Yuki

I went to mainland China last weekend, and tipping certainly was not required or expected. It seems that the cost of workers are extremely cheap so restaurant could afford hiring lots of workers. When I went to the restuarant, there were waitress that poured tea for us, and was extremely polite. I wouldn't find that kind of service at the same cost in other countries. If you are planning to take taxi, might be a good idea to ask the local which taxi company is the best. There are some taxi drivers that will try to rip you off, if you think that the ride is taking a bit longer than usually, don't be afraid to ask the driver what he/she is doing(of course you need to know chinese). Of course, you could always leave a bit of tip behind, just don't over do it. Asking the taxi driver to keep the small amount of change is okay.

In a Hong Kong food magazine, they searched for the best congee and asked some questions. Some chef said that they wash the rice with thousand year eggs before cooking. It is believe to add more flavors to the congee..... Also, some congee contains dried bean curd.

I don't really know what you mean by traditional restuarant. Do you mean like where you sit down and someone comes to take the order? There are lots of restaurant in Hong Kong with the same or lower price than those fast food chain. But people like those fast food chain because they are often more reliable(chain don't want to ruin their names), quality food at a reasonable price, ever changing menu items, and clean. Their menu are really diverse, they have bbq meat with rice, western/chinese style breakfast, Japanese style noodles/rice, hot pot, clay pot dishes, tea time, sizzling dishes, and lots more.

The other fast food business of HK, they are the essential part of Hong Kong busy life style. Maxim, Cafe de Coral, and Fairwood are the three most popular fast food operators. My parents like Fairwood if they don't feel like cooking. One portion is big enough to be shared by two people, and you could always ask for more rice. Maxim has a variety of interesting restaurants, I like the EXP in Festival Walk. It is just weird seeing all those fast food restaurants changing their interior design, menu, and sign to upgarde.

They taste different, I know lots of people in HK could differenciate the taste between fresh and frozen chicken. But I lost that ability already.....been eating too many refrigerated/frozen chicken in Canada. I guess the breed of chicken in HK is different from Canada, they taste stronger and more lean in HK.

They just boil the white part with some water and drink it.

I can finish a huge watermelon by myself in one day. My family likes to save the rind for facial...... Also they boil the white part and say it is good for cooling the body.

Just got back from Japan a couple days ago. Never realize that holidays can be so tiring. I went to Hokkaido and Osaka during my holidays and noticed that the okonomiyaki from the same chain(Fugetsu) can be totally different. The okonomiyaki that I got in Sapporo, Hokkaido is more dough like. The one in Osaka is mostly cabbages with some egg. The menu in Sapporo is more complex, featuring Monjayaki and lots more different combinations of ingredients. Also, more people seems to be cooking the food on their own in Sapporo. In Osaka, the employees did everything from mixing the cabbages, cooking the okonomiyaki, and putting on the sauce. Also tried the takoyaki in both Osaka and Sapporo. I prefer the chain(forgot its name) originated from Tokyo because it is crispy and not too watery. The takoyaki in Osaka is more soft and it is like eating a bunch of wet dough. I didn't try every takoyaki and okonomiyaki in Hokkaido and Osaka so my judgment can be incorrect.

Don't use Jasmine, Uncle Ben, or Minute Rice. I would suggest getting some Japanese rice since they are more sticky. My mom don't add water when she is making rolls, she just press and hold them for a couple second.

My driver safety class was taught in 3 languages at once.(English, Mandarin, and Cantonese) I always assumed that people that know Cantonese would understand Mandarin and vice versa. I can not speak Mandarin but hearing is no problem.

I soak the scallops in cold water before shredding them. I don't use the soaking liquid for the steamed egg but if I am using it for rice porridge, then I will pour the liquid inside the pot.

I like to make this dish when there is nothing in the fridge. Steamed egg with shredded scallops (just pop it in the rice cooker when the bubble starts to disappear) Also shredded scallops are good in rice porridge.

It would be hard to get the traditional Man Han Banquet because it would take a couple days just to sample all of the dishes(182 dishes). If you are in China then bear claws, and monkey brains shouldn't be hard to obtain....... not sure about elephant snouts(do they even eat that?). I would assume in the modern version of Man Han Banquet they would not have endangered animals as ingredients. They have updated versions with much less complicated menus.

I grew up in Hong Kong but moved to Canada when I was 11. Since there are so many restaurants in Hong Kong, my families searched for new restaurants every week for family gathering. Although my mom had a full time job but she still went grocery shopping in the market everyday. I regret that I did not pay any attention to what I was eating......... I would just eat them without knowing the name of the ingredients and the preparation method. Most things that people would not expect their kids to like in North America(Example: organs and seafood) are common ingredients in my childhood. There are lots of ethnic food in Hong Kong so I had a chance to try some of them. We would eat more oily food at restaurants so at home my parents cook with little to no oil. There is soup, lots of green leaf vegetables, and rice/noodles every meal. Fish and tofu are the most common protein and we rarely eat beef at home. To these day, I still don't like large amount of meat, it is just sick to me. I miss all the food from Hong Kong(only 9 more days till summer, I am so happy). Also can not eat the sweet food here(donuts, cakes, cookies) because most of them are too sweet for me. Even though I live in Canada now but my family still prefer Cantonese meal. They don't like salad, large amount of cheese, frozen seafood, frozen dinner, Kraft, and lots more things . I don't think they would ever enjoy eating Canadian style food since they love the huge variety of Chinese food.

I do. But mine is Chinese -- not Japanese. Using a wok, I make a space right in the middle, and add a little oil. When the oil is hot, in goes the fork beaten egg. It immediately bubbles up around the edges and I stir it gently. When it is curