There are restaurants you discover because they’re trending, and then there are those you’re gently pointed toward by friends who know how you eat, travel, how you linger at a table. Ming Pavilion fell firmly into the second category.

When friends found out I was staying at Island Shangri-La Hong Kong, messages came quickly: Don’t miss Ming Pavilion. One friend was very specific: Go for lunch — the room is beautiful in daylight. Another added, “And look for their tea sommelier. They have an excellent collection.” That specificity usually signals something thoughtful rather than flashy, and it made me curious.

Tucked within the hotel, Ming Pavilion offers something you don’t often come across in a city shaped so strongly by Cantonese cuisine: a dedicated focus on Hokkien, or Fujian, cooking. We’re familiar with Szechuan for its heat, Hunan for its boldness, Guangdong for its finesse. Hokkien rarely enters the conversation. Which is interesting, because for many Filipino-Chinese families back home, Hokkien food and language are part of everyday life. The flavors feel familiar in a way that’s hard to explain but easy to recognize. 

Lunch, it turns out, really is the right time to go. Daylight filters softly into the dining room, picking up the green tones, curved banquettes and relaxed elegance of the space. It’s calm without feeling hushed, polished without being stiff. Tea arrives early and keeps coming — fragrant, warm, grounding. It frames the meal gently, exactly as my friend promised.

The menu offers a clear look into Fujian Province, particularly the coastal cooking of Fuzhou and Xiamen. We began with the Fujian Appetisers Platter, which included Deep-Fried Hand Chopped Prawn Roll and Chilled Sweet and Sour Water Bamboo Strips with Pomelo. Crisp, cool and refreshing, it set a relaxed pace for what followed.

The soup course — Simmered Tomato Broth with Matsutake Mushroom and Bamboo Fungus — was clean and comforting, the kind of dish that reminds you how satisfying clarity can be. Nothing overstated or heavy.