Okonomiyaki in a Bag

I was recently in Hong Kong. Get to know what Hong Kong has to offer through my adventure. This is the 8th of 14 parts.

I always visit supermarkets abroad to hunt for interesting junk food flavors.

From all the chips I've tried during this Hong Kong trip, Calbee Okonomiyaki Potato Chips was my favorite.

12 HKD



nomnomnom



Admittedly, I'm a big fan of okonomiyaki so loving this was almost natural.

I especially appreciate the fact that the chips tasted very similar to real okonomiyaki.

Will certainly be hoarding Calbee Okonomiyaki Potato Chips next time I drop by HK.

Desserts Only at Yee Shun Milk Company

I was recently in Hong Kong. Get to know what Hong Kong has to offer through my adventure. This is the 7th of 14 parts.

Our second day in Hong Kong was full of activities that we didn’t have time for dinner. Most restaurants have closed when we decided to eat so we entered the first open restaurant. 

Yee Shun Milk Company

From the menu, it was obvious that Yee Shun Milk Company is more of a dessert place but we no longer cared.

Murtle and I wanted comfort food!

Pork Noodles (24HKD)

Porkchop was flavorful although a bit on the tough side. Noodles were of the instant noodles variety. Soup was forgettable.

Beef Noodles (22HKD)

I thought I had it bad but Murtle's order was worse. Zero flavors and beef was gooey.  I'm sure Murtle would have been happier eating Lucky Me.

Forget about the uninspired noodles though as I'm happy to report that Yee Shun Milk Company is good at making puddings!

Milk with Chocolate (21 HKD)

Exquisite!  Ice cream flavors without the guilt. Very light and refreshing.

There are other flavors of milk pudding on display which I will try next time...

Interesting

Bestseller

Dessert with A Twist

Yee Shun Milk Co. is such a  popular dessert place that a lot of people are willing to wait for a table late at night.

Scene When We Left

Yee Shun Milk Company is located at G/F 506 Lockhart Road, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong.

Love at City Hall Maxim's Palace

I was recently in Hong Kong. Get to know what Hong Kong has to offer through my adventure. This is the 6th of 14 parts.

When in Hong Kong, eating good dimsum is a must.

During this trip, I visited City Hall Maxim’s Palace in Central because it was crowned by HK Magazine readers to having the best dimsum in town.

This Proved Helpful

I figured that if Maxim's Palace is good enough for the locals, it surely will be good enough for me!

On purpose, Murtle and I arrived late (around 2 pm) to avoid the notoriously long lines during the lunch hour.

Sneak Peek

Being inside the City Hall building, this branch of Maxim’s Palace is a popular venue for weddings. It's good enough with its high ceiling and subtle elegance.



Don't Be Fooled. I Took This Picture During Closing Time

Who cares about ambiance as I'm .... 



So Raring To Eat

Aunties with carts of goodies roam Maxim’s Palace. Murtle and I tried an egg tart from this lady while waiting for our orders to arrive.

Egg Tart

We realized here that it's not unusual for Hong Kong egg tarts to have a strong lemon taste. This is hot and flaky.

On To What We Were Here For


3 Kinds of Barbeque (HKD 138)



With Ginger and Honey Sauce



Goose: Skin is very crispy. Perfect once dipped in the sticky sauce.

Chicken: Juicy with a clean taste. Everything I want in my chicken and more.

Asado: Succulent and very soft. Genuine pork taste and consistency. Hard to find asado this good in Manila.

Dimsum at Maxim’s Palace ranges from HKD28 to HKD 46. I was too busy eating to take down notes.

No Dimsum Meal is Complete Without These



Xiao Long Bao

Delicate skin + Flavorful broth + Generous portion of meat = One Yummy Dumpling

Hakaw

Delightful as shrimps are fresh and huge. Could eat this all day.



Spareribs

Nicely done as meat is oh so tender. I also love the chunks of fat each piece had!



