The Baker & The Bottleman - An encapsulation of dining in Hong Kong

Opened in April 2022, The Baker & The Bottleman (TBTB) is a bakery and wine bar nestled in the bustling Lee Tung Street. This establishment is Simon Rogan’s latest venture, following the opening of Roganic in 2019. I’ve come across numerous positive reviews praising their fish burger as the best in town. As an avid fish burger enthusiast in Hong Kong, I felt compelled to try it.

I’d like to discuss the fish burger separately from the rest of the meal to give it its due credit. The fish burger was undoubtedly the highlight of this meal. Priced at $150, it is arguably the best fish burger in Hong Kong, and I would definitely return for it. The balance between the tartare sauce, fish, and bun was impeccable. Although it’s on the pricier side for a burger, it certainly holds its own against other burgers in this price range around town.

Now, let’s turn our attention back to the restaurant and the rest of the meal. We started off with the Kimchi Pudding ($30), a decent appetizer but nothing extraordinary. The pudding itself was quite tasty, but the kimchi, despite its role in balancing the pudding’s flavor, tasted stale and sour, indicating its low quality. I believe this dish would have been more successful with homemade or higher-quality kimchi.

Next up was the Roasted Jerusalem Artichoke ($130) served with smoked shallots, pear, and artichoke crisps. This was a well-executed dish with a variety of textures and flavors that complemented each other. It had an overall earthy taste with a nicely cooked artichoke that provided a satisfying bite and a delightful crunch from the artichoke crisps.

However, this is where the meal began to falter. The Beef Tartare ($200) was mediocre and a major letdown. I’ve had my fair share of beef tartare, and it was extremely disappointing that they chose to stick to the traditional preparation without any unique twist. The only difference was the serving base - a beef fat hash brown, which was unappetizing. For a beef tartare in this price range, it simply didn’t deliver.

Finally, we had the Iberico Pork Chop. While it was decent, it wasn’t particularly noteworthy. The cabbage added a bit of crunch, the apple provided a hint of sweetness, and the cider imparted the necessary tang.

Overall, the meal was satisfactory, but the service we experienced was inconsistent, which affected our enjoyment of the meal. For a wine bar, their selection of wines by the glass was limited, and their non-alcoholic drinks were average at best. The portion sizes were smaller than expected. We were offered dishes that were later declared unavailable, even though we were among the first tables seated for their dinner service. I also didn’t understand the frequent plate changes, as our plates were relatively clean and the restaurant’s ambiance didn’t necessitate constant plate changes. Upon learning that TBTB is a sister restaurant to Roganic, it immediately reminded me of my experience at Roganic. Despite the dishes being of good quality, there was something missing that would have elevated the dishes, mirroring my previous experience at Roganic.

I typically wouldn’t write about meals like this. A feeling of disappointment and letdown dominated my emotions for the night and prompted me to reflect on why my experience at this restaurant was so drastically different from those shared by respected foodies in the city. My thoughts immediately turned to how this meal, in many ways, encapsulates the current state of food in Hong Kong. Restaurants like TBTB pop up every year with local foodies supporting them as long as the food is solid. It demonstrates how the status quo in Hong Kong has shifted from a focus on good food to a focus on marketability, something TBTB does well. While the food standard in Hong Kong is undoubtedly high, dining in HK lacks any sort of flair. TBTB served a meal that, if served anywhere else in the world, would thrive and perhaps even become someone’s favorite restaurant. But given the high quality of food in Hong Kong, restaurants prefer to play it safe and serve solid meals, not memorable ones. In this calendar year, I was fortunate enough to dine at many good restaurants around the world, and even among meals where they served quality food, only those that differentiated themselves from the rest were memorable. After moving back to Hong Kong for half a year as of writing this, I find the food scene in Hong Kong to be extremely forgettable. I hope and wish that my opinion is wrong. While there’s nothing wrong with serving solid food, it’s a shame how uninspired the food scene has become.

Overall, this was a satisfactory meal, but the overall experience was subpar. The fish burger gets an 8.3/10, the food gets a 0.65/1, the food given the price range gets a 58/100, and the experience gets a 13/22.