Snack early, snack often at the laneway-cool Lee Ho Fook.

New-wave Chinese is the order of the day here, with killer cocktails and eavesdroppingly close tables upping the fun in the upstairs warehouse-style dining room.

But back to those snacks. Ruffles of black fungus come al dente and swimming in a puckeringly sharp black vinegar, while creamy Harvey Bay scallops are served in shells with cubes of tofu and a lick of brown butter.

Chopstick through a bowl of chicken crackling – a rubble of puffed skin, garlic and lip-tingling chilli – and regret nothing. Ditto the eggplant, criss-crossed batons in a brittle fried shell of sweet tapioca batter, balanced by a bracing spiced red vinegar.

A deconstructed kolhrabi salad freshens things up, as does white-cut chicken topped with fennel shavings and a douse of chilli oil. Bigger dishes might swing to roast duck with a star anise and cinnamon sauce, or fried rice studded with blue swimmer crab and scallops in a house-made XO sauce.

This is no cheap and cheerful canteen (especially once you factor in booze) but chef Victor Liong’s unapologetic cooking prods the boundaries of tradition for memorable Chinese food not as you know it.

Must-eat dish: Crispy eggplant
Instagram: @leehofook