Showing posts with label Tin Hau. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tin Hau. Show all posts

Tuesday, January 07, 2014

Great noodles again all to myself!!

AHU (Tin Hau)

Tried the noodles with preserved egg and salted egg before when they held a tasting and I could not get enough of it.

I was so glad I was in the area again so came in for tea and had noodles all to myself!!



Here was what I had:
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Tofu:


Lovely golden blocks of tofu with a pure white centre with a strong natrual soy bean taste flavoured by the spices on the surface.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Noodles with salted egg and preserved egg:


The toppings were generous! Half a preserved egg and half a salted egg.
The broth was tasty and light without being too salty which complemented the noodles perfectly.
As well as the preserved eggs, there were crunchy beanshoots, mushrooms and coriander to add colour and flavour.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Starfruit drink:
Apart from starfruit, there were others I wanted to try too.


In the end I got starfruit.


The sweetness was just right and it was a warming drink.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

Wednesday, September 18, 2013

Tasting @ Ahu

AHU (Tin Hau)

Previously tried this place and the food was great so when I was invited to the tasting I did not hesitate to go.

At the tasting, we tried all the noodles and some new items:

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Sliced pork in spicy sauce (new item):

The pork was evenly sliced with an even fat distribution and the spicy sauce was really nice without being too spicy.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Deep fried pigs trotters:



The trotters were soft and tasted better than my first visit.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Deep fried dumplings:

They were crispy on the outside with delicious minced pork filling that goes well with the pot of spicy vegetables.


★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Spicy chicken:

The chicken was just as good as the spicy pork slices because it was a similar sauce with peanuts and sesame sprinkled on top.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Deep fried squid:

The squid had a lovely crispy coating with some fragrant spices on the outside, a great appetizer to start off with.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Stir fried vegetables:



The vegetables reminded me of Tomyumkung because it had a hint of lemongrass and it was slightly spicy.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Salted egg & Preserved Egg with coriander soup noodles

This was my favourite because it had preserved eggs, salted eggs, vegetables and chunky tofu.
A really healthy and light option.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Assorted meat, mushrooms and vegetables with fresh tomato soup noodles


For tomato lovers, the broth is really nice and appetizing balanced with meat, vegetables and chunks of fresh tomatoes.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Sichuan style pickle cabbage beef and chili with soup noodles

The broth was really spicy, good for people who love spicy foods.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
A Hu dumpling, chicken with laksa soup noodles


This was as good as my first visit because the broth was not that spicy and it had a nice prawn taste. The tofu puffs tasted really good after it soaked the broth.
The chicken was nice and tender too.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Deluxe marinated, seasonal vegetables and soup noodles

I liked this one too because the broth had hints of red beancurd.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

In conclusion I would recommend the laksa broth and the Salted egg & Preserved Egg coriander soup.

Saturday, August 31, 2013

A Chinese version of Heston!

Shui Yue (Causeway Bay)
Being a fan of Heston's feasts and fun presentations of food I was naturally drawn to Shui Yue for its exquisite way of serving food.

As soon as I arranged the date, I was itching to go and waiting eagerly that day, and the hours went so slowly!

I have always wanted to try Bo Innovation as well but its one of these upstairs places where you need to book that deters me because I need to plan ahead.

The food at Shui Yue is Chinese style cooked in a Western way which enables you to taste the food.

For each dish, there is a health benefit for the ingredients used because Karen believes in healthy dishes.

I never really eat Chinese food because most Chinese food is just stuff thrown in the wok with salt, MSG, soy suce, sugar and stir fried in generous oil but saying that there are a few decent ones around.

Here was what we tried which costs $420 per person and no service charge is included.

Competitors are probably suspicious because they probably want to know how good their food is and fear it may bring down the market value for molecular gastronomy cuisine.

