What a sacrifice for visiting New York Magazine food critic Gael Greene, forsaking Hong Kong Island comforts for the savage frontiers of the New Territories, just to taste pigeon.
But the Manhattan gourmet had no regrets. In fact, after lunch at Sui Wah, she virtually commanded that others, including this writer, do exactly the same.
'Fantastic squab,' she exclaimed. 'And the other dishes were just as good.' Gael Greene is not a woman who visits restaurants lightly, and few in the territory have met with her approval.
The trip was something of an adventure. Not a racegoer myself, I admit to fearing the wilds of Sha Tin. First, an easy MTR-KCR ride, then a scenic ride on the minibus for five minutes.
The ride is short enough to walk, but the minibus goes straight to Wo Che Commercial Centre.
Wo Che is a kind of wacky shopping mall, with shops like 'Cheapy Videos', along with drugstores, a half dozen restaurants and miles of empty corridor.