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Andrew Sun

I’ve been enjoying a travel show called Adam & Poh’s Great Australian Bites, which follows celebrity chefs Adam Liaw and Poh Ling Yeow as they eat their way around Australia.
A recurring question they pose to themselves and guests on the show is whether the humble meat pie could be considered Australia’s national dish.
With this topic in mind, my partner recently told me she had just found one of the best chicken pies in Hong Kong, and that I needed to try it for myself. I immediately imagined a hearty Aussie or English-style savoury pot pie with flaky pastry, large enough to be a meal.
I was taken to a new cha chaan teng, or traditional Hong Kong-style cafe, where the chicken “pie” was in the display counter next to pineapple buns, Swiss rolls and other pastries.

It turns out the so-called pie was a Hong Kong-style tart just slightly larger than a typical egg tart, with crumbly, sweet pastry.
It’s not what I had in mind. I assumed I was going to have a meat pie dinner. Instead, it was barely enough for a snack. I don’t know why it’s so hard to find a decent, reasonably priced pie in Hong Kong.
Pie is one of those words that is at once vague and a catch-all for pastries.
American pies tend to be sweet and made with apple or cherry. In some Commonwealth countries, pies are a comfort food filled with steak, chicken or even fish.
The crust is often made of flaky dough. But in shepherd’s pie and cottage pie, it’s just a layer of mashed potato. Beyond these variations, there’s also the pie dilemma of bottom or no bottom? Shouldn’t a proper pie have a base? Otherwise, is it not a casserole?

Further complicating the matter is pie semantics. Do quiches, frittatas, flans, calzones and Jamaican patties count as pies?
For some reason, one famous English pie decided it needed to have its own special name – hence we have a Cornish “pasty” instead of a pastry.
I am curious as to whether pasty’s etymology is linked to that of my favourite Moroccan pigeon pie, the pastilla. The latter dates back to the time of the Moors in medieval Spain, its name deriving from the Arabic word fashta – “to fry”. How it might have travelled from Andalusia to Cornwall is beyond me.
Another curious bit of English nomenclature is the mince pie, traditionally eaten at Christmas. They don’t contain any mince at all, and taste disgusting!

The word pie dates back to the early 1300s, and according to one theory derives from magpie; the birds are known to make their nests from odds and ends. The shortened term is accordingly a reference to food created from various meats, vegetables and suet.
But even earlier, the French had their galette, a cake with a crust. The pastries can be traced to ancient Greece; a chicken-pie-like recipe was found at a Mesopotamian archaeological site.
None of this helps me get over the disappointment of having to settle for a tiny tray tart after anticipating a big, gravy-filled chicken pot pie.
Don’t get me wrong, it was tasty enough. It’s just not what anyone in an Aussie roadside shop or Cornwall pub would call a pie.


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Food and Drinks

Pies around the world, from hearty British and Australian ones to a measly Hong Kong tart

A chicken pie at a Hong Kong cafe. Photo: eatlike852

The English and Australian version of the chicken pie is big and hearty, in contrast to Hong Kong’s tart-size version, which prompts the question: what makes a pie a pie? Photo: Natasha’s Kitchen

A Hong Kong chicken pie at a city cafe, much smaller than its English and Australian counterparts. Photo: eatlike852

Shepherd’s pie at the Mandarin Oriental, Hong Kong hotel. Photo: Dickson Lee

Wagyu beef cheek and ox tongue pot pie at now-closed Hong Kong restaurant Sevva. Photo: Oliver Tsang

Could Trump’s tariffs mean cheaper non-US food in Hong Kong like avocados and olive oil?

