Tag Archives: bonham strand

Yonge Piggies

23 Nov

yong piggies hong kong

The pig is centre of attention in Hong Kong at the moment, first with the opening and unyielding popularity of The Salted Pig, and now with Yonge Piggies, on the corner of Bonham Strand and Jervois Street. Yonge (pronounced ‘young’) Piggies is a Canadian hotdog joint named after hotdog vendor-lined Yonge Street in Toronto.

With its retro neon signs, metal clad décor and open front, complete with high red stools, Yonge Piggies does indeed look like it’s been transported straight from North America, much like its Canadian sausages.

yonge piggies hong kong

Said sausages, which are grilled to juicy perfection, come in three flavours: Head Prefect (honey garlic), Prom Queen (picante pepper) and Hippie (hickory smoked). All are served in a butter bun, and can be purchased on their lonesome for a steep $65, topped with chilli (‘Chubbs’) or cheese sauce (‘Dork’) for an even steeper $75, or as part of a combo set with either ‘fries’ or a salad and a soft drink for a slightly silly $85/95.

yonge piggies hong kong

I tried a Prom Queen combo with chips and a bottle of water. I had first asked for an iced tea, but was told this would cost an additional $12 on top of the combo price, so I changed it for water, and was still charged an additional $4. Minus points were awarded immediately; I don’t drink fizzy drinks, so why should I be penalised for this?!

When I had finished grumbling about soft drinks, I walked on to the condiments counter, where toppings included grated cheddar, jalapenos, olives, onions, bacon bits, tomatoes, sweetcorn, sauerkraut, guacamole and relish. I chose guacamole, cheese, tomatoes and jalapenos.

yonge piggies hong kong

So how did it taste, you ask? Completely lip-smackingly delicious. The buttery, soft and almost slightly sweet homemade bun was perfect, contrasting wonderfully with the crisp skin of the sausage that was bursting full of smoky, slightly spicy and ever so juicy meat. The condiments were obviously a bonus, particularly the jalapenos.

As for the ‘fries’ (I’ll stick with chips so I don’t betray my British roots), they weren’t piping hot and could have been a little crispier, although that didn’t stop me from eating them! Next time perhaps I’ll upgrade to the ‘poutine’ or the chilli fries for an extra $6…

I’d like to put the far-from-perfect service down to the fact that Yonge Piggies has barely been open a fortnight, and I believe I have already shared my views on the prices, particularly the unnecessary add-ons. However, regardless of mediocre service and slightly disagreeable prices, Yonge Piggies has tapped into a hole in the market, serving scrumptious hotdogs in a very favourable location. Thinking about it, perhaps the higher prices are a blessing in disguise; as I won’t be going every day, there’s less danger of me turning into a piggy myself!

Yonge Piggies
G/F, 1 Jervois Street
Sheung Wan
Hong Kong

Tel: +852 2104 7218

www.yongepiggies.com

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Noodlemi

14 Nov

 

 

noodlemi hong kong

Vietnamese is one of my favourite cuisines, bursting with fresh flavours and spices, and one that somehow seems healthier than other Asian cuisines. When newly opened Noodlemi on Bonham Strand enticed me with slogans such as ‘bitemi’, ‘cravemi’ and ‘eatmi’, I could hardly resist, especially given how close it is to my office!

noodlemi hong kong

Noodlemi, set up by Duyen and Jeremie, two very passionate individuals, is not just another regular Vietnamese restaurant; it prides itself on being completely free of MSG and gluten (apart from the sandwiches, which of course contain wheat). It’s an adorable little space packed full of bright, lively colours to create something modern and totally different to the usual Vietnamese restos we see all over town.

noodlemi hong kong

Our super healthy and delicious feast began with some soft shell crab summer rolls from the ‘wrapmi’ section of the menu, obviously. These were filled with an exciting collection of leaves, avocado, cucumber, carrots, crispy shallots, and of course the all-important and wonderfully tasty soft shell crab, which had the perfect balance of crispy and tender. Dipped in the homemade nuoc cham sauce, these were utter perfection.

noodlemi hong kong

From the ‘eatmi’ section, we tried the steamed chicken salad with crunchy cabbage and herbs. This refreshing blend of tender chicken, crunchy cabbage, white onions, shallots and peanuts, dressed in a sour and spicy sauce was incredibly moreish. Yet when the ingredients are so fresh and good for you, who cares if you polish off the whole bowl?!

