Taiwanese delights at Shang Palace

From 18th to 21st June 2014 at Shang Palace, executive Sous Chefs Elvis Chen from Taipei and Max Wang from Tainan will be guest chefs to showcase their signature Taiwanese delicacies available on both the à la carte and set menus.

During the food festival, guests can opt for the special set menu featuring chefs’ recommendations or a wide variety of specialities from the à la carte menu.

Here was what we tried.

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Mullet roe, baby abalone, pork ear terrine.

My favourite was the mullet roe because it was thin slices of prawn patty with mullet roe in the middle.
The mullet roe has different colours according to its age.
As for the abalone, it was refreshing with the sauce and the texture was different because it was springy just like whelks.
The pork ear terrine was a bit too spicy because the Sichuan pepper oil was too strong.
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Deep fried shrimp rolls:
A-li mountain longan flower honey mustard and cucumber pickles

The shrimp rolls were supposed to be wrapped in pig's skin but they used beancurd skin instead because it was healthier.
The shrimps inside the roll were extremely springy, while the beancurd skin had an amazing crunch complimented by the sweet honey sauce with a mild mustard kick.
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Chinese cabbage and bamboo soup with deep fried promfret fillet

The soup was nice and filling with lovely strands of beanshoots, bamboo shoots, bamboo piths and crab meat which went nicely with the crispy fried fish filets on the side.
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Steamed spotted garoupa with pineapple bean paste

This was my favourite because it was a chunky piece of delicate fish steamed in tasty pineapple bean sauce.
It was salty and appetising because the aged pineapple begins to give out a wine flavour with a refreshing kick.
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Traditional three cup chicken with fresh basil, work fried with soya sauce, rice wine and sesame oil

The pieces of chicken were tender because they were not fried but cooked in a different way infused with the fragrant aroma of fresh basil.
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Steamed glutinous rice with whole fresh crab

The steamed crab is served during celebrations in Taiwan, for newborns where they put an egg or a piece of chicken according to the gender of the child.
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Taiwanese beef noodle soup

The beef was soft and gelatinous but I found the soup too sweet.
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Taichung pineapple cake with mango icecream and longan flower honey

Finished off with a lovely dessert.
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Taiwan oolong tea
To end the meal, we had oolong tea which was lovely and strong and helped digestion.
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Shang Palace
G/F, Kowloon Shangri-La Hotel, 64 Mody Road, Tsim Sha Tsui

Prawn burger at the local ViLLAGE KEBAB joint

ViLLAGE KEBAB (Sai Kung)

Randomly went here for food and didn't know what to order so decided to get a prawn burger.

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Prawn burger:

The burger was quite huge with melted mozzarella in the middle.

The prawn patty was good because there was quite a lot of prawn grounded into it.
It had a firm and springy texture.
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Salmon tartare with local prawn crackers

Had dinner at this place and the portions were huge.

Ordered mussels, tartare and the pork knuckle.

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Salmon tartare:

The salmon tartare had a really creamy taste and it was also quite fishy.
It tasted much better when it was eaten with the cracker beside it.
Surprisingly the cracker is a local cracker by Four Seas called the Crispy prawn cracker which is the one in the orange packet!
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Frites Belgium on Tap (灣仔)

Early in the morning with Perrier

It is rare that I have breakfast and you won't see me awake before 8am.

That day was special because I was invited onboard the USS George Washington so I had to force myself to be at Pier 10 (the temporary) at 7:45am.

Temporary pier at Pier 10

I arrived a bit too early in Central and decided to get something to eat but nothing caught my fancy on the way from the MTR to the pier.

Central at 7am in the morning!!!

As there was a Starbucks nearby, I ended up getting a bottle of Perrier because I had to hydrate myself with a drink.

A very special receipt showing how early it was that morning!


Anyway, the Perrier was ice cold and extremely fizzy that it caused some discomfort at the back of my throat.
It had a slightly savoury and metallic taste.
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Meaty diet SUB with GLACÉAU vitaminwater

Tried this $42 combo set which consists of a SUBWAY Club™ and a bottle of GLACÉAU vitaminwater at SUBWAY. (Normally it would cost HK$57.8).

According to Subway, the SUBWAY Club™ is low-fat and low-calorie containing only 6-grams of fat.
Subway has met the nutritional criteria set forth by the American Heart Association's Heart-Check Meal Certification Program.

For drinks, there are quite a few flavours.

Glacéau vitaminwater is from New York, sold in major cities including London, Paris, Tokyo, Seoul. It is enhanced with nutrients without artificial flavourings.

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SUBWAY Club™:

I liked combination of ham, beef and turkey because it was filling, and all the meats were lean.

I had a simple sub, so I just opted for tomatoes and olives with ranch sauce.
The sub was simple and delicious with the juicy tomato slices and meats.
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xxx: blueberry pomegranate:


The drink was light and not too sweet so next time I will try other flavours.
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Perrier sparkling water

I know it is trivial to review a bottle of Perrier but it is rare that I have breakfast and you won't see me awake before 8am which is why I am sharing this experience.

That day was special because I was invited onboard the USS George Washington so I had to force myself to be at Pier 10 (the temporary) at 7:45am.

Temporary pier at Pier 10


I arrived a bit too early in Central and decided to get something to eat but nothing caught my fancy on the way from the MTR to the pier.

Central at 7am in the morning!!!


As there was a Starbucks nearby, I ended up getting a bottle of Perrier because I had to hydrate myself with a drink.

A very special receipt showing how early it was that morning!




Anyway, the Perrier was ice cold and extremely fizzy that it caused some discomfort at the back of my throat.
It had a slightly savoury and metallic taste.
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Pictures of USS George Washington:








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McDonald's spicy beef burger with and without sauce

Tried the new SPICY BEEF BURGER a few days ago but found it too spicy so this time I tried it with and without the Malagueta chili sauce.

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Strange activities at this branch of McDonalds:

People eating sushi bought from elsewhere and being tutored there.




It was interesting that there were lots of strange activities at this branch ranging from people giving tuition to people eating sushi which was bought from outside!!
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Orange punch:

Tried this because it was a new drink but evidently it tasted artificial mixed with canned fruit and it was a syrupy sweet concoction.
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Potato wedges:

As usual the potato wedges tasted good.
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Spicy beef burger:



With the Malagueta sauce, I found it too spicy but the spicy sauce gave the burger a spicy taste with some creaminess.
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Spicy beef burger without sauce:


Without the sauce, the burger did not taste dry because the beef patty for this burger is different, it is softer and I believe it is fattier because it is made with more fat.
Anyway, without the sauce, the burger is still spicy because it contains some chili and spices in the patty which makes it taste like chili con carne.
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