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French-Alsatian chef Oliver Elzer bagged two Michelin stars for L’Envol at the St. Regis Hong Kong before opening <a href="https://www.clarencehk.com/?DestinAsian">Clarence</a> in the swanky new H Code building on Pottinger Street in Central during the pandemic. Modern French dining is done differently here, with sharp yet thoroughly unstuffy service and generous plating that weaves in subtle Japanese cooking techniques, all set in a contemporary dining room decorated with sleek leather booths and window-side tables that peer down onto the Tai Kwun arts hub below. Elsewhere, there’s a chic private dining room and a horseshoe bar with a dainty balcony. Dishes embody Elzer’s unique approach to Gallic cuisine: try the sea bream rubbed with Levantine spices; the salad of summer truffle, butter lettuce, and Parmesan; and meat and seafood skewers collectively dubbed “Yakifrenchy.” Some mains are best shared between two, like the Pyrenean baby lamb shoulder with a side of charcoal mash potatoes. —Lee Cobaj
<a href="https://www.clarencehk.com/?DestinAsian" target="_blank" rel="noopener">clarencehk.com</a> 
+852 3568 1397 
<a href="https://goo.gl/maps/PR5tRXpQrvy8Hq6Y6" target="_blank" rel="noopener">25/F, H Code, 45 Pottinger St., Central, Hong Kong</a>

Summer truffle salad with butter lettuce and Parmesan cheese, a signature dish at Clarence.

Clarence: French Chic