Hong Kong - November with 2 kids

Skip Kau Kee. It’s simply not worth the time and effort the merely decent quality of the brisket. On the other hand, Sing Heung Yue is more for the cultural experience of dining at a dai pai dong and not the food since it’s simply doctored canned food.

Add in the following:

  • Mui Kee Congee in Mong Kok (congee with fish belly)
  • Mammy Pancake in Tsim Sha Tsui (egg waffle)
  • The Chairman in Central (Get the tasting menu that includes Steamed Fresh Flowery Crab with Aged ShaoXing)
  • Fei Jie in Mong Kok (Get their highlight innards combination for $108 HKD and you get to skip the line if you do)
  • Kai Kai Dessert in Jordan (Classic Chinese desserts)

It’s really not worth the visit unless you’re in it for the scenery. All the street food I had there were just okay at best.

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Thanks I added in a few of these recommendations. Still not sure if we are going to spend the money on one of the higher end Michelin starred Cantonese or dim sum places since we’ll have 2 kids with us.

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HK and Macau Michelin starred eateries are quite casual in contrast to the states. I was able to dine at 4 of the 3 star restaurants wearing jeans.

Good to know. Getting my kids to wear long pants is hard enough. If the dining room was like EMP or TFL I would feel uncomfortable bringing my kids there. Maybe we’ll add 1 nice dinner to the itinerary.

If we do is the Chairman the one?

I’m hesitant to say any restaurant can be the one, but The Chairman is great and you can wear anything going there.

I really liked Tin Lung Heen too given the quality of the food and a spectacular view.

This made me laugh for some reason. I know its an honest mistake.

10%20PM

#veganbeef

I don’t have a lot more to contribute to the already helpful info you got above, but had a few comments.

I went to Fook Lam Moon (dinner) on my last trip to HK, and Lei Garden (dim sum) on a previous trip, and neither were that memorable to me. Fook Lam Moon is supposed to be where the tycoons (e.g., Li Ka Shing) hang out, so I met up with a friend there just to check it out :slight_smile: But if you were willing to go to places like that, I don’t see why you wouldn’t be able to go to a 2 star - as @moonboy403 mentioned, they’re all pretty casual. My personal rec is Sun Tung Lok - I went to the one in TST twice (dinner and dim sum), and it was tied with Lung King Heen for the best dim sum I’ve ever had (and the two were miles above anything else I’ve had).

Btw, just out of curiousity, I googled LKH’s dress code, and it’s below:

"Lung King Heen is delighted to welcome families with children aged three and above.

Dress code is smart casual for male guests aged 6 or above. Covered shoes, long pants and sleeved shirts are required for gentlemen."

Also a fan of Mui Kee for the congee - the place is quite a hoot! There are old schoolers eating there with their pet birds (carrying the cages in toe!).

I also liked going to Lan Fong Yuen in Lan Kwai Fong for their milk tea (and their toast) but given that the others didn’t suggest it above, I’m assuming it’s because they thought it was too touristy and not worth the hassle.

Lastly (DISCLAIMER - one of the owners is a friend of mine from our NYC days, so take the following suggestion with 50 grains of salt) - if you’re in the Mong Kok / TST area, I would suggest TAP Ale room. They serve casual western food (so should be palatable to the young ones) but they also have a bunch of microbrews, including Young Master Ales, which is my friend’s brewery, but I also understand he’s gotten lots of third party praise! Only suggesting this because you seem to have an interest in craft beers based on your other posts, and Young Master Ales has some interesting (Asian) flavor combinations in addition to the usual ones.

Some encouragement to go to Sun Tung Lok :slight_smile:

The toast at Lan Fong Yuen

Mui Kee (the congee looks like congee :slightly_smiling_face:

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Thanks for this info HK seems much more relaxed that I was expecting.

Looks very good. I will keep a couple of options and probably pick one based on availability and convenience of where we are that day.

Nice. This was on my list because of your reasons exactly. Good craft beer and Western food. I think I picked up on this place from @MyAnnoyingOpinions. Will definitely try the Young Master Ales. Love the Asian influenced styles.

keep in mind that the smaller noodle shops might be very hectic with kids. tables are small, you are expected to share them with strangers, and you’re expected to not dawdle at all. i did see some kids at a few places but mak an kee at weekday lunch or kau kee at peak dinner hours may be a challenge–i don’t know that i would do it with my 10 and 8 year olds. i did not find any appreciable difference between mak an kee and mak’s noodle, but i think the latter will be easier with small kids.

here are all my hong kong reviews for reference.

oh, i ate congee for breakfast five days in a row at law fu kee, right opposite the tai cheong bakery in central. go to the latter right after 9 am for fresh out of the oven egg tarts.

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Hi @js76wisco, I didn’t really chime in on this thread as I don’t visit HK as frequently as I’d like and when I do, I have a few local foodie friends that take care of dining options.

I think you have great coverage from everyone who has replied. There is one place I didn’t see mentioned - visit to the seafood heaven of Sai Kung or an alternative closer to the city is Lei Yue Mun. It’s a pick your seafood type of place, the kids will get a kick out of it and the variety of seafood is amazing. An additional suggestion is to check out a Typhoon harbor crab specialist, they use the super sweet mangrove mud crabs which I think are far superior to Dungeness crabs. Seek out hairy crabs, I think they should be in season in Nov. Perhaps some Shunde cuisine. Capital Cafe in Wan Chai is a good “cha chaan tang” local breakfast option close to Central. Just a warning its a locals joint aka one with rather curt service.

+1, the local no-frills joints want to turn as many tables as possible to cover the exorbitant rents, so limit lingering post dining.

2 place I definitely want to hit next time I’m in HK - Chairman for the crab and Belon for the super precise traditional french plates. I’ve enjoyed reading the exploits of this recent transplant

Let me know if you are seeking something specific and I’ll see if I have any suggestions. You’ll be fine dining with the kids, Asian families tend to drag their kids along everywhere they go.
Have fun, I love dining in HK.

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Thanks this looks fun. Wasn’t planning on going towards that area but I think my kids would enjoy picking out their own seafood.

I’ll also check out Tiny Urban Kitchen.

I asked my friend at work whose parents live in HK for recommendations. She visits pretty much yearly. She doesn’t even know the names of the places they go to. They’ve been going to the same places for so long it’s hard wired into their brains - they just know what streets and alleys to go down. Sounds like you have a similar “problem”.

Beware of those recs. Unless these locals are foodies that are willing to travel and will seek places out, their recs will typically only involve local neighborhood joints that they like but aren’t travel worthy places.

good point
I’ll stick with my FTC recommendations unless I can properly vet these parents

i would also say not to worry too much. it is hard to eat badly in hong kong.

and check open rice. probably a better guide than ftc (no offense to anyone who has been to hong kong more often than me).

Alas my parent’s have fallen into this category, convenience trumps quality as they’ve gotten older.

Ha! If you ask my mom, Garden Cafe in Alhambra and Capitol Seafood in MP are the best restaurants in LA. #Providencedidn’tmakehercut #Seaharbourandeliteareshit

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Very slow hard site to navigate. But definitely looking around. Good to see a lot of pictures and menu prices.