Hong Kong consumers could stand to benefit from Trump’s new tariffs if it means an oversupply of food previously destined for the United States, Andrew Sun says. Photo: Jelly Tse

If French champagne makers end up selling less to the US, there are plenty of society events in Hong Kong ready to boost their consumption, Andrew Sun says. Photo: Shutterstock

More than half of the imported fruits and vegetables consumed in the United States come from Mexico. Photo: Shutterstock

Could there be an oversupply of Japanese Wagyu following the new tariffs? Photo: Shutterstock

Hong Kong restaurants, put more pictures on menus to win back customers and tourists

A customer selects dishes from the menu at a Café de Coral branch at Uptown Plaza in Tai Po, Hong Kong. Fast food chains rely on visuals to help their customers order - could more upmarket establishments also benefit? Photo: Eugene Lee

The nostalgia-inducing menu at Luk Yu Tea House – all in Chinese and lacking pictures. Photo: Charmaine Mok

Buddha Jumps Over the Wall is a delicacy from Fujian in China. Photo: St Regis Hong Kong

50 Best? The Michelin Guide? I’m over them. It’s one popularity contest after the other

The Michelin Man during the unveiling of the 2022 Michelin Guide Dubai. The  guide and the 50 Best lists involve no objective, measurable criteria – instead, they favour places backed by deep pockets, columnist Andrew Sun argues. Photo: AFP

The World’s 50 Best Restaurants 2024 awardees on stage at the Wynn Las Vegas. Photo: Camila Almeida

A total of 95 restaurants were recognised in the 2023 Michelin Guide to Hong Kong and Macau. Photo: Charmaine Mok

6 of Singapore’s best hidden speakeasy bars that will take you back in time – and how to find them

Bartenders at Chandu create drinks with a narrative that are loosely based on history. Photo: The Robertson House by the Crest Collection

A bartender mixes a drink at Chandu, one of our picks of six of the best hidden speakeasy bars in Singapore. Photo: The Robertson House by the Crest Collection

The Mizuwari whisky highball at Live Twice uses Hokkaido soft water rather than soda to accentuate the malt notes of the Japanese Nikka whiskies. Photo: Instagram/@livetwicesg

Chandu is inspired by Singapore’s colonial era, when opium dens flourished in the city state. Photo: The Robertson House by The Crest Collection

Chandu’s Mata Hari cocktail is named after a Dutch dancer and courtesan. Photo: Facebook/Chandu

Oriental Elixir, located in a Peranakan rowhouse, is a dimly lit watering hole for nonconformist cocktails. Photo: Philipp Meier

Oriental Elixir’s Malabar Tamarind cocktail combines the sour ingredient with roasted cherry tomato gin, dry vermouth. Photo: Instagram/@oriental.elixir

Junior the Pocket Bar is a small, 25-seater speakeasy that tasks itself with changing the menu completely every few months. Photo: Philipp Meier

A cocktail titled Sesame from the Korea-inspired menu at Junior the Pocket Bar. Photo: Junior the Pocket Bar

Jade Harbour is part of The Bund menu currently offered at Junior the Pocket Bar, inspired by the Shanghai district. Credit: Junior the Pocket Bar

For its Korean Joseon dynasty-inspired menu, the interiors of Junior the Pocket Bar featured dragons. Photo: Philipp Meier

Roxy is a hip-hop-inspired speakeasy hidden inside the Miss Fitz restaurant in Singapore’s Marina Bay. Photo: Facebook/Roxy

The drinks at Roxy are based on classics, but are given their own spin. Photo: Facebook/Roxy

Last Word has finessed tipples that were invented in the 1920s. Photo: Philipp Meier

Last Word’s eponymous cocktail is a classic, blending gin, maraschino liqueur, green chartreuse and lime. Photo: Instagram/@lastwordsg

Lifestyle

Food & Drink

‘Pie’ covers everything from the meat-filled sort that are a meal in themselves to cottage pies, pastilla … and Hong Kong’s tart-size kind


‘Pie’ covers everything from the meat-filled sort that are a meal in themselves to cottage pies, pastilla … and Hong Kong’s tart-size kind.


Expresses the views, ideas and conclusions of the author. (Eg. Enough of Crazy Rich Asians, think of crazy poor Hongkongers.)


Column

Mouthing Off

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}‘Pie’ covers everything from the meat-filled sort that are a meal in themselves to cottage pies, pastilla … and Hong Kong’s tart-size kind

‘Pie’ covers everything from the meat-filled sort that are a meal in themselves to cottage pies, pastilla … and Hong Kong’s tart-size kind