[Review 2609] Venturing into a Chinese bkry HQs for Brit pastry @ 嘉頓餐廳 Garden Restaurant

24/06/2013
嘉頓餐廳  Garden Restaurant
深水埗青山道58號嘉頓烘焙中心閣樓
M/F, Garden Bakery Centre, 58 Castle Peak Road, Sham Shui Po
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/venturing-into-a-chinese-bkry-hqs-for-brit-pastry-e2303106

Garden Bakery is a Chinese Brand that produces bakery, confectionary and biscuits.

You can also buy their products at China towns worldwide which is how I know about this brand.

I used to like the chive crackers and was fascinated by their wafers.

Recently I found out about this restaurant through reviews, but nearly every big company has their own canteens, but it is a matter of whether it is open to the publlic and if it is listed on this database.

If I found out about this place earlier I would have gone sooner before the prices went up, so
the reviews are useful so keep them coming openricers!!

I wish someone could list canteens for TVB, Phoenix, ATV and Appledaily here too and review them.    Last time I visited TVB I forgot to order milk and drank water instead.
At ATV, the canteen is on the top floor with the smoking area outside. 

My main mission to Garden Bakery was to try the Cornish Pasty. I called to make sure they had it.
My first phonecall was not very sucessful because the lady who answered it did not know what a Cornish pasty was so I did not go that week, then I called again the next week and luckily that person knew what it was because it is their signature item!!!!

As I asked "Cornish Pasty" in English they probably didnt know which pie I meant as the Chinese for Cornish is quite weird "Hongyeexxx".

When I entered the building I was expecting a temperature scan as mentioned in the reviews, but as it was a Sunday, they were expecting diners more than random intruders.
I was so surprised the restaurant was nearly full, they even had a sign outside ready to say FULL HOUSE!!
The guard at the reception even advised disappointed guests to book in advance but as I was coming for the tea there were less people.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Lamb toastie:

The English for this was quite cute, it was called TOASTIEST.
Ordered this because not many toasties have lamb in it.
The toasty was just unbelievably delicious because it was buttered heavily and it seeped through the bread and it was toasted to crisp.

The lamb filling inside was moist and nicely flavoured with spices such as cumin, it was like having toast with delicious mongolian spices.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Cajun chicken croissant:

The Chinese for this was cute as well, it was called "K 津" the Chinese phonetics for Cajun!

Cajun is actually a spice that normally contains: paprika, cumin, salt, garlic, onion powder, black pepper, dried thyme, dried oregano, cayenne pepper, cardamom, caraway seeds, dried basil etc.
The croissant itself was really light and crispy and the pieces of chicken were like mini thin chicken steaks made with chicken thigh meat so it was extremely tender.
There were grilled aubergine slices beneath the chicken as well.
The chips seemed to have been fried twice.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Cornish pasty - Beef:

Before the prices went up, it used to cost $30 making it the cheapest Cornish Pasty in Hong Kong, now it costs $40 which is still theoretically the cheapest but the size of it is quite small.
There were also two choices: beef and herbs or minced pork and pumpkin.
The pork one is clearly not really British so I chose the beef.

The filling just contained beef and potatoes and the herbs were not strong enough.
Real Cornish pasties have suede and carrots in it too.

The top edges of the pastry where it was twisted was too thick.
Although the cornish pasty was not as good as the one at Queen Victoria, it was fun making a trip to the Garden Headquarters.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Cold Coffee:
Too sweet!
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Tea:
It was nice the milk was served separate because it was condensed milk which would have made it Hong Kong styled tea if I added it.
The black tea was slightly bitter as it was the Chinese type of tea.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Interesting menu translations:
The English for toastie was quite cute, it was called TOASTIEST.
The Chinese for this was cute as well, it was called "K 準" the Chinese phonetics for Cajun!
For Cornish, the Chinese was Hongyeexxx.

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

[Review 2608] Delicious Okinawa brown sugar cup cake @ 凱施餅店 Hoixe Cake Shop

24/06/2013
凱施餅店 Hoixe Cake Shop
將軍澳尚德商場地下6號舖
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/delicious-okinawa-brown-sugar-cup-cake-e2303103

Saw these nice square cup cakes through the window, the cup cake holder was really nice too.
They even designed special boxes and promotional posters for them too.

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Okinawa brown sugar cup cake:

The cake was amazingly soft and dusted with powdered sugar on top.
It was so light and moist just like a chiffon cake with a hint of okinawa brown sugar flavouring.
In the middle there was delicious fluffly white cream which was made with Anchor Cream!

