Christmas Eve 2011 was spend in Hong Kong with my immediate family. I think it is the very first time that we celebrated together overseas, so we made it a special occasion. Instead of the usual Christmas Eve dinner of roast beef or roast turkey with cranberry sauce, we opted for a more oriental dinner of Hairy Crabs at Chuk Yuen Seafood Restaurant.
We started with the watercress and pork ribs soup which was absolutely delicious. The soup was clear and sweet, reminding me that drinking soup is a cultural tradition in Hong Kong.
Then we had the bamboo clams stirfried with fermented soy beans and chilli. The clams were quite huge and very tasty. The meat crab cooked with spring onions and ginger as recommended by the Assistant Manager, was good too. Then came the star of the dinner, the Shanghai Hairy Crabs. Steamed just right and full of roe, the crabs were quite meaty too. And the special dip that came with the dish brought out the freshness of the crabs. All-in-all, an excellent meal.
Later that same evening, we went to Hoi Tin Tong (海天堂) the famous herbal jelly shop and had the most wonderful 龜苓膏. One of the best I have eaten so far.
Just look at the huge 油條, how can I not remember this place. It is a well-known porridge eatery that has been around for a long, long time. It was recommended by a good friend, and I must really thank her for it.
The 鯪魚球粥 (dace fishball porridge) at Law Fu Kee (羅富記粥麵專家) is absolutely fantastic. The porridge is cooked so well that it is smooth like a soup. And the dace fishballs were simply excellent. They were huge and full of flavour without the stink of fish. It is a definite must try.
Easy to find, Law Fu Kee is along the main road just behind a bus stop on Queen's Road Central, just a short walk from the Sheung Wan MTR station.
Also in Central, along Wellington Street you will find Wang Fu (王府) famous for their traditional Beijing dumplings. We were there to try the special tomato-egg dumplings, but unfortunately we were too early. They only serve this dish after 2pm. So we settled for the pork and sea cucumber dumplings and the special peashoot dumplings. Both were tasty, but I liked the pork and sea cucumber ones better. Just disappointed we did not get to try the tomato-egg dumplings. I will definitely visit them again the next time.
We were told that the egg tarts from Tai Cheong Bakery are very good and must try. So we did. Finding the shop was not difficult, situated near the higher end of Lyndhurst Terrace (擺花街). However, the egg tarts were quite a disappointment. I am not saying that the egg tarts are bad. Yes, they were served hot, the egg custard was sweet, but the cookie crust crumbled easily and is not the same as a flaky crust which I prefer.
Over in Kowloon, near the Mong Kok East Station, we found a seafood restaurant that serves, what I feel are the best egg tarts in Hong Kong. Foo Y Restaurant (富威海鮮餐廳) located at Ho Man Tin Liberty Avenue (何文田自由道) is a hidden gem of a restaurant.
When we arrived at 12.30pm, we were told that the egg tarts were sold out, and the next batch would be ready only at 2pm. So we came back at 2pm and we were not disappointed. The fragrant egg tarts, fresh from the oven, were absolutely to die for. The egg custard was so smooth and just the right sweetness and really fragrant. You can smell it a mile away (slight exaggeration). And the crust was flaky and crispy. Excellent combination. We had 6 tarts among the 3 of us.
And the 鴛鴦 (a mixture of milk tea and coffee) was good too. So smooth and you can taste both the tea and the coffee without each overpowering the other. Another drink that was new to us, we all know about ice tea with lemon, but ice coffee with lemon? It tasted very nice as well. In all, well worth our effort to find this restaurant. The egg tarts are a must try if you are going to Hong Kong.
I heard about this dim sum restaurant from a Singaporean friend, who said that it is a 1-Michelin star restaurant. He waited for 2 hours before he got a table there. But my Hong Kong friend told me that it is only because of their famous Char Siew Bun that got them that accolade. So he advised us not to queue but instead order takeaway.
Tim Ho Wan, the Dim-Sum Specialists (添好運點心專門店) is located on Kwong Wa Street (旺角廣華街). You cannot miss it, because of the crowd of people waiting outside the shop everyday.
When we arrived that at around 10am, the place was already packed. The waiting time was about 2.5 hours and they were not taking takeaway orders for the moment. So we went off to eat somewhere else and came back around 1pm. Believe it or not, some of the people we saw waiting at 10am were still waiting for their seats, and queue numbers for the day have all been given out.
Fortunately, they accepted our takeaway order of 6 char siew buns. It took about 20 minutes and we got our food. I must say the char siew buns are not like the baos that we were used to. They were baked instead of steamed. However, the char siew filling was very good and the baked buns gave us a different perspective to Chinese dim sum. They were worth the wait. Perhaps next time I can get to try the other dim sums there.
Another gem of an eatery is hidden on the 2nd floor of the Kowloon City Municipal Services Building (九龍城九龍城市政大廈). In the building, you can find the Kowloon City Public Library, the Sports Centre, the Market and the Cooked Food Centre. It is in the cooked food centre that you will find 樂園 (Lok Yuen).
The specialty here is that you will get milk tea and milk coffee ice kachang (奶茶/咖啡紅豆冰). Which means added to your ice milk coffee or tea, you will find red beans. It was an absolute delight. One could never guess how wonderful the combination actually tastes. Such a great idea and I can vouch that it is much better than any bubble tea out there. You should also try their satay beef french toast (沙嗲牛肉西多士).
Just a few streets away, along Lung Kong Road (九龍城龍崗道), you will find the Islam Food (清真牛肉館), a restaurant that serves Halal Chinese food. Their specialty is the beef cake (牛肉餅).
Their beef cakes are out of this world. The cakes were fried but non-greasy and the dough was fried to the right crispiness without being burnt. And when you bite, the mix of flavours that hit you is beyond description. It is like an explosion of spices mixed with meat juices all fighting for the attention of your taste buds. Absolute must try.
Always memorable to me is The Peak Lookout restaurant on Victoria Peak. I simply love the ambience of the place. Even in the cold, sitting in the open terrace garden is a total joy. This is a western restaurant serving international cuisine. The food is pretty good and the portions are quite large. However, what I normally enjoy most is just to have a steaming cup of Hot Chocolate. In the cold weather on top of the peak, this is truly "High Society" living.
Finally, when in Hong Kong, one must eat the claypot rice (煲仔飯) at least once. And this restaurant in Yau Ma Tei was highly recommended by many locals and tourists alike. Called Four Seasons (四季煲仔飯), it is located at Arthur Street (油麻地鴉打街).
Perhaps because it was a Friday night, we had to wait in the long queue for almost an hour before we got seats. I am not sure whether on other week nights it will be so crowded.
The deep fried oyster cakes were pretty good. The crispy light batter did not hide the large oysters in the cakes and the chilli sauce accompanying the dish was spicy and tasty. However, the boiled vegetables were quite disappointing.
But the main highlight did not disappoint. The waxed meat and sausages were very fragrant and cooked just right. The rice was well cooked, not soggy and not too dry. And the pork ribs and chicken were tender and the meat still juicy, the salted fish was good too. At the bottom of the claypot was a thin layer of crispy rice, delightfully crunchy but not burnt. Well worth the long wait outside in the cold night.
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