Cantopop 港土茶記 (Hong Kong)

 

Cantopop has been opened for quite some time and it got quite some attention in the media at the beginning thanks to its sustainable dining concept carried throughout its chain of restaurants such as Linguini Fini and Posto Pubblico. It is not until recently that I finally got a chance to visit Cantopop. It was by invitation (which nowadays seems to be a very popular thing amongst restaurants but I do have something to express on this point on a later post, so stay tuned) but my experience at Cantopop was a pleasant one with a few misses of course. I will explain why a bit later but one thing I have to say is that I admire and support their sustainable dining concept by sourcing locally and minimize food wastage by using all animal parts if possible, but the question is where to draw the line at times. I am spending quite some time to writeup this post because I think there is a need to, a need to express my opinion in all perspectives which may or may not be different from the general public or even fellow foodies.

Travel - Taishan 台山 (China) - Day 1 (Feb 2011)

8am on a Saturday morning, after a mere 4 hours of sleep nap, I was on my way to Taishan 台山 (China) on a not so comfortable coach! I take my word back because it turned out the road trip required a change of coach ride once we passed Hong Kong customs near the boarder and at that very point I  truly missed the not so comfortable coach. Why I was on this trip is not of great importance, the fact was that I was on my way to Taishan, a 3 hours or so bus ride west / southwest of Hong Kong. It was famed as the birthplace of Volleyball in China but I was not here for that purpose, I was here for a short weekend trip which involved visit to a local high school and the filming set of Let The Bullet Fly 讓子彈飛. Of course it involved tasting of some local dishes.

Celestial Court Chinese Restaurant 天寶閣中餐廳 (Hong Kong)

After my recent quest for suckling pig at the Kimberley Hotel, not only did I dream about it in a delicious way, I kept on thinking of returning soon. We named the little pig "Pepe the Piggy" for those interested to know and we were all looking forward to name another piggy asap! Some of my friends returned soon after and met "Kimmy the Piggy". While I am still planning for a return visit, I had the honor the meet "Cici the stuffed Piggy" at Celestial Court. It was a short encounter but a much needed one for me to realize how much I miss Pepe the Piggy.

Island Tang 港島廳 (Hong Kong)

This has to be one of the rather low profile Chinese restaurants in town, situated in  the middle of the Central district, hiding in one of the corners of a commercial building. It's logo with a cartoon character looks more like a fast food joint than a fine dining scene in my opinion.  I have heard good reviews about it and it was time for me to pay a visit, particularly for its Char Siu (BBQ Pork). One thing worth noting, I am known to over order 95% of the time but at this restaurant on this very night, I was told I ordered too few dishes and must continue ordering for a party of 8. So what happened? While most of the dishes we ordered were beyond expectation in terms of quality, their sizes were undoubtedly way to small, freaking small to be honest! I was once told that a food trend in 2011 is how portion of food is to be even more delicate in sizes, most items would be of sampling sizes perhaps? Let's wait and see shall we ... ...

Char Siu / BBQ Pork Cupcakes

Crazy? I denied it! It is through a bit of craziness that inspired new creations. This post is 100% inspired by @mochachocolata's idea. I forgot how the topic came about but somehow we talked about the many cupcakes around town, all of them are sweet as they should be; but why can't we have char siu (BBQ Pork) cupcakes which are non-sweet? Do we still call it cupcakes then? We don't know but we like to call it Char Siu Cupcakes anyhow. The modified yoghurt-based char siu cupcakes recipe is adopted from vanilla cupcakes from Joy of Baking which is now my other source of inspiration when it comes to baking.

Yixin Restaurant 益新美食館

It was my first time in this outlet ever since they closed down the Happy Valley one. Back then it was a very cozy and homely establishment with about a dozen tables only. Here at the new outlet, the space is 5 times bigger and more comfortable I guess. It wasn't easy to book especially during weekends.

Some of the soups were out already by 8pm so we had to skip it and go right to appetizer. The BBQ Pork in Thick Slices were thick, tender, juicy with great flavors! One of the best in town I would have to say. Thumbs up!

No surprises on the Jelly Fish, a bit heavy on the sauce but delightful and refreshing for sure.

