IlikeBowling

Glad your son kept himself well

chongl

Thank you miuk! It's just as fun, but the big difference is the reduction in efficiency if you want to see a bunch of things. We plan for more breaks and hit less spots per day. In a place like HKG, it's the constant debate of...will there be room for a stroller, even a tiny one, or do we need to use the carrier?

Yup, he did pretty well for himself

Thanks tennislover9. I'm just as glad to pick up where we left off

Cathay charges 25% of the adult fare for international flights to and from the US. I avoided that by burning Avios, which let me use 10% of the adult fare in miles (14,000 Avios).

sl00001

Very nice report and pictures!

chongl

WIth a one-way ticket for me and an octopus card in tow, we took the Airport Express into the city before transferring to the MTR. I grabbed an octopus card for myself, and topped up the balance on the existing card before continuing the journey from Tsing Yi.



Some time later, we got off the MTR at East TST and arrived early at the Intercontinental Hong Kong, seemingly too early to check-in, but to our surprise, a room was available on the 17th floor. We had a slight upgrade to a deluxe room, but no harbor view. When I inquired about the cash price for a view, it was 800HKD per night, so I passed.

















No harbor view, but it has been hazy the whole time so far. Decent internet speeds and fast ping



Later that day, we met up with my wife's sister to celebrate her birthday with a brunch buffet at Porterhouse on the Hong Kong side. Raw oysters, crab legs, lobster, prime rib, and other sought after selection was laid out in a line, and for a reasonable price. Hopping back on the MTR



Just a few blocks away



Buffet offerings (crappy cell phone pics)





I didn't touch this stuff



More food



















A few of my plates





We went upstairs to a bar afterwards to hang out, before stopping by PYE to exchange our vouchers for a free gift and retiring to our hotel for the night. We had made plans that got cancelled, but it worked out with how exhausted we were.

PYE handerchiefs



I still woke up at 3AM though, and did some trip reporting before hopping back into bed. Come morning time, we wanted some porridge/congee, so we hopped on the bus and got off near Jordan and Nathan Rd.



Passing a bread store



Arriving for breakfast





We both went for the sliced pork and preserved duck egg



And a helping of doughnut sticks



Cooking in the corner



Because of the small size, we had to "dap toi" which literally means stacking tables. This just means you have someone from a different party at your table to maximize the throughput of customers.

We head back to the hotel afterwards for a short while before we had to head out again.



We had obligations beginning with lunch, so we hopped on the MTR at East TST, with final destination being Olympic



A dim sum feast with family



After lunch, we stayed with our grandma for a little bit before heading towards Sha Tin for dinner with my mom's side of the family.

My preferred class of travel



Art at one of the transfer stations



High rise in Sha Tin



Dinner was a short 5 minute walk away, the same place we ate almost 2 years ago. Apparently the English name is Glorious Restaurant (盈暉海鮮酒家 in Chinese). This time around, we ordered a set banquet menu that had an endless supply of great food. The dishes were delicious, and reminds me exactly why I love coming back to this city: for the delectable food. The pork had an incredibly crispy skin, flavorful meat, and just enough fat for that melt in your mouth bite. All the others were memorable as well, but that was really the standout for us.



Dried scallop with cucumber



Seafood



Fried crab meat



Shark fin soup



This fish may look ugly, but it was fresh and delicious. Steamed with green onion and soy sauce, it had a lovely texture and flavor



Abalone and shitake mushrooms



Roast chicken (skin was super crispy)



Yee mein and fried rice





Longevity peach buns. You age a year for every one you eat, so maybe I should just avoid them altogether?



There was so much food, we weren't able to finish...not even close. My brothers and I are normally able to do the cleanup at the end of a meal, but this was just too much. I wish I was able to eat more of it when it was still freshly cooked, but oh well! There's an entire week ahead of us to stuff our faces.

Next up...more food, including two 1-Michelin starred wonton mein places

chongl

Thank you, sl00001

pjs

Great report. What was the name of the dim sum place you went to? (Assuming you would recommend it)

deuce1

just incredible so far -- looking forward to the rest!

chongl

It was pretty good, but it's hard to go wrong in HK. The place is called Star of Canton, located in the Olympian City mall (I think it was Olympian City 2 but don't quote me on that)

Thank you deuce1. Sad to leave HKG tomorrow, but excited to fly on SQ again

chongl

The next morning, I had the Mrs. choose between another hole in the wall place, a cafe, or Ichiran ramen that was conveniently located just a few blocks away. Curious as to whether there would be a difference, we went to Ichiran.



Arriving



There was a large space for lining up and even larger dining area, a stark contrast from the minuscule stalls that you will find throughout Japan. Unfortunately, the positives ended there.



