Oolaa

Really really loved the food at Oolaa. My friends brought me here one day in Hong Kong and it was just like brunch in Australia! It was extremely busy when we came, even though it was a weekday so we had a to wait for a table but the quality of the food is amazing! It’s a big restaurant which seems to be a bit of a rarity in Hong Kong but they have no trouble filling it and it’s very trendy.
The menu was very extensive and I had a lot of trouble choosing what to have and when I finally settled on an omelette I didn’t realise how huge it would be! Good thing there was plenty of mimosas to wash it down with!
I will definitely make an effort to come back here next time I’m in Hong Kong!

Just ok but just ok can be good sometimes, key word sometimes. They will say just about anything at Oolaa to get you to take a seat. Much like what you would find in Wan Chai, with hockers. I specifically asked if the salmon was poached or smoked and they assured me it was poached knowing that I didn’t want smoked. I sit down, look at the menu and sure enough it says smoked. Then they say they will make it specifically for me. I not about to lay our $ 200 for poached/​smoked salmon. I just got up and left very annoyed. I usually brunch here as well as it is right outside my door. I love eggs benedict but have to say while the presentation is nice the food is always cold (room temperature). Not what one wants with eggs benedict. It has the potential to be the best based on the ingredients. Just not pampered or put together well. You can tell when food is thrown together as oppose to TLC. My brunch for myself was $ 210. A bit pricey for just ok, but when you are tired and want something close to home, it serves well. This place «ain’t what it use to be». I would suggest going to one of the more well known hotel dinning rooms for fine food. Hong Kong is definitely losing its sparkle and this place is contributing to that…

I have now dined at Oolaa three times. Once for Sunday brunch, once for lunch in the bar, once for dinner in the bar. Sunday brunch was so extremely busy and kind of not at our tollerance level for crowds and was my least favorite visit, but the quality of the food and convenience of a more upscale, yet still casual spot, for my husband and I to wander to from our Sheung Wan apartment keeps us coming back. Our Sunday brunch experience was also the time where we felt customer service and attention by staff was the least ideal.
The restraunt is giant by Hong Kong standards, has large open air/​open wall spaces that spill out to the street and is popular most days of the week (especially on the weekends). It seems like a place to come and eat, drink, meet friends and linger. There is a casual fun bar side and then a more formal dining room side of the restaurant. We enjoy the bar, but like that this one restaurant has two feels to cater to the reason as to why we are going. You could go for beer & apps with friends on the bar side, but also could go on a nice, romantic evening with your husband.
The menu has a dominate Western theme and has something for everyone. There must be well over a hundred items on the menu alone. Think of it like the Cheesecake Factory of China (if you are familiar with their giant, extensive menu in the US). We have enjoyed various items, but the pumpkin, asparagus and cous cous salad was clean, flavorful and absolutely fantastic. If you like to eat out, but also like to eat healthy, this is a great menu to find stuff. My only negative comment would be that they did not use fresh guacamole as a side to their quesadilla, which seems like a small cut back when everything else is so fresh.
We like Oolaa and it is a solid restaurant we will return to with some regularity, as we do live nearby. We do avoid busy times at restaurants when we can, to guarantee a better experience. Thus, we will most likely not return to brunch, but would return at other less busy times.

Do not order the Muesli, it’s the worst I’ve ever had. It comes with 1.5 ounces of yogurt and 3 ounces of milk.
Very disappointing.

It was OK. We needed a breakfast and we got a breakfast. It wasn’t the most impressive spot we went to in Hong Kong, but when we needed to sit and be cool for a little while, this was a good place to do it.
I got an eggs Benedict and again, only Ok. There was a lot of life here and people were very happy to be eating, as was I, and the staff was very friendly with foreigners. But it wasn’t a highlight of the trip for sure.

Loved the food here at Oolaa. They have a huge menu with a variety of plates to choose from. The restaurant is big, and the space is split into a dining section, and a more casual relaxed area with sofas and smaller tables. Towards the back there’s also a space for private events such as brithdays. I came here for brunch with my bf and was seated immediately. The server was friendly and accommodating. We decided on the breakfast burrito and french toast. Both dishes were good, the burrito had a thicker wrap, that was baked to a slight crispy texture. The french toast came in a large portion, with mixed berries on the side. The seating was comfortable, and I liked the large open glass windows where you can see people walk by.
Overall, this is a very pleasant place to get brunch, we didn’t have to wait in line even on a Sunday, portions are generous and food is delicious. I’ll definitely be back again.

