This is the sort of entry one makes to collect up little bits and pieces of information that have no real place of their own, yet are many helpful tips that if ignored could have a significant impact on the holiday outcome.
I'll start with the small bits:
1. If you have kids, especially if you have girls (and you are Western) - look out in Tsim Sha Tsui and anywhere where there are touts - mostly of subcontinental and middle-eastern origin. My grandfather is Indian, and there are some lovely Indians/Pakistanis/Middle Easterners (Raja Fashions have some great guys in there), but the ones who are in the TST area, looking for tourists to fleece are dodgy people and gave my daughters the creeps. Trust you gut on this.
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| Chungking Mansions - home of dodginess in HK, watch out for touts, they want you to come here |
2. Get accommodation near an MTR line. This has a two fold purpose. You won't have to walk obscene distances to get transport and generally, if there's an MTR, there's places to eat, supermarkets and other shops. It's frustrating to think of going somewhere to eat and how much effort it is to do so. Walking downstairs and having something within distance is uber-convenient.
3. Get an Octopus card. I've mentioned this a little before, but basically it's not just for transport, it's for everything - food (McD, cake shops, chain eateries, etc), drinks and basics (7-Eleven, Wellcome Supermarket etc), transport (bus, train, tram, ferry), the Peak Tram (skip the queues). It acts as more a small change debit card. If you use the machine at the MTR, remember it's a min $50 HKD to top up. Can't use a Credit Card to top up, unless you have the local flavour. Given coins go right up to $10 - you'll save some weight as well.
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| Octopus Card, with MTR gates in the background |
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| 7-Eleven Counter with Octopus Card scanner for purchases (the orange thing). Good for buying beer at midnight. |
4. If you take money out of the machine, especially when you are going to be in a haggling situation over price (like markets), put the majority of notes out of sight. Break one note ($500 or $1000 HKD) by buying a drink at 7-Eleven. If the stallholders/persons you are bargaining with think you have more money, they'll try to prise it from you.
5. Learn numbers and manners. Makes you look less like a tourist (read: goldmine), more like someone who actually respects the locals (and it helps with communication too).
Okay, that's the tippy stuff done.
Now a couple of food reviews:
Mikawaya Hung Hom:
In tiny Ming On Street, there are two highly rated hole-in-the-wall eateries. I've previously blogged about world class dim sum without the world class price.
However, every time I've walked past Mikawaya, it's been packed - a great sign for the food but not for the opportunity to eat it.
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| Mikawaya has an English Menu |
Tonight we managed to get in and eat. The lady waiting tables/the front was so welcoming. She love the girls, especially the 1 year old. But noting how she treated her other customers showed it wasn't because we were interesting, but that her customers were important. It also means that without a high chair, she held the bub, whilst we ate. Bonus.
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| Pork Ramen |
Ok. Food. $38 gets one a sliced pork Ramen, which I did finish, but I jettisoned my idea of dessert after, as I was full. Mrs Brisket had the $48 Pork Cutlet ramen. She didn't finish. it was sooooo filling. Both of absolutely loved it. The ramen was subtle but full of flavour. After some flavourless soup in an Olympic food court earlier in the week (actually just avoid Olympic food court altogether), this showed you can get subtle but classy soup. Pork was really nicely cooked as well. Baby brisket spent the time she wasn't being held and photographed nicking corn kernels from my bowl with glee.
I ordered 3 bowls of Pork Cutlet with Creamy Rice for my 3 older kids and they got a massive plate, like 14 inches wide. I've seen family sized pizzas smaller than that. If I'd ordered one, I reckon it would have been enough.
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| Pork Cutlet Creamy Rice, too big to fit in the picture |
My kids are good eaters but even they couldn't finish these. Again, our lovely waitress to the rescue. Without being asked (in between holding bub) she went out the back & grabbed a massive takeaway bowl with lid - enough for 3 kids leftovers.
Two Asahis to wash it down, this is easily the best ramen and Japanese in HK I've had.
And Breakfast is sorted tomorrow morning!
