“In Hong Kong you don’t take the tour bus to find good food. You don’t need to know where you’re going; you just press start.”
– Anthony Bourdain, No Reservations
I planned this trip to be different in some ways. Hong Kong is still a familiar city to me, despite aesthetic changes over the years between my visits. On this short journey through Asia’s premier international city I experienced the familiar and the new.
Months ago my friend in Hanoi asked if I could meet her in Hong Kong — it would be her first time there and she knew that it wasn’t far from Taipei. I took this as an opportunity to not only see my friend but also as an excuse to return to a city I hadn’t seen in over seven years. Unfortunately, problems with my friend’s visa prevented her from traveling — it meant that I had to quickly come up with new plans for sightseeing in Hong Kong.
As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, I escaped to Hong Kong often while I lived in Shenzhen — it was a mental rejuvenation trip of sorts to run from the chaotic mainland city to a more westernized city just a short distance away. As I didn’t have much money back then, I opted for cheaper meals and wandering through the streets of Central for most of those trips. I could only dream about fine dining in Hong Kong while earning a little more than $1,000 per month across the border.
This time around I had a healthy bank balance thanks to the relatively low cost of living in Taipei. I didn’t have to worry about budgeting as much (although I still thought about the cost of a lot of things because Hong Kong can be very expensive).
Despite not being able to see my friend from Vietnam, I was able to see a couple friends from New York who have been living in Hong Kong for about six years. I was also surprised to find a friend from Taipei was traveling around at the same time. I had a full day planned just to see my friends.
Hiking across Lamma Island
On the first day I met up with my Taipei friend and headed to Lamma Island on the ferry.
The weather was nice as we arrived and we began hiking from Sok Kwu Wan Pier to Yung Shue Wan on the other side. We began our hike in the wrong direction–a matter that I noticed after checking my offline map with GPS after 15 minutes of walking. It turned out to be perfect timing for misdirection as a thunderstorm rolled in as we reached the line of restaurants on the water. We decided to sit down at LoSo Kitchen and have a local Hong Kong beer (one amber and one pale ale) while waiting out the storm.
The rain dissipated as we finished our beer and we decided to brave the uncertain weather for the hike — the woman running the restaurant said it was only an hour hike rather than the two hours I was previously told.
It was an easy hike across Lamma Island — there was only one five-way intersection at which we were pointed in the wrong direction (along with four other tourists). Other than a few scenic spots, there’s not much to see along the trail. And the town around Yung Shue Wan was busy and foreigner-friendly (i.e., more western-style bars and restaurants). Rather than hang around for another drink or a light meal, we headed back to Kowloon to refresh ourselves for our respective evenings.
Drinks, dinner, and comedy in Wanchai
Nearing dinner time, I headed out of my hotel, which was not the hotel I had thought it was. I thought I had stayed at a hotel called Evergreen the last few times I was in Hong Kong, so that’s what I booked. This was not the same hotel. Fortunately, it was decent for the price and location (next time I might stay farther outside Kowloon/Central).
I met m friends in Wanchai at The Optimist for happy hour drinks. For such an expensive city, Hong Kong has some great happy hour deals. There isn’t a set discount, but Optimist has a tiered menu of inexpensive drinks, like a bramble or margarita for HK$48 (about US$6). The atmosphere of the bar was lively and it got crowded just before my friends arrived — like so many newer bars and restaurants in Asia, it looked like all the other trendy joints in Manhattan or Brooklyn. We only stayed for a drink before heading to the 30th floor for Italian food at Pirata.
This was better than the Italian food I had with my uncle years ago. It was so good I forgot to take any photos (also the restaurant was dark, which would’ve made it difficult). I was told that Pirata is owned by the same group that owns Optimist, which explains the decor. Unfortunately, we were not seated near the window for views of the city.
After dinner we headed to another bar for a comedy show featuring British comic Stephen K. Amos, who was quite entertaining. Certainly not an experience I had expected when I first planned the trip. The opening act was a Scottish comedian who spoke quickly with a thick accent, making it difficult to understand much of the act. It reminded me of the guy from Glasgow I met in Edinburgh years ago (I have no idea what that guy said).
Wandering around Stanley
On the second full day, I headed to Stanley on the south side of Hong Kong Island. I had heard it was a nice area, but had never been there. I decided it was a better choice than attempting a hike of Dragon’s Back trail with potentially rainy weather. It was a long bus ride from Kowloon to Stanley, but the views from the winding roads in the hills of Hong Kong Island made it more worthwhile. Once I arrived, I didn’t know where to walk or what to see — I just wandered.
The street market was nice to walk through if I had been interested in buying souvenirs, and it led to the coast with rocks against the waves. From there I took the coastal walkway to Stanley Market and its more popular shops and restaurants as I searched for lunch.
That’s when I found Pinot Duck. It wasn’t nearly as crowded as the other restaurants in the area and the prices looked reasonable, plus I love duck. I ended up ordering Xinjiang hami melon salad with jasmine tea smoked duck. I was tempted to order more, but I decided it would be better to have something light and then go out again later. The hami melon was sweet to complement the savory flavor of the duck. There was also a slight citrus flavor to the salad dressing that held the opposing flavors together. After looking at what other customers ordered, I was tempted to eat more.
Instead of eating more, I wandered the streets some more and ended up at the Hong Kong Museum of Correctional Services. As it was free, I decided to take in the air conditioning for a bit. While not the most interesting museum, it did have quite a bit about Vietnamese refugees in the early 1990s.
Back to Wanchai for drinks
On my ride back to Central Hong Kong, I decided to stop in Wanchai to search for some dinner and nightlife. I got off at the wrong stop from where I wanted to be, but ended up with a cheap happy hour of rum cocktails at Rummin’ Tings. With the magic of Wi-Fi, I was able to locate the beer bar I had wanted to try, a bit farther away — I was told to take the streetcar (another first for me in the city and a cheap choice for transportation). Fortunately, The Roundhouse – Chicken + Beer (there are two) was not far from the stop as it started raining again.
Roundhouse has a great selection of craft beer, both imported and domestic. Of course, I went with the domestic beer because craft beer in Hong Kong didn’t exist last time I was there. I tried Young Master Brewery’s Mandarin Citrus IPA and Kowloon Bay Brewery Nut Brown Ale and Imperial Stout. Neither Kowloon Bay beer was particularly good — the imperial stout tasted too light for such a strong beer and nut brown was alright, but lacked a bit of punch. The citrus IPA was a much better choice — it was a double IPA with more flavor, but it was still light enough match the day’s humidity.
I ended my trip with a ride back to Kowloon on the Star Ferry from Wanchai. As I stared at the lights of the city, I wondered how much more there was that I could enjoy in Hong Kong — the sights and sounds that I hadn’t previously experienced. As I have friends there, and it’s an inexpensive flight from Taipei, I will likely return to discover those new places, or just the ones that went unnoticed before.
