Kam Wah Cafe's Reviews - OpenRice Mobile

Kam Wah Cafe 金華冰廳
English Address : G/F, 47 Bute Street Prince Edward
Chinese Address : 太子弼街47號地下
Map : Display Map
Phone No. : 2392 6830 (Add to Contacts)
Categories : Hong Kong Style | Tea Restaurant
Spending : Below $40
Overall Score : 3.5
405 smile face

vs 123 ok face

vs 57

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Other Information

Signature Dishes: Milk Tea、Egg Tarts、Pineapple bun with butter、Chicken Wings
Opening Hours: 星期一至日:06:30-12:00
Payment Method: Cash
10% Service Charge: 沒有
TV: Yes
Parking: Yes
Delivery: Yes

Gourmet Reviews

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Classic HK cafe
2012-10-20
permarexics (43 Review(s))

'Bo Lo Yau' (菠蘿油)

Contrary to what the name suggested, this popular sweet pastry widely available in Chinese bakeries contains no pineapple fruit at all. The sugary tasting crust on the top of the bun is supposedly made to resemble the epicarp of a pineapple, with a dough similar to that used to make sugar cookies, commonly consisting of sugar, eggs, flour and lard. The bread underneath is the same used in Chinese style Western bread, which is a softer and sweeter dough compared to Western breads. The name of the pastry is therefore pretty much derived according to its appearance.

The 'bo lo yau' tried at Kam Wah has a slight variation, though commonly served in cha chaan tengs in Hong Kong, with a large slab of butter in between the halves of the bun. The bo lo bau was served straight from the oven, feeling slightly warm. The slab of butter was applied at room temperature and the heat from the bun made it melt instantly. The top crust was slightly stiff and tasted very well toasted albeit it tasting slightly sweet. Being served straight from the oven, the fresh bun tasted light, fluffy and airy on the inside, which contrasted almost perfectly with the hardened sweet crust.You would fall in love with Kam Wah's version of bo lo bau if you are a fan of toast. What would probably be the icing on the cake would literally be the appearance of the crust. Ideally, it should resemble the epicarp of the pineapple, though in this instance, it was nowhere close.

Verdict: 8.0/10

Hong Kong style French Toast
The Hong Kong version of the French Toast is probably a more calories-loaded serving compared to its original counterpart. Served with a thin slab of butter, the surface of the sandwich had been deep fried to golden brown, leaving it a crisp texture but certainly greasy. The traditional way of enjoying this sandwich is to drizzle honey over the toast, though upon the first bite, we realised that something was amiss.

There was no peanut butter in the sandwich! Well it is not exactly a standard spread expected when one orders the French Toast in Hong Kong, though majority of the cha chaan tengs around would probably serve their toasts with a generous layer of peanut butter before deep-frying it. The toast however was exuding a rich fragrance of butter flavour with a fluffy soft interior, leaving us craving for another bite after the first. If there was any consolation to this, it tasted oily but at least it was not overwhelming.

Verdict: 7.5/10

Puff Pastry Egg Tarts

Priced individually, the puff pastry egg tarts were a 'must order' since my other half is a huge fan of it. The buttery crust was thin and crumbled easily, so have your plate close by! This was contrasted with a generous serving of the egg filling which was very soft and tender, literally melting in your mouth. There was a very subtle sweetness to the filling, enough to please the palate. There was a strong egg flavour to it (interpret it in a positive manner) and the filling had a solid strong yellow colour tone to it, which probably meant that good quality eggs were being used. Some might prefer the thin crust, though personally we would have enjoyed it better if the crust was slightly thicker, to give a balance to the plentiful filling. Likewise, the base of the tart was a tad too thin for our liking, though it must be said that the crust had a strong buttery taste and flavour to it.

Verdict: 8.0/10

Mexico Bread
As we were leaving the cafe, there was a tray of freshly baked 'Mexico bread' being brought to the front of the cafe, where takeaway orders are being served. It would be close to impossible to resist against piping hot freshly baked bread of any sort really. The Mexico bread was light and fluffy on the inside (the classic airy inside) and a slightly crisp toast to the surface of the bun, filled with sweetened crust, similar to that of the bo lo bun. It was not too sweet either, which suited our palate. Overall, it was another must-try, just be careful of the crumbling crust that might fall all over you.

Verdict: 8.0/10

Chicken Pie

Another takeaway order, but this simple looking and widely available chicken pie tasted pretty extraordinary to say the least. Despite a rather thick layer of buttered pastry on the top of the pie, it did not taste overly greasy nor overwhelming. The filling was simple and not excessive, but the rich flavours of the buttery pastry more than compensated the somewhat lacking chicken chunks filling.

Verdict: 7.5/10

Supplementary Information：
Kam Wah Cafe is the classic traditional Hong Kong cha chaan teng, where you would expect a lot of hustle and buzz surrounding you while you attempt to feebly tuck in to your meal. Chances are you would have the pleasant or unwanted company of a stranger sharing a table with you, which will potentially affect your dining appetite. Do not expect to linger around too long either after you had finished your meal, for before you know it, the serving waiters and waitress are beckoning your departure. Apart from the setting, the food was in general very satisfactory. We would certainly return, for a takeaway at least, if we are in the Mongkok vicinity.

