I was glad that I chose to stay in Mong Kok as it was a very happening spot days and nights. For the nights that I was in Hong Kong, I couldn't resist to shop, shop and shop in Mongkok. Part of the Fa Yuen St, starting from Dundas St to Argyle St was the popular Sport Shoes Street which open until midnight. There was also an Esprit Outlet that Malaysian will not miss out. Food wise, I was spoilt with choices. With the high population densities in Mongkok, many restaurants and franchises had started business here. It was really impossible to try all the restaurants with such a short trip.
Arriving Mong Kok in the 3pm, we started to explore Mong Kok with a map. It was not an easy task to locate this Super Spicy Fish Ball stall(勁辣魚蛋). This was a little rented stall outside a cafe. In Mong Kok, you would easily miss a cafe or stall as every little space in Mong Kok was fully utilised. Back to the Super Spicy Fish Ball, this stall was rated as Hong Kong No 1 Curry Fish Ball. One stick with 8 fish balls was sold at HK$5, which was quite reasonable. The fish ball had a tantalisingly spicy taste that one would not forget. (I am salivating now) The business could go up to 15,000 fish ball per day. For the fish dumpling, I would not say it was not good, but did not able to catch my attention compare to the fish ball.
spicy fish ball
fish dumpling
Next, we grabbed a cup of cold coconut sago drink from a nearby stall to remove the spiciness in our mouth. :p
Turning into Bute Street, there was a queue for the famous Pineapple Bun(菠蘿包) in front of Kam Wah Cafe(金華冰廳). Kim Wah Cafe had been selling this Pineapple Bun for more than 60 years. The name 'pineapple' came from the checkered top resembles the epicarp of a pineapple. A Pineapple Bun fresh from the oven was only HK$3.50. I liked the soft bun and the sugary top crust very much.
Super Spicy Fish Ball 勁辣魚蛋
G/F 174B Fa Yuen St Mongkok 旺角花园街174B号地下
P/S: Not too sure of the business hour. But noon until night should be opened.
Kam Wah Cafe 金華冰廳
G/F 47 Bute Street Mongkok 太子弼街47號地下
Tel: 2392 6830 P/S: Open for whole day
Mong Kok Map
If you are observant, then you would have noticed that we had only covered 24 of the 25 heritage sites. Read the first 24 attractions here and here.
On the last morning in Macau, we came to the last historic monument, Guia Fortress(东望洋炮台) located at Macau highest hill, Guia Hill(东望山). If you refer to the map that I had posted earlier, the nearest point to go up hill would be near Guia Hotel. Since we were staying in Pousada de Mong Ha, we walked to the cable car station and planned to take the cable car up. But the cable car was closed on Monday. Take note if you plan to take cable car as well. In the end, we took about 15 minutes to walk up to the light house.
Overlooking the entire Peninsula Macau, Guia Fortress was a historical military fort, chapel, and lighthouse complex that were constructed in the 60s. There was a lot of wall paintings in the chapel. However we were not allowed to get close or to touch the paitings. Camera flash was also prohibited.
model and the light house
After Guia Fortress, we rushed to Sam Un Loja de Canja(三元粥品專家) which was very near to the dessert place last night. Sam Un would close when the porridge is sold out or the latest at 12noon. Luckily when we reached there at 15 minutes to 12, the porridge was still available.
Few bakery shops were at the same street
Little shop in white
The signature porridge was gold and silver balls porridge(金 銀 丸 粥), aka beef balls and pork meat balls porridge. It was sold at MOP$16(small) and MOP$18(big).
The darker color was beef and lighter color was pork. There were 8 huge meat balls in one bowl.
If you asked for egg, the egg was added to the boiling hot porridge.
Once mixed, the porridge became thicker in texture. Porridge without egg was a little bland and the one with egg was more flavorful. Even tough it was not a special dish, but the meat balls were very fresh and juicy. As for the porridge, it was cooked long enough until the rice was completely disintegrated and turned into a creamy texture.
Then, we visited Yee Shun again for our last dessert in Macau. After that, we checked out the hotel and took the hotel shuttle to ferry terminal. We departed to Hong Kong.
Sam Un Loja de Canja 三元粥品專家
44 Rua da Felicidade Macau 澳門福隆下街44號地下
Tel: (853) 28573171
7am-12noon ， 7pm-12:30am
The night was still young. We decided to try our luck at Macau(Yat Yuen) Canidrome, the only greyhound racing in Asia.
Opposite Yat Yuen, there were some stone tables and chairs for the public. I noticed that Macau government had done a good job in this area. While the two macanese were playing chess, I finished my black sesame paste with glutinuos rice balls. Yum yum.
