Rempah Noodles (Hong Kong, CHINA) ★★★☆☆

Another week, another Saturday traveling around to bring little nugget to his classes. For me, it's always the busiest day of the week and technically, there is no idle time except this 2-hour window after I drop him off at boy scout. In previous weeks, I normally go back home to rest or find a shopping mall to kill time but not this time around! I've decided that I wanted some Me Time on my own too! 

After dropping little one off, I ventured over to an area between Admiralty and Wanchai. My destination, Rempah Noodles, has been on my radar screen for so long because of their signature prawn noodles and laksa. But today, I have something else in mind. Something sweet to satisfy my sweet tooth.

Once I turned myself in at the reception, I was escorted to this quiet corner with my back facing the dining area and open kitchen.

Hey, that's what I came all the way here for! My iced teh tarik and kaya toast.

Iced teh tarik – This was way too light and watery for me. The tea flavors almost didn't register. Not a good start.

Kaya toast – This is stacked up like jenga!

These looked really good and I could smell the lovely fragrance of pandan and coconut far away.

This is very different from the traditional butter kaya toast. In fact, there was no thick slab of frozen butter in between the toast, only a layer of frozen custard that was rich in coconut and pandan flavor. Very unconventional but very delicious.

I had to rush through my afternoon snacks cuz I was due to pick little nugget up in 30 minutes. After settling the bill, I took a slow walk back to the MTR station passing by Asian House. Man, I lost my share of leg hair here some 15 years ago. Following their renovation (more like a re-construction), our office moved and I haven't been back ever since. 

Food Rating: 6/10

Price: $$$

Address: G/F, 18 Hennessy Road, Wanchai, Hong Kong

Closest Metro Station: Wanchai

Tel: +852 3618-4863

Website: www.rempahnoodles.com

Opening Hours: 11:30am - 8:00pm (Mon - Fri, Public Holidays), 11:30am - 6:00pm (Sat)

Roganic (Hong Kong, CHINA) ★★★★☆

For months, I have been itching to go back to Roganic but one thing prevented me from doing so – their lunch menu which never seems to change over time. In fact, it's been the same starter, main and dessert since I last visited back in July but finally, I got some good news this week. 

As usual, I asked for a seat at the counter table in hope to steal a thing or two from the pastry chefs. 😊

Well, I guess it's a little early for the pastry chefs to start working on the desserts. 😅

Like many restaurants in the city, their lunch menu can be found right here from the QR Code.

Potato and seaweed tartlet with sticky egg and charred onion – Like my previous meals here, lunch started off brightly with a small tartlet. This time around, it was a nori shell filled with toppings of potato, sticky egg and smoky charred onion. Very lovely crunch and pretty tasty!

At this point, my favorite soda bread was served up with their signature cultured brown butter.

Marjoram brined cabbage, crispy Hong Kong oyster mushrooms, wasabi – I had this one quite a while back (I think at least a year ago) but with a different presentation. This time, the burnt local Chinese cabbage was laid out flat with crispy oyster mushrooms sitting on top. The dish was finished off with a wasabi foam giving the cabbage great depth of flavors.

Butter poached grouper, heirloom sweetcorn, roasted shrimp sauce – My main dish was butter poached grouper fillet served in a very intense shrimp emulsion made with shrimp heads and tails.

The sweetness (and crunch) of the heirloom sweetcorn was a nice match to the grouper and shrimp foam but the addition of miso made this almost perfect marriage a little "exotic".

Following my main course, I was offered a housemade apple kombucha that I thought played the role of a palate cleanser brilliantly.

Black tea custard tart with condensed milk ice cream – Dessert was a familiar one for me as I had this for a few times already.

This modern take on the local milk tea never grows old (although I probably won't mind having another dessert on my next visit).

As much as I enjoy coming back to Roganic, they've gotta change their menu a little more often to make my return trip worthwhile.

Food Rating: 7/10

Price: $$$

Address: Shop 8, UG/F, Sino Plaza, 255 Gloucester Road, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong

Closest Metro Station: Causeway Bay

Tel: +852 2817-8383

Website: www.roganic.com.hk

Opening Hours: 12:00pm - 2:30pm, 6:00pm - 10:30pm (Tue - Sun)

Doughman Bakery & Coffee (Hong Kong, CHINA) ★★★★☆

Lai Chi Kok used to be a foodie wasteland until D2 Place (Phase One and Two) came along years ago. While the area is still very industrial and commercial centric, there are now more options in restaurants and cafes on top of their cha chaan tengs. One thing remains missing though is a good artisan bakery shop. Something in the mold of Bakehouse perhaps?

