Ah I do love a good food post so here are two of my favourite meals when I was away in Hong Kong. First up, the most important social occasion with any Cantonese family is yum cha where we consume masses of lots of little dishes which are collectively called ‘dim sum’. I’ve heard it described as a Chinese tapas and it sort of is! I eat it regularly on a Sunday with family but when in HK, it is definitely more interesting as there are so many more variations! This one is a particularly relaxed restaurant called East Ocean Restaurant over in Taikoo (HK island) which is one of our regular haunts. Mostly, it is a convenient location from where we live in HK and serves decent dim sum which isn’t too greasy so ticks a lot of boxes for my family. So rather than a must-visit, it’s just a good example of dim sum!
Next up is one of my favourite places to eat…Din Tai Fung! I always visit their Causeway Bay location (see this post from last year) as it’s just 2 stops from our apartment. They are a Taiwanese chain and are famed for their soupy, Siu Long Bao (Shanghai Dumpling/Xiao Long Bao). To start we had some of their cold appetisers. This includes my favourite Cucumber in chilli oil but also some pickled bitter melon which I actually quite like. I’m sure most Chinese readers can relate to being forced to bitter melon as children – they are probably a Chinese kid’s version of brussel sprouts!
These won tons are always a winner but the real star of DTF are the fantastic Siu Long Bao. Seriously, I don’t even bother eating any Siu Long Bao in the UK anymore as they are often too big, too meaty or not enough soup and they can never compare to the amazingly thin dumplings that DTF are so well known for making. I like how they are steamed on a delicate muslin cloth with a teeny tiny piece of garlic. Always be careful not to tear the dumpling and lose all that soupy filling – disaster!
This time I convinced my dad to order the Pork and Black Truffle dumpling. Pretty pricey compared to the other dumplings but man, was it worth it. I’ll be ordering this again next time I go back for sure! The truffle creates this incredibly fragrant dumpling and tastes completely different to the original pork/prawn variation.
Both their branches in HK have Michelin stars too (the other one is in Tsim Sha Tsui). Generally, in HK I find that Michelin starred restaurants are wayyy more afforable than anything in the UK. I’m still patiently waiting for Din Tai Fung to open a resturant in the UK. You guys NEED to try them!