Anyway, the location is great and not located in an industrial area.
It is on the quiet side of Causeway bay and you could probably get away with parking your car there hence a really good place for celebrities to dine!
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Tomato jelly ball paired with oyster leaf, preserved plum tomato basil

For the starters, we were advised to start from the left, right, then centre.
The first item was the huge molecular tomato caviar filled with tomato essense.
It bursted with delicious tomato essence which was made from 7-8 tomatos for a molecular caviar of this size.
Next was the oyster leaf which was served on an oyster shell covered with lava salt foam.
After devouring the oyster leaf I was really shocked by the taste because it was fascinating that you could get a plant tasting exactly like an oyster.
The lava salt foam on top made it taste like a freshly shucked oyster.
Lastly there was the Cherry tomato which was in a vacuumed environment forcing the preserved plum flavouring into it.
It had a really strong preserved plum flavour in the form a cherry tomato.
The deep fried Chinese parsley beneath the tomato ended the appetizer nicely because the grassiness of it balanced out the strong plum flavour.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Surf clam herbs salad:

Next was this dainty salad, it was surf clams on fresh mountain yam slices garnished with herbs from Holland and caviar topped with edible gold foil.
The surf clams had a nice lemon and ginger taste and the mountain yams were crisp and juicy like crystal pears with a slightly viscious texture.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Dragon pearls:


These were huge crabmeat and squid patties filled with longnan berries with crab roe inside.
They tasted great with or without their homemade mayonnaise which had a nice hint of dill in the flavouring.
I wished I saved some crispy vermicelli to put in the fish soup.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Black tiger paw mushroom soup:

This soup is made with Chinese black tiger paw mushroom originating from the Yunnan provence.
They are currently in Season.
You can get them fresh or dried. For the fresh ones there is a fragrant smell and aftertaste, but the dried ones there is only a strong smell but no aftertaste.
There are two colours yellow or black, black is prized and has more health benefits.
It was really creative how they used the Chinese mushrooms to make a soup using the Western method.
When the soup came, there was a really nice earthy mushroom smell, the taste of the soup was similar to cream of porcini soup but it had a stronger and bitter tone to it.
On the side of the bowl, it was garnished with powdered mushroom to give it an even more complete mushroom taste.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Grilled lamb chops

These were Welsh lamb chops which were extremely tender and supple.
They were marinated in sichuan spices which satisfied my craving for Sichuan pepper because the spices were very light yet enough to recognize the Sichuan taste.
The grilled onion was crisp and sweet.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Fish soup with crispy rice:


The soup was made with Pacific saury fish which was boiled for five hours.
It had a lovely milky taste with a hint of ginger.
After adding the deep fried rice grains, the rice was lovely and crispy after it had soaked the soup.
It was really good that this was part of the meal because it was quite substantial without being too heavy and it fulfulls the rice craving.
I think the crispy vermicelli from the earlier dish would taste great in the soup too.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Sweet mango lights on Chocolate soil:


The beautiful pearl is served on a bed of bulbs because they got this inspiration from a lightbulb.
I felt that it would also look like on a bed of sand and seashells or some smaller pearl necklaces and bling bling crystals too.
Anyway it was too pretty to eat but I had to eat it, so I cracked the sugar shell which was made in the same way glass ornaments are blown.
Inside the pearl, there was gorgeous lightly whipped fresh mango which had a delicious tart taste that complemented the chocolate soil.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Japanese green tea icecream red bean puree:

Dreamy smooth green tea gelato made by them served on big red beans.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Coffee or flower tea:
To end the delicious meal, I chose Black vanilla tea which was soothing and relaxing.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

Lastly this was a surprise which I will leave as a surprise so you can find out when you go!
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

Tuesday, August 27, 2013

Chinese food at Royal Legend

Royal Legend (Tin Hau)
Royal Legend is located a few steps from the MTR station. I love its location, great for rainy days and people who are not good with directions!

You can’t miss this place because it is right opposite the MTR exit which you can see on your way out.

As well as being located in a convenient location, I felt that it is a great place for corporate events and Chinese banquets/weddings because it is easy to get there.

The only disadvantage is that it does not have escalators/elevators for the elderly or disabled who would have a right job getting up there!

Heres what we tried because some items are best left untranslated because there is no point making up names for some items that do not exist.

