It is official: Chaxiubao is a woefully difficult food blog when it comes to Hong Kong Eat advices. In the way it always suggests place that's not brought up in travel guides. Take the place Taipo for instance. You won't see it featured in one of those "Hong Kong in 3 days" itineraries. Chances are, seeing this place even get listed in a "Hong Kong in 3 weeks" lowliness is fairly remote. Wait, "Taipo, does it in any way has any connection to my favorite Kung Pao Chicken?" Novel but nada. Like, Jacky Chen is not Jack Nicholson Jr., nor Chow Yun Fat the first one in history to make chowder soup, no matter how their names sound alike...
The town office of Taipo boasts a railway museum as its major tourist attraction. Therein, forlornly reside a dusty locomotive and a coach in this atom of a museum, showing you all the railway relics from the olde worlde of Hong Kong...
Oh, phu-ease.
I take that as epicful and eventful as a Venetian touting a kettleful of sewage water in Venice. What people ask for this? The tourism board also yaps a tree in a far-off village by which people referred to as the "Wishing Tree." Most village people believe wishes could be made come true if they can let their paper charms catch the branches or twigs up high; the higher, the more auspicious. But one bit most touring pamphlets forgot to mention is that the miraculous tree pretty much deceased two years back because all the flying charms and discs from the exuberant crowds were too heavy for its withering trunk and branches. Thence, reality set back in for some conservation -- no more wishful throwing and phishing allowed these days for the lovely wishing tree. With now hardly anything left to see in Taipo, why bother? Why, for a place apart with such travel-unfriendliness and nothingness?
Because Taipo has some of best Hong Kong's chews and slurps. Hee-haah...
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San Tsui Yung Kee 新蔡潤記
Food: One of the best outlets selling fishballs noodles in Hong Kong, San's has been in the fish-battering trade for well over four decades. So good is the trade of this neighborhood stalwart that it now only opens from morning to noon. All fishballs and fish cake cutlets are freshly made. Fishballs, with its unmatchable plumpness is a by-default must-try; so does the rice noodles with deep-fried fish cake cutlets. Fried fish skin and plain poached pig intestines are also supreme. If roaring hungry, try double the portion with a cheap 2 dollars.
Like almost all noodle shops in Hong Kong, mix and match with varied toppings is always welcome. So lets try this out by espouses fishballs with beef brisket, or fried fish skins, or pig intestines – the only limit is your imagination.
Specials: Fishballs, deep-fried fish cake cutlets and fried fish skin. The chili sauce is also homemade.
Address: 144 Kwong Fuk Road, Taipo, New Territories 大埔廣褔道144號
Tel: 2657 6460
Opening hours: 7am – 3:30pm
Seating: 50
Fare: HK$15-50, cash only
Service: Minimalism, no English menu
Nearest railway: Taipo KCR
Transportation: Get off from the KCR and catch a taxi in green (for districts of the New Territories)
Michelin Hong Kong on the cheap rating: ***
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Ping Kee平記
Food: Located in an indoor food market swamped by food stalls, Ping Kee has nothing handsome about its outlook. Instead, Ping Kee lets its vivacious wontons to resonate with all food devotees. Try their wonton noodles once and you'll acquire the most insatiable palate in the world for wonton. Everything in the bowl is homemade, from the wonton to the noodles. The noodles is ample with wontons: a total of six wontons are all yours. Their wontons have two kinds of fillings to whet your appetite: with and without shrimp; the all-pork one was wrapped up for those who are shrimp allergic. In any case, don't waste the luscious wonton soup, slurp it all and you'll find yourself immortal. It is fish broth that has been simmered for over six hours.
Specials: Wonton noodles, braised noodles with shrimp eggs and wonton soup
Address: Taipo Heung Market, 2/F, Taipo Complex, 8 Heung Sze Wui Street, Taipo
Tel: 2658 4567
Opening hours: 7am – 4pm
Seating: 20-30
Fare: HK$16-30, cash only
Service: Minimalism; close two weeks every July; no English menu
Nearest railway: Taipo KCR
Transportation: again, catch the New Territories taxi (the green ones) from Taipo KCR -- just walks away from Sun Tsui Yun Kee
Michelin Hong Kong on the cheap rating: ***
