Hong Kong!

All I ever hear from evereyone about Hong Kong is:

1. "You'd love the food there."

2. "You're going to eat so much."

3. "The dim sum! ! !! !!"

And you know what?  It's all true.  It was hard to find a bad meal in Hong Kong no matter what!

I wish I could narrow it down to my favorite-favorite-favoritest thing but it's all really too delicious to even think about, so let's just start from the top.

THE GOOSE.

I never heard of roast geese before I came to Hong Kong, but apparently it's very much a thing, to the point where people even get them freeze-packed and bring them back to the States.

We ate up as much goose as we could from Yat Lok, a dingy little spot full of locals eating strands of beautiful rice noodles.

The most fun thing to get is the goose leg, because it's a gloriously large hunk of roasted meat propped on the plate.  You can get it on rice or in noodles.

That awesome, crispy skin.

Non-leg portions are meaty cuts of breast.  

What does goose taste like?

Like duck, but twice as meaty and just as succulent - in other words, pure poultry heavennnn.

Once I got half roast pork and half roast duck over rice.

The roast pork is sweet and nice, but just nothing really compares to that ever tender goose.

GOOSE.  I can't get enough. I love it. I miss it. I wish I could eat this everyday.

THE WONTON NOODLES.

Hong Kong is the mecca of wonton noodle soup.  The most well-known spot is Mak's Noodle, with a few locations around the city.  One of the family members of Mak's Noodle decided to open up his own space, called Mak Man Kee Noodle Shop, serving up the same type of noodles.

The noodles are thin eggy strands in a clean, tasty little broth with a few beautiful lumps of shrimp dumplings.

The dumpling wrappers are thin and slippery, wrapped around perfectly cooked shrimp.

And while people say Mak's is the best, I actually preferred a random spot we sat in on called Tsim Chai Kee.

The king prawn noodles come with rice noodles and three dumplings to a bowl for a little over two dollars.

The dumplings are heftier - chock full of meaty prawns, and if you're a shrimp lover, these are definitely the dumplings for you.

And every Hong Kong spot has a jar of chili oil on the table, and it's just the best goshdarn condiment to ever go with wonton noodle soup.  Don't forget to add it to your bowl and love life as much as we did!

THE SEAFOOD.

Everywhere you see fresh seafood in Hong Kong, especially near the night markets.

We tried to find a good sit-down spot near the night markets, and asked for recommendations from a nearby drugstore.  The gentleman was kind enough to write us directions in Chinese, and we ended up finding it a few blocks away.  To this day, we still have no idea what the name of this place is.  Only locals go, and they all order hot pot.  Since we were language impaired, and the menu is fully in Chinese, we ordered by picture (serious language fail).

The pictures did not deceive though!  The lobster pot was lightly flavored, fresh and beautifully cooked.

The mantis shrimp came topped with irresistible garlic chili crumble.

The shell is quite hard to pry with your fingers, so the dish comes with scissors to snip down the underbelly of the shrimp.  Creepy and fun.

THE MANGO DRINKS.

Hui Lau Shan is like the McDonalds of mango drinks in Hong Kong.  They have layered drinks of any type of tropical fruit with toppings like coconut cream, aloe and tapioca, and it's awesome!

I love how the ordering system works - the lady just wets the receipt and slaps it onto the plastic partition for the drinkmakers to work.

Our favorite was coconut, mango and tapioca.  Why is mango so good?  Why do I ask silly questions?

I think we drank one of these everyday when vacation calories don't exist !

THE SNACKS.

My eyes ogled so many snacks on the streets!

Pancake balls.

Regular cutie pancakes with red bean filling.

But it was the masterfully made crepe that stole our stomachs.

(And maybe the condensed milk that really convinced me.)

The crepe was so thin and crisp and held up well to the hot blueberry and condensed milk filling - such a fantastic little nighttime snack.

Later we saw this gent manning the clay pot rice station and wished we had room to eat this!

THE HONG KONG BREAKFAST.

We caught wind of the traditional Hong Kong breakfast and had to see what it was about.  The it place to go is Sing Heung Yuen, an open air restaurant in Central frequented by locals sharing tables and ignoring each other as they eat a delicious breakfast.

You start with a milk tea, so creamy and light.

Then you order a bowl of tomato macaroni soup.  The soup can come with egg, beef, ham and other fixings.  Ours is egg and ham.

And while you never conceived of eating tomato macaroni egg ham soup for breakfast before, it surprisingly really works - the broth is sweet and light, and the whole dish screams of absolute comfort.