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

[Review 2607] Fennel dumplings @ 山東餃子館

24/06/2013
山東餃子館
深水埗元州街81C號舖
G/F, 81C Un Chau Street, Sham Shui Po
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/fennel-dumplings-e2303089

On the window outside it showed a variety of dumplings and skewers so decided to go in and to try them.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Fennel dumplings:


They were a bit disappointing because the fennel taste was light which is probably good for people who do not like fennel or havent tried it before.
Here you get 10 dumplings for $30 which is the cheapest compared to the other two places I have tried.
My issue with these dumplings is that the fennel is old and dry which was why they lacked the fennel aroma.
There was also a twinge of sourness in the dumplings.
I did not like the pork because it had pieces of unchewable bits in it such a tendon and parts of pork that your meant to throw away.
Lastly the dumplings were quite salty.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

I think I should have ordered the lamb skewers and boiled sweet potato leaves.

The two other places which I have tried Fennel dumplings:
Biang
http://www.openrice.com/restaurant/commentdetail.htm?commentid=2292296&tc=review
華園餃子館
http://www.openrice.com/english/restaurant/commentdetail.htm?shopid=23306&commentid=2291541

[Review 2606] Soft boiled egg in wine @ 日船章魚小丸子

24/06/2013
日船章魚小丸子
將軍澳坑口重華路8號東港城1樓Food Point K9號舖
Shop K9, Food Point, 1/F, East Point City, 8 Chung Wa Road, Hang Hau, Tseung Kwan O
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/soft-boiled-egg-in-wine-e2303073

This joint is actually famous for Takoyaki balls but when I saw the soft boiled eggs in wine I decided to try it.

They were only $5 each because it was on promotion.

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Soft boiled egg in wine:

I was given two bamboo skewers to eat it which was pretty challenging because egg is the most delicate thing you can eat and it was a soft boiled one too.

Managed to eat it and the yolk was indeed runny!
The egg was a bit cold because it was chilled and it was a bit too salty.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

[Review 2605] Exclusive Glamorgan patties in Hong Kong @ 雙城吧 Dickens Bar

23/06/2013
雙城吧 Dickens Bar
銅鑼灣告士打道281號香港怡東酒店地庫
UG, The Excelsior Hong Kong, 281 Gloucester Road, Causeway Bay
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/exclusive-glamorgan-patties-in-hong-kong-e2302812

I have dined here so many times but not tried their A La Carte.

I tried it before and after renovation for their curry buffets which were absolutely delicious.

Thanks to the communications team for inviting me to try their A La Carte menu.

After analysing the menu, there were so many items that make you feel at home:

York Ham and Montgomery cheese toastie
Irish smoked salmon and soda bread ( I love soda bread)
Bucket of fat chips and curry sauce (yay, very british, chips and curry sauce)
Glamorgan patties (This seems to be the only place that does this)
Macaroni cheese
Cornish fish pie (I love fish pie)
Manchester tart and spoon of clotted cream (My fave at school)
Sticky toffee pudding (My fave at school)
Treacle tart (My fave at school)
Peanut butter mousse

Hopefully I will see Bubble and Squeak, clapshot on the menu someday because I really miss that and I shall make sure I will not miss the Robert burns night dinner as well!~
As well as Dicken's, The Chinnery does great British fare too (Scotch eggs, Welsh rarebit, Sherry trifle)!

Dicken's Bar is nicely laid out with the bar at one end and the other side for dining.

Heres what we tried:
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Tale of two cities:

Made with mint leaves, lemon, apple juice and topped with ginger beer.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Dickens Tai Tai:
This was black tea with apple juice, fresh lemon, topped with ginger ale.

I loved this drink because it was refreshing and not too sweet.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
York Ham and Montgomery cheese toastie

The portion of this was huge but it was simply delicious.
I know it is simply cheese and ham, but the York ham was soft and the saltiness was just right paired with deliciously melted montgomery cheese.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Glamorgan patties
(cheese and leek fritters served with apple cider salsa)


So far this is the only place in HK that I know serving these Glamorgan Patties.
They are filled with cheese and leek.
I tried them piping hot and the cheese inside was lovely and gooey, after it cooled down the filling was slightly firmer and the taste of cheese and leek was stronger.
Hence this is why I always say food tastes different at different temperatures.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Cornish fish pie

I loved the fish pie, there were chunks of delicious fish in rich dill sauce, the potato mash on top was baked to perfection and it was lovely and velvety.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Manchester tart with a spoon of clotted cream


Manchester tart is a traditional English baked tart consisting of a shortcrust pastry shell, spread with raspberry jam, covered with a custard filling and topped with flakes of coconut and berries.
The tart here was gorgeous with delicious custard and dessicated coconut.
On the side there is clotted cream too.
Anyone with a sweet tooth will love this because the raspberry jam and custard is delicious.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Knickerbocker glory with hot chocolate sauce
The knickerbocker glory served here was a luxurious version of my usual one at Beefeater.
The one I had as a child was served in a narrower glass with plain softserve drizzled with syrup on top.

