When multi-James Beard Media Award-winning journalist Francis Lam visited from the US and could not decide whether to spend his last Hong Kong morning hiking or enjoying early dim sum, Tai Mo Shan’s Duen Kee Chinese Restaurant was our suggestion to kill two birds with one stone. We arrived shortly after 7:00 am to find ourselves surrounded by visitors and hikers, gathering at the old restaurant while making their own teas and collecting basketfuls of steamed dim sum made just minutes ago. Overlooking the serene landscapes accompanied by birdsongs and casual chatter among visitors, Duen Kee lifted our spirits enough to kick off a hike up the city’s tallest mountain. —Wilson Fok, Dining Editor

Duen Kee Tea House, Chuen Lung Village, Tai Mo Shan, Tsuen Wan, +852 2490 5246

It would seem that the new direction of Amber was perfectly timed to coincide with the unrelenting heat of summer—Richard Ekkebus' lighter take on French gastonomy, eschewing the use of dairy and nearly all gluten, is just the kind of food you might prefer when the mercury stays north of 30C. On my last visit, one of the highlights had to be the daringly simple dish of cabbage with shiitake broth—a dish that proves how a common vegetable can take centre stage in one of the finest restaurants in the world. —CM

See also: How Richard Ekkebus Rewrote The Rules Of Fine Dining For The Relaunch Of Amber

We are convinced, despite The Chairman's impressive signature steamed flower crab with chicken fat and Shaoxing wine, there is more to this Top 20 Best Restaurant awardee. We began our recent visit with gold coin chicken and pickled young ginger, followed by this steamed giant grouper head with pickled chillies, a true representation of nose-to-tail eating in Chinese food culture, wasting close to nothing with the fish head. After just three days of curing the heat of the chillies were enhanced with garlic to make a vibrant spread across the top of the fish head with silvers of pork fat. The gelatinous bony bits of the fish head yield a creamy texture, while its freshness was enhanced by the sharpness of the chillies. —WF

Since his appointment as executive chef of Gough’s On Gough, Cary Doherty turned the menu of Timothy Oulton’s restaurant back to its British roots. Restoring the glory of British fare, Cary's signatures include a textbook perfect beef Wellington, where a tightly-rolled pastry was baked until golden. A neat cut inside revealed beef cooked just right, a medium rare with duxelles of mushrooms evenly spread between the protein and the pastry. A beautiful specimen and a classic that is even better with buttery mash and gravy. —WF