Table Wait Time: 0 Minutes
Rating : Taste4 Environment2 Service2 Hygiene2 Value for Money4

Food, service and environmet are deterioring......
2011-03-11
大大粒蕉 (8 Review(s))

huffy

Things are no longer terrific and amazing
First, I want to talk abt the set lunch...
The noodles with beef or roasted pork is horrible, it is too tasteless.........
Then, the signature MILKTEA is reall really bitter....coz the tea is laid for a inapprpiate time

LASTLY, the thing carried my fury to a high point is the service of the BOSS.
This is redicilous that she gave the wrong change to me but she can still prsented implotely liike" It is not a problem if we had a problem to change the less, but a problem if we had changed too much for the customers."

O mouth LOL

Date of Visit: 2011-02-16
Table Wait Time: 5 Minutes
Rating : Taste2 Environment1 Service1 Hygiene1 Value for Money1

Egg Tarts
2010-08-25
supragurl7 (49 Review(s))

lol

I love the egg tarts here!!! The crust is not too thin and not too thick. The egg custard was "eggy" and not too sweet. Only $4 each!!! I also go bo lo bao which I thought was just ok. I notice the bread part was not a sweet type so it was kind of bland. Maybe it was meant to go with butter, but I don't like bo lo yau.

Recommended Dish(es): Egg tart
Rating : Taste5 Environment5 Service5 Hygiene5 Value for Money5

Had a quick lunch!
2010-05-28
stellabella (90 Review(s))

I was actually looking for another cha chaan teng in the same area as this one but found that it was no longer there.

So... we went into this place for lunch instead. It was very busy in there. We ordered some fried rice and hot milk tea. Food tasted good but they were a bit stingy with the ingredients.
My milk tea was great though.

Oh I was a bit naughty and ordered a bo lo baau. I loved it. It was really really good. I can just go to this place for their bo lo baau again. It's a must have! smile

Recommended Dish(es): 菠蘿油,奶茶
Date of Visit: 2010-04-29
Rating : Taste4 Environment3 Service4 Hygiene4 Value for Money4

Go for the fresh cheap buns, get out asap
2010-05-23
lowlight (8 Review(s))

Looking on OpenRice for a cha chan teng in MK, I came across this restaurant with dozens of pictures of pineapple buns with butter, or "bolo yau". I really like these buns, so I decided I'd go there for a bun and have lunch as well.

If you've ever been to an overhyped restaurant in HK on a Sunday, you will have an idea of how packed this was. When we were given a table, I couldn't help from saying "are you kidding?". It was a table for 4 (and even then it was really small) with 4 people already seated. My seat was so close to the booth behind me, I had to get in and out of my seat several times during my meal to let people in and out.

But again, this is to be expected when you go somewhere when there is a lot of hype behind it ;)

This isn't a restaurant you visit to sit and chat and enjoy the atmosphere, or to celebrate with friends, or even to enjoy a meal. You are to go in, get your bun, drink your drink, and leave.

But I was stubborn and hungry, so I ordered a dish from the extensive 'cha chan teng' style menu. I had a curry pork chop, which came with a cold drink for $29. I'll post my picture, which speaks for itself. The pork chop was tiny, about 3 bites, and the curry was bland and tasted like it came from a can.

The milk tea was mediocre at best - you could tell it was real 'hong kong style milk tea' but it was quite bland.

But thankfully, the hilariously small meal left enough room for a bolo yau, so I ordered one. As expected, it was piping hot, straight from the oven. Unfortunately this had the effect of melting the butter quickly (and there wasn't enough butter either - although other strangers at our table got more on theirs so I guess it varies). The top was crispy, and didn't create the mess often associated with pineapple buns. The dough was melt-in-your-mouth fresh, almost like a Krispy Kream donut. There was a hint of flavour you might not find in other buns - it was like lemon zest or extract. It gave it a unique flavour that I enjoyed.

We also had an egg tart, and it was good.

So go for the buns (they are well-priced, only $5 each. Compare that to Tsui Wah which charges $9 for a bolo yau) and that's it. Go on a weekday if possible.

As far as service, it met both extremes for me. On one hand, the owner of the place was extra kind (seeing that I was a foreigner, she probably assumed I was a tourist) and helpful with the menu (by the way, all the main menus are stuck under the glass, which in our case was covered by the plates of all the stangers at our tables, so we couldn't really move their dishes around to see the menu).

On the other hand, you had this other guy with a 90's hair cut SCREAMING the entire time. I know that's a "hong kong thing" but damn does it wear thin fast. There is NO way to have a conversation.

So like I said: go there, get your bun, and get the hell out of there as soon as you can.

Date of Visit: 2010-05-23
Spending per Head: HKD30
Rating : Taste4 Environment1 Service4 Hygiene2 Value for Money3

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