Shop info:
Nico’s Spuntino Bar + Restaurant
G/F, 49 Elgin Street, Central
13 August 2012, dinner
$325 per head
Quite a few years ago when I started eating around, this shop at the junction of Elgin Street and next to Bouchon Bistro Francaise was a Fat Angelo’s, where I’ve had quite a few fun-filled meals with friends. Food, though, was mediocre at best. Then a year or so ago the Fat Angelo disappeared and was replaced by Popup @ Elgin, a casual diner whose food Locust Tunghok and I disliked.
Recently, though, that popup restaurant was finally replaced by a proper Italian restaurant and bar called Nico’s. With new décor and a new menu, Locust Tunghok and I decided to give it a try.
THE ENVIRONMENT
Kudos to the management and / or the designer, the dining room of Nico’s was actually quite a comfortable place to be. Lighting was sufficiently bright that you can see properly, unlike its predecessor(s) were it was so dim that taking photo was impossible, yet not eye-stingingly bright. The seats were comfortable and large but given their size make the place feel quite crowded, especially when full. That said, the high ceiling does provide a sense of spaciousness which helps dealing with that. Hygiene was good, but the dusty shelves next to the table does suggest more cleaning is needed.
Located on Elgin street the outer portion of the restaurant was mostly taken up by the bar and the dining area is located to the inside of the store. Interestingly, and similar to its predecessors, to get to the toilets diners need to exit via a back door, navigate a small but largely unlit outdoor area, before they can relieve themselves…
THE SERVICE
Staff were friendly and courteous but can be more attentive, as we found it difficult to get their attention to check the bill. Some may find their playful way of serving unprofessional, but for me, for a casual diner like Nico's, it felt just right.
THE FOOD
I'd put this up front - the food at Nico's is not bad at all. In fact, the other locust and I quite enjoyed our dinner here. That said, there is one unifying theme uniting almost all dishes: they were all quite oily. It's not the kind of "oh I want to eat healthily and a drop of oil is too much" oily. Given that us locusts could gobble up a nice piece of "gold coin chicken" and still want more, that would not have been any problems had it been kindergarten-grade oiliness. No... every dish was genuinely oily, as we shall see...
Before the oil, though, we shouldn't forget the beer. Us locusts have almost made it a habit that if we were to dine at a bar, we might as well have the beer too. Usually, I'd go for the Stella draught, as we did here... until after we ordered and the waiter came back apologetically to tell us that they ran out. No luck this time, so Locust Tunghok settled for her Hoegaarden, and I got my Kroenenbourg Blanc.
Kronenbourg has been my favourite beer ever since I got used to it during my M.Sc.days in UK. Back in Hong Kong, however, this beer is difficult to find, especially if you want draught. This is my first time trying Blanc, and as usual, I like its crisp, light taste, although the Blanc has a peachy, almost orangey flavour to it.
Still... they ran out of draught Stella...
Caciocavallo Silano in Carrozza (region: Calabria) $98
Crispy fried, fresh cow's milk cheese, on a bed of fried leeks
Behold the oiliness!
Let the oiliness begin.
Interestingly, with some googling (and after seeing Locust Tunghok's post here), Caciocavallo Silano happens to be a D.O.P. product, protected and can only be made in designated areas in Southern Italy. Interesting how they do not advertise the D.O.P. status on their menu - if the food is good I guess nobody really cares! The batter was light, thin and crisp when served, and the cheese has a certain stringiness to it, but not too much. Flavour was strong and somewhat salty. Very nice!
The fried leeks on top... I guess defeats the English name of the dish: it's fried leeks on cheese, not the other way round! In any case, I didn't care much for the leeks. Yes they were done nicely, surprisingly dry but the leeks themselves were a bit too "old" for me.
Now the problem: look at that puddle of oil in the second photo above... enough said.
Mamma Assunta's Pulled Pizza (Region: Campania) $118
When the pizza was served we were speechless. It was way bigger than we expected. Yet it was good enough that we almost finished the whole thing. Oiliness, of course, was again a problem. Every slice was dripping oil, which I guess was a combination of excessive olive oil added and oil from the pork sausages? That aside, flavour was nice and well balanced.
Porceddu (Region: Sardinia Island) $188
Crispy-roasted Suckling Pig served with Honey Gravy
Mash potato as a side dish to the Porceddu
The proceddu was only mediocre, at least for me. The fat under the rather crispy skin was way too thick and uncomfortable to eat. The meat itself was somewhat bland, and when we guessed that the gravy would help with the flavour, it really didn't. The gravy was quite weak as well. Very stark contrast when compared with the oily but delicious fried cheese and the pizza!
The mash, however, was decent. Just like the other dishes, the chef has been rather generous with his butter. As a result, the mash was rich and flavoursome. Personally I would prefer a silkier mash and perhaps even more butter in it, but as it is, I'd still take it any time!
Tiramisu $58
Classic combination fresh egg sabayon, espresso coffee, Savoiardi biscuits, chocolate in an hermetic glass jar
We wanted to end the meal with a nice tiramisu, but unfortunately, we were let down by this Tiramisu-in-a-jar. Gimmicks aside, the sabayon (why not just mascarpone?) was stiff and jelly-like. The biscuits were dry as hell, and defenitely not soaked in espresso. I had no idea where the chocolate went, apart from the chocolate powder. I can see it as a layer on top, but couldn't taste it at all. The whole thing was so dry that we only manage to finish half. What a waste! If I had to pick a worst dish of the meal, this would be the one. Shouldn't have ordered.
CONCLUSION
This quasi-new restaurant shows potential to be a good one. If you look past the oiliness and the failed dessert, dinner at Nico's was actually very enjoyable. The ambiance of the place makes for a relaxed meal. Yet work needs to be done with the dishes themselves. Oil should be better controlled, at least the diner shouldn't be seeing puddles of oil on their plates!
Judged alone, Nico's is a nice place for a meal with friends, but with Posto Pubblico nearby... hmm...
Oh, and I like how they advertise the region a dish is from on the menu...
Summary (rated 1-5):
FOOD: (3/5) Flavour was good, but very oily... need better execution!SERVICE: (3/5)
ENVIRONMENT: (3.5/5) Somewhat crowded, but relaxing.
BIG LOCUST'S RECOMMENDATION: (3/5) Dragged down by the food that needs fine tuning!
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