The recipe is a family secret though - the balance of canned and fresh tomatoes and lots of love.  We have tried to make versions of this at home since the trip, and while we come close, nothing tops the original!

Other specialties include condensed milk toast.  There's a couple versions including one with fluffy toasted bread with huge slabs of butter and condensed milk.

The other with pandan spread, condensed milk and butter toasted on bun.  I'd recommend this one for the better balance of fun and flavor, though who could resist the above bread with all that buttuuuhhhh.

And of course, you know it.

THE DIM SUM.

The must try for most people is Tim Ho Wan, the cheapest Michelin star restaurant in the world.  Tim Ho Wan has a few locations in Hong Kong, and all purportedly have long waits.  You just have to grab your number from the hostess, gawk at everyone and what they are eating, and wait kind of patiently.

Luckily, we only had to wait 15 minutes at the Hong Kong station location.  The menu comes with pictures and English translations which is helpful.  Look at the size of the phoenix talons!

The most unique dish is the petal cake - gelatinous cubes with bits of flowers and herbs inside. 

It tastes kind of medicinal but is completely refreshing - a terrific palate cleanser between other dim sum bites.

Tim Ho Wan's most popular dish is the roast pork buns.



They are exquisite little affairs, an aerated, crispy shell wrapped around moist, roasted pork.

Turnip cake was tender and creamy - I wished they were a little more crisped up, but the flavor was subtle and good.

Shrimp rolls came unadorned, and you top it with soy sauce at your preference.

But you gotta top it with soy sauce.  Look how much better that looks!  And tastes!  The rice noodle wrappers and shrimp were perfect.  This is always my favorite dim sum dish.

Until this guy came along.  Steamed egg cake.  The softest, most tender, and lightest cake to ever touch my lips - I gotta bring out the dramatics for such a surprisingly tasty treat!

Beef ball with bean curd were especially thick and meaty.

Dumpling teochew style had a medley of mayhem inside - peanuts, dried shrimp, pork, chives and more.

Shrimp dumplings were adorable - thin chewy wrappers with lovely shrimp nestled within.

The shu mai were bite-sized beauties of pork and shrimp.

The pumpkin soup was warm and sweet

with soft little tapioca pearls hidden at the bottom.  A simple sweet treat to round out the meal.

And true to its reputation, Tim Ho Wan was cheap - about $18 bucks for this whole feast.  Worth the visit?  Definite yes, if not for those roast buns, the petal cake and the steamed cake alone.

My favorite dim sum spot though was actually One Dim Sum in North Point.  Lunch wait was only 15 minutes, and the staff was so nice.

Roast pork buns come soft and glistening.

The pork filling is always sweet and tasty.

The shrimp dumplings were ace.

The special, scribbled on the wall behind the cashier, is a must-get - a soft roll of mango dipped in coconut.

The rice rolls are better here than Tim Ho Wan, with chewier wrapper and snap peas (what a differentiator!).

The roast pork and chive rolls were so fun and flavorful.

The shumai, cragglier versions than Tim's and full of porky shrimpy goodness.

And honestly, the whole reason we came here was because of this guy.  Sesame balls.  My other absolute favorite thing at dim sum (I'm totally the girl that cries favorite at dim sum).

Except.

These sesame balls have BLACK SESAME FILLING.

Did you just hear those angels sing when that photo unleashed on your computer screen?

Ugh.  I loved these too much.  Chewy, crispy, sweet and gooey.  Oh One Dim Sum, teach your ways to the rest of the world - we need this everywhere!

Hong Kong, I hate you for ruining me for dim sum for life, and I love you for showing me how good it really can be.

Now I'm going to eat a boring bagel for breakfast.

----

The Hong Kong rundown:

For goose: 
Yat Lok
G/F, 34-38 Stanley Street, Central, Hong Kong

For wonton noodles:
Mak Man Kee Noodle Shop
G/F, 51 Parkes Street, Jordan, Hong Kong

Tsim Chai Kee Noodles
Shop B, G/F Jade Centre, 98 Wellington Street, Central

For mango drinks:
Hui Lau Shan 
Multiple locations

For Hong Kong breakfast:
Sing Heung Yuen
2 Mei Lun Street, Central

For dim sum:
Tim Ho Wan
Shop 12A, Hong Kong Station (Podium Level 1, IFC Mall) , Central, Hong Kong

One Dim Sum
G/F, 18 Shell Street, North Point, Hong Kong

Tum & Yum in My Tum

This is a mini-post with mini pictures for this quick dinner I had with Jean on the Upper West side.  In a little known area called Manhattan Valley (this funky area between the beginning of Harlem and the UWS), is a Thai mecca.  So many Thai places that the eye can see (or maybe like four or five)!

