Cheung Kee Restaurant     祥記飯店   (Closed)

This restaurant is frequently vacated with large groups of westerners, you will find it impossible to walk in and be seated without booking a table days in advance. Customer loyalty is highly prioritized and if you know of someone who regularly visits the restaurant I highly recommend they make the booking. Another special feature of the restaurant, other than the exquisite food, is that they allow free corkage (perhaps this is why it is so popular with westerners who like to drink a lot!). Additionally, they will store your wine and spirits for you until your next visit. The place itself is rather small but nevertheless hygienic and tidy!

I know westerners in HK often find it hard to find a good Chinese restaurant where the dishes do not include bones and brains. Chung Kee (CK) offers just the right balance between "international" and local versions of Chinese cuisine. Often restaurants offering this variety are located in major hotels which means very high prices. However, CK is affordable and excellent value for money especially when dining in large groups.

In terms of menu it is limited but has what everyone is looking for. Cold tofu with bean sprouts and peanuts are served with the drinks, excellent flavours and the tofu was cooked just right. The Peking Duck is an all-time favourite and must be ordered in advance. The meat is plentiful, thick and they managed to get the crispiness just right- a must order for an appetizer! The chicken and cashew nuts embraced flavoursome, tasty flavour but after a few mouthfuls were somewhat over-powering, I suggest that less of the thick sticky almost "syrup-like" sauce is used next time . Braised pork ribs were another of the group's favourites, the meat literally falls off the bone! Juicy, little fat-absolutely delicious, I would go as far to say that they are the best I have ever tried . Spicy string beans and minced pork, although on previous occasions I have enjoyed this dish I have to say I was rather disappointed- they were exceptionally oily and not spicy at all! Moreover, the amount of garlic included was wasteful. The spicy Kungpao prawns were very fresh with a robust bite and the sweet sauce complimented the dish well, portion size was also reasonable. Lastly, stir-fried snow pea shoots nice and light and enjoyed the nutty taste.

A unique dessert that one definitely wouldn't get back home! A very popular choice amongst most diners in the restaurant- caramel-glazed apple and banana dropped into ice to crystallize. Just the right level of sweetness and not too over-powering after a rather heavy meal. I would definitely say grab the ones with more sugar to avoid the sogginess and also the banana variety with their feathery softness work best. The melted apple tastes slightly strange and tangy. We also had scouffe balls with red bean paste although I am not keen on red bean paste they were popular with the red bean lovers on our table who went back for seconds!

Overall a very pleasant dining experience. The dishes were executed well, the flavour was memorable and the staff made all feel very welcome. We will definitely be back for more!

The cold appetizer platter of vegetarian rolls, smoked fish, jellyfish and pork meat. I was so excited about the fish, I quickly bit into them and was not pleasantly surprised with the many many many sharp fish bones. Beware!
The Peking duck, was rather disappointing. The meat was thin, dry, and the skin wasn't crispy. Absolute nono for a peking duck.
The claypot wonton and vegetables in chicken broth. Not too bad, but we've had better elsewhere.
The spicy stir fried string beans (四季豆) was wonderful as expected. I love my veggie spicy.
The braised pork ribs...were out of this world fantastic! Sweet, sticky, tender, juicy!
The first bird, Shan Dong Chicken was excellent. Juicy, tasty chicken with even tastier sauce. I gnawed on the neck and any remnants my fellow diners didn't consume.
Scrambled Egg white with Crab Meat. I am not into egg white, but the crab meat and a drizzle of vinegar made it all good. The restaurant won't deliver your orders based on the intensity of flavors, so you gotta eat in a sequence that you prefer. This dish tasted rather bland after all the dishes served earlier.
Love the dessert, apples and bananas deep fried in batter, dipped into sugar and crystalised in iced water....quite an attraction for those who has not seen this done before.
http://mochachocolatarita.blogspot.com/2009/11/peking-duck-dinner-at-cheung-kee-wan.html

Went there for dinner.
I love beijin food, so I was quite looking forward to checking this place out.
The place is not big, rather small but nice and clean. 80% of their customers were westerners when we get there.
素鵝: It was mini sized compare to the other restaurants but I find it easy to eat I always order this dish at beijin restaurants because I love the smoky fravor. However this one hasn't got much. A bit disappointed.
賽螃蟹: Great taste, Although the egg york in the middle was missing! If I could be fussy about it, I think the egg white was a bit too hard. I like it half boiled but this one was overdone.
葱爆羊肉: A great match with the Lamb and the onion! Probably the best dish from what I have ordered.
窩貼: Small dumplings. the taste is very standard. Not much juice inside but it was a good bite
The service is good, the food average.
It might be a nice place before heading for drinks.