This cha chaan teng (tea restaurant) is hidden away in the back streets of Sheung Wan where it has been serving regulars for over 50 years now. Cha chaan teng’s like these started up in the post-war boom to cater for factory workers who just had a short time for lunch, but had some spare money and wanted to try a few new things.
Unlike the famous Lan Fong Yuen in Soho, there’s no pretension here and no sense of being a tourist attraction. The restaurant is really back to basics, with stools and plastic cups, boxes and cans of ingredients stacked up in the corners and just a big menu decorating the wall. This place caters to a really local crowd and is a great place to come to soak up a more authentic Hong Kong scene and watch ordinary people.
It’s also a good place to eat some cha chaan teng food at really pleasing prices. The silken tea here is made in the traditional way by straining it through a pair of stockings, producing a syruppy, slightly sweet drink that tastes strongly of the canned milk used and not at all like any other kind of tea. It goes nicely with the super sweet french toast that is smothered in a sugary sauce.
Alternatively you can get bowls of noodles, particularly the beef brisket, club sandwiches, burgers, and all kinds of other fast food snacks. Cha chaan tengs offer a sort of crude fusion of east and west, often with interesting results.
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