After spending nearly two months away from HK, being such a local hound, I’ve been bitten by HK’s local (food) bug on my return. I craved those foods that scream HK, non-replicable foods that you can’t get in any Chinatown around the world, foods that HK does better than anywhere else in this universe. A few items I had to get a hold of almost immediately upon arrival were pretty much voiced in my previous articles, but some desperate measures were made for the following items.

Roasted goose thigh and lai fun (a type of rice noodle that resembles spaghetti) in a MSG-laden broth hits just the spot. Yat Lok (一樂食館), a little cha chaan teng specializing in Cantonese barbecue on Stanley Street makes a perfect barbecued goose. To me, it’s more satisfying than that Roast Goose empire up the street. This old Cantonese noodle bowl is perfect for when hunger calls a few hours before dinner. The skin is roasted until crispy whilst the meat is juicy. The broth like mentioned is hearty, you almost have to stop yourself from downing it.

I can’t help to stop by Sun King Yuen (新景園咖喱小廚) in Wanchai for some perfectly Stir-Fried Ho Fun with Beef (乾炒牛河), and their very famous Fried Porkchop and Yellow Curry. Stir-Fried Ho Fun with Beef is almost one of Cantonese cuisine’s most signature fried noodle dish. The oily flat noodle are individual, unlike some places where the noodles are stacked together. Stir-fried with dark soya gives it a dark molasses color, crisp beansprouts gives it some bite, and the tender beef combined with some skill achieves the wok hei (fiery flavour from the wok) in which all combined, makes a perfect plate of this old-canto comfort food.

The fried porkchop is unlike no other. Thin chops fried to a golden brown on the outside, the meat is tender and relaxed on the inside with the perfect distribution of fat on the ends. The side dish of yellow curry is slightly spicy and packed with curry flavour, perfect for dunking your chop into or poured over your rice. It’s been a while since the last visit prior to this one, and from the looks of it, it wouldn’t be long until I relive this experience.

And if you are feeling courageous to make your own curry, shop at the spice shop next door for its thorough variety of spices, curry pastes, and coconut milk.

After a satisfying meal composed of a little grease, walk 20 steps to Kam Fung (金鳳茶餐廳) an ol’ school bing sut for their famous chilled milk tea to wash it down. Kam Fung prepares their milk tea ahead of time, and then chills it in the fridge. No ice means you won’t lose any milk tea flavour along the way.

And of course, there are times you feel like spoiling yourself with those guilty pleasures. Mine was the HK-style French Toast that day. Everybody’s childhood favorite. Thick toast submerged in egg froth then pan-fried to a golden pillowy delight. Take a thick slab of butter and watch it melt as you drizzle some thick sugary syrup all over. I like to cut mine into cubes and swipe the butter-syrup mixture from the plate with every cut. This pretty consistent dish is pretty easy to attain almost anywhere. I had mine at On Lee Dai Pai Dong (安利大排檔) in Sau Kei Wan (you can revisit an earlier article for more insight- A Foodie’s Journal) just because the Beef Brisket Lo Cho Mein at On Lee is one of our favorite weekend lunch haunts.

Kam Fung Restaurant
G/F, Spring Garden Mansion, 41 Spring Garden Lane, Wan Chai

On Lee Dai Pai Dong
57 Shau Kei Wan Main Street East, Shau Kei Wan

Sun King Yuen Curry Restaurant
20 Spring Garden Lane, Wan Chai

Yat Lok Restaurant
G/F, 28 Stanley Street, Central