The Knickerbocker here was loaded with so many berries and marshmallows.
It was a great dessert to share
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Peanut butter mousse

This dessert is probably popular with the Americans because they have lots of confectionary that has peanut butter.
This is another MUST EAT dessert too if you love PB~
The taste of this was really dreamy and it does not have that dryness that peanut butter has.
It is extremely velvety and creamy.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

[Review 2604] Light delights @ Pret A Manger

22/06/2013
Pret A Manger
灣仔皇后大道東1號太古廣場三座B3樓1-2號舖
Shop 1-2, B3/F, Three Pacific Place, 1 Queen's Road East, Wan Chai
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/light-delights-from-pret-a-manger-e2302756

https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/light-delights-from-pret-a-manger-e2302756

Thanks to Pret and their communications team for sending me some redemption letters because I could not attend their tasting held on a weekday.

I tried the new duck salad, salmon cream cheese wrap, lychee panna cotta, cherries yogurt bowl and the lemonades.

Pret A Manger is actually British even though it has a French name meaning ready to eat.

It has always been my favourite for items like strawberry fool, rhubarb dessert and carrot cake.

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Sesame duck salad


The salad consisted of duck in sesame sauce, greens and a pieces of flat bread.
There was a tub of sesame sauce too for the greens.
It was really enjoyable eating this because it was similar to eating peking duck with pancakes but with sesame sauce.
It was light and refreshing, great for lunch.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Lychee Panacotta


The balance of panna cotta and lychee jelly were perfect.
The lychee jelly was natural and fragrant with the right level of sweetness.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Passion fruit flavoured iced lemonade

I have always liked the lemonade at Pret because it is made with real lemon juice.
It had a nice shot of passionfruit syrup in it which gave it more dimension.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Salmon and cream cheese wrap

The wrap had smoked salmon and cream cheese which were delicious.
It was a satisfying and delicious wrap.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Cherries Yoghurt bowl

The yoghurt on top was lovely and tart because it was natrual yoghurt and it paired nicely with the sweet cherry sauce at the bottom.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Grapefruit flavoured iced lemonade

There were three flavours of lemonade: grapefruit, passionfruit and apple.
This was my favourite because the colour of pink grapefruit is pretty and the mix of lemon and grapefruit were nice.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

[Review 2603] Secret taste! Secret Location! @ Secrettaste

22/06/2013
Secrettaste
銅鑼灣駱克道509號3樓
3/F,509,Lockhart Road, Causeway Bay
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/secret-taste-secret-location-e2302733


I am beginning to like private kitchens because you get to discover every nook and cranny of Hong Kong!
Places where you thought a restaurant could not exist, it could be a private kitchen!!

Private kitchens are becoming more popular these days as more people are readily accepting them as restaurants just like those upstairs retail shops.

So far this is my favourite private kitchen, I think I like it because it is converted from an old residential flat, the ones that have three floors without an escalator.

As it has been opened for two months, I like the privacy as not many people know about it so far.
Ideally at the moment, it is great for public figures (公眾人物) to dine here or for them hold parties and celebrations such as the completion of filming (慶功宴).

Anyway, here was what we tried which is about $350 per person with no 10% service charge and corkage fee.

I was extremely impressed with the portion size because I was full after all that!

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Pan-Fried Watermelon & Wrapped sea urchin mousse

Even though I don't like watermelon, I have always wanted to try pan-fried watermelon after seeing it on some food show before.
It basically tasted the same as uncooked watermelon and it was still crisp.
I liked the spring onions, garlic and crushed peanuts that garnished it, because it got rid of that weird watermelon taste.
The other piece was sea urchin foam wrapped in filo pastry which was extremely light and delicate and the sea urchin in the middle has a faint taste of crab.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Parma Ham & Black Truffle Salad


To be honest it was proscuitto ham and not parma ham as it was softer and not so waxy.
The proscuitto was quite salty but with the salad, the taste balanced and the portion of this as a starter was really generous.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Cream of Mushroom Soup

It was cream of mushroom soup which is commonly served in lots of restaurants these days.
The foam on top just differentiated it from the rest and something that will make me remember this place.
It added a touch of gastronomy and sophistication (高雅) to the soup.
The truffle on top enhanced the flavour of the soup but if the soup was not that salty it would taste better.

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Roasted Chicken Asparagus Roll with Goose Liver

The presentation was marvellous, every corner and area of the plate was decorated.
The liver that they put in the middle was really velvety and soft which is achieved by using liver pate.
I was really impressed with these chicken rolls especially with the golden roasted skin on the outside and juicy chicken on the inside complemented with sweet asparagus and rich liver.
The roll was made with chicken thigh meat too which is nice and tender.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Pasta in carbonara sauce with sesame and peppered scallop
The pasta surprised me as well because the sauce was really nice, it had lots of bacon and onions which gave it a lovely smoky and sweet taste.
The sauce was also made with sesame and pepper.
On top there was a seared scallop too.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Chocolate Mousse:
The appearance of the mousse was slightly different from the usual mousses.
It had a lumpy surface.

After trying it, I realised there were pieces of chocolate sponge cake in it which gave it more depth and dimension.
The icecream on the side was equally as good because it had pieces of dark chocolate in it.
The portion size of this dessert was reasonably big.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
At the moment I would choose this place as my favourite private kitchen because the environment is good and the portions are big and suitable for guys.