Orchard Garden Café & Restaurant

Date of visit: 11th July 2010

Orchard Garden Cafe @ Mong Kok

Original plans to try out Tim Ho Wan went down the drain, so we ended up at Langham Place mall for a small dinner and then ended up here for dessert. 

Luckily some diners had just left so we were seated almost as soon as we arrived... We were given a menu that was seriously extensive, but we only wanted dessert so we looked at the dessert menu, which was also vast. As far as I can remember, there was one page on just 'snow mountain' desserts with loads of variations, one page on variations of waffles, one on parfaits/sundaes, one on crepes, drinks and so on... Every single item available is printed on picture too, which meant decision-making was even harder!

After much debate, S and I settled for the following two items to share: 

Fresh Fruit Cinnamon Duet

This comprised of three triangles of plain waffles and three of chocolate-flavoured waffles, with a small scoop of chocolate ice cream, assorted fruits with cinnamon infused syrup. I think my description sounds better than the taste! The waffles were soft and quite light but not airy like I hoped. I preferred the chocolate ones to the boring plain ones. The ice cream was definitely nestlé, not a premium variety which would have been so much better =(. The fruits were okay, but could have been more generous with the serving. What did make it better was the cinnamon infused syrup which made everything smell and taste better!

We then wanted to choose one from the parfait page - I would have hands down chosen to try the green tea parfait but seeing as S is not such a big fan like I am, we settled on a 

Strawberry Waffle Yogurt Parfait

This parfait had (from top) fresh slice strawberries, whipped cream, small scoop of strawberry ice cream, four triangles of waffle, natural plain yogurt and berry compote / sauce. 

The waffles were essentially same as the previous Fresh Fruit Cinnamon Duet, the plain ones. Ice cream was again a disappointment (honestly I would prefer Movenpick given a choice to top-up or something, or even Dreyers' for God's sake, but nooooo). The next layer down was the plain yogurt - I recognised from the taste that it was Nestle's (white and green packaging) natural plain yogurt, but wasn't sure until I saw a waitress preparing one as we were finishing up, which I can now confirm is Nestlé. Now Nestlé's plain yogurt requires an acquired taste. It isn't smooth, but grainy, and doesn't taste anything close to acceptable without the addition of other mix-ins. Moreover, here it wasn't served cold enough, but the berry compote / sauce did save the yogurt after we mixed it. It turned a nice pink colour too!

All in all, the waffles here I think are not so great. Most were soft without any crispness or that airy texture that I love. They could use a new recipe for their batters for sure, and adopt other brands of premium ice cream, even if this means increasing prices.... I mean, given a choice I would rather pay more to be satisfied.

I was however, impressed by the amount of japanese-western food that was available on the menu for a restaurant that isn't huge in size. I would definitely try their savoury dishes some time, but for now I'll pass on the waffles here.

Food: ♥♥
Service: ♥♥♥
Price: $$


Orchard Garden
1/F-2/F, 24-26 Argyle Street, Mongkok, 
Kowloon (MTR Exit D3), Hong Kong
(other branches also)
Tel: +852 2699 3002

Patisserie Tony Wong - a disappointment

Date of visit: 10th July 2010

Patisserie Tony Wong @ Kowloon City

We went to a family friend's house for dinner on this night, and my mother decided to buy a strawberry napoleon (her favourite) from Patisserie Tony Wong. We visited this place together before so she remembered to come here again. Yes, the cake was so appealing they could not wait for me to take photos before serving it...

A slice.... doesn't look half as good as their cut cakes on display, not as intricate. 

Appearance aside, the napoleon was honestly really disappointing. The strawberries were fresh and the custard was fine (I've had better), but the soggy layers of pastry spoilt the whole thing. They were not crisp / crunchy at all, as the layers weren't glazed like the ones at Fine Foods (see my review here). Thus the pastry had become soggy with time.... =(

Needless to say, in the future I'd go with their other excellent offerings such as the Matcha opera (my fave), American Cheesecake and Chocolate Truffle!

Food: ♥

Service: ♥♥♥

Price: $

Tony Wong 

74 Fok Lo Tsun Road, Kowloon City

Kowloon, Hong Kong

Tel: +852 2382 6639

Ho Hak Shan Tung

Date of visit: 10th July 2010

Ho Hak Shan Tung @ Sai Ying Pun Second Street

Having had my eye on this little restaurant since its opening, I finally got to try this place for lunch with my brother. We arrived at 1.30pm to find only one other table occupied. He asked "Is this place any good? why is it so empty?" I had my doubts too, but set aside these thoughts and looked through the menu.

We first debated on whether we wanted appetizers, which we then decided against because we wanted two kinds of dumplings. So our next question was whether we wanted dan dan mian or  jia jiang mian.... I would've gone for the latter but my brother chose the former so the former it was.

Milk tea ($10) - here they used evaporated milk instead of my preferred choice of condensed milk. Not bad but not ideal. 

