Eating alone is a common sight in Hong Kong's dining scene, but once I entered 121BC, the long common table and the aroma of wine was so inviting, I wish I had brought a couple of friends over.
Well, at least now you know.
The ambiance was perfect for socializing, dim lights spread across the monochrome-colored enoteca slash osteria. I particularly liked the bare bulb chandelier-esque piece over the common table. 121BC doesn't have a fixed menu; instead they source local produce for the day, using only the freshest ingredients from local markets. While I liked the quirkiness of the circular chalkboard menu, other people may find that they have to squint.
With an unpretentious atmosphere, 121BC makes me feel at home with a (personal!) chef (Dan Johnston) serving the freshest hand-woven pasta. The sommelier Giorgio De Maria sources quality-yet-unheard-of wines from the vineyards of the Italian countryside, pairing them with my orders of buffalo mozzarella with lentils and beetroot and hand-made chickpea ravioli with braised rabbit. The mozzarella just melted in my mouth; creamy and flavorful, while the fresh ravioli went perfect with the rabbit's tender meat, which remarkably tastes like chicken but has a different texture.
I will be back to try more vino (and to bring friends this time to sample more dishes) as I did not have enough soldi with me for the night.
The menu changes on a daily basis so what I can recommend is to look for pasta and ricotta dishes, as these are guaranteed to be the freshest on the menu. If you are looking to share dishes with family, good friends, or have a glass of wine (or two), 121BC comes highly recommended. read more