Shoot First Eat Later

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

Sticky & Chocolat-ier at K11 Mall

What I like about K11 mall is it’s constantly adding new restaurants and stores to attract more shoppers. It’s working with me since there was a time I don’t even bother going to K11 anymore. Here’s a couple of interesting stores I discovered during my last trip to Hong Kong.

Sticky has it’s roots in Australia. They also have branches in Singapore.

They specialize in hand-made candy right in the store.

It takes skill to make candies with designs and legible words in them. I didn’t buy any but I did try a sample and well, it’s candy.

On the same level is a small kiosk that caught my attention more.

Other than my obsession with coffee I also love chocolates and tea. This line of chocolates infused with tea is from TeaRoom a company based in San Leandro, California. The guy manning the store let me sample the dark chocolate bars and I ended up buying 5 kinds of bars.

TeaRoom Chocolate Bar Infusions

At the back of the chocolate bar there’s instructions on how to savor the chocolate. You must let it melt on your tongue until you can taste all the flavors. It really worked and the taste combinations were amazing. So far I’ve tried the 60% Dark Chocolate Bar Infused with Raspberry Rooibos Tea and 72% Extra Dark Chocolate Bar Infused with a Rich Arabica Espresso and I enjoyed them both.

I hope this stall will still be there the next time I go to Hong Kong since I want to try their tea and drinking chocolate too.

TeaRoom tea and drinking chocolate

TeaRoom Tea Infusions

Russian 72% chocolate bar

You can also buy assorted chocolates by weight.

Sticky
B2 K11 Mall
18 Hanoi Rd., Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong
website

Chocolat-ier

B2 K11 Mall

TeaRoom online store

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Philippine Airlines Meal Mnl-Hkg-Mnl, April 2012

Our family spent Holy Week in Hong Kong last April as is our annual tradition. As usual we took our favorite airline, Philippine Airlines.

Isn’t the line-up of Filipino chefs cooking for PAL really impressive? No wonder the food is almost always good.

menu

I’ve always had luck with their beef entrees so I ordered the beef tenderloin to get my daily dose of lean protein.

I always love their salad starters. They’re always unique and well made and this was no exception. The scallop was perfectly cooked but the prawns were a tad overdone. The seafood was well complemented by the soba noodles and cucumber slices. I just poured a little sesame dressing and it was delicious. I was already half full after this seafood salad.

prawns & grilled scallops, soba noodle salad, seaweed, cucumber & salad greens with sesame dressing

I’m happy that the Cebu Best Mango Chocolate is now automatically served on the tray unlike before you had to ask for coffee or tea AFTER your meal for this delectable treat to show up.

tenderloin & prawn w: truffle bernaice sauce & cheddar croquette

My luck didn’t hold up this time. The taste was good but unfortunately the beef was overcooked beyond what my jaws could handle.

I spied my British seat mate’s paksiw na lechon kawali and asked her how it was. She said it was very good so I requested the flight attendant if I could have my entree changed. I was surprised at how adventurous my seat mate was in her choice of food.

paksiw na lechon kawali with lemongrass steamed rice

It was indeed very good. The flavors were spot on with the lechon sauce having the right balance of sweet and sour. The lechon kawali was also very tender. I just found the pork too fatty and there was not enough meat left to make a decent meal out of it.

The best part of the meal was the surprising crépe samurai. It brought back memories of the buffet in Intercon Hotel where I first tried crépe when I was a child.

crépe samurai

It was a really wonderful treat to find in an airplane meal. And yes it was as good as the one in Intercon. It made me forget the beef and pork entrees.

I’m sorry Nestle, this wasn’t tempting at all. I stopped eating it after a spoonful. My British seat mate did the same after she asked me, “this is ice cream?” I agreed with her. It tasted like some artificial cold stuff and nothing like creamy ice cream.

Nestle Temptations ice cream

menu

bread basket

On the trip back to Manila I was greeted with a happy surprise. It was the first time PAL gave out Blue Diamond mixed nuts and it was a relatively big bag too. I hope they don’t stop doing this.

Blue Diamond mixed nuts

PAL is also the only airlines I’ve taken that always included dried chili pepper and mixed herbs asides from just the usual salt not that I’ve ever used it since the food is always just right for my taste.

Asian squid salad, papaya salsa & salad greens

When I first ate this I thought it was udon noodles until I read the menu again. I was surprised it was squid since it was so tender it could pass for noodles. The squid was partnered with poached chicken and sweet mango cubes. As usual I loved this unique salad specially the vibrant vinaigrette.

