Monday, June 24, 2019

TOP 10 WHERE TO EAT AND IN HONG KONG & MACAU 2019!


As Asia's largest melting-pot, a country inside a country, Hong Kong has endless things to go, eat, shop and do, you name it. The harbor city is not only large and exciting, but it is also loaded with too many options, so many that you too, can be overwhelmed. 




Based on my recent trip on June 2019, I'd like to personally share with you my top memorable food finds with A COMPLETE EATINERARY of TOP 10 WHAT TO EAT & WHERE TO FIND THEM in Hongkong + Macau, that is guaranteed to be, as what Hongkong-ers would say "hou hou de, 好好的" or "the good ones".

In addition, I have strategically classified the restaurants per area, so it will be easier for you to find and plan your food path. Because I truly understand your frustration of traveling plans, really. So I really hope this helps!




Also, you could over to my Instagram @heymegaa, under the story highlight: HONGKONG & MACAU to watch all the must-see spots I found during my Hong Kong, June 2019 vacation! 

*Disclaimer: some of the dishes might contain pork.

TSIM SHA SHUI & MONG KOK


1. ONE DIM SUM 

Location: One Dim Sum, Prince Edward, MTR exit: A


Dim Sum Galore!

It's not Hongkong if you don't eat Dimsum at least twice! (a day, LOL). Hongkong is really known for their dim sum, it's widely popular in the world & some are even rated Michelin stars.

This particular shop is a local favorite and it gets busy during peak hours, so come for late brunch or afternoon to sit comfortably. They offer dim sum delicacies like Shiu May, Hargau, Pork Paikut, Cheong Fan, and more. Their specialty, however, is their BBQ Pork Buns, omg, these are the best, the dough is soft and when you bite in there's a beautiful marriage between the sweetness of the pork with the saltiness of the sauce that just indescribable, you just have to try! 

When in HK, do yourselves a favor and get two servings of everything, because one dim sum is never enough (get it? lol)

PRICE: $$


2. DELICIOUS KITCHEN

Location: Delicious Kitchen, Tsim Sha Tsui, MTR exit: D1

Pork Rib Rice

When you need a seriously delicious dinner, this restaurant lived up to its name, it's honestly delicious.

One thing that you must order is their Pork Rib with rice and Sweet and Sour Pork, just in the pictures, I bet you can already imagine the delicious taste. The rice is wonderfully flavored with pickled vegetables so it's tangy and savory just makes you wanna eat more and more.

PRICE: $

3. DIMSUM ICON

Location: Dim Sum Icon, The One Mall, Tsim Sha Tsui, MTR exit: B2



Hargau Dimsum, BBQ Pork Buns

Located at a mall, this dim sum place surprisingly also packed when I arrived at lunchtime. (mostly packed with ladies, and from the image, you know why)

I was skeptical of the taste at first because it was located at a mall and because it has an icon themed-concept dining experience. They will have icons printed/created as the dim sum as a part of fun-dining, an always new, always exciting concept, this time around (June 2019), they have the Sakura Cardcaptor theme.

As what my friend have told me, "Anywhere you go in Hong Kong, the Dim Sum generally already taste good, it's the city's standard". So yeah, the dimsum selection & taste here was decent, the service is not bad and it's located in a mall hence it's tidier and cleaner than the previous One Dim Sum place. 

From the menu, once again my heart was stolen by the yellow BBQ pork buns with the animal icon printed on it. The Hargau is also scented with rose petals and making this shrimp dim sum fragrant, unique and memorable. 

This place is highly recommended for those of you wanting to have a unique experience different than the traditional dim sum dining scene.

PRICE: $$

CENTRAL


4. LAN FONG YUEN


Location: Lan Fong Yuen, Central & multiple locations


Hot & cold milk teas and French Toast

A Hongkong traditional diner or known locally as Cha Can Teng is when you get your breakfast or afternoon fix, basically in here you can try all the local delights and specialties ranging from light bites to actual fulfilling dishes which are all influenced by Chinese & British traditions. 

Best to get in this particular cha can teng is their HK Milk Tea, creamy, rich, not overly sweet, can be made iced or hot and comes in a large glass, is really a must try. Another favorite in this diner is also its French Toast, that is slightly too buttery, crispy, sweet, layered with condensed milk & sugar, sinful but so good. Let's just hope all the walking in HK burns all these goodness that we ate.



