News from the brand-new PRIME BAR & GRILL, inside the former Lamcombe Rest.:

"Soft Opening of Prime Bar & Grill at 4pm tomorrow, 16 February. Well, the bar anyway, the restaurant will open in early March.

Please drop by for drinks and snacks!"

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The Prime Bar soft opening has been postponed due to unforeseen circumstances. We hope to open tomorrow. Apologies.

A few new photos of Jing Jing, after they recently added the soft outdoor seating for smokers and people watchers.
Their unusual and very tasty brunch options have become my latest favourite. It's open till 5pm for very late brunches or their lunch sets.

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I've asked friends who've already visited the newly opened Prime Bar & Grill for their opinions. Prime is in the former, old Lamcombe Rest. location, go through the new bar facing Main Street.

Anonymous: (paraphrasing from her verbal comments):
"Superb! Reasonable prices, we shared several dishes, great sides, jovial, friendly atmosphere, cozy, wooden-lattices atmosphere, will go again soon with friends!"

Robert Hope-Jones:
"Cajun Chicken Burger with chips and a pint of Dry Blackthorn cider.

I was dining alone, so I decided to eat at the bar. This allowed me to people watch on Main Street whilst the punters in Diesel's Bar were able to look down on us at the same time! Apart from two other customers, I had the rather spacious bar to myself.

Walking into Prime (or even passing by) one doesn’t get the feeling that this is a restaurant. I think once they fix the licensing issues, they can then repackage the frontage. While I was sat there, half a dozen people asked if there was a restaurant inside, so I think they need to address this somehow with some internal signage until they build a good reputation.

I ordered a pint of cider and scanned the menu, which for my liking, was not over-packed with too many options. I was surprised not to see a Chinese language menu, however this may have been in a separate book. I settled on the Cajun Chicken Burger, and naïvely expected it to come with chips. As I placed my order, Les, who served me, asked if I wanted chips with it for the extra $30. Not being a complete meal with out them I took his offer. I am guessing they are not including chips to either keep the menu more flexible, or make the dishes look more appealing budget-wise. For me the price was on the mark, total bill was $155, including the chips and one cider.

The food was served promptly, and by the chef himself. It’s a nice touch to have the head chef coming in with food he’s just cooked from time-to-time. I can see they are still getting organized and so the bar area was still missing the convenience of condiments, etc. I wasn’t given any cutlery to begin with, but the chef went back and retrieved some. There were no napkins so I had to request one, which promptly came.

The food presentation was understated but neat, and I was eager to tuck in. The first things to capture my taste buds were the chips – they smelt so good and had obviously just come out of the fryer. I am very picky when it comes to something so basic as chips, but these were in a class of their own for Lamma; you could tell the oil they were cooked in was fresh (a key factor to good chips) and had been drained before serving. Nowhere on Lamma can you get chips like this, so this is a big plus for me and will keep me coming back if the standard remains high.

Picking up my burger I found that the juice from the chicken and the dressing had poured down the side and soaked into the base of the ciabatta. The bread could have done with a little toasting really, and was on the verge of being too doughy.

Tucking in to the burger I was surprised that it wasn’t spicy at all. Being a Cajun dish, I was expecting it to be too spicy for my tastes, but it was just right. The salad inside the ciabatta was a nice simple selection that perfectly finished off the package. Next time I will probably request that the burger is cut in half, as it is quite big enough to be enjoyed that way.

The bar will remain a favorite spot for me, but I hear that the restaurant is smoker friendly, and if this is true, this will definitely put me off dining in the main restaurant next time.

Overall impression is that Lamma may finally have a restaurant that can offer a decent Western dining experience in a quality environment, and with prices that will please many. A lot of effort and money has obviously gone into creating a nice warm environment, and the quality finish is obvious. The bar itself though lacks any distinctive personality, and it will hopefully garner a little for itself as it ages. Thankfully, Les (one of the owners) comes across as very comfortable managing his creation, and he brings a ‘certain warmth’ to the establishment that’s reminiscent of decent English pubs back home.

Marks 9 out of 10.

A rather blurry iPhone photo attached."

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International celebrity sighting in Andy's Seafood:

See Lamma-zine story, March 31, and Lamma Gung on Facebook.

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Non-spicy "Cajun" chicken burger and chips, the epitome of western cuisine.

Enjoyed the piss-take, great satire.

From June 1, 2019, new opening hours: 11am - 10pm.

Plus no more wonton noodle soup in Andy's, until further notice:

Plus an entirely new page we've spotted in their already comprehensive menu:

Our two favorites so far!

I've been doing a little free photo shoot in our favourite Chinese restaurant on Lamma, Andy's Seafood (accepting a free dinner offered afterwards). It's the successor of the formerly famous and very renowned Lamcombe, a firm favourite of many Lammaites of all nationalities. It was our frequent dining choice back when Andy & Elizabeth & their staff family were still running it a few years ago in the adjacent place (which just re-opened as Prime Bar & Grill the very same day I was doing this photo shoot below, Mar 16, 2013).

