Got this from Random Good Stuff and all I can say is…”WOAH!!”
Tag Archive for 'hong kong'
The very next morning after that wonderful supper from Jaffe Road and Cannon Road, Lyn (my boo) and I headed out to Krispy Kreme for breakfast..something I have been bugging her to agree with for a while. While taking a nice walk down the street in the cool late morning breeze, we passed by a local food stall at Jardine’s Bazaar selling pretty interesting cow parts. Taking a closer look, we noticed that the interesting cow parts consists of intestines, tripe and other stuffs I can’t really imagine cows having.
Left: The stall front | Right: Cooking ‘em cow parts
Being cow lovers (eaters), Lyn and I decided just to go ahead and give that interesting local delicacy a go. I mean its not everyday you get to savour interesting and weird types of food overseas and to top it off, its easy for us Chinese since we eat almost anything. So we thought..”Ahhh what the heck!!” With that, we picked up a bowl of assorted tripe and another with really big top shells.
Left: Tripe with mustard, chilli and BBQ sauce | Right: Top shell
The cow parts are rather interesting and mostly flavoured with the broth it is cooked with. Some parts were pretty tender while the others were hard, but if there is one common characteristics about them is that they are salty. But add a little mustard, chilli and BBQ sauce, and your palate will change almost immediately giving you a symphony of flavour with a mixture of sweet, salty and bitter taste.
The top shell on the other hand was really nothing much to shout about and to be honest, I have never really seen top shells that big. It is mostly chewy and hard on the inside but very sandy. I am not too sure if the chefs/cooks did that on purpose or if their food washing skills need massive tweaking but either way, I can’t stand sandy food. Not too used to the sandy top shell, we ate about half a bowl and threw the rest away. I know I know..what a waste, but seriously…we tried. Apart from the ones we ate, the stall has other varieties of food including the skewered ones we had at Jaffe Road the night/early morning before.
Left: Skewered food | Right: Other varieties
Sticking to our original Krispy Kreme plan, we took quick walk to Lee Garden Road to pay homage to the doughnut makers. I can’t tell you how ecstatic I was. Although some would think that Krispy Kreme is rather overpriced and overrated, it is one of those places I must visit when travelling overseas (depending if they are available in that country). Visiting Krispy Kreme to me is like how Hard Rock Cafe collectors visit Hard Rock Cafe…a must go place (if you have time)
Yeeeeah Baby!!
Feeling only half satisfied after the local delights we had earlier, we decided on three doughnuts (two original glazed and one chocolate cruller) and two lattes. Okay okay..I had two and Lyn had one..but hey..we did share..a little 
. As pricing go, S$2 for a doughnut is a little steep and the lattes are pretty much pegged with Starbucks. But that is a price we both agreed is worth it..especially coming from a country of doughnut lovers but not enough doughnut companies.
Left: My doughnuts… | Right: …and latte
After enjoying every bit of the doughnuts and coffee, I took a quick walk around the little shop in a bid to find out how the doughnut experts make the doughnuts. Although a sign did indicate that they are demonstrating how Krispy Kreme doughnuts are made, I can’t help to wonder where the heck the staffs are. The kitchen was empty.
Left: Now demonstrating… | Right: …with nobody around
So for a moment we were thinking that either we are so sugar high that we are starting to see through people or the meaning of demonstrating to them is that their staffs are on strike and they ain’t coming in until their terms are met. But whatever it was, we didn’t get to see how the doughnuts are made..too bad for us 
.
All in all, I must admit it is a pretty interesting experience to me having gone through two extremes of East and West food. Although it is true that I must have been through something like this countless of times but I guess as a food lover, such experiences are always new and different to me every time. I bet Lyn can vouch for that 
.
More photos in my Flickr album.
Ask any locals or tourists about the type of food they should eat when visiting Hong Kong, and you would probably hear a resounding response…”Goose”. I can’t really figure out what is so fantastic about it but it seems that everyone thinks Hong Kong is the perfect place to taste the finest goose.
With that in mind, we popped over Yung Kee Restaurant during our Hong Kong trip. Yung Kee Restaurant is pretty much like a place you can’t go wrong when in search for the best goose around. Honestly, I don’t really know how she does it but whenever Lyn (my boo) plans our trip, she somehow manages to fit our daily visits at around the same location. In this case, she planned to have our dinner at Yun Kee Restaurant which was located at Wellington Street, before taking a five minute walk to Lan Kwai Fong to celebrate the turn of the year. Yeap…really convenient.