Dan Dan Mian (Noodles in Spicy Peanut Broth) ($26) - the version here is quite different from the Shanghainese restaurants' we've tried. It is quite watery, but still has strong flavours of peanut and chilli in. The ground meat (pork?) was quite lean too. The noodles reminded me of the ones I had in Sha Tin 18 - al dente and thick, with no noodle being the exact same size, most probably because they are hand-cut! I didn't really like the broth, but would try another noodle dish gladly if I come again.

Ten Dumplings - half were Shandong Fresh Fish Dumplings and half Vegetarian Dumplings ($33)

 These dumplings were massive - bigger than I had seen before for sure. I would've preferred them to be cooked less long, as the wrappers were overly soft for me. I'll bear that in mind on my next visit to tell them to cook the dumplings for a shorter period. 

Anyway, I was half expecting them to be pre-made (either frozen or refrigerated) but found out they were made-to-order. How do I know? Well when I first bit into one of the fish dumplings it was pork. I told them this, and the waiter/cook came to identify the mishap and said he'd make (wrap) new ones for me and took away the other 4 'fish' dumplings. 

Meanwhile I tried the vegetarian dumplings, which were filled with mostly green vegetables, not like the mushroom and cucumber(?) filling in Din Tai Fung. I also detected a tiny amount of sesame oil present to give it a much appreciated flavour. I would choose these vegetarian dumplings over DTF any day, but the wrapping used here is another matter...way too soft!

the inside of a vegetarian dumpling...

Our Xiao Lung Baos ($25) (wrongly translated as 'Little Dragon Buns' on their menu!) had a very nice pleat, but the wrappers seemed too big for the pork fillings...

One of the five dumplings had 'deflated', because of a puncture in the wrapper as well =(

The dumplings taste-wise was not bad - the all-pork filling was well seasoned and juicy. In the remaining four dumplings there was quite a lot of juice, and was even better with a little ginger and black vinegar. Although the skin was very thin, it was not elastic enough (like DTF's) and so they broke much easier if one isn't careful when transferring them...  

Last to arrive was the fish dumplings which earlier had been sent back... Indeed the chef had made fresh ones for us and we were genuinely grateful. The wrappers this time was not overcooked either! They had a slight bite to it. The filling was a type of white fish that was quite meaty, minced with some spring onions. Again, with vinegar these dumplings were lovely. These were my brothers preference between the two (fish and vegetarian) dumplings we ordered. 

Would I come back? Yes! Prices here are very reasonable for a hearty meal, and there is quite a long menu. Even with several visits I would still not be able to cover all the appetizers / dim sums / hot dishes / noodles / rice dishes available here!

Food: ♥♥♥

Service: ♥♥♥♥

Price: $$

Ho Hak Shan Dong 

Shop A1, 143 Second Street, Hoi Shing Building, Sai Ying Pun, 

Western District,  Hong Kong 

Tel: +852 2117 9680

Siu Shun Village Cuisine

Date of visit: 8th July 2010

Siu Shun Village Cuisine @ Causeway Bay Plaza II

We were a table of 10, an organized dinner for the arrival of my cousin from US. We had a set dinner (12 pax), which totalled at $1688 - dirt cheap for seafood if you ask me!

Siu Shun specialises in seafood. The food in general was mediocre, nothing really stood out and nothing was really memorable save for the large fresh prawns and the little cute tapioca custard dumplings for dessert... so this post will just be a pictorial.

"Prawn Toast" - really nice prawns used, toast was oily. 

Flaked fish fillet and sharks fin thick soup, did not like the raw Chinese celery in this soup!

Stir-fried soy milk with crab meat - an alternative to 'chao siin nai', with crispy fried vermielli at the bottom. Didn't detect any crab meat, tastes like tofu.

Steamed fish dish

Three kinds of fungus with broccoli, variety of mushrooms, spinach and vermicelli

Prawns with ee-fu noodles in gravy. Best dish of the night...

Fish fillet stir-fried with peppers and celery. Simple yet tasty fish, second best dish of the night. 

Za Ji Gai (Deep-fried crispy whole chicken) - chicken looked browner than the one at Luk Yu on Monday, but wasn't as good (not surprising). The prawn crackers were awfully soggy and not crispy, so aunt ordered them to send out another plate, which they did....

Much nicer prawn crisps =)

This was not on the original set dinner, but as they had sold out of the glutinous rice (dessert), they made a fried rice with yellow croaker. The yellow croaker was awfully over-cooked and didn't taste pleasant. Rice not dry enough.

Tapioca starch dumplings with custard filling - not too sweet, suited everyone's palate nicely.

So that was a Thursday night! Hope to take my cousin to more decent places around HK!

Yung Kee, LKF

Date of visit: 7th July 2010 

Yung Kee @ Lan Kwai Fong

My friend P's sister loves Char Siu, and so do I, but not to her extent =P Everyone's preference of Char siu is different. I like them lean and soft but still slightly chewy, whereas others may like them half fat/half lean etc etc. I suggested we try out Yung Kee for our lunch meet-up. 

