One of the great foodie trends in Hong Kong is the matcha craze. Already slowly making its presence…read moreknown in the US, matcha and matcha flavored desserts are gaining popularity. It's already a huge thing in Hong Kong, with at least one matcha dessert store at every mall. When I found out that a well known matcha chain, Nakamura Tokichi, was opening up its first branch in HK, I made it a point to plan to visit and give it a try.
Unsurprisingly, as with all well known restaurants in Hong Kong, there was a fairly long wait even on a Wednesday. I had to wait almost two hours to get a table for six people. When we were finally seated, we were presented with complimentary green tea and a menu filled with delicious goodies.
I tried the green tea almost immediately, and already I was floored. Most green tea tastes fairly bland and generic, but this green tea was incredibly rich and flavorful. As to be expected from a matcha restaurant with as prestigious a reputation as Nakamura Tokichi.
We shared several matcha and hojicha parfaits, a hojicha ice cream, and I got the kyo no fukiyose, which contained several different things including chiffon cake, matcha ice cream, red bean, whipped cream, and mochi.
The parfaits were incredibly rich and elegant. Cereal was added to the red bean and ice cream, and the flavors all blended together perfectly. The chiffon cake was sweet yet light. The red bean was a real delight, not too sweet, and balanced out the sweetness of the hojicha and matcha ice cream incredibly well.
In just one experience, I can see why Nakamura Tokichi is one of the most well known matcha restaurants in Hong Kong. It lives up to its own hype in many ways.