翠华餐厅 (Tsui Wah Restaurant) ~ 140411

For 2nd day of Breakfast, we headed out to 翠华餐厅 (Tsui Wah Restaurant) which is a popular chain of restaurants in Hongkong also affectionately known as "茶餐厅" by the locals. They have 3 different breakfast sets to choose from. Each breakfast set comes with a main (macaroni/ noodles), eggs, a bun & a beverage. There's the ala carte to choose from as well. The reason why we came here was because my bestie insisted that I had to come & try their 猪仔包 (Toasted bun with butter & condensed milk)! Keke, sounds sinful delicious ya! And so we ordered a Set A (Abalone & shredded ham of Macaroni in Soup), 猪仔包 & 菠萝包 (Toasted bun).

Breakfast menu

The Sunny Side up & bun came along with the set that we ordered. A pity the egg yolks were fully cooked & not the runny types that we like. Haha, subsequently, we realized that for other tables, the egg yolks were all very "pretty" & were those of the runny types! We reckoned that's because we couldn't speak a word of Cantonese and thus by default, this would be the eggs served. LOL.

Sunny Side UP & bun

I realized that this soup macaroni is like one of the MUST have for locals here during breakfast time! Looked around & almost every table ordered one! The only ingredients that came with it was the shredded ham & abalone. Wahaha, abalone! (guess they used those imitation types). The portion was pretty sizeable & YP was commenting that HK people really eat alot since this came with the set! *chuckles*

Abalone & shredded ham of Macaroni in Soup

Next up, came the piping hot 菠萝包 (aka Polo bun) which is YP's favourite! The bun was huge! This was indeed yummy! The outer part of the bun was so crispy & has a sweet taste to it while the inside was so soft & fluffy! We absolutely like this! :)

Polo Bun

We ordered a Yuan Yang (coffee mixed with tea) which came with the set. The Yuan Yang is also a typical drink found in Hongkong. It has more of the coffee & milk taste rather than the tea.  

Yuan Yang

I can't resist taking a peek of the cup they used here! Cute, aint it? I termed it the "Happy Cup" ;)

Happy cup

Lastly, came the 猪仔包 which was what brought us here! Look at the crisp golden colours! One can't resist taking a bite! Woo...When I bite into it, I can totally understand why Bestie loves this so much & insisted for me to try! The butter & condensed milk simply oozed out in the mouth & the bun was toasted till crispy & yet retained the softness! You have to try it yourself to experience this goodness!!! FYI, you have to use your hands to eat (rather than the knife & fork) to have the finger licking experience! LOL =)

猪仔包

YP gave me a treat for this (Thanks sweetie!) & I think it cost about HKD 58 (SGD9.50)? It was indeed a sumptuous & filling breakfast & after this meal, we were all CHARGED & ready to take on the streets of HK!!!! =)

翠华餐厅 (Tsui Wah Restaurant) has many outlets and you can check out the full listing at:
http://www.tsuiwahrestaurant.com/

義順牛奶公司 (Yee Shun Milk Company) ~ 130411

While walking back from Mongkok to our hotel, we passed by this famous shop selling steamed milk desserts. I was telling YP that when I was here 4 years back, I had to have this every night before I go back to my hotel! So you can imagine my HAPPINESS (Yes, with the Capital letters) when I saw it again (haha, seems like long lost love found!) LOL.

義順牛奶公司 (Yee Shun Milk Company) 

YP ordered the signature Hot Steamed "Double skin" milk pudding (about HKD22).  There was a thin film of skin when it came and this layer is the curdled milk from the steaming process. The pudding was very smooth and texture was light. If you have always been a great fan of milk, you would definitely love this! ;)

Steamed milk

For me, being a fan of Ginger, I ordered the Hot Steamed milk with Ginger juice (about HKD23). The taste was exactly how I remembered it! The ginger juice was strong but not overwhelming and the texture was so smooth that when YP tried to use her porcelain spoon to scoop it, it was rather difficult. Now we finally understood why we were given 2 different spoons. For mine, it was a plastic spoon. I finished this in no time as it was simply a comforting dessert for my tummy! *Thumbs UP* ;)

Steamed Milk with Ginger juice

義順牛奶公司 is located at 513 Nathan Road, Yau Ma Tei.

澳門九記清湯腩王 ~ 130411

Is dinner time! We decided to head to this place,澳門九記清湯腩王 (Supreme Beef Brisket soup) recommended by our friendly hotel staff! (To sidetrack: We stayed at M Hotel @ Portland street, Yau Ma Tei, just 5 mins walk from the MTR, new hotel, friendly staff, clean room! Definitely will recommend to fellow travellers!)  =)

澳門九記清湯腩王

We ordered the Stewed beef with rice (HKD38) and the Kai Lan vegetables (HKD12) as side dish. The Stewed beef here is slightly different from the usual ones. It is actually clear beef soup with radish. The soup was sweet and the radish further enhanced the sweetness of the soup! YP & I simply loved the radish *slurps* One can really taste the goodness of this soup which most probably has been boiled for long to achieve this kind of tastiness! As for the beef, it was too chewy for our liking (hmm, seriously, I wonder why it was called stewed beef since the meat was still so tough & lacking in tenderness). Anyhow we still finished every bit of the soup as it was way too tasty! ;)

Stewed Beef soup

Almost all HK restaurants would have this side dish! There are usually several types of vegetables to choose from. For us, we chose the Kai Lan with oyster sauce. The vegetables were crisp & sweet! :)

Kai Lan with Oyster sauce

We realized that most people ordered the Stewed beef as well as the Chicken rice (which YP was intrigued by the colour of the chicken skin as it was yellowish & not the type seen in SG) LOL. Apparently, these 2 were the popular orders!

