Price: $$
Cravingness: ★★★☆☆
(Restaurant Tasting)
There was once when I wanted to try every single burger place in Hong Kong, The Champs was on my to try list. The Champs is located at the Charter House, somewhere I wouldn't say is at the heart of Wanchai. It is quite a coincident that it falls into one of my walking route from work, where I spotted its huge poster advertising their burger and know about it's existence.
The Champs is a bar restaurant in American settings. The place is spacious, with an open bar table at the front door and lots of stools and booth seatings further inside. There is two big TV screens in the middle and at the end of the pub restaurant, playing sports channel that apparently drawing many guys here. The ambiance is quite lively with suitable noise level which is perfect for happy hour and also for big party, which happened to accommodated one the night I went.
We had a drink to start our night. The drink selection is vast, there are some interesting cocktails which I wanted to try and picked this "Zombie" at last from the weirdness of its name (costs HKD$75). The drink came in with an un-appetising look but I guess it suits its name - Zombie? It is a mixture of light and dark rum, apricot brandy, orange curaçao, orange and pineapple juice. The alcohol taste wasn't strong and tasted like a fruit juice.
The Champs Menu offers quite a selection of American food, they also have a top ten popular food menu as well just in case you find it difficult to choose what you want. We ordered Lasagne, half rack of ribs and mini-burger for main, which are all listed on the top ten menu.
BBQ Baby Back Ribs, Half rack $118 (7/10)
The ribs was tender and aromatic. It was juicy enough to have it by itself, but it was nice to go with their honey barbecue sauce too. The honey barbecue sauce was a bit too thin to me, it would be nicer if it was a bit thicker, The ribs was the best dish for tonight, but I would love it to have some more char taste and burned edges on them.
Served along with the ribs were coleslaw and house made chips. The chips were thickly cut, crispy and aromatic! I love the chips here and couldnt help indulging in it. I wasn't a fan of coleslaw, so i wouldnt comment if its good or bad.
Same case happened here with the Champs' mini burgers, we ordered The Champs, Mexican and Famous Peppercorn. The beef patty was cooked alright with pink center, but was not seasoned enough. There was slight difference among the three mini-burgers with an occasional taste of jalapéno or bacon. There was different sauces within each burger, but the amount wasn't significant enough to give a vivid taste. The bun was toasted to give a dry and crispy texture, but I still reckon sesame buns paired best with burgers. If you are to try the Champs' burger, I highly recommend you to order the normal one.
The Champs is a bar restaurant in American settings. The place is spacious, with an open bar table at the front door and lots of stools and booth seatings further inside. There is two big TV screens in the middle and at the end of the pub restaurant, playing sports channel that apparently drawing many guys here. The ambiance is quite lively with suitable noise level which is perfect for happy hour and also for big party, which happened to accommodated one the night I went.
We had a drink to start our night. The drink selection is vast, there are some interesting cocktails which I wanted to try and picked this "Zombie" at last from the weirdness of its name (costs HKD$75). The drink came in with an un-appetising look but I guess it suits its name - Zombie? It is a mixture of light and dark rum, apricot brandy, orange curaçao, orange and pineapple juice. The alcohol taste wasn't strong and tasted like a fruit juice.
Lasagne $88 (6/10)
Lasagne is always best served when hot, and this plate of Lasagne was screamingly hot when served. The cheese was all melted and incorporated nicely with the layers of lasagne. The lasagne itself was nice with good texture.
BBQ Baby Back Ribs, Half rack $118 (7/10)
Served along with the ribs were coleslaw and house made chips. The chips were thickly cut, crispy and aromatic! I love the chips here and couldnt help indulging in it. I wasn't a fan of coleslaw, so i wouldnt comment if its good or bad.
Mini-burgers $148 (3/10)
Most of the time I ordered a dish by its look, but the theory usually does not apply to mini-burgers. I fell for mini-burgers twice at other restaurants, didn't find it spectacular. The main reason is probably because the burger is too small to give a complex or complete taste.Same case happened here with the Champs' mini burgers, we ordered The Champs, Mexican and Famous Peppercorn. The beef patty was cooked alright with pink center, but was not seasoned enough. There was slight difference among the three mini-burgers with an occasional taste of jalapéno or bacon. There was different sauces within each burger, but the amount wasn't significant enough to give a vivid taste. The bun was toasted to give a dry and crispy texture, but I still reckon sesame buns paired best with burgers. If you are to try the Champs' burger, I highly recommend you to order the normal one.
Dessert Platter (2/10)
The dessert platter was highly recommended by the manager, so we picked it. The amount was very generous with 13 cakes on the plate! My favourite one was the sponge cake, (Second from left) with texture like Japanese cheese cake, moist and sponge but with egg taste instead. The cheesecake (on the far right), was quite nice when compared to other cakes on the plate. Personally if it wasn't recommended by the manager, I would have choose the chocolate lava cake which sounded more yum. I guess I would have to come back to try it another time.
FINAL COMMENTS...
The Champs has a nice ambiance which is best for Happy Hour or just causal friends gathering. The food choice was vast, the food portion was quite generous and the price was affordable. The food quality was average but it is definitely a good place for a chill drinks after work! (FYI: Happy Hour is 5pm - 7pm)
DISHES RECOMMENDED
Ribs
Champs Bar and Restaurant
UG, The Charterhouse Causeway Bay Hotel, 209-219 Wanchai Road, Wan Chai
UG, The Charterhouse Causeway Bay Hotel, 209-219 Wanchai Road, Wan Chai
☏ 2892-3344
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