Nobu is probably a restaurant chain that few haven't heard of, and it's not hard to see why, with its loyal movie-star following and empire of restaurants across the globe, ranging from the Bahamas to Beijing. This was my second time at Nobu Hong Kong, and, in my humble opinion, I think that it really does live up to the hype with its delicious lunch set inspired by both Japanese and Peruvian flavours.Stepping into the restaurant, you're immediately ushered to your seat and your eyes will feast upon the impressive coral structure hanging above your head. According to Nobu's website, it's actually a "unique undulating sea urchin ceiling". Either way, the aesthetics of the restaurant are visually appealing and unlike any other restaurant you'll have seen in Hong Kong.
For lunch, I decided to order the Nobu Signature Bento Box , although there are also many other selections available for lunch including a "create your own bento box" option. The bento set doesn't come with drink or dessert but it does include rice and miso soup.The service at Nobu is great- attentive and detail-oriented but not overly clingy, and our server made sure to describe each dish to us as it arrived. The bento box arrived in two stages- the first being the cold dishes- a salad and a selection of sushi.First up- the Sashimi Salad with Matsuhisa Dressing, which was made up of tuna tataki atop a bed of endive leaves and sliced radishes. Nobu's Matsuhisa dressing really gave the salad an extra refreshing kick with its soy sauce, mustard and vinegar elements and went very well with the bitter leaves and the plump tuna.The assorted sushi was also delicious - I especially liked the yellowtail scallion roll.Next up was the second part of the Bento box- the cooked dishes! Personally I liked this section more, because it had two of my favourite Nobu dishes in it- the black cod and rock shrimp tempura.The Chicken Antichuho Sauce is typically an affordable Peruvian dish which is served in skewer form, but at Nobu they give it a twist by glazing the grilled chicken in teriyaki sauce.The Black Cod Saikyo Yaki is Nobu's signature dish and it's not hard to understand why. The cod is SO buttery and flaky, and the natural sweetness and juices of the fish, combined with the slightly chargrilled and caramelised saikyo miso paste glaze, creates a must-try dish for all to savour.The Rock Shrimp Tempura with Creamy Spicy Sauce is probably one of the most moreish things I have ever tried- after all, who could resist bite-sized pieces of crunchy tempura-battered shrimp, coated with a mayonnaise, spicy and sweet (not to mention patented) sauce? I could eat plates and plates of this and never get sick of it.

To conclude, I had a great dining experience at Nobu. Many people seem to have a preconceived notion that eating at Nobu is very expensive- but the prices of their lunch sets are definitely very similar to the prices seen in many other Japanese eateries in Tsim Sha Tsui/Central/Causeway Bay etc- and you get a lot of delicious, lip-smacking food, not to mention that the portions are quite generous!
 

Restoration is a restaurant in Hong Kong that serves up Creole-inspired cuisine, a type of cuisine typically identified with New Orleans in the United States and has Spanish, French, and Italian, amongst many other, influences. I've never tried Creole cuisine before and therefore can't comment on the authenticity of the dishes in this restaurant, but I can say that I enjoyed both the unique atmosphere and the tasty, flavourful food.Stepping into the restaurant, you'll immediately feel as if you've been transported back in time. The decor of the place features antique-looking furniture, dim lighting, wooden tables, stained glass, beautiful glassware and crockery galore. There were even two sacks of millet and red/blue wooden shutters greeting us at the entrance, creating an exceptionally warm and homely ambience.
Restoration offers a number of set lunch deals depending on budget , and you can add an optional HK$20 for drinks.For my starter, I had the Watermelon & Tomato Salad, combined with the extra ingredients of roquette (argula), pickled onions, mushrooms, feta cheese and a balsamic vinaigrette dressing. This dish was refreshing and flavourful-exactly like summer on a plate! I especially liked the combination of the tangy crumbly feta cheese, balsamic and sweet watermelon mixed together to create an explosion of flavours.Next up came my main, the Crab Po' Boy - a submarine-style sandwich with a deliciously crispy soft- shell crab nestled in between toasted baguette , lettuce, and tomato slices. A spicy aioli-like sauce was served alongside the sandwich. The portion of the soft-shell crab was very generous- in fact, it spilled out of the bread and I had to end up eating the sandwich with my cutlery! The crab was deliciously crunchy, juicy and plump, with that distinct egg-yolk-like taste permeating from the meat of the crab, and the batter was crisp but not too overly oily. Paired with the spicy sauce, this was definitely a flavourful dish- comfort food at its best!My mom ordered the Seafood Gumbo - a thick soup served with rice. Although it was served in a fairly small container, it's actually quite a filling dish! Gumbo gets its distinctive flavour from the roux ( a mix of flour and oil), and the seafood was plentiful and tasty. There's also a kick of Tabasco in the dish which makes it really appetising and not too heavy on the stomach afterwards.My mom's seared tuna was also delicious and fresh-tasting, but not something I would personally order in this restaurant as I view it as a pretty common dish served in more typical Western eateries.Overall, I had a nice meal at Restoration- the prices are pretty reasonable considering the location and the dishes and cuisine are unique to what is currently at offer in Hong Kong. Next time I hope to come for their delicious-looking brunches or perhaps their all-you-can-eat fried chicken Tuesdays!
 