Left: The restaurant front | Left: A window of those wonderful roasted meat
One thing we really must note when visiting Yung Kee Restaurant is to be there early, perhaps a good half hour before your expected time of digging into the goose goodness. When we arrived at the restaurant, we were rudely (but somewhat pleasantly) surprised to discover that we had to wait for about 45 minutes before we could get a table. However, the good news is that similar to some of our local Chinese restaurants, they manage the queue based on a number system, meaning that one need not wait in the queue to get a seat. But still…we had to wait…
Left and right: Poor us
Believing in the local assumption that long queues equal to good food, Lyn and I decided to hold it for about 45 minutes at the restaurant. Hey..we even took the opportunity to make our way to Lan Kwai Fong for a short walk. It wasn’t (very) long before our number was called and before we knew it, we headed into the restaurant checking out the dishes available. Since we were there to find out what he heck is so great about Hong Kong goose, we decided on the following dishes.
Left: Century egg | Right: Goose noodles
Left: Goose with rice | Right: Some porridge with liver (yucks!!)
Our verdict? Pretty good actually, not too sure if it was worth the price though, but I guess that is something you have to pay for when visiting a pretty high’ish class restaurant. The goose was pretty lean (maybe because its breast meat) and quite juicy. But it is rather oily and I didn’t find the need to put on any lip balm after dinner (kidding). The century egg however was just heavenly, bouncy on the outside and the yolk is oh so soft and lovely…a taste I will always remember (until I eat something that can beat that). I didn’t really try the liver porridge mainly because I can’t stand liver.
In my humble opinion, I think Yung Kee Restaurant is a place you can definitely visit when in Hong Kong. The food is good, service is pretty fast and from what we gather, it is a popular local haunt. But do bear in mind that you might need to wait for quite a while as it is very well received by locals. When there, why not pop over to Lan Kwai Fong for a few drinks after? I am sure it would be a great conclusion to your visit .
Well its not exactly local Hong Kong food but I felt I needed to post an article about it because I have taken a little more food photos compared to the other places we visited. Located at G/F 12 Pak Sha Road, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong, Mi-Ne Sushi is your everyday Japanese restaurant serving..well..sushi (what else?) on a conveyor belt.
What sets themselves apart from the ones we dined in Singapore is their menu and variety of food. These guys even have beef sushi with a unique cooking method of ‘flaming the beef on grill’. Mi-Ne Sushi also have the absence of that el cheapo and bad service experience, something I always encounter right at home. Sure..go ahead and label me ‘atas’ but hey..I am just being honest here. As for the food, I guess we can let the photos speak for themselves…
A few more photos in my Flickr album.
The Australia Dairy Company is a small set up tucked away at Parkes Street. Serving interesting dishes like macaroni/spaghetti mixed with ham, custard desserts and other ‘goodies’, the cafe seemed to be a favourite weekend cafe hangout for Hong Kong locals. We needed to wait for a good 20 mins before getting into the restaurant…yeah the queue was pretty long.
The waiters there seemed to be in a rush all the time as they try to turn the tables as quickly as possible in such a small area. Unfortunately, they must have forgotten that manners is essential as service staff as they rudely push you away while dishing out plates of food and yelling at the top of their voices. Lyn (my boo) who could speak Cantonese, although not that fluent, had some problems trying to communicate with the staff only to be rudely told off to get our orders right before speaking to them.
To tell you the truth, I was pretty pissed at them and had the intention to visit their cafe at night to burn it down…but of course I didn’t . But to be fair to them, Lyn did warn me about the service after reading some reviews online…guess I didn’t take heed of it. I was the stubborn one . As for the food, I must say that the food tastes as appetizing as they look..pretty blend…
Left and right: This for lunch…
But I guess when it comes to food, taste is a matter of opinion and I in my opinion…well…I might need to get used to it. I mean a hoard of people queuing outside the cafe can’t be wrong right? However, I must admit that their almond and egg custards were pretty good…perhaps the only dish there we had that has taste.
Our verdict? Not bad and maybe a good place to try out at least once when you are in Hong Kong. Having been through one experience, I believe we will be ready the next time we head to that cafe again. Some things you might want to prepare before heading down there:
- The queue is long but painless (take the opportunity to take some photos)
- Learn how to speak Cantonese (No speak = no service)
- Figure out what you want before ordering, they won’t explain what’s in the dish
- Be prepared to be yelled at and pushed around at some point, but that is the way things work out there (think interesting, not irritating)
- You may need to share your table with other customers because of the small space (but I’m sure we are all comfortable with that)
Oh by the way, one thing that you must note when visiting Hong Kong. The half glass of tea that they serve you is for washing utensils, not for drinking. Lyn and I were quietly laughed at numerous times for drinking. Kinda explains why the tea is luke warm. But having said that, we did noticed a few locals drinking the tea. So let’s say we haven’t really figured out that part yet. But the safe bet is to use it for washing and not drinking.
