Perfect patio weather

The ibakery express at Tamar Park in Central HK is one of my favourite places in the city because of its fantastic view and comfort foods. The cool harbour breeze actually made it the perfect patio weather yesterday. In fact, I barely noticed HKO's Very Hot Weather Warning while sitting in the cafe. This hidden gem is great because no one tries to rush you to finish your snack or meal. I really enjoyed the crunchy ciabatta of my fish sandwich and CharK`s multi-grain burger was pretty tasty too.

The waterfront promenade is currently under construction and even seems to extend out into the harbour. off in the distance by the Convention Center I noticed a big platform with 4 structures on top of it. I wonder what`s going on out there?

A beautiful afternoon at the Waterfront Promenade (Photo: CharK)

Does anyone know what these 4 structures in the middle of the harbour are? (Photo: CharK)

Walking by the Public Pier 9 we saw the construction site for HK's new ferris wheel/observatory. I can understand some of the opposition against this being built as it really is going to be a huge structure in a relatively open area, making it potentially very crowded. I'd be interested in trying the ride to get a different perspective of the harbour, but I'd worry it'd be hot inside one of those glass cabins....

HK's ferris wheel to open in September according to SCMP (Photos: CharK)

Just before heading home, we took the Star Ferry across the Harbour to Tsim Sha Tsui to enjoy the sunset. By now I must have tons of photos of these harbour views. But I'm still find these views to be beautiful really stand out to me as being representative of the HK landscape.

A view from Ocean Terminal of Victoria Harbour (Photo: CharK)

My favourite all-day breakfast cafe

Hong Kong has a lot of variety when it comes to cuisines. But cafes offering all-day breakfast/brunch are hard to find in the TKO suburbs. So I was so happy to have discovered Ocio in Mong Kok. This cafe serves delicious breakfast options and a wide variety of desserts too.

The lemon and honeycomb Napolean is now one of my favourite desserts that I`ve had in Hong Kong. It felt like a very special dessert. The lemon sauce had a custard like texture which gave the Napolean a fresh and creamy taste. I was really impressed by how flaky the pastry was and that I could easily cut into it with my knife. Normally I find "mille feuille" a little hard to eat but this crunchy pastry made it pretty easy. Also the "honeycomb" pieces that topped the Napolean felt like a taste of home. The caramelized sugar reminded me of maple syrup taffy. I also had a lime smoothie--more like a lime slushie--to go with the meal. The drink was so refreshing on a hot summer afternoon.

One of the best things about the cafe is that it's far enough away from the crowds in the main Mong Kok shopping area that there were plenty of seats. CharK and I walked over from the Mong Kok MTR stop in about 15 minutes and we were able to sit down right away. Even though it was around 3pm, many of the other customers were enjoying a plate from the all-day breakfast menu.

I kept picking off fries from CharK's plate (Photo: CathC)

The homemade "honeycomb" tastes like maple syrup candy--Yum! (Photo: CathC)

The lovely Ocia away from the Mong Kok crowds (Photo: CathC)

So after a busy week at work preparing for the new school year, I enjoyed a relaxing weekend trying out a new cafe. I hopes some cafes will open up in my TKO neighbourhood soon!

Does Chinatown represent Chinese?

Hong Kong's aboriginal people originated from Southern China and are effectively Chinese. So unlike other North American or European cities, there really isn't a "Chinatown" in Hong Kong.

It wasn't until my trip to Portland that I realized how this can influence one's cultural identity. The Chinese population in Portland is pretty small, only about (10,000 or 1.8%). It seems that in places with a small Chinese population (or any ethnicity), only a few cultural aspects become representative of that race. For example: Chinese food is choy suey. But in reality, Chinese food is composed of specialties from regions across China (e.g. Szechuan, Shanghai, Canton, etc.).

The sign reads from right to left and the characters translates to: Portland Chinatown (Photo: CharK)

 

Again from right to left: the characters are: four-oceans-one-family (aka  everyone's family) (Photo: CharK)

Surprised to see a Chinese restaurant having to attract customers with liquor (Photo: CharK)

In comparison, Toronto has a large Chinese population in Toronto (over 280,000 or ~11%) and there are Chinese communities across the city other than the main Chinatown in the downtown area. Even though there are concentrated populations of Chinese, there are always people of other ethnicities living in the same area. This mingling of races is what I've always identified as the "Canadian" way of life. So having both Chinese and non-Chinese friends, neighbors, and co-workers, I always felt a balance between my Chinese and Canadian identity.