Overall, I really love the soup (minus the beef)! In total, we spent HKD50 (approximately SGD8) for this meal which I found it to be reasonable (considering the high cost of living in Hongkong).

They have several outlets & we went to the one at 46 Portland Street, Yau Ma Tei since it was within walking distance from our hotel =)

You can check out the full listing at http://www.beefbrisketsoup.com/

稻香超級漁港 ~ 130411

Yes, I am back from the Paradise of Food, Hongkong!!! :) Will be documenting my food adventures bit by bit when I have the mood time ;)

My 1st meal in HK was at 稻香超級漁港 where I indulged in my dim sum craving! This is one of the restaurants belonging to Tao Heung Group. Under this group, they have many different Chinese restaurants which serves different cuisines. Over here, the prices of Dim sum are catagorised into Small (HK$8.8), Medium (HK$11.8), Large (HK$14.8) and Special (HK$17.8). These prices relate to the type of dim sum & has nothing to do with the portion so do not be mistaken when you are ordering! ;)

稻香超級漁港 

As there were only 2 of us (YP & I) & we were not that hungry, we ordered only 4 types of dim sum. Haha, FYI, being the gluttony us the rule of the thumb of this trip is not to over order! ;) We ordered the Har Kau, Fried Carrot Cake, Custard buns & Steamed Dumpling.
  
Next up was our all time favourite ~ Fried Carrot cake(香煎蘿蔔糕) (Medium)! One can really taste the freshness of the radish, dried shrimps & chinese sausage! The texture was really smooth. I was commenting to YP that if my mum were here, she would definitely be very happy as she absolutely loves this dim sum! ;)

Fried Carrot cake(香煎蘿蔔糕)

The Har Kau (aka 蝦餃, Shrimp Dumpling) (Special) was very tasty with lots of fresh shrimps inside. The skin was very translucent as you can see! *Thumbs up* (Got to eat it piping hot to ensure that the skin does not harden when turned cold!)

Har Kau (aka 蝦餃, Shrimp Dumpling)

Custard bun(香滑奶皇包) (Medium) is one of my many favourites which I never fail to order, LOL! But it is not easy to find one that is good! I had this dim sum 4 years back when I was in HK & absolutely miss it! The custard bun here is soft & the custard filling is really smooth! Simply delicious! ;)

Custard bun (香滑奶皇包)

Look @ the custard *drools*

Lastly, we had the Steamed Dumpling 灌汤饺 (Big) which is also one of my favourites (keke, seems like I have lots of favourites ya)! I had this 4 years back & till now, I still vividly remember how good this was! *slurps* The soup was made with the freshest ingredients which gave it the sweetness & taste! The skin was very soft & smooth with lots of ingredients inside. In there, one can find chicken meat, bamboo shoots & mushrooms! This was definitely a must order ! =)

Steamed Dumpling 灌汤饺

It was a very good meal & we totally enjoyed the food. Guess what was the best part?! All these for a mere HKD 75 (which was equivalent to about SGD13)!!! Unbelievable right?! 稻香超級漁港 is definitely value for $ if you are looking for reasonable priced & quality dim sum choices! ;)

To be continued folks.... (",)

稻香超級漁港 is located at Shop A, 3/F & 4/F., Grand Tower, 639 Nathan Road, Mongkok, KLN.
Business Shop A 3/F & 4/F., Grand Tower, 639 Nathan Road, Mongkok, KLN.
Business Hours: 7:00am - 12:00am(3/F)

As they have so many outlets, you can check out the full listing at their website,
http://www.taoheung.com.hk/eng/main/index.jsp

Off to Hongkong!!! (",)

Am off to HK from 13th - 16th Apr! Will share my HK food adventures when I am back! Byez peeps! ;)

My Mum's Cuisine

On Wednesday,YP & JY and I had lunch together & since the weather was so warm, we decided to head to an air-conditioned place for lunch. So JY drove us to Novena Square & since we were totally clueless on what to eat, we decided to walk around for some inspiration, haha. That's when we stumbled upon "My Mum's Cuisine". I have previously heard about this place and the reviews seemed not bad so we decided to settle for lunch here. (As this meal was totally unexpected so I did not bring my camera but special thanks to my iphone! Am pretty happy with the quality of the peeks taken *chuckles*).

