Some of my recent good dining experiences include a fine dining Indian experience in Central, an afternoon on Star Street and my weekly lunches at Tin Hau.
Bombay Dreams, 75-77 Wyndham St, Central
I admit that in many ways, my palette is very Cantonese. As a result, I rarely eat Indian (God forbid the clean favors of my fish or meat be obliterated by the strong spices of tumeric and cumin!). Recently, with gentle encouragement from my boyfriend, I've included Indian food into the bi-weekly rotation. After much practice, I now prefer the more authentic, eat on a pandan leaf style of Indian food. However, for the newbies, I would recommend visiting Bombay Dreams for a gentle introduction to the curries and local favorites. Bombay Dreams presents Indian classics like chicken vindaloo and potatoes and cauliflower without pretentiousness. The flavours of all our dishes were clean albeit somewhat restrained, probably with the ex-pat and local Cantonese person in mind. The naan bread (my faaaav!!!!) was well done and expertly prepared in the glass walled kitchen, an unusual touch for an Indian restaurant which usually keeps it's prep kitchen under wraps. Overall, this would be a great choice in Central if you're looking for a reasonably priced meal in a very upscale setting (approximately $300 per head).
Can't get enough garlic nann :D
Lazy Afternoons in the Star Street Area!
Classifieds, 31 Wing Fung St., Wan Chai
So I've managed to come here not once, but twice in one week! I'm absolutely addicted to their house dressing on watercress, freshly pureed soups, and grilled panini lunch sets that thoroughly satisfy without breaking the bank ($56 for soup and panini). Their pasta specials are also hearty and prepared with noticeably fresh ingredients. It's always a treat to taste vine ripened tomatoes as opposed to ketchup based marinara in HK! In addition to their simple rustic fair, I'm a huge fan of their MASSIVE coffees. At $34 for a large cappuccinno, I was properly caffeinated for several hours after (Quite frankly, I was probably a bit too coffee cracked out!). The food, the ambience, and the endless supply of magazines and newspapers make this one of my favorite spots time and time again.
Duck breast panini with fresh mozzarella and tomato with watercress salad
Epoch, Wan Chai
You'd think that after large cuppa coffees at Classifieds I'd have enough caffeine coursing through my veins to last me through a half marathon. Diagonally across from Classifieds is the coffee shop Epoch. They serve ILLY coffee (rejoice! more great coffee in HK!). Some of my favorites include their Viennese coffee but stay away from their uninspired teas. The decor, free wireless, and excellent soundtrack make this a great study spot.
Delicious Viennese coffee that's probably not great for the waist line -.-
Adventures in Tin Hau: Andrea and Renee take on dining at Tsing Fung St and Electric Road with Gusto!
Kins Kitchen, 9 Tsing Fung Street, Tin Hau
As a promise to eat more locally and more healthy, Andrea and I have decided to try a new restaurant in Tin Hau every week for lunch. So far, we've tried Cafe Eos, Poppy's Restaurant, Fantasy Vegetarian Restaurant, and Kin's Kitchen. While all of them were at least B grade or above, I particularly liked Kin's Kitchen although a bit pricey for lunch. The giant walnut prawns were expertly battered and fried with the nuts inside ($150 for 4 large prawns). The braised noodle with mushrooms was flavorful and exceptionally delicate for being just a noodle dish ($88). Although the presentation was lack lustre, the clean environment certainly made up for that small shortcoming. I would recommend coming here with family or for a work lunch with colleagues several steps up from a cha chan teng.
Fantasy Vegetarian Restaurant, 66 Electric Road, Tin Hau
Fantasy Vegetarian Restaurant garnered less than stellar reviews on OpenRice.com. Perhaps going in with low-expectations actually helped me enjoy the meal more than I would otherwise given the loud wait staff and C-rated cleanliness (I was given a recycled takeaway container which I had to pay for! what?!). I thought our meal was satisfying considering the very reasonable prices. They have large portioned set meals for two starting at $100HKD. You can spend even less by ordering a la carte. The braised tofu with mushrooms was filling and well seasoned and although Andrea wasn't keen on the turnip cake, I thought it was smooth and quite tasty for $3HKD. As a week day vegetarian, I'd definitely come back!
Our massive vegetarian spread for $115
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