Off the Trail: Hong Kong - Ruth's Chris Steakhouse!

Whenever I think about eating in Hong Kong, fond memories come to mind: dim sum, 30%+ off Japanese sushi, and Chinese BBQ to name a few. But I'll be honest, one thing rarely crosses my mind: steak. Now, you might wonder why anyone in my position would travel elsewhere for steak when such things as triple A beef run free in our backyard, and... I would agree with you. I love steak and Alberta beef is a beautiful thing.

That said, however, when someone invites me to try something new, I'm definitely not going to turn them down and it was one warm summer evening that I found myself standing outside Ruth's Chris - Hong Kong. Mmm!

Now a couple things make me wonder: how is steak in Hong Kong? Moreover, how does the steak compare to Canada? Is it going to be imported? (Yes, from Australia.) Local? How does the same chain, in this case, Ruth's Chris (!), compare? Well, let's go find out!

Overall Score (This blogger's opinion): 60/100

What's IN: Rib-Eye Steak

Off the Trail: Hong Kong - Cafe de Coral

When you've got a population of 7 million (hungry!) people, you have to find a way to feed them all. To that end, Hong Kong has a solution, and it's called Cafe de Coral.

Cafe de Coral, or as I fondly refer to it, CDC, I think I'm in love. Granted, for those of you not from Hong Kong, I may sound like a crazy man and at times, even I struggle with my "obsession", but CDC is honestly just "one of those things" here. It's in the airports, malls, hospitals (crazy, right?), on the streets, everywhere! Even more so than a certain fast food chain or a coffee shop in Edmonton!

On the corner of every street, think Chinese restaurant meets Henry Ford - assembly line production of food: you place your order and get a corresponding ticket, present the ticket to the call person (aptly named for the person calling out the order) on the line, he shouts out your order, and the fun begins! Over the next 4 people, each section of your order is assembled and put together on the plate before being shuffled along to the next person. At some locations, they're even putting in a "vending machine" (I BS-you-not, see below!) instead of the order person; just press a few buttons like a movie kiosk and tada, your ticket is printed and ready!

Overall Score (This blogger's opinion): 85/100

What's IN: Whatever you feel like at the time =)

Off the Trail: Hong Kong - The Verandah - Food Matters Goes For High Tea!

Another day on the trail -- figuratively, I doubt living in Hong Kong can be considered "roughin' it"-- brings me to our next destination, The Verandah! Situated in one of Hong Kong's more affluent neighbourhoods, Repulse Bay, and with a dress code no less (!!), I knew I would be in for a little treat. See, Hong Kong takes a lot after the British (you would too if you were under British rule for around 50 years! -- edit: I just realize Canada WAS under British rule, Canadian history fail), including the administration structure and such, but what brings me to The Verandah was the promise of "high tea". Now, perhaps I'm too uncouth but I've never actually had high tea -- I've always imagined it to be a bunch of old English women sitting around a table sipping from dainty tea cups and acting all aloof (to be distinguished from afternoon tea). Well that, as I was soon to find out, is more or less the idea (with some snacks along the way!)

Overall Score (This blogger's opinion): 94/100

(No Urbanspoon rating to help me here!)

What's IN: Classic Afternoon Tea

Off the Trail: Hong Kong - KFC Portugese Egg Tarts! - Item Feature & Edmonton Bonus

Fast food... mmm I'll admit, this might not exactly be the height of fine dining over here in Hong Kong BUT it definitely is tasty! (This next blog post is going to be a fair bit shorter than a full review -- just a little item feature I wanted to share!)

When I first arrived at the airport in Hong Kong, I started gathering a list of all the nooks and crannies I wanted to go to and all the little food stories I wanted to tell -- I thought I had it all figured out! Silly me, it only took a day before it became painfully obvious that I was completely naive of WHERE and WHAT to eat in HK. In my defense, the culture climate here changes at least once every few months so it's hard to stay up to date on everything! Either way, the latest and greatest item I have for you comes straight from across one ocean, a couple continents and one very popular fast-food chain:  KFC.

Off the Trail: Hong Kong

Food Matters hits Hong Kong! Beware of the crazy white-washed asian kid! Serious though, I am in Hong Kong and will be doing a couple feature posts from here: you can look forward to a Ruth's Chris Steakhouse comparison to Edmonton as well as some local spots! Stay tuned! As always, review location requests are welcome.