I stumbled upon this old style Hong Kong cafe while I was at the street market and boy am I glad I…read moredid. Going into this place, you'll definitely get a feel for what cha caan tengs are supposed to feel like. It's complete with the workers in white, short sleeve buttons ups with a pocket on the chest for their handy dandy note pad for taking orders. I went here for breakfast and their breakfast menu isn't big, but it include all of the things that you would imagine a cha caan teng to serve for breakfast. I had their satay beef with macaroni noodles, ham omelette, buttered toast, and the special surprise?! They serve their iced milk tea in a milk bottle with no ice so it doesn't get watered down!! It's super cute. AND it tastes good. The milk flavor is a little bit stronger than the tea flavor, but I still liked it. The satay beef and macaroni are solid, and the ham omelette wasn't too oily. Lastly, the workers there are really nice and friendly. The owner followed up with me as I was leaving and asked if I liked the milk tea. I told him I would definitely be back, and it felt like the beginning of a new friendship :)

This place is awesome! Everything that I have tried is fresh. They really take pride in the food…read moreservice here

Great Food Hall is located in the basement of Two Pacific Place…read more This is not some where normal Hong Kongers would come here to do their daily or weekly grocery shopping. It is more catered to expats with mostly imported products from Around the World. Fun to browse around as I always looks to look at those pricey imported Japanese fruits: USD$60 for a Japanese mango?! I never seen or heard of this?!

Hong Kong desserts has a special place in my heart. This is a small local place that serves up all…read morethe classics, from sesame paste, sweet tofu, to all the newer fruity stuff with mangos and icees. I've always preferred the old school stuff myself, especially warm. Warm desserts are the best especially in the winter. Here, since "cha cha" is in the name, definitely give that a try - it's made of grains and beans with a healthy dose of coconut milk. I found the almond paste here smooth and flavourful as well. As usual, service is efficient but not particularly nice. Hey, that's the Hong Kong way ;)

Iconic/classic hk style cafe, i'd go there only for their milk pudding. I would go to Australian…read moreDairy Company for entrees/meals instead

This place is sooooo good!…read more The environment is clean, service is fast, and the staff are friendly. A must-get is their double layer steamed milk pudding. Arguably one of my favourite Chinese desserts (along with tofu pudding... there's clearly a theme here). It's sweet. It's spoonful after spoonful of milky goodness without the heaviness of cream. And it goes down sooo easily because it's silky smooth. Tea with milk was also very good! I believe it's red tea with milk ??? But it's nothing like traditional HK milk tea! This is much lighter because it's not made with evaporated milk, rather just plain old milk. But very refreshing on a hot day!

This little bakery is so conveniently located and has the best Cantonese treats, I never hesitate…read moreto walk over and buy some! Technically, you should keep the baked good and treats to a minimum, but when I hate going to restaurants and don't want to cook or make a mess, I find baked goods to be convenient for snacks later on. Maria's Bakery has a great selection of breads and baked goods. I love the green "dorayaki" with red bean paste. It's not really a dorayaki but it's damn yummy and I think there's something like mochi inside. Mmmmm. I also really like the pineapple bun that has the slab of butter inside. The regular kind is good, too, but that butter really sets off the taste of the bun and makes it heavenly. Oh my gosh! The Cantonese are geniuses. The sausage buns are alright and I've tried the BBQ Pork tart thing, but it's not amazing. Oh, you must definitely try the egg tarts! I thought egg tarts were good in the US, but I was damn wrong. You have to try them here! Also, everything's fairly priced and you can pay with your octopus card. Easy easy easy!

Koi Kei Bakery is a famous Macau souvenir shop chain. It has stores outside Macau in Hong Kong and…read moreSingapore. This is a small location in Mong Kok on Sai Yeung Choi Street. The selection here is smaller than the ubiquitous locations in Macau which you find in just about every street near the Ruins of St. Paul's. Unlike in Macau, they don't offer Portuguese egg tarts here unfortunately. Store is too small I guess. However, they do have a nice selection of snack cakes and desserts. They come prepackaged so they are perfect as souvenir gifts from your trip. What I like about Koi Kei is that you can sample the product. They have boxes of each item that you can try out before you buy. I bought a couple things from here and I liked them both. The phoenix egg rolls are nice and crispy, but the key ingredient are the coconuts shavings inside. Though beware this product does not travel so well. The package I brought back was mostly intact, but there were a few egg roll pieces that were crumbled up. I would also recommend the orange peel cake that they have here. It is not for everyone, but I really like how fragrant it is and the texture of the pastry. It is nice to know that you don't have to make the trek across the water to Macau to get these delights. A trip to this store in Mong Kok will suffice.

Have you seen the TVB series drama based off of this store? I have to say Koi Kei Bakery is famous…read morein Macau. The cookies and products are delicious. Especially their almond cookies and peanut candies. I mean that is what they are famous for. The store is smaller than the Macau stores. Another thing you should be aware is that their prices is more expensive compared to the Macau store. $60 a bag of peanut candy here compared to $40 in Macau. Big difference! Service wise I prefer the Macua location one.

I'm sorry but this place is really mediocre at best. The other reviews were written by tourists and…read morenot HKers. I tried it because of learning that they make their own pastries. Few things taste better than a hot pineapple bun (bolo bao) in the morning. But the buns here were an unappetizing grey color and not fragrant as should be when made fresh. The macaroni was ok but the beef looked as bad as it tasted. There are just so many other options that taste better.

This unassuming little cha charn teng in the middle of Tsim Sha Tsui has something about it-…read moresomething that brings people back here again and again. I have only been there once and was told that I could get a seat in the middle of the day was something of a miracle. To put this into perspective, this place looks no different from any cha charn tengs you will see; the only significant feature would be that it is absolutely tiny. You could fit about 30 people inside and that's about it. The opening hours are always shifting and they seem to close up at every convenience. so why is it so attractive? For that you will have to take a look at the entrance- you will see rows and rows of freshly made bread being turned out. This is a favourite amongst workers in the area as there is simply no other bakeries in this area which turns out freshly made buns like this any more. They used to be a common site but in this day and age it is simply not a practical solution. they have such a wide range on offer that most people will be willing to queue up or put up with the tiny tables that you have inside. Combining a cup of tea with one of these buns would make a perfect afternoon tea set- infact people come here around the clock and unlike other cha charn tengs people don't usually order the set menu. This tells you just how good their stuff is. Let me just pop by this afternoon..

I normally am not a huge fan of food court. However, this one inside Hysan Place is my exception…read more Not only do they have quality restaurants here, you can also charge your phone or laptop with the plugs at rather hidden places (shhhhhhh.... there are only four on the entire floor)... Anyways, while most of the time I tend to go to Pepper Lunch, today I saw another one that caught my eyes - Hokkaido Dairy Farm Milk Restaurant. I mean - Hokkaido? Japanese? I love it. And then milk? Take my money already! Little did I know that it has nothing to do with Japanese, it is in fact one of those traditional Chinese restaurants like Bing Suuk, etc. However, it does not mean it is less delicious. Its milk products using Hokkaido Milk are very savory, given they are the signature dishes here I suppose they have to be. What I love to order here is the scrambled egg sandwiches, the sandwiches are nicely toasted giving it the prefect crispiness. With only four more dollars, you may also order the Hokkaido drink which is definitely a bargain. My friends on the other hand love to order BBQ Pork Rice but i always think that the rice is overcooked and a bit too mushy. Not too appetizing on neither the eyes or to my stomach so I will just give it a pass. Anyways, I love the colour pattern they use here - white and light blue. Cozy enough to make you forget your lunch time is almost up.