Travel: Hong Kong

Nearest MTR: Sai Ying Pun

This should definitely be ordered if you visit this place. They were super generous with their beef, which was tender and tasty. Because the beef itself is so flavourful, you don't really need to add much sauce to flavour the rice lest it gets too salty. Mixing the whole thing (including the half-cooked egg) produces a really good bowl of beef egg claypot rice. Should order this if you come!

Nearest MTR: Sai Ying Pun

The chicken was well-marinated and super tender. The preserved sausage was really tasty as well, not too salty unlike some of those in Singapore. They didn't have any salted fish bits unlike our Singaporean versions. Overall, this isn't too different from what we have in Singapore and their other claypot bowls are probably more interesting to try.

Nearest MTR: Sai Ying Pun

This was sooo good. The vegetables were cooked perfectly, and super fresh. The squid also was cooked just right, so it wasn't too tough. It is a relatively simple dish, but was quite flavourful as well. Really reminiscent of zi char back in Singapore.

Nearest MTR: Causeway Bay

Apparently a really good ramen chain from Japan, this was certainly quite impressive. The restaurant is designed quite uniquely, so everyone sits in a single cubicle facing inwards to eat their ramen. You start off with a basic price, and get to customise your flavour, add-ons, quantity etc. by filling up the order sheet. I think what's good about this system is that you can decide how 'gao' you want your broth to be, as well as the consistency of your noodles. Nevertheless, while this was good, I felt that you could get similar stuff in Singapore so it wasn't particularly mind blowing.

Nearest MTR: Sheung Wan/Central

Although I personally prefer Portuguese egg tarts, this place does traditional egg tarts right. The crust was really flaky and buttery, and would crumble in your fingers should you hold it with too much force. The egg custard was super smooth and creamy, and overall it wasn't too sweet as well. Great for an afternoon snack. I wouldn't really bother with their other offerings though, it wasn't as good.

Nearest MTR: Sheung Wan

This looked like it had a lot of potential, but fell short of expectations. It definitely doesn't keep well (we took away and ate it a while later as a snack), and something turned super bitter. I suspect they used some sort of tea leaf in the cream or cake, and maybe it oxidised or something..? Anyway, it wasn't that great regardless. The saltiness was not consistent, and I couldn't figure out if it was in the cream or cake. The cake was quite dry, and not terribly delicious either. Didn't get any distinct ying yang taste, more of bitter tea.

Nearest MTR: Sheung Wan

This was quite disappointing tbh. While it looked really impressive (as was its price), this dessert was more form over substance. The cake was kind of dry, not particularly soft nor springy. The cream (normal cream) with nuts in it didn't really add anything to it either. In fact, it had a rather slick, oily texture that isn't very palatable. Was rather let down considering this was supposedly a good cafe.

Nearest MTR: Central, Gough St.

These beef noodles were soooo good. While usually there is a long queue, we were lucky enough to get a seat under 5. Don't let the clear soup fool you. It is incredibly flavourful and tasty, but super light. So you can basically keep slurping it down with no inhibitions. The beehoon also was well-cooked, with a springy texture. However the star was undoubtedly the beef brisket. It was mad tender, and flavourful on its own. It just falls apart in your mouth as well.

The curry sauce version is not lacking either. The noodles were basically mee pok, but thinner and a lot more palatable imo. It was almost a kway teow consistency. The curry sauce, while thick, didn't feel jelat, and it was super addictive to slurp the curry noodles. The beef tendon was also tender, although not being a fan of the collagen stuff I preferred the soup version. Should give beef brisket noodles a go if you come HK, even if you don't come to this particular stall!

Nearest MTR: Causeway Bay, Hysan Place, B2

While not as mind-blowing as their other offerings (peanut butter and liu sha), this was still really well done. The croissant was good on its own, but I really liked how the bo lo crust added extra crunch and sweetness to the pastry. If you want something lighter than peanut butter and liu sha, this would be a good option.

Nearest MTR: Causeway Bay, Hysan Place, B2

I had the good fortune of eating this as they were bringing out a fresh batch on a tray. The result is that the croissant was incredibly soft and flaky. The pastry was fluffy and light and delicious on its on. But coupled with the generous amount of hot, melty peanut butter inside, this is simply out of this world. Nothing like a hot croissant to start your day.

Nearest MTR: Causeway Bay, Hysan Place, B2

As if liu sha on its own is not sinful enough, Urban Bakery had to inject it into a flaky, buttery croissant. The croissant itself was super light and crispy outside, while still remaining very fluffy inside. If eaten fresh (within a day) the liu sha custard retains its thick consistency, and doesn't soak into the the croissant. It isn't too rich, so it's not jelat despite all the butter you're consuming with each one. If anything, you probably won't be able to stop at one, and will only think of the repercussions (calorie-wise) later. Definitely should get this when you're in HK.

Nearest MTR: Causeway Bay, at Hysan Place, Level 12

Words cannot even begin to describe my love for this dish. The rice noodles were springy and had a great chewy texture. There was also a great wok hei aroma. The beef slices were super tender and well-marinated. I really liked that the bean sprouts and spring onion were still crunchy, and tasted really fresh (probably only added at the last stage of cooking). It gave the dish a nice crunch, and helped to cut though the heaviness of it all. Should definitely order to share, since it's a huge portion served, and you want to reserve stomach space to try other things here.