Oolaa is one of the top places for brunch. It is always busy. Both the formal dining area and more casual café area are very nice. We are regular visitors for weekend brunch. My extremely picky wife always enjoys the eggs benedict. The coffee is also good.

Brought to you by the same restaurant group as Wagyu, I’m similarly underwhelmed with Oolaa. I was here for breakfast this morning, and essentially they offer the same breakfast menu as Wagyu. While the service seems better here than at Wagyu, the quality of the food is the same.
Don’t get me wrong; the food is good, but you can tell that they cut certain corners that compromise the quality of the food they offer. Again, margarine instead of real butter comes with the table bread. The hollandaise is not freshly made (something that personally nauseates me… read ‘Kitchen Confidential’ to discover why). I’m gonna take a wild guess and say that the «maple syrup» advertised on the menu — like Wagyu — is not real maple syrup but instead juat sugar and water. I had a mixed berry «smoothie» this morning, which tasted more like a milkshake. I doubt it was an actual smoothie with real fruit; I’m pretty sure it was some sort of instant mix with milk added — especially because when I asked if they could add a banana to it, they looked at me funny and said no (keep in mind that they also offer a «banana smoothie» but still couldn’t accommodate my special add request). The «New York» bagel was underwhelming, although I did eat the whole thing. It’s simply wrong to call any bagel a «New York» bagel unless you are really darn sure it’s the same freshness and quality as you’d get in New York. This was not. It was basically just a store-​bought bagel with tomato, cream cheese, smoked salmon and capers. Underwhelming, but not bad.
The ambience is nice and the food is good enough. Great venue for large groups and families with small children. But if you’re looking for ingredients of higher quality for breakfast, maybe try The Diner on Arbuthnot Road or The Cupping Room in Sheung Wan.

LOVE THIS PLACE!!! went for Sunday Breakfast… WOW not only was it delicious it was filling!!! Great food and excellent service!!!

Oola has been a brunching institution for many years. It’s a great space, large for a Hong Kong restaurant and perfect for big groups. I was on aunty duty this morning and it’s a nice spot to head to with the kids (and we had three round our table today).
The food is delicious. I had the brekky burrito which is a wrap stuffed with delights such as scrambled egg, sausage, mushrooms and spicy salsa. It’s a hefty portion and I ended up eating mostly the filling.
Unfortunately we were left wanting when it came to service. It took three attempts to order another round of drinks with some waiters looking a bit perplexed.
I will be back, but won’t hold the staff to high expectations during the Sunday morning rush.

Like all the others in the Castelo Concept family (Wagyu series, Jaspas, High Street Grill, K-​Town Grill, etc), Oolaa is just ok and there’s definitely better places for that price range.
The food itself is ok, but nothing special (don’t think anyone has used «amazing» to describe it) and kinda pricy for just standard quality dishes.
The only reason I’ve been a number of times is that it’s a safe bet for groups since there’s a wide range of food options that can accommodate pretty much everyone’s tastes and special dietary requirements. There’s also a certain level of standards (décor, food, service, drinks) with these restaurants. I certainly don’t go expecting a mind blowing meal, but that’s better than being disappointed I suppose.
The prices aren’t offensively high, but there’s certainly the «Western» or «Central» tax and well more than what you’d pay in NYC for the same things.
Overall, a fair option and good enough if your just looking for a meal or need to accommodate a big group, but to me I’d rather go someplace else for something a little more memorable.

