Stir-fry, dim sum and more: a bar owner’s picks for good Cantonese food flavoured with ‘wok hei’ in Hong Kong
- Billy Ha works in the hospitality business and appreciates old restaurants where you can taste the history and skills of the original chefs
- He loves Cantonese cuisine, goes to places in Sham Shui Po for traditional dishes, and names two spots in Central with prices ‘even cheaper’ than in Kowloon
Avid street-life photographer (@spoonek9) Billy Ha is a partner in two bars in Central, Hong Kong: Dio and The Social Den. He spoke to Andrew Sun.
I grew up in a tight-knit family in public housing and there was a lot of home cooking, mostly Chinese. But I spent my formative years in the US and that is where I learned to truly appreciate the dynamics of Cantonese cuisine.
I appreciate food in many forms, but especially age-old establishments that still have their original chefs in the kitchen.
Places like New Yung Kee (118 Fuk Wa St, Sham Shui Po. Tel: 2387 1051), Oi Man Sang Dai Pai Dong Restaurant (Shop B-C, 1 Shek Kip Mei Street, Sham Shui Po. Tel: 2393 9315), Man Fat Seafood Restaurant (55 Fuk Wa Street, Sham Shui Po. Tel: 2386 6118) and Ladies Street Sik Faan Co. (Shop B, 1/F, Witty Commercial Building, 1A-1L Tung Choi Street, Mong Kok. Tel: 2685 1618) all serve fresh ingredients sourced daily and lesser known traditional dishes, sometimes with their own twist.
