Samsen Sheung Wan 泰麵 上環店 (Hong Kong, CHINA) ★★★★☆

I didn’t realize that Samsen the popular Thai noodle joint has opened a branch in Sheung Wan until a few months ago, when little nugget was having his lessons in the area on Saturdays.

Samsen is the brainchild of owner-chef Adam Cliff, an Australian chef who spent years at the highly successful Nahm in Bangkok under world-renowned chef David Thompson. Before launching Samsen, he was the head chef of Chachawan, another hugely popular Thai restaurant in Sheung Wan.

Compared to Chachawan, Samsen has a much smaller food menu focused more on its wok-fried noodles, skewers, curry and roti (both savory and sweet). 

At around 8:30pm, the crowd had thinned out a bit, so I was able to grab a seat at the counter next to the other solo diners.

Wok fried Thai watercress ($88) — These were tossed with chili, garlic and yellow beans. I figured they wouldn’t be too spicy since there was no chili 🌶️ sign next to it on the menu. I was obviously wrong. The spicy kick caught me a little off guard, but otherwise, it was pretty decent, with a nice wok hei.

Stir-fried flat noodles with chicken and baby corn ($148) — This came with even better wok hei. The flat noodles, slightly sticky (in a lovely way) was nicely tossed with baby corn, baby kale, succulent chicken fillet and egg in a light oyster sauce. I really enjoyed the texture of these flat noodles. I could probably have this everyday!

I have to come back to try their roti sometime. They make it fresh on the spot, and it comes in both sweet and savory versions.

It was raining all day, and it got worse during dinner. A black rain signal was on for a while, so I had to wait a bit before heading back out into the rain.

This was a very good meal — enough to make me wonder why I took so long to come back. That said, for the ultimate Thai dai pai dong (open-air food stall) experience, I still prefer Chachawan or Soi 29, thanks to their more extensive menu. Samsen is more of a stopgap option if you’re in the mood for a quick Thai noodle fix.

Food Rating: 6.7/10

Price: $$$

Address: G/F, 23 Jervois Street, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong

Closest Metro Station: Sheung Wan

Tel: +852 2234-0080

Website: http://www.samsen-hk.com/

Opening Hours: 12:00pm - 3:00pm (Mon - Sun), 6:00pm - 10:00pm (Mon - Thu), 6:00pm - 11:00pm (Fri - Sun)

THE GAR 嘉悦里 (Shenzhen, CHINA) ★★★★☆

While Tao Tao Ju (陶陶居) has largely fulfilled its role as my go-to dim sum restaurant in Shenzhen for the past two years, my desire to find an alternative has grown over the past couple of weeks. So, like most youngsters these days, I decided to turn to social media for recommendations.

Unfortunately, my research didn’t turn out very promising. Other than Cantonese restaurants at some of the top hotels, there weren’t many premium dim sum options in town. Except for one called THE GAR (嘉悦里), which has received rave reviews.

THE GAR is a premium, high-end Cantonese restaurant and dim sum lounge hidden inside Shahe Golf Club (沙河高爾夫球會) in Shenzhen’s Nanshan District. The venue uniquely blends the atmosphere of a classic, historic English club with the elegance of old Shanghai mansion style.

I was told the dumplings here were served in the quantity of one rather than a handful, like at most dim sum restaurants. Given the prices, it definitely didn’t come across as the usual “value for money” kind of outing in SZ.

A small welcome drink set the tone for what turned out to be an amazing journey ahead.

Steamed vegetarian dumpling with black truffle (黑松露上素餃) (¥38) — Finely diced vegetables and mushrooms, with a nice touch of black truffle tightly wrapped in a small package. The mouthfeel was pretty enjoyable and surprisingly refined. 

One thing about dining in Shenzhen is that they tend to be light on seasoning, and that was true here as well. The black truffle played a beautiful supporting role without ever dominating.

Steamed mantis prawn dumpling (富貴瀨尿蝦餃) (¥68) — When people talk about THE GAR, this is the one they’re most likely to mention thanks to its lovely presentation. I’ve actually seen it on Instagram quite a few times.

The steamed dumpling features a delicate, silky-smooth prawn mousse, topped with a full mantis prawn that can be clearly seen through the wrapper. It’s something for both the taste buds and the senses.

I like the springy mantis prawn combining well with the other ingredients. I thought the perilla leaf might bring more punch but it was more decorative than anything. I love this more than the abalone dumpling.

