[Hong Kong] Mobile Softee : The Chasing Fun

This is the something that i usually do whenever i am in Hong Kong. That something is to chase after the Mobile Softee truck, not exactly in chasing after though but i always keep a lookout. It is just some fun thing to do. I do wish we have that kind of truck in Singapore though.

[Hong Kong] Hello Kitty Chinese Cuisine : Hello Kitty Dim Sum

I was anticipating long queue and to the certain extent, i even made an effort to eat something light just before i came here. When i was all ready to queue for at least 1 hour or more, i was so amazed to find out that there was no queue during lunch. What happened? i thought they are newly opened for less than 3 months? i thought it was reported that Hong Kongers and tourists were so crazy about this Cantonese style Hello Kitty restaurant as this is the first one in this whole wide world to serve chinese dishes including dim sim in the shape of this famous cat? Perhaps i was just thinking too much, it might just be one of my luckiest days when there is no queue. 

We did not even need to wait for a table as we were immediately ushered to a table of 2. There were still quite a few empty tables at that time. 

And, almost everything is this restaurant has Hello Kitty printed on and that including tables, chairs, bowls, plates tea pots and so on. The interior of the restaurant is a combination of traditional Chinese with the influence of Hello Kitty.

We were presently rather quickly with their bigger than A4 size menu with Hello Kitty printed on its cover. 

Most of the dishes on their menu has a Hello Kitty touch including those Chinese dishes like Glutinous Rice, Fried Beef Horfun, Steamed Minced Meat with Salted Egg and so on. 

The popular Dim Sum dishes are those have the face of Hello Kitty created on it like the Salted Egg Custard Bun and Prawn Dumplings are extremely popular.

You could see Hello Kitty on almost everything and everywhere right in this restaurant.

And that including the cover on the packet of wet tissue.

First to come was the Char Siew Pastry for HKD $48 (3 pieces). It was supposed to be in the shape of the head of Hello Kitty with bits of sesame seeds sprinkled on top then decorated with the plastic stick with the ribbon of Hello Kitty at the top. 

Apparently, these pastries did not taste as good as we expected it to be. The pastry was rather light and flaky, it did not taste particularly buttery. The filling consists of minced Char Siew was slightly too dry and not as flavorful.

Next, came the Steamed Prawn Dumplings at HKD $68 for 4 pieces. And, amongst the 4 pieces, only 1 piece has got the eyes and nose of Hello Kitty with the ribbon and the other 3 pieces have got only the ribbons on it.

I took quite a bit of time to take the pictures and maybe these Steamed Prawn Dumplings were left it for a bit too long, the skin was slightly harden though it was still moist beneath. It was cute to look at but the taste was not too memorable.

The Salted Egg Custard Buns were served next, it consists of 3 pieces for HKD $62. It might have been left it for a bit too long, the Salted Egg Custard within was not as flowing and the skin was slightly dry. 

The last dish that came was the broccoli with prawns served along with the egg white, mushroom and rice for HKD $128.

The rice itself was a bit not moist but slightly dry and a bit hard. Those egg white tasted bland and the texture of those broccoli was not soft enough but those prawns tasted quite fresh though. The overall taste was quite disappointing.

We ordered a Mango Pudding for HKD $58. It consists of a layer of jelly that have got slices of strawberry and mango in it then topped with a piece of chocolate in the shape of Hello Kitty. It was served with condensed milk in a small container together with a few pieces of blueberries, a slice of strawberry and few cubes of mango. We did not particularly enjoyed this though.

Their exact location is about 3 minutes walk from the Jordan MTR.

HELLO KITTY CHINESE CUISINE 中菜軒

Shop A to C, Lee Loy Mansion, 332 - 338, Canton Road, Kowloon, HONG KONG

Operating Hours: 11.00 am to 11.00 pm (Daily)

[Hong Kong] Bing Kee 炳记茶档 : The Old-fashioned Feel of Hong Kong

Tai Hang has an increasing number of hip eateries though not quite affect the sleepiness of this quiet neighborhood. Bing Kee (炳记茶档) is one of the long surviving Dai Pai Dong that has been in this residential area for a long while, the nostalgic feel is irreplaceable particularly in the fast developing Hong Kong.

I was here in October 2014 but did not get to eat it as i did not know that their closing time is 3.30 pm and so, i was here just in time to see them packing up and closed for the day. I came back a year later and this time, i was here at about 12 pm for lunch.

There was a queue right next to the stall and all the tables there were fully occupied but the turnover rate of tables was pretty fast though. I waited for about 10 minutes before being ushered to one of the tables and to share it with another couple.

As i do not understand nor speak Cantonese, i encountered slight difficulties in getting the service staff to take my orders. In fact, i had quite a hard time. The couple sharing the table noticed it and my friend overheard the wife telling the husband in Cantonese, 'Maybe we should help them'. She then asked in English, 'Do you any need help?' And, i said to her, 'I just wanted my order to be taken.' 

The husband waved and called out to the service staff to come over for order taking. While waiting, we talked about what is nice to eat there. They recommended that we should try the signature Braised Pork Chop with Bee Hoon or Instant Noodle. They said as for the Braised Chicken Wings, they would recommend that to be ordered as a side dish as it is not as good when compared to the Braised Pork Chop. One of the service staff came over to take the order and when he realised that i do not speak nor understand Cantonese, he sent someone else over. The other Uncle speaks pretty good Cantonese style English and it was a breeze to order through him. 

The Iced Milk Tea (HKD $14) and the Iced Lemon Tea (HKD $15) came first. The Iced Milk Tea was quite nice, it tasted smooth with just enough of tea fragrance and not overly sweet as well. The Iced Lemon Tea tasted quite normal though.

Next came the Braised Chicken Wings, a portion consists of 5 pieces of mid-wings. I took a bite and it actually did not taste as bad as commented by that couple. It tasted simple and homely, like something prepared by the mother for a home-cooked meal.

The 2 bowls of Pork Chop Noodle (HKD $26 each) added with Luncheon Meat came right after, served by the same service staff that took my order. He pointed to the condiments on the table and he said, 'Try it, it is nice.' Those condiments consist of Japanese sesame oil, marinated red and green cut chili and chili Oil. I added a bit of chili Oil to my bowl of bee hoon and it actually tasted nicer. Each bowl has got a good portion of braised pork chop with 2 slices of Luncheon Meat added with a few stalks of lettuce. I tried the bee hoon in one of the bowls and instant noodle in the other bowl, i actually prefer the bee hoon a bit more.

The braised pork chop tasted flavorful and still retained its tenderness.

The texture of the instant noodle was a bit too soft, it lacked the firmness and not as springy as i liked.

There were still quite a queue waiting for tables when i left.

Most people that i encountered in Hong Kong are actually warmer than the people i have came across in Singapore. Most Singaporeans are not as proactive and not too helpful particularly towards a complete stranger. Perhaps too much frustrations and challenges have made their hearts turned cold.

BING KEE 炳记茶档

Next to 5 Shepherd Street, Tai Hang, HONG KONG

Operating Hours: 7.30 am to 3.30 pm (Tuesday to Sunday) (Closed on Mondays)

[Hong Kong] ABC Kitchen : My Birthday Dinner

If you wonder, ABC Kitchen is just like our kind of hawker stall located in a one of those food centres in Hong Kong. I was there once and quite enjoyed the lunch i had there. This time, i managed to make a reservation for dinner on my birthday through an email. They replied promptly and acknowledged the reservation. As i have overlooked their operating hours and indicated in the email that i would like to have my dinner at 6.30 pm, which is 30 minutes before their operating hours. They suggested that i could just go in early, order a drink first then order at 6.45 pm, and they will start serving it from 7 pm. 

It was a Sunday. I got there at about 7 pm, it was not as crowded as i expected. There were quite a few tables lined with checked tablecloths with table setting around. I approached a service staff and mentioned that i have a reservation and quickly led to one of those tables and presented with the menu thereafter. After decided what to order for the starters and the main dishes, i checked with the gentleman that was taking my order whether i should order my desserts first or do it later. He suggested that i should just order it and they will serve it accordingly. 

Though they are serving an extensive range of alcoholic drinks, juices and even gourmet coffee but we decided to go with just soft drinks at HKD $15 per can. It was served right after the order was taken. The serving staff did not just leave it there but they actually opened the can and poured it into those glasses. 

The complimentary buns and butter came right after. The buns were still had a slight warm and with a soft texture. This was a good start as the main dishes took quite a while to arrive.

The Soup of the Day was Pumpkin Soup at HKD $33, one of the starters listed in the menu, it was served with few pieces of croutons in it. The texture of the soup was rather thick and not too creamy. 

Next up was another starter, a Pan-fried Foie Gras with Apple Sauce at HKD $128.  A thick slice of Foie Gras was nicely pan-fried to slightly charred it without compromising its juiciness and served with a handful of garden salad and buttered toasts. 

