Rating: ★★★☆☆

Address: 3/F., 46-48 Wyndham Street, Central 中環雲咸街46-48號3樓

Telephone: 3182 0105

https://lentrecotedeparis.hk

A few steak frites restaurants have opened in Hong Kong in the past two years. Having tried La Vache in Soho and Le Relais de L’Entrecôte in Wanchai, it is only fair that I pay L’Entrecôte de Paris a visit too!

L’Entrecôte de Paris is a venture by co-owners Benjamin Pitet and Matthieu Lemoine, who both have experience in the food and beverage industry. It is not part of the chain of Le Relais de L’Entrecôte, which is the original franchise from France. What L’Entrecôte lacks in history, however, it makes up for in convenience – the restaurant boasts a prime location on Wyndham Street, takes reservations for lunch and dinner for parties of all sizes and offers vegetarian and salmon options for non-beef eaters.

The restaurant has a rustic, Parisian bistro-style set-up and has a quaint bar area near the entrance. There are 3 dinner menus to choose from: a green salad and steak set at $268, a green salad and salmon set at $268 and a green salad and rice/pasta/fries set at $168. It also offers a dessert menu, a full cocktail list and a wine list. Matthieu, one of the owners who is at the restaurant when we visit, is humours and incredibly friendly, and the other staff at the restaurant are also well-informed and very helpful.

(1) Some baguette and duck rillette is served. The bread has a great texture and the duck rillette is also delicious.

(2) Sky Vanilla ($120) is a Skyy vodka-based cocktail with bright notes of lemon and vanilla. While refreshing, however, the ingredients are not very well mixed and needs to be shaken longer.

(3) The green salad with walnuts arrives. The salad leaves are delicate and fresh, but there could be more walnuts in the serve.

(4) The Entrecôte Steak follows. The steak is nicely charred on the surface, deliciously pink-middled and has an enticing beef flavour. The restaurant’s own “secret sauce”, which is buttery with herbal notes and quite similar to the one offered by the Parisian franchise, also tastes very attractive. My only complaint is that the meat is a bit dry.

The fries are gorgeously crispy, but they are already cold when served.

(5) I have read reviews where diners find the grilled salmon rubbery, but I quite like it. The salmon has a great outer crispiness, and matches fantastically with the “secret sauce”. The tagliolini, however, is bland, so next time I will surely ask for fries to go with my salmon!

(6) The desserts are not part of the menu and have to be ordered separately. The chocolate profiteroles ($78) are a bundle of joy, with the vanilla ice cream-filled profiteroles forming a wonderful contrast with the dark chocolate sauce.

(7) The Paris-Brest ($78) is utterly mouthwatering – we love the airy choux pastry and the addictive praline flavoured cream.

(8) Lastly, the Tatin Sister Pie ($78) arrives. This tart looks a bit dark in colour, but the flavours are revolutionary! The apple has been poached and is sensuously soft and flavour-packed, and the pastry is also well made.

The kitchen has to iron out the kinks – for instance, make the steak and salmon less dry. Having said that, I can still see potential in this restaurant, as they have a great location, an attractive menu and a team of friendly, efficient and enthusiastic staff. I will be back very soon to try out their lunch menu too!