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Saturday, August 10, 2013

agnès b. Le Pain Grille La Loggia @ Hongkong

agnes b, a familiar fashion brand that we often see in shopping mall or department store. Knowing there was a café/restaurant under this brand, it made me pretty excited to visit it during our HK trip.

I'd say it was nicely integrated between the store with restaurant, café, pastry counter and designed with Parisian style in mind occupying almost half of that floor at ifc mall.

Didn't have any reservation but luckily we came in quite early, just the starting of lunch hour; as evidently, it was quite a popular lunch spot.

I was a bit dismayed upon finding out the ordering concept of the café, restaurant and pastry counter which apparently didn't work in tandem and you couldn't order from each other.

The set menu of 4 courses inclusive of a soup, free-flow appetizer which you could picked from the serving table, a main course and a drink selection.

Food quality was average, not fantastic and definitely not a place I'd return for its food.

Service was pretty good; polite and courteous, but it seemed there was a lack of staff in morning shift and after 12 pm, it had more staff running up and down.

Major disappointment was the inflexibility to order pastry without the additional ice-cream and not all pastries were been offered in the restaurant even though it was available in the café or pastry corner. I was inquiring about the blueberry cake but the staff didn't fully understand which one and when she showed me, it wasn't the one I saw which was with a dinosaur print but she said she checked to café side too but they didn't have such cake, only the plain blueberry...??? I was pretty sure the cake I saw on the web was agnes b's cake.

So, coming out from restaurant, I thought just passing by the pastry corner and lo and behold, there was that blueberry cheesecake mouse cake with dinosaur print that I was asking.

Went out to pastry corner and was thinking of going to another outlet instead of having that cute blueberry cake right after lunch there; so I was asking the counter staff, where were the other outlets I could go to for pastry. To my horror, she said, no where, this was the only place I could bought agnes b pastries, which I knew wasn't. Repeated the question and yet still got same answer, in the end, I gave up and ordered the cake there. While paying, I saw the leaflet with all the outlet address for agnes b. It was puzzling thinking how come Hongkong as another English-speaking country in Asia, and especially in this mall which was frequented by tourist and expatriate, yet the staff didn't understand the question.

From all restaurants we visited in this HK trip, I felt this was the disappointment, from its average food to the dismay of having limitation on the dessert ordering though it was available next door. It showed the staff didn't aware of all the products they have, though, they can't integrate the order at least they were aware and made suggestion to have it outside.

Good in design concept but not a place I would return next time in HK.
Walkway to the restaurant which was very Parisian feeling
Cute pots
 
Very homey bookshelves, didn't expect the design was like this

Some of the real books on display
Some vintage knick knacks also adorned this bookshelves
Simple yet pretty lighting
 
A very dapper gentleman having his lunch alone
The other end of our seating area
Another seating area in different atmosphere behind that curtain
Very colonial looking tiles

Pretty fresh flowers on the table
Simple menu
The breads was pretty hardened and cold
The view to our dining area which like in passage way/corridor
Selection for those opting on Set Menu; the appetizer and dessert counter
Reminded me to Parisian design
Dramatic candle stick!
Was too full for brekkie that day, so, opted just for a very simple bite
Bouillabaisse La Loggia
The soup for set menu
Assorted fish, scampe and seafood in rich fish soup served with rouille cheese and garlic croutons
It was a good soup; very flavourful
Chef's Daily Fish and Fresh Orange Juice
Main and Drink for the Set Menu
 

The white fish was fresh and cooked perfectly
To me, this was the highlight of the lunch
Spaghetti aux saverus d'ete
Spaghetti with carrot, celery, cherry tomatoes, capers and basil
Fresh but a bit bland
 
 

 

 
Went to the dessert counter and here was some of the cut fruits selection
Various desserts we picked from the counter
Was okay and not too sweet
Thoughtful way of presenting tooth picks; arranged it in small plate and brought it to table after clearing of plates

The area opposite appetizer and dessert counter

With the tree in the middle of the room and natural lighting from the window, it was as if you were in Paris
While walking out, saw this interesting seating 
Lounge area for coffee and tea drinking

 
That puzzling yet busy pastry counter after we came out from the restaurant
I saw that cute dinosaur but not the one I was looking for
This was the individual cake of that dinosaur cake
So cute to look at

 
Soft, good mix of blueberry and cheesecake indeed
To me, if I could find this similar cake elsewhere, I would not buy it at agnes b
Retro chair and tiles at the pastry area
View from the shop at opposite side from dining area
  
agnès b. LE PAIN GRILLÉ LA LOGGIA
Shop 3096-3097, Podium Level 3, ifc Mall, Central, HK
Tel: +852-2805-0798


 
 
Opens from:
Monday to Thursday from 12 pm to 11.30 pm

Friday to Sunday and Public Holiday Eve from 12 pm to 12 am

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