[Review 4302] Heavenly donuts @ Double D Burger

05/05/2015
Double D Burger
中環蘭桂坊威靈頓街22號威靈頓公爵大廈地下E舖
Shop E, G/F, Duke Wellington House, 22 Wellington Street, Lan Kwai Fong, Central
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/heavenly-donuts-e2446789

I was going to get a burger but the shop was quite small and cramped so I ended up getting donuts.

The donuts were amazing because they were freshly fried so they were still warm and there was no sugar or icing powder to coat it but it was covered in thick warm salted caramel sauce which had a proper salty kick to it.

The hot soft donuts were just delicious with the caramel sauce. If you find them too sweet, you can scrape some sauce off and it will be scrumptious.
I loved the bottles of chili sauce but I couldn't get close to them to take a picture.

Duck fat caramels:

Tootsie roll:

[Review 4301] Blueberry tart @ Arome bakery @ 東海堂 Arome Café

05/05/2015
東海堂  Arome Café
葵芳興芳路223號新都會廣場2樓297-298號舖
Shop 297-298, 2/F, Metroplaza, 223 Hing Fong Road, Kwai Fong
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/blueberry-tart-arome-bakery-e2446771

Although the blueberry tart was a bit too sweet, it was actually delicious.
I loved the crust because was not too buttery and the tart was filled with a layer of cake, a thin layer of chocolate and cream topped with glazed blueberries.

[Review 4300] LINE X Maxim's Cakes @ 美心西餅 Maxim's Cake Shop

05/05/2015
美心西餅 Maxim's Cake Shop
中環德輔道中20號德成大廈地下3號舖
Shop 3, G/F, Tak Shing House, 20 Des Voeux Road Central, Central
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/line-x-maxims-cakes-e2446768

Maxim’s have launched new cakes and dessert cup collectibles again, this time it is LINE FRIENDs’ CONY and BROWN.
+++++++++++++++++++
Cakes:
CONY (cream cheese cake)
 1 讚好

BROWN (chocolate and raspberry mousse cake)
 0 讚好

+++++++++++++++++++
Dessert cups:
CONY (raspberry mousse milk pudding)
 1 讚好

BROWN (Mango and pomelo pudding)
 1 讚好

+++++++++++++++++++
I tried the BROWN CAKE because I love raspberry and chocolate.
BROWN CAKE:


It was a cute chocolate bear with layers of raspberry jelly, chocolate cake surrounded in chocolate mousse.

I really liked the rich chocolate mousse and the layer of chocolate cake which was balanced by the raspberry jelly to give it dimension so that it was not too chocolately.

[Review 4299] A decent afternoon tea @ Rondavy's Artisan Kitchen

05/05/2015
Rondavy's Artisan Kitchen
銅鑼灣耀華街3號百樂中心11樓
11/F, Bartlock Centre, 3 Yiu Wa Street, Causeway Bay
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/a-decent-afternoon-tea-e2446554

I was really glad I tried their afternoon tea set because there are not many good ones in Hong Kong, most are localized or too sweet, which is a waste of money.
The décor of this café was really nice and I liked the red phone booth and the almost real backdrop.

Tried the afternoon set which was presented on this elegant metal stand.
 1 讚好

++++++++++++++++++
The tea set has sweet and savoury so I started off with the first tier which had croissants filled with truffle and there was smoked salmon with cream cheese and caviar.
 0 讚好

The croissants were really flaky and crispy flavoured by the delicious truffle filling.
After having the croissant I had the salmon and cream cheese which never fails.
++++++++++++++++++
On the second tier, I had the ciabatta bun topped with Egg and mayonnaise which was creamy mashed egg mixed with proper mayonnaise.
Next were the sliders which had so much crabmeat in them.
It was nice there was parma ham and melon as well which was light and scrumptious.
All the items in the savoury tiers were good, there was a perfect balance of something light and filling.