We tried the newcomer, Tum & Yum, and while the volume of business seems mostly take-out and delivery, the restaurant is nice enough for a sit-down meal as well - just don't expect killer service.

We tried the sawai fish dipped appetizer - we were sold after the menu described it as being served with a "sassy dipping sauce."  We love sass.  And it did deliver a bit of some!  Blanched chunks of white fish with garlic and celery and a tangy, spicy fish sauce.

The curries, green and massaman, were really tasty, plenty of rich coconut flavor and large slices of chicken breast.

While the serving is plenty to split into two meals, somehow we were both gauging how much we eat based on how much the other ate, and we both ended up finishing the entire bowl. Whoops!

PS. The Thai iced tea is solid also.  

Han's Nonsensical Rating: I always say God bless the tasty Thai restaurant, and thank you for always having great lunch specials. Tum & Yum is a solid spot with really good curries!

Tum & Yum
917 Columbus Ave
New York, NY 10025

A Night Out: Dhaba & The Cecil

Dinner at Dhaba is a cozy affair, tables nestled closely together, people reaching into baskets of piping hot naan and dipping into steel bowls and shared plates.

My friends love Dhaba for their lunch buffet, which I definitely need to check out soon after a such a warm, tasty meal during dinner.

Carrie, the boy and I dined on chicken kali mirch, chicken in creamy peppercorn sauce that is so spicy and good, chicken chutneywala, a sweeter, just as creamy dish made with mango puree and green masala,

basmati rice topped with adorably bright peas, and

piping hot garlic naan, the absolute must for any Indian meal (and makeout session)!  Dhaba is pretty aggressive about clearing tables after your meal, but just keep those garlic naan baskets coming, and they'll eventually get the clue (that you're a naan-eating monster here to stay).

We headed back to my neighborhood afterwards for a nightcap at The Cecil, where we previously checked out brunch (the burger is pretty tasty), but it was time to try their cocktails and dessert.

The scene at night was especially vibrant and fun, with lots of laughter, and we even witnessed an ecstatically-accepted proposal while we shared spiced nyangbo crema, a spiced chocolate mousse accented with sponge cake and cardamom ice cream,

and the sweet potato beignets that were best eaten immediately, while hot, otherwise turned rather gluggy and dense.  The citrus glaze was fun, but the sweet potato flavor was a bit lacking.

All in all, a full-belly kind of night with my favorite people - the best kinds of nights!

Han's Nonsensical Rating: Honestly, I just love any place with perfectly hot, charred garlic naan. Dhaba delivers ! (on the naan, but also literally through Seamless)  The Cecil is still one of the best date spots in Harlem, but skip the beignets.

Dhaba
108 Lexington Ave
New York, NY

The Cecil
206 W 118th St
New York, NY

Oh, the Biscuits! at Pearl Dive Oyster Bar

Coincidentally, I have also been spending a lot of time in Washington, D.C. for a new project, so am sharing one of my favorites that the team and I have frequented during the past weeks.

Pearl Dive Oyster Bar.

Cool name, cool place, cool people.

For happy hour (4p-7p daily), all oysters are half price.  That's $1.25 per oyster - for any of the oysters in Pearl Dive's daily selection - a total steal and great reason to eat your weight in oysters!  (You know we are all looking for a reason!)  The oysters are listed in order of sweetness to saltiness.

 

We ordered the wide assortment, unable to hold ourselves back from these freshly shucked beauties.

And when we polished a fat dozen in minutes, we didn't hold our breath in ordering a second round of our favorites.

My personal favorite was from Sewansecott, VA - plump buggers, plenty sweet with a touch of brine.  A squeeze of lemon, and life was great!

We've tried their other appetizers also - parmesan crusted calamari was a special of the day, perfectly battered and crunchy.  

We've also had the mariscos de campechana (not pictured) - a ceviche meets guacamole medley of seafood including oysters, shrimp, and blue crab that is piled high in martini glass that is so fresh and light, and perfect for sharing.

With the entrees come the best part of the meal:

free biscuits and corn muffins !

It's honestly all of our favorites.  Look at the joy it brings my coworker!

The biscuits and muffins are served warm.  The biscuits are so soft and buttery, and when you add even more butter, you realize that you're literally in heaven - don't get any butter on your halo!  Pearl is smart to serve the biscuits later in the meal, because once you start eating them, you only want more.