After paying MOP$10 for the admission fee, we spent quite some time understanding the game rules. The lady at the information counter was very friendly and patient. Each race started with the dog owner showing their dogs to the audience. At this time, we had to figure out which dog had the potential to win the race and placed our bet.
6 racing dogs
I bet MOP$10 on dog #4 for game #10. No photos for the racing part as we were not allowed to take photograph during the race.
Dog #1 won the race but I bet on dog #4. Sigh. Dog #1 and the owner walked proudly at the first position after the race.
We bet for 3 games and lost MOP$30. Obviously, luck was not at our side, so we decided to walk back to hotel.
Macau(Yat Yuen) Canidrome 澳门逸园赛狗
Avenida General Castelo Branco, Macau
澳門白朗古將軍大馬路
Buses: 1A, 3, 5, 7, 9, 9A, 16, 23, 25 and 34
There is always room for dessert and supper. ;)
It was drizzling but had no impact to our mood. We walked slowly to Senado Square. All the buildings look so different with the lights on. We joked and said we should repeat the heritage tour at night. But of course, we didn't do so.
Ruins of St. Paul’s at night
We also stopped by Tai Sing Kung(at St.Paul's) for chinese medicine tea.
There was a lot of good food hidden at the narrow lanes at both sides of the Avenida de Almeida Ribeiro(新马路). For the past, we only explored the Senado Square(市议厅前地) side. The Sopa De Fitas Ving Kei, Wing Kei Beef Offal, Hen You Fish Ball, Yee Shun Dairy Company, Margaret’s Portugese Tart and Pun Ving Kei Bakery are all at Senado Square side. So tonight, we decided to cover the opposite side, Leal Senado Building(民政总署大楼) area.
First, we came to this Tim Fat Vun Chai Chi(添发碗仔翅) . Vun Chai Chi was the cheaper version of shark fin soup. It boiled cheap shark fin in soup, added some mushroom, chicken meat and other ingredients, thickened it and served. Tim Fat had both possitive and negative feedbacks in the internet. I didn't want to try it(maybe I was full or maybe my instinct said it was no good), but I am very easy-going, so we entered the shop. ;) It was too bad Tim Fat said every customer must order at least one dish. So, we changed our mind and decided to take away the Vun Chai Chi.
We ordered the signature Fish Maw and Sea Cucumber Bao Chai Chi（招牌海参鱼肚煲仔翅）. I seriously think this could be skipped. For MOP$45, we couldn't have ask for more(better ingredients). But the thickened shark fin soup could have tasted better.
Not far from Tim Fat, that was this Mak Si Fu Tim Pan(麦师傅甜品）. Mak Si Fu had an extensive menu and I had a hard time deciding my dessert. At the end, I ordered walnut paste(合桃糊） and took away a box of black sesame paste with glutinious balls(汤圆黑芝麻糊).
Mak Si Fu bright sign.
Sweet dessert from MOP$10 to MOP$17.
My walnut paste at MOP$15
The funny experience with sweet paste was it didn't taste outstanding at the first spoon. Then, I started to doubt if the sweetness or the thickness was incorrect. And also questioning if I could finish it. But, one spoon after another, I finished the dessert without realising it. Yummy!
So where did I bring the black sesame paste? I will reveal in my next post. ;)
Tim Fat Vun Chai Chi 添发碗仔翅
18 Rua da Felicidade Macau 澳门新马路福隆新街18号
Tel: （835）66506211
Mak Si Fu Tim Pan 麦师傅甜品
42 Rua da Felicidade Macau 澳门新马路福隆新街42号
Tel: （835）2837 2435
3pm-2am
Since we need to drop the souvenir at the hotel, we took a luxurious evening snap. Then, we started to think of dinner. Another notable Macau food that we had not tried was bamboo noodles(竹升面). The name bamboo noodles came from the traditional technique where the noodles was pressed using a long bamboo stick. This technique was very time-consuming and many of the restaurant had stopped this practise. But Lok Kei was still maintaining the traditional way. Since the productivity was low, they only open for dinner. We took hotel shuttle to Lok Kei Congee and Noodles Shop(六記粥麵)at Sha Lei Tau(沙梨头). Mind you, do come early or prepare to wait. We reached slightly before six and the restaurant was almost full house.
Dinner order were prawn roe noodles and wantan soup set(虾子捞面及净云吞MOP$18), Fried Ying Yang(炸鸳鸯MOP$34) and Crab porridge(水蟹粥MOP$40). With the good memory at Bee Vee, we ordered the crab porridge again. The crab porridge was not bad. But we shouldn't had done that. Bee Vee had made the porridge so good that it was hard to beat.
