Seventh Son is opened by the family who originally opened Fook Lam Moon in Wan Chai, by the “seventh brother”, hence the name. Decor-wise, they haven’t bothered to go modern at all, and looks like any generic Cantonese restaurant from the 90s. It is located right across from The Tonno and Red Mister on Tonnochy and Jaffe Road.
When I called to make reservations, I was asked if I wanted to reserve anything in advance. I asked about my options and they said, crispy-skin chicken or eight-treasure duck. We booked the eight-treasure duck in advance, but as it turns out, we should have booked a lot more. As soon as we sat down to open the menu, I knew I also wanted to have the char-siu but alas, that was already sold out. What about the pomelo skin, I asked? Nope, gone as well.
I grumpily agreed to have the ribs (above) instead of the char-siu, and they were the first to arrive and they were succulent, fatty and a perfect medium between salty and sweet. The quality of the pork made me even more sad that I couldn’t have tried the char-siu, but next time I suppose.
My sister, the pescatarian, had oddly suggested that we try the deep-fried custard with chicken testicles (cover image). Yes, it sounds disgusting, but they were actually my favourite dish of the evening. The custard is milky and delicately seasoned, and the only hint of chicken testicles you get is from a little bit of meat and just a generally very umami, chicken taste. The batter is light as well and overall, surprisingly not too greasy.
The other two starters we tried were a honey-glazed eel (above), and a plate of salted fish. The honey-glazed eel is disappointing because the quality of the eel itself is too lean and not particularly fresh. The salted fish, which I don’t eat, is one of my dad’s favourite dishes from Fook Lam Moon so he wanted to try it, but since he left half of it on the plate, I’m guessing it didn’t live up to its alma mater. My sister and dad also had the stuffed baked crab shell, but neither seemed very taken by it and deemed it run of the mill.
The pre-ordered eight-treasure duck (above) arrives and it’s an impressive plate. There is also no need to order extra vegetables as there is quite a bit of choi sum encircling the bird. I found the bird meat a little gamey, but no one else on my table seemed to mind. It is chock-full of the traditional fillings such as beans, salted egg, mushrooms, and in general, a very hearty dish, and exactly what I was craving after two weeks of European flavours.
For dessert, we had the traditional birds’ nest with coconut milk. I love this dessert, because I love anything with coconut, but the restaurant is also very generous with their amount of bird’s nest and I thought this version quite as good as the famous Fook Lam Moon one.
All in all, I liked the food at Seventh Son, and would definitely go back next time I am in need of some traditional Cantonese goodness.
Dinner was paid for by: my dad, and came to about HK$3,500 for the four of us, without alcohol. This is probably a little bit more than it would usually be, because it was my mother’s birthday so we allowed her her once-a-year bowl of shark’s fin.
