinade made with herbs, oil, lemon juice, garlic, cumin, and salt but they seemed made for each other. The fish was delicate and tasty but it is bony. Don't let the bones put you off though, some fish are just like that and this dish is well worth the extra effort. 

I know a lot of people skip dessert but to me it is an important part of the meal and I applaud restaurants that make the effort to come up with something a bit special. For the Blood Orange Mahallabia ($78) Malouf's deserves a standing ovation. It's not a complicated dish, milk custard and blood orange jelly topped with Iranian candy floss. But it is something I have never had before and it is something I know I will want again ...