Well, it’s that time of year, but before we ring out the old, let’s take a quick look back and see where we’ll be going for second helpings in 2015.
Cafe Kubrick has become a regular stopping off point in Yau Ma Tei. It has a small but good selection of sandwiches and pasta dishes. The linguine with grilled vegetables was very good and we’d also recommend the smoked turkey, tomato and cheese on multigrain bread. Cafe Kubrick is also one of Hong Kong’s most interesting books shops.
Cafe Kubrick
Shop H2, Prosperous Garden,
3 Public Square Street,
Yau Ma Tei
Tel 2384 8929
Another good pasta place was Il Caffe in Central. Check out the pumpkin and anchovy ravioli, or the truffle potato gnocchi with cream truffle sauce and crispy bacon. But even if you only want a coffee, it’s worth stopping by just to enjoy the atmosphere and decor.
Il Caffe
G/F 50 Gage Street
Central
Tel 2545 6663
Another place with awesome decor is Chor Bazare in Tai Hang. Name after the Thieves Market in Mumbai, the tiny but brightly coloured restaurant has some interesting Indian bric-a-brac and curios as well intriguing curry options. There are coconutty Goan curries and spinach curries with prawns, chicken or lamb.
Chor Bazare
G/F 14 Sun Chun Street
Tai Hang
Tel 2267 9166
Curry was also on the menu at Brick Lane – Kerala chicken curry to be exact. For a classic British restaurant, we felt a Vindaloo would be more appropriate. But they tend to be very spicy and probably not too popular in Hong Kong. We’d gone there for the all-day breakfast combo which includes Yorkshire pudding, sausage, bacon, eggs, ham, salmon, beans, tomato, Portobello mushroom, toast and hash brown. Follow that with an Eton mess – meringue with ice cream, whipped cream and fresh strawberries – and you can have whole year’s worth of calories in one sitting. But it’s worth it.
Brick Lane
Shop 404 4/F Citic Tower
1 Tim Mei Avenue
Admiralty
Tel 2364 2500
A much healthier but still enjoyable brunch can be found at Maya Cafe. The set menu offers three courses and all the options are marked so that guests know whether they are vegan friendly, gluten free or raw. We really enjoyed the Greek Kebab, a skewer stacked with home-made organic tofu, zucchini, red and green peppers and onion. This was followed by ratatouille made with aubergine, peppers and tomato with organic feta cheese crumbled on top and garnished with Mediterranean herbs.
Maya Cafe
G/F 5 Moon Street
Wanchai
Tel 2529 3319
One of the most summery dishes in Asia is rojak, a Malaysian dish featuring a mix of guava, pineapple, cucumber and Chinese cruller in a shrimp paste sauce and garnished with crushed peanuts. You can get it at Cafe Malacca, and while you’re there we recommend you also try the classic Penang dish char koay teow, flat rice noodles with prawns.
Cafe Malacca
Level 2, Traders Hotel,
508 Queen’s Road West
Tel 2213 6613
For a Mexican fix, head over to Cali-Mex Taqueria where tacos, burritos and quesadillas are all available. Choose a filling from three kinds of beef, two sorts of chicken, pork, fish, shrimp, or one of the vegetarian options. The quesadilla is served on a wooden board with a dollop each of sour cream and guacamole on top. Get a side of nacho chips to go with it.
Cali-Mex Taqueria
G/F 25 Queen’s Road East
Wan Chai
Tel 2325 5505
They say everything is bigger in Texas – that also applies to the burgers at Texas Burger. The Cashel Blue is a six-ounce patty which shares a bun with lettuce, tomato, crispy bacon, pickled red onion and melted Irish Cashel Blue cheese. Needless to say, the top half of the bun is some distance away from the bottom – definitely one requiring a knife and fork.
Texas Burger
109 Electric Road
Tin Hau
Tel 2576 9011