“Casual” and “fine dining” don’t normally sit next to each other in the dictionary of refined gastronomy, but two intrepid restaurateurs are on a mission to change that. John Law and Jessica Kesumo’s first restaurant, Rêveri, hopes to challenge conventions with accessible tasting menus that nonetheless uphold an uncompromising standard when it comes to ingredients and taste.
Founders Law and Kesumo, a husband-and-wife team, are no strangers to this field—the couple met in Sydney while pursuing careers in the hospitality industry, cut their teeth in Hong Kong’s F&B scene for more than a decade, and even helped establish a restaurant in Indonesia. All of their experiences culminate in Rêveri, where well-honed Western cooking traditions meet refreshing Asian flavours. Its setting on Mercer Street, an easily overlooked alley in Sheung Wan, catches the eye with its stark, white-washed pebbled walls, but its interiors are all muted neutrals that let the food do the talking.
On the dinner menu, the French-inspired truffle brioche is a showcase of richness, highlighting Japanese scallops, aged cheddar cheese, and scallion oil on a soft truffle bun—a punchy starter that matches the perfectly briny Carabinero tart with foie gras mousse, yuzu sake jelly, and beads of caviar. In the butter-poached lobster, French, Chinese, and Japanese flavours come into play; a novel Shaoxing wine sabayon infuses the lobster and homemade pickled daikon with flavour. Not to be missed is the simple yet effective Australia Wagyu duo with celeriac, potato gratin, and a twist: the beef is braised with fermented bean curd. Also unexpected is the Hokkaido hairy crab somen with apple, uni, and ikura.
Rêveri is now serving a five-course lunch, a short seven-course dinner, or a full 11-course menu. European reds, whites, champagnes, and Japanese sakes round out the beverage list.
20–24 Mercer Street, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong
Tel: (+852) 6778 7278
All images courtesy of Rêveri.
