Eonsona Massage Spa PAFC Mall 玖玖 · 予頌 平安金融中心店 (Shenzhen, CHINA)

My better half has been really addicted to this massage place called 玖玖 these days. They have numerous locations across Shenzhen, with most specializing in body and foot massage. Personally, I'm not a big fan of foot massages, so I never really tag along with her on her spa treatments.

But today was a different story. I was in Shenzhen alone and I spotted this new concept operated by the same group at PAFC Mall (平安金融中心). It was branded as Eonsona Massage Spa (玖玖 · 予頌), dedicated to high-end spa treatment. With time to spare this afternoon, I decided to give it a shot.

The place had just opened about a month ago, and since it was around 5pm on a Wednesday afternoon, there wasn’t a full lineup of customers.

Of course, I requested a quiet room away from the reception and rest area.

It has been a tough month at work thus far, so I thought I fully deserved a break — a mental break of 60 minutes without thinking about work or anything else. Just lights out!

The massage was really nice. I particularly enjoyed the oil treatment, which was not too greasy at all. While walking down the corridor back to the reception area, I had a chance to check out the bigger rooms. This one was for three people.

And this room was for four, complete with a big screen TV. Little nugget would love that.

Like all the spa treatments in Shenzhen, you get to enjoy a cup of warm tea and a little dessert afterward.

Eonsona Massage Spa is conveniently located inside PAFC, just a comfortable 8-minute walk to Futian Station (all indoor!). I think I'll definitely come back again soon.

Rating: ❤❤❤❤❤

Price: ¥¥¥

Address: Level M PA Mall, 5033 Yitian Road, Futian, Shenzhen, China

深圳市福田区益田路5033号PA MALL平安金融中心M层

Closest Metro Station: Shopping Park (購物公園)

Tel: +86 18566925929

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

Map: https://j.map.baidu.com/b1/WRJM

Tao Tao Ju One Avenue 陶陶居 卓悦中心店 (Shenzhen, CHINA) ★★★★☆

I’m back in Shenzhen for some solo game time this afternoon. On a Wednesday, I wasn't expecting a crowd.

First things first, it’s been a while since I last visited Tao Tao Ju (陶陶居), my go-to dim sum place in Shenzhen. So, I quickly ventured over to One Avenue (卓悦中心). Not surprisingly, there was no one waiting in line.

Tao Tao Ju jumbo prawn dumpling (陶陶居大蝦餃) (¥36) — Why would I start my meal with anything other than TTJ’s signature har gow? As usual, they were incredibly satisfying, although tackling all three by myself was no easy feat. In retrospect, I realize I enjoy a little friendly “fighting” with little nugget over his har gow! 😂😂

Mixed noodles with shrimp roes and scallion oil (蝦籽蔥油撈麵) (¥33) — One of my goals this afternoon was to try a couple of items on the menu that I had never sampled before.

The mixed noodles were decent, but I thought they could have been a little more generous with the shrimp roes.

Abalone-shaped brown sugar rice cake (金鮑賀歲年糕) (¥13) — They have a few dishes designed specifically for Chinese New Year 🧧, and this one topped my list since I'm a sucker for Chinese brown sugar rice cake (年糕).

Look how beautiful this was! I could hardly believe it wasn’t a real abalone! Sticky and chewy (in a good way), and perfectly balanced.

To make it resemble a braised abalone dish, they’ve drizzled a thick, gluey brown sugar sauce that mimicked a traditional abalone sauce. It got me completely fooled! 

That was all the time I had for my quick lunch. Now, it’s off to the arcade centre to enjoy my uninterrupted gaming session.

Food Rating: 6.7/10

Price: ¥¥¥

Address:  Shop L233, East Zone, Level 2 One Avenue, Fuhua Road, Futian, Guangzhou, China

深圳市福田区福华路卓悦中心商场东区L233号铺

Closest Metro Station: Gangxia (岗厦)

Tel: +86 (755) 8299-8870

Opening Hours: 10:00am - 9:30pm daily

Map: https://j.map.baidu.com/39/WOi

Dalloyau Harbour City (Hong Kong, CHINA) ★★★★☆

After our early lunch at Hikiniku to come (挽肉と米) in Harbour City, we were all set to head back home for more study time but little nugget obviously had different ideas in mind. When he spotted the exquisite pastries at Dalloyau, he immediately asked to sit down for dessert. It was 1:10pm at the time and I thought it was a little early for afternoon tea.

Mont Blanc ($68) — So, we decided to get him something sweet for tonight.

This autumn French classic features velvety chestnut mousse, layers of light chestnut sponge cake, and rum-infused Chantilly cream, all resting on a base of crispy rice. The combination of flavors and textures was pretty intriguing, so not surprisingly, little nugget was thoroughly impressed!



This study routine is wearing me down, I hope it comes to an end soon.

