Hong Kong - Kowloon Tang 九龍廳

The Elements Mall is not a mall I frequent.  And frankly, I haven't been all that impressed with the F&B scene there so it really is a tad much effort to trudge there for lunch even though it isn't all that far away.  A chance errand required me to get there and so with E, we decided to try out the of late, much reviewed Kowloon Tang. 

The restaurant is beautifully fitted to look like a posh dining hall from 1930s Shanghai.  Stepping in, it smacks of nothing like the Chinese restaurants Hong Kong has come to know.  It was quiet, very quiet.  No doubt we were early for lunch but still, no clanging of tableware nor loud chatter from the staff.  Makes for an excellent venue to have quiet client meals.  Service is trained efficiency although it did lack a little warmth.  I didn't get the happy staff feeling but oh well, who am I to judge. 

We weren't looking for a lot to eat since we needed to manage time and our appetites.  But what we had was actually quite decent, and not overly re-created, and still true to its Chinese roots.  Many reviews had raved about the Peking duck here but perhaps one duck between 2 people would have been a little too much to handle.  

Goose liver in Huadiao

 This was chilled, creamy and exuded alcoholic fragrance.  Couldn't ask for a better starter on a hot and humid summer's day.    

Steamed crab meat and egg white dumplings

This looked quite ordinary when it showed up at the table, but one bite and we were suitably impressed with the freshness of the crab meat and the natural sweetness which filled the dumpling.  And of course, as true Cantonese demand, the skin was thin, yet had the requisite bite.  Quite good, really.


Deep fried spring rolls with taro wrapped in a steamed rice flour roll

This was a good twist to the usual steamed rice rolls.  For crisp, they are usually stuffed with dough fritters.  This one, however, was stuffed with a high quality spring roll which was well deep fried and drained of grease, and in turnr stuffed with a creamy taro mash and other vegetables for crisp and crunch.

Wok fried four angled beans with crispy pork lard and garlic

For greens, we decided to forgo the usual leafy greens to try this more sinful one.  It was an interesting vegetable we don't normally have in Hong Kong.  The closest I've ever had is the winged bean we eat with sambal in Peranakan food, but this was bigger, and required a little more effort to bite.  Using lard, fermented black beans and garlic bulbs flash fried together to release a heavenly taste and aroma is quite a clever way of making this vegetable palate pleasing.   

Overall, a very pleasant experience.  Very decent surrounds so you can actually hear yourself and your companion without fear of losing your voice.  And the food was pretty good too.  So I will make it a point to go back and try the duck.  Afterall, many have proclaimed it the best in Hong Kong.  So I might just break my rule of never eating the bird outside the capital.

Shop R002-003
3/F, Roof Deck, Elements
1 Austin Road West
Tsim Sha Tsui
Tel: +852-2811 9398

Hong Kong - Fook Lam Moon 福臨門

I hadn't thought to come here at all.  Their Wanchai branch (actually the original location) has a much higher profile.  But on a weekday, who would have thought that a simple reservation for 4 people for a relatively early lunch spot at noon would NOT be available at the now elusive 3-Michelin starred Sun Tung Lok.  

Literally, a stone's throw from Sun Tung Lok, Fook Lam Moon turned out to be a not-too-shabby second choice.  This Michelin one-starred Chinese restaurant was more spruced up than I thought it would be.  The street level entrance was understated but as the doors swing open, a smiley host took us up one level by the elevator, landing us at a swanky bar area.  Swanky by Chinese restaurant standards, that is.  It's not your hip, chill-out lounge type place.  As we were led to our table, smiles and greetings descended upon us.  Highly unusual for a Chinese restaurant but a big round of applause to whoever manages and trains their staff.

Despite the modern decor, what we got was actually good quality old-fashioned Dim-Sum.  This long-time established restaurant showed its commitment to using good produce and letting them speak for themselves, with simple yet traditional preparation methods which enhance rather than overwhelm.

Deep Fried Spring Rolls 春卷

This was my favorite at lunch.  A well fried spring roll that was a dry crisp on the outside, housing generous chunks of crunchy shrimp and tasty pork pieces on the inside.  Nothing minced, just the whole of everything so you can savor the absolute freshness within.  And as T told us the story of how the Fook Lam Moon name was derived, biting into the spring roll was that much more fulfilling.  Fook (福) which means Happiness in Cantonese, and Lam Moon (臨門) which means "at your door", is apt for all the culinary goodness this family used to bring to Hong Kong families in the good old days, when house catering was the rage.