Now working in Hong Kong, I'm surprised to find myself identifying more with my Canadian identity. My views and values differ from local "Hong Kongers". I seem to place less importance on conforming or doing what others "expect" and more on trying to make sure everyone is happy. Canadians are always stereotyped as being overly polite or apologetic--and it's true! In Toronto, I've encountered so many times when someone actually turned around and walked back to open the door for me at a mall or store.

Maybe my views will change as I spend more time here working. But either way, I'll continue to have fun exploring all the different neighbourhoods across in the city.

MMMmmm...donuts...

With the many HK cafes, coffee franchises, and gourmet cafes in HK, it's easy to find a good cup of coffee. You can get everything from simple instant coffees to elaborate cold drip iced coffees. What I do have trouble finding, are good donuts. The donuts I've tried from bakeries like Panash or Das Gute are more dense and taste like chocolate coated bread instead.

So I was really excited to try in person Portland's famous Voodoo Donuts, when I was visiting the city. I had originally heard about Voodoo Donuts from a TLC travel show about Portland. The were just as many crazy flavored donuts as was featured on the show. The donuts lived up to all of the hype they. They were light, fluffy, and sugary. Mmmm...donuts....

You can`t miss this pink shop in the middle of the residential area (Photo: Chark)

It was about a 15 minute walk from our hotel to Voodoo Donut's second location on Davis Street. I guess the pace can get pretty busy since they even have metal barriers set up outside of the shop for people to queue up.

Breakfast for CharK and I: a "No Name" donut with  Rice Krispy and chocolate peanut butter coating and a "Grape Ape" donut with lavendar sprinkles (Photo: CharK)

The coolest delivery truck ever (Photo: CharK)

Aside from quirky designs they are also big supporters of local bands. Lots of flyers were posted up in the shop too (Photo: CharK)

We passed by the original Voodoo Donut location on our way to check out Portland's Chinatown during our trip. No wonder they had to open up more than one location--the line literally went out the door. They seem very popular with locals, and not just visitors to the city. One store manager at the local mall was telling me that she often stops by for a box of donuts after work.

This line reminds of my the queues that use to form outside of Tokyo's Krispy Kreme locations (Photo: CharK)

I've heard there use to be Krispy Kreme locations in Hong Kong, but they eventually closed down. Guess there really isn't a market here for sugary treats. Oh well, guess that's just another incentive to travel!

Memories of Portland`s Food Pods

At the beginning of the summer, CharK and I spent a week in Portland, Oregon USA. Looking back on our trip, the food pods was one of my favourite memories of the city. There were pockets of food stalls located across Portland`s downtown and also some food trucks that were driving around the area. The food pods were a delicious and cheap lunch option. On average most items ranged from 3 to 7 USD. But the best part of the food pods, is the wide range of ethnic foods that were available. At one spot I was able to try a pork talmales, Korean tacos, baklava, bratwursts, and a schnitzel sandwich.

One of the few food pods in Portland's downtown (Photo: CathC)

Koi Fusion's kalbi taco with kimchi was CharK's favourite (CharK)

It actually reads "Powered by Kimichi" on Koi Fusion's truck ( Photo: CharK)

My favourite was "Portland's Wurst Food Cart" where you can make your own bratwurst from different toppings and mustards. I tried mine with peppers, pickels, sauerkraut, and deli mustard. The spicy and sour toppings went really well with the bratwurst--delicious!

A friendly and delicious lunch option (Photo: CharK)

This huge bratwurst was only 4.5 USD (Photo: CathC)

Many of the customers seem to be those working in the offices and shops nearby, which isn't surprising since these food pods are a quick and economic option for lunch.

The only unfortunate part about the food pods is that most are only open for the lunch break and close around 3 pm. So the was a day when we wanted to grab a bunch of different street food for dinner, but most stalls had already closed/sold out for the day.

More food photos to come in next week's post about Portland's famous Vodoo Donut shop...