Shoot First Eat Later

18 Grams

With nothing better to do I sought out one of the better coffee places as listed on this site. I plan to check out all those places eventually but the closest to me was 18 Grams in Mongkok.

I’ve been to this part of Mongkok once or twice before but I’ve never gone inside Gala Place. The fastest way to get here is to take the MTR to Mongkok and take the E2 Bank Centre exit. The street right ahead of you is Sai Yeung Choi St. S and turn right and walk all the way to the end and you will see Gala Place on Dundas St. Along the way you will see lots of Broadway, Fortress, CitiCall and other electronics and camera stores.

18 Grams is in the basement of Gala Place. The entrance is next to Starbucks.

Gala Place basement

There were a few restaurants in the basement including a shabu shabu restaurant which looked quite interesting.

The place was very small. I had to wait in line for a table. This was around 3:30 pm. I guess people were having their afternoon tea.

This was the coffee beans used for my house coffee. A 100g bag of beans sells for $58

Since I was dissatisfied with my lunch at Serenade Chinese Restaurant I had a light afternoon snack of smoked turkey cubes, green apple, celery, raisins, honey toasted walnuts with a few leaves of salad greens and honey mustard mayonnaise. It was a pretty good and satisfying salad. I’m glad I requested the ultra sweet dressing on the side. Just a little dab was more than enough.

smoked turkey waldorf salad HK$58

I was thrilled to discover really, really amazing coffee. The coffee was dark, rich and complex. I felt like I was back in San Francisco enjoying Third Wave coffee. Just look at the thick crema. I will definitely be back to fill up the frequency card they gave me.

house coffee HK$28

18 Grams menu

18 Grams
B04, 56 Dundas Street, Gala Place Basement, Mong Kok
telephone: (852) 2770-1339
Monday-Sunday: 11:30a.m. to 9:30 p.m.
website

Dim Sum at Serenade Chinese Restaurant

A friend told me about Serenade Chinese Restaurant located at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre. Imagine I live a stone’s throw away and I never knew about it.

Sure I’ve watched Mama Mia and Phantom of the Opera at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre but I didn’t know they had restaurants too.

Just follow the arrow.

And up the stairs.

Look at the view!!

Serenade was part of the popular Maxim group of restaurants.

I was so excited to discover a huge Chinese restaurant with an amazing view of the Hong Kong harbour and the famous skyline.

They had an extensive dim sum menu too.

Just tick your selections and give it to the waiter.

Prices for the dim sum were ok. Small – HK$18, Medium – HK$26 and Large – HK$30

They had the most dessert choices I’ve seen so far.

peanuts

As nice as the restaurant, view, menu and plating was the food was very disappointing. The only positive thing was the service was extremely fast. This barbecue pork pastry was cold and the pastry was not flaky at all.

barbecued pork pastry HK$26

This was the most disappointing of all. The pastry was super sweet and there was hardly any filling inside. I’m sure I didn’t taste any goose at all.

baked pastry with mushroom & goose meat HK$38

Our usual favorite, ham sui kok, was cold and oily. I kept thinking about my favorite dim sum place, Chuk Yuen that was in a basement and didn’t have a view but their ham sui kok comes out piping hot and filled with lots of meat.

deep fried sticky dumpling filled with minced pork & dried shrimp HK$18

No wonder the service was fast. The waiters seemed to just grab plates of cold dim sum to serve.

baked turnip & Yunnan ham pastry HK$26

I was really impressed with their presentation though.

pan fried minced pork, beef & pepper buns HK$48

But then you can’t eat presentation. The pork bun had little filling and was more bun.

The steamed pork spareribs was at least warm and fared better than the baked dim sum selections.

steamed spareribs with pomelo peel & black beans HK$30

On the other hand their desserts were yummy and definitely made up for the unsatisfactory meal. I loved the coffee gelatin balls and together with fresh fruit, tapioca and coconut milk it was a very refreshing dessert.

chilled sweetened sago cream with fresh fruits, coffee & taro puddings HK$26

I was curious about the sweet glutinous dumplings which I’ve never encountered before.

glutinous dumplings stuffed with candied fruits, coconut & nuts HK$26

I really liked the contrast in texture between the soft and sticky exterior and the crunchy filling of coconut and candied fruits. I would definitely go back just for their desserts. Maybe I’ll give their a la carte menu another try since the pictures looked good. Take a gander of their menu complete with pictures here.

If you want really, really good dim sum then go to Chuk Yuen seafood restaurant. It’s my favorite!