My friends and I arrived at around 2.30 pm one sunny afternoon. It was initially not that crowded and we managed to find seats straight away (bear in mind that seating is quite limited here). I love the decor and styling of the cafe, which featured robin-egg blue walls throughout and lots of quirky and vintage-looking teapots and paintings. I especially loved the mason jar lights which hung across the room!We ordered a Roselle & Strawberry cheesecake to share. The portion was a bit small for the price but the cheesecake was delicious- I loved the fragrance of the yogurt combined with the fresh, tangy strawberries and the sweet yet sour taste of the roselle. The biscuit base tasted chocolatey which provided an interesting contrast to the filling.I ordered a Sea Salt Yin Yang- a twist on the Hong Kong cha chan teng drink consisting of coffee blended with milk tea. The sea salt provided an interesting savoury touch to the drink and was very refreshing in the summer heat.One of my friends ordered the Keemun Rose Tea- this took quite a long time to arrive at the table (approximately 15-20 minutes) and I took a sip of it. I enjoyed the frothy milk and the honey on top of the tea as well as the rosy fragrance of the tea itself. The tea was milky yet had a bitter aftertaste which I quite enjoyed. Although it was a little bit pricey it's not a drink that you can get anywhere else in Hong Kong so I think it's worth a try.The place got really crowded after a while. It was so crowded that I felt like I was in a market rather than what was supposed to be a quiet, relaxing cafe. People who were ordering takeaways just stood around the already cramped room, talking loudly amongst themselves and blocking the entrance. Although there was extra room next door, customers were given buzzers notifying them when their orders were ready and would have to come back into the main seating area to collect their food- meaning that people kept coming in and out repeatedly and always left the door open.

Furthermore, people waiting for seats would also stay inside the cafe, hovering above people already seated. All of these factors combined meant that we couldn't truly relax in the atmosphere and left shortly after finishing our drinks and cake, as we felt that it would be inappropriate to keep sitting down when so many people were waiting.

All in all, I think that an experience at Tekaha would be much better if there was some form of crowd control- especially on weekends. The entire experience felt a little bit too rushed and chaotic compared to what I've experienced at other cafes. I'll probably be back to try one of their amazing-smelling brunches but will definitely try to come after summer when there are hopefully less people.
 