noodlemi hong kong

Unlike other Vietnamese restaurants, Noodlemi doesn’t want its pho to be the focal point, yet it kind of is without even trying to be, for Noodlemi’s beef pho (under the heading ‘lovemi’) is possibly one of the best I’ve tasted. Although the flavour might be milder than elsewhere, it’s a real flavour, made by boiling beef bones, together with spices like cinnamon, star anise and ginger for six hours, without a trace of MSG. Seriously when it tastes this good, who needs MSG?! The beef was incredibly tender and the flat rice noodles cooked to perfection. I know what I’ll be eating very often during the cold winter months.

noodlemi hong kong

The turmeric white fish with scallion and dill on rice vermicelli was just begging to be tasted (it was calling out ‘choosemi’ – I had to!). The lightly battered morsels of fish were beautifully tender and absolutely delicious, sprinkled with a blend of spices that warmed me right to the bones. Together with the slightly chewy rice noodles, crispy bean sprouts, cucumber and carrot, finished with aromatic coriander, I can see why this is already one of Noodlemi’s most popular dishes.

noodlemi hong kong

Last but not least, we couldn’t leave without trying Noodlemi’s special banhmi (if it politely says ‘bitemi’, how can I not?), loaded with Vietnamese salami, cucumber, chilli, carrot and plenty of fresh coriander. Although it wasn’t the easiest dish to eat, it was absolutely delicious, made even more so by the perfect crusty baguette.

Unfortunately neither my one-hour lunchbreak nor my already full to bursting stomach allowed for dessert, yet I’ll make sure to try the vanilla terrine with fresh berries on my next visit, which may well be later this week!

Service was initially a little confused, but the staff are all very friendly and it is clear that a lot of passion goes into every dish that is created. What’s even better is that for such delicious and nutritious food, provided you don’t eat as much as we did (there were only two of us!), you won’t even need $100. I mean it when I say I’ll be going back very, very soon.

Noodlemi

G/F, 2 Bonham Strand
Sheung Wan
Hong Kong

Tel: +852 2253 1113

http://noodle-mi.com/

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mini dans la ville

8 May

 

 

 

Having made it my mission to check out every single one of The Pemberton’s many restaurants, I confess that I am not doing too well. However, I am one step closer after trying mini dans la ville last week.

mini dans la ville is a rather random spot set up by someone who is clearly far too obsessed with Mini Coopers. The first thing you see as you come in is a real life old-school Mini posing for photos. Once in the restaurant, the walls are dotted with photos and sketches of…you guessed it – Minis! Although a very strange concept, I kind of like it; the design is very fresh and clean, making good use of the space. There’s a glass-fronted bar/deli where you can order a smoothie or a coffee and delicious-looking pastries to go, and then there’s a fairly comprehensive menu offering choices from pastas to burgers to mussels and oysters.

Since we were there at lunch, we went for the set lunch. Ranging from $78 to $158 depending on the main course, the set includes a soup of the day, a main and a drink (with an additional cost for smoothies or juices).

Minestrone soup

The minestrone soup, served in an adorable little bowl, was just the right size and tasted divine. Possibly because mini seems to focus all its energies on the design of the restaurant, I had anticipated very sub-standard food, and in particular expected the soup to taste as if it were out of a tin. However, it was fresh, chunky and well seasoned. My only complaint is that the spaghetti was far too soft.

Spring Chicken

The Spring chicken, normally served with mashed potato, was wonderfully tender and far from dry. The thick gravy could well have been made from a Bisto equivalent powder, but it added to the lightly seasoned flavour of the chicken. Although the waitresses were very accommodating in swapping the mash for veggies, this was just about the only bit of good service we received; the rest of the time they seemed to be on another planet.

Cheeseburger

I opted for a cheeseburger, as it’s important to know how well a restaurant can execute a burger. The first thing I noticed was how enormous the sesame-topped bun was, making my stomach tremble just at the thought of eating it. As my stomach doesn’t take too well to bread, I rarely eat burger buns anyway so this wasn’t a big deal. The part of the bun I did try was wonderfully fluffy, perfect for any normal stomach. As far as the beef patty was concerned, if you like your beef practically still mooing, as I do, then you’d enjoy this burger. It was deliciously soft and smooth, made the more so by the gooey melted cheese. It did lack a little seasoning, but nothing that a sprinkling of salt and pepper couldn’t fix. Though a little pale in colour, the chips were delicious – crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside and not too oily.

New York Cheesecake

For an extra $15, you can choose a slice of either New York cheesecake or chocolate cheesecake. Our choice of the New York version was, quite honestly, pretty awful. I’m not sure when it was made, but it didn’t taste fresh at all and had developed a rather off-putting hard crust to it. I normally hate food wastage, especially when it comes to dessert, but this was one dessert I just could not eat.

