‘Just like the old days’: where a Hong Kong chef goes for authentic fish balls, dim sum, wonton noodles and hole-in-the-wall vibes
- Charmaine Cheung, a former Hong Kong cookery school chef, shares where she goes for dim sum when not tempted by McDonald’s, and other old-school food
- The Los Angeles native shares her secret to affordable fine dining, and an eating, singing and dancing experience you ‘can’t get anywhere else’
For 14 years, Charmaine Cheung was executive chef at high-end supermarket City’super’s Superlife Culture Club cookery school, conducting classes in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Shanghai. She spoke to Andrew Sun.
I grew up in Los Angeles. My mom insisted we didn’t dine out because of the amount of MSG that restaurants put in their food back in those days.
Soup was a daily essential too. On Sundays, I was allowed one hamburger and a small Coke with fries. I looked forward to Sundays.
In Hong Kong, the wonton noodles at Mak An Kee Noodle (37 Wing Kut Street, Central. Tel: 2541 6388) are my ultimate comfort-food lunch.
I sometimes go to fine-dining restaurants for lunch, as they are much more affordable at that time of the day. It’s a smart way to check out a place before investing in a pricey dinner.
My best find recently was 1111 Ones Restaurant (11/F, 18 On Lan Street, Central. Tel: 9835 8606). The veal tartare still has me thinking of returning.
Yakitori is such an entertaining way of dinning. I love it, and my favourite place is Tori Yoichi (Shop C, 174-178 Wellington Street, Central. Tel: 2311 1030). I’m a regular there.
For sushi, my recent favourite is Sake San (Shop C&D, 66-72 Paterson Street, Causeway Bay. Tel: 2382 2988). The chef is so knowledgeable. He always selects pieces of fish that make my palate tingle.
I would take tourists to Ha Ming Kee Noodle Shop (5 Parkes Street, Jordan. Tel: 3481 9469) for its famous authentic fish balls. They taste just like the old days. Highly recommended.
I’m really into hole-in-the-wall places. They are our treasures in Hong Kong. Sometimes I will pick a district, go with a few friends and just hop around different restaurants at night. It’s so much fun.
A favourite place is the Traditional Beijing Dumpling House (CF11, Queen Street Cooked Food Market, 38 Des Voeux Road West, Sheung Wan. Tel: 6354 8082).
It’s an experience you just can’t get anywhere else, with singing, dancing and eating.
I love returning to Los Angeles for food.
The best part of LA is you’ve got all kinds of nationalities there so you can get authentic food from Vietnamese to Korean to Mexican, and a rich variety of ingredients so the food is recreated to suit each tradition and palate.
My favourite Korean haunt is King Chang (3732 West 6th Street, Los Angeles. Tel: +1 213 318 5250). For Vietnamese cuisine, I go to Golden Deli Vietnamese Restaurant (9664 Las Tunas Drive, Temple City. Tel: +1 626 285 2899). And for Mexican, I’m always on the hunt for good taco trucks.