A couple of my friends and I decided that it would be a good idea to travel from our homes during the red rainstorm signal to get burgers for lunch. Whilst I'm not going to comment any further on the stupidity of our harebrained plans , I'm going to take this time to talk about our trip to The Big Bite, a Canadian-style burger restaurant in North Point...which I guess was worth the walk in the heavy rain Walking into the restaurant, the first thing I noticed was how patriotically decorated the place was, with its large Canadian flag at the counter and plush taxidermy animal heads on the walls, which I found morbidly cute. We arrived at around 12.15 in the afternoon on a weekday and because it was raining so heavily, the place was quite empty and we had no trouble finding a seat.I was pleasantly surprised that the burgers were cheaper than what I had expected, compared to other notable burger joints around the city. Of course, this place has more of a "fast food" vibe than the other examples, not to mention that it's not located somewhere like Centralwhere the rents are extortionately high, so it's not really a fair comparison, but my wallet was definitely better off
The Big Bite does lunch sets which includes a burger, your choice of fries and a soft drink, though I upgraded my soft drink to a tea instead in my pathetic attempt to try to make this meal the slightest bit healthier .First up, the Big Bite Burger- when I first bit into this burger I was hit with a slight wave of disappointment because I thought that it tasted a little dry. However, a few more bites into the burger and the natural juices from the patty started leaking out onto the fluffy buns. I guess the burger lives up to its name- take a "big bite" and you'll be able to taste how delicious it is! Combined with tomatoes, red onions, lettuce, jalapeño peppers and gherkin slices, this was definitely a tasty treat. The burger, being quite sizeable for its price, ended up getting a bit messy to eat so I used a fork and knife towards the end to mop up any bits that had fallen apart.We also got poutine as a side. Mozzarella cheese was used as a substitute to cheese curds. Crispy, chunky fries slathered with gravy and cheese- who could say no to such a moreish treat? It does get a little heavy towards the end of the meal so light eaters might considering sharing a portion between two people.Finally we ordered buffalo wings (heat level "hot") which were served with celery sticks and a blue cheese dressing. I really enjoyed these- the skin of the wings were crispy and slathered with that distinctive addicting cayenne pepper hot sauce, and the meat itself was quite tender. I'm not really a person who can handle hot, spicy foods but this level of heat was alright for me! The heat level ranges from "wuss" to "homicide"...perhaps next time when I visit I'll take the plunge and dare myself to eat some fiery hot wings!
I had a lip-smackingly tasty meal at the Big Bite, and it's probably one of the better burgers I've had in Hong Kong. I'll definitely be back to try out their Tuesday beer + HK$3 dollar chicken wing nights as well as the rest of their wide range of burgers and hot dogs!
 

Tabibito is an Okazu (Japanese tapas) restaurant situated in Po Hing Fong, Sheung Wan. If you don’t live around the area and you’re not willing to take a taxi up the slopes, then you’re in for a light cardio workout- but hey, you’re doing it for the food!My friends and I arrived at around 11:30 on a Saturday morning and didn’t have to queue, but after an hour more and more people started coming. A word of warning- you have to wait outdoors, so bring a hat and some mosquito repellent!The restaurant itself is quite compact, with simple wooden decor and lots of natural lighting. As you can see from the images, the exterior sliding doors were left wide open, which made it a little bit hot from time to time even though there was air conditioning. My advice would be to avoid anything long-sleeved- at least until the summer months are over.
Brunch is only served during weekends, and there is a plentiful selection to choose from. I know that most food bloggers usually try to order different things from the menu…but for some reason, all three of us wanted the mentaiko pasta. Maybe it’s because the pasta has been highly recommended all over social media or because we just really needed something more substantial after walking around in the heat, but I definitely don’t regret our decision!Our pastas took around 20 minutes to cook, which we didn’t mind because after all, brunch is meant to be a relaxing affair, and it meant that the food was made to order. The pasta itself is, in my opinion, a good size for the price that you pay- though people with really voracious appetites might consider ordering a couple of sides to go alongside it. I absolutely loved the creamy, spicy, umami-richness of this pasta, which also had a lovely al-dente texture. Although the pasta was filling, it wasn’t overly decadent. The mentaiko was plentiful and evenly incorporated into the sauce, and I loved how there was a small serving of uncooked mentaiko at the top which you could mix into the pasta for an elevated flavour and texture. Needless to say, I pretty much had to restrain myself from licking my plate clean!
I’ll definitely be coming back to Tabibito to try more of their brunch options and hopefully even dinner sometime!

