Uncle 2 & Auntie Winnie Homecooking @ Hong Kong

A homecooked meal in Hong Kong! What a treat! While there are TONS of food right outside, sometimes I do miss homecooking, and it was nice to have one night where we ate at home than to go out and eat, because there is a lot of msg when you go out. Living space is so small in Hong Kong, including the kitchen, that everything is made to "fit," and what I mean is that even the refrigerator is small! It's like the size of my "mini" fridge that I had when I lived in the dorms. People don't need a lot of refrigerator space because they can go buy groceries daily. A lot of things are fresh, and there are so many options. You don't have to play your meal days in advanced, just walk right out to the farmers market and see what's available that day. That's it, and that's what we did that day after being out all morning and afternoon.

Eel - pre-cooked

it was still beating....fresh! haha

Eel - after being steamed

tasty, and i don't even like black bean sauce

Soup - forgot what veggie we used

Scooped out the Veggie and Pork from the Soup

Steamed Minced Pork and Salted Duck Egg

this was my favorite!!! i normally only eat half a bowl of rice, and because of this dish i ate another bowl. yup. it was tastyy. savory. salty, and i loved the salted egg

Steamed Chinese Sausage

had a very nice rice wine flavor to it

Stir Fry Bean Sprouts & Chive Flower 

Can you believe that all these dishes were cooked with only two burners, and a kitchen that's smaller than my dorm room at UCLA? yup!

Gai May Bao [cocktail bun] @ Hong Kong (Mei Foo)

Uncle 2 says the best time to have any bao is when it comes fresh out of the oven - it's no lie. Walked by Door Door and voila fresh cocktail buns out of the oven. Bought three, and ran upstairs to eat it immediately. So much better than any other cocktail bun I've had in the states. First of all the crust is buttery and flaky. Second, it was the perfect amount of sweetness and saltyness. Third, there wasn't too much coconut, because I'm not a big fan of coconut shavings. And lastly, it was all oh so good!

Three in a Bag

One for Me to Eat!!

Siu Mai, Curry Fish Ball & Cuttle Fish @ Hong Kong (Mei Foo)

So I've walked by this stall a lot while I was in Mei Foo. During the day it's closed, but around 6pm it's hopping and tons of people buying food. Of course I don't read Chinese, so I can't tell you what it's called, just that it's in Mei Foo and only opened in the evening until 2-3am. Also since I don't read Chinese, I couldn't see what was on the menu, except what I saw in front of me. So voila! The curry fish balls were really good, nice and spicy, but the siu mai was mediocre.

Walk Up Food Stall

Curry Fish Balls

Sticky Rice

Beef Insides...

What I chose:

[siu mai, curry fish balls, skewered squid]

McDonalds @ Hong Kong (Stanley Market)

BEFORE YOU GET UPSET AT ME! Hear me out! I was told that McDonalds in Hong Kong is WAYYY better than in the states. I was told that the quality is a lot more fresh, and it taste less processed. So while we were walking around Stanley Market, I saw Mcdonalds, BUT I also saw a sign for Fillet-o-Fish for $8HKD, which comes out to $1USD! COME ON! You can never get that for that price! It was a 35th anniversary, but I had to get it! So we each got one, and let me tell you - OH SO FRESH! Not Processed! Not greasy! I really need to try a hamburger soon, but Panda may get upset at me.

looks pretty normal but tastes really different and better!

Ebisu @ Hong Kong (Mei Foo - Manhattan Mall)

Japanese! Loves Japanese and Ebisu had something I've never seen before - fresh uni...that you assemble by yourself! Yes! Can you believe it? Everything tasted super fresh, but I did like the conveyor belt more - it's nostalgia for me. I know for others it's a gimmick and overpriced, but me loves!

Uni

look at the platter! it's like little slivers, and it comes with rice and...

Seaweed

so that you can...

make it yourself! how do you like my uni? it definitely tastes better than it looks because i am no sushi chef. i made like 4-5 of these bad boys. i wish we had this in the states

Salmon & Tuna Sashimi

i've never been a fan of salmon sashimi or sushi, but it was really good. it was so fresh and so creamy, look at the white lines! it's all flavor!

Lobster Salad

delicious! the lobster was shredded and mixed with i think light mayo. this was sweet and super light. not heavy at all. the light mayo didn't hide the freshness of the lobster.

Grilled Salmon Head

crispy!!

Char Siu Ramen

the broth is better than any broth i've ever had, and the udon is better than any udon i've ever had. enough said, right?

Green Tea Soba

pretty good, clean and refreshing. 

Mochi Ice Cream

everyone gets one! look at it - so cute. it's individually packaged, and really good. the mochi part is a super thin layer, so it's not like you're chewing forever. the ice cream part was lacking, but it will do for free :P

Mak Un Kee @ Hong Kong (Central)

Wonton Noodles! FINALLY! The portion is tiny in comparison to what we have in the states, but that's ok because there is so much to eat that I can't really afford to get full. The soup was so clean and refreshing and the wontons are just a giant piece of shrimp but it has so much flavor! How does this happen! This was really good. Like really good. Familia take me somewhere else to top this!