I thought I was dreaming but weeks ago, I saw this new bakery shop called Doughman across the street from D2 Place Phase One. It was still in renovation mode but looking in from the window, I could see the resemblance to Bakehouse in Wanchai with an in-house bakery kitchen behind the counter. This can’t possibly be true, right?

Finally, Doughman soft-opened on the following Monday attracting a few of us who were on our way to work. I was happy to see some familiar faces, such as croissants, pain au chocolates and different danish.

I didn’t have time to check out their coffee but I did get an almond croissant, freshly baked from their oven this morning. This looked really fluffy!

I thought this was almost as good as the one I had at Gontran Cherrier K11 Musea. Flaky on the outside but soft and moist inside. That'll be quite a compliment for any newcomer.

Reading from their IG and Facebook posts, there are a number of experienced bakers behind Doughman. This explains why their croissant was so tasty. Are there any improvement areas? I think so. I would really like to see them work on their variety of bakery goods to offer. And if they can add doughnuts to their arsenal, it will make me a very happy man!

Food Rating: 6/10

Price: $$$

Address: G/F 10 Cheung Yi Street, Cheung Lung Industrial Building, Cheung Sha Wan, Hong Kong

Closest Metro Station: Lai Chi Kok

Tel: +852 3741-0111

Opening Hours: 7:30am - 6:00pm (Mon - Sat)

Dang Wen Li by Dominique Ansel Harbour City 當文歷餅店 (Hong Kong, CHINA) ★★★★☆

I didn't have the chance to check out DangWenLi's latest "The Classic Childhood Memories Collection" 《經典童年回憶》系列 as they were all sold out last time I was here. So, I had to make sure that I reserved a few of them before little nugget took off for Toys R Us and others to shopping (I also spent some Me Time at Shake Shack on my own).

I had to settle for Main Street Deli's New York cheesecake after striking out at DangWenLi two weeks ago. Today, my mission was finally accomplished.

French Toast (港式西多士) – Probably the most eye-catching one out of the new four.

The French Toast was actually made with crispy feuilletine, creamy rice pudding and homemade lemon curd, topped nicely by the honey gelée "maple syrup" and a pat of mascarpone cream "butter".

There are both contrasting textures and flavors in there. Not bad. 

Dominique’s Cup Noodle (當仔杯麵) – The cute presentation immediately stole the heart of little nugget (and many alike). The caramel crispy rice and caramel sponge cake "cup" came filled with espresso gelée "noodles," which were made with milk tea mousse.

There was even a "fish cake" made of chocolate. Talk about the attention to details.

Haw Flakes (山楂餅) – A mix of fresh raspberry and hawthorn mousse, paired with lychee gelée, and soufflé cheesecake. 

For me, the weakest link from the new four. The mix of flavors was a little one-dimensional. Acidity and nothing more.

Bear Cookie (小熊餅) – Saving the best for last, this was easily my favorite from the new four. 

Underneath the adorable cookie bear were layers of vanilla sable, hazelnut sponge cake, milk chocolate ganache and hazelnut mousse. It's like having a giant hazelnut praline chocolate. Love it!

Little guy can't stop eating his instant noodle cup.

Food Rating: 6/10
Price: $$$
Address: Shop OT G63A, G/F, Ocean Terminal, Harbour City, 3-27 Canton Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong
Closest Metro Station: Tsim Sha Tsui
Tel: +852 2613-8618
Website: www.dangwenli.com
Opening Hours: 11:00am - 8:00pm daily

Shake Shack Harbour City (Hong Kong, CHINA) ★★★☆☆

One of the things we learn from the three-year-old pandemic is that life is really too short to be unhappy. Cherish every opportunity you get with your family and love ones. Seize the day and have no regrets!

That's precisely what we did. With Jelloman's aunt in town, we try to seize every chance we get to organize family gatherings together and this weekend was no exception. 

After our dim sum lunch, we ventured over to Harbour City next door for some shopping and little nugget gotta spend some time at Jumpin Gym. I got some Me Time too, a precious 5-minute break at Shake Shack. This has to be the only burger joint in town with a stunning harbourview. I don't think many burger specialists could afford the rent.

A thirst-quenching milk tea shake. That's what I need after a pretty heavy lunch.

Food Rating: 6/10

Price: $$$

Address: Shop OTG53, G/F, Ocean Terminal, Harbour City, 3-27 Canton Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong

Closest Metro Station: Tsim Sha Tsui

Tel: +852 2262-2768

Opening Hours: 11:00am - 10:00pm daily

Sensu Citywalk (Hong Kong, CHINA) ★★★☆☆

I was supposed to have another meal at Five Guys this afternoon but I was suddenly drawn to the light wood panels and contemporary décor in front of Sensu, an all-day dining restaurant serving Japanese-western comfort food next door. I ended up going in for a closer look.