I went on a one day excursion to Lamma Island last week, and instead of choosing one of the ubiquitous seafood restaurants dotted across the island for lunch, decided to go green instead.The restaurant itself was quite dimly lit and had air conditioning- which I appreciated on the very hot and sunny day that I was there. I was seated towards the back of the restaurant which had a seating area made entirely out of stone- I felt like I was sitting in a cave! In fact, the entire restaurant has a very natural feel to it, making it an exceptionally relaxing place to chill and enjoy a meal. There's also unlimited internet for those who aren't exclusively in Lamma to get away from the buzzing hive of connectivity back in the city.Green Cottage offers an entirely vegetarian menu, with a daily set lunch. However, I decided to go down the brunch route and ordered eggs Benedict- consisting of 2 poached eggs, ham, tomato, egg-free hollandaise sauce and a salad.This veggie-style Eggs Benedict was aesthetically appealing and the flavours quite subtle- to replace the egg in the Hollandaise sauce, mustard was used instead. I guess this is more of a guilt-free version of an eggs benny, so the sauce isn't quite as rich compared to its creamy counterpart, but I did appreciate the slight spicy kick of the mustard. The eggs were slightly runny (though I do wish it was slightly less cooked) and complimented the vegetarian 'ham' as well as the tomato slices. The salad was a simple leaf salad with a balsamic vinaigrette.My friend ordered a vegetarian English breakfast. This fry up substituted the bacon/sausage/black pudding for the same vegetarian 'ham' as seen in the eggs benny. Overall it was a tasty, lighter version of your usual greasy, hearty fry up, although if you're someone who loves their red meats you might leave feeling a little dissatisfied.
Both meals came with a tea/coffee, but you can add an extra 8 dollars to get one of their other drinks, which I think is a pretty good deal. I'd personally recommend their iced lemon tea which isn't the normal type you get in restaurants around HK- but tastes (and looks) freshly blended. Overall, this was a fairly affordable restaurant in relaxing surroundings and I would recommend it if you don't want an overly greasy/heavy meal to kickstart your day in Lamma Island. Happy eating!
 

In the sweltering Hong Kong summer, a glass of iced coffee really hits the spot- and Elephant Grounds is one of the city’s newest hideouts to sample a tasty cup of joe. 

Tucked in the back corner of the WOAW lifestyle concept store on Gough Street, Elephant Grounds offers a range of coffees and teas at prices comparable to run-of-the-mill coffee chains, but made with a lot more care and effort.

I selected the iced French vanilla latte and it was deliciously refreshing and well-balanced- quite milky and creamy but not overly so to the extent that it was exceedingly filling. Elephant Grounds was actually brought to my attention through Homie Cookies- I’ve always wanted to try their cookies but because of their lack of physical store, was unable to- so naturally I leapt at the opportunity to try them out at Elephant Grounds. It’s all over the internet as to who the founder of Homie Cookies is- but when I tried to chat with the barista about this topic I was immediately told that they were not allowed to disclose any details. This surprised me a little bit, especially because it wasn’t a secret to start with!

Nevertheless, I tried out the bandcamp cookie -think of the ingredients of s’more smushed together in a cookie and that’s what it tastes like. It was dense, not overly sweet and made me want to go to a barbecue right away.Unfortunately it was way too hot to sit outside on the patio, but I can imagine it being a popular place to relax in the cooler months ahead!In short, Elephant Grounds is a relaxing place to sit and enjoy a cup of coffee. There aren’t many seats available but takeaway is an option- on the weekday afternoon I went there were quite a lot of people coming and going but my friend and I still had the opportunity to sit for about an hour.

No trip to Hong Kong is complete without a visit to Australian Dairy Company. Despite its name, there is nothing "Australian" about the place at all- it's actually a Hong Kong-style tea restaurant best known for its egg and milk based products, including their scrambled egg sandwiches and steamed milk puddings ("dun lai"). Don't expect to have a leisurely 2 hour lunch date with your friends here- famed for its notoriously rude service you'll be given your food approximately 20 seconds after ordering and you're expected to eat and then leave- this is "fast food" and the efficiency of Hong Kong culture at its best.I've been eating here ever since I was in primary school, and the moment I bit into that fluffy, light-as-a-cloud egg sandwich, I knew that I would be a convert for life.

