Hong Kong Question

[Lau]

So I've got a friend who's going to be in HK for one night this friday. He's white and doesn't speak any Chinese whatsoever and knows little about Chinese food. I was telling him stuff to do and he obviously wants to know where to eat. I looked at my list and the problem is that the places either:
1) you need a bunch of people or
2) you need to speak chinese and they aren't easy to find restaurants

so I'm looking for some tips of where to send him, the criteria being:
a) a solo diner could eat there
b) he's not going to be dead in the water if he doesnt speak / read chinese
c) somewhere that is somewhat convenient, so: Central / Admiralty / Causeway Bay / Wan Chai etc

Thanks!

[ladylizard]

I have tried Tasty before, not crazy about it... I wouldn't say that to me it really reflects a HK style wonton noodle soup. Lei Garden is reasonable, but I think that it is pretty altered to the Western palette... If it were me I would prefer to be eating something that was closer to the "real deal".

I would recommend going to Tim Ho Wan (http://www.openrice.com/english/resta...) in IFC. Their IFC location isn't quite as good as the one in Kowloon, but it's still great!

He will definitely want to eat the char siu bao, har gao, and siu mai. I mean if he eats early enough and just enough to be mildly full he may as well go out and eat somewhere else later to maximize his gastronomical experience!

Maybe suggest to him after having a dim sum snack in IFC to go walk over into the LKF area and if he is hungry later there is Tsui Wah for some classic HK 茶餐廳 food, or if he is set on some noodles he could have a wander down Wellington St. to Dumpling Yuan or Mak's Noodles.

[Lau]

yah if i was there normally i'd take him to very local stuff, but i realized most of the places i eat in hong kong you either need to speak / read chinese or you can't do it unless you're in a group

does tim ho wan serve dim sum for dinner? (he's only going to have dinner not lunch) ive been meaning to go but the lines are so bad at the kowloon original branch that i haven't gone (i normally eat at fu sing for dim sum, who has ridiculously good quality dim sum albeit a bit more expensive)

tsui wah is like 3am drunk food although i kind of like that place

[Charles Yu]

Lei Garden NOT the real deal??!! What dishes did you eat there?! To me, the 5 layer crispy roast pork belly, for example, is as authentic a Cantonese b-b-q dish as any in town. Nowadays, almost ALL traditional Chinese/Cantonese places have dishes that are quite 'fusion' in nature. Fu Sing has oxtail braised in red wine, Cuisine-Cuisine has oysters stewed in Port wine, Lung King Heen uses a lot of black truffles in their dishes. Similar approaches can be found in Tim's Kitchen, Ming Court, Celebrity Cuisine, The Chairman.....etc. So, in your opinion ' where does one go to find the 'real deal'.
As for recommending won-ton noodles at Mak's on Wellington! I strongly disagree!! This place is way way overpriced and has gone down hill. Go to Mak An Kee on wing kut street instead!
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/795432

[Lau]

i like mak an kee way better too although im a little concerned about his ability to find the place

fu sing is one of my favorite restaurants in HK

the 3 or 5 layer pork 冰燒三層肉 is def one of my favorite shao la dishes

[scoopG]

The American Restaurant on Lockhart Road fits the bill:
http://www.openrice.com/english/resta...

[trueblu]

I'm no expert, but I think 'Tasty' in IFC mall would fit the bill. I absolutely loved my won-ton soup there, and the menu has other good things on it too. Menu in english, and no problem with lack of chinese.

tb

[Lau]

ah thanks, never heard of it, this is the place you're talking about right? http://www.openrice.com/english/resta...

i guess wonton noodle soup would be a good idea, its easy

[klyeoh]

Yes, there was a thread which included some reference to Tasty a while back:

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/795002

He can also pop over to Lei Garden next door if he wants something more posh - no problems for non-Chinese speakers there as well.

[Lau]

do you think lei garden would be ok for a single diner? ive been there before, but only in a big group a while ago

what are your favorite dishes there that would be suitable for a single diner?

[klyeoh]

Lei Garden has an extensive menu and some of their dishes are individually portioned (e.g, sharksfin soup) - but I'm also not averse to ordering small portions (meant to serve 2-4 persons) even if I happen to be dining alone, which does happen every now & then.

[Lau]

this might be a good idea, im thinking about telling him to order the:
- combo of cha siu蜜汁叉燒 / siu yok (冰燒三層肉)
- the golden shrimp 黃金蝦
- some type of vegetable like 菜心 or something

money isn't an issue really so this way he'll at least be able to try something good