There have been a number of restaurants that have closed in my neighbourhood. At least in one particular corner where it was always a friendly place for people in the hood to gather at night with a glass of wine and chat. It was sad as they have been here forever. But recently one of my favorites reopened with a new name! Wagyu Bar & Grill. And as other neighbours, like us we decided to give it a try.


The place is now brighter with lovely murals on the wall like this. A long bar is on one side and seating is spacious and comfy.

They offer a value for money dinner set menu along with a la carte. Menu is in English and Chinese. They also have a concise drink menu. A la carte offerings come in the form of pasta, pizza, burgers and steak. Basic Western fair.









We decided to just order a la carte as we weren't too interested in the starters. Thus, we started with drinks. I ordered a Chocolate Milkshake ($58) as boyfriend ordered a beer as he saw there were happy hour deals. The milkshake, served a in cute glass was really good. Not too thick but loads of chocolate flavour.

I had the Wagyu Bolognese ($165) as I recall from the previous owner, this was really good. And it still is. But portions are just more generous now! I didn't expect such a hearty portion. Pasta was a dente and there was so much sauce! Definitely not stingy on it at all. The sauce was rich and meaty. A good dose of freshly shaved Parmesan was added.

Boyfriend had the Wagyu Burger ($165) and requested it be medium rare. It came with garlic fries, a salad, tzatziki sauce and ketchup for dipping. The burger was a double patty with melty chedder, lettuce and a fried egg. The patty was juicy and nicely seasoned. But the best was the fries! These were outrageously good. Very crisp and well seasoned. Perfect shoe string fries.

Service is friendly and the place is a lot more casual and welcoming than before. Will definitely be back to check out their lunch set menu.

I decided to try out one of the new restaurants located in the Urban Playground area of Hysan Place for lunch one day. Inebi is a Japanese restaurant that is in a far off corner of this area. The restaurant is quite large with plenty of tables and a sushi bar one side.
During lunch they offer lunch sets. Menu is in English and Chinese. Sets include a miso soup, salad, chawanmushi, appetizer and pickles.






I decided to get the Assorted Diced Sashimi Donburi ($158). Food came out very quickly.

The salad was not that good. Greens were fresh but there wasn't much dressing on it.


The miso soup was ok. The appetizer was some savory burdock and there were a couple of slices of pickled daikon.


The chawanmushi had no flavour. The egg was a bit too over cooked. All that was included was a bit of dry chicken meat.



The sashimi was mainly salmon. There was a few bits of tuna and some flying fish roe along with cucumbers and tamagoyaki. Not too assorted in my opinion. The sashimi in the donburi was fresh but the rice was hard as a rock. It also wasn't seasoned.   For this price, I could get much better elsewhere in Causeway Bay.

Not exceptionally cheap in price and definitely not value for money. I doubt I'd be back.

When 遇見花蓮 (English name: Hualien Dating) first opened, there was a huge crowd of curious people who lived by to give it a try. I was one of them but not really wanting to wait in line, we decided to come back when the interest died down. For some reason or another, we kind of forgot about it. Until one day I said ... we should give this a try. Though not a lot of people, it did start to get full later into the evening.Menu is in English and Chinese. Ordering is done by a QR code that is in Chinese only even when I switched to English. It was still in Chinese. There is no 10% service charge. After ordering you pay at the cashier on your way out. They seemed to serve a little of every part of Taiwan including hotpot. With any order of a main, drinks are offered at a discounted price.I had the Night Market Pineapple Fruit Tea (on the left, $12 with any order). Boyfriend had the Handmade Mashed Taro Black Sugar Milk Tea (on the right, $12 with any order). The fruit tea had slices of orange and was fairly sweet. The milk tea had enough taro paste to make it extra pasty.It seemed everyone ordered this so we followed along. Hualien Snacks Platter ($88). Includes popcorn chicken, beef stomach, pork intestine, chicken roll, marinated egg, sausage, sweet potato crispy cake, fish nugget and mala duck blood curd. I can see why everyone was ordering this. It gives a good selection of all their snacks so you can sample it all in one go. Loved especially the sweet potato crispy cake.We shared a Pork Intestine Vermicelli Soup ($32). It was fairly peppery. This took me by surprise. But otherwise, it was a very generous portion. The intestines were soft and tender.Honey Glazed Ribs with Braised Pork Rice ($66) as a huge size. The ribs were crispy and very sweet from the glaze. The rice was coated in the savory sauce from the braised pork.This came with a seaweed fish ball soup. Light in taste with bouncy bits of fish balls.Hualien Braised Beef Noodle Soup ($72) was quite good. The noodles were chewy and smooth. The tendon was soft and literally melted in your mouth. The braised beef slices were thick and soft.Portions were huge. We didn't expect that at all so we rolled out of there very full. Prices were reasonable and I can see why people in this area do return to eat.