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Chinese herbal soup :

Basically it contains White Lingzhi mushrooms, sea coconut, pork.
The soup was clear and oil free.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Stir fried cordyceps flower with dalian abalone :

This was a light dish to begin with, it had plenty of beanshoots which whet your appetite.
The Dalian abalone was sliced into thin strips and stirfried with cordycep flowers and beanshoots.
It had a nice crunch from the beanshoots and the abalone was springy and delicate.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Charcoal grilled eel with honey :

These were my favourite because eels were meaty and there were not much bones.
It was crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, the grilling process made the texture not so fatty because the eel texture is normally fatty.
The honey and lemon marinade on it was really appetizing.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Steamed egg white wtih scallop and prawn roe:

This dish is really good for the elderly because there is a lot of protein as it is mainly egg white with delicious scallops and crab roe on top.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Jade vegetables with gingko:

Jade basically means jade coloured vegetables ie celery.
I would have liked more gingko nuts in the dish, but the fresh starchy lilium bulbs and black fungas made up for it.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Grilled salted chicken :

I like the way these chicken was served because you could see it was a whole complete chicken.
The skin was fragrantly crispy with lots of aromatic sesame with tender juicy chicken beneath the skin.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Stir fried noodles with squid tentacles:

My favourite stir fried noodles with squid tentacles.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Red date pudding topped with birds nest:

A nicely layered pudding that was not too sweet and made with real dates which you could find in the layers.
The birds nest on top was great but I would not mind if it was not sweetened because the pudding is sweet.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

Friday, August 09, 2013

Nice spring onion and ginger sauce @ Gloria Restaurant

Gloria Restaurant (Tin Hau)
This restaurant used to be located in Happy Valley, but recently they had to close down due to rent problems.

I have never heard of this shop because there was only one review, and I only found out recently because of a recent review.

If you look at this restaurant, there are not many reviews on this place or at the previous location.

On my first attempted visit, they did not serve the item I wanted to try because it was 5.50, the owner said that rice is not served after 4pm.

Anyway, I went another day in the afternoon, when I looked at the menu, it states rice dishes are served from 2-6pm and I could not see any 4pm being mentioned anywhere.


The owner of this restaurant loves to eat around and criticize the service of other restaurants to her customers, which is ironic, because most of the reviews on this place also criticize her attitude.

The food I wanted was simple, so there was not much to debate but you had to sit where she allocates you.

The only thing I was only annoyed with was the menu because the serving hours should be clearly specified.

Most of the customers dining there were from Happy Valley.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Fried fish with spring onion and ginger sauce:
The fish was dipped in egg and fried which gave a nice yellow golden coating, it was soft and juicy.
The spring onion and ginger was really nice because it was not salty so you can eat lots of eat.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Fried chicken leg with spring onion and ginger sauce:

It was nice the chicken leg was cut into pieces to make it easier to eat.
The chicken was more like roast chicken because the chicken was very juicy and tender and the again the spring onion and ginger was the star of the dish.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

Nice curry sauce and fried chicken leg @ Loi's Cafe

Loi's Café (North Point)
Although there are not many reviews on this place, franktschan has been here twice so the food must be good.
On one of his reviews, I was attracted by the curry sauce and on the other review the deep fried chicken leg looked good.

Basically there are lots of options you can choose such as fish or chicken and then pair it with different sauces eg curry, onion gravy, black pepper gravy, sweetcorn sauce or soy sauce.

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Fried chicken leg, luncheon meat, curry sauce and rice:
They had chicken and chips but I did not fancy the Chinese style chips which are always too crunchy and overdone so I ordered fried chicken with rice which comes with curry sauce which I wanted to try too.
As expected the curry sauce was really nice, its colour and taste was strong.
The chicken leg was slightly different to the one at Kowloon bay’s “Yat yuet sing”, it was fried to the extent that 99% of the chicken skin was crispy.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Fish burger:

I just felt like trying this even though I do not like the local buns, surprisingly the quality of the fish was really good and the frying oil was fresh.
The sauce they put in the burger was reasonably nice and you could still taste the fish.
I will order the fish with the curry sauce next time.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
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