After our nice Aperitvo, we walked basically 50 meters to our dinner destination. Another recommendation from "FOY" Candice. A Hong Kong style restaurant named Hekfan, which also served Dim Sum for dinner.
It was a tiny, cute little restaurant.
But the menu belied the rather quaint surroundings, with items like Foie Gras Siu Mai and Crystal Dumplings of Mushroom and Truffle! The Missus also appreciated the tea selection as well. Ordering was a breeze and the folks actually spoke Mandarin and English as well!
We placed our order, not a huge amount of food; but some pretty rich stuff.
First to arrive were the Crystal Dumpling, basically Har Gow with a trio of mushroom and truffle.
We really didn't care for the har gow wrappers which were very glutinous; but the earthy-savory-sweet mushroom and the very fragrant truffle was very good. The addition of a tobiko garnish gave the dumpling a nice salty-briney touch.
A trio of Dim Sum followed.
The weakest item were the Xiao Long Bao. The wrapper was decent if a bit too doughy; but there was barely any "soup" in the dumpling which was quite bland.
While we were still not big fans of the Har Gow wrapper; the Roasted Duck Har Gow was quite good. Great flavors, not overly sweet.
Mild anise-sweetness-savory tones. I had reservations about the skin being included but it actually added a nice texture.
In what seemed to be a recurring theme; the wrapper of the siu mai wasn't very good, kind of mushy; but man, the flavors of the Foie Gras, Shrimp, and Mushroom Siu Mai were really good.
Never thought the earthy flavor of foie gras would work here; but it added a nice earthy-creamy touch to the very sweet-oceany shrimp. The filling was so tender and moist, yet it held firm.
The Missus really loved the smokey-savoriness of the Pork on Smoked Boiled Eggs.
This arrived on a wooden plate covered by glass fed by one of those smoker-infuser guns. I might have to get one of those. The pork added porcine flavors and the five-spice based seasoning really made the dish.
Soon enough, the final item we ordered appeared. Arriving on a covered plate, which was soon set ablaze.
Quite a show for the Dong Po Rou.
Which was super rich and fatty, decently sweet, good sweet-soy flavors. Quite fragrant, served in tandem with some fancy "buns".
All in all, an enjoyable meal. While the wrappers weren't the best; I'm thinking that sourcing the right ingredients might be a challenge, the flavors were quite good.
Who knew; decent Hong Kong style Chinese in Brera…Milan!
Hekfan
Via Marco Formentini 2
20121 Milan, Italy
Please note that my sources have informed me that Hekfan is moving to a larger space.
And guess what? We'd have even better Dim Sum in Milan later on the trip.
Thanks as always for the recommendations Candice!