On the way home by tram, I noticed a new restaurant had opened in the place where a fried chicken restaurant once was. 五指間蘭州牛肉麵 (English name: Wu Zhi Jian Beef Noodles) was what it was called. Taking a look, I realized it was a Chinese restaurant serving Northern Chinese food. But most interesting of all? 90% of the diners were Middle Eastern. There was a large sign with the Halal certifcate of authenticity that it served Halal food. Normally a Chinese noodle restaurant doesn't peak my interest but this place suddenly did.
The interior was set up like a fast food restaurant. Ordering can be done at the counter or at the touch screen display near the entrance. You pick up your food when the number on your ticket is announced. Staff speak Mandarin but there are two who speak Cantonese and fairly good English.
Menu is in English and Chinese with no 10% service charge.

  We ordered two drinks that were $10 each if you order food (otherwise it's $15). Boyfriend had the Sweet Fermented Oats (on the left) and I had the Sour Plum Drink ($10).  The sweet fermented oats was very sweet and reminded me of amazake except they use oats here instead of rice. Boyfriend loved it a lot. My sour plum drink was very different than the Taiwanese version in that it was more on the sweet side than sour which was quite nice over all. I never had it like this before.
Langzhou Beef Noodles ($48) was the signature noodle so we gave it a try. Portion was large enough to share between us.  From the photo it looked spicy but the staff said it wasn't spicy as the chilli oil is an optional addition that can be found at the condiment corner where you also get free water. Boyfriend added a bit of the chilli oil and it was SUPER spicy. The kind that really sticks to you. The noodles were very smooth and chewy. The soup was a clear beef broth. It was topped with slices of daikon and beef.  The beef was very good. Hearty beef flavor and very tender. Not chewy at all. The daikon took up the flavour of the soup well.
Boyfriend ahd the Chinese Hamburger with Cumin Beef ($32). We've had this several times in Hong Kong and it was always disappointing. But here it was not! A very crispy flakey pastry that wasn't oily.
Inside is was filled with a mince beef that was heavily seasoned. It was slightly spicy but not so much I couldn't handle it.
We also shared  a plate of Boiled Beef Dumplings ($48). You get twelve so quite a decent portion. It came with black vinegar for dipping. 
The dumplings were not a large size but the filling was juicy  and well seasoned. The wrapping was a bit thick but that is more common in Northern China. 
The food was very good and price was not expensive. The place was extremely clean with a lady there constantly cleaning tables. A lot of the diners ordered skewers as well which were done the Mainland Chinese way with plenty of spices. We didn't order them because I was afraid it might be too spicy but they did look good.  I can see why so many Middle Eastern people were dining here. It is difficult to find good and not expensive Chinese Halal food in Hong Kong. Something definitely worth recommending.

My neighbourhood social media page announced there was a new restaurant that opened. Or more like it was the old Aedes wine bar but now revamped with a whole new concept from the restaurant next door. Always curious to new openings and hoping to support the businesses in the area, boyfriend and I went there for dinner. It seemed other residents were just as curious as us as it was a fairly full house on a weekday evening.

The menu is in English only. It's only one sheet of paper with food on one side and drinks on the other. Simple and to the point.