In town on my own for business I went out wondering to find an early dinner. I happened upon this restaurant and decided to step in and look at the menu. When I walked in I was not greeted by anyone and even appeared to be ignored by staff around. I was eventually able to find a menu in a nearby service station and gave a quick look and decided I could find something to eat and then guided myself down to the bar where I asked if I could eat dinner at the bar. As I was by myself I didn’t want to sit at a table alone.
After reviewing the menu and seeing many viable choices I decided to take the waiters advice and order the steak sandwich. When asked what temperature I wanted I went with Medium, even though usually that is pointless in a steak sandwich. I was very pleased with the sandwich; it came out a very properly cooked Medium, served nicely on Rye toast with caramelized onions and mushrooms. The combination of all ingredients, seasoning and the toast made for a Very good sandwich! One issue, although this is the nature with a steak sandwich, was that the eating the sandwich was a bit difficult as the meat was a bit gristly and pulled out of the sandwich. Although as I said that is the nature of a steak sandwich, if it was a fine filet it wouldn’t be served in a sandwich.
After a quick glance at the dessert menu I decided to order the Cheesecake Crunch. This was a great decision, as the dessert was really good. A large martini type glass with layers of cheesecake and graham cracker crumble alternating and blueberries interspersed throughout. The cheesecake was very smooth almost like a mouse but clearly a cheesecake taste. It was large enough for two, but since I was alone I happily finished it myself.

this chichi brunchy place is filled with business people and yummy mummies alike, with servers that speak english so fluently you know who their clientele are. the lunch set comes with a one-​time go at the antipasti bar, where you get a bowl to fill however you’d like with a variety of interesting mixed salads and plain greens — if you’re greedy (note bowl above), you’ll find heretofore unknown architectural ability in yourself to stack as much of their delicious salads as you can.
the main courses are also pretty delicious; my choice of seared beef steak done properly pink and served alongside a lightly dressed salad. it’s a three-​course set that comes with dessert, but we were stuffed by the time the vanilla-​y crème brûlée arrived with its hard sugar shell.
a very good lunch deal, though the low table we sat at near the antipasti bar is suited more to cocktails than lunch — that squashing of the stomach does nothing for digestion.

Fantastic upscale restaurant, good for business brunch to romantic dinner. Great environment and good for the price, for a four egg omelette, 120 $ hkd. Reservations weekends and evenings are highly recommended.

A huge restaurant and bar space, one of the first along this small street which has seen a major face lift of late include the PMQ building.
Large, roomy tables and generally an attentive service. The menu is mainly western but quite interesting and very reliable in quality.
The sesame tuna & tomato & mozzarella made nice small starters to share. The Cracklin Pig Belly was delicious with a large piece of crackling on pig belly with a generous helping of Apple sauce, cabbage & sweet potato.
The veal with mushroom sauce was also a good choice.
The portions are large & we were filled without room for dessert.

When you are meeting friends with kids for brunch with your own toddler in tow, one of the first places that springs to mind is Oolaa.
Even though the restaurant sits squarely in the middle of Central (ok, upper right middle if you want to be picky) the location doesn’t come with typical Central postage stamp floor space. Oolaa is HUGE.
The dining area is spread over three distinct spaces, and that’s even not counting the room you can book for functions.
The mains are a good size too and cover all the bases: baked coral trout ($ 265), sizzling fajitas ($ 140), confit of duck ($ 200) and herb crusted rack of lamb ($ 330) to pick out a few. They do a mean steak as well as salad, pasta and pizza options. Basically, all gastronomic preferences are pretty much catered for.
But what Oolaa does really well is brunch. Of course I could be a little biased here, blame it on a sugar induced haze, but I am a rather large fan of the Oolaa Strawberry Pancakes — an excuse to eat ice cream for breakfast, count me in.
Hey, it’s ok, you take milk on your all bran don’t you? I’m just using another source of dairy …

Oolaa occupies a huge space at the bottom of Centre Stage on Bridges Street and is open every day from breakfast right up until dinner.
Weekend brunch is a hectic time but the menu is fantastic, ranging from healthy options such as muesli to breakfast pizzas… Seriously!
The a la carte menu literally has something for everyone but I can’t remember the last time I ordered anything but the snapper — a huge piece of perfectly seasoned fish atop wasabi mash with a generous portion of veggies. Speaking of veggies, the side dishes get top marks whilst the impossibly tall pavlova, a nod to the owners’ Australian heritage, is a must try.
Given the vast open front of the venue, it’s a shame that Oolaa bans dogs from even the pavement directly outside of the restaurant… You have to tie them to a tree just a little too far away to feel comfortable with. Perhaps it’s a precaution given that this place is packed with young families every Saturday and Sunday.
However this is my only complaint — Oolaa is otherwise great with accommodating service, free (and abundant) wifi and excellent coffee.
Worth booking on the weekends and a great spot to freelance from mid week.