TIPS: 
Don't be surprised, the location is in the middle of a wet, flower & fruit market. and FYI, there is a minimum charge of HKD 32 for each person.

PRICE: $

5. LIN HEUNG TEA HOUSE & DIM SUM





This is also another popular dim sum spot, a favorite amongst the local and one of the oldest and most original Hong Kong


Busy kitchen at Lin Heung 

The servers are all elderly who have probably worked there their whole lives, they are rather unfriendly, however, they work very efficiently. 



Dim Sum Lady with her trolley

When you arrive, especially during the morning yum cha hours, don't expect to be greeted, expect to spot and secure your own seat and ask for the order paper.

Do note down that in this traditional dim sum house, you'd have to either wait for the dim sum lady with a trolley of one choice of dim sum to come to your table, or if you are hangry like me, you should get up and search the room for the dim sum type you desire.

TIPS: Remember to bring the paper when you go around because the waiter/dim sum Lady will tick in the type of dish you ordered for billing.

PRICE: $

HONG KONG ISLAND: ADMIRALTY & SHAM SHUI PO


6. MCDONALD'S NEXT

Location: McDonald's Next, Admiralty, MTR exit: Admiralty Center
Right on the right side of the MTR exit doors.


Angus Beef with Brioche patties, mozarella cheese, truffle and honey bbq sauce and fries


This McDonald's is claimed as "The World's Fanciest McDonalds' !" What's fancy about this McDonald's is its extensive and fresh salad bar, it's gourmet burger selections that serve Angus beef patties with mozzarella cheese, truffle sauce, honey barbecue, all that fancy sauces & premium ingredients and last but not least, mouthwatering desserts & pastries, including croissants, cupcakes, quiche and even bubble gum ice creams with waffles!
There I said it, you better experience it yo self!

PRICE: $

7. CHEUNG FAT NOODLES

Location: Cheung Fat Noodles, Sham Shui Po, MTR exit: B1



Soya noodles, Fish ball soup, Wonton soup

So! this is a legitimate, local recommended, street stall vendor that sells specialty Fish Ball Soup. My favorite though turns out to be their Soy sauce noodle and their Wonton soup. The portions were very generous and the broth is really refreshing, tasty and light, the fishballs also tasted fresh. 

TIP: In this stall, the owners take charge of the cooking and menu order, there is no printed food menu and the owners really don't speak English so you just have to speak in Chinese or point and choose from other guest's food (lol!)
Its location is a bit tricky to find even when using the Gmap, so please pay attention to the Chinese letters of the shop's signage or ask a friendly stranger instead!


PRICE: $

MACAU


8. CHUN AT MGM HOTEL COTAI

Location: CHUN, Cotai



Actually, we stumble upon this restaurant because we were staying at this hotel. Since our rooms were not ready, we thought eating Chinese / Cantonese food here at the hotel will help us kill time. 

It's true you know, sometimes the one that you least expect to be wonderful, become the most memorable one. Let me tell you this, we ate at CHUN, twice while being in Macau for only 2 nights. Why you ask? because first of all, the service is impeccable. It is expected at a five-star hotel, yes, but the one who had served us are very sincere and particular to our needs (especially my mom, since she has a lot of food restrictions, and they were patient to attend to her every need).

MUST ORDER IN CHUN: Rice Flour Rolls with Crispy Dough and Prawn

Secondly, the food is what kept us coming back. We were impressed by their
 Dim Sum which we ordered, Steamed BBQ Pork Bun, Steam Shrimp Dumpling with Beetroot, Steamed Pork Shumai with Crabmeat and caviar,  and the dim sum particularly the Crispy Taro Dumpling with roast goose and the hands down to the winner of the dim sum game in all HK & Macau, the must order "Rice Flour rolls with crispy dough stuffed with prawn meat" Its crunchy and savory-sweet flavor, the rice flour rolls then was drenched in special soy sauce . While apart from the dim sum menu, another memorable dish is Crispy Fried Pork with honey sauce that paired really good with rice too. 


Baked BBQ Pork Pastry with Apple Cinamon & Crispy Taro Dumpling

Third, price certainly doesn't lie, their Yum Cha offer for 6 types of dim sum, excluding tea is priced at 248 MOP, which is affordable considering their level of establishment, their attentive service and the delicious food that kept coming from their kitchen!

