Day 2 HK

After dinner, we decided to check out HK's famous watering hole, Lan Kwai Fong, which was within walking distance. It was a Monday night, supposed to be the quietest (Friday being the wildest) night but the place was crowded with locals and expats. A crowd of people outside a bar called Fevar Club were waiting to be admitted. Turned out that the singer Sammy Cheng was due to appear anytime. We took a few pics and the bouncers who were holding the crowd back waved at us (at Yi) to go forward. I pushed Yi and she walked over. The people cranned their necks to see, and we heard in Cantonese, "Who's that??" I would've died of fright but Yi was cool. The crowd must be wondering whether it was a joke of some sort.


The crowd that had gathered in front of the bar.


All eyes on them. Yi's 15 seconds of fame.



After 30 min, Sammy was still nowhere to be seen so we left and walked to Soho, an area of western cafes and restaurants. It was a hot muggy night and the uphill trek (on long outdoor escalators) was very tough on 3 tired travellers. When we got to the top of the hill, there wasn't much going on so we took a taxi and went back to the Kowloon side. If you travel in groups of three or more, it works out cheaper by taxi but bear in mind that taxis charge double to cross either way after certain hours (11 pm?). And remember the subway closes after midnight.

Early next morning Hub, in his hunter/protector mood, set out to find us a decent room. He came back very excited as he had found the perfect place: new, clean, big and cheap (HK$480 for twinbeds room)! We tossed in our little beds and refused to believe him.



He was right. Juin Loong Hotel is new, located at the corner of Jordan and Temple Street (Juin Loong Hotel, Cyber Plaza, 239 Temple Street, Jordan, Kowloon Tel: 00852 3580 0379). It is a small hotel but I highly recommend it. We took the superior room (only HK$600 per night) with the see-through bathroom for the kinky girl in me, but it does have roller shades for fuddy duddies.



Around the hotel are many restaurants, and 'Men's Street' (Temple St) is just at the junction. This is where the stalls are set up from early evening to midnight and you can find imitation Hermes belts to power point pointers to the latest toys. The Jordan subway stop is nearby too.

Once settled, we went to Harbour City nearby to eat my favorite la mien in Crystal Jade La Mien Xiao Loong Bao. Crystal Jade is a Singaporean restaurant chain (surprise!) that specializes in hand-pulled noodles (la mien) and other Shanghainese treats. I've eaten at Crystal Jade in Singapore but found the HK ones much much better.


La mien with superior chicken soup

My favorite! The soup has been boiled for hours and there's a hint of Chinese ham and abalone. You can request for the noodles to be left uncut.



Hot and sour la mien

This was too gluey for me. I would've preferred the Sichuan la mien.


La mien with chicken and preserved veg

Hub and Yi's favorite. The soup was tasty, umami-sweet and flavorful but the noodles were too soft for me.


Drunken pork knuckles

My MIL makes drunken chicken frequently so we thought we'd try some pig skin and tendons instead...yummy and crunchy and the xiaoxin wine was GOOD!


Maodou, bayeh, xuecai (fresh soybeans, Shanghainese tofu skin and preserved veg)

Another dish we get to eat when MIL gets fresh soybeans. Love it.


Onion-oil pancake

Light, flaky pastry outside, soft with chopped spring onions inside. So simple yet so tasty. I hear it's good because of lard.

It was a heavy lunch so we had to forego the xiao loong bao. I'll try them next time. Make sure you don't miss this when you go to HK!