Tai Hing from a taiwanese blog
Siu Mei, you "either love it or love it". Yes, there isn't any typo in the last sentence, "either love it or love it". It is very hard to find meat lovers on this planet that can resist the temptation of roasted meat and Cantonese Siu Mei plays a very important part of Hong Kong people's eating lifestyle.
Crispy suckling pig rice
Even tourists know the greatness of this type of Cantonese cuisine. Have you ever heard friends from other Asian countries coming to Hong Kong to buy whole roasted geese back to their own countries? I have, my friends. It sounds insane indeed. I have always thought, "how can the siu mei keep their crispiness and tenderness after hours of flight?" I suppose they can't, but something as soggy as that, something that we never wish to try in local restaurants, is nothing when it comes to our siu mei tourist friends.
Roast goose rice
And so I am sure you know which restaurant I want to recommend, and that is my canteen -- Tai Hing.
Whenever I have time for dinner (because I mostly have little), I will allow myself to indulge in the taste of the gorgeous Tai Hing Siu Mei.
It may be expensive compared to other local restaurants, but the quality definitely proves its worth. At $45 to $50, you get fabulously fresh, roasted goose (leg) / pork / suckling pig / chicken / soya chicken (leg) with rice...
Juicy and tender meat, crispy skin goose
Original Chinese soup with no MSG...
Water squash with beans and dry octopus soup
... and an extra plate of choi sum or lettuce (not shown in the pictures). If you don't like the soup, you can also add $3 for the chilled original milk tea.
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| Chilled Original Milk Tea from Tai Hing Image from talesfromthetummy |
Expensive? You won't know until you try. In my opinions, Tai Hing's Siu Mei is the best Siu Mei I have ever tried!!!
Some of you may not agree with me, but if honesty, accessibility and comfort are also under considerations, then Tai Hing definitely earns higher points than those who cheats their customers with extra bones or heavily scales, than those who have only one branch in the entire region, than those soaking wet floors with tissue balls on the floor. Tai Hing is convenient and comfortable enough for me. There is one in Mongkok, one in Causeway Bay and there is one near where I live.
Suckling Pig rice (semi fat)
Another thing I like about Tai Hing is that they serve their customers very very well. Their (usually) bilingual staff have (generally) polite in manner, and their chefs entertains special requests made by the customers, such as more / less rice, lean /fat meat, more sauce, etc. You see, I am not too fond of fatty meat, so I always ask for lean ones. The meat is incredibly tender and succulent, only fresh meat can have such textures and taste so good!
5-star roast pork (requested lean meat)
Close up of the lean pork
Their breakfast, tea-time and evening dishes are quite nice too, some weekends I even visit Tai Hing 3 times a day (not just "Tai Hing Everyday", but every meal) but not every shop offers evening dishes, so you better check by calling up the restaurant you would like to visit.
And beware, the restaurant in Causeway Bay is small, and so is the chilled original milk tea, but pricier.
Vocabulary:
soggy -- (adj) (of things which can absorb water, especially food) unpleasantly wet and soft
pricier -- (adj) more expensive, from "pricey".
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