Cold-Overpriced to the Max | Cali-Mex

The first time I knew about Cali-Mex was when I passed by the outlet in Central when it was still under renovation and while I finally saw the opening of another branch in Wanchai, I went there to grab a quick lunch one day.  There aren't many Mexican joints in HK, let alone good ones so I was really looking forward to giving this place a try.  The branch in Wanchai is on Queen's Road East right next to Burger King and PP3 - quite conveniently located.  Ordering's at the front, and there're seating on the second floor.

That afternoon I was craving for something light so I opted for the Baja fish taco ($98) in medium spice, which was definitely not cheap I thought.  *still reminiscing the once-upon-a-time CAD 99cent tacos at Taco Bell*  Food was ready pretty soon and I grabbed a free-seating-fast-food-style table upstairs.  The order came in 3 taco shells, although the presentation didn't look too very appealing.

In fact, the food itself didn't taste that great either.  The salsa and sour cream was cold, which of course I wasn't surprised but nothing else was even a tiny bit warm, not the taco shell, not the fish.  While there're 3 tacos in an order, which worked out to be around $33 each, there was only one small piece of fish found in each one of them, and the rest was stuffed up with veg and sour cream.

This place is not worth my second try.  I would much rather get a deluxe lunch combo at Tsui Wah WITH beverage at this price.  At least they serve their food hot.

Cali-Mex, G/F 25 Queen's Road East, Wanchai, +852 2325 3005

District:  Wanchai

Overall Rating: 2 / 5

Cost:  $100 ph


*REPOSTED on OpenRice

Didn't Have My Sweet Tooth Fix | Pantry Bread & Pastries

People are right when they say Hong Kong is very fast-paced and changes rapidly.  I left town for a mere 2 weeks and came back and saw many new shops on Queen's Road, one of them being Pantry.  I believe the Pantry in CWB has been around for some time and they are famous for their pastries and cookies.  I got off early one day and thought I'd buy home a dessert to fix my sweet tooth so I went to the new branch in Wanchai.

It's a bright and neat little bakery shop with all sorts of breads and cookies shelved on one side, all of which were welcome for sample tasting.

The other side were the cakes and apparently they do lunch sets too.

What really caught my eyes were the cute Lego block cakes ($54) which came in various colors.  The blue blueberry cheesecake sounded most safe so I bought that one home.

I took a first bite and thought...hmm, it's not the usual kinda cheesecake I had before, not the traditional style, and not even NY nor Japanese styles.  I thought the cheese texture and taste resembled ricotta cheese, not that I'm saying ricotta cheese is bad, but it's not what I was expecting for when I bought this cheesecake home.  Inside the cake, there was a layer of blueberry purée, cake and a crunch covered by the "cheese".

The cake itself looked cute and creative, perfect for photoshooting purposes, but the flavor was not fantastic.  Let's just say I didn't have my sweet tooth fix.  Likely I will give this bakery a second try, but will definitely go for the safer option of chocolate cake or cookies.


Pantry Bread & Pastries, G/F 101 Queen's Road East, Wanchai, +852 2577 3898
District:  Wanchai
Overall Rating:  3 / 5
Cost:  $54 per small cake


*REPOSTED on OpenRice

Healthy Food on a Fever Day | Gaba Concept

I called in sick one day and after visiting the doctor in CWB, I decided to grab some healthy food from Gaba on the way. To be honest, the location was a little awkward. Seated on the first floor of an old building on Lockhart Road, I had to beep the old-style intercom at the door on the ground floor for them to unlock the gate for me to go up the building, reminding me just exactly how many many years I haven’t gone up to these private venues for late-night drinking, which was THE thing 6.5 years ago when I came back to HK.

The cafe was quiet, not a surprise though on a weekday afternoon, but it was a cozy venue.   They even had my fav pink lily on each table, e-props.

I ordered the pasta du jour which was whole wheat pasta with pan-seared scallop. Scrumptious al dente spaghetti mixed with ginger, garlic and spring onion (like the dipping sauce for Chinese white cut chicken), the scallop was skillfully seared such that the inside remained raw.

I was already warned but how can a fever day go without sweets? So, I went ahead and ordered the Puffle – chocolate puff x waffle. It was a big portion and the fact that the ice-cream was home-made and sugar-free made me feel that much better. There’s always a trade-of course. The waffle was not orgasmic, probably because butter and cream and all those sorts of unhealthy ingredients were opted out of the recipe. I love the chocolate puffs and vanilla sauce though. They were very crunchy, and the dark chocolate sauce poured on top did not make the puffs too sweet.

    

Sank into Adele’s singing in the background the entire time, it was a relaxing and healthy experience at Gaba. Will definitely be back next time to try out their unique coffee selection and dessert. See the turntables? Hopefully can catch DJ in the house next time too! ;)

 

Gaba Concept, 1/F Diamond Mansion, 462-468 Lockhart Road, CWB, +852 3679 0348

Overall Rating:  4 / 5

Cost:  $200 ph - Lunch

*REPOSTED on OpenRice

I Will Be Back | Soft Creme

I've first read about Soft Creme from people's photo tag on instagram, and this ice-cream shop was so new that it wasn't even posted on OpenRice back then so I googled on it to get the address.  One day Missy Mo and I decided to go chill at Tai Hang, and Soft Creme immediately came into my mind.  We grabbed a quick bite then came here to check it out.  Probably because it was still new and not alot of people knew about it yet, there wasn't too long of a line-up.