Lamma-Por & I have returned as regular, very happy customers, especially as several of the very skilled and jovial staff have returned to Andy's Seafood as well when he finally reopened last year. But we're still discovering new dishes we've never tried before from their sizable but very affordable bilingual menu which extends far beyond seafood. Too many favourites to name them...

Andy's Seafood rest. is also a great spot for watching (and photographing) the sunset and the often fascinating goings-on in the harbour, along the beach, at the YSW ferry pier and the old jetty. Meeting up with old and new friends for a leisurely beer or glass of wine is often followed by a shared, sumptuous feast to celebrate any occasion or simply the joy of living on such a still great, always interesting and often surprising island. Let's enjoy it all while it lasts...

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Time Out magazine, May 7, '13: Prime review, giving it 4 out of 5 stars!

HK Magazine, May 16, '13: ...a New Steak House Opens on Lamma...:

"New steak restaurant on Lamma! Prime Bar & Grill Restaurant (47 Main St., Yung Shue Wan, Lamma Island, 2982-1688) is a relatively spacious restaurant with a lovely outdoor terrace overlooking the sea, that will seat up to 50 peeps. PBGR serves meat of all kinds, in all formats. Salads, grills, steaks, pies, burgers, all with beef, chicken, lamb, fish or ribs—but veggie options are available for those who shun meat (although what sort of vegetarian would want to frequent a steak restaurant?). I haven’t been to the island in ages, but maybe now’s the time to explore once more."

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Dinner in The Waterfront last night...

We love to go there at sunset time, just before this covered outdoor space fills up on weekends. You can rest your camera/smartphone on the wide ledge for perfectly steady sunset photos without a tripod.
This photo was actually shot with my smartphone, because my better camera is being repaired in the service center (again).

Their seafood pie with peas (part of our shared set dinner) is absolutely delicious, stuffed with seafood, so creamy with amazing seasonings. Highly recommended by both of us, one of our favourite dishes in The Waterfront. Best enjoyed together with a single glass of their fine house white wine at only $35.

One portion was big enough to share... and the leftovers filled me up for a very satisfying lunch today. Great value for money, 2+1 meals at $138, including soup or warm chicken salad.

No room left this time for our favourite dessert, their gorgeous, warm chocolate volcano.

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Prime Bar & Grill, June 4, '13

Do you believe in karma? Running this community website, I do daily little free favours for almost anybody asking, from replying to the numerous enquiries to promoting local activities, without expecting anything in return. Occasionally, I get a major, very pleasant surprise when somebody actually returns a favour, sometimes years later.

Some of the advertising in the Lamma-zine runs on barter deals. Some of the goods I received I passed on to people contributing major content to the site. For example advertising barter lunches in Life Cafe in Soho, inviting a few friends to join me, years ago. One of them was one of the founders of the future Prime Bar & Grill rest., Julia.

To my big surprise, I got an invitation to a complimentary dinner for two. Lamma-Por and I hadn't visited Prime yet, even though numerous friends had tried and loved it already. We were waiting for a worthy, celebratory event, like a birthday, to check out this 4-star eatery (according to Time Out HK magazine).

Prime Bar & Grill is located in a beautiful covered outdoor terrace setting, harbourside in Yung Shue Wan, in the location of one of our former favourites, Lamcombe Seafood Rest. Best time to visit is definitely before and after sunset over the YSW harbour, when you might catch fishermen returning or youngsters frolicking on the old jetty or the Lamma Dragons practicing their fierce strokes.

Shortly after sitting down and choosing from the comprehensive, well-designed menu, an impressive thunderstorm started up, driving us away from our cozy harbourside table. Master chef Richard rushed out and rolled down the transparent blinds personally, supporting his staff. Then he rushed back into the kitchen to prepare a special yummy surprise appetiser of sliced pork.

As Lamma-Por preferred mash instead of my French fries, they pro-actively offered to slice our one big steak in half and serve it on two plates with different sides and sauces! That's a level of service and customer friendliness we didn't expect! Warranting special praise is the refreshingly friendly, cheerful, even pro-active style of waitressing, not something you can expect in most of our local eateries.

Our shared New Zealand steak was perfectly grilled to specification, the sides yummy and the crunchy, not-too-sweet apple crumble was huge enough to share and take the leftovers home, as a very tasty cold lunch for me the next day.

Their competitively priced house wines by the glass are well-chosen, complementing the grilled dishes very well. The menu ranges pretty widely, including vegetarian and seafood dishes. There are lower-priced lunch and dinner specials of the day.