Since the restaurant was having set lunches promotion, we decided to order 3 different sets for sharing. JY decided on the Assam Prawn, YP on the Hainanese Beef & I decided to try the Honey Pork Ribs. Each set comes with the rice, tofu soup & vegetable. It also came with a drink & dessert. All these for just $13.90++ which is indeed Value for $ =)

They were pretty generous with the servings of the prawns (in total of about 6 prawns). The taste was not as "Assam" as we expected. It basically tasted sourish due to the pineapples used for the gravy. We could not really taste the tamarind which will give it that special kick to this Nonya dish (keke, Just so you know Assam means sour in Malay & the main ingredient used is the Tamarind which gives it that lingering & sourish flavour).

Assam Prawns set

The Hainanese Beef was well stewed! The meat was very tender and the gravy was succulent & sweet due to the carrots, onions & radish used. Simply delicious & goes very well with the rice! ;)

Hainanese Beef set

The Honey Pork ribs looked pretty with the glaze on however, the meat was rather tough & too chewy for our liking. The sauce was slightly oily too (as can be seen in this peek).

Honey Pork ribs

Next, we had the almond pudding which came with the sets. When the almond pudding came, we were amused by the colour that it came in. The colour of the pudding was yellowish instead of the usual white. The pudding was very sticky & there was no almond taste at all. Instead, the condensed milk took the stage which made it too sweet & also explained why the colour was such :(

Almond pudding

I had initially wanted to change my almond pudding to the chendol (I have heard pretty good reviews about) but was told that I can only change it to Pulut Hitam (Black Glutinous rice with coconut milk). Since I am also a fan of Pulut Hitam, I took it instead. However, it turned out to be rather disappointing. It was watery & the coconut milk was slightly too much for this small little bowl of glutinous rice.

Pulut Hitam

Overall, we still had a pretty good lunch! The Hainanese beef would rank No.1 amongst the 3 sets followed by the Assam prawns & Honey Pork ribs. I would not mind coming back to try the other dishes & next time round, I will definitely order the much raved about Chendol! ;)

My Mum's Cuisine is located at 238 Thomson Road, #02-76 Novena Square. 

Forty Hands

Yesterday, I went to check out Forty Hands with BBC since I have heard raving reviews about this place. It is located at one corner of the old neighbourhood of Tiong Bahru. The place is rather cramped as it is not a big space to begin with. It was very crowded & so we did not manage to sit indoors. We took the outdoor seats where they were located below the 1st floor & to get down, you would need to walk down a metal staircase. (which to me, found it rather inconvenient as one would need to walk up to go in & place an order & to take water). Also, it can get rather warm due to the climate in Singapore!

I ordered a cup of Flat White ($5) & look how pretty it was :) The coffee was creamy, smooth & had a robust taste to it, I like! The only thing (in my own opinion) was that the coffee was rather pricey.

Flat White

We ordered the Eggs Benedict ($12) for sharing. Look at the plate they served it on! How nostalgic! ;) We love the Eggs Benedict here as it was slightly different from the usual ones that we normally had. Just underneath the piece of ham lie....the boiled spinach! Surprising find! BBC even commented that "all the ingredients complemented each other well & there was no instance where a bread was just a bread, the eggs just being the eggs." Haha, does that make sense? ;) Yes, it was slurped up in no time! We love it! =)

Eggs Benedict 

We also ordered a Jamaican Pork Sandwich ($9.50) which comes with the grilled pork, chunks of tomatoes, raisins, cheese, sunflower seeds & mango. Sounds delicious right? ;) But a pity, this was not the case *Shook heads*. The bread was very dry & the servings inside was limited. There was only like 2 small slices of pork (which tasted dry) & very small pieces of mango. Sad to say so, this was disappointing :(

Jamaican Pork Sandwich

Haha, we are still not done yet.... Being the greedy foodie us, how can we not order the famous Tau Sar Pao ($2.50)! This must be the most expensive Tau Sar Pao (bun filled with red bean paste) that I have ever eaten! ;) The skin was soft & trust me, we thought it was not piping hot but we were wrong! The red bean paste was still hot (we like) & it was smooth, not too sweet & pretty fragrant. Overall, if you were to ask me whether there's anything unusual about this, my honest answer would be NO! It tasted very much like any other good Tau Sar Pao that you can get elsewhere! Haha, I doubt I would ever pay so much again to enjoy this childhood treat! ;) (haha, whilst writing this, I can't help but realized that their Pao is not the right Pinyin, it should be Bao, LOL).

Tau Sar Pao

I do not think that I would purposely made a trip here as the place was really small & the food was pretty average with not much varieties as well. Can't really comment on the service as it was pretty much self service from going to the counter to place the orders & pouring of water. FYI, this place does not charge GST & Service charge :) Right now, they are also having a 10% off if you pay using HSBC card (which I missed out when I placed my 1st order & nope, I was not informed by the cashier when making payment...hmm)

Forty Hands is located at Blk 78 Yong Siak Street #01-12.