Fook Lam Moon, long a Hong Kong institution, has a long history of providing top-rated cantonese cuisine, with prices to match. Is it worth itGoing for yum cha on Boxing Day, we arrived to find the restaurant surprisingly empty at 12:45pm. We were promptly seated and tea brought to us. The hostess also brought over some english dim sum order forms also, although the menu options were considerably less than the standard version. (Ok for most but if anything special you want, and don't have so
更多
Fook Lam Moon, long a Hong Kong institution, has a long history of providing top-rated cantonese cuisine, with prices to match. Is it worth it
Going for yum cha on Boxing Day, we arrived to find the restaurant surprisingly empty at 12:45pm. We were promptly seated and tea brought to us. The hostess also brought over some english dim sum order forms also, although the menu options were considerably less than the standard version. (Ok for most but if anything special you want, and don't have someone who can speak canto, is to get someone to write the dishes you want on paper for you before arrival.)
There were just two of us but we ordered eight dishes. The roasted pork (siu yuk) was heavenly. Although this can be found all over Hong Kong, the FLM version was perfect, with just the right balance between the crispy skin and the meat marbled with fat. Wow.
We ordered the steamed shrimp and vegetable dumplings (鮮蝦蒸粉粿). Not to be confused with the more common "har gao" (also offered at FLM), these are made with shrimp mixed with bits of water chestnuts and vegetables. The skin, very nice and thin and steamed perfectly, complemented the filling without being too sticky or heavy.
We needed some vegetables and went with the choy sum fried with garlic. Again, nicely done but nothing special compared to other kitchens. I wanted to try the dau miu (peashoots) since its the season but was overruled....
Also on order the salt water dumplings (Haam Sui Gao 家鄉咸水角)....another dim sum standby, these can be too heavy at times, or overly sticky. These were neither. The filling was a little similar to the steamed shrimp dumplings mentioned earlier but the texture of the casing makes the taste totally different.
As if we didn't have enough shrimp already, we also went with the fried bean curd skin with shrimp filling. These were a little oily but the taste was also very fresh. FLM definitely doesn't skimp on the filling, or try to substitute expensive shrimp with cheaper vegetables or starches.
I wanted to try the steamed beef tripe (薑蔥牛百葉). While tripe may not be everyone's cup of tea, the execution here is excellent. The tripe is steamed long enough so its tender with just the right amount of chew. The 'soup' is made from celery and onion with a taste of something sweet, but I can't place it. In any event, highly recommended.
We also went with the spring rolls. Again, these had a generous filling of shrimp and vegetables. Actually, it was nearly all large pieces of shrimp. The rolls themselves were so fat I could barely get half of one in my mouth.
To finish off we had the steamed brown sugar cake...light and fluffy, and not too sweet, it was a nice way to end the (very filling) meal.
Service was efficient and pleasant. This place has a reputation for favoring VIP's and regular customers but we were treated very well and made to feel welcome even though it was our first visit to the original Wan Chai location.
FLM is not cheap, lunch for two was over $600, but for special occasions, or for top notch dim sum in an upscale environment, FLM is well worth a visit.