I really liked the fish with it’s nutty topping. It was well cooked and the taste was sublime. The super cheesy and creamy potato au gratin was to die for and I had to stop myself from eating more than one layer.

pistachio-crusted sea bass in lime & lemon veloute & roasted onion & potato gratin

I found the apple filling too sweet and the crust wasn’t that great but the almond filling in the middle was wonderful.

apple frangipane with vanilla sauce

Dinner at Ants One, K11 Mall

If you’ve been reading this blog daily don’t be confused. I just finished posts on Taipei and this post is the beginning of entries on my trip to Hong Kong last April.

Every time we go to Hong Kong we eat the same places which are our family’s favorites like Wu Kong and Chuk Yuen. This time we made an effort to try out new restaurants like Ants One in K11 mall.

The restaurant was a recent addition and was placed in the middle of the open space of the mall that’s why it’s enclosed in glass.

Ants One billed itself as a casual dining restaurant that served pasta, rice and meat specialties. It served all kinds of cuisines. I would say it’s more like their version of comfort food.

My dad ordered this health drink made with pear, almonds, coconut, sea coconut and white fungi. It was cooked for a long time that’s why all the ingredients in the drink were soft. It was a hot and sweet drink.

pear, sweet & bitter almond, coconut, sea coconut &
white fungi drink HK$25

The pumpkin soup was your typical creamy soup. Good but nothing outstanding.

soup of the day HK$28

We liked the fried rice since it wasn’t oily and had different kinds of seafood in it. It used egg white only for a healthier meal.

fried rice with salmon, crab meat, crab roe & egg white HK$62

If you’re hungry and in a rush then Ants One is the place to eat. All the food came out hot and lightning fast. I swear it didn’t take longer than 5 minutes for all the food to be served all at once.

My favorite was their pizza made with puff pastry for the crust. It was light, crisp and super flaky. The topping of chicken and mushroom were quite generous too. I also liked the fresh tomato sauce used. This was a small pizza which could easily be eaten a 1 person. Next time I want to try the Roasted Duck Beijing style pizza.

roasted chicken & fresh mushroom in scallion pastry HK$65

Some of the ox tail were tough while some were really tender. The red wine sauce was quite tasty.

braised ox tail in red wine sauce HK$78

poached cabbage with Yunnan ham HK$30

dessert

We skipped dessert but the display was right outside the restaurant.

For a change from all the Chinese food dining at Ants One is a good option. The food has strong Japanese influence specially in the pasta, rice and desserts.

Hokkaido chocolate pudding HK$25

Ants One Menu
set menu, taste of fresh, taste of pasta, taste of rice, taste of snack, drinks

Ants One
Shop 219-220, Level 2, K11 Mall
18 Hanoi Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon
telephone : 2363 6788
website

New Cakes from UCC Vienna Cafe

My friend and co-blogger Jin invited to try out her new cake creations at UCC Vienna Cafe.

She promised to feed me first so after a long perusal of the menu I finally found something healthy and almost “Cohen” approved. The yakiniku beef was so tender and flavorful with all the sauce that I didn’t need any dressing to eat my veggies. This was a really good and satisfying salad.

yakiniku salad

This was Jin’s concession to healthy eating. I wish this sandwich came in salad form but without mayonnaise. Is that possible?

shrimp and kani sandwich

siphon coffee

I love UCC coffee!

Jin’s idea was to take favorite Filipino desserts and turn them in to cakes. Smart idea huh?

Let me tell you first, I’m not fond of halo halo since I don’t like any form of beans. That’s the reason Razon’s is the only halo halo I will eat if at all. Halo halo has just never been a favorite dessert of mine. With that disclaimer I will now let you know what my impression of the halo halo cake is.

The halo halo cake was definitely well thought of. Small details like a layer of leche flan, ube halaya and cream in between the layers ube chiffon cake was brilliant. Jin however frowned when I started picking just the pieces of banana, langka and leche flan. She kept telling me to eat the whole thing together. Giggling I replied, “the thick cake won’t fit my mouth!” I ate all the yummy nangkasuy ice cream too.