Food Rating: 6.5/10

Price: $$$

Address: Shop 3220, 3/F, Gateway Arcade, Harbour City, 3-27 Canton Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong

Closest Metro Station: Tsim Sha Tsui

Tel: +852 3185-8330

Website: https://dalloyau.hk/

Opening Hours: 11:00am - 9:00pm daily

Hikiniku to come Harbour City 挽肉と米 海港城店 (Hong Kong, CHINA) ★★★★☆

Little nugget has been grounded for the past two weeks in preparation for his upcoming exams. While I enjoyed the quietness of not being bothered by him, I do feel for him and all the kids in Hong Kong facing the pressures associated with examinations. Those tiger parents certainly make things difficult.

As a good dad, I decided to give him a break from his studies. With that in mind, I booked a few seats at Hikiniku to come (挽肉と米) for lunch this Sunday. It's been a few years since Hikiniku to come landed in Hong Kong from Fukuoka, yet the hype shows no signs of fading. In fact, we noticed a small lineup outside the restaurant both before and after our meal.

We were seated at the far end of the bar, right in front of the chefs as they skillfully shaped and grilled the beef patties over charcoal.

They’re currently running a promotion featuring Tokachi beef (十勝牛) at their Harbour City (海港城) outpost. All of their beef patties are made with prized Tokachi wagyu beef from Hokkaido so I was eager to see if they are as good as advertised.

First — I have been here before so I knew the drill. While I was trying to give little guy a prep talk about our beef patties, the first of our three patties were already on deck.

We were supposed to enjoy the first patty without any sauce or condiments, but I totally missed that instruction. Instead, I decided to mix in an egg yolk (each guest can get one from the front) with some homemade soy sauce and rub it onto my patty.

This turned out well, although I thought I would have enjoyed it even more with a sweeter soy sauce to balance out the savory flavors. Nonetheless, it was a nice start.

Second — For our second patty, we were offered some grated radish and a jar of homemade ponzu vinegar. 

This provided a refreshing change of pace, allowing the exquisite taste of the Wagyu beef to shine through with a pleasant acidity.

Three — By the time the third patty arrived, we were supposed to utilize our only egg, but it had already been mistakenly used with our first patty. So, we all got creative by mixing and matching our patty with the condiments. There were green chili, Japanese pepper sauce, fried garlic, and more inside the container.

I simply enjoyed my patty with the pepper sauce, which added a bit of smokiness and a flavor profile reminiscent of shiso. By this point, before I started munching on my third patty, I was already feeling a little stuffed.

The whole meal took just under an hour. Little Nugget seemed to enjoy the experience and even vowed to return for another visit. We’ll see if he adds this restaurant to his selective list of favorites, which already includes No Milk No Life ML, Yakitori Tsukada (燒鳥塚田), and a couple of others that I can’t quite remember.

Food Rating: 6/10

Price: $$$

Address: Shop 3203-4 & 3204A, 3/F, Gateway Arcade, Harbour City, 3-27 Canton Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong

Closest Metro Station: Tsim Sha Tsui

Tel: +852 2682-9868

Website: https://www.instagram.com/hikiniku.to.come_hongkong

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

Restaurant Petrus (Hong Kong, CHINA) ★★★★☆

Due to our busy travel schedule in January, we didn't have the chance to enjoy any serious dining in Hong Kong during the first month of the year. In fact, it took nearly two months for me to finally sit down for a proper meal.

I chose Petrus over several other options because it has consistently impressed me over the past couple of years. This time, I recruited mom as my partner in crime, since I haven’t seen her in two weeks.

Tuna tartare — Our meal began with a pair of small nibbles. The first was a delicate tartlet topped with tuna tartare and horseradish cream, powered by a subtle hint of wasabi that tied the flavors together beautifully.

Champagne cork — Gougère filled with Comté cream, a classic staple of the restaurant. It’s always a nice way to kick things off.

Chicken consommé, chestnut — They have been running this winter menu for a while but I have yet to try it until this afternoon. For mom, I decided to order the chicken consommé with chestnut tortelli for her.

Pate en croute, sika deer, foie gras, pear — I had the pate en croute myself. I'm not sure it's still game season now but I always enjoy having this dish any time of the year.

The combination of sika deer and foie gras was exquisite, complemented nicely by the smoky cream and red wine-poached pear slices. The only downside was the pastry crust, which was a bit more on the hard side.

Scallop, morel, vin jaune — For main dish, mom and I both chose the pan-seared Scottish scallops served with crunchy peas, garlic and chopped mushrooms. In the middle of the dish was a giant morel mushroom from Yunnan which was stuffed with silky scallop mousse. A delightful choice.

Quince, pear, vanilla — My dessert was quince sorbet, vanilla espuma and pear compote all topped with a sheet of flaky pastry.

I was looking for something light and refreshing, and this was exactly that.

Some petite fours including my favorite chocolate truffles (I stole mom's as well!), amaretti and orange peel coated in dark chocolate.

This was one of the few times that I didn't stuff myself with too much food while dining here. Mom also enjoyed her dining experience although she quietly told me that she thought Caprice was better. I guess she really misses her favorite three-Michelin-starred restaurant in town. 