Serenade Chinese Restaurant’s menu

Serenade Chinese Restaurant
1-2/F, Hong Kong Cultural Centre,
10 Salisbury Rd. Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon
telephone:2722 0932
website

Dinner at Tsui Wah Restaurant

I’m happy to introduce all my readers and future travelers to Hong Kong another ‘good and cheap’ restaurant in the heart of Tsim Sha Tsui.

Tsui Wah Restaurant is located on Carnarvon st. right behind K11 mall. It’s just steps away from Nathan Road. It’s quite a spacious restaurant with two levels.

Where’s the salt?

Tsui Wah has a really extensive menu with Chinese favorites to steak, pasta and lots of international dishes. Mostly we ordered from their top 10 dishes menu.

A big bowl of rice noodles topped with 4 large fish balls and 2 fish cakes for HK$30 is a really good deal and the best thing was it’s really good.

fish balls & fish cakes with rice noodles in fish soup HK$30

I didn’t want noodles so I ordered the combination of 4 kinds of fish concoctions and it was even better in my opinion. I loved the one made with bean curd skin the best. Plus there was lots of seaweed which I loved. I wasn’t so enamored with the fish soup since it had a heavy flavor of cilantro. I would order this again on my next visit. It should be included in their top 10 menu too.

fish combination & seaweed in fish soup HK$39

The Hainanese chicken rice is their most popular dish and rightly so. The chicken was one of the best I’ve tried. It was very flavorful and extremely tender even the breast meat. The skin was thick and fatty so we didn’t eat that. The sauce wasn’t the usual ginger mixture but it was a bit sour and spicy. The rice was delicious but a bit hard.

Hainanese chicken rice HK$56

Another excellent milk tea!!!

milk tea HK$16

This hot drink was not too sweet and good for the health.

red dates & longan tea HK$19

Now I know why the place is always full when I pass by. Good and cheap, the perfect combination.

Tsui Wah Restaurant
G/F & Cockloft, 2 Carnarvon Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon
Business Hours
Sun To Thu : 07:00 – 02:00
Fri & Sat : 07:00 – 03:00
telephone : (852) 2366-8250
other branches

website

Dinner at Guangdong Barbecue Restaurant

I did a post on the shops and restaurants I love in Hankow rd. in Tsim Sha Tsui. I have to add this restaurant that my friend Tisay recommended.

I’ve passed by this restaurant numerous times but I had no idea it would be so good.

Sure all the lovely meats hanging looked tempting.

But the interiors was hardly tempting. Although I’ve eaten at worse looking places and I’ve loved the food specially at this place that had the best fish ball noodle soup.

The only downside to this restaurant was all their menus were in Chinese. Their menus had some pictures though and you could probably get through a meal by pointing at pictures or maybe print this post.

I love milk tea or “nai cha” and this one hits the spot. It’s really strong tea mixed with rich Black & White evaporated milk. It’s a must order!

nai cha or milk tea HK$14

It must be really good to have a sign in English and only HK$5!

We ordered 2 chicken livers and this is what we got. I’m not really fond of liver unless it’s in the form of paté but this was really, really good. It was sweet, savory and milky. The texture of the liver was exquisite. The flavor reminded me of teriyaki but better.

famous roast chicken liver HK$10

The chicken breast was a bit tough but overall it was very tasty and fragrant.

Hainanese chicken HK$80

When I last went to Yung Kee their roast goose was sold out and I’ve been yearning for some since then. Oh wow this goose was fantastic! So moist, juicy and full flavored. Now I don’t have to go all the way to Hong Kong side just to have my roast goose.

roast goose HK$100

Here’s all the fatty skin and bones from all the roast goose I ate. Even without rice I loved it!

Yup no rice since I was avoiding carbs but I couldn’t resist these noodles. They were perfectly al dente and the mild cheese sauce was simply yummy with it. Even without the shrimp I would have been happy. This is another must order!

shrimp with noodles in cheese sauce

I wasn’t a big fan of the soup since it had an overwhelming taste of wansuy or cilantro which I hate.

fish soup

I couldn’t put the prices of all the food we ordered because no one can understand the writing of the waiter. Maybe a Chinese doctor can figure it out?

The lesson is don’t judge a restaurant by it’s ambiance (even though Erap says differently ;p). Holes in wall like this restaurant can yield pleasant surprises. I’m definitely adding this to my list of ‘must eats’ in Hong Kong.

Guangdong Barbecue Restaurant menu

Guangdong Barbecue Restaurant
~~43-49A Hankow Road,~~ ~~G/F Hankow Apartment~~

Ashley Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong
telephone: (852) 2735-5151

Caffe Habitu

When ever I go to Hong Kong it’s a frenetic haze of shopping and eating. I’m sure most Pinoys are the same way when they step into the shopping mecca that is Hong Kong. Sometimes it’s good to just slow down in the middle of the day for some good coffee and dessert.