Siomai



Saved the best for last!  Divine. Huge chunks of shrimp made it impossible for Murtle, who is allergic to shrimps, have a bite. Sorry Murtle, but you missed a lot.

We're not done as Murtle wanted dessert:

Mango Pudding

A thin film of milk covers this dessert. Sweet mango with a hint of lemon. Very refreshing.

Without a doubt, I had the most sumptuous dimsum experience of my life at Maxim’s Palace. From now on, I’ll make it a habit to visit this dimsum wonderland whenever I’m in Hong Kong.

There are other branches of Maxim’s Palace around the city but I strongly suggest for everyone to visit the City Hall branch as it's not rare to see newlyweds at the courtyard.

It's an interesting way to cap a perfect meal.

City Hall Maxim’s Palace is located at 2/F City Hall, Central. Business hours as follows: Monday to Saturday: 11:00 a.m.- 3:00 p.m.; 5:30 p.m. - 11:30 p.m. Sunday and Public Holidays: 9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.; 5:30 p.m. - 11:30 p.m. To locate other branches, try browsing this page.

More than Just Furniture Shopping at Ikea

I was recently in Hong Kong. Get to know what Hong Kong has to offer through my adventure. This is the 5th of 14 parts

Our first stop during our second day in Hong Kong was Ikea at Causeway Bay.

Nope, we didn’t shop for furniture but instead headed straight to Ikea's Bistro where light snacks are available.

Limited Menu

What We Had For "Breakfast:"

Swedish Meatballs (9HKD)

Worth the raves it gets. The meatballs are very flavorful with the fruity flavor of the gravy compensating for the little dryness experienced when eating the meatballs. The gravy made this snack a winner.

Hotdog (6HKD)

Tastes as dull as it looks. Pass on this.

Popcorn (4HKD)

Brings back childhood memories. Sweet and crispy!

Credit also goes to Ikea for its cute packaging concepts.



If you happen to drop by Ikea, do visit the Bistro if only for the meatballs!

Ikea has three branches in Hong Kong. Do visit the Shatin or the Kowloon Bay branch for a wider selection of food. For store information, do visit here.

We are in Delicious Land!

I was recently in Hong Kong. Get to know what Hong Kong has to offer through my adventure. This is the 4th of 14 parts

After our light meal at Mix, Murtle and I went on a whirlwind of activities that left us so exhausted even before night fell.

We retreated to our hotel room for an afternoon nap which unfortunately lasted longer than both of us wished. As a result, we not only lost precious time but also woke up so hungry that we rushed to have dinner at a restaurant near Wifi Hotel.

The signage is foreign but I got a chuckle when its English menu revealed that we were in Delicious Land Restaurant.

Translation: Delicious Land!!!



Window to Tempt Passersby

What Lies Inside:

No frills



No Frills Indeed: Bathroom Tissue Roll on a Plate

 

Murtle and I tried simple Chinese dishes which we knew would fill us up fast.

 Spareribs with Pineapple in Orange Sauce (78HKD)

Was not too thrilled how big the pork chunks were but the meat was thankfully very tender. The orange sauce was also very addictive as it had the perfect balance of sweet and sour. Yummy yummy yummy!

Steamed White Chicken with Vegetables (130HKD)

One bite of this chicken and I’m reminded of what I’m missing in Manila. The chicken was fresh and juicy making it unnecessary to mask the chicken with any type of dipping sauce. What an order of steamed chicken should always be.

I’m not sure if we were simply too hungry or the food was just that delicious that we managed to finish everything in a jiffy.

Only Pineapples Were Left

No Matter How Hungry I Am, I Still Say No to Vegetables

The dessert in the form of an egg tart didn’t fare too well though:

Egg Tart (4HKD)

Wasn’t even warm when it reached our table. Tasted artificial and had an overwhelming lemon flavor. Pass on this.

