Dinner tonight at Bo Innovation. My first time to experience molecular gastronomy, let alone Chinese style.

The restaurant is on Ship Street, off Johnston Road. A glass elevator to the second floor brings you to this great setting. Note the huge mosaic portrait of chef Alvin Leung, the self proclaimed “demon chef” (and that’s what his tattoo says).

We had the chef’s menu – $1,680 per person with wine. Starting with a glass of champagne, followed by a mixture of whites and reds from Australia, New Zealand, France, Spain that beautifully complemented the various courses. (Probably should mention that we were comped – the staff knew in advance we were there to review for a magazine. However from my observation, all the other tables received the same food and attentive service we did.)
#1 Century egg with super sour foam. As a rule I don’t eat eggs and I’ve certainly never tried a century egg before. But I was resolved to at least taste every dish put in front of me. And as eggs go, it was actually kind of pleasant.

The clam, served with a bloodless Bloody Mary – sorry no photo but a fascinating two layered non-alcoholic drink.

We were told this was one of the signature dishes – a quail egg smoked with brown sugar and tea leaves, covered in taro, topped with beluga caviar. As I said, I don’t care for eggs. But I asked if I could have ten more of this one.

Vegetable cappuccino – I forget the vegetable used – and a crouton made with anchovies!

Thin slice of toro “paper” – the pincers were there for rolling it up.

Very sweet peas, sticky rice and a sauce made from Chinese pickles.

Another signature dish – this is xiao long bao! The dark red square is dried vinegar – place on your tongue, let it melt, then take in the rest – my gosh, it tasted exactly like a perfect xiao long bao.

Hairy crab souffle, with vinegar and fruit salad

Not on the menu but brought to us at this point anyway – Chinese sausage ice cream! We got two spoons each, I would have been happier with four.

Steamed foie gras with a sauce that included rice foam, lotus, char siu, chinese mushrooms – this is the only dish I didn’t finish as I’m not a fan of foie gras and even with that amazing sauce, after one bite of the liver I pushed that aside and just scooped up the sauce on its own.

Leung’s take on sweet and sour pork. Five more of these please!

Australian Wagyu beef with black truffle soy and cheung fun – as odd a take on dim sum as you’re likely to find but look at this amazing piece of beef.

Dessert varied slightly from the menu … we were told to eat from right to left – red bean creme brulee, gingko nut foam soda, sesame and banana and something else

And then … apple crumble! With egg batter foam

More views of the restaurant – we ate outside, surrounded by heaters and a clear sky.

So what did I think? Having read both pro and con about molecular gastronomy, I decided I fall into the “pro” column. When I picked up something that didn’t look like anything I’d ever seen before, put it in my mouth and went, “wow, that’s xiao long bao!” I was smiling like a kid. The servers did a very good job of explaining what each course consisted of. The dishes are actually much more complex than the menu states.

Leung changes the menu every month and we were told that most “regulars” only go there once a month. There is a tasting menu that costs $680. The chef’s menu is $1,080 or $1,680 with wine. There is no a la carte except during the day when they have some dim sum.

The dinner took four hours and it was an event – it was dinner and theater all rolled into one. If it was not the best meal I ever ate, it was certainly one of the most memorable. On that basis, Bo Innovation definitely merits its two Michelin stars.

And I don’t think I’ve ever been so full in my life.