10 years on and nothing much has really changed- the food remains the same, the waiters are still rude (or brisk, if I were to put it more politely) and for some strange reason I find that slightly comforting- like everything around me is constantly changing but there are still some things that remain constant.Philosophical musings aside, on the night that we went there, we were immediately ushered onto a shared table and ordered our food. As usual the entire place was packed- I suggest coming here sometime in the early evening during a weekend as it can get really busy during lunch hours.I order the same thing every time I come here- an egg and ham sandwich with toasted bread. I can never get enough of that thin layer of crunchy, chewy bread- followed by the fluffiest, light-as-a-pillow scrambled eggs with that natural egg juice seeping out as you bite into it - and the sweet ham which just adds that extra depth of flavour to the dish. So simple but so good...I could probably eat their scrambled eggs everyday and not get bored!I'd also like to add that I really love how thick their scrambled eggs are- they're so thick that it basically makes the entire sandwich sag and deflate- in a good way of course. I'm not exactly sure what it is that makes them so lusciously rich and bouncy- butter or cream, perhaps? For messy eaters such as myself, thin paper tissues are provided to make your experience slightly less hassle-free.The macaroni here is also pretty good- bouncy pieces of the U-shaped noodle with a clear broth. My favourite part? Pulling the sunny-side egg apart to reveal that glorious yellow yolk, which tastes great with the noodles, ham and soup.For dessert, the "dun lai" or steamed milk pudding is an obvious choice. Available hot or cold, this dessert isn't too fulling nor overly sweet, and tastes richly of milk. They also have "dun dan" available- steamed egg pudding which is also just as delicious.

If you're a tourist, Australian Dairy will probably seem like a daunting place to go for a meal, but I feel like it's worth going to- it really captures the fast-paced, often overly anxious lifestyle so many Hong Kongers are part of. Whilst its often nice to just sit in a cafe for hours and chill, this place portrays the other side of Hong Kong in a really special way. Plus you get amazing scrambled eggs.

Sometimes there is just no other alternative to a hearty Korean meal. Sorabol offers traditional Korean food in a convenient location, and on the day I went, the restaurant was full of families gathered around wooden tables barbecuing various kinds of meat.Upon ordering our dishes, we were served various plates of korean appetizer dishes, otheriwse known as banchan. Most of these dishes were served cold, I think the appetizers change depending on whats available at the time, but on the night I went we were served the following:

-Kimchi- this dish was spicy, sour and very addictive.
-Geotjeori- freshly-made, non fermented kimchi- this tasted more crisp and sweet than its fermented counterpart, and wasn't sour at all.
-dotorimuk- seasoned acorn jelly. This particular dish had a soft texture and tasted slightly nutty.
-kongnamul- bean sprouts with sesame oil. This dish had a nice crunch to it and the sesame oil gave the otherwise plain-tasting sprouts an extra depth to its flavour.
-Sigeumchi namul- spinach dressed with sesame oil, garlic, and soy sauce. The slightly bitter taste of spinach was masked by the fragrant sesame oil and the sweet soy sauce.
-gaji namul- seasoned eggplant-this dish was slightly spicy and fared well with a sweet and spicy sauce placed on top of the soft eggplants.
-Hobak Namul- seasoned zucchini- probably with sesame oil. The zucchini had a nice crunch to it and was slightly sweet.