 Menu - yup it's all in Chinese, how will I ever know what to order

Chinese Man Making Wontons

he didn't seem to happy that I was taking his picture, but how often do I get the opportunity to take a picture of a real asian making wontons! hehehehe. there's no pork in the wontons, giant pieces of shrimp

Wontons

they were so plump! i didn't taste the msg! the soup was so clear and refreshing. you know that this is their specialty. 

Beef Stew Noodles

i generally like to order beef stew and it was AMAZING! Tender and braised until it just falls off, and it was the right cut; slender but with a little fat - perfecto. i really liked the noddles though, they were chewy (al dente). look how tiny the bowl is! you can slurp it up in just a few minutes. doesn't fill you up, so you can eat more! 

Gai Lan
need some veggies!

Vegetarian Meal @ Hong Kong (Lantau Island)

Headed over to Lantau Island to see the BIG BUDDHA! In order to see the relic and touch the buddha we had to buy tickets, and we bought a lunch ticket as well, which came out to be less than $20USD. I swear going to tourist spots in Hong Kong is cheaper than anywhere in the US, which normally will charge just $30USD to see a big thing, and comes with NOTHING. At the Buddha and below it immediately the only thing to eat is vegetarian food. While this penguin is not a fan of veggies only, it was the best thing to do in the situation - being respectful in all. The food was actually better than I thought, and I didn't miss meat THAT much. In the end, it would have made things taste better though. Hahaha.

Vegetable Corn Soup

quite refereshing

Shitake Mushrooms w. Bok Choy

pretty normal

Spring Rolls

outside was good, because it was fried. hahaa

Tofu w. Corn and Green Peas

It basically tasted like ma po tofu minus the meat. hmmm

Mixed Veggies

this was absolutely the WORSE let me tell you.

Curry Fishballs @ Hong Kong (Tung Chung)

So waiting in line at Tung Chung to buy tickets for the cable car through Lantau Island and then to the Big Buddha. I was having the munchies, and I saw curry fishballs, so you know what I did. They were good, but the sauce was not good. So meh, better luck elsewhere. But where else can you get 6 fishballs for less than $1USD. 

Food Stand w. Various Options

Fish Balls!

meh...

Cafe de Coral @ Hong Kong

It's like ABC in the states, but WAY better and cheaper. Ham and Egg Sandwich and HK Milk Tea for $2USD, can it get any better? I think not. yiiiiipeeeee

Loaf Fan @ Hong Kong (Sai Kung)

We went REALLY far for dinner the other night, LIKE FAR FAR. It's far when I look on the map to see where Sai Kung is. I was like, WHOA. And the subway doesn't go there, so we had to take the minibus. Apparently Sai Kung is seafood central, and when we got there it really was. There was seafood upon seafood, and things I've never seen in the states, and ONLY in the museum.

 We had reservations at "Loaf On," which is how they spelled it in English, but when you pronounce it in Chinese it comes out as "Loa Fan" so yea. It's Michelin One Star and it was really good. For the price that was dinner, it is NOT possible to get the same in the states. All we ate was seafood that night, with the exception of one tofu as an appetizer and one chicken - that I didn't even touch. I was really TOO FULL.

Salt & Pepper Tofu
this may be the BEST tofu i've ever had in my life. the crust is perfect, absolutely perfect. they batter it in something - something light and crunch, and definitely seasoned with salt and pepper. and then they deep fry it, but it's a soft tofu and not a firm tofu, so you have to really pick it up with dexterity so it doesn't break - mine broke the first time. when you bite into it, you get this suddent omg moment, where the crisp and the tofu are distinct entities. it's like the outer shell separates from the soft silky tofu, but it all molds together in texture and taste. absolutely delicious. bar none.

Chicken Feet

Braised Pork, Tofu and Mushrooms

Fresh Abalone
i don't think i've ever had fresh abalone prior to this night, and let me tell you!

best i've ever had! hahaha. it's like succulent, braised well, nice and salty, and sweet, meaty...it's all good! all! good!

Shrimp that Pees OR Mantis Shrimp
so prior to my cousin Andy telling me what this big guy is called in English, i just called it "shrimp that pees" because in Chinese that is what the literal translation is. i've never had this (seems to be the theme for the night), but all i heard was my mom talking about it before, and i think  my gramps years before too. so i wanted to see what the big deal was! and oh boy, are you in for a treat! these suckers are like lobsters (no they are not avail in the states, and yes it is sad). so back to the food: meaty, succulent, salty like fresh from the sea, super sweet, and whatever they cooked it in was like O-M-G!

look at it! this is only the bottom half!

Giant Fish - forgot name

ok i know the picture doesn't do it justice, but this thing was like 5 pounds! yes it is the weight of a new born! omg!!! i think this fish only exists in museums in the states - you're not allowed to eat it

Speckled Crab
isn't it super cute? look at it! you know you don't want to eat it, but let me tell you...he's DELICIOUS! yes indeed!

honestly everything i ate i've never had, it was a tres special night. nom nom and then some!