Eating my way through Hong Kong

Hong Kong is a fabulous place to eat - so much intriguing food around every corner. Best to go there with an eating agenda and add a little sight seeing in between. One of the must eats, is a great Cantonese meal, but with the shellfish heavy component, this didn’t work for me. Fortunately there are PLENTY of other options.

Everything moves fast in Hong Kong - we landed, hopped onto a train to the city, checked into our hotel and were sitting down at Tim Ho Wan within two hours. And we were probably in and out of the restaurant in about 20 minutes, there was no waiting for the food, after we made our selections.

The BBQ pork buns are an absolute must eat, and they were so fabulous. I think it’s the sugary, crispy top that really sets them apart, with a soft bun and saucy pork, it’s a complete package.

The other selections were good, but not as exciting, the turnip cakes were a bit more gamey than I’m used to, shrimp dumplings which I couldn’t eat, fried pork buns and beef balls rounded out the meal.

The next morning, ramen seemed like the right place to start. Ichiran in Causeway Bay is in theory open 24 hours. It’s a fun set-up with individual booths for semi-private eating. Tonkotsu is the specialty.

And of course, we had to try a few egg tarts. The well browned version is from Expresso at the Excelsior. The puff pastry shell was super flakey, while the custard was nearly over-cooked. The light yellow version is from Tai Cheong Bakery in the Star Ferry Terminal. The pastry was super tender and the custard just barely set.

Yardbird, in Sheung Wan, is a hip yakitori place. The line started about 15 minutes before it opened. They do have other things beyond yakitori, so we started with pickles and seaweed salad, which were nice and refreshing. Then a selection of yakitori, including chicken meatball with egg yolk, miso breast, and oyster, among others. And in case we were still hungry, mushroom fried rice to finish. It was fun, but didn’t feel very Hong Kong-y.

Australia Dairy Co. is an adventure and conveniently close to our hotel in Tsim Sha Tsui. The perpetual line moves quickly, but don’t be surprised if you are seated at a table with strangers. No seat remains empty for long. The specialty is milk tea, soup with macaroni and ham, and eggs and toast. The macaroni soup was different, but tasted good and the bread and eggs were fabulous.

I came across Little Bao on Eater 38 list, while researching where to eat in HK, and it seemed right up my alley with my love of dumplings and sandwiches. It’s a tiny place with a limited menu of bao, with specific “no bao cutting” instructions, some sharing plates and cocktails.

The last thing I ate, before heading to the airport, was a bubble waffle. I was debating which bubble waffle place to try, and in the end, went to Oddies Foodies, because it was just down the street from Little Bao. They have quite the menu of waffles with ice cream, but I decided to go for the plain waffle.