As expected, we woke up the next morning feeling rather jetlagged. Our plan for the day was to just get acquainted with our surroundings and explore the area of Mong Kok.
Mong Kok is one of the busiest and most congested districts in Hong Kong, if not the world. You'll find the famous Ladies' Market here, as well as Sneakers Street, Flower Market, even Goldfish Street. Spoiler alert: it's exactly what it sounds like.
Our hotel provided a free hourly shuttle bus that stopped in Mong Kok and in Tsim Sha Tsui. Mong Kok was relatively close to the hotel, but it was still nice and convenient to take the bus since we were going to be walking all day anyways. Also, an air-conditioned bus beats sweating it out in 30°C heat.
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My mom and I ordered two items to share: scrambled eggs with black truffle ($42.00 HKD = $6.96 CAD) and French toast with kaya jam ($26.00 HKD = $4.31 CAD).
There's bad scrambled eggs and then there's good scrambled eggs. For whatever reason, Hong Kong has really good scrambled eggs. They add Hokkaido milk and butter, resulting in creamy soft curds. So simple, but so good! I didn't really notice any "black truffle" flavour from the bits they sprinkle on, so you're better off just getting the scrambled eggs on toast by itself. Much cheaper at $20 HKD, but same delicious satisfaction!
As for the French toast, Hong Kong-style is *the* way to go. How is the Hong Kong version different? Well for one, it's literally deep fried and served with a slab of butter on top. Add a good slathering of Kaya (coconut) jam in the middle and you're pretty much eating dessert for breakfast.
My dad ordered one of the Western breakfast combos advertised on the table. Scrambled eggs, bacon, corn, baked beans, hashbrown, and toast. It also comes with a drink; my dad got an iced milk tea.
After breakfast, we walked around the surrounding area. Not a lot of shops were open yet as it was still pretty early in the day. Remember Goldfish Street? Here's one of the hawker stalls.
Mong Kok is also famous for its street food. I was on a quest to eat stinky tofu this trip but we were either too full for it or the specific stall I found wasn't open yet. I did, however, get my curry fish ball fix! Only $10 HKD for a skewer.
The stall we ordered from was literally next door to another street food stand. We chose this one as there was more people in front of it. Go where the locals go!
Off to do some shopping, we went to Langham Place, the largest shopping mall in Mong Kok. I'm not sure if this was a pop-up or a year-round thing but there was a Gudetama area in the main atrium selling all sorts of branded drinks, cookies, and ice cream.
Gudetama (a lazy egg) is literally my spirit animal.
Muji food haul. The pasta sauces are surprisingly good.
Also, can Muji open up a store in Edmonton? And can Uniqlo come with?
After shopping through Langham, we started to get a bit peckish. We went to the 4th floor food court in search of Yum Cha, a modern restaurant chain serving up Instagram-worthy dim sum. The literal translation of Yum Cha is "drink tea."
Dim sum is not proper dim sum without drinking tea, so "yum cha" is a term that encapsulates the whole meal and experience.
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Another popular dish is their baked pineapple puffs ($59 HKD = $9.80 CAD). Pineapple cakes are a traditional Taiwanese pastry that contain a pineapple jam filling. Here, the puffs are shaped into little birds and presented in their own little bird cage. Superrrrrr extra.
(But I love it.)
Our last dish was spicy turnip cakes ($59 HKD = $9.80 CAD). Cubes of lo bak go (turnip cake) are wok-fried with XO sauce, peppers, bean sprouts, and lotus root chips. At home, Wok N Roll does a pretty good version.
Overall, I thought Yum Cha was a fun spot to enjoy some creative dim sum. A bit pricey for sure, but can you really put a price on happiness?
Leaving Langham, we stumbled upon a bunch of small outdoor markets. My dad got a fresh sugarcane juice to quench his thirst.
My mom would buy fruit from these markets to eat back at the hotel. Mostly longans which are easy to peel and eat. My personal favourite are mangosteens (bottom left).
Next up, Ladies Market! This street spanning one kilometre basically sells everything. Souvenirs, cheap trinkets, electronics, and questionable fake designer goods. Be prepared to bargain! And don't be afraid to walk away to get a better price. Most of the time, there will be another street stall selling the same thing for cheaper.
All sorts of food keychains! Grabbed a couple for my sister who collects keychains from around the world.
Engrish magnets. My personal favourite is "sausage looking."
Another cool moment at the Ladies Market, we saw a crew filming some sort of action scene with actors chasing each other down the street. Look mom, maybe I'll be on TV!
After going back to the hotel to rest, we went out for dinner later that night at one of the few remaining dai pai dong restaurants in Hong Kong. Dai pai dongs are big open-air food stalls where food is literally cooked on the street. Due to changing laws, dai pai dongs are a slowly disappearing breed of restaurant, with only 25 licensed dai pai dongs left in the whole of Hong Kong.
Oi Man Sang is one of them, and has been around since 1956 in the Sham Shui Po area. The kitchen is literally in the middle of the street, while seating is a mix of indoor and outdoor tables. We chose indoor (God bless air-con). Kudos to the chefs working outside next to burning, flaming woks.
We ordered three different dishes, all popular high-sellers according to the symbols on the menu. The first dish is a quintessential dai pai dong staple, stir fried clams with black bean and chili sauce ($88 HKD = $14.62 CAD). This was spicier than we expected it to be but it was still delicious!
Next, deep fried squid w/ peppered salt ($98 HKD = $16.28 CAD). According to my dad, this would be a good "drinking" food. I could see why. Crispy, salty, garlic-y. This would be up anyone's alley.
Our last item was the stir-fried beef fillet & potatoes in black pepper sauce ($98 HKD = $16.28 CAD). Well-seasoned cubes of beef, although my parents thought it could've been more tender. The potatoes were a nice surprise! Soft and tender, with flavour permeating all the way through.
After rolling ourselves out of the restaurant, we took a bus back to the hotel. A good first full day in the books!
- CT
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