Shrimp Dumplings 蝦餃

I used to love Shrimp Dumplings until my palate got so sick of biting into mediocre to bad versions.  As a kid, I used to dig out the insides for my brother and just eat the translucent skin.  There is something about a well kneaded dough that when steamed is soft and slightly chewy but without that greasy aftertaste we get from so many average dim sum places today.  This version from Fook Lam Moon ignited that spark I once had.

Crispy Roast Pork 燒腩仔 

This was surprisingly not as good as it looked.  It was competently roasted, and the skin a perfect crisp.  But the cut of pork wasn't my favorite almost melt-in-your-mouth part.  Slightly more meaty (read chewy) than I would have liked.  Still decent even if not my cup of tea.

Steamed Shrimp Rice Rolls 鮮蝦腸粉

Another goodie reminiscent of the old days.  Layers and layers of steamed rice flour folded against each other, and encasing fresh crunch shrimps.  Served on a bed of quality soy.

Radish and Fish Patties 蘿蔔鯪魚餅

This arrived understated and what we all thought to be the usual Dace-based fish patty turned out to be a delicate mixture of julienned radish interspersed with minced Dace, resulting in a texture short of creamy protected by a lightly crispy exterior.  Surprisingly enjoyable and kudos to E for spotting this on the menu.

Fu Yong Omelet on Vermicelli 芙蓉蛋煎米

All Hong Kongers love their eggs.  Any dish with eggs is already almost a winner and all you need is execution to make it a home run.  The omelet here was very good.  Lightly golden brown and fluffy on the inside, almost cushion-like, made tasty from the shrimps and pork within.  The vermicelli however suffered from a lack of taste.  If this was made at home, you would say ok, we could all do with a lot less salt, but this was almost bland.  We were happy enough because we had been pampered by the quality of the preceding dim sum, and savoring the omelet.  On its own, however, the vermicelli would have been slammed.  A bit of a shame considering it was well sealed to a crisp.

Steamed "Malay" Cake 馬拉糕

For dessert, we all voted for the traditional "Malay" cake.  A Cantonese favorite at traditional restaurants, I have no idea why it's called "Malay".  There are so many theories that can be made about this one, given the proximity in the region between old Canton and Malaysia.  Anyone care to speculate?

While pricey for dim sum in a land where every other shop offers dim sum, Fook Lam Moon's offering is positioned for those who appreciate the old world goodness and perhaps this explained the average age of the customer (excluding our table and the group of young Koreans next to us) was about 65 and up.  Don't write them off, 'cos they obviously know a thing or 2 about real food.

Shop 8, 1/F
53 Kimberley Road
Tsim Sha Tsui
+852-2366 0286

Hong Kong - Cuisine Cuisine at The Mira

It's easy to become jaded by dim sum living in Hong Kong.  Every corner you turn, dim sum is there for the taking so much so that either my palate is jaded or quality has generally suffered over the years.  I no longer get excited (mind you, I used to be a dim sum freak) at the prospect of dim sum lunches or yum cha.  To the point where dim sum lunches can be quite a chore these days.

But H is a dim sum fiend.  And because it's her birthday, it's all whatever she wants.  And so we decide to do upmarket dim sum at the revamped Mira Hotel and at the signature Chinese restaurant Cuisine Cuisine (their branch at IFC is a fave of mine!).  We were certainly not disappointed.

Unusual dumplings filled with quick-fry egg whites interspersed with crab meat and conpoy were yummy.  And the use of a cleverly designed syringe where you can neatly inject vinegar into the dumpling was ingenious.  No fuss, no mess.  And the vinegar lifted an already good dumpling to greater heights.  Delish.  If only other Xiao Long Pau shops will follow suit.

Osmanthus-laced honey eels were very well done.  Oil-bathed but not soaked, capturing enough of the honey to not be cloying but tasty with hints of Osmanthus fragrance makes me give this an A.  Many places offer this but as they say, execution is everything.

Yet another traditional dish of squid colloid with lots of sweet water chestnuts for crunch.  But the secret to this dish, as an old birdie once said, is the use of bare hands rather than a machine to get real squid into colloid form.  The right bite and texture is lost in a machine.  And so it is with the belief that there are  assembly lines of squid beaters in the kitchen whipping this up and so each order only has 3 pieces.  I guess there is a certain maximum speed one can achieve only with bare hands.

Probably by far the most sinful but perfectly executed piece of dim sum of the afternoon.  A traditional "wu-kok" (yam paste pastry) given a 21st century twist with a piece of foie gras adds to the smoothness and richness of the inside, while contrasting with a perfectly deep fried but light batter on the exterior.  A wondrous combination of textures and tastes.

