DO soldiers in the Chinese Army like curry as much as their British counterparts? Liaquat Ali is not sticking around the barracks at Kam Tin to find out. When the last Gurkhas leave Borneo Lines in a few months, a New Territories culinary institution will fade away with the old soldiers.
Shaffi's curry house has served scores of regiments since the first mutton korma simmered under the trees in 1972.
Military and civilians at the army barracks next to the old Sek Kong Royal Air Force base all had their own messes where meals were provided, but for years it has been a tradition to 'go for a Shaffi' when a bit of spice was needed to excite the palate.
The same applied to civilians. You stroll into Borneo Lines past the crossed kukri emblem on the gate, smile at the soldier on guard duty and say the magic word: 'Curry.' Then you produce an ID card, wander a few metres down the road and the first shack on the right finds a half-dozen Punjabis toiling over huge piles of onions, potatoes and triangular vegetable samosas.
For decor, this is definitely not the Taj Mahal. There is a modest concrete hut with no walls, a square kitchen block and some striped plastic out back to keep the winter winds at bay. You can sit outside under the spreading trees eating zesty pakora and watching the birds.
But you are not there for the scenery. This is a value-for-money paradise for curry lovers.
The place started almost by accident. Mohammed Shaffi was a civilian engineer attached to the 6th Gurkha Signals in Singapore. When that proud regiment was transferred to Hong Kong in 1972, he came along, although he was by then a retired civilian.