So that’s what I did and my choice was Caffe Habitu at The One mall in Tsim Sha Tsui. It wasn’t my first time to try their coffee and since I liked it I went back.

I loved the cool lighting fixture that was the focal point of the restaurant. They also served light meals. Check out their complete menu here.

I was delighted that my expresso lungo or black coffee came with a cinnamon stick. I’ve never encountered that anywhere. I usually sprinkle powdered cinnamon on my coffee.

Le Louvre HK$38

Described as chocolate brownie, dark chocolate mousse, toasted nuts and a chocolate macaron, the Le Louvre was better than my expectations. It was simply sublime. The brownie was chewy and fudgy while the mousse was rich and not too sweet. The topping of chopped pistachio was just perfect. The macaron was too small to enjoy. hee hee.

espresso lungo HK$33

Even though my espresso lungo was just really an Americano it was still strong because they used two shots of espresso. They use Antica Tostatura Triestina or ATT caffe beans. I liked the coffee so much I bought a can of beans from their store.

I asked for my bill and they gave me a book.

Cute huh?

Caffe Habitu
Shop L608, The ONE, 100 Nathan Road, Tsim Sha Tsui
telephone: (852) 3572-0622

Monday to Thursday 11:30am-9:30pm

Friday 11:30am-11:00pm

Saturday 10:30am-11:00pm

Sunday & Public Holiday 10:30am-10:00pm

other branches

website
Facebook

Empire City Roasted Duck

In Hong Kong there are more restaurants than you have days and stomachs to try them all. There are cuisines from around the world but naturally as a tourist you’d want to eat Chinese food. Filipinos have a penchant for Peking duck and I’ve discovered a restaurant in K11 mall that specializes in duck.

As much as we wanted to order the Peking duck there was no way two people could conquer even half a duck that’s why we settled with my next favorite duck dish pictured above.

These two huge pictures outside the restaurant gave us an idea what kind of food and prices the restaurant had.

Flinstones meets glam?

This tasting menu for two is quite reasonable since it included Peking duck.

This restaurant had Shanghai cuisine influences like the two cold appetizers we ordered. Cured ham topped with a savory aspic was quite nice. I usually don’t like aspic (savory gelatin) but this was quite delicious.

crystal pork cold cut HK$50

The shrimp was marinated in a vinegar mixture which was very refreshing specially when eaten with the cold slices of cucumber.

marinated shrimp with peony HK$58

Frankly the duck meat lacked salt. The food as a whole was on the bland side which wasn’t a bad thing. It’s better to add salt to taste than start with food that’s too salty. It was the first time I asked for salt in a Chinese restaurant. After a few dashes of salt the fried duck meat was quite yummy. I specially loved the inclusion of fried sweet potato wedges.

deep fried duck meat with salt HK$78

I’ve been abstaining from carbs (sweets not included) so these ‘noodles’ made from bean curd sheet were an absolute delight. They’re my kind of noodles. The stock had a rich flavor from the Chinese ham and together with the veggies it was a complete meal in a dish.

bean curd sheet bun with Chinese ham HK$68

If you like eel then this dish is quite a good deal (wow rhyming!). A bowl of noodle soup comes with a plate of thinly sliced eel sautéed with lots of crunchy bean sprouts.

noodle in soup with sliced eel HK$50

The fried dumplings were incredibly juicy. It reminded me of xiao long bao. This is how good fried dumplings should look like, firm golden brown crusty bottom and well steamed soft body.

pan fried pork dumplings HK$38

Overall the food was quite satisfactory. I definitely will go back to try their Peking duck to see how it fares against my favorite from Peking Garden. Besides they had a LOT more dishes I want to try from their extensive menu.

Empire City Roasted Duck
Shop 221, Level 2, K11 Art Mall, 18 Hanoi Road, Tsim Sha Tsui
telephone: (852)2628-0662

Cafe Gray Deluxe @ Upper House, Hong Kong

It’s unbelievable but after all those scones and cookies at our afternoon tea at JW Marriott we went to have coffee at Upper House, a luxury hotel which was in the next building. Tisay really wanted to show me the hotel’s coffee shop. I’ve seen pictures of Upper House and I really wanted to see it too.

The first picture was the elegant entrance to Cafe Gray Deluxe which was on the 49th floor of the hotel.

It was around 5:00 pm and there were still lots of diners enjoying afternoon tea.

Here’s their afternoon tea menu. I would like to try it one of these days since it’s not as overwhelming as our buffet.

We were there for drinks only so this menu was what we concentrated on.