In summary, mini dans la ville is an interesting new spot that serves mostly decent food at reasonable prices, although the service leaves a lot to be desired. Steer clear of the desserts, but definitely try their fresh juices and smoothies; I had the ‘Fighter’ juice consisting of a delicious blend of apple, lemon, ginger and mango. Will it last? Who knows, but it’s a quirky little place that’s already attracting quite a following, and I think I can safely say there is no other place like it in Hong Kong.

mini dans la ville

UG/F, The Pemberton
22-26 Bonham Strand
Sheung Wan
Hong Kong

Tel: +852 2868 2002

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Fusion 5th Floor

25 Oct

I thought I had found my favourite restaurant-filled building, but I think I may have just found Stanley 11’s rival. Fusion 5th Floor, a restaurant with neither an original nor an interesting name yet very original and interesting food, is situated in The Pemberton on Bonham Strand. As soon as I entered the lift and saw the names of all the restaurants, I knew, even before reaching the fifth floor that I would have to return again. And again. And again…

Aside from a couple of positive word-of-mouth reviews, I was unable to find a great deal of information about Fusion 5th Floor online (although thankfully they do have a website), so I had no expectations and thus was pleasantly surprised.

Ambient mood lighting, crisp white tablecloths and gentle music provided a romantic atmosphere, although the outdoor terrace (bar the scourge of mosquitoes which seemed to find me utterly irresistible) was even better; Twinkling fairy lights entwined in beautiful green shrubbery and candlelit tables transport you away from the hectic lifestyle we face every day here in Hong Kong.

For dinner, you can choose either a three-course meal ($458), a four-course meal ($498) or a six- or eight-course tasting menu ($558 or $650 respectively). After a late-ish lunch, we humbly selected the three courses.

Slow-cooked egg with salted cod salad

Keen to try something I would never order elsewhere, I chose to start with the slow-cooked egg with salted cod, salad of frisee and walnut vinaigrette. The egg was perfectly cooked and the yolk gently broke at the touch of a fork, to coat the salad and the soft chunks of cod, which beautifully contrasted with the crunchy medley of sweet and sharp cherry tomatoes.

The crabmeat salad with scallop, asparagus, baby greens and Thai vinaigrette was equally as delicious, although there were some complaints that there was not enough crab. The scallop was melt-in-the-mouth-delicious and the Thai vinaigrette added an unexpected yet pleasant touch.

Roasted rack of lamb

On to the mains, the roasted Australian rack of lamb with ratatouille and black pepper sauce was perfectly pink and tender. The ratatouille took on an Asian form with thin slices of raw garlic and slightly al dente vegetables. I would certainly order this dish again.

Chargrilled pork rack

The chargrilled US Kurobuta pork rack with mixed tomatoes and Vietnamese vinaigrette was devoured within seconds and a desire for more was voiced. The pork was beautifully tender and perfectly complemented by the slightly sharp Vietnamese flavours.

Warm chocolate ganache with vanilla gelato

Dessert may be substituted, at an additional $45, for a cheese platter. Unwilling to miss out on either selection, we chose to share one dessert and one cheese platter. The warm chocolate ganache with vanilla gelato was very pleasing with the perfect gooey consistency in the centre.

The cheese platter, though unfortunately not exactly a ‘platter’ as there were only two types of cheese, was the perfect end to the meal; soft creamy camembert and slightly bitter goat’s cheese paired with honey, chutney and red grapes. Needless to say that by the end of it we were certainly, as my lovely grandpa used to say in his charming Nottingham accent, “TTT – tummy touchin’ table.”

This exquisite meal was complemented by a delicious bottle of Saint-Emilion Grand Cru, though you’d expect to be served decent wine when paying almost double the cost of the food! Fusion does offer BYOB however, so it might be worthwhile heading downstairs to Fusion Gourmet to pick up a bottle.

Although the waiters didn’t know the answers to anything we asked them about the food or the wine, they were very attentive and incredibly well mannered, stopping to bow and thank us for thanking them at every opportunity.

Fusion 5th Floor, set up by Friendly Cheung and his wife Deborah, is fine dining without being overly pretentious. This comes as a breath of fresh air as too many restaurants these days in HK can’t seem to get the balance of serving good food with a down to earth attitude. So for somewhere where fusion does not equal disaster and the staff are as friendly as the owner’s name suggests, try Fusion 5th Floor. And then perhaps you, too, will suffer the endless desire to return to this building over and over again.

Fusion 5th Floor

5/F The Pemberton
22-26 Bonham Strand
Sheung Wan
Hong Kong

Tel: +852 2854 1801

Date visited: Saturday 15th October 2011

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