Fit for emperors

All that is great about T’ang Court at The Langham, Hong Kong is plated before me in five delicate dishes. The number of three-star Michelin restaurants in the world that specialise in Cantonese food can be counted on one hand, and T’ang Court has belonged to this exclusive club since 2009 (sister restaurant, also called T’ang Court, at The Langham Shanghai joined the ranks last year). Evoking the golden age of China’s Tang Dynasty, the restaurant specialises in authentic Cantonese dishes fit for emperors, executed with the deft hands and sharp palette of Chef Kwong Wai Keung.

“When it comes to cooking, the ingredients are the most important,” the sage chef says. “I only use the finest and freshest ingredients in the market to cook. Then it is up to me, and the skills and techniques acquired through time and effort, to execute the dishes I envision as a chef. It is easier these days, with modern equipment and ingredients that can be sourced from all over the world, but I hold true to my roots of bringing authentic Cantonese fare to the table.”

That, in essence, means letting the ingredients sing without drowning them in a wave of techniques and contrasts. This is evident in the first dish placed before me – a trio of the restaurant’s specialties. The fried diced cod fish is beautifully fresh, its natural sweetness enhanced by a honey syrup. The steamed shrimp, scallop and pork dumpling is a delicious dim sum derivation (topped with gold leaf for good measure), while the pan-fried rice flour rolls retain their crispiness for a surprisingly long time, unleashing its inner warmth and springy texture with every bite.

Stir-frying is a typical Cantonese technique, infusing a dish with a flash of heat and infusion of smoke. A dish of lobster stir-fried with spring onions, red onions and shallots exemplifies the virtues of this: the lobster still perfectly fresh and moist, surrounded by the sweetness of onions that are lightly charred on the outside but lose none of their inner moistness. Diced wagyu beef, stir-fried again, is next; each cube melting on the tongue with just a hint of spring onions and wasabi to balance out the rich meat.

A golden dish in the shape of a crab then appears, topped with a cream crust that hides the fluffiest grains of seafood rice underneath. The cream adds richness to the briny seafood chunks, yet amazingly the rice refuses to get soaked and holds its integrity. And to end, a freshly baked egg tart. I am particularly fussy about my egg tarts, having once trekked over 10km across a dozen bakeries in one morning to hunt down the best egg tarts in Hong Kong. The T’ang Court tartlet ranks among the best I’ve had. The flaky pastry threatens to betray its delicate buttery shape in its little case, finally yielding in the mouth to release the custard – warm, gooey and ambrosial.

“I keep learning every day to craft the finest cuisine to my guests,” says Chef Kwong. “I used to be stressed easily, but now after 40 years, I’m managing to turn stress into motivation. My guests have high expectations and in my mind, I want to exceed even that.” Simple on the surface, these five dishes are testament to the eye of a chef who can zoom in on the best ingredients in cavernous markets, with the dexterity and knowledge to do just enough with them to make them sing. This is Cantonese food at its finest and I understand now why T’ang Court holds three Michelin stars. Long may it, and Chef Kwong, reign.

T’ang Court, The Langham Hong Kong