I ordered the Valrhona hot chocolate which was pricey at HK$65. When I took a sip I was flabbergasted at how awful it was. It tasted like milk with a teaspoon of cocoa powder. There was barely any chocolate taste. I requested the waiter if I could change it since it didn’t taste like hot chocolate and I was relieved he agreed. I hope this was just a fluke. How on earth can they serve something so bland like this. Valrhona should get mad.

Valrhona hot chocolate HK$65

At least the coffee was strong and soothing against the chilly weather. Ahhh… good coffee solves everything even a too full tummy.

coffee HK$50

Cute sugar cubes.

Naturally we had to check out the restroom.

They made good use of the corner view by putting the nice lavatory there.

A nice touch were the small vanities for women who want to touch up their makeup.

Another view of the entrance with the lights on. Really dramatic!

I wish I got to see the hotel rooms too.

At the main entrance of Upper House I spied this neat vertical fireplace.

Cafe Gray Deluxe
Upper House
Hong Kong Pacific Place, 88 Queensway
telephone: +852 3968-1106

Cafe Gray website
Upper House website

Pacific Place Mall’s Restroom & Over the top iPhones & Accessories

After the super filling and yummy afternoon tea at JW Marriott Hong Kong I desperately needed to walk it off and Tisay suggested we go to Pacific Place mall which was connected to the hotel. She wanted to show me some things.

I haven’t been to Pacific Place mall in years so I didn’t know they renovated their restrooms. Tisay wanted to show me how beautiful it was.

I was so amazed when I went in. I’ve never seen any restroom like that will all the gorgeous curved wood doors. And this was just inside a mall! I don’t think I’ll ever see anything remotely close to this in Manila. Even our hotels have only mediocre restrooms.

Check out how the huge door opened with ease.

I simply loved everything in this restroom. Notice the glass ledge for bags. The paper towel and soap dispensers were hidden behind the lighted mirror.

I liked how the lady hooked her umbrella on the sink.

Next stop was a dream store for the zillionaire with too much money and can’t think what else he can buy. The following pictures just prove that expensive doesn’t mean it’s classy or tasteful.This store is called DG Lifestyle store located at level 1 in Pacific Place mall.

This 18k gold iPhone had 5.27 carats of diamonds and cost a mere HK$188,000.00.

Too expensive? Here’s some with less diamonds.

iPad not heavy enough? Cover it in gold!

They also sold Macbooks that have been painted with super colorful shades.

bling, bling, bling!

Other than garish cases they also had some cute and affordable accessories that pay tribute to Apple founder Steve Jobs.

DG Lifestyle
Shop 120, L1,
Pacific Place, Admiralty
金鐘太古廣場1樓120號舖
telephone: (852) 2918-4811

Afternoon Tea @ The Lounge, JW Marriott Hong Kong

My friend Marie Ann or Tisay as we fondly call her is based in Hong Kong and she invited me and my parents to have afternoon tea at JW Marriott in Pacific Place, Admiralty. We didn’t have lunch in preparation for this buffet feast.

We don’t normally have afternoon tea when in Hong Kong but Tisay promised us that it was fantastic.

I was amazed and frankly intimidated by all the tea choices. I wondered how will I choose which tea to drink.

As soon as I saw the tower of scones I was blinded to all the other food. It’s strange but I just love, love, love scones and it’s really hard to find good scones. So far I haven’t found any decent scones in Manila.

English scones with raisin, cinnamon and orange with real Devonshire clotted cream and home‐made jams

flambé station

fruit flambé combined with cognac, rum or brandy

There were 4 kinds of dim sum available. They were slow to refill the baskets that’s why I didn’t take a picture of the steamed beef ball.

spicy squid

shrimp dumpling with cilantro

noodle station

cold cuts

congee station

congee condiments

cheese and appetizers

These were just 2 of more hot entrees available.

Fook Kin fried rice

roasted lemongrass & lime pork neck

salad bar

shakes

The choices looked very good but we tried the healthy smoothie and berry berry and it was SO not good.

dried fruit & nuts

dessert station

cookies

I ate this cookie while taking pictures even before I sat down. OMG!! The cookie was to die for. It was the best American style chewy cookie I’ve ever eaten in Hong Kong. Boy am I glad I had a ziploc in my bag. Wink, wink…

double chocolate cookie

marshmallows

We sat in the cozy lounge area.

My only comment was the tables were too small. With a pot of tea per person there was barely any space for our plates.

After a lengthy perusal of the extensive tea menu I finally settled on the rose white peony which was described as “relieve stress and help with internal digestion.” I needed all the help for my stress on what to eat and definitely on digesting more food than I’m used to.

