1st night in HK
We arrive on Monday evening in HK (first week of December) and will be going straight to the Salisbury YMCA in Kowloon where we are staying. We will have just done a 12 hour nonstop flight from London with a 2 year old, so will probably be absolutely tired out. We have never been to HK before, so combination of tiredness and unfamiliarity would lead us to stick to places near the YMCA for dinner on Monday night. Also looking to stick to a limited budget for first dinner.
My current options are the Salisbury Dining Room at the YMCA itself. Spring Deer (Mody Road) is walking distance but has got very variable reviews and I'm told we must make reservations. Mak Man Kee Noodle Shop (Parkes Street, Jordan) has been suggested, but is it walking distance from the Salisbury? Also, looking at photos, there does not seem to be any English sign to the shop, how will I know if I'm at the right place?
Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
By medgirl
on Nov 24, 2009 02:34 AM
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If you decide to go to Mak Man, You can match with the chinese characters (麥文記麵家) of Mak Man's name (in gold colour) at it's entrance in the picture provided below :
http://www.openrice.com/restaurant/sr...
The most famous noodle at Mak Man is the Chili Pork noodle with soup on the side (炸醬撈麪). You may consider ordering it. For wonton noodle, I think there are other better choices in HK.
Your hotel is not really close to Mak Man, you have to walk more than one subway stop. With the 2 years old, it is easily to take the MTR subway, just one stop from TST to Jordan, exist C1 or C2, then it is a very short walk to Mak Man.
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Thanks skyline. When looking at the openrice link, the characters in the text seems to be written backwards on the sign. Is this normal? And is Mak Man the sort of place where everything will be written in Chinese characters and nobody speaks English?
Hmmm.....any thoughts on Spring Deer being a tourist trap for non-locals who don't know what to order?
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It is normal to write backwards (it is how it is written in Chinese). Yes, from my memory, they are all in Chinese. It is easily to print out the 'wonton noodle' or 'chili pork noodle' or whatever you want to order in chinese to show them what you want, but I think they at least understand some simple phrase such as 'wonton noodle' in English ?!
Spring Deer is famous for it's peking duck in HK, I have not been there for a long time so cannot help much, but I don't think it is a tourist trip. I think in general it is not easy to order with a Chinese food menu because it is usually hugh with hundreds of items in there. Even Chinese such as myself do not know what to order if not doing research in advance in some case.
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Mak Man Kee will be too far of a walk with a 2 year old in tow!
For your first venture out, assuming weather is OK, I would turn right at the YMCA main entrance and head down to the Harbour city/Ocean Terminal complex. ( 10 minutes walk max., ). If you would like to stick to a limited budget, then I would pick 'Crystal Jade La Mian Xiao Lung Bao' inside the Harbour city complex for some yummy Northern Chinese fare like dumplings and noodles. Afterwards, you can head down to the promenade next to the Star ferry and take in the world famous view of the harbour. If time permits you can even take a ferry ride across the harbour!! Great for tourist and great value! Better than the boat ride on the Thames!
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if one is going to crystal jade, i think din tai fung would offer better xiao long bao and it is right next door in silvercord center on canton road. not exactly a HK experience but prob some of the best xlb in town and a very comfortable dining environment at reasonable cost. prob won't be more than 300 for 2
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Charles, HKTraveler, thanks for your thoughts. Crystal Jade and DTF are in HKTraveler's words 'not exactly a HK experience'. Is there anything we could do for dinner on that evening which would qualify as a good experience to introduce us to HK?
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For both yummy food and a 'HK experience'. how about spending a bit more and have a Cantonese meal at Yan Toh Heen, the Cantonese restaurant inside the Intercontinental hotel five minutes walk from the YMCA. Food is good and the harbour view is 'stunning'!!
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Charles, if you're recoomending fine Cantonese restaurants around the area, don't forget T'ang Court at The Langham Hotel, 8 Peking Road, Tsimshatsui. It's walking distance (10 minutes or so) from the YMCA.
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I'd go for Tso Choi Koon - that's a HK experience - not exactly walking distance though. Or the other extreme Hutong followed by a stroll at the new old 1881 - that is walking distance.
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Yes! Tso Choi Koon is my favourite pseudo ' hole in the wall' place in HK with excellent wok-hay stirred fry. However, unsure whether the distance will be a factor considering the OP is a first timer to HK and has a 2 year old in tow?!
Klyeoh, the 2* T'ang Court was in my mind, however, I was told that food was not that impressive anymore lately?!! Furthermore, for a first timer, the view offered by the Intercontinental is much more impressive?! No?!
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You're right, Charles - views from InterContinental are spectacular.
medgirl, any particular dish or cuisine you'd like to try whilst in HK? There are just too many choices in Tsimshatsui.
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mikey, Charles, klyeoh, I'll google Tso Choi Koon for one of our meals later in the trip (in HK for only 3 days though!) if it is further from the hotel. The 2 year old's behaviour is a bit unpredictable, we have had a few occasions where a sudden uncontrollable tantrum midmeal has forced us to exit the restaurant hastily. Which is why we are sort of avoiding high-end dining unless we have babysitting arrangements as we'd like to be sure to enjoy the experience when spending $$! I googled both Tang Court and Yan Toh Heen and would love to go there, but without 2 year old! klyeoh had also mentioned Ye Shanghai, but again, same toddler problem.
klyeoh, you had originally suggested Mak Man Kee and we will probably go there for lunch/snack on one of the days but not the first night as it is too far to walk. We love roast barbequed meats, stir fried dishes and wonton noodle soup. I am told that beef brisket noodle is a must-try in winter but does it always come with tendon?
I have been researching Din Tai Fung. US NYC branch did not get very good review. Maybe the HK branch is better? We get fairly good XLB in London now: 2-3 restaurants in Chinatown are specialising in Taiwanese cuisine.
You are right about too many choices in TST. Spring Deer is in all the guidebooks but varied reviews, especially from non-Chinese diners. Hutong as well, but that seems very fashionable and perhaps again, not suitable for unpredictable toddler.
I have got so much great advice from this board already. Looking forward to Fu Sing.
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Yan Toh Heen , Ding Tai Fung and Yeh Shanghai all received a star from the latest 2010 Michelin Guide!!
If you intend to go to Mak Man Kee then you can check out Tso ( Cho ) Choi Koon at the corner of Jordan Road and Tak Hing Street ( just 5 minutes walk from MMK ). As for the braised beef brisket and tendons, I guess you can always request them to go easy on the tendons. They'll most probably oblige since tendons cost more than the brisket! However, the tendons are melt in the mouth gooooood! Per skylineR33's advise, you should also order the penny chili hot sauce shredded pork noodles as well. Sweet and a touch spicy, this special noodle version is very good and appetizing!
I would steer away from Spring Deer and Hutong. The former overpriced, whilst the latter a bit too touristy and expensive. Save the money for a great meal at Fu Sing! Remember to order the ultra crispy roast pork belly!! You'll get addicted!! Their B-B-Q meats are very good too!
BTW, our Chinese and Japanese 'Chow-Master' Fourseasons just returned from Hong Kong and reported that he had a B-B-Q roast goose at the 'Manor, Wan Chai " that's even better than the 1* Yung Kee 4th floor! Decisions, decisions!! Ha!
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medgirl, Charles is right - you can request for less or more tendons at MMK depending on your preference.
BTW, you can take a taxi to Mak Man Kee from YMCA - costs around GBP3-4, depending on time of day/traffic.
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