Food Rating: 7.3/10

Price: $$$$
Address: 56/F, Island Shangri-La Hong Kong, Pacific Place, 88 Queensway, Admiralty, Hong Kong
Closest Metro Station: Admiralty
Tel: +852 2820-8590
Website: Link
Opening Hours: 12:00pm - 3:00pm, 6:30pm - 11:00pm daily

Caan by OUR Shenzhen Bay MixC 深圳灣萬象城店 (Shenzhen, CHINA) ★★★☆☆

When we first thought about coming to Shenzhen Bay MixC (深圳灣萬象城) for dinner, Korean food wasn't what we had in mind.

However, as soon as we saw the crowd lining up at every Chinese restaurant (no surprise for Chinese New Year), we had no choice but to go with our Plan B. Since Jelloman was circling around Zone B of the mall at the time, it made perfect sense to settle for something non-Chinese there, with Caan by OUR Bakery leading the list of candidates.

I have always wanted to try Caan's Korean-inspired comfort food, but I didn't expect to do it during the week of Chinese New Year.

Kimchi fried rice (¥45) — Always enjoy having Korean kimchi fried rice. This came with fried egg and sausage. Not bad at all but the presentation could have been a little better.

Salmon carpaccio (¥78) — The beetroot-cured salmon carpaccio was pretty tasty. Likely the best dish tonight.

Bacon cream pasta (¥65) — The kids would never say no to a carbonara.

Truffle fries (¥58) — Pretty decent.

Roasted spring chicken (¥79) — I didn't get to try this one, but our friends were raving about the tender and juicy spring chicken. It must be a very satisfying dish. I heard the salad was not bad as well.

After scrambling back and forth and wasting a lot of time in the process, it was a blessing to finally find a dining place within the mall where we could sit down for supper. Most importantly, it was the precious time we spent with our good friends, sharing stories and laughter together. That's what truly matters.

Food Rating: 5.6/10

Price: ¥¥¥

Address: Shop B115, Zone B, Level B1 Shenzhen Bay MixC, 3213 Keyuan South Road, Nanshan, Guangzhou, China

深圳市南山区粤海街道海珠社区科苑南路3213号深圳湾万象城B1层B区B115号铺

Closest Metro Station: Houhai (后海)

Tel: +86 18124700566

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

Map: https://j.map.baidu.com/5e/OqaM

Dian Niu Yunnan Pickled Greens Hotpot Restaurant Joy City 滇牛雲南酸菜牛肉火鍋 深圳大悦城店 (Shenzhen, CHINA) ★★★☆☆

We're back in Shenzhen this morning to celebrate the New Year with another family. It's "Red Mouth Day" today, so we are being very careful about what we say to others. After a fun-filled morning exploring Shenzhen Joy City (深圳大悦城), we decided to grab lunch there as well.

Situated on the fourth floor of the shopping mall, Dian Niu Yunnan Pickled Greens Hotpot Restaurant (滇牛雲南酸菜牛肉火鍋) is a Yunnan-style hotpot restaurant chain specializing in its Yunnan vegetables and beef.

Obviously, everybody went back to their respective hometowns during the New Year, so there were only a few souls at the mall and having lunch at the restaurant.

We opted for two types of non-spicy broths, trying to stay away from spicy foods to kick off the year.

While they were preparing the broths, I decided to grab a few condiments from the "sauce" station.

This turned into a bit of a vegetable feast, as half of the dishes were plant-based. For most Hongkongers, the meal would typically lean more towards meat and seafood, with vegetables likely towards the end of the hotpot meal.

Yunnan beef fillet (雲南黃牛肉) — The beef fillet from Yunnan cattle was pretty tender, but the way it was cut into small pieces and marinated made it a little less appealing, both for our eyes and palates.

Beef offal platter (牛雜雙拼) — The ox tongue certainly wasn't bad. I had trouble identifying what the other part was.

Beef marinated with litsea (木姜子牛肉) — This came with a nice extra kick and a numbing effect thanks to the litsea. Much tastier than the previous beef fillet.

Beef trachea (牛黃喉) — We first thought it was beef tripe at first glance, but the texture didn’t feel right. After checking the menu, we found that this was actually the cow's throat part. It was a bit crunchy but not a lot of flavor there.

Taro sheets (麗江七彩洋芋) — The taro was sliced into thin sheets which turned into something like potato chips when cooked. Pretty interesting!

There were a lot of vegetables (which I forgot to take photos of) including tofu in the set but mint leaf?

Every time we come to Shenzhen, we seem to learn something new, and this meal was a nice lesson on the ingredients from Yunnan. I'm not sure if I liked everything, but it was great for our education!

Food Rating: 4.8/10

Price: ¥¥¥

Address: Shop L431, Level 4 Joy City, 61 Chuangye 2nd Road, Bao'an District, Shenzhen, China

深圳市宝安区新安街道宝民社区25区创业二路61号大悦城商业中心四层L431

Closest Metro Station: Lingzhi (灵芝)

Tel: +86 18948327800

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

Map: https://j.map.baidu.com/2a/YlJM