To be fair I’m not really the target market for cakes like these. I prefer any dessert to be dark brown (chocolate) in color. That’s it. But for people who love halo halo then you must try this cake. It’s like having your halo halo and eating your cake too. What could be better than that?

halo halo cake P250

macapuno cake P225

UCC Vienna Cafe
59 Connecticut St, Greenhills
San Juan City, Metro Manila
Philippines
telephone: 726-1728

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Sarah’s Birthday at Summer Palace, Edsa Shangri-La Hotel

My friend Sarah is Japanese and she married our good family friend who’s Chinese. In the 16 years or so that she’s lived in Manila she managed to master the Chinese language both Fookien and Mandarin and a smattering of Filipino. I’m so ashamed that she speaks much, much better Chinese than me.

For her birthday celebration her hubby treated us to lunch at Summer Palace in Edsa Shangri-La which is one of the better places to get good Chinese food in Manila.

lunch menu

Whenever our families eat out barbecued pork is always the standard order because Sarah’s 3 kids just LOVE it.

barbecued pork

soy chicken

jelly fish

I love hot prawn salad and Summer Palace’s version is one of the best. The prawns were crisp and instead of canned fruit cocktail sweet fresh fruit was used. I also appreciated that it was lightly dressed instead of swimming in mayonnaise.

hot prawn salad with fresh fruits

I wish it was money inside but then that wouldn’t taste good. The money bags were really made of bean curd skin and stuffed with braised veggies.

braised lohan vegetables in money bag

This was really, really good.

Summer Palace’s fried cod fish is my all-time favorite dish. It’s freshness and simplicity can’t be beat. They usually serve it with the sauce on top but this time the host requested it be served on the side.

pan fried cod fish in light soya sauce

I like the light soya sauce on the side so you can get as much or as little as you want.

spinach in superior stock

I was surprised to see two kinds of fried rice on our lunch menu. I guess the yang chow was for the kids.

yang chow fried rice

I liked the adult’s fried rice so much better. It was more flavorful and the rice was a bit sticky. It contained Chinese sausage so it was oilier too. You definitely have to try this. In Hong Kong this is available in winter time only.

waxed meat fried rice

mango pudding

Mango pudding is my favorite Chinese dessert and this version was so yummy. There was lots of sweet mango chunks and the pudding was cold and creamy.

chilled lemongrass jelly with almond jelly & lychee

Here’s Sarah being serenaded by the restaurant’s waiters.

Everyone loved the strawberry shortcake from Karen’s Kitchen.

strawberry shortcake from Karen’s Kitchen

Not too much whipped cream, just the right amount of sweetness, lots of strawberries and ultra soft cake. One of the best strawberry shortcakes in Manila!!

Food Products From Taiwan

As you’ve seen from my previous posts Taiwan is such a foodie country. From the night markets to the supermarkets the types of foodstuff to buy are mind boggling. Imagine if the labels were in English I would have been tempted to buy stuff. Here are some of the stuff I bought that I highly recommend you try on your visit to Taiwan.

I never buy frozen dim sum but I was given a free cooked sample to try and I was blown away at how good these pork dumplings tasted. It definitely beat any dumpling I’ve eaten in Manila’s restaurants. The skin was thin yet had a nice bite to it. The pork and chives filling was very tasty and quite generous. I’ve never tried other brands in Taipei but I highly recommend this brand.

frozen pork dumplings

While speed walking past so many food stores in Tamsui Old Street Night Market I took a chance and entered a store with many people. I tried a small sample of this green tea pastry and immediately bought two pieces. How I wish I bought more.

Kyosai green tea pastry

The crust was very, very flaky but not buttery so it wasn’t an overload. I did remove some excess layers when I ate this.

My favorite was the intense flavor of the green tea filling. It’s not just coloring. It did taste as strong as the color suggested. If you like green tea flavored food and drinks as I do then this is for you.

On a whim I bought this bag of sweet potato chips from Jason’s Marketplace in Taipei 101.

sweet potato chips

As expected from Taiwan’s sweet potatoes the chips were very sweet. The only thing I didn’t like was the addition of sugar to the chips. It didn’t need more sugar. A little salt would have been a better addition.

I have developed a new love for spicy peanuts and these hit just the right spot.

Carrefour spicy peanuts

The peanuts still had their skin on and were not greasy. The spiciness was just right and tolerable for me.

Their wasabi peanuts were good too.

Carrefour wasabi peanuts

Of all the peanuts I bought my favorite were these naturally black peanuts native to Taiwan.

black peanuts

The skin of the peanuts were black and it had a natural sweet and salty flavor that I really loved. Simply roasted these peanuts were so, so addicting!