PRICE: $$$



9. SEI KEE CAFE

Location: Sei Kee Cafe, Taipa Village, preferably use taxi. Available at multiple locations



As one of the must visit in Macau, we made our way to Taipa Village, a local street selling souvenirs, knick-knacks, food, drinks, all things wonderful Macau related which is located quite near from our hotel complex (around 5 mins taxi). The village is also well kept & there are a lot of photogenic spots if you are willing to go explore.

That day was scorching hot, Macau was grilling in almost 39 degrees, we went there in the morning though, can't imagine how will it be at noon. 

At the very beginning of the village path, I spotted Sei Kee Cafe which is a franchise street vendor that sells a hefty collection of Macau ready to eat, traditional delicacies, snacks, and drinks.


SEI KEE'S Cube Peanut Butter Toast

We ordered their bottled milk tea, milk coffee and the Cubed Peanut Butter Toast. To be honest, I have seen their bottles roaming around Instagram, that's why I targeted of going there; which was as expected, the drinks are really good, the shop still maintain a particular traditional way of making the drinks, milky, fragrant and not so sweet, the way I like it. However, to my surprise, the Cubed peanut butter toast really left a mark in my itinerary, man! it was really good, buttery, a tad crispy yet delicate, and topped with crispy biscuit bits for extra oomph. I am literally dripping in drool while I type this. Just promise me, you have to try yourself when in Macau.

PRICE: $

10. TAI LEI LOI KEI - PORK CHOP BUNS

Location: Tai Lei Loi Kei, near to Ruins of St. Paul - Available at multiple locations

Tai Lei Loi Kei Pork Chop Buns (Portuguese Bun)

Claimed to serve the best Pork Chop Bun in Macau and has a long withstanding history with the city for 50 years! The piggy bun is a famous Macanese delicacy, marinated with secret sauce before fried, the pork chop is then sandwiched between crispy yet soft baguette Portuguese bun or crusty sweet Pinneaple bun!

I found this shop by accident because blatantly the fragrant of the pork chops lured my nose to visit the shop without knowing what it sells!

We tried both buns, Portuguese & Pineapple. I prefer the Portuguese baguette buns more just because it does not have any added sweetness to it, so it gives the Pork Chops flavor a chance to stand out. The pork patties itself is a bit fatty and oily, to be honest, but I think that is what makes it good right? HAHA. The flavor itself is undeniably good,

TIPS: SKIP THE QUEUE! - There were many branches across town, luckily I stumbled across to the one near the Ruins of St. Paul, which is a tourist spot. Went there around lunchtime, but I don't know why there was no queue at all! I got lucky since comments on Tripadvisor said that you gotta queue in other branches.

PRICE: $






So there it is, my personal recommendations for your upcoming trip to Hong Kong & Macau, hopefully, this eatinerary could help you navigate to eat your way in Hong Kong!

Of course, Hong Kong as one of the culinary capital of China, there are culinary offerings aplenty that my belly could not possibly accommodate, so please do share with me in the comments, any questions you have or your own personal finds in Hong Kong!

 I would love to know more and perhaps do visit this city again in the near future!

Cheers & love,
Mega 


Friday, December 7, 2018

HONEST HOTEL REVIEW: THE INSTAGRAMMABLE HOTEL INDIGO BALI SEMINYAK BEACH

Tucked in the bustling Seminyak area, Hotel Indigo Bali Seminyak Beach is a hip 5-star hotel is set on the verdant grounds of beautifully manicured Balinese gardens. This relevantly new boutique hotel is synonymous with its vibrant location, boasting fun, eclectic and artistic interiors that radiate warm and authentic features of Bali.
The Lobby

Known as one of the most Instagrammable hotels in Bali, their top-notch service, world-class facilities, and interior also add up to my 7 reasons why this beautiful hotel is easily one of our family’s favorite hotels in Seminyak, Bali!


Sunday, November 18, 2018

7 FOODS TO EAT IN MANADO AND WHERE TO FIND THEM


So you are traveling to Manado soon? Yes! I am so excited for you because Manado is such an underrated travel destination. The capital city of North Sulawesi and the quaint bay town actually offers endless sights to see- from its beautiful fresh flowers and cool breeze of its surrounding mountain region to its white shore beaches and beautiful corals of its ocean.

In Manado, you are also going to enjoy the lively city vibes with its vibrant culinary scene. Manadonese food is famous for its rich, finger-licking spicy food and authentic flavors that are vying to be explored, this is why on this post specifically, I would like to recommend you 7 culinary spots, local restaurants, cafes, and gift shops that you have to visit when in Manado. 

WELCOME TO MANADO :