Sensu is a member of The Food Story restaurant empire that also owns brands like Camellia, Art of Canton, and Ricky's Kitchen just to name a few. 

Starting things off for me was a small bowl of lobster bisque. Not bad (but no lobster meat unfortunately).

My main dish was seafood linguine with cuttlefish, prawns and mussels. This was supposed to be a spicy dish but since I have been trying to avoid having hot and spicy food during the pandemic, I decided to ask if the kitchen could do me a favor by skipping the extra kick. They actually did.

But I am guessing that's the reason why the pasta tasted a little funny. The garlicky sauce was obviously missing the spicy kick making this whole dish a little weird. 

I was in the mood for some truffled fries today. There wasn't anything special about the fries but I thought the black truffle aioli was pretty tasty.

I am betting my money on the fact that I would go to Five Guys for my burger and shake rather than returning to Sensu next time I'm visiting Citywalk.

Food Rating: 4.5/10

Price: $$$

Address: Shop 78, UG/F, City Walk 1, 1 Yeung Uk Road, Tsuen Wan, Hong Kong

Closest Metro Station: Tsuen Wan West

Tel: +852 2885-0968

Opening Hours: 12:00pm - 10:00pm daily

Bakehouse Wanchai (Hong Kong, CHINA) ★★★★☆

I'm back to my favorite bakery shop in town to get some late-night snacks for little nugget and this time, I am bringing two colleagues with me! At almost 6pm, I wasn't expecting too many items left here at Bakehouse this late but to my pleasant surprise, their sourdough egg tart is still available (albeit limited supply). Rejoice!

Their egg tart is always hugely popular in my household, but I found today that they still have some bakery goods that I have never tried before, such as this espresso caramel éclair. OK, I have to admit, I am a sucker for éclairs. Just give me choux pastry filled with cream any day.

This was really really good. I am not a fan of espresso but I love the espresso flavored choux pastry which was so light, puffy and crisp! I thought the filling of salted caramel cream topped with cacao nibs delivered a pretty powerful finish. I would very much like to have this again.

Food Rating: 6.5/10
Price: $$$$
Address: G14 Tai Wong Street East, Wanchai, Hong Kong
Closest Metro Station: Wanchai
Website: https://bakehouse.hk/

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

Takano Ramen 多賀野 New Town Plaza (Hong Kong, CHINA) ★★★★☆

After spending the entire day in Shatin, I was ready to take off for our home sweet home but little nugget had other ideas. Obviously, he thought there was still unfinished business at New Town Plaza. In fact, he’s been asking for his ramen fix all day and he’s not going to be denied!

Luckily, we managed to spot Takano Ramen (多賀野) without a huge lineup so we decided to grab a quick one there before heading home.

Takano Soy Sauce Ramen (醬油拉麵) – Takano's signature ramen with a clear broth made of free-range chicken, freshest seafood and pork bones.

I was never really a fan of shoyu ramen but little one really loves it (well, he loves all his ramen)! 

The smoky barbecued pork had just the perfect balance of meat and fat to it.

And the soft-boiled egg well-executed as usual. Pretty nice.

Premium Crab Tsukemen Ramen (極上蟹皇沾麵) – Admittedly, I am always too lazy to have tsukemen (dipping noodles) because it takes way too long to finish. And because of that, the broth always seems to get cold towards the end.

I always found it surprising that nobody tried to light a fire underneath the broth to make sure it’s in the right temperature. Well, finally, my prayers were answered here at Takano!

The creamy white fish broth cooked with crab coral was very aromatic. Could smell it from miles away.

And if the broth isn’t strong enough for you, they have crab roe paste ready on the side to help enhance the flavors even more! This was really cool but trust me, just a tad of that will make the broth really salty.

The dipping ramen came with deep-fried soft-shell crab and bamboo shoot.

I thought the broth was really rich flavored (understandably so for dipping noodles) and having the entire bowl of noodles with the broth was really a little too heavy for me.

Coconut sorbet – Of course, dinner at Takano Ramen is not complete without this coconut sorbet. A refreshing end to a pretty nice ramen dinner. Now, time to head home for a good night of sleep in preparation for a really busy week.

Food Rating: 6/10

Price: $$$

Address: Shop 167, 1/F, New Town Plaza, Phase 1, 18 Sha Tin Centre Street, Sha Tin, NT, Hong Kong

Closest Metro Station: Shatin

Tel: +852 2887-8133

Opening Hours: 11:30am - 10:00pm (Mon - Thu), 11:00am - 10:30pm (Fri - Sat), 11:00am - 10:00pm (Fri - Sun)