So we order a second basket of them.

Cause you just haaaave to pair the biscuits with the mussels, which is offered as an appetizer, but I eat as a meal.  This is what a full pound of mussels looks like.

The mussels are amazing, and the broth, wonderfully spiced and tangy.  I dunk everything into the broth.  The biscuits, the toasted bread it's served with, my face.  Everything tastes great in this broth !

Yes, I ate a whole pound of mussels.  Most of the weight is in the shells, right? Muahaha.

My coworkers ordered different varieties of the gumbo (duck, seafood, and shrimp), which all looked virtually the same - thick and rich (and also perfect for cleaning up with the biscuits!). 

And we all couldn't turn down the great dessert list.

Key lime comes with an adorable ice cream cone hat (and is the tartest key lime I've ever had - word of warning!).

The special was a pumpkin pie with a brown sugar crumble and candied ginger.  Exceptionally creamy and spiced just right with warm cinnamon.  Definitely order if it's available.

The brownie mousse cake, with layer of thick brownie, chocolate mousse and and vanilla mousse, topped with glistening roasted cherries was also a beautiful sight for hungry eyes.

The existence of Pearl Dive within walking distance of our hotel makes traveling for work a little less painful.  I think I'll definitely be making another visit this week and checking out their fried oysters for a little quality control ;).

Han's Nonsensical Rating: Buttery biscuits. Fresh oysters. Awesome mussels. Tasty desserts.  Dining perfection.

Pearl Dive Oyster Palace
1612 14th St NW
Washington D.C. 20009

District of Pi

Last weekend I visited Dan, who recently moved to DC to start a new gig. You know what that means! There will definitely be DC eats to explore and report. His apartment is - as fate would have it - a few blocks from District of Pi. Why fate? Because that means we get to eat pizza from our favorite St. Louis joint Pi all the time now! 

It is just as delicious as we remembered. The space is super trendy (hello, exposed brick) and HUGE. Check plus.

We started with the house salad. Light, good ratio of fixin's… there could have been a tad more dressing throughout, but maybe they wanted to make sure we saved our caloric intake for the pizza to come.

And then. The "western addition." Our go-to Pi masterpiece: mozzarella, spinach blended with ricotta and feta, mushrooms, onions, and garlic.

We love the deep-dish cornmeal crust. We love the heaping amount of ingredients - the fresh tomatoes… and the GARLIC. If you have a relationship with garlic, this is the pizza to get. No question.

Then it was time for dessert -- the apple pi.

Basically, it's apple pie made with their famous cornmeal crust, and served with salted caramel ice cream. The crumble on top was just the right kind of buttery and cinnamon-y. It was a great way to end our meal. My two minor complaints about it are a) it could have been served warmer (I prefer Hot to Kinda-warm), and b) the very bottom of the crust was impossible to cut through. If they manage to make those two changes, I'd be having the apple pi every day of the week!

So excited to visit DC more now and check out some mouth-watering spots.

Stay tuned!

District of Pi

910 F St NW

Washington, DC 20004

202.393.5484

The Banana Mille Feuille at Lady M

I love when people describe themselves going bananas over something.  It can be anything.  You can go bananas over bananas, and I'd love it.  I experienced a case of the bananas myself at Lady M just a couple weeks ago.

The Taiwan fortune teller from last year told me I would have lots of luck, and she was right, as I nabbed the last slice of the beautiful banana mille feuille.  It's a gorgeous structure featuring long slabs of banana wedged in between pastry cream, fluffy golden sponge cake, atop a crackly thin pastry shell.  I spent the afternoon gabbing with Carrie and balancing perfect bites of buttery pastry, smooth cream, and ripe banana.  Life's hard, right?

Carrie opted for the bakery's signature treat, the classic vanilla mille feuille, that's hand-cut to order with such precision.

Mille feuille means a thousand layers, and some may argue whether or not there's a thousand layers of crepes and cream, and who knows if you'd like it less if you only found 254 layers in total, because the dessert is still so airy and light and lovely.

Carrie wanted to make sure everyone noticed the delicate, feathery crepe edges at the end of the cake.  So please ogle and admire away !

Each time I've visited Lady M, it is full of ladies that love tea and dessert, and that's the right spot for me !  The pastries are so pretty, taste great, and make a great spot to warm up this winter with friends - especially after a visit to The Frick Collection!

Lady M

41 E 78th St

New York, NY