The darn tea that got us confused
More photos in my Flickr album.
In a bid to take a break from all that shopping and eating Lyn (my boo) and I have been indulging ourselves with for the past four days, we headed to the island of Cheung Chau for our last day of the Hong Kong trip. Located about 10km (or a half-hour ferry ride) southwest of Hong Kong Island, Cheung Chau according to the ‘ol Wikipedia, is an island which “has been inhabited for longer than most other places in the territory of Hong Kong”. It also has a population of about 30,000…meaning less crowded. Something Lyn and I needed…to get out of all that hustle and bustle of Hong Kong life.
Before heading to Cheung Chau, Lyn did a little research on the island for activities and if there is anything we can look out for. With that, we drew a list and pulled out some unique and interesting facts:
- It was initially a fishing village but in recent years has converted into a tourist attraction;
- The roads there are so narrow that it is impossible for cars to travel there. The only transportation is either by bicycle or small motorised trucks officially termed “village vehicles”;
- With an area of 2.45 km², the island is kinda “long”, hence the name as translated from Cantonese is “Long Island”.
However, I need to point out something extremely disturbing about the island. According to Wikipedia, “the number of suicide cases in Cheung Chau is one of the highest in Hong Kong due to people travelling to the island from elsewhere in Hong Kong specifically to commit suicide. The most common method of suicide is to suffocate by burning off oxygen with charcoal in door with all the doors and windows closed. One would typically do this just before going to bed so that one would die while asleep. Many believe it to be the most painless way of suicide”. So I guess we would need to look out for them buggy ghosts as well. I can’t tell you how disturbed we were, but since we paid, we don’t have much of a choice but to carry on.
The next day, we headed to Central Pier (No. 5), perhaps the only pier that serves commuters from Cheung Chau to Hong Kong and back. Remember my previous paragraph on suicides in Cheung Chau? Well, while waiting for the next available ferry, we noticed this interesting banner which in some ways haunted us again…
So I guess it was fair to say that Wikipedia was not wrong…people do go there to die…bummer. Upon arrival, I was prepared to step into an old town where residents there still hold to their traditional believes (sacrifice a goat or two), wear their native costumes daily and perhaps speak in their own language. But I have been wrong in many occasions and this one is no different. The first thing I saw after stepping out of the pier is one of the many trademarks of globalisation…
Left: McD’s right in front of the pier | Right: Walk along the streets and you’ll see our local bank
Modern as Cheung Chau may seem to be, the island still seem to have kept its quiet fishing village character. You could see may fishing boats docked at the pier side, seafood stalls preparing for dinner and that village feel which I would love to describe (but can’t).
Left: Boats docking by the sea | Right: Streets of Cheung Chau
After checking in to our hostel, we took a walk around the little island enjoying the cool (chilling at times) evening breeze. Yeah, we both agreed this was much needed in our tiring trip. We passed by schools, municipal councils, homes and shopped around for quick munchies. Interesting to note though, the island even have its own library, something I thought would never exist in a small town, but like I said, I have been wrong in many occasions.
By the way, it is also a municipal council, a wet market, offices and a school (I think)
Oh uh, and to answer your question on the “ghost thing”..no no no..we didn’t see anything. It is a really peaceful island, which makes me wonder why did people go there to commit suicide. Weird!! So if you are looking for a nice place to escape and just rest and relax in Hong Kong, you might want to consider visiting Cheung Chau. I can’t think of a better, more relaxing place in Hong Kong.Up next…the food in Cheung Chau..
Sunset in Cheung Chau
More photos in my Flickr album here.
Lyn (my boo) and I don’t normally add touristy areas to our list of places to visit when going overseas but considering that this one is somewhat unique we decided to go for it. Avenue of Stars, located at the Victoria Harbour, is modelled after Hollywood’s Walk of Fame giving it an Asian twist. Instead of featuring celebrities like Elvis Presley to Linda Evans, the Avenue of Stars fills their list with a number of Asian celebrities.