I really want to learn from the chef or whoever cooked this Smoked Pomfret because I just don't understand how it can be done in just about 5 mins after we ordered! The BBQ Pork and the Jellyfish I understand but for a main dish? At least try wait til a more appropriate time to bring out the pre-cooked item!

The Roasted Duck in Pipa-style was surprising well made with a very crispy skin and tender meat. I think it was the sauce that made it even better.

To my understanding, it is a rather difficult to cook Fried Fresh Milk with Crab Meat because it is very easily be overcooked and involves a lot of oil to keep it moist. A well done job here to keep those key elements intact as in moist and not overly greasy.

Deep Fried Chicken was another highlights of the night with very crisp skin and tender meat. The chicken was a bit lean but it was all good.

The Baked Fish Guts was one of the reasons I picked this place for dinner because not many restaurants in Hong Kong offer this dish. Flavors were rich and as expected but the texture was a bit too firm in my opinion. This dish is considered a very traditional type of dishes and I think one should give it a try if possible.

The sizzling Sea Cucumber and Duck Feet in Claypot was alright, very chewy / bouncy sea cucumber which I liked and the sauce was perfect to go with some white rice.

Baked Sago with Lotus Seed Paste requires advance ordering to ensure availability. Instead of one huge plate, they opted to serve them individually. Not sure why or if it make much differences this way. Flavors were alright but a bit undercooked in my opinion, not golden enough on the top and a bit too mushy inside. It was still a good dessert to end the meal with! s

Likes:

• Roasted Duck in Pipa-style - great flavors and tender, juicy meat
• BBQ Roast Pork - tender, thick and juicy, one of the best in town!
• Baked Fish Guts - wonderful flavors but texture was rather too firm
  

Dislikes:

• Smoked Pomfret - ready in 5 mins! Very efficient indeed ... or was it?
• A lot of dishes arrived all at once, again great dislike for me
• Baked Sago was slightly undercooked, too mushy

Avg Spending: HKD 200 - 300 per person

Yixin Restaurant 益新美食館
Shop 3-4, G/F, Shanghai Industrial Investment Building,
48-62 Hennessy Road, Wan Chai
Tel: +852 2834 9963


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Tai Hing New Century 太興新世代

I really need to control my sudden cravings for certain food. It is not an easy thing to do but I need to try harder! However, my craving for roasted pork had won the battle for the night, hence my visit to Tai Hing New Century (太興新世代).

I always wondered about the meaning of "New Century" at this Chinese BBQ Meat joint, my first take on its meaning would be its selection of fusion dishes such a baked wasabi roasted pork with rice. When we talk about the origin of fusion cuisine, we often reference it to the rise of nouvelle cuisine in France in the 1970s whereby elements of French and Japanese cooking were combined. However, my foodie friend Babedolphin enlightened me one day by pointing me to look around more closely and one shall find that Hong Kong is perhaps the grandfather of all fusion cuisines! Highly possible indeed! Helloooo ... Baked pork chop with fried rice? Ham and egg macaroni in soup? Super tender steak drowned in baking soda? One of the best examples is famous Tai Ping Koon which was established in 1860 (or Qing Dynasty-10th year of Xianfeng if that makes a difference).

(1) Soy Chicken and Roast Pork with Rice

The rice was ridiculous hard, dry and overly crisp! It was perfect for fried rice but not as white rice!!! What else? The roast pork was hard, dry and overly TOUGH! Not that I count every time, I usually chew my food for about 20 - 25 times (for better digestion, perhaps 30 would be ideal) but for this tough piece of roasted pork, 35 chews would get you nowhere, 40 times would be more like it. I literally got tired of chewing after 3 pieces and let them as they were. The chicken was fair I guess, I had no more energy to chew through the chicken, the rice and the vegetables! Is that the meaning of New Century? Is that how the rice and pork should be??

Likes:

• afraid none so far, perhaps bright setting?? o well ...

Dislikes:

• Rice = hard, dry and crisp, perfect for fried rice but not white rice!
• Roasted pork = hard, dry and overly tough!

Avg Spending: Below HKD 100 per person

Tai Hing New Century
Shop 108-109, 1/F, Site 8, Whampoa Garden, Wonderful Worlds of Whampoa,
7 Tak On Street, Hung Hom
Tel: 2330 6502


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