Hong Kong Day 2

As we did not go for dim sum on the first day, we made it a compulsory agenda on the second day; simply because the variety and quality is so good in Hong Kong. We are pretty fortunate as there are so many restaurants in the vicinity of our hotel. Although I was planning on going to Lin Heung Lau in Central, we decided on a restaurant closest to us because our stomachs are growling furiously. So, we walked a few minutes on North Point Road until we saw a decent looking restaurant and decided to try it out.

We were so jealous that we did not get a booth seat like some other customers. But figured out that these people must be regulars as they took all the time in the world to read newspaper and sipping tea.

The staff here are mostly middle-aged women and they are mostly unfriendly and untouchables.
Maybe because these are not locals and they have a difficulty conversing with the customers. Whatever it is, it's the food that I care about.

Our first dish was a basket of very juicy prawn dumplings. I have this self-thought theory that if the prawn dumplings in a particular restaurant are not good, it means that you shouldn't have too high hopes for the other dishes. So far, my theory has been proven.

Shanghai Won-Tons....totally amazing!! I have to fend off some grubby fingers at the counter to get a plate of these. Totally worth it!

Stuffed eggplants

Chives dumplings.

Ma Lai Kou......was mediocre.

This is the mango&prawn filled fritters....creamy sweet mango flesh with prawns fried in a light flaky pastry.......really delicious.

Char Siu Sou.....was very very crispy .

Yeung Zhi Gum Lou......this is a dessert with a combination of pomelo pulps, mango slices, sago and coconut cream....it's heavenly.


Fried Man Tou.....is good but pale in comparison with all the other gorgeous food we had.

All those food for 2 person....and we finished most of it! What an achievement.

After a very *burp* fulfilling brunch, we were fueled to begin our second day in Hong Kong. And the next destination?? Non other than the fascinating Sneaker Street for some retail therapy. Ka-ching!!

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New Look for Wai Sik Mui

I got bored of the pink and chose a better and more refreshing template for a change....Hope you all like this!! Thanks for dropping by.

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HK Day 1, Part 2

After the lunch, we went to Central from Wan Chai. We headed straight for the Mid-level escalator that is in the vicinity of Hollywood Road. The escalator only goes up after morning peak hours. I've read it from somewhere that the escalator caters to the need of rich people living in that area. Doesn't surprise me too much as the higher we went...there are more nice european bars and cafes catering to the expatriates living in Hong Kong.




There are many shops and houses on both side of the escalator.If you've watched 'Chungking Express' before, you'll notice the escalator where Tony Leung saw Faye Wong cleaning in his apartment.

After reaching the top where a mosque is located, we walk back down to roam around Soho. We were not particularly interested in eating in Soho where it's mostly laced by European eateries. It's Hong Kong we're in; so it's Hong Kong food we're after.It's ironic that a lot of younger locals will suggest tourists to come here for food given that it may not be the best spot to get the best HK cuisine.

If you've watched ' Drink Drunk Drank' (千杯不醉) starring Miriam Yeung and Daniel Wu, then you'd recognise this cafe. They filmed the movie at this cafe, which is now the Culture Club located on 15 Elgin Street, Central.

The locals going about their daily routine.

Some great finds on one of the backstreets of Old Central.

This is a priceless shot of how the locals are living their lives as it was amidst the modernisation.


Maybe after looking at these photos, many would understand the reason of my adoration with Hong Kong. I love this pulsating city! There's this vibrance and energy that you feel everywhere that you go to. Contrary to old belief; the people here are very friendly and approachable. I am not just talking about the staff at the airport or hotels. We've been approached by locals when they saw how clueless we were with the map. The only atrociously unfriendly people you meet are probably are all housed at the chain of Aji-Ichiban stores.


After walking around the whole day, we were met by our friends in Causeway Bay for dinner. I requested for steamboat in Causeway Bay but our friend took us to Wan Chai as he knows of this place which is really good. We chose a tofu and fish soup base for our steamboat.

Our huge plate of meat and other goodies to go into the boiling hot soup.

The dinner was alright for the fact it was only around HKD 80 per person. That's really cheap. It's buffet style so we can reorder as many times as we want to. But I personally prefer the steamboat places in Causeway Bay.