This shared meal would have added up to over $500. But you could just order a daily special or a single dish - for example my favourite of the evening, the creative riot of colours and flavours of the roast duck & blue cheese salad, for just below $100. I'd be very happy with just that single dish and a glass of white house wine for a light lunch. In fact, I'll return soon, at my own expense, and check out those daily specials.

Yung Shue Wan having such a top-quality steakhouse - impossible 10 years ago, I think - tells you about the changes in population, with enough affluent people living here now to support such a classy venue, being open even at lunchtime now and possibly expanding to indoors upstairs soon.

As you can't expect me to be totally impartial after such a delicious and all-round satisfying but free dinner - Burp! Sorry! - go check out some recent, more professional reviews:

HK Magazine, May 16, '13 -- Time Out magazine, May 7, '13

For more info, including their news, specials and photos:
http://www.facebook.com/PrimeBarGrill

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Nice review, LG. As a (an almost non meat eater) I last enjoyed a lovely salad with my family (who do and did eat meat). The ambiance and obviously the location are great. Hope to eat again there soon. My comment on the service is that it was really ....vibrant, lots of energy from the young servers, who knew what they were serving and could answer questions about the food. Keep up the good work everyone.

XXX

Really, affluent people and such a classy venue? Man Fung and Sampan have been here for years, and they are much more expensive, with smaller portions, not to mention that the food is scheisse.

Man Fung and Sampan primarily target Lamma visitors and Chinese customers and are not "classy" but have decent food for local Chinese tastes, quite similar to most of the restaurants in Sok Kwu Wan. We've just enjoyed a big tasty dinner with a table of friends in Sampan, $135/person.

Sampan and Man Fung are obviously both very different from Prime which doesn't rely on one-time visitors, but has to be very attractive to local repeat customers (many of whom are not Chinese). Positive local word of mouth is crucial for Prime, but doesn't matter as much to touristy restaurants as so many of their guests are one-time-only visitors.

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I agree with LG that for the average person the pricing of a full meal makes this a 'special occasion' restaurant.

For a lunch of 2 mains and a shared starter + 2 drinks (lime sodas) which cost around $400, I enjoyed the food, large portions and upbeat service. The barbecue ribs were a stand-out for me.

The let-down: before ordering the bill, we asked for two glasses of water. They never came. Part of the no-free-water mentality found elsewhere in HK (all other items arrived, no problem)?

Like you LG, I might return for a lighter more reasonably priced casual visit, though.

Ngau Kee rest. might be reopening on July 1st.
New owner, chef and waiters; a new beginning, hopefully.
Might be well worth checking out this relaunched Cha Chaan Teng.

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Is that the one with the large outdoor space just off main street?

Yes, vis-a-vis Pizza Milano;
where they just concreted the floor and replaced the fence along Main Street with another one of these low bare-concrete walls proliferating all over Yung Shue Wan, surrounding many of the newer village houses now.

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Many congratulations to the Lamma Grill up in Tai Yuen on their first anniversary!

They had a great party on Friday night for their legions of loyal customers and even ran out of Sangria. Anybody got photos of the party to show here, please?

All the best wishes for many more anniversaries and even bigger success! Check them out on Facebook and their new website, http://www.LammaGrill.com with their entire menu, takeaways and daily specials.<HR>
Lamma institution Man Kee Rest. has been taken over by our Sha Po neighbour and Beer Garden owner, Chow Hung Kee.
He seemed to spend so much time in Man Kee and liking it so much that he took it over after the retirement of the longtime owner who has now more time to go spearfishing, see below...

Their homely, very moderately priced food will probably stay the same - why mess with such longtime success, mostly the same cooks and staff . We might continue to be regular customers.
Try their HK-style breakfasts or their complete steak set meal (incl. soup, salad and drink) on a sizzling plate, big enough for two people, for $98.

Still waiting for the re-opening of the former Ngau Kee Cha Chaan Teng vis-a-vis Pizza Milano, delayed from July 1 to probably sometime before end of this month, July. The new waiters and cooks seem to be in training these days....

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Congratulations to the Lamma Grill! HIgh Quality delicious food! Missed the party. Have no pictures.

As for the Man Kee.. hope it stays the same! It's always been a cheap and cheerful 'lunchbox/dai pai dong' style of place for me, and I think it could be the only restaurant in YSW that has been consistent for over 20 years.

It was my hangout of choice during the early 90's. Hope it doesn't disappear like many HK 'institutions' for locals. Hope it stays the same under new management.

Our first breakfast in Mr. Ma & Restaurant, vis-a-vis Pizza Milano. The Chinese name remains the same, Ngau Kee. It reopened last Sat, July 13.

$25 for a HK-style breakfast, very similar to Man Kee's traditional fare.
We'll be back for their "Tea Sets" and a regular meal soon.

We felt 'safe' as this venue is approved for police officer's meals, see below.
It's quite an experience to sit out there during a massive tropical downpour, like this morning's Yellow Thunderstorm Warning.

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