Hainan Shaoye 海南少爺 (Hong Kong, CHINA) ★★★☆☆

I have an early appointment to get my tooth implant checked out this morning. After almost an hour’s wait, the consultation turned out lasting only a mere 3 minutes. So, I was back on the streets near lunch hours already. Good thing I was in Harbour City so there were plenty of good food to choose from. 

During the COVID-19 outbreak, there were a ton of my go-to restaurants and cafes which I have stopped visiting for various reasons. After finally paying a visit to Beans yesterday, I decided to head back to another former favorite of mine since I was already wandering around Harbour City – Hainan Shaoye (海南少爺).

Hainan Shaoye instantly caught my attention (and Jelloman’s) when they first opened doors more than a decade ago at Harbour City thanks to their signature char kway teow and fried turnip cake, both very authentically delicious dishes from Malaysia/Singapore. But ever since little nugget was born and eventually entered primary school last year, we have had less time to stroll the malls and subsequently, eating out a lot less than we previously did. I was of course more than happy to be back after all these years.

The longan drink was pretty bland to me, perhaps intentionally since the rest of the dishes were going to be very flavorful.

Char kway teow – This came with all sorts of ingredients including egg, Chinese sausages, strips of fish cakes, shrimps and even throwed in some oil noodles for good measures. But for a dish known to have a balanced mix of savory, sweet and spicy flavors, it really failed to deliver such an authentic taste. In fact, the saltiness of the dish was dominating, with some mild spiciness; that’s about all. Disappointing…..

Stir-fried morning glory – Pretty decent. Gotta love the generous portion (for $28 more).

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I found myself visiting restaurants and cafes that I used to visit a lot during my hay days lately. Perhaps sensing that things are finally back to normal now, I have more urgency to re-visit my past again. Making up for lost time….. 

Food Rating: 5/10

Price: $$$

Address: Shop 16, G/F, Ocean Terminal, Harbour City, 3-27 Canton Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong

Closest Metro Station: Tsim Sha Tsui

Tel: +852 2110-3533

Opening Hours: 11:30am - 9:30pm daily