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Hong Kong , Day 2 Part 1

I slept like a log the night before and woke up to the nice cool morning weather in Hong Kong.
S has arrived at the hotel too. Without wasting anymore time, we headed out for a breakfast to fuel us both. We headed to a nearby char-chan-teng ( tea restaurant) which was recommended by openrice.com , a Hong Kong food review website. Before I got here, I knew that there's nothing spectacular about the food. I just adore all old restaurants and cafes. I will choose a dingy old looking place over a spanking new establishment.

We finally found Cheung Lei Bing Sut at 120 Electric Road, North Point. It's a little restaurant on the stretch of the buzzling Electric Road.


While many people would cringe at the thought of such places, for me, they are rare gems and are diminishing to give way to some new fancy looking places with pretentious food; sometimes at exorbitant prices.


The layout in this cafe is very simple and looks untouched by the changes of modern times.

I wonder if this is still functioning...

I chose a standard breakfast set consisting fried sausages, sunnyside-up, white bread and coffee. The food was average and a little on the oily side.


Shu got himself his favourite french toast with a chunk of melting butter and syrup. He said it was yummy but not the best that he had.

Our breakfast was alright, good enough to fuel us for the first leg of our trip to go up to The Peak.One advise is that whenever you go to a Hong Kong 'Char Chan Teng', don't drink the coffee as it's a suicidal move.

Although the food was mediocre but it was worth going as it is a reminiscence of Hong Kong's pre handovers' Char Chan Teng culture.


Next, we took the bus up The Peak. Along the way I spotted two buildings that look like a pair of chopsticks. I was told that this is the home for famous Hong Kong singer Jacky Cheung.



We went into the Hong Kong Madame Tussaud's upon arriving at The Peak. The last time I was here, the museum was closed for refurbishment. I was happy that this time I get a chance to visit the 'improved' version.

It was a very foggy day and we didn't get a very good view of Hong Kong from the Peak and was hungry again after all that walking. Since there wasn't any restaurants that interests us around,we decided to make a move to Wan Chai for lunch.



We were walking around Wan Chai during the lunch hour where almost every eatery is vomiting customers. We got hungrier and then we found a little eatery that looks like we didn't have to wait until we become stone statues before we can be seated. We got our seat and of course, we have to share our paper napkin sized table with another hungry customer. The table was so small that in between the meal, I almost ate the stranger's lunch.

One of the many food that I want to eat in Hong Kong is their famous 'Cheh Zai Min' ( Trolley Noodles).You get to choose the type of noodles cooked in clear soup and the toppings. I chose radish, pork balls, crispy fried fish skin and pork pudding on egg noddles.

The very fishy but cripy fish skin...yummy yummy in my tummy!!

Overall, the noodles was a little bland but it was still good. After the refueling, we continue our journey to Old Central.

To be continued....

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Hong Kong Trip 2008, Day 1

As I've mentioned earlier, I just got back from my trip to HK and KL earlier this week. I was in HK for 6 days. The last trip to HK was Jan 2006, so I am a little far from my aim of visiting Hong Kong at least once every 18 months.

Anybody who knows me well will know that I adore Hong Kong. It's the most fun, exciting, vibrant city and beat Milan hands down any minute. Hehehe. At least, that's what I think from my own experience.

Watching TVB drama since young with my grandma has become an integral part of my life, hence, the influence from it over time breeds a great sense of familiarity with Hong Kong. It's funny that ever since I've moved to NZ, I watch even more TVB dramas than I did. No complains though.

What did I do when I arrive in Hong Kong after a 13-hour flight plus 5 hours transit blah blah blah?? I just went straight to the hotel, took a shower and dashed out to South Horizon to Space Warehouse; the Prada outlet store ...with the public bus!! Impressive determination and craziness!!

I read that that most of the Prada stuff here is heavily discounted to 70% or 80%!!! Woohoo!!!
When I got there...there were only a handful of bags that are ok looking,but nothing pretty enough for me to plonk big dosh for....so I moved on from there; empty handed.

Luckily for me, I got the chance to try an old fashioned Hong Kong sweet ' chung yau peng' whilst I was hunting for the Space Warehouse. It was sold at a bus stop by an elderly couple. The uncle carefully wrap rolls of crunchy biscuits and topped it with some sugary peanut bits and wrapped it up with a thin papery wrap. Taste? Pretty interesting although a little dry.
After that, I headed for Causeway Bay for a little shopping warm-up lap. Didn't have any proper dinner as I was too busy shopping and snacking. It was also a little intimidating to dine alone in HK. Oh well,it's only one night. S was due to arrive the next morning, so it's only for one night.