The place has also be redecorated with nice red leather seats. The bar is still to one side but at least now it's more open and less dark. The place isn't very big. They use the kitchen next door so what you're getting here is a Michelin recommended meal without the exorbitant prices.

The restaurant focus is their fresh pasta made in-house. The staff actually bring a display of the pasta to each table  and explains what they are.


We began with a couple of appetizers to go with the wine that was suggested by the staff.

Italian Cold Cut Selection ($128). From left to right: Coppa ham, Mortadella, Parma Ham. All dotted with olives and sun dried tomatoes. This was a fairly generous platter.

Zucchini Croquettes with Garlic Mayonnaise ($68) was what peaked both our interests. These were so good. Crispy little bites that went well with the extremely creamy mayo.

The filling was soft and creamy.

As pasta is their only main, we shared two. The first was the Pappardelle Bolognese ($168). The meat sauce was rich and hearty. It clung to the pasta well. I love they used this nice wide pasta as it's the perfect vehicle for this type of sauce. The pasta itself was al dente, smooth and slippery.

The other pasta was the Scialatielli with Italian Sausage and Pecorino Cheese ($158). I had never tried this style of pasta and it was very interesting. It had the texture of udon. The sauce used for it salty from the cheese with a bit of kick from the black pepper and crumbled sausage meat. It enveloped each strand well. There was no sauce left behind.

We finished with dessert of a simple Madagascar Vanilla Gelato ($48). But simple as it was plated, it was extremely creamy with a huge punch of vanilla. Making it feel a worthy decadent dessert.

A welcome addition to the neighbourhood! The prices weren't overly expensive. The food was delicious. The service was inviting. Will definitely come back to try their other pasta dishes.

The opening of Nana's Green Tea was highly anticipated by me. One of my favorite casual green tea shops in Japan, I usually find them in a mall so I can get my quick matcha fix. Nothing fancy. Just plain old good. So, when they announced it would be open  here, I was pretty excited.
Located in the new Airside shopping mall, there was quite a long line on the first day. But after a while, things died down and I went to give it a try.

They have two lines. One for dine in and one for take away. Menu is in English, Japanese and Chinese. They have a variety of matcha drinks, soft serve and parfaits. Dine in has 10% service charge and you pay on your way out. Unlike the Japanese one, they do not serve meals.
I was in the mood for a parfait and had the Matcha Nama Chocolate Parfait ($98). The nama chocolate is their take on the much more famous Royce. And one bite made me realize why Royce is so famous. The chocolate was terrible. Chalky and just plain ... well ... bad. There is a scoop of sweet azuki bean paste, plenty of cornflakes, sweet whipped cream with a drizzle of matcha syrup and a scoop of matcha ice cream on top.  In the middle was milk ice cream and the bottom was matcha jelly. The matcha ice cream was nice and bitter.  The jelly was soft and wobbly. It was good except for the chocolate. Next time I think I'll just stick to the ice cream.

Creo By Brentwood opened in my neighbourhood for a while now and I never really got around to trying it out. This is due to it being a pet friendly cafe and there are always a lot of dogs in the front. Something I'm deathly afraid of. But on this day, while running errands, I came here before the dogs came! And in I went to have myself some breakfast.

Menu is in English only. There is also no 10% service charge. You order and pay at the front and they will bring your food to you. The place isn't very big and only a few tables facing the open kitchen.
I ordered a Latte ($40). Very pretty latte art. Smooth and smelled strong. It also tasted strong as well with a good nutty taste. Not too much milk as well.
I had the French Toast ($108) because I always have a craving for it. The bread was nice and eggy. There was some caramelized slices of banana, fresh berries and the sweetest strawberry carved rose. Nice bit of plating that was truely unexpected.
Service was friendly and food was quite decent. I can see why the neighbours are always here. I just have to time it when there are no dogs.

