The Top 20 Hong Kong Dishes

20) 7-Eleven microwavable meals

We may enjoy exotic gourmet at fancy restaurants, but sometimes the only choice is to “ding” a snack from the Seven. Ever since its Hong Kong debut in 1981, the convenience store has been tirelessly supplying night owls and drunken people with microwavable dim sum. Now there are 780 of them, and you can even get chicken a la king. And what is the bestseller now? Not chicken leg or siu mai but Chinese steamed rice, a 7-11 shopkeeper in Sheung Wan told us. At least 30 of them are sold in her shop everyday.

19) Har gau (steamed shrimp dumpling) at Victoria City Seafood Restaurant.

2/F, Sun Hung Kai Centre, 30 Harbour Rd., Wan Chai, 2827-9938

Any Hongkonger who grew up in the 70s remembers how small and cheap har gau used to be. The standard recipe back then was only one-third of a shrimp blended with pork. But then came the 80s: suddenly there was an entire shrimp tucked away in there, and soon restaurants citywide were calling them “king” har gau. This was the beginning of the prawn arms race that saw the size of the shrimps skyrocketing along with the price (now between $20 and $60). These days when the prawn itself can’t get any bigger, they just add another one. But at Victoria City, they have no need for such parlor tricks – the har gau here is simple, juicy and pretty much perfect.

18) Stinky tofu

There’s nothing for the appetite quite like the stench of sewage. And anyone who loves stinky tofu will tell you that the stinkier it is, the tastier it is. So where does that smell come from anyway? It all begins with regular tofu left to ferment in the open air for a few days. After that, it’s further fermented in a special soy sauce (every stall has their own recipe, but it primarily consists of dried shrimp, bamboo shoots and Chinese herbs). After roasting in its own juices there for at least one month, the tofu is divided into squares and deep-fried. During fermentation the protein in the soybeans decomposes and the sulfurous amino acids create hydrogen sulfide, which has a strong odor of, well, flatulence (guess it’s true what they say about beans...) But hey, it tastes good, it provides a good supply of vitamin B12, and is the source of one of Hong Kong’s most characteristic smells. How could it not be on our list?

17) Steak on a Sizzling Plate at the Boston Restaurant

3 Luard Rd., Wan Chai, 2527-7646

“I remember my parents first brought me here when I was five. Walking into it felt like entering a different world because this place has heavily tinted windows and I could never see in from outside. But it was Christmas, so this was a special treat. I remember the middle-aged waiters wearing red Christmas vests and deadpan expressions, carrying crackling plates of thin, hot (and chewy) steaks. OK, it’s not like the steak is especially delicious, but that wasn’t really a concern to a 5-year-old. What was, though, was the Christmas gift you got after the dessert (vanilla ice cream in a stainless steel cup). OK, the gift wasn’t really that special either, and I got bored of it pretty quickly, but that experience is an important part of my memories as a kid in Hong Kong.”

16) Clay-pot rice at New Chui Wah Café

12 Tang Lung St., Causeway Bay, 2803-4801

Clay-pot rice is less about the toppings than that extra-delicious bit of burned rice clinging to the side of the pot, and no one does it better than New Chui Wah.