What a ripoff



Dining area



Precisely because of the way things were laid out, all the efficiences of a ramen shop were lost. The line moved slowly, patrons were conversing instead of chowing down, and orders trickled out. To make things worse, the serving was small (literally finished in 3 minutes) and the broth and texture of the noodles were nowhere close to the Ichirans we frequented in Japan. We were glad to get out of there and head back to the hotel, but not before stopping for some bread and water.

At least it looks good still



Coke



Bakery



I was going to take my younger brother out to Mak Man Kee for lunch, a 1 Michelin-starred establishment known for their wonton mein. I believe DanielW had the pleasure of dining there recently. We met up at the corner of Waterloo Road and Nathan Road before going underground to ride from Yau Ma Tei to Jordan on the Tsuen Wan line. A few blocks from the exit was the noodle shop. We initially stood in the wrong line for about 10 seconds, since the shop next door also seemed very popular



Double parking everywhere



Menu



Wait time for us was between 5 and 10 minutes



Ho fun



And finally...3 bowls of delicious wonton mein, served with a piping hot broth and perfect egg noodles. The noodles had a very consistent texture throughout and maintains that springiness that is hard to come by. Combined with the 4 large wontons made with large, succulent shrimp and thin skin, the simplistic dish needed nothing more...no oyster sauce, no toppings. All we needed was a 2nd serving



We hopped next door to see what the hustle and bustle was about. Looked like a local cha chaan teng. Since there were bowls laid out in the front, and I overhead someone picking up a to-go order, I was about to figure out what they were known for: steamed milk pudding





Washed down with some yin yang



Walking around to burn off the calories





A Japanese brand store with a cute reversible pillow. Husky on one side, hippo on the other



Street food



Ladies Market, your one stop shop for cheap and and fake merchandise





Interesting signs...I photgraphed anyway



Emojis everywhere





The official street name, but everyone just calls it Lui Yan Gai



We went back to the hotel afterwards, knowing we would be out and about in the evening. I met my younger brother at the Star Ferry before we congregated with my older brother and his family

Walking towards the pier







Hazy days with bad air quality made the harbor view less stellar than it normally is



It took us a little while to get our son ready, so we hung out in the room for a bit until sunset. Around 6PM, we head towards K11 and the Hyatt Regency to see what was in the area. We wanted to have Peking duck at Spring Deer, but without reservations, only the 2nd seating had availability. None of us wanted to wait until 8:30, so we passed and got some cafe food instead.

Passing by more street food stands in TST





Dining at Fairwood



The younger ones were pooped after dinner, so we walked my brother to the Star Ferry to hop on the number 7 bus, snapped some night shots, and called it a night



Hazy night



Taxi line



The clock tower





Air and Space Museum



The Peninsula Hotel



Congee the next morning in TST with a side of soy sauce egg noodles







Back to the hotel we go



Originally, the plan was to hop over to the Hong Kong side the night before to give Ho Hung Kee a shot. They also have a Michelin star and specialize in wonton mein, just like Mak Man Kee, so I wanted to see which was preferable. Although the MTR is efficient, I don't like riding underground all the time, especially with our hotel being conveniently adjacent to the Star Ferry. My older brother had decided to visit Victoria Peak with his family, so I was in charge of getting my little brother across the harbor. We met up and paid a paltry 2.7 HKD for an upper deck ride over to Central.

I don't need no sign to tell me where to go!



Staircase



Bell inside the clock tower





I watched the Titanic, so I know what happens to the lower deck folks



Awaiting the ferry





Hopping on board





Another hazy day, looking towards the ICC



Ready to disembark



Tying her down



To be continued since I need to catch up on some other stuff

iluvdoco

Great photos! What kind of camera are you using?

MonThruThurs

Mak Man Kee was really good! I tried to go to the Australia Dairy Co after my meal but the line was too long - and, it was almost 85F ...

SPBanker

Great photos! Man, you are making me hungry....

snabbu

First flight ever CX F, impressive!

Enjoying the report chongl looking forward to the rest.

chongl

Thank you iluvdoco. I upgraded to the A7RIII right before the trip.

It definitely was! The line was fairly long for us too, but it moved quickly. We spent a max of 10 minutes standing outside, but we also had nicer conditions

Thank you, SPBanker

Yeah, this kid better learn to appreciate these things as he gets older . Thanks for reading snabbu

jayoxd

Great TR as per usual.

I had no idea CX served the Signet. I feel like every time I've taken it, it has always been the regular JW Blue and a Chivas 21.

Hopefully they have some on the JFK route later this month...

What's your favorite whiskey / scotch btw? I saw the haul of the hibikis last time if I remember correctly. I almost want to take ANA F just for the 21.