The weather was cool and we had a craving for hot pot. We found a place called Lets Pot as it was recommended by my neighbour. It was located in Wanchai's bar area.
Entering  the building, the whole thing designed to look like entering a seedy brothel. Opening the door,  it was classic Hong Kong complete with old school Cantopop playing in the background. The staff were extremely friendly, like you had just entered a friend's home.
Menu is in English and Chinese. Ordering is done by scanning a QR code. The staff themselves speak really excellent English. They have a two people set that costs $368 per person plus a comdiment charge of $25 per person. This seemed like a good deal so we decided on this.  The set comes with a choice of soup base, an appetizer, meat platter, seafood platter, vegetables, dumplings, balls and noodles.
The condiment ad sauces was nice and tidy with staff checking to see if anything needed to be replenished. What was the most interesting is some of the items were Thai based.
We ordered drinks while we waited for our food to arrive. Boyfriend had the Fresh Coconut ($68) that was lightly sweet.
I had the Handcrushed Lemon Tea ($48) and there was a nice minty taste to it.
The appetizer we chose was the Deep Fried Iberico Spam Wrapped with Beancurd Sheet. This was fabulous and I never had anything like it. Super crispy with the saltiness of the spam. It wasn't too oily at all.
They have three soup bases to choose from so we chose the Organic Tomato and Potato Soup. Some pork bones were also added for extra flavour. The soup was very good. Rich and flavourful. Like the tomato potato soup we make at home.
The Assorted Beef Platter had four different sections of the cow. A good beef taste that was still soft and tender even when we overcooked it.
The Seafood Platter came out with a raging flame! This was very unexpected but highly entertaining. Though a bit scary.
After the flames died down, we saw it came with prawn, razer back clams and oysters. The seafood was fresh. The prawns were especially umami.
The set also had a choice of 6 balls. We chose cuttlefish, fish and beef. The best being the cuttlefish balls.
The set had a choice of 6 dumplings. We chose Lemongrass Minced Shrimp Vietnamese, Chives, Cilantro Pork. What we thought was the most interesting was the lemongrass minced shrimp. We loved the addition of lemongrass ad the shrimp meat was fresh and firm.
It also included Local Grown Organic Vegetables. This was a good selection of bok choy, lettuce and choy sum. The vegetables were fresh and crisp and portion was more than generous.
The set ends with Mozuku Noodles. We were told to cook it for one minute. These were springy and chewy. Definitely soaked up the flavour of the soup well.
A decent set menu for two with plenty to eat. Portions were not small and we did leave full. Not that many two people sets can do that. Food quality was also excellent and we liked that there was a bit of South East Asian flavors added to everything.  A lot of their clientale are expats and I can understand why. Staff speak excellent English.

Siu Mai. It's such an obsession, there are social media pages dedicated to it. And this hole in the wall is mentioned as the best place in Kwun Tong.

We went in search. And it's literally a hole in the wall. It appeared they had towers of steam baskets and sold more than just siu mai.
 
Menu is in Chinese only. There is no English and no 10% service charge. It's also take away only.
We got ourselves  8 siu mai for $10. With a quick squeeze of random sauces, we picked up our wooden sticks and poked one in our mouths. The verdict? A decent pork and fish taste. Not mushy as it had a good firm texture. It was also piping hot. A nice bite to temporarily fend off the hunger pangs.

As I live near Causeway Bay, I have a favorite fishball noodle place. I love it so much that when I try other places that sell it, I often make comparisons. And most of them aren't as good. But then I discovered this place. Located in Hung Hom, it was very busy on a late afternoon with residents of the area.
The place was a noodle restaurant but they also served cha chaan teng items. Items I noticed no one ordered. Everyone here was for noodles. Menu is in Chinese only. There is no English and no 10% service charge.
I ordered a bowl of fish ball with vermicelli. The soup was not that impressive but the balls! WOW. Packed with fish flavour. They were firm and had a crisp bite. It came with fish cake that had a nice firm texture. The noodles came with a piece of choi sum. All for only $47. Portion was decent as well. I can see why it was so busy. Service was fast so people could eat quickly and leave. And as each diner left, another one came in to dine. They didn't have a empty table in sight. This was just as good as my favorite place in Causeway Bay so if I'm in the area, I'd definitely be back.