The Unadventurous HK-er

On Sunday, July 5th, DJ, M, J, F, H and E came to Hong Kong, and I tagged along with them for most of the last 4 days. While I have been living here for 2 years now, I still had a lot of firsts during their trip.

My first time to try Din Tai Fung (DTF) in HK - Originating from Taiwan, DTF is famous for its xiao long bao or soup dumpling. Apart from the XLB, DTF serves dumplings with different fillings such as chopped green leafy vegetables, red bean, and sticky rice. DJ, M and I first tried DTF in Taiwan during our 3-week Taiwan tour in 2006, and as I recall, we were all very satisfied with the meal. (http://footprintsacrosstaiwan.blogspot.com/2006/06/very-vertical-day.html)

DTF in HK is located in Silver Cord along Canton Road in Tsim Sha Tsui. Luckily, we got there early because the line was really long when we left after an hour. I ordered the only vegetarian dumplings (HKD 50) in the menu and shared the red bean dumpling (HKD 33) with DJ. I loved both orders but found the skin of the dumplings a bit dry and therefore a little hard.

My first time to go to Citygate Outlets in Tung Chung - I am amazed to find that CO is set up just like any mall and is very organized. Some brands located in CO are CK Underwear, Coach, Polo Ralph Lauren, Burberry, I.T., Nike, Esprit, etc. I picked up some really cheap stuff in Nike (HKD 170 for a pair of cropped pants marked down from HKD 319). The Pacific Coffee, situated in the middle of the 3rd level, is a good place to hang after shopping. The ceiling is high and the place is spacious and filled with couches. Novotel Citygate is connected to CO and a Taste grocery can be found at the basement.

My first time to visit Delay No Mall at 68 Yee Wo Street, CWB, beside Regal Hotel HK (http://www.delaynomall.com/shopping.php) - DNM is a new mini shopping mall filled with cute toys, avant-garde clothing, and a small fast food place. The DNM shop, which is run by the same company as G.O.D. (Goods of Desire), sells shirts, shades, bags, pouches, etc. DNM has a line with the "Delay No More" message, which DJ liked.

I tried a mini cupcake called Red Velvet (HKD 13) in Babycakes. The pastel-shaded walls of Babycakes reminded me of the interiors of Cupcakes by Sonja in Serendra. While the cupcake was not too sweet which I liked, it was not really memorable. DJ got a burger in Absolute Burger and I tried their very greasy mushroom fries (HKD 22). There weren't a lot of people in DNM when we were there, and I wondered about the profits that the businesses in it make.

My first time to eat at Ricks in SoHo - Originally, DJ and I were looking for Olympia Graeco-Egyptian Coffee, a famous coffee shop in SoHo, which according to DJ's research is located at "the top." Unfortunately, we did not find the place and only discovered later that the address is 24 Old Bailey Street. We stopped by Ricks to grab some lunch. Ricks is a Greek restaurant located along Elgin Street across Fat Angelo's. All the servers are Filipinos and upon overhearing DJ and me conversing in Tagalog, they then started talking to us in Tagalog. DJ ordered the salmon salad lunch set which came with leek soup, salad topped with a thick slice of salmon, a piece of tiramisu cake, and a cup of coffee (HKD 78 all). I got a baked eggplant topped with tomato sauce and cheese (HKD 68). The food was filling and fresh. The servers were a tad too friendly but I didn't mind as I was given a free cup of freshly brewed Lavazza coffee. DJ said the cake and coffee combination was so French, to which I replied: It's le best.

My first time to take friends to a Dai Pai Dong - DPDs are HK eateries that serve authentic HK food. DPDs are normally messy, noisy and not the cleanest place to eat. Tables are set up along the streets to accommodate the large number of guests, and courteous customer service is not to be expected except from the beer promo girls.

I took everyone to Tung Po, a DPD located on the 2nd floor of the Java Road Municipal Services Building across exit A1 of the North Point MTR station. There are actually 3 to 4 restaurants here but Tung Po, which is packed even on weeknights, is the most popular. Dinner starts at 530pm and TP now has an English menu and an English-speaking maitre d with an afro haircut for its growing tourist clientele.

I always looked forward to coming here whenever I came to HK. The culinary skills of the chefs here is incomparable to anything in HK. Should TP move to a better location and use nicer utensils, I'm sure the price of the dishes will be more than double the current price. The menu offers many different dishes, all of them tasty, but TP's specialty is fresh seafood. My personal favorite before was the fried spareribs with mayonnaise and sesame seeds (sha lat kwut in Cantonese).

My first time to try Lucky Dessert across World Trade Centre in CWB - J suggested the place to us. As I just finished a huge vegetarian lunch in Kung Tak Lam at the 10th floor of the World Trade Centre, DJ and I shared a sweet, steamed banana with chocolate wrapped in crispy crepe wrapper, which was served hot.

It has been a crazy 4 days of non-stop walking both in the rain and under the intense heat of the July sun, culminating in me getting a huge bruise on my poor thigh.

Next stop on my schedule: Hello again, Manila love. Kiss kiss!

*I almost always forget to take pictures. I'm getting better at remembering, though, I now take pics of the food. Hopefully, next time I remember to take photos of the people too.