Left: John Woo | Right: Andy Lau
To tell you the truth, I was initially skeptical about the place. I mean how fantastic can it be? I have been to the Hollywood’s Walk of Fame and didn’t think it was that great. But considering we had time to kill in Tsim Sha Tsui East, Kowloon, we headed there anyway.
Upon arriving, I was immediately captured by the Hong Kong landscape from the harbour. I can’t tell you how much I love how the sea nicely reflected the lit up buildings. Its one of those moments you wished you were heavily equipped with your DSLR, wide angel lens, tripod and IR trigger. I just had to make do with Lyn’s Panasonic DMC-FX-33…without the tripod. But the results were pretty good enough for me.
Nice eh? But you only get this at night..coz you know…lights and all…
Another item that truly captured my attention was the Bruce Lee statue. I know I know…to you its Bruce Lee. But to me…”Woah!! Its freaking Bruce Lee man!!”. So after many attempts at trying to compose an photo of me and Bruce Lee we had to make do with this.
Look..its Bruce (freaking) Lee okay?
As the temperature drops further with the chill factor from the sea breeze, we quickly made our way to the MTR to warm up and head back to our hostel. There was much to do the next day. Leaving there, I felt that this place connects me more than Hollywood’s Walk of Fame…perhaps it being more Asian and all. Maybe..just maybe this is why I might have preferred Hong Kong than California.
So if you are hanging around Kowloon and have some time to kill at night. Head to the Avenue of Stars and bring your camera along and fire away. I love the skyline photos. Up next…how we celebrated our New Year’s Eve and 2nd year anniversary…
I guess you wouldn’t be surprised if I said that Lyn (my boo) and I were keeping our fingers crossed hoping for better accommodations after experiencing two cramped hostels in Hong Kong. Walking around the rooms can be a real b**ch especially with two opened luggages and with me being the bigger (in size) person, let’s just say my presence didn’t make it any easier.
But thankfully, our last two locations were just wonderful. They were much roomier and oddly cheaper. I am guessing our first two hostels were pricey due to their location. But hey..lets move on.
After taking a short ferry ride to Cheung Chau island from the pier, Lyn and I had the initial problem of navigating to our hotel. We didn’t have a map of the island and being in a foreign land, we tend to be in some ways..blinder. Some things are just in your face but we rather spend our time scratching our heads and whining about how unfriendly the island is. Okay okay…I admit…I was the only one complaining . Take for example, street signs. Quite a number around but we kept missing them…yeap…blind as a bat.
Anyhoo allow me to focus on our lodging since I will write about Cheung Chau later on. When we got into our room, we were pleasantly surprised at the way it was decorated. The nice people at Miami Resorts gave us a newly renovated room with cleaner facilities. For S$60 we got the usual amenities like a small bathtub, a nice comfy bed, a TV (with like 4 channels or something), a small fridge, a kettle, 4 chairs and a small table. But what sets this hostel apart from the other two was the balcony with a view of the ocean.
Left: Roomier and cleaner | Right: Our balcony
Left and Right: Although the toilet was still cramped, we loved them.
Left and Right: Our view from the balcony. Too bad it isn’t summer.
Our only problem was that the temperature in Hong Kong dipped during our visit. So with the cold ocean wind blowing into our room at about 10 degC, let’s say it wasn’t easy sleeping at night. Lyn had to sleep with her jackets on. But the view of the ocean paid off. The next morning, I may have woken up stoned but was awed by the majestic sunrise (well to me at least). Kudos to the Miami Resorts, We give them a rating of 3.5/5.
Woah!!
Lastly our final accommodation at Shenzhen. Being a much more economical location compared to Hong Kong, we were able to afford living slightly more luxuriously and checked into a hotel. At Shan Shui Trends Hotel in Luohu, we almost burst into tears when the bellboy opened our room door and led us in. It was beautiful.
The room was huge compared to the other three hostels and the toilets were much bigger. Amenities include free internet connection, a fridge, cupboards (woah!! cupboards!!), the usual flat screen TV and other good stuffs that a hotel should have. Oh btw, our beds are round . And all that for about S$50 a night. I’m sure heaven is better but upon entering the room, I can’t begin to tell you how happy we were.
Left: Roomier…much roomier | Right: Round bed!!
Left: Bigger toilets and the nice rainfall type shower
To round it up, I am pretty sure you would already know which accommodation we preferred in our Hong Kong and Shenzhen trip. Dearest Shan Shui Trend Hotel, we love you long time. We give it a 7/5…yes, we were that emotional.
