Lee Ho Fook — Restaurant in Melbourne

LEE HO FOOK Saturday 7th September 2024 What a food lovers Journey of just pure smiles each time I complete a dish. Just smiling just happy. Wonderful. WINTER TASTING MENU BABY CUCUMBER cashew cream, Sichuan chilli crisp This is dam delicious it’s ridiculously. Crunchy cucumber with an amazing awesome delicious mix of nuts and chilli. Sweet tangy. Bit spicy then tiny crunchy bits. Amazing delicious. PICKLED SPRING BAY MUSSEL, chilli oil, fennel and nasturtium vinegar Naked mussel with crunchy bits yummy PRAWN TOAST sea urchin, green garlic and salted egg yolk butter Wow wonderful prawn toast with my favourite sea urchin rich in umami then you add garlic eggs yolk butter. What. It’s a fantastic dish. Sending amazing messages to all my taste buds. A championship dish RAW KINGFISH white radish, cloud fungi, leeks and ginger white soy cream Cloud fungi. Cloud like but surprisingly crunchy. A light delicacy flavour of light pear apple celery maybe. Crunchy radish delicious fish light oil sauce. Just an amazing combination delicious. DISH of the night. Not due to its complexity but due to the care the genius has taken to marry the ingredients to such perfection. Amazing. 2022 Hahndorf Hill ‘GRU’ Grüner Veltliner, Adelaide Hill, SA BUY BUY BUY Delicious mouth rounding wine depth flavour citrus floral pear/peach. It’s GOOD. Went sensationally with the dish. CRISPY EGGPLANT spiced red vinegar Supplement $18 Sichuan pepper chilli sticky sauce meets delicious crispy eggplant. Wow mouth is alive with flavour and sweting. Love it Bloody delicious. Spicy Hot but so well balanced it is deliciousness in simplicity. 2022 Stefano Lubiana, Pinot Gris, Derwent Valley, TAS Rich light fruit citrus maybe lighter fruit. Goes okay with spicy food but perhaps overpowering. MUD CRAB Rolled Rice Noodles, ginger and shallot sauce Just arrived yep HEAVEN I’M IN HEAVEN. Delicate mud crab treated with utmost care. Rolled noodles gnocchi like. Ginger shallots sauce is possibly the best most delicious thing I’ve ever had. Simply stunning. Served by the Mistro himself Victor. A humble GENIUS 2023 Shadowfax Gewürztraminer, Macedon Ranges, VIC Sticky delicious moorish fragrant light citrus more lychee with hint mineral. I absolutely love it. BUY BUY BUY The soft subtle floral notes are stunning. STEAMED TOOTHFISH organic silken tofu, ginger and spring onion oil Victor. Stop it. This is seriously an amazing sensational sublime dish. Translucent delicate fish On soft silken Tofu. All treated perfectly with a light sauce that blends with doesn’t take away from the taste. Bloody FANTASTIC Simple it’s fish tofu a sauce. But in the hands of a genius it’s wonderful. 2019 WILLOW CREEK CHARDONNAY Deep delicious chard with crisp clean green fruit soft floral. With food it’s even better. Soft rounded. Peach lychee maybe. Citrus LACQUERED DUCK lup cheong bao, cinnamon & star anise sauce, summer plums and pear hoisin Quack - Light crispy skin. Sweet delicate duck Peking style. Treated right delicious soft awesome flavours. The Lup is new to me is wonderful accompaniment. Soft bun with nice spicy sausage. Sauce blend into harmony of song on the taste buds. What a dish for me to finish the main. A deep sensory flavour of duck danced perfectly on my tongue. Thank you. SAILOR SEEKS HORSE 2022 PINOT NOIR Cassias cherry slightly plum 2nd sip wow tight delicious luscious flavour real depth love it JASMINE RICE ICE CREAM red bean and chestnut, warm cocoa caramel Wonderful. Light creamy delicate ice cream with chocolate heaven sauce with crunchy bits. Excellent. B PETIT FOURS and MIGNARDISE NV Chambers ‘Old Vine’, Muscadelle, Rutherglen, VIC Deep nose usual date plum like flavour bit coffee hint tannins light so not as heavy as a port say. Raisin sultanas driven. Joyous A fantastic restaurant that well deserves all its accolades. A humble Executive Chef who is a delightful to talk to about food. An experience to get and not forgotten. I’ll be back for more memories. Thank you to all...

