I came here randomly because I didn't realise it was the same branch as Wan Chai. There was nothing spectacular about the noodles or the curry. The noodles were weird because some of the noodles were red and I did not put vinegar in it, perhaps someones unfinished noodles? The curry was not spicy nor was it salty, it tasted very bland.
Every expat is going to fall in love with this place because the interior and details are so intricate.
There is not a single spot that is not decorated.
The toilets were classic labelled with old Chinese terminology.
There were old ceramic barrels for wine.
By the elevators, they had these really cool wax paper umbrellas which really tempt you to open them!!!
Clearly I was going to like this place because the camera bag I had was a silk bag that I got from those tourists stalls selling Chinese stuff to Westerners.
Anyway, I took a picture because the patterns and colours of my camera bag matched the bowls and plates.
At every table, there were goldfishes!!!
Video of the goldfishes!!
It was definitely amazing dining here because the food and environment was good.
I got two surprises because one of the desserts was one that I have always wanted to try and the other was watermelon radish which I've always wanted to order but didn't know the Chinese for it.
Here was what we tried:
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Soup
Menu name [Mixed potato, SPotato, pork soup]
八王爺亂燉湯 HK$108
The soup was different to what I was expecting because it was just like vegetable soup with meat.
It had pork meatballs, glass vermicelli, beans, egg, tomato, aubergines and potatoes.
I was quite surprised they had glass vermicelli in Beijing style food.
As for the taste it was quite appetizing because the tomato and vegetable taste was quite strong.
The pork meatballs were surprisingly good too because they were fresh.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Pork Lungs in Chili Sauce:
夫妻肺片 HK$86
I am not a person for organs, but the lungs had no foul smell and it was deliciously flavoured by the Sichuan peppercorns and spices.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Jellyfish with Black Vinegar:
老醋哲頭 HK$109
This was my favourite, when it came, you could smell the cucumber and sesame oil.
Each piece of jellyfish was chunky and fully flavoured by the vinegar without being over powered by the sesame oil.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Marinated watermelon radish
老家心靈美 HK$78
I have always wanted to try this but not many places serve it and I did not know the Chinese for it.
It is called Watermelon radish in English, also known as Rooseheart or Red Meat, a species of Chinese Daikon radish.
http://winterridgefoods.com/whats-a-watermelon-radish/
There was no distinctive taste but it was crunchy with a hint of sweetness and tangy vinegar, great for soothing the palate after some spicy food!
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Fried Fish with pomelo Sauce
老家柚子魚 HK$268
The fried fish was soft and supple complemented by the fruity pomelo sauce.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Fried Lettuce roots HK$88
清炒萵筍
These lettuce roots were nice and simple, great for toning down all that tasty food.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Lamb Served with Pancakes
塞外羊肉 HK$296
The pancakes were quite interesting because it looked like an Indian roti, but the dough seemed to be dense in the middle and not as fluffy as it should be.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Fried chicken with chili (New dish)
大紅袍宮雞 HK$198
The fried chicken was divine! It was crispy but still juicy and springy.
It is not spicy at first but then there is a mild spicy aftertaste that does not linger for a long time.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Noodles with Spring Onion, Chilli and Soya Sauce HK$176
油撥麵
I was surprised with these noodles because I tried a similar thing at Biang and the oil reeked, but here the noodles were aromatic and you could taste fresh oil complemented by crunchy diced spring onions.
油撥麵 means putting boiling oil in the noodles.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Strawberry Braised in honey HK$68
拔絲士多啤梨
This was the moment I was waiting for!!
I loved the complicated strands of caramelized sugar interwined together.
Each strawberry was caramelized and encased in a hard golden sugar shell.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Sweet potato and almond pie:
I loved the starchy sweet potato pies with crispy toasted almonds on the side.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Souffle egg white balls with hawthorn paste
I love souffle egg white balls but most restaurants fill them with mango or red beans which I do not like.
Here they filled them with Hawthorn which was sticky and sweet.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
I am glad I found another good place for Beijing style cuisine and plan to try their Causeway Bay branch.
I don't know why but every now and then I will fall for their savoury buns knowing that I will not like it. This time I fell for the Norwegian salmon bun. It looked quite nice with sesame and a splodge of wasabi on top. Again, there is something weird about the bread because the texture and taste is nothing like Western bread. The salmon filling looked like tuna paste and it was not pink. The taste was a bit boring because it was just like eating a tuna bun and there was no salmon taste or chunks of salmon to be seen.
Had a tasting at 豆花妹撈米線 so while I was milling about at SSP station I took a quick look at the drinks at Hung Fook Tong!
This time I was lured again by their drinks.
The drinks that I tried before were quite nice such as the grapefruit and guava.
Anyway, this time I had the cucumber and aloe vera!
To be honest, the concoction of aloe vera, cucumber and the colour reminds you of face lotions and cleansers!!
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Cucumber and aloe vera drink:
I was expecting the colour of this drink to be cloudy and transparent but weirdly they put milk into it.
I could understand why they added milk because the blended cucumber skin would look ugly in the drink.
Surprisingly the drink was really nice and soothing and the milk took away the grassy taste of the cucumber.
Regrettably I should have drank this after the tasting at 豆花妹撈米線 because it goes really well with the spices and exciting tastes of those noodles just like pairing soy milk with Shanghai/Sichuan dishes.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
The new sundae looked cute with colourful marshmallows so decided to try it.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Coconut sundae with marshmallows:
Evidently it was softserve topped with coconut syrup and young coconut pieces.
The taste was quite pleasant because the coconut was not that strong and there were pieces of young coconut that gave it some extra mouthfeel.
After a few spoons, it got too sweet.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
For mango lovers, there is a new mango cake series!!!!!!
I got my hands on the Mango & Pistachio crispy mini cake which was a nice size for sharing.
Top view:
On top of the cake, there was fresh mango, mango sauce and some sweet sauce.
Side view:
On the side of the cake, it was decorated with macaron shells.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Mango & Pistachio crispy cake:
The cake has distinct layers which look really nice.
From top layer to bottom:
mango mousse
egg white cake
mango slices
pistachio mousse
golden cake
chocolate crispies
I loved the pistachio mousse because it gave a nutty flavour to the mango paired with cotton soft layers of cake.
It was refreshing to eat on a summers day with layers of cool mousse and fresh mango slices in the middle.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Look out for the Mango & Pistachio Dessert Cup for $25 with layers of mango pieces, mango jelly, pistachio mousse, sponge cake, mango pudding and mango mousse.
