SNAPSHOTS | HONG KONG 2018 | DAY 3

Every morning in Hong Kong was a bit of a waiting game. Out of habit (and mostly because of jetlag), we would wake up at around 7:00 or earlier. Unfortunately, there's not much to do or see at that time so we would just hang out in the hotel room. But naturally, hunger calls -- and you have to listen.

We ended up having breakfast at a cha chaan teng literally next door to our hotel. It opened right at 7:00 and had a few tables already occupied when we walked in. The breakfast menu was pretty basic and simple -- instant noodles, sandwiches, pineapple buns, etc.

My dad craved coffee while we were in Hong Kong, but good coffee wasn't so common to find. Instead, most locals drink milk tea (millions of gallons in fact). Hong Kong-style milk tea is a byproduct of former British colonial rule. It's made by combining black tea with evaporated milk, and sometimes condensed milk for sweetness. I might get my Asian card revoked for saying this, but I don't enjoy milk tea all that much. I much prefer my tea sans milk.       

Thought this was a cute little salt shaker.

My breakfast: spam and egg sandwich. Some people think of spam as ~MySteRy MeAt~ but for me, it's comfort food. Slap it between two pieces of white bread (crusts cut off) and it's childhood in a sandwich. It's something you can easily put together at home, but foods just tastes better when other people make it for you. I'm pretty sure there was a scientific study about that.

I kind of forgot what my parents ordered. One was an instant noodle soup with toppings of satay beef, spam, and eggs and the other was a vermicelli noodle soup with ham and vegetables.

We also went to a local bakery nearby. Egg tarts are always a safe bet!

At the 10:00 mark, we boarded the hotel shuttle bus and got off at Tsim Sha Tsui (TST). TST is probably one of the most popular tourist areas in Hong Kong. Lots of high-end shopping and tourist attractions.

Since I live the peasant life, Irvins Salted Egg was the only thing I was excited to find in Harbour City mall. (It's probably the only thing I could afford there anyways.)

Like Korea's "honey butter chip," salted egg chips exploded in popularity in the past year or so. Irvins is a brand from Singapore, and is supposedly the best one. They sell three different kinds of salted egg snacks, including potato chips, fish skin, and cassava chips.  The larger bags are about $110 HKD (~$18.25 CAD) while the smaller bags are $55 HKD ($9.12 CAD). Pretty pricey for potato chips, but because of their popularity, customers are limited to only 5 bags each. Naturally, we got our maximum quota and bought 15.

With their tagline "dangerously addictive," it's pretty easy to see why, although I personally couldn't handle having more than a handful each time. They're pretty heavy handed with the salted egg and curry leaf seasoning so the chips are almost too indulgent after a while. Having tried both the fish skin and the potato chip, I would definitely recommend getting the fish skin! The potato chips were a bit too soft for my liking while the fish skin was nice and crunchy.   

We stored our snack stash in a locker, and then set out to explore the waterfront. The skyline of Hong Kong Island is just incredible and a sight to behold. Definitely make time to see it in the daytime, as well as at night. 

Shots of the Clock Tower and of the Hong Kong Cultural Centre.

As it was getting close to lunch time, we decided to check out Din Tai Fung (DTF) in Silvercord. If you're well-versed in the food world, you probably already know about DTF. Originating from Taiwan, DTF is famous for their xiao long bao (soup dumplings). They have locations across the world, including in Australia, Japan, Malaysia, the United States, and Dubai. In 2009, this particular location in Hong Kong was awarded a Michelin star.  

You can't go to DTF and not get their xiao long bao, so we got an order of their signature steamed pork dumplings ($60 HKD = ~$9.95 CAD). The skin is probably the highlight of these dumplings: thin, delicate, and expertly folded. We thought the filling on the other hand was a bit small, and the flavour was just average.

We also ordered the egg fried rice with shrimps ($90 HKD = ~$14.92 CAD), the drunken chicken in Shaoxing rice wine ($75 HKD = ~$12.44 CAD) and the deep fried fish with special sauce ($58 HKD = ~$9.62 CAD). The last two dishes are purposefully served cold, which was a bit of an adjustment for me. I especially liked the flavour of the fish, but thought it would've been better if it was hot. Eating it cold gave that 'leftovers out of the fridge' kind of feeling. 

More dumplings! The pan-fried shrimp and pork dumplings ($82 HKD = ~$13.60 CAD) comes in orders of six, pan-fried with a bit of cornstarch and water to create that crispy lattice coating. These were probably my favourite item of the meal!

After lunch, my mom wanted to see the "Avenue of Stars." Modelled after the Hollywood Walk of Fame, the Avenue honours different celebrities with statues and their handprints. The original location by the waterfront was closed for renovations, so we had to walk further than we originally intended to their temporary location.  

Tsang Chi Wai was a big part of my childhood. Who else remembers Super Trio? (I had to google the actual name of the show since we always called it Super Sunday (the day it aired) as kids.)

Eventually we got tired of walking in the heat, so we took the shuttle bus back to the hotel to rest up before dinner.

Dinner was at Four Seasons Claypot Rice, a humble eatery located in Yau Ma Tei. Claypot rice is basically what the name implies. Rice is cooked and served in a clay pot, topped with chicken, pork, Chinese sausage, or whatever your heart desires. The pots are traditionally cooked over charcoal stoves, and then served with soy sauce. The addition of soy sauce in the scorching hot clay pot helps create a layer of crispy rice at the bottom of the bowl.

We ordered two claypots, one with Chinese sausage and chicken, the other with Chinese sausage and pork chop. The meats were nice and tender, but as a whole, the dish was just okay. It's mostly rice anyways, so it's not the most exciting thing you can eat. It's probably a dish that better suits the winter as it sticks to your ribs.

Finally some green veggies! There's so many different kinds of Chinese greens that I'm not 100% sure what kind this one was, but if I had to guess, this was steamed morning glory (or water spinach), served with fermented bean curd sauce. I made the mistake of dipping my first bite into too much sauce and was hit with a pungent salt bath. 

Another dish they're known for is their duck egg oyster cake. Baby oysters and green onions are mixed together in an egg batter, and then basically deep fried into small pancakes. As you can tell by their glisten, these were extremely oily and greasy.

This restaurant is packed with locals and it's really a place with no frills. Good to experience once, but not sure if I would go back.

The restaurant ended up being super close to Temple Street Night Market, so we walked over to check it out.

It's quite similar to what you would find at Ladies Market over in Mong Kok, although stalls don't begin to set up until the evening. Still a fun place to walk through.

Day 3, fin.

- CT