A world traveller's best of the best Hong Kong food guide
Hongkonger Maurice Kong, a food and beverage professional, is willing to go the extra mile to get the best – to Tai O for a coffee, Cheung Chau for fish balls, Yuen Long for wife cakes and a Mong Kok wet market for congee
I believe in giving myself the best possible option when it comes to food and beverage. If I want a bowl of wonton noodles, I would single out the place that does the best job. My top priority is fresh ingredients. I love to share my culinary discoveries with those around me. Part of my job takes me searching the globe for unique or artisanal products with history and heritage for our company properties. This is a pleasure, as I have done this on my own for many years.
Some of my much-loved eats are served in small shops run by people who are passionate about their food. To get my coffee fix, I need to travel all the way to Tai O Solo Cafe (86 Kat Hing St, Tai O, Lantau, tel: 9153 7453). The owner is a coffee expert from a local Tai O family that has lived there for generations. He has strict standards, serving hand-dripped coffee with beans imported from Brazil, Ethiopia and Colombia. And to get my favourite fish ball snacks I need to go to Kam Wing Tai Fish Ball(106 San Hing St, Cheung Chau, tel: 2981 3050). Chef Kam and her family make their preservative-free fish balls every day with the important ingredient of white eels.
An old hand at the craft for artisanal Chinese snacks is Tai Tung Bakery (57 Fo Choi Street, Yuen Long, tel: 2476 2630). I really appreciate their wife cakes and range of old-school Chinese cookies and cakes. The shop is a great example of a third-generation family business upholding Hong Kong handcrafted food traditions.
Congee is my comfort food of choice and for that I go to a wet market food stall called Mui Kee Congee (shop 11-12, 4/F, Fa Yuen Street Market, Mong Kok, tel: 2789 0198) for the freshest fish congee I can find. I admire the owners’ continuous efforts to give their customers the freshest ingredients and best taste they can offer.
I also enjoy fine dining, especially when an amazing restaurant can present a comprehensive culinary experience, from the tableware, decor, food and wine, to the service. A fine example is Amber (7/F The Landmark Mandarin Oriental Hotel, 15 Queen’s Road Central, Central, tel 2132 0066). The table is always so perfectly set up and the servers never fail to recommend what are the best seasonal dishes to eat on that particular day.
In Taiwan, the food and pleasant personality of Lanshu Chen, proprietor at Le Mout Restaurant (59 Cunzhong Street, Taichung 403, Taiwan, tel: +866 4 2375 3002), warm my heart. As she changes the dishes regularly, I would opt for the tasting menu.
Every time I visit my favourite Chinese restaurant, the two-Michelin-star Jade Dragon in City of Dreams (2/F The Boulevard, City of Dreams, Cotai, Macau tel: +853 8868 2822), I know I am in for a Cantonese gastronomic treat. Chef’s Tam’s sophisticated simplicity, combined with his flawless technical skills, is a bright presence in all his dishes. His must-try items are hot and sour soup with Hokkaido hairy crab, char siu, deep-fried oysters and a spectrum of braised soups.
