Tiny Urban Kitchen

Exploring Food from Boston to Hong Kong and Beyond

menu icon
subscribe
search icon
×

Wakaran Wan Chai

Published: by

Wakaran Hong Kong

Tucked away on Ship Street in Wan Chai, Wakaran is a casual, upbeat restaurant that incorporates a fusion of Japanese, Chinese, and Western influences. The restaurant's name, "WA-KA-RAN" (和華蘭), is really a shortened form of the term "wakaranai", which means "I don't understand" in Japanese. Their rationale is, "who are we to tell anybody what they should really know about food?" After all, they strongly encourages the utmost creativity when it comes to their version of "Modern Asian", melding multiple cuisines together in all sorts of different ways.

Small Plates

Wakaran Hong Kong
From the small plates section, one of the signature dishes is Truffle Sesame Doughnut . Inspired by the deep fried glutinous rice sesame balls you see in Cantonese restaurants, Wakaran's version is topped with shaved comte cheese and black tuffle: a savory version if you will.
Wakaran Hong Kong
Another small plate that's delicious is the "K.F.C." a 50/50 Sichuan mala pepper and yuzu honey fried chicken. It's delicious, and for HK98 you get around 4-5 pieces.
Wakaran Hong Kong
Pomelo salad

Maki Our Way

One of my favorite dishes at the restaurant is their maki "tacos." They take the Korean concept of the crispy seaweed and bend it into a "shell" that is taco shaped. THEN, they add Japanese ingredients on top, such as otoro, wagyu steak and uni, salmon with sriracha mayo, and more. These bites are always delicious, and I really enjoy them!

Wakaran Hong Kong
Chargrilled Otoro Myoga Garlic Soy (HK138)
Wakaran Hong Kong
Wagyu & Uni Sand Ginger Soy (HK188)
Wakaran Hong Kong
Spicy Diced Salmon Sriracha Mayo (HK68)
Wakaran Hong Kong
Spicy Diced Salmon Sriracha Mayo on a black charcoal bread
Wakaran Hong Kong
shaved salted duck egg + tuna on a maki "crisp".

From the Grill

What's available on the grill changes depending on the season. You could have classic yakitori type dishes, grilled vegetables, or various types of grilled meat (like char siu!).

Wakaran Hong Kong
We really enjoyed the grilled oyster mushrooms, and ordered them more than once.
Wakaran Hong Kong
The yakitori is solid (we gor a chicken and scallion yakitori), though I'm still partial to Yardbird.
Wakaran Hong Kong
Whole Roasted Dry-Aged “Ma Yau” Kombu Sauce (Limited Daily - HK288)

Larger Plates

Wakaran Hong Kong
The Whole Smoked Pigeon is quite a special dish, and I can see why they limit the numbers. It seem to be quite labor-intensive to prepare this dish! The pigeon has a perfectly crispy skin, and will be served alongside some seasonal vegetables, such as kale in our case (Limited Daily) HK248.

"Sweet" (Dessert)

Wakaran Hong Kong
Everybody highly recommends trying the Ginger Rice Bomb Dumplings, which should really be eaten in one bite. It's a spherified burst of warm sweet ginger goodness when you bite into the ball. It's fun, and if you like ginger, it's pretty tasty.

Initial Thoughts - Wakaran Wan Chai Hong Kong

I'm a fan. I have always loved East Asian cuisines, and I like the creativity with which the team has put together different dishes here. The maki tacos are awesome; the grilled dishes are by and large solid tasty. Other dishes, like the pigeon, are surprisingly elegant. All in all, we've come back here multiple times and will continue to do so!

Wakaran Wan Chai Hong Kong
Shop B, G/F, Pinnacle Building
9 Ship Street, Wan Chai

Related Posts

Ruam Thai Wan Chai Hong Kong
Motorino Hong Kong - Neapolitan style pizza from New York
Bo Innovation Hong Kong - 3 Michelin Stars - NOW 2 Michelin Stars
22 Ships Wan Chai - Spanish Tapas {HONG KONG} NOW CLOSED

More World Travel

Recent Posts