The crispy roast pork was crispy but your eyes light up as you sink into a piece of extremely tender pork topped with a suitable (small) layer of fat but topped with a fragrant crispy roof that is pure unadulterated skin.  Gives the best a run for their money.

Not that it was disappointing - tasty enough - but because it was meant to be the signature, the abalone-sauced octupus fried rice was decent but failed to deliver a wow! after all the dim sum that had been served.  But nice enough to round off the meal.

Desserts were ordinary - although we did enjoy the suitably sweet (ie. not cloyingly so) custard-filled Por Lor Paus.  Soft paus stuffed with a slightly eggy custard and topped off with a cake-like crust like good old fashioned por lor paus.

Our other dessert of the chestnut soup with egg white was decent, with a good use of the seasonal chestnuts, such that enough of the fragrance came through.  Quite a feat since the chestnut is such a subtle fruit.  The egg white added some substance to the soup although the droplets were more like a meteor which fell in.  A surprising faux pas.

Overall, a great place to take special guests or just to enjoy a quiet afternoon, away from the madding crowds.  Especially since the food is every bit as inviting as they are innovative.

3/F, The Mira
118 Nathan Road
Tsim Sha Tsui
Tel: +852- 2315 5222

Hong Kong - a day in Central

The amazing thing with Hong Kong's central district is not that it houses THE financial centre of Asia but that it still coexists with a collection of long-standing businesses in old shophouses, much of which is the heart of Hong Kong's cuisine.

You can start the day at Sang Kee for a breakfast of congee and fried vermicelli.  This congee institution has been around for much of Hong Kong's modern history and is famous for its fish congee and pig's giblets congee.  The fish in particular is extremely fresh and despite it being a river fish, has no foul muddy taste.  Accompaniments of a ginger/spring onion soya sauce is excellent with the fish.  Do also order the fried vermicelli, well fried to envelope each strand with a tasty stock and with hardly a grease trace.  Dace fish cakes are also good and springy. 

After Sang Kee, take a walk to Lan Fong Yuen for a taste of one of Hong Kong's oldest and quintessential Cha Chan Teng.  Sip on smooth silk stocking milk tea (the cold one is excellent with even ice cubes made from the tea so there is no dilution), while biting into a thick toast smothered with peanut butter and condensed milk, the stuff our childhoods were made of..  And if you have room, or are just greedy, try their famous chicken chop with tossed Nissin noodles, served with a ginger/spring onion condiment for a little bit of tasty innovation.

 

After you're done with soaking in the neighbourhood, you can choose from a myriad of restaurants or continue the theme by dining on classic Cantonese fare at Lin Heung Lau.  Check out http://edeats.blogspot.com/2009/04/hong-kong-lin-heung-tea-house.html.  Dim sum isn't bad but here's a glimpse of what you have to battle if you eat there!

 

Sang Kee Congee Shop

生記粥品專家

G/F, 7-9 Burd St,

Sheung Wan

Hong Kong

Tel: +852-2541 1099

Lan Fong Yuen 

蘭芳園

No. 2, Gage Street

Central

Hong Kong

Tel: +852-2544 3895/ 2854 0731

Hong Kong - Loong Yat Heen 龙逸轩

It would be appropriate to do at least one yum-cha review given the many I had this week. So the destination of mention for the week is Loong Yat Heen at The Kowloon Hotel. This was also where I had my winner of Thursday.

The Kobe beef pau was juicy, succulent and tender beef bits interspersed with Sichuan vegetables in a hearty gravy captured in a skin that had bite. All 5 of us bit into it had the same wondrous look - ok, maybe I exaggerate a little but it was the most outstanding dim sum item I had all week.

Others of mention to not miss is the carrot cake, sealed well to retain its creamy moisture on the inside and made fragant with better quality lap cheong, and not the usual fatty bits other lesser places use.

The scrambled eggs with seafood on a pan fried vermicelli was tasty enough and worth an order although there wasn't enough wok hei for my liking. But it was a healthier option and did not leave a greasy aftertaste.

The Ma Lai Go was pretty good with a nice variation of 2 thin layers of custard in between. Not quite Lin Heung standard though although this is probably healthier - the fragrance of lard wasn't as apparent!

Here's to a healthier week for all!

The Kowloon Hotel

19-21 Nathan Road

Tsimshatsui,

Kowloon

Hong Kong

Tel: +852-2734 3722