++++++++++++++++++
Lastly, it was the sweet treats.
Normally there are four slices of cake: Tofu, Pear, Lychee and Hawthorn berry.
As the owner had a new cake, he gave it to us to try.
 0 讚好

I was impressed because these cakes were not too sweet.
The tofu cake was the best because it was like eating a block of tofu on a biscuit crumb base. Then I had the pear cake which had a layer of pear puree that gave it that extra fruity touch.
The other cakes also had this puree jelly layer so they tasted really natural.
Anyway, the new cake was pandan which I detected immediately because I love pandan and it had a lovely creamy taste with delicate pandan aroma.
After trying the cakes, I moved on to the green tea scones and banana and walnut muffins which were fluffy and soft with a natrual banana taste.
The texture of the green tea scone was interesting because it was a bit like a soft doughy cookie with a crisp exterior, the coffee scone was yummy too because the coffee flavour was present but not too overpowering.
++++++++++++++++++
Although this place is famous for rose latte, I prefer tea with cakes and they had my favourite mighty leaf brand.

++++++++++++++++++
Overall I was impressed with tea set because they had decent things to eat and it was not localized and I can't wait to come back again.
I feel that other places that serve "afternoon tea" with cheap and localized bits and pieces should take this as a reference instead of putting crap together and calling it a tea set.

[Review 4298] Tasty fried dumplings @ 北方餃子源 Northern Dumpling Yuan

04/05/2015
北方餃子源  Northern Dumpling Yuan
銅鑼灣駱克道401-403號榮華商業大廈地下B舖
Shop B, G/F, 401-403 Lockhart Road, Causeway Bay
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/tasty-fried-dumplings-e2446362

Northern Dumpling Yuan has been in Hong Kong for ages with their first shop is in Wan Chai that is always busy.
I remember the time I deliberately went there at 5.35pm to avoid the crowd.
The great news is that there are now branches all over Hong Kong and the receipt has English AND Chinese printed.
Decided to tried their pan-fried dumplings because I have tried the chicken rice and donkey meat on the last visit.
◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆
Mixed jellyfish:
 0 讚好

A decent portion of jellyfish but they were quite spicy.
◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆
Fried beef and fennel dumplings:
 0 讚好

These dumplings were delicious because the minced beef was juicy and there were lots of fennel intertwined with the beef but the fennel taste could have been stronger.
◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆
Fried Vegetarian dumplings:
 0 讚好

The vegetarian one was filled with lots of chopped veggies, black fungus and when chili bean sauce was added, they tasted even better.
◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆
Fried asparagus and shellfish dumplings:

The taste of this dumpling was light compared to the other flavours so if you are looking for a light one, this is a good one to choose.
◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆
Lamb and spring onion dumplings:
 2 讚好

The lamb was not gamey and the strong spring onions complemented it. The spring onions were not over cooked and had some crunch to it like raw onions. The skin was just right and not too thick.
◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆
Chilled Julienne Potato:

This was a nice chilled side dish that was refreshing because they tasted sweet and sour.
◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆
Shredded chicken and flat green bean noodles:

The bean noodles at this place taste slightly different because the noodles are slightly elastic and sweeter.
◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆
Vegetable rice

The vegetable rice would be a good choice for vegetarians paired with braised shitaake mushrooms.
◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆
Shandong roasted chicken

The chicken was tender and tasty topped with finely chopped spring onions, garlic and chili sauce.
◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆
The fried dumplings turned out to be delicious so I will be back again for more dumplings!

[Review 4297] Vanilla Mille feulle @ Vanilla

03/05/2015
Vanilla
半山摩羅廟街33號地下
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/vanilla-mille-feulle-e2446356

I haven't been here for a while so decided to get something sweet.
Tried the strawberry mille feuille which was filled with strawberry slices and vanilla custard.
It was nice but I found the vanilla custard too buttery and the mille feuille was too sweet as a whole.

[Review 4296] Improved okra and tofu curry @ CoCo壹番屋 CoCo Ichibanya

03/05/2015
CoCo壹番屋  CoCo Ichibanya
尖沙咀廣東道30號新港中心3樓302號舖
Shop 302, 3/F, Silvercord Tower, 30 Canton Road, Tsim Sha Tsui
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/improved-okra-and-tofu-curry-e2446355

Again the curry was flawless, I chose the tomato, spinach and clams curry.
The tomatoes in the curry made the curry sauce appetizing because it had a tangy tomato taste and there was a good balance of spinach in it.
The only thing that let it down were the clams which were tasteless.