Chef of Louise Fame Strikes Out With New French Restaurant in Hong Kong

(Bloomberg) — As a longtime fan of PMQ’s one-Michelin-starred stalwart Louise, I was excited to hear that chef Franckelie Laloum was striking out on his own and opening a new restaurant with a mission to offer lighter and more accessible French dining staples.

Lala, which opened in early February, is (rather lazily) named for the first two letters of Laloum and his business partner Michael Larkin’s surnames, and it’s largely kept the same interior aesthetic as the restaurant that previously occupied the Lyndhurst Terrace space, La Brasserie. 

When I visited with three guests recently, the service was still showing growing pains, with our waiter frazzled and forgetting to serve the sauces with the main course. The sommelier only recommended us the most expensive bottles of wine — a pet peeve of one of my guests who declared it a mark of insincere hospitality. 

Thankfully, Laloum’s food more than made up for all of that. The grenouilles (parsley frog legs) were a standout among the entrees, a juicy, bright explosion of flavors, while the macaroni and cheese accomplished the near-impossible task of making a black truffle sauce taste somewhat subtle. Everything we ordered was excellent, save the langoustine entree, which was coated in a sauce that tasted like thousand island dressing, a rare false note in a menu that otherwise lives up to its promise of making restrained and elegant French classics.

And when the maitre d came around to check on us, he heard our feedback on the service graciously and promptly comped the delicious patisserie desserts by chef Natalie Leung, also a Louise alumna. He didn’t know I was writing a review, but the move of course ensured it would be a glowing one. Our bill came out to HK$1,163 ($150) per person, which was pretty good value considering we had four entrees, the cote de boeuf (HK$1,128) to share and two bottles of wine.

The vibe: The space is huge for Hong Kong restaurant standards, with a large bar area and even a patisserie display corner. The interior is designed in that interchangeably trendy style that so many Sheung Wan restaurants have, all cerulean walls and spherical sconces, but the food is of a far higher standard than the parade of eateries that seem to open and shut every week in the neighborhood. Lala was pretty full when we went on a Friday night, and I expect it will get harder to book as word travels.  

Can you conduct a private meeting here? Yes. It’s a lively place, but there’s enough space between tables that you don’t have to hear other people’s conversations. And unlike some other popular restaurants, the lighting is not so dark that you wouldn’t be able to read documents if necessary.  

What we’d order again: The frog legs (HK$188) are a must-have, and the seriole (HK$158) was well-balanced. While macaroni and cheese is not most people’s first choice at a French restaurant, the dish here (HK$288, and actually penne) really does reinvent the wheel, with chicken jus adding an unexpected smokiness. For the main to share, we didn’t go for the recommended poulet jaune (HK$788), reasoning that it would be similar to Louise’s famous yellow chicken, but the other diners sure looked like they were loving it.  

Need to know: Lala is located on the ground floor of Lyndhurst Building, 29 Lyndhurst Terrace, and is open everyday except Tuesday for lunch (noon-2.30 p.m.), dinner (6 p.m.-9.30 p.m.) and weekend brunch. It’s open in between lunch and dinner service for drinks and snacks. You can make reservations online, Whatsapp, email or by phone at 852 52003915.

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