After more looting, my body was crying for me to let it rest. So I went back to the hotel at North Point. The hotel I chose this time is City Garden Hotel. Pretty impressed by its size(it's huge by HK standard!), location, service and value for money.

The last time I went to HK in 2006, I stayed in Kowloon Hotel. Although it's extremely convenient with the MRT station right outside and the Esprit warehouse a stone throw away, I was pretty shocked by how small it was. Believe me, you can't open more than 1 luggage on the floor there! Seriously!!

The City Garden hotel is only 2 stations away from Causeway Bay and there's plenty of restaurants and shops nearby and you can enjoy the luxury of a quiet sleep at night in a decent sized bedroom. The best bit is that you can get the chance to see how the locals go about their daily lives here since there's an apartment building right opposite. And to top it off, there's a 7 Eleven right next to the hotel to buy necessities like water, snack,milk,magazines,etc.

Speaking of milk, I saw this really cute bottle of Kowloon Dairy milk from 7 Eleven. I only drink milk in my coffee but I can't help from getting a bottle of this just because of how cute it looks. Ahh.....reminds me of Tom&Jerry...hehehe.

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Where is Wai Sik Mui???

I have just returned from a long trip to Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur, and of cos ate, shop, ate,shop,shop....kekeke.

Will be updating my blog again soon with some photos of my trip to Hong Kong....stay tuned!

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Cock&Bull

We set out for Cardrona Speights Alehouse for the much anticipated Lamb Shank but unfortunately they are not serving it for dinner that night. That's our 3rd attempt on eating the famous Speights Alehouse chains' famouse Lamb Shank ; after a deadly spell of Lamb Shank that was set on us after a trip tp Napier's Speight Alehouse. So what do you do when you can't get what you want? Move on and behold a little faith that you chance upon something good that is worth the first let down. So we head on to Cock & Bull. We are not real beer drinkers although we shuffle from one pub restaurant to another within the same evening. Simply because we are so fixated on having that lamb shank washed down with some cold beer.

Cock & Bull is a local after work haunt in Newmarket with many chilling out here to escape the peak hour jam with some beers and other goodies they have. Since it was a quiet Sunday evening, they only offer their 'Express Menu' which only gives us a few choices of typical pub food.

S went for their burger platter with a fried egg, thick beef patty and generous helping of fries. It was a good deal for only $ 17 where a burger at our favorite Burger Wisconcin is $11 without fries . Taste wise, it's not as good as Burger Wisconsin, no surprise! But it was a good burger meal.
Our friend ordered a Grilled Chicken platter with some tender chicken breasts served on a bed of salads...that's the healthiest option on the menu.

And what did I chose? The Cock&Bull Platter.....aka Sin& Guilt Platter. Look at it! Everything's fried....mussels, sausages, wedges, fish fillets,calamari and fries...everything crumbed and fried!!! Man, I was ambitious to even imagine being able to stomach everything,which to everyones' relieve, I did not!! *Phew!!!* It was a nice and pretty good deal for about $19 but you shouldn't order as your main....it should be something to munch on whilst drinking your beer and shared by everyone at the same table. I like the sausages and wedges that came with it....the calamari was a little squishy.

Overall, it wasn't a night to forget but we had fun. And maybe when we need another good dose of jolly cholesterol, we''ll be back. But be warned that you have to drink lots of water and eat some greens to flush the greasiness out of your system after that meal, which I did.

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French Market @ French Bay

I went to a so-called French Market one weekend last month in French Bay....I was actually expecting a lot of stalls and people. And to my disappointment, there were only a handful of stalls selling overpriced foie gras, french cheeses and condiments. Most of the things didn't interest me.
The weather was bad anyway....so only stayed for about 30 mins, after having the Paella. The Paella was NZD 15 and is only available for takeaway. Paella.....isn't that Spanish instead of French??

My Paella in a styrofoam box.....it was cooked with arborio rice, prawns, capsicum, broad beans and capsicum. Although not superb but the rice was pretty flavourful, or maybe I was just hungry.
We bought a lemon sugar crepe.....was very soggy ....sorry! no pics because I was too busy eating my Paella.

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