tempura

MTR pitch

“Find yourself craving lip-smacking cocktails and flavour-full tacos? You HAVE to experience 11 Westside. Start the meal right by ordering G.S.C (Guacamole, Salsa and Chips) – the guac is made in front of you and to your taste. There are a wide range of savoury dishes but the stars of the show are the tacos. Their flavour combinations zing in your mouth: garlic butter shrimp and mango; roasted pork and pineapple; battered sole and smoke chilli. Salivate mucho!”

Rating 5/5

Price point c. 50 HKD per taco

Break it down now

Almost everyone in Hong Kong has now heard of 11 Westside, a chic Mexican restaurant which serves up big flavours and cracking cocktails. We decided to drop by and see the hype for ourselves. 11 Westside did NOT disappoint.

We highly recommend booking a table for peak meal times but we were seated with no qualms for a late lunch. Once seated, start the meal right by ordering G.S.C (Guacamole, Salsa and Chips) – the guac is made in front of you and to your taste. More lime? No hay problema. A touch of chilli? No hay problema. It’s fresh, it’s creamy, it’s the perfect accompaniment to the tacos that will soon arrive at your table.

11 Westside has 8 different tacos to choose from. (FYI, there is only 1 choice for vegetarians but plenty of options for pescatarians.) We tried 7 out of 8 and every bite sent flavour-waves zinging through our mouths. Here are some of our favourites:

Al Pastor. Aciote and pineapple roasted pork, guacamole, salsa molcajete, cilantro and fresh pineapple. This taco strikes the perfect balance of fresh ingredients, naughty/sticky pork meat and hot spice. Could eat a whole plate of just these tbh. OUTSTANDING.
Mango shrimp. Garlic butter shrimp, chipotle aioli, pico de gallo, mango and avocado. You need fat juicy shrimp smothered in chipotle aioli in your life. Trust. This taco is creamy and juicy at the very same time. We ordered this twice people. We needed more.
Baja fish. Beer batter sole, smoke chilli mayo, shredded cabbage and pico de gallo. The sole in this taco is so soft it melts in your mouth, yet with plenty of bite from the crispy beer batter and shredded cabbage. It’s a perfect marriage of texture and flavour. Those fish tacos are the t*ts.
Lover’s Beach Taco. Tempura oyster, burnt jalapeño beurre blanc, santa barbara uni. Wow, wow, wow. Fine dining flavours in a Mexican taco!? This two-set of tacos is an absolutely triumph. We’ve never eaten tempura oyster before but it was luxurious.

Washing down these tacos with 11 Westside’s exceptional selection of cocktails went down soo well. The drinks menu comes in the form of a hip hop album (which we loved) and strong Mexican influence can be seen throughout. Salt-rimmed tequila cocktails with a twist are exactly what you need to accompany this very special meal. We would come back just for the drinks but we’d get serious taco-envy….

Asian Pan likes…

Al Pastor
Mango Shrimp
Baja Fish

MTR pitch

“Praise Cheesus. Three Blind Mice in Wan Chai has cracked the code for an impeccable feast of lip smacking grub, unlimited drinks and charming hospitality: a veritable free flow dinner. Book a table, select a variety of dishes, and sit back & relax as boards of scrumptious fodder arrive at your table. The staff REALLY look after you. Our glasses were never empty. “

Rating 5/5

Price point $65-85

Break it down now

Free flow lunch/dinner at Three Blind Mice for 2.5 hours costs just $580 per head. It’s worth every last penny; you really get your money’s worth. Each person at the table will be able to gorge on sharing platters of starters, mains, sides and desserts. When booking your table, simply tick off the food you want to eat and TBM take care of the rest.

We ate (and could barely finish):

Arancini Balls. The flavour of the balls will change seasonally but we LOVED the mushroom arancini we ate. Woody, creamy and full of flavour.
Tempura Vegetables. So much tempura you can’t finish the giant bowls. They reminded us of jumbo onion bhajis.
Calamari Rings. Large chunks of battered calamari served with zingy mayonnaise. Heaven from the sea.
Scotch Eggs. The chorizo jam on top was a bit too much for us but we really liked the scotch eggs (who doesn’t?). Gooey yolks too – yum!
Jalapeño Mac n’ Cheese. Hot skillets of creamy macaroni with a thick crust of melted cheese on top. TBM mac can be served vegetarian or non-veg; with jalapeños or truffles. So indulgent. A total crowd pleaser.
Haloumi Linguine Arrabbiata. Absolutely divine bowls of pasta packed with punchy flavours and little nuggets of crispy haloumi.
Chicken Quesadilla, Sour Cream, Guacamole, Salsa. Served up like little pizzas, these quesadillas went down really well.
Fries. TBM fries can be served as normal, sweet potato or with truffle (ikr).
12 Hour Overnight BBQ Ribs. The star of the show. A triumph. See below.

We list our top dishes below but the star of the show definitely deserves a special mention. The 12 Hour Overnight BBQ Ribs were absolutely EXQUISITE. The meat was soft, melt-in-the-mouth and perfectly seasoned with sticky BBQ flavours and toasted almond flakes. Impressed is an under-statement. It was the perfect end to a wonderful evening in this quaint, little restaurant. We were stuffed.

This free flow is particularly special as the drinks are not limited to a small selection of drinks that nobody likes (or bottles of cheap and nasty prosecco). The choice of beverages includes beers, craft beers, prosecco, wine, spirits & mixers and soft drinks. The staff look after you well; they were constantly topping up our drinks and taking orders for more. We couldn’t have wished for anything more. Three Blind Mice should be proud of themselves.

Asian Pan likes…

Jalapeño Mac n’ Cheese
Arancini Balls
Calamari Rings
12 Hour Overnight BBQ Ribs

Tag: tempura

11 Westside: the best tacos in Hong Kong

MTR pitch

Break it down now

Asian Pan likes…

Free flow feast at Three Blind Mice

MTR pitch

Break it down now

Asian Pan likes…