So here’s what I ate. Warning: My plates were really boring.

I just loved their scone. It has to be the best scone I’ve ever eaten. It was buttery and had a crisp exterior and light interior. I really liked the apricot jam which had a slight bitter edge to it. This scone was far superior to the ones at InterContinental Hong Kong and Willard InterContinental Hotel in Washington DC.

The rest of the food was just ok.

plate 1 – orange scone with apricot jam & clotted cream, spicy squid, shrimp dumpling and sushi.

scone with apricot jam and clotted cream

This time I tried the cinnamon scone with peach jam. I liked the orange scone better. The crêpe with fruits on top? I liked the scone better. Don’t get me wrong. The crêpe was good but I’d rather spend my calories on a scone.

plate 2 – cinnamon scone and fruit flambé

plate 3 – baked mussels

Did I mention I love scones?

plate 4 – another orange scone, wasabi nuts & chorizo

The dessert station looked awesome but the other choices didn’t really appeal to me so I just had another giant chocolate chip cookie and super creamy, yummy panna cotta with candied ginger on top. The brownie bite was dry but it had bittersweet chocolate chunks in it so it wasn’t that bad.

Plate 5 – panna cotta so creamy w candied ginger on top

I forgot who ate this but it’s a nice picture.

Tisay with me and my parents

So was the afternoon tea buffet worth it? Since it was a Good Friday when we ate there the price was HK$295 +10%sc. Based on my 3 ultra delicious scones, lots of yummy cookies (wink), some odds and ends and a pot of tea it was not worth it even though I thoroughly enjoyed my meal. But if you have a good appetite and can tackle a good buffet then please do try your hand at JW Marriott’s afternoon tea.

Canton Tea Company menu

The Lounge
Lobby Level
JW Marriott Hotel Hong Kong
The Lounge, Lobby Level
Pacific Place, 88 Queensway, Hong Kong
For reservations: (852) 2810‐8366

Prices:
Monday to Friday, 3.30pm to 6pm – HK$230 per adult and HK$160 per child
Saturday, 1pm to 6pm – HK$295 per adult and HK $210 per child
Sunday and Public Holidays, 3:30 – 6pm – HK$295 per adult and HK $210 per child
All prices are subject to 10% service charge

website

Lunch at Pak Loh Chiu Chow Restaurant

Pak Loh is another of my favorite restaurants in Hong Kong. What makes it different is they specialize in Chiu Chow cuisine instead of Cantonese cuisine which is widely available in Hong Kong.

Chiuchow or Teochew cusisine (潮州菜) originates from the Chaoshan region of China in the north-easternmost area of the Guangdong province, which includes the cities of Chaozhou, Shantou and Jieyang. The cuisine of Teochew bears more similarities to that of Fujian cuisine, to which it shares same dishes, which may be due to Chaoshan and Fujian’s cultural and language similarities and geographic proximity. However, Chiuchow cuisine is also influenced by Cantonese cuisine in its style and technique. from Wikipedia.

To see pictures of the beautifully decorated restaurant located in K11 mall click here. To see our previous dim sum lunch at Pak Loh click here.

We always order this clear and flavorful soup filled with delicious fish ball, fish cake and lots of seaweed.

fish balls & sliced fish in soup HK$48

I was happy to see my new favorite oyster omelet/pancake in their menu.

oyster omelet HK$98

Their version is more ‘egg-y’ and it wasn’t as sticky as the ones in Manila’s restaurants. I liked that it had lots of fresh oysters instead of sweet potato flour which is often used as an extender.

In Manila we douse the oyster omelet with ketchup or hot sauce. They had a salty sauce similar to ‘patis’ which was good with the omelet too.

We also ordered their dim sum platter good for 3 people. Each plate contained 4 kinds of dim sum. All were good but my favorite was the squarish dough filled with a meat and glutinous rice mixture. It was different and delish!

Pak Loh dim sum platter HK$98

As usual we ordered my all-time favorite dish that can only be found in Chiu Chow restaurants. I’ve been eating this dish since I was a kid. Yes that was decades ago and I still love this chicken with chinjew sauce. I also enjoy eating the crunchy veggies.

Anyone going to Hong Kong must try this restaurant at least once. They also have a branch at Elements mall so you can eat there right after checking in at the Airport Express station in Austin.

sautéed chicken w/ chinjew sauce HK$88

Pak Loh Chiu Chow restaurant
Shop 313, K11 mall
18 Hanoi Road, Tsim Sha Tsui
telephone: +852 2723 6828

Shop 1028D, Elements, 1 Austin Road West, Kowloon, HK.
telephone : +852 3691 9168

website