Ice-cream numbers 1-4 were made from Hokkaido milk (uh oh, I sense radiation) and A-D used cereal milk, not really sure what that was though.  I really wanted to try the special of the month which was the Moet champagne flavor but annoying Missy Mo rejected my craving and ordered the Flamed Bacon. sad

We were watching the food experts preparing the cups behind the counter and thought that we gotta try the Australian honeycomb next time.  Meanwhile, I also kept glimpsing at the cute cashier guy while waiting for our ice-cream... ;P

They put dry ice at the bottom of the cup underneath the ice-cream to prevent it from melting too quickly since it's "soft" ice-cream and not the usual ones you take out from the Park n shop freezer.  I tried to take picture of the smokey effect (oooo, spooky) but was a tad bit late.  Anyway you get the point, I think the dry ice was just another gimmick but in terms of taste, the ice-cream was indeed very soft and was surprisingly good with the bacon bits.

I went to Tai Hang again the following weekend but this time there was a long line-up outside the shop, and I'm never a fan of queues PLUS the cute cashier wasn't there this time...I will be back.


Soft Creme, G/F 6-7 Shepherd Street, Tai Hang, +852 2370 3205
District:  Tai Hang
Overall Rating:  4 / 5
Cost:  $42 per cup

Highly Recommended Takeaway Dessert Shop | Oddies

What really caught my eye in the middle of a random local street in Wanchai was the neat and transparent decor of this little newly opened ice-cream shop. It’s not just any random local dessert shop though. Just as its name suggests, desserts being sold here are put together by odd, yet surprisingly go-well-together ingredients. Other than the usual 5 dessert being served on the regular menu, a different special flavor is served for a limited time every weekend.

Having reached my early thirties, my risk aversion suggested that I opt for the low-fat gelato on matcha panna cotta, fresh mango, sesame crumble and caramelized almond meringue, finished with an edible pansy flower and butterfly waffle, named “Oddies Garden,” at a price of $49. I’m never a big fan of paying for overpriced take-away dessert but this Oddies Garden was surely worth its money. Cute presentation similar to those served in Ms B yet half the price, this cup of scrumptious dessert was a piece of art standalone with the detailed edible butterfly and carefully layered goodies.

The gelato was very very smooth and reminded me of the ones I had in Florence many years ago, although they did melt quickly in this summer heat so I really had to nibble against the clock. Sweetness of the matcha panna cotta was adjusted just right which went extremely well with the exotic taste of the fresh mango. The pansy flower and butterfly waffle were better off left alone as visual art appreciation though, unless you are really feeling extremely hungry that day.

Pretty edible pansy flower and butterfly waffle

I never understand why there’re always long line-ups for the small scoop of overpriced $44 gimmick ice-cream at Lab Made in Tai Hang, while a hearty good quality dessert at Oddies is sold for only 5 bucks more and yet, it’s almost always empty whenever I passed by this hidden gem. Oddies is definitely one of my top picks, and let’s hope that I won't gain another 10 pounds from my bi-weekly visits…!


Oddies, G/F 149 Wanchai Road, Wanchai, +852 9155 5185
Distict:  Wanchai
Overall Rating:  4.5 / 5
Cost:  $50 per cup

*REPOSTED on OpenRice

Having Street Food In Style | Mr. Bing (老金煎餅)

Before heading to class my friend and I decided to grab something light so we went to Mr Bing. When we got there my friend was shocked and immediately said this was basically what I was eating off a hawker at some random street in Shenzhen some months back (yes, I basically eat ANYTHING, my friend of course was just watching me eat then) except this was served with pretty packaging and under a rooftop and all. So, we ordered the two signature bing's and a marinated cucumber side to share. The Mandarin speaking lady who was cooking our bing asked wo-men-yao-bu-yao-la but we said bu-yao since my friend was not a big fan of spicy food. Both the peking duck bing and the sesame chicken bing were served fresh and moist and piping hot. Both were good but I prefer the peking duck bing more because the sweetness in the hoi sin sauce really brought out the flavor of the meat. I'm not a big fan of carbs, and I like how the bing wasn't made too thick to overstuff my little tummy.

The sesame oil and vinegar formed the main flavoring in the crunchy marinated cucumber.

And lastly, a fridge to help yourself to the pop and pre-packed cold drinks.

Venue:  Mr. Bing

District:  Central

Must-try:  Peking duck bing

Overall Rating:  3.5 / 5

Cost:  $55 ph - Lunch

Address:  LG & G/F, 83 Wellington Street, Central

Link:  http://mr-bing.com/

*REPOSTED on OpenRice