Sumac Restaurant and Lounge — Restaurant in Hong Kong Island

Why 5 stars? Because aside from the lovely ambiance and fabulous service the food is excellent. It's rare to find a restaurant in Hong Kong where there is nothing to complain about but I had nothing to complain about - nothing.

I went for a business lunch so I ordered the set lunch - I normally order a la carte and avoid set lunches at most restaurants in Hong Kong because they are utterly disappointing. However, when I try a restaurant for the first time in Hong Kong, I do try the set lunch as it is often a very good indication about the restaurant's quality and values. Sumac did not disappoint at all.

While waiting for my lunch partner I thought I would try the kibbeh (a la carte) - they were excellent! For the set lunch one can choose two mezze and a main course with a side dish. I ordered the houmous and baba ganoush mezza. Let me say they were standouts. The baba ganoush was rich and unctuous with just enough tahini to round at the flavour but not enough to taste like tahini. The houmous was creamy and smooth. Of course they provide you with pita bread - it is made there fresh and as good as you'll find in Hong Kong. As a main course I ordered the chicken taouk - I know one shouldn't normally go to a restaurant and order chicken but this wasn't an uninteresting way out of being adventurous - it is a core item on the menu and I am so glad I ordered it. It was succulent and tender chicken breast that was perfectly cooked. It came with some grilled vegetables and I ordered a side of rice - the rice was beautiful. My lunch partner ordered the same and we regretted each ordering the rice because there is a lot of it. If you go with two, better that one orders a side of rice and the other a side of vegetables because there is enough to share.

Wafed the manager treated us very well as did his staff. I have nothing but nice things to say. I could not recommend Sumac enough. I will certainly be going back and definitely with my family for dinner so we can try the other things on the menu as well as their unique selection of Lebanese wines (which we did not drink during a...

Sumac offers a refined Lebanese and Mediterranean dining experience. Recently renovated, its interior now boasts a beautifully furnished and stylish ambience, providing the perfect setting to savor sharing-style small plates and signature mains showcasing flavors from the tradition.

𝙼𝚎𝚣𝚣𝚊 -

𝘽𝙖𝙗𝙖 𝙂𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙣𝙤𝙪𝙟, $140 (7/10) A rich and luscious smoky eggplant dip, though a little too burnt and smoky, just crossing over into being too strong in flavor. Nevertheless still a satisfying mezze.

𝙋𝙞𝙩𝙖 𝘽𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙙 (8/10) Served hot, the pita bread impressed with its pillowy soft texture and aromatic scent, a perfect companion to the flavorful mezze plates.

𝙏𝙖𝙗𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙚𝙝, $160 (8/10) With its finely chopped parsley leaves, tomato and onion expertly paired with cracked wheat and olive oil, it delivered a most refreshing medley of flavors that lightened the palate.

𝙆𝙞𝙗𝙗𝙚𝙝, $180 (7.5/10) It showcased ovoid-shapes of delicate wheat shells packed with a lush mélange of lamb, beef, pine nuts and onion, best savored with a cool, tangy dipping yogurt.

𝙼𝚊𝚒𝚗 -

𝙇𝙖𝙢𝙗 𝙆𝙖𝙛𝙩𝙖, $350 (6.5/10) The spiced ground lamb patties lacked a memorable punch, with a blend that did not excite my palate as much as Francis' version, which had a bolder and more memorable seasoning and texture.

𝙳𝚎𝚜𝚜𝚎𝚛𝚝𝚜 -

𝘽𝙖𝙠𝙡𝙖𝙬𝙖, $155 (7.5/10) A dilicious assortment was offered, with several styles of the pastry to choose from. We appreciated the variety, as each nut and spice combination tasted as great as the next.

𝙋𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙘𝙝𝙞𝙤 𝙈𝙖𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙠𝙚𝙝, $188 (6/10) The dessert brought traditional Middle Eastern flair, but we find that its heavy sweetness weighed the light semolina cake down - next time, a lighter sweetness might be able to balance the flavors better.

𝙳𝚛𝚒𝚗𝚔𝚜 - 𝘼𝙦𝙪𝙖 𝙋𝙖𝙣𝙣𝙖❟ $𝟴𝟬 𝙎𝙪𝙢𝙖𝙘 𝙈𝙖𝙧𝙜𝙖𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙖❟ $𝟭𝟲𝟴 𝙎𝙪𝙣𝙨𝙚𝙩 𝙇𝙚𝙗𝙖𝙣𝙤𝙣❟ $𝟭𝟯𝟱 𝙋𝙖𝙨𝙘𝙖𝙡 𝙅𝙤𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙩 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟭❟ $𝟭𝟰𝟱

Date: Jan 2024...

Sumac is a nicely decorated, atmospheric Lebanese restaurant on Glenealy in Central District. Importantly, they serve up authentic, very good Lebanese cuisine. Opening hours are 6-11pm (dinner), closed on Sundays. They have somewhat limited indoor seating so you may want to call ahead to reserve table if planning to dine there on weekends or public holidays. You can also do take-away and have food from Sumac delivered to area homes and hotels through deliveroo.

We have ordered from Sumac a couple times recently and have very much enjoyed both meals. Deliveries arrived in less than 20 minutes, dishes were packaged very well for transportation and tasted great. The Halloumi was fried well and tasted fine. More enjoyed was the Baba ghannouj which had a nice smoked taste and creamy texture.

We also very much enjoyed the Tabbouleh, a fresh, thinly chopped, salad order with loads of parsley, mint and spritely citrusy flavours. This was a delightful salad that complemented the lamb kafta very well. The kafta was nicely-seasoned ground lamb patties served with fragrant rice. The flavours and aroma of the dish was very good. We ordered these two dishes for both recent meals and enjoyed them each time.

Overall, very pleased with our two meals from Sumac last month. This is a restaurant we very much look forward to ordering from again in the...