Steamed abalone dumpling with pork and shrimp (鮑魚鳳眼餃) (¥88) — Another signature items here and you could tell just from the price tag that it meant business.

The dumpling came with a base of pork and shrimp, crowned neatly with a braised abalone on top. The abalone was tender and packed with flavor. The green wrapper made with what I thought was parsley wasn't bad either. It added some interesting vegetal notes to complement the dish. Pretty nice.

Steamed pork dumpling with olive seed (中山靚金吒) (¥38) — I had never heard of this one before. After checking with my server, I learned that it’s a popular dim sum in Guangzhou and Hong Kong, made with minced pork. It sounded like she was reciting it from a script but to be brutally honest, I still couldn’t recall ever hearing about it in my whole life.

That said, the texture was pretty interesting. The exterior had a glutinous rice-like crust, while the filling consisted of minced pork, lard, and a mildly flavored sauce with a hint of acidity. It was OK — nothing mind-blowing, just interesting.

Steamed barbecued honey pork rice roll (蜜汁叉燒腸) (¥38) — Now that I have gotten two of their signature dim sums out of the way, it was time for something more down to earth.

The steamed rice roll was well executed. The diced honey-glazed BBQ pork and sweet soy added both texture and sweetness to the mix — comforting and satisfying.

Poached choy sum with premium soy sauce (白灼菜心) (¥68) — Some veggies to close out the meal. As usual, the portion of choy sum felt a little too generous for one person.

It was definitely a relaxing lunch. When I called to make my reservation this morning, they told me they were quite full this afternoon and I was offered a table on the terrace (it was warm

 — around 33°C today). I was also added to the waiting list in case a seat became available in the dining room.

In the end, it turned out to be unnecessary. The upscale restaurant was less than half full by the time I was there. I guess they were saving some seats for members of the golf club who might not show up.

It was my first time visiting this golf club, and I was surprised how busy it was. Lots of golf carts going left and right, and there were always people walking around the lobby with their golf equipment.

Food Rating: 6.9/10

Price: ¥¥¥¥

Address: 213, Shahe Golf Club, 1 Shahe East Road, Nanshan, Guangzhou, China

深圳市南山区沙河街道西社区沙河东路1号沙河高尔夫球会俱乐部213

Tel: +86 19076107889

Opening Hours: 6:00am - 10:30pm daily

Map: https://j.map.baidu.com/61/_TOK

Yue De Xian AVIC City 悅得閑廣式點心茶樓 中航城店 (Shenzhen, CHINA) ★★★☆☆

Yue De Xian (悅得閑) seems to have taken over as our breakfast spot from Tsui Wah lately. At least it was the case this morning. The place operates several locations across Shenzhen in a similar style to Dianduda (點都德). In fact, their décor also feels a bit alike.

One interesting observation about the Yue De Xian branch at AVIC (中航城) is that even though it opens around 8:30am, the crowd doesn’t really show up until about 10:30am. So our plan was to arrive just ahead of the rush.

Assorted meat congee with sliced fish (荔灣艇仔粥) (¥32) — What I like most about breakfast here is the congee. They offer a few different options, and I usually go with this one thanks to the crunchy pork skin (豬皮).

Steamed shrimp dumplings four-ways (四喜蝦餃) (¥37) — Something for little one. To be brutally honest, I can never really tell the difference between the “four,” except for the color. The dumplings with the green wrapper were likely made with parsley. At least one of them does.

Bean curd roll with enoki mushrooms and abalone sauce (鮑汁腐皮金菇卷) (¥28) — 

The Hong Kong version usually comes with minced pork inside but no mushrooms. My teammates said the enoki mushrooms added a really nice crunch, and I can see why they enjoyed it so much.

Three dim sums for three people!? Usually, that wouldn’t be enough, but since we had pickleball a couple hours later, nobody wanted a full stomach while running around on the court.

Food Rating: 5.5/10

Price: ¥¥¥

Address: Shop L317, Zone A, Level 3 AVIC City Junshang Shopping Centre, Futian district, Guangzhou, China

深圳市福田区华强北街道华富路1018号中航城君尚购物中心A区L3层L317

Closest Metro Station: Huaquiangbei (华强北)

Tel: +86 (0755) 8256-0812

Opening Hours: 8:30am - 9:00pm daily

Map: https://j.map.baidu.com/ca/bDJi