Guest Blog - Pert Eats His Way Through Hong Kong

Our good friend Pert and sometimes food guinea pig recently took his first trip to Hong Kong. Before he left we told him to take lots of photos and to let us know when he got back to tell us about his favorite dishes.

Pert loves food, just like us, and since both Emi and I have never been to Hong Kong we thought it would be great if he would do a guest blog post for us about his trip and he happily agreed. Here's what he had to say about a few of his favorite meals in Hong Kong.


I had the great opportunity to go to Hong Kong and Shanghai this past year. I was really looking forward to seeing the sites, shopping, and visiting friends. But my ultimate goal was to hunt down some of my all-time favorite foods. This is why I love food in Hong King and Shanghai: it's fast, cheap, and oh so delicious. If you ever get a chance to go to these two places, you have to try the following foods.

Xiao Long Bao: I choose to believe that the saying "the best things come in small packages" was coined after someone ate their first xiao long bao (or "little dragon ball"). In Hong Kong, we ate many of these steamed pork and vegetable dumplings. What makes them amazing is that they add congealed soup to the filling, which when cooked, oozes out of the xiao long bao. To savor all of the soup, it's best to eat the xiao long bao over a soup spoon to slurp later.

We also got to try a pan-fried version of the xiao long bao in Shanghai as we walked past a small shop with giant window showing about a hundred dumplings being fried in giant circular pan. How could I resist? It's pretty much the exact same idea, except the dumping wrap is a little thicker, covered with sesame seeds, and is pan-fried to add a little crunch. I'd have to say it was my favorite food of the trip.

Portuguese Egg Tarts: I've always loved egg tarts growing up, but I never realized how good they could be until I went to Asia. Egg tarts are available everywhere in Hong Kong, even at Kentucky Fried Chicken! Regular egg tarts are baked in the oven and served warm and delicious. But what I really love are Portuguese egg tarts, which we found inside of a mall in Shanghai. The difference is that the crust is a little flakier, and the top of the egg tart is slightly burnt, which adds a really nice texture and flavor. Leave me stranded on an island with nothing but Brent Barry highlights and Portuguese egg tarts and you won't hear a complaint out of me.

BBQ Pork: One thing Kyle and I always fiend for is Chinese BBQ pork AKA "Cha Siu" (how normal people say it) AKA "Char Suh" (how Kyle says it). Chinese BBQ in Seattle is good (especially King's BBQ in Chinatown), but it's in a different league when you get to Hong Kong. We stopped by this "roast restaurant" probably 4 or 5 times during our two week trip to enjoy their BBQ pork and other pig products. What made the BBQ pork in Hong Kong so much better was that the sauce was thicker and sweeter, and the crust had a little more crunch to it. It was also a lot more tender than most BBQ pork I've had - you could even say it was chopstick tender. BBQ pork - the other white, delicious, tender, juicy meat.

I tried a lot of delicious foods in Hong Kong and Shanghai, but I'd have to say the xiao long baos, Portuguese egg tarts, and BBQ pork were by far my favorite foods. If you ever get a chance to visit Hong Kong or Shanghai, you have to treat yourself to these delicious foods at least once.

- Pert