I got to try Chef Gianluigi Bonelli's g.e (gastronomy extra|ordinaire) last Wednesday.
On a blind date.
With a girl.
I'm not lying.
 |
| This is a dish that's got your name on it. Literally. |
Her name is Hana Alberts, a plucky Manhattanite who is a recent transplant to Hong Kong. Hana edits one of city's most important visitors' publications, WHERE Magazine.
The night was extraordinary in every way and got increasingly more so as the night progressed.
g.e is composed of four themed dining rooms that convey fantastic dreamscapes. The first room evokes cool mercury, the second room mimics boiling lava, the third room is paradise-on-earth, and the fourth room is a luxurious train car twinkling with pixie dust.
The fourth room is the main dining hall. It features a clock that runs backward and a carpet embossed with an askew compass, as though preparing the diner for a meal that debunks all rules.
g.e's amiable manager, Jessica Kwok, prepared the second room just for Hana and myself.
My memory dilutes the actual experience, I'm sure. The food was simply magical. What I remember clearly, though, were the emotions I had whilst going through the meal. Each dish had us squealing with delight. We had 12 courses all in all. Our eyes rolled to the back of our heads with each bite. Chef Gianluigi Bonelli's playful imagination was a perfect counterpoint to his refined mastery. I felt like Peter Pan and Hana was my Tinkerbell.
My photography skills (or lack thereof) don't do justice to Chef Bonelli's dishes, which looked like Impressionist masterpieces. Instead, I simply focused on the mood he created with each "act."
The final course was served in a covered ceramic bowl. Mango tapioca with a twist, I guessed... Then Jessica lifted the lid and revealed a small, white nub. She then proceeded to gently pour water over the mysterious nub.
"This is not edible," she warned, as the white nub grew larger and larger... and bloomed into a hand towel.
Chef Bonelli, my eyes, my nose, my mind, my soul and my tummy have been stimulated in ways like never before.
Brava.
With Affection,
James
Chef Gianluigi Bonelli has worked in the kitchens of Le Calandre, Don Alfonso, The Fat Duck and El Bulli.
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