Never Again!

My family purchased an 8 course banquet with a 5 hr drinks package attached, at Lee Ho Fook (Marvel Syadium) last Sunday whilst watching the St Kilda vs Carlton match. I was quite excited to eat there as the restaurant boasts 2 Hats!

Being vegan I called ahead to notify the restaurant of my dietary requirements. Unfortunately, the restaurant didn't realize that I'd obviously want vegan wine (not regular wine refined with egg) if i was going to pay for a beverage package. Surprisingly enough our host had no knowledge of any vegan wine in their bar. So after about 30 minutes of Googling wines I had to settle for a wine listed in the drinks package that was most likely vegan based on the information provided on the bottle. By this stage, food had been served but nothing vegan had been allocated for me, so upon inquiry, an additional fried eggplant dish, that the group had already eaten, was brought out and I was advised that some left over (and now cold) san choy bow on the table was vegan and part of my banquet too. I then received some fried rice and mapo tofu. That was it. Four items from a banquet in which I was meant to get eight items!

To make things worse, the food varied between ordinary and terrible. The eggplant and mapo tofu were okay; but something I could get at my local family run Chinese takeaway shop. The fried rice, however, was tasteless. It appeared as though they'd simply stirred a few greens through some plain boiled rice. The san choy bow was actually woeful. It had corn and edamame and no apparent seasoning. It tasted like a dish conjured up by Crocodile Dundee for a 5 year old child 🤣. Unfortunately, the other members of my group weren't impressed by their dishes either.

To say I was disappointed would be an understatement. Shocked, would be more appropriate. The food was appalling value for money for the non vegans, but at least they received 8 courses. I received 4, yet paid for 8, and of the 4, only 2 were edible. This was terribly unethical.

Furthermore, we also had to keep asking for refills of our drinks. I would have thought if you've paid for a drinks package; and bottles couldn't be provided on the tables, that refills would have been diligently provided without guests having to ask constantly for more drinks. It was a clever way, however, to ensure minimal drinks were drunk. Another example of unethical business practices.

Overall, Lee Ho Fook was a monumental let down. I actually feel scammed, and quite angry now I think about the entire experience. I have no idea how this restaurant obtained 2 Hats, because I've tasted better Asian food at my local shopping centre's food court. Having said that, the staff were wonderful. They were helpful, friendly, polite and accommodating - they were also run off their feet. Nevertheless, I certainly will never return to Lee Ho Fook, nor would I recommend...

EXTREMELY DISAPPOINTING EXPERIENCE Tried the CNY menu was advertised as 12 courses yet only received 10 yet STILL PAID THE SAME PRICE (did not receive any notice about this until AFTER the meal was finished)

Water was dripping from the ceiling onto our heads!!!!! Gross

Accidentally left behind a bag with containers and red pockets with money. Called afterwards to inform them and spoke to an employee and was told they would leave the bag to allow us to pick it up. Come to pick it up and turns out they supposedly “threw” it away! UNTRUSTWORTHY and POOR customer service!!

Food was average, not worth it for the price

EDIT Per reply by the owner, 12 courses was served. I suggest he checks with his staff. When we asked the waitress of the night after the second last dessert was served, where is our last dessert, she said, “Sorry, this is the last course”. The last missing on that night was Mignardise and Fruits. The first original menu on your website had 11 dishes listed, yet on the night we were served 10. The menu on your website was then edited AFTER we visited to list 10 courses yet the information still lists it as 12 courses? I don’t understand how you can say you served 12 courses yet CLEARLY only served 10.

That evening, we were there at 6 but we finished slightly after 10. why? ( remember we have a 2 year old with us) Reason - according to your staff, we are experiencing problems in your kitchen . please check with your staff before you deny.

Why didn’t we complain that evening? Because is is my family reunion dinner. We want it to be a happy one. No complaints so in the year of the Tiger, all will be good.

Yes, we agree with your reply that there is nothing you can do. But remember, good customer service is to inform customers of issues and apologise first.

I called and left a message with my number. No one returned my call. I called again the next day and remind your staff not to throw it away as there were two red packets with $100 each inside. I went twice but you are closed. Moreover, a restaurant of that size has no place to keep a small bag. Ridiculous! Even if this is true , you should at least give me...