Shop D, G/F, Lux Theatre, 14 Ming On Street, Hung Hom
Ninoen Japanese Takeway (near Temple Street Night Market):
One major problem with being a tourist in Hong Kong is going to tourist areas - if it's not standing in an overcrowded space with someone trying to sell you something you don't want, it's the overpriced food, doing the ‘authentic' Dai Pai Dong experience is more expensive than eating at a proper restaurant outside these haunts.
However, I digress. In around the market precinct I had to get my family of 6 fed, quick smart. As I have mentioned, this presents challenges in finding places to eat. Even the chain restaurants are sometimes a gamble. We're happy sitting at a 4 person table, but even that may not be available in a busy period.
So when we looked at this little tiny place, we thought 'nope' but in fact they accommodated us with grace and good service. A big tick for service.
Another big tick was for value. We rolled out of there eating more than we probably should have, thanks to a case of 'big eyes, little belly'. I reckon paying HKD$5 (what's that, about 70c or so AUD?) for fresh salmon boat sushi is a bargain and the Unagi is excellent value as well. The mandatory plates of gyoza and I'm happy too.
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| Nom Noms |
There's only a slight downer - in Australia, all sushi is offered with soy, wasabi and picked ginger. Unfortunately, the ginger wasn't there. Not a show stopper, but it would be a little extra for the customer. I would have been happy to pay for it.
Honestly, it isn't high end sushi. You'll have better and pay huge amounts for the privilege. You'll likely have worse and pay way more than you should for that dubious privilege. Ninoen is good, honest sushi at a very good value price in an area known for fleecing tourists. That gets it a big thumbs up from me. Service gets another thumbs up from me. Beer is 7-Eleven prices, not restaurant markup, another thumbs up.
G/F 27-31 Ning Po St, Jordan
Happy days!
Si Sun Fast Food:
Another example of somewhere well known, frequent openrice finalist, tiny space, etc. But they do burgers. But HK style, burgers. Not Japanese style burgers (like MOSburger) or fast food ones like McD and Burger King (HJs), but HK burgers.
So HK style pork meat, or beef meat. No sauce (just sweet Asian style Mayo), this sort of plastic cheese that goes gooey and soft, sweet HK style rolls. Grab egg if you like it.
These aren't going to win a health award, but they're pretty good. And cheap.
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| It may not look much, but it's amazing |
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| Menu, in English. AUD$2 for a double mince pork burger? Don't mind if I do. |
Don't expect much in the way of service, it's point n pay (with English and Japanese menus to help out), take a number and wait until it's called out (hence the reason for learning canto numbers). They are reasonably accommodating to English speakers, but it isn't silver starred service.
1A Whampoa Street, Hung Hom
Hot.com (Dundas Street, Mong Kok)
So you're shopping at the Ladies Market with kids. Good on you for bravery, you will be rewarded with endless attention and lots of cheap junk to buy your kids.
Now your family is hungry. I understand that not everyone is as adventurous as we are - stinky tofu, fried squid and interesting street snacks that inhabit the streets around the markets (especially Dundas Street).
Hot.com will bail you out. It's sort of a bits of everything western style food with an Asian twist. Pizza cones (they're like tortillas wrapped around filling, corn mandatory, and then heated up), fries with gravy and cheese (pretty good poutine actually) and pork chop buns of a sort of Macau variety (but with sauce) which Mrs Brisket adored.
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| So, so wrong, and yet so good |
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| $10 HKD for a Pork-chop bun? HK really is the place of good cheap food |
Oh and bubble tea.
We really liked this place, and enjoyed standing outside on the pavement chewing away on some interesting food. It seems like we overdo Western food when over there, but honestly we don't. Si Sun, MOS burger and Hot.com are the only times we really ate western. Mostly it was noodles, beef brisket, dim sum and Japanese food (HK has so much good Japanese food).
We also met a family (well two) that were holidaying from Western Sydney. They were staying together and doing stuff together and really enjoying it. They had about 6-8 kids off memory between them all and were going around as a massive group. Good on them! After a nice chat about various things we'd done and they had, we finally got our bubble teas.
So if you are going at a busy time, be prepared for a LOOOOOOONNNNNNGGGG wait. At least you can watch the people making takoyaki.
Oh, and 18 grams is over the road, should you be needing that 'real' coffee fix.
430 Dundas Street, Mong Kok
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