Greatest Bites is a roundup of the excellent dishes we had throughout the final week: These which renewed our love for established venues; caught our consideration at a brand new opening; or freshly impressed upon us the creativity and ability of Hong Kong’s proficient cooks. From informal avenue snacks to meticulously ready tasting menus, these are the perfect dishes to attempt in Hong Kong, and the plates we’d advocate you make a particular journey for.
These have been the perfect dishes we supped on and savoured this week:
Rollie
The dish: Gwei Roll (HK$78)
A reoccurring theme that just a few devoted readers of the Greatest Bites and Greatest Sips columns right here have picked up on is that I, pricey reader, am trash! As such, on the subject of seafood, the one factor extra engaging than cracking open a buttery, juicy leg of crab is unpeeling the plastic round an enormous ol’ spear of the faux stuff. Crab stick, krab with a “okay”, imitation crab, no matter you name it — I don’t know what it’s product of, I don’t know the place it comes from, and just like the origins of the “tuna” on a Subway sandwich, I’d in all probability be higher off not realizing. The place was I? Oh yeah. The snow crab udon — made with the true stuff — made Wil Fang’s latest opening, Rollie, a fast favorite for the “Best Noodle” class at The MMMs Awards. However I’d additionally like to increase a spherical of applause to Rollie’s handrolls, specifically, the “Gwei Roll”, which unites crab follow precise crab meat, crab roe, avo, cuke and egg. Sure, it’s a Cali roll, as solely this “Far East meets West Coast” sushi bar might do it. And I’m so glad they did. — Nathan Erickson, Editor-in-Chief
Rollie, G/F, 32 Cochrane St, Central, Hong Kong, +852 2845 9244
Ho Lee Fook
The dish: Crispy-Skinned Three Yellow Hen, Sand Ginger, Spring Onion Sauce (HK$288)
Among the many rooster dishes in Cantonese delicacies, the crispy rooster in all probability ranks on the high finish of Most Favourites. It’s in contrast to its soy sauce or poached (white-cut) counterparts which will be both too saucy or too bland — an expertise depending on altering appetites. However the crispy rooster, I’ll say, is definitely a scrumptious and ingenious mix of each. It’s flavoured by its crispy exterior and stored very gentle inside.
Chef ArChan Chan’s rendition on the renewed Ho Lee Fook is a close-call to the unique. It takes on the very genuine type of mild and very skinny pores and skin that crackled and crunched towards the tender and silky-soft meat beneath. And maybe the perfect a part of this dish, a spring onion sauce that tastes brisker than normal, lighter than normal and tastier than normal. Magic! Chef Chan reveals the key to be an added portion of recent sand ginger, blended in completely with finely chopped spring onions for a scrumptious condiment that held its personal — I’ll admit I ate spoonfuls of simply the spring onion sauce. Anybody who harbours a single inkling of doubt for this straightforward dish, pondering of swapping it with one thing extra distinctive and “particular”, must be solid away instantly. It’s in contrast to any you’ve tasted at your native siu mei stall. And also you’ll simply end a single plate by yourself — it disappeared inside seconds on our desk. — Lorria Sahmet, Editor
Ho Lee Fook, G/F, 1-5 Elgin Road, SoHo, Central, Hong Kong, +852 2810 0860
18f Sizzling Pot
The dish: Hen Sizzling Pot (Costs ranging from HK$248 per individual for Set C)
When the climate will get somewhat, properly, not frightful — we’re in Hong Kong, in spite of everything. However when our four-day window of Comparatively Cool Temperatures arrive, finest imagine I’m diving face-first into the warmest, soupiest receptacle I can discover.
And on an informal Wednesday night meet-up this week (Hello Inés! Love you!), my face met the Hen Sizzling Pot at 18f Sizzling Pot — and what an introduction it was. To the uninitiated, Hen Sizzling Pot, in contrast to common, no-prefix scorching pot, begins with a, properly, rooster stew. It’s saucy and spicy, served up steaming within the scorching pot-pot (that you simply’ll use later within the second act of a Hen Sizzling Pot expertise: common scorching pot) alongside chilli and rings of purple onion and, stars of the present, skin-on rooster. It’s the form of dish that warms from inside; the type you’d need to dig in and get fingers (and palms and perhaps components of your face, too) deliciously filthy. And after it’s all gone (which, at our desk, took barely 5 minutes), you dump within the jug of soup sitting fairly on the finish of your desk, and start the new pot expertise. Get the Australian Wagyu and honeycomb tofu. — Joey Wong, Editor
18f Hot Pot, 18/F, Chong Hing Sq., 593-601 Nathan Street, Mong Kok, Hong Kong, +852 2390 5390
MAJO Tapas Paella Bar
The dish: Fideuà (HK$160)
No, it’s not a paella, although it certain appears like one. Actually translated as “great amount of noodles”, fideuà originates from the coast of Valencia and is historically a seafood dish. True to its heritage, this model at MAJO is cooked with the Seafood of the Day — as we speak’s being mussels, prawns, clams and scallop — and doused in a tangy, lip-smackingly scrumptious tomato sauce. I’m at the moment limiting my carb consumption, so I took a measly portion to start out, however that resolve ended in a short time after my first chunk. Flavour-packed and totally moreish, I had one other two servings earlier than I might actually take into consideration my increasing waistline. So, so harmful. So, so scrumptious. Dieters beware. — Sandra Kwong, Options Editor
MAJO Tapas Paella Bar, 22 Staunton Road, Central, Hong Kong +852 2529 3001
Cali-Mex Bar & Grill
The dish: Nachos (HK$148)
Should you really feel like having Mexican meals, nachos are a traditional dish you’d in all probability go for. Carbs, protein, veggies, sauces and essentially the most indispensable half — cheese! Nachos has all of it!
The grilled rooster was piled on yellow corn chips, which additionally had some onion and spicy jalapeños, then was drizzled over with ranch dressing. It additionally had vegetarian fillings. Topped with cheese, beans, guacamole and salsa, nachos may look messy, however they’re so tasty, you may’t resist having greater than only one chunk. Whenever you’re hungry for simply the appropriate snack, even in your weeknight dinner, there’s nothing extra flavourful than a bowl of crispy nachos. — Jingchuan Zhang, Editorial Intern
Cali-Mex Bar & Grill, 26 Hollywood Street, Central, Hong Kong, +852 2680 9083