A plate of roast goose and char siu with rice ($52) was quite reasonably priced. I tried the BBQ Pork only and it was pretty good. Not too sweet or salty, and did not have the scary red colouring some places tend to have. It was caramelized well, making it smell appetizing. The pork itself was pretty lean, yet was not chewy - yum!

Shrimp Wontons with Thin Noodles ($31)

I only tried the soup, which was quite good and mild in flavour - no presence of any alkaline (gan sui)! I didn't try the wontons, but P did comment that it was not all shrimp. Had a bit of pork as a filler. She prefers Mak's Noodle (麥奀雲吞麵世家). 

Congee with fish slices ($32)

This was really good. The congee was slightly too thick for my liking but taste-wise it was spot on, and I didn't feel the need to add any other flavourings, even pepper. The fish was 'wan yu', thinly sliced and they gave at least an ounce or two of it. Would've liked the chopped spring onions to be fresher though, the ones given (mainly white, so towards the root of the plant) weren't so nice and gave a little bitterness. 

Mini Egg Tarts ($21)

We decided to end with a plate of mini egg tarts. The tart shell was pastry-based, rather than my favourite cookie base, but was not bad. It retained some crispiness around the sides of the tart. The filling was nicely sweet and smooth, my favourite part of the egg tart! Nonetheless, I still think for this kind of flaky pastry based egg tarts, Pak Kee's on Centre St is the best (and they sell for $2.5/standard sized!). 

This place was quite full, so reservations are a must for lunch hours. I did enjoy my simple meal here, and would gladly do it again, but may visit Tai Cheong instead for my favourite cookie based egg tarts!

Food: ♥♥♥

Service: ♥♥♥

Price: $$

Yung Kee

32-40 Wellington Street, 

Central, Hong Kong

Tel: +852 2522 1624

Finally, a trip to Luk Yu Tea House

Date of visit: 5th July 2010

Luk Yu Tea House @ Stanley Street

 On a Monday night my ma was in the Central area and so we met up for a quick and simple Chinese dinner. 

our cute table which I loved. Like a little private booth! 

We sat down and immediately I asked for a tureen (2-4 pax) of their Pigs lung soup with almond before reading the menu =) My ma had tried this before and loves it so I had to too, right? 

We each had at least 2.5 bowls of this lovely milky white soup. It reminded me a lot of the dessert 'almond tea' as there was plenty of almond in this soup. It was also very savoury and slightly salty. The pigs lungs, my mother said, was cleaned very well here and it takes skill to do it - not easy to do this at one's home!

A page from the menu... I think this was the chicken page. 

Spinach with century and salted egg was next to arrive. The superior broth was really good and not salty at all. It didn't have the bitter after-taste of the iron in spinach when cooked either. It was tender and the eggs added some texture and taste to the dish, yummy! (p.s. the broth is really good with rice!)

So after being told that the 'pot' items e.g. beef on rice in claypot was only available during the winter season, my ma suggested za zi gai (i.e. deep fried crispy whole chicken). The few tables around us we noticed, also had this dish present, so it must be one of their more popular dishes we thought. When it arrived, it was a nice golden brown colour. My ma picked up a prawn cracker and started munching away loudly - must be the crispiness of it I thought, so I did the same! I know I know, it sounds rude of us but we had our 'private booth' remember? So no one heard us....

Soup, chicken, a bowl of rice and the spinach was very satisfying for the two of us. Our bill came to $580 for these few dishes which I thought was quite pricey... But in all fairness each dish was executed very well =)

Their restaurant card with separate numbers for each floor.

Food: ♥♥♥♥

Service: ♥♥

Price: $$$$

Luk Yu Tea House

G/F, 24 Stanley Street,

Central, Hong Kong

Tel: +852 2523 5464

Ebeneezer's

Date of visit: 3rd July 2010

Ebeneezer's @ Ashley Road

After (window) shopping around, S and I started feeling hungry. I suggested Ebeneezer's for old times' sake, plus told her about the added staff to TST's branch where they would serve you just like they do in a restaurant, minus the service charge. Great she said, and so we went.

This was my Chicken Tikka Rice. I normally really like their chicken tikka but today's was a tad dry and hard for me. The rice was the soft and fluffy Indian basmati kind, which I love. Despite the slightly dry chicken I still (almost) cleared my plate though! 

This was S's Chicken tikka kebab with the yogurt and mint dressing. The texture of the chicken tikka I suspect was the same, but perhaps being wrapped in the flatbread with the yogurt and mint dressing would help moisten the chicken a little? S also finished her kebab to her stomach's content =) 

beneezer's was smart to introduce more staff, lowering unemployment rates - yayyy. The one Chinese male (I am guessing the manager) was very friendly as well, making sure customers were happily seated quickly and menus / food delivered to them. Would I come here more often? Perhaps, if I am craving for kebab, but for yummy Indian food I'd rather go to the many Indian restaurants nearby! 

Food: ♥♥1/2 

Service: ♥♥♥

Price: $$

Ebeneezer's 

Shop G01C, G/F, Astoria Building, 24-38 Ashley Road, 

Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong

Tel: +852 2114 0999