It may seem ridiculous to make a two-hour car journey from Central to Lau Fau Shan and back for a bottle of oyster sauce, a staple in any supermarket, but then again, Leung Yick Oyster Sauce is in a class of its own: it comes 'straight from the pond'. Leung Yick's production process involves harvesting top-quality oysters from around the shores of Lau Fau Shan in the western New Territories; it is made fresh on the premises, according to shopkeeper Mrs Man, to a secret recipe. The sauce contains no preservatives and is bottled only when sold, in front of the customer, and comes with no labels. Leung Yick is the only shop to sell oyster sauce this way.

Most buyers go for its Supreme Oyster Sauce ($17), but connoisseurs prefer the Straight From The Pond variety, which has a much stronger flavour. The sign above the shop hasn't had a fresh coat of paint for 30 years, and the blink-and-miss-it shopfront is cluttered with dried shrimps and salted fish, so be on the lookout.