Well that’s all I have for our lodging. Allow me to end with this really interesting point though. If you have read both posts on our accommodation, you would notice that as we progressed in the trip, our hotels got roomier and less expensive. Kinda weird eh? More stories to come..
A peacock chillin’ outside Shan Shui Trends Hotel
Yeah, our trip to Hong Kong and Shenzhen was just wonderful. I can’t begin to tell you how much fun we had walking the streets in the nice winter season with the quest of shopping and eating in mind. From food adventures to wonderful experiences, there are just too many to share. Although this is our first time there, I can guarantee it will not be our last.
Going through hundreds if not thousands of photos captured during our trip, I am having quite a bit of a problem sorting them out. To tell you the truth, I am still figuring out how my series of stories could be grouped and packaged nicely. But I’ll guess I will work it out somehow.
Giving first priority to the Hong Kong and Shenzhen series would be the lodging. Being a poorly paid civil servant, I was unable to give Lyn (my boo) and I the comforts of hotels in Hong Kong due to the expensive rates. The most economical hotel accomodation we could ever get during the time was about $160 or so per night which to me (for the lack of a better word), is extremely ball-breaking. So our next best option…hostels for backpackers.
Our first experience was a small pigeon hole at Tak Hing Street by Rent-A-Room. Located at Jordan, Kowloon, the hostel rooms are nicely partitioned in already small Hong Kong style apartments. For just S$100 a night, Lyn and I are treated to a small cramped up area with the usual amenities like a bed, toilet facilities, a TV, a chair, a small table and a nice fridge. But that is about it. Everything else, we have to purchase ourselves…like water.
Left: This is how our hut..I mean room looks like. | Right: Cramped toilets
To get hot water for bathing, the water heater requires about a half-hour ‘boil’ before we could begin the cleansing process but is still never enough. We do get that intermittent jets of cold water instead which is not very helpful especially when the room temperature is already quite low, and not to mention in the morning…brrrrrr….it was really cold. Our only good news is that Rent-A-Room is about a 5 min or so walk to the Jordan MTR which helped us a great deal in getting around. It is also a walking distance to Parkes Street, our Hong Kong makan haven. However, our overall experience wasn’t so pleasant. We would probably rate it about 2.5/5…and yes, we are already being gracious.
Left: The walk up to our apartment | Right: How our apartment building look like
Next up is another hostel at Paterson Street, Causeway Bay. Located about 5 mins away from Causeway Bay MTR, Studios HK is also another hostel styled pretty much like Rent-A-Room. We were beginning to get the hang of the partitioned hostel room experience. The rooms were slightly bigger, giving space for a nice computer table and yes…we have internet connection (iLikes!!). All that for just about S$70 a night.
Left: It is a little larger than it looks | Right: Toilets are still pretty cramped
Housed in a more secured building compared to Rent-A-Room, visitors would need to enter a 4-digit code at the door in order to get into the building. So if any of you Thomas (Tom), Richard (Dick) or Harold (Harry) want to just sneak up and snoop around…try again. Studios HK also has laundry services, an computer room with internet connectivity (for those who did not bring their laptops along), and a reception at the 3rd floor (or was it 4th?). Sure it may not be your regular Hilton or Four Seasons, but we were comfortable and would definitely return.
Oh one more thing, if you are looking for a place where backpackers can hang around, meet new people and make friends from all over, I think you would find Studios HK suitable. We met with a friendly German couple next door who asked if we would like to party with them at 1am but we had to gently turn them down. We were already quite wasted from the New Year’s Eve party (but that is another story). Our rating? How about 3/5?
Left and right: Our view from the window. Nice eh? Two colours, iLikes
Though these places may not be paradise, but it was truly a good experience. We have never stayed in a hostel before and what better way to do so when in another country. Don’t expect me to stay in such places in Singapore, I am comfortable in my own room. Well…two two down and two to go. Up next…our rooms get way better as we head to a small Hong Kong island called Cheung Chau and then off to Shenzhen.
So yeah, I guess you would already know by now that I am finally back from my Hong Kong and Shenzhen trip. Lyn (my boo) and I are completely flat broke but we take comfort at the fact that the trip was filled with a ton of experiences we can’t exchange for cash. But then if you see it in another way, the trip was paid in cash so we kinda did use money to trade the experiences…hmmm…
But hey!! Details aside. I am currently taking a look at my photos taken from the trip and I must say…woah..there are lots to write about. So tune in for more entries about my Hong Kong and Shenzhen trip…mostly on food tho… .
Lyn (my boo) and I at Cheung Chau, Hong Kong
Recent Comments