The prawn roe noodles was really a hit. The springy bamboo noodles was mixed with soy sauce and topped with prawn roe which was fried with onion. When using a noodles maker, the pressure was at one side. But the pressure will be more even with bamboo and thus increase the stringy texture of the noodles. The noodles itself was already so smooth and springy, and the prawn roe added perfection to it.
Wantan was a surprise too. I was expecting good wantan from Hong Kong, but I didn’t know that Lok Kei served outstanding wantan with prawn roe noodles. Sometimes, we will come across wantan with thick wantan skin. For that, we can only taste the flour but not the wantan filling. You get what I mean, right? But, Lok Kei smooth and thin wantan skin would slide in your mouth! The thickness was not even the 80gram A4 paper, I would say it was about the a 70gram A4 paper. Descibing wantan paper in A4 paper, I must be crazy!
The last dish was Fried Ying Yang. There were the Fried Wantan and Fried Fish Ball in rice racker, came with two Lok Kei secret dips. When I said secret dips, that mean I had no idea what it is. The black one was like soy sauce mix and I bet the yellowish one had fermented bean curd in it. Give me a 2nd chance and I will sure find it out for you. ;) I guess the Fried Wantan was meant to eat the crispy wantan skin as the filling was very little. The Fried Wantan and the yellow dip was the best match. For the fried fish ball, it was different from Vee Bee. Vee Bee’s was pure fish ball and Lok Kei’s had other mixture in it. Both are okay.
Buses that will bring you to Lok Kei
That night, we left Lok Kei with satiated stomach and happy taste buds. This is another restaurant that I would highly recommend after Bee Vee.
Lok Kei Congee and Noodles Shop六記粥麵
沙梨头仁慕巷1号d地下 1d Travessa da Saudade, Ribeira do Patane, Macau
6pm-1am
We continue our souvenir shopping at bakery shops after Fong Kei. It was really difficult for me to stop buying as the bakery shops are seen sprouting all over Macau. Apparently, Koi Kei and Choi Heong Yuen were the two famous local bakery with branches all over Macau. Apart from these 2 shops, we also managed to locate Pun Ving Kei which is famous for its less egg coin biscuit(减蛋金钱饼）.
In the early days, Koi Kei was only a pushing cart selling crunchy peanut and ginger candy. But now it had become the must visit shop in Macau.
almond cookies demo
peanut candy demo
Egg roll demo
This photo reminds me of the seaweed meat floss egg roll(紫菜肉松凤凰卷) that I had bought. Even though I haven’t opened it yet, but I had sampled some at their shop. Macau bakeries were very generous in giving samples to customers. So, I could make sure that what I bought was what I like. By the way, the egg roll was MOP$69/box.
The star product of Koi Kei - peanut candy(花生糖) at MOP$32/pack.
The peanut candy was coated with black sesame or the white sesame. The peanut candy was surprising soft and the fragrant remained in my mouth for long. I will definitely buy this again on my next visit.
Barbequed Japan Scallops(碳烧日本元贝), was a yummy snack too but sold expensive, MOP$40.
For Choi Heong Yuen, I only grabbed their famous almond cookies.
Red package was the original almond cookies(杏仁饼) and purple package was the almond cookies with thin layer of lard filling(肉心杏仁饼) . Remember the lady that I met at Fong Kei? She was the one who recommended me the almond cookies with lard filling. Her point was the lard could increase the smoothness of the cookies texture. After trying, I would totally agree with her.
One box had about 24 individual packs, good for distribution to colleagues or friends.
The size was bigger than 50 cents coin. One box was MOP$38 for original and MOP$42 for lard filling.
Bite size almond cookies at MOP$10 also available at Choi Heong Yuen. This was not bad too. For smaller size, the ratio between the crispy outer layer and crunchy inner cookies was higher. So, it tasted more crispy and more fragrant.
I like the package. I could just leave it on the coffee table, place one in my mouth when I want to and close the lid again.
Coin biscuit was Macau special snack. The main ingredients in coin biscuit were egg, flour, sugar and butter. With Pun Ving Kei less egg recipe, it was believed that the biscuit will be more crispy and fragrant.
Pun Ving Kei 2nd generation was making fresh coin biscuit for me.
Small quatity was available at MOP$10 and above while the packaged one was MOP$46. The coin biscuit with a cup of freshly brewed coffee had become my evening tea lately. I would say it is a biscuit than butter cookies fans should not miss.
Koi Kei Bakery 鉅記餅家
Choi Heong Yuen Bakery 咀香园饼家
Pastelaria Pun Ving Kei 潘荣记 1B Ruo Do Monte Macau 澳门大炮台街1B地下1B Rua Da Palha Macau 澳门卖草地街1B地下
P/S: Pun Ving Kei was actually located between Ruo Do Monte and Rua Da Palha.