First up came the Gyejeul Namul Geotjeori, a mixed vegetable salad topped with sesame seeds and a sweet chilli sauce. The sauce complemented the crisp (and cold) pieces of lettuce, cucumber and carrots perfectly, and although it was just a plate of vegetables they were deliciously addictive and I could not stop eating them! This would be a great side dish for a main course as opposed to something less healthy such as fries.Next up was the dwegji bulgogi- marinated pieces of pork with onions and mushrooms. Served raw on a plate, our server turned on the grill (which is located in the middle of each table) and grilled the meat for us until cooked. The result? Pieces of tender, juicy and sweet pork served with caramelised onions and soft mushrooms. This would be a great dish to serve with some plain white rice, to let those natural juices from the pork envelop each individual grain.I didn't manage to get a photo of our bibimbap (mixed stone pot rice) before our server mixed it for us, but the result was a mixture of rice, egg bean sprouts, carrots, pork and various other ingredients cooked in a burning-hot stone pot. My favourite part? Scraping out the crispy overcooked bits of rice from the bottom of the pot at the end of the meal!The kimchijeon (kimchi pancake) we ordered was crispy, flavourful and spicy, and was a nice departure from the rice we were eating. I enjoyed dipping the pancakes into a chilli, and scallion fish sauce for that extra kick and added dimension to the dish.The spicy kimchee hotpot with dumplings and tofu was well-received by my family but I didn't like the overly soft dumplings which had been soaked in the soup for an excess amount of time- my best bet would be to eat them the moment they're served! The soup itself was not overly spicy and quite appetising and matched the plain-tasting tofu.My favourite dish of the day was naengmyeon - cold noodles made from buckwheat and potato starch, served in a tangy broth, cucumber strips, Korean pear, half a boiled egg and slices of boiled beef. The noodles were delicate yet chewy and soaked up all of the lovely sweet and sour clear broth which I lapped up like it was water. The addition of the egg, beef, pear and cucumbers provided different textures to the dish and made it less bland.All in all, Sorabol provided my family and I with a homely, filling and delicious meal.

*Note: If I used the wrong terms for the Korean names of some dishes, apologies in advance for my poor googling skills

I love Indian food and so I was really excited to try this place out. Best known for its dosas (an Indian style crepe made from rice batter and black lentils), Woodlands is located in Wing On Plaza, and upon entering the place it feels like you've been transported back in time to the 1980s. Since its opening in 1981, Woodlands has been serving delicious South and North Indian vegetarian food at affordable prices. Once you're seated, you're provided with a menu which also serves as a disposable table mat. The staff were very friendly and chatty and the food was served quite efficiently.To quench my thirst I ordered one of my favourite drinks- Mango lassi- a blend of water, yogurt, cream and mango pulp. This refreshing cooler was a great way to start the meal- especially for people who can't handle exceptionally spicy foods such as myself- its nice to take a milk-based drink to relieve your tastebuds from that capsaicin zing Next up was a plain dosa. Paper thin, dosas are made by placing the batter flat on a special girdle and greased with ghee (clarified butter). The dosa was light and fluffy with a slight crunch, and fared well with the coconut chutney and sambar. Next time I come, I'll definitely try out some of their other dosas such as their cheese and masala selections.The Woodlands Special Thali consisted of 11 different types of sauces, curries and dips, paired with chapattis (Indian flatbread), a poppadom (crispy wafer-like spiced bread), and biryani (a rice based dish with different spices and ingredients). Whilst I don't remember each sauce distinctly, in general the red sauces/curries were spicier than the yellow ones. The white sauce is called raita and consists of yogurt with grated cucumbers, onions and carrots, and is usually served with the biryani. The orange sauces were thicker and more curry-based, with different ingredients such as potatoes, lentils and chickpeas, which all went really well with the thick chapattis. To me, this is the perfect dish for anyone who gets bored from eating the same type of food constantly as you can try out a wide range of different sauces with different breads and rice.

The sauce with the little balls in it actually turned out to be some sort of sago/tapioca dessert called kheer- a tapioca pudding flavoured with saffron, cardamom and nuts. I thought that whilst the texture of this dish was nice, it was a little bit too cloyingly sweet for my liking.The biryani was lightly spiced and moist, and tasted great with the sauces and kheer.
Overall, I had a very nice meal at Woodlands. I'd definitely recommend it to those who are looking for something different other than chicken korma and tandooris, as well as vegetarians.