Friday, April 30, 2021

Breakfast at Run, Chinese restaurant, St. Regis HK

Breakfast was served in the Chinese restaurant Run.  There are 3 stations in the 2 ends of the restaurant.  1 serving drinks and a few hot dishes and the other 2 serving cereals, fruits and bread.  There is one choice for Japanese, Chinese, Western main course set.  The waiter recommended to try their Chinese set (as this restaurant received a Michelin star).  So we took a Chinese set and a Japanese set.  There are 3 steamed dim sums - shrimp dumpling, pork dumpling and sticky rice in lotus leaf as well as 1 deep fried dim sum spring roll.  Besides, there was a congee with condiments.  I chose a scallop congee.  The scallop is very fresh but the congee base was in a common mistake.  I often consider some simple basic food like steamed rice and congee which can tell if the restaurant is discerning enough for Chinese food cooking.  The congee was boiled in conducting heat without the fragrant rice flavour.  Supposed congee should be boiled at a "bright" high heat fire without the lid for at least 30 minutes.  The rice would be boiled as a "broken" texture and there goes the rice fragrance.  After that, it should be boiled at medium low heat for another half hour or an hour.  Then low heat for another 20 minutes to get turned in a smooth texture.  Besides, rinsing rice with a few drops of peanut oil would make the rice taste even better.  Put a piece of selected aged dried tangerine peel (soaked in cool water and taking out the white inner part) and some ginkgos would be nice.  The steamed dumplings are quite at average but the sticky rice dumpling is a bit disappointing.  The lotus leaf wasn't soaked and rinsed enough that resulted in a sticky with the rice dumpling and some "wet leaf" odour.  The spring roll (if it's not named as a spring roll) is quite nice when you think about a deep fried wafer shrimp roll.  If you look for something fancy, this is a good place to hang around.  The Japanese set is at average standard.

 

Thursday, April 29, 2021

The gym, St. Regis HK

The gym isn't too well equipped but good enough for you to spend an hour.  It was quite quiet when I visited here.  Supposed 5-6pm should be the busiest time.  I enjoyed pretty much for a quiet moment of working out. 

 

Wednesday, April 28, 2021

2 years old, St. Regis HK

The hotel served a brownie for their 2 year old celebration.  


 

Tuesday, April 27, 2021

A "no no no" meal service, at Poolside bar, St. Regis HK

This could be the first hotel that I couldn't eat well.  I tried to ask the pool attendant to put the salad dressing on the side for a quinoa on green salad.  Back and forth, he checked with the kitchen and relayed the "no" reply and asked me to choose their Caesar salad in Balsamic vinegar.  I gave him a straight answer "how could Romaine letter go with balsamic vinegar and it's still called Caesar salad?".  The menu is a bit too brief with only 10 items available and some of them aren't not suitable as a poolside casual meal, e.g. beef filet, salmon steak.  The other items are such "wagyu beef burger, spring rolls, spaghetti Bolognese...".  Supposed when the pricing is about HK$300-500 for one dish, we could have expected something more for catering to the clients' preference and yet I just asked for a salad dressing on the side.  

 

Monday, April 26, 2021

Room of a view, St. Regis HK

Lee Kum Kee has been quite eye-catching among all the other buildings, when in the room or the swimming pool, or restaurants.  I was thinking when hotel often says "Harbour view room, hillside view room...etc.".  What about Lee Kum Kee view room"?

 

Sunday, April 25, 2021

Premier Room, St. Regis HK

On their website, this Premier room is the top tier claiming 570 sq. ft. with partial sea view, vs the other rooms at 530 sq. ft.  However, as when I walked in, I couldn't find it 570 sq. ft. and the partial sea view is at the HK standard (about 10 degree sea view).  The deco. is a bit cheesy luxury.  The bed mattress is a bit too soft and bulky.  The sound proof isn't too ideal.  The hotel claimed for its services, but it's a bit too annoying when almost everyone repeated the same routine so-called services.  I have already mentioned some preferences from my booking, but none of those was noted.  I also rectified their letter for some misleading info. about the check-in procedure.  Later on, the butler asked me to show that letter to make sure if I correctly told it's misleading.  This isn't nice at all as the guest would feel as if they weren't telling the truth.  Ended up that butler said "oh, yes, the letter said so...".

 

Friday, April 23, 2021

Wanchai north, HK


 

Wednesday, April 21, 2021

Happily yours


 

Tuesday, April 20, 2021

Monday, April 19, 2021

Saturday, April 17, 2021

Friday, April 16, 2021

Wednesday, April 14, 2021

Tai Tam reservoir, HK

Thanks for this reservoir which served HK island in the old days when there wasn't a constant water supply from the mainland.

 

Monday, April 12, 2021

The passage


 

Saturday, April 10, 2021

池記,Chee Kei noodle shop, Causeway Bay, HK

Seems like those established noodle shops have become more than serving their iconic noodle.  This renowned one offers fried rice and quite a wide range of Cantonese food.  At first I doubted if their fried rice would be good; so I still ordered their noodle.  However, I had a bite of their fried rice and it's surprisingly good.  Very aromatic with nice shrimp and BBQ pork cubes.  At average, it's better than Tasty Congee.

 

Thursday, April 8, 2021

Wednesday, April 7, 2021

An interesting day at St. Stephan beach, Stanley, HK

No matter how many warning signs and boards have been placed to advise "no tent" on the beach.  However, no one cares about it, and no one dares to exercise this rule.  Perhaps this city or most people often abuse their freedom.  In this world, when a large no. of people do the same thing, unfortunately any wrongdoing can be "right".    Sadly 99% forgot the basic rule of freedom is to respect the others' freedom in the first place.  Furthermore, I was surrounded by families, with less than 1 foot distance.  Interesting that this beach wasn't that crowded as Repulse Bay.  Not sure if the music I played attracted them.  So I promptly changed my playlists to Chinese songs, and mainland Chinese songs.  What's more annoying, a lady of this family didn't know she was sitting on my sandals.  So it told how close they were settling down to mind.   I had to tell her about that in a cool tune.  I feel bad for my sandal as it suffered with some awful weight.  Then a kid of the other family opened the tent's side sip and played so many "hellos" to me and exhaled her "milky" aroma.  I told myself "ok you win".   I moved.  
Don't know why HK has had so many non-Chineses still staying here.  This beach, Deep Water Bay, Cheung Sha.....  are crowded with more than 50% of non-Chineses.  Why don't they listen to their mother countries' serious warnings about the "no freedom" of HK.   

 

Tuesday, April 6, 2021

正斗粥麵專家, (Tasty congee/noodle shop), Taikooshing, HK

Tried their congee with salty pork.  The congee base was in a chicken stock; so with the salty pork, the congee tasted a bit too heavily savoury.  The shop also served quite a wide range of dim sum and stir fried dishes.  It seems to be a full scale restaurant.  Tried their vercemilli in soup and I prefer this one to their congee.  Service was pretty good.

 

Sunday, April 4, 2021

Circles


 

Saturday, April 3, 2021

Friday, April 2, 2021

民園麵家 (Man Yuen noodle shop), Lai Yuen, D2 Mall, Kowloon, HK

Didn't expect much from this noodle shop but good that I got a surprise.  When the noodle and veggie were served on the table, a familiar aroma of beef brisket soup brought back us to kid's time.