Tarts notwithstanding, I was pleasantly surprised how delicious (lol!) our meal at Delicious Land turned out to be. It made me believe that there was no bad food to be had in Hong Kong.

Delicious Land is located at 426-430 Lockhart Road, Wan Chai, Hong Kong.

Mix's Chicken Caesar Wrap

I was recently in Hong Kong. Get to know what Hong Kong has to offer through my adventure. This is the 3rd of 14 parts

For our first meal in Hong Kong, Murtle and I shared a Chicken Caesar Wrap from Mix at its ThreeSixty branch. ThreeSixty is a popular organic and natural food store in Hong Kong. It also has a food hall where different concessionaires offer healthy meals for people on the go.

At the Food Hall

I became curious of Mix’s Chicken Caesar Wrap because of lifestyle blogger, Chuvaness. Chuvaness has featured the wrap on her blog many times so I made a mental note to check it out.

Wrap Choices

There’s also a wide selection of fresh ingredients that one can choose from Mix but I was all set in trying the Chicken Caesar Wrap.

The Chicken Caesar wrap can be served hot or cold. I chose to have it hot as recommended by Chuvaness.


Chicken Caesar Wrap (42HKD)

The wrap certainly tasted like caesar salad . Light with a good clean taste. While it's better than most wraps I've tried, I would have to say that it didn't live up to its hype. Good to try but nothing remarkable about it. I'm wondering though if the cold version is any better.

While I won't discourage anyone from trying Mix, it should not be in one's priority list of places to eat while in Hong Kong.

ThreeSixty is found in two locations. Get store locations and other news here.
For more information on Mix, pls. visit here.

Wifi Hotel is Worth a Try

I was recently in Hong Kong. Get to know what Hong Kong has to offer through my adventure. This is the 2nd of 14 parts

Before we start with the food entries, allow me to share where Murtle and I stayed during our 3 nights in Hong Kong.

Since we decided to go to Hong Kong on a whim, it was too late when we learned that there was a scheduled trade show during the weekend that we were going to be there. Needless to say, hotel rates were at an all time high.

We, being on a budget, had limited choices. In the end, we settled for Wifi Hotel where room rate was about 1,000HKD (6,000PHP) per night. Off-peak price could go as low as 500HKD though from what I've researched.

Wifi Hotel is a “boutique” hotel situated in Wanchai. It offers compact rooms ideal for travelers who will not spend much of their time indoors.

Everything was tiny even for Hong Kong standards:

 

Facade

 

"Lobby"

Front Desk

Cramped Elevator

Space from Elevator to Door

The Room

Bathroom

Room Without A View

Equipment Available

To illustrate how small our space really was, I took a picture of our room from the edge of the headboard. Yes, this is really it. No zooming required.

Wall to Wall

Will I stay in this hotel again? I have to say that the answer is no.

Let me tell you why...

THE GOOD:

• Free wifi which is convenient for any traveler

THE BAD:

• Room was so small that it was impossible to fully open two pieces of luggage at the same time.
• The room also wasn’t as clean as I would have liked it to be. Funky smell in the bathroom didn’t help.
• I also sensed that we had guests of the spooky kind. This is coming from a person who rarely feels anything. I could have been imagining things though so take this info with a grain of salt.

THE UGLY:

• Location, location, location! The 10 minute walk to and from Causeway Bay was a bitch! Especially hard to do when feet are tired and there are loads of bags to carry. I had to motivate myself every night just to make it back to the hotel.

I could have dealt with a small, funky, haunted room but being relatively far from Causeway Bay was a deal breaker for me.

Don’t get me wrong though as Wifi Hotel is still worth a try if shopping isn’t the main reason why one is in Hong Kong. Just make sure that rates are reasonable and cheaper than what other 3 star hotels in nearby locations offer.

Wifi Boutique Hotel is located at 366 Lockhart Road, Wanchai, Hong Kong. For more information pls. visit their website.