FOOD & DRINK

Where to Eat in Hong Kong

By Chris Johns

With astronomical rents, intense competition and a savvy clientele, the restaurant scene in Hong Kong is
a Darwinian battle for the survival of the most delicious. Here are some of our favorites.

Shanghai Xiao Nan Guo

Haute Mall Food

In North America, food court fare may be adequate for fueling a shopping spree, but it's not exactly fine dining. In Hong Kong, however, mall food has been elevated to a new level.The Whampoa Gourmet Place is an entire mall dedicated exclusively to restaurants. Among the best of these is Wing Lai Yuen. Don't miss the don don mian; this spicy noodle dish is so popular, it's rationed out at one bowl per person per day, and, even still, the restaurant serves upwards of 1,800 bowls daily.

Another mall restaurant, this time in Miramar Plaza, is Tsui Hang Village. A favorite with ladies who lunch and tycoons in bespoke suits, the vast, bright restaurant caters to this demanding crowd with original Cantonese dishes and traditional home-style fare, like minced shrimp balls fried with almonds and crispy chicken with green onion.

As an antidote to the spotless perfection of high-end shopping malls, take a stroll around the Central Wet Market, Hong Kong's vibrant and colorful seafood emporium, where the seafood is so fresh, it's still wriggling. While in the neighborhood, don't forget to pick up an egg custard at Tai Cheong Bakery, a favorite of the former Governor of Hong Kong Chris Patten.

Taste of Shanghai

Renowned throughout China, Shanghainese cuisine is regarded as among the most refined in the whole country. Shanghai Xiao Nan Guo Cuisine, the first Hong Kong branch of this Shanghai-based chain, specializes in such traditional treats as soup dumplings – one of the most fun things to eat on earth as long as you let them cool down to prevent scorching. Biting through the yielding, doughy wrapper releases a flood of rich, slick chicken broth. May to December are hairy crab months, which is when the delicacy is served over rice cakes with a sticky, reduced soy sauce.

Make It Over to Macao

A day trip over to Macao is a must, even for those with no interest in casinos. Combining Cantonese, Portuguese and Malaysian cuisines, Macanese cooking might just be the original fusion food. One of the best places to sample it is at O Porto Interior in Old Macau's inner harbor near the Ah Mah Temple. Porko tamarindo displays a Malay influence by adding a touch of shrimp paste to the pork. Gargantuan Macanese king prawns drenched in sweet garlic are served with oversize french fries. And don't be fooled by the Serradura dessert; though the name means sawdust, the cream with powdered biscuits is irresistible.

Doing Dim Sum

Back on the mainland at Tai Wing Wah, you'll recognize chef Hugo Leung, not only from the photos of him scattered around the restaurant but also because of his larger-than-life personality. The restaurant specializes in authentic, everyday family dishes, with an emphasis on seasonal ingredients. Waiters wheel around glass cases full of familiar dim sum and safe steaming buns, but this is also a great place to try more exotic dishes. Among my favorites was the wholly original combination of squid maw, fish bladder and duck tongues with long beans that combined earthy meatiness and sea flavors with intriguing textural contrasts. Traditional clay pot rice is mixed tableside with vinegar and soy and then gets anointed with a squeeze of rendered pork fat for richness.

Japanese Fare

After a week straight of jellyfish and clear soup prized for its tastelessness, you might be ready for a change. Hong Kong also houses a branch of one of Japan's most celebrated kaiseki restaurants, Nadaman. Kaiseki is the haute cuisine of Japan, relying on the freshest of seasonal ingredients presented in the most aesthetically pleasing ways. Highlights of my long, lingering meal included an ethereal homemade sesame tofu with sea urchin that managed to be at once cool, subtle and dense with flavor, and Japanese pike eel with taro and citrus pepper, which was dramatically served in a steaming earthenware pot, resting in a glazed lacquer box filled with glowing coals.

(Chris Johns writes about food and travel for a variety of
English, French and Spanish publications.)

Useful information

Whampoa Gourmet Place, Site 8, Hunghom, 852-2128-7440

Wing Lai Yuen, 1/F, Whampoa Garden, 852-2320-6430

Tsui Hang Village, 132-134 Nathan Rd., Miramar Shopping Centre, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon, 852-2376-2882

Tai Cheong Bakery, 32 Lyndhurst Terrace, Central,
852-2544-3475

Shanghai Xiao Nan Guo Cuisine, 2/F, Continental Diamond Plaza, 523 Hennessy Rd., Causeway Bay, 852-2874-8899

O Porto Interior, 259B Rua do Almirante Sergio, Macao,
853-967-770

Tai Wing Wah, 2-6 On Ling Rd., Yuen Long, New Territories, 852-2476-9888

TOP PHOTO: HONG KONG TOURISM BOARD
TSUI HANG VILLAGE: HONG KONG TOURISM BOARD
TAI CHEONG BAKERY: HONG KONG TOURISM BOARD
DIM SUM: DENNIS KOK / DREAMSTIME.COM
NADAMAN: SHANGRI-LA HOTELS AND RESORTS