Hong Kong Foody

Again, lacking photos. More when my friend comes back from India :D

You can’t go to Hong Kong without trying its cuisine. I did that and then some.

First meal I had when my trip officially started was the “Oriental Vegetarian Meal” one the plane. Qatar airline’s ‘Plane Food’ was actually not terrible although there was a lot of unnecessary packaging – each meal had a little bread roll, fruit, tiny cup of drink as well as the one the stewardess’ poured for you, and noodles. I was not even in HK yet and I had noodles for breakfast and noodles for lunch.

There were lots of noodles. Everywhere. Italy has pasta, Japan has rice, Britain has bread, HK has noodles. In soup, with dumplings – you name it. And everywhere sells them. Whilst I expected a little rice as well, the only time I saw it was on the plane home. The best noodles though were the instant ones we had at Jane’s house. They were spicy and oh so good. It was a shame I couldn’t fit a few in my suitcase to take home, but there are some available here in supermarkets and Chinatown. Just unfortunately, nothing will compare to the taste of the ones we had after a long day exploring! J

 

Whilst the choices in HK was limited for vegetarians, no one can deny the sheer amount of places you could eat; everywhere from posh, expensive restaurants, chain food restaurants like McDonalds and Pizza Hut to independently run cafes and diners which were by far the most numerous. Frequented by businessmen and litter pickers alike, each one varied from clean but plain, to run down and family owned. All the menus were in Cantonese (Kanji) so thank the higher forces I had paid attention during the ‘Eating Out’ section in Japanese class. Although the words were different, I could recognise the Kanji symbols for things like fish, meat and vegetables. But, going back to choice, the vegetable dishes were almost always limited to steamed vegetables as a side dish, or steamed vegetables in soup with noodles. One time I had some vegetable dumplings but although they tasted good, they were very heavy (taste wise) and not something I could eat every day.

 

Instead of moaning, let me tell you about my favourite places to eat.

Lantau Island had by far my favourite meal. Being a Buddhist area, and having a temple as its prominent feature, meat was forbidden. HOORAY! There were even signs stressing this, and when something is on a sign, it’s official! For under £3, I got a can of Fanta, a large spring roll, a slice of turnip cake (savoury) and a healthy portion of noodles – all vegetarian and all delicious! I also had some Oreos ;) Later, Jane and Ruth enjoyed some pudding. One was liquid sesame and was the colour of slate, the other was yellowy, lumpy and was tofu dessert but both smelled very strongly of things I can’t quite describer. After trying each (I’m all for trying new things then passing judgement) I passed as they were too sickly for me.

 

Gaia Veggie Place seems contradictory as the menu has things like ‘Salmon Sushi’ and ‘Pork Noodles’ but try to its name, everything in it is vegetarian – the meat is made of vegetables and meat substitutes. The chicken was made from soya and tofu for example, but looked (and according to Jane) and tasted like the real thing. The prices were fair and we had a great meal of Egg Congee, Sushi, Steamed Lotus Paste Buns and Cheesy ‘Lamb’ Noodles. It was worth all the hassle finding it. We spent a whole evening wandering up and down Causeway Bay and even then had to come back another day. The restaurant itself is on a high floor (the 8^th?) of a tall building complex. If you want to visit, bring a map.

 

One thing that bugged me was the lack of napkins and that as all the water had to be boiled to make it safe, it was served to you boiling hot. I have nothing against boiling water, I just like mine cold and refreshing rather than ready for tea and coffee. Also, if you spilled something or made a mini mess, it would have to stay there or you’d have to dig out a tissue. In Macau we visited a restaurant called ‘Dumbo’. Hallelujah – it had napkins! And after asking, ICE COLD WATER :D A downside was that instead of names, the waiters and waitresses had numbers on their nametags (numbertags?) although they had lovely uniforms; kind of like butlers and maids but classier. It was also nice to have food in the middle of the table and you just share and help yourself.

Also in Macau were these bakeries (Something Kok I think). They were EVERYWHERE. Sometimes four on a street. But the best thing was…free samples! Whilst HK had beautiful cakes in window displays just tempting you, you were invited to come in and try these. So we did. We almost didn’t need lunch as having almond, pecan and walnut cookies, egg rolls and cakes and Portuguese style chocolate chip cookies by the handful filled us up nicely. We also got a free cone of water as they were very dry. Result! I did buy a Portuguese egg tart (a famous speciality) and a beautiful slice of hazelnut cake with gold leaf decoration at the Patisserie at the Hotel we stayed in. The packed them in a lovely bright orange box and they were divine. My sweet tooth was satisfied on this trip as even the 7Elevens has fresh small pieces of cake and Swiss Rolls. With every purchase over a certain amount you got a Hello Kitty token, and when you have collected enough, you could trade it in for a Hello Kitty figuring. Models included Donut Kitty, Star Kitty and Diamond Kitty XD

Speaking of 7Elevens, stores like them and supermarkets had massive selections of snacks and drinks. Whilst I stuck to mainly water, (my favourite brand being ‘Watsons Water’ due to the funky bottles), there was everything from Nattchan Smiley Orange Squash to Watermelon And Pomegranate Sparkling Soda. The bottles were all colours, shapes and sizes, and materials so each display in the fridges looked like a mini work of art. And of course, the snacks were just as great - imported also from Japan and Korea, Pocky and LOTTE products as well as traditional Cantonese foods like dried squid and ginger (which I passed) to delightful little plastry buns (which I enjoyed).

Our first full day, we went to a sushi bar in a mall in Causeway Bay. Whilst the manager was a bit rude when Jane accidently tipped her dipping sauce in the wicker basket that held the sushi, we got a free calendar, there were fish and a water fountain, the whole place was beautiful and the food was really good and priced nicely. Like everything in HK, there was a balance. Good food and mean staff, concrete city and mountains filled with greenery (not forgetting the birds of prey). Everything had its place.

There were waffles vendors on the streets and we had some waffle in Mong Kok. It wasn't as sweet as British waffles and had a bubbly shape. They were cheap and tasted good. Enough said.

In the airport I had a ridiculously overpriced plate of pasta (penne, not noodles) in an Italian Eatery. It was phenomenal and reminded me of the very different food awaiting for me back in England.