One of the main dish that we ordered was their signature Spanish style Roasted Suckling Pig at HKD $178, it was accompanied with mashed potato and honey beans. It was evenly roasted to give the skin a delightful crispiness, you could clearly hear the cracking sound when bite into the extremely crispy skin just lightly. It was perfectly done to retain its tenderness within the meat and served along with mustard to go with the dish.

The Beef Tenderloin at HKD $208 came after a long wait. The dish consists of a chunky piece of perfectly grilled beef done to a right texture. It was seated on a pile of sauteed spinach together with kipfler potato then topped with half a slice of mushroom. This was a lovely dish that i totally enjoyed.

Lemon Meringue Tart at HKD $48 was one of the desserts that we ordered. It was served along with some lemon sauce with berries. This was a refreshing choice for dessert though it tasted a bit too sour to my liking but a good ending to complete a meal nonetheless.

Next dessert was Vanilla Panne Cotta served with mixed berries compote at HKD $48. It was rather pleasant as well.

This was a memorable birthday dinner, though the serving time in between the dishes was a bit too long but definitely worth the wait. Food was good with an exceptionally impressive service that was quite unexpected in such an environment. 

A BETTER COOKING (ABC) KITCHEN

CF 7 1/F Queen Street Cooked Food Centre No 38 Des Voeux Road West 

Sheung Wan HONG KONG

Operating Hours: 12.00 pm to 2.30 pm (Mon to Sat) / 7.00 pm to 10.30 pm (Mon to Sun)

[Hong Kong] The Peninsula Hotel Afternoon Tea

The exquisite Afternoon Tea at The Lobby of that iconic Peninsula Hotel is amongst the most talked about in Hong Kong and it is one of those places that you have to visit at least once in your life. As a frequent traveler to Hong Kong, this has always be on the top my must-visit list but I have not get to do so.

The high tea is served daily on the first-come-first-served basis, which means they do not accept reservation. It advisable to be there at least 30 minutes to join in the queue in order to be seated when it starts at 2.00 pm till 6.00 pm. The price per person is at HKD $358+ and HKD $628 for 2 persons. You have the option to add a glass of their special champagne to your tea set at HKD $180. The Afternoon Tea consists of a selection of finger sandwiches with savoury pastries and their homemade pastries that are specially for the Afternoon Tea. It also includes their freshly baked raisin scones served along with Devonshire clotted cream and organic strawberry preserve. You are then expected to choose your choice of teas from their tea collection. 

Please bear in mind that attire is strictly smart casual and that includes no sleeveless shirt for the men. Also, to take note that no flip-flops, beach sandals and plastic footwear like Crocs shoes are allowed. 

They only started to serve the guests when the time hits 2.00 pm. Menu was presented the moment when you seated, it is a standard menu so nothing much to browse through other than the selection of their tea collection to decide on your choice of tea. 

I decided to go with their rose flavored tea to go along with their annual 'Peninsula in Pink' campaign that underwent an artistic makeover to become The Act in Pink in support Breast Cancer Awareness in the month of October. And, a donation of HKD $40 will be made to the selected charity organisation. 

I am always more a coffee person and i do not quite know how to appreciate tea but i enjoyed the lightly scented rose flavored tea very much. It was served in a silver teapot together with a pot of hot water. The waiting staff came by quite often to check whether a refill of hot water is required. 

Having their Afternoon Tea is a great way to enjoy a quiet afternoon and to get away from the vibrant life of the streets of Hong Kong. The lobby of this grand hotel is a perfect for people watching while you dwell in the beautiful environment and cosy ambience.

The 3-tiered tray set loaded with of sweets and savouries was served a little while later.

The first level of the tray consists of different type of sweet treats which include the different types of lovely pink pastries. Most of it were quite enjoyable though was a slightly too sweet.

The second level of the tray consists mainly of different types of sandwiches including their famous cucumber sandwich which did not quite impress, the texture of those slices of cucumber was slightly soggy and the bread was a little dry. The rest was quite pleasant though not particularly interesting.

These freshly baked scones were lovely and it went extremely well with the jam and cream. I actually enjoyed these scones much more as compared to those sandwiches and pastries.

There was still quite a long queue of people waiting to be seated when i left at about 4.30 pm. 

The pleasant experience is definitely memorable and long lasting as this is a place that you have to visit at least once if you are in Hong Kong, just to experience the services and ambience.

THE PENINSUAL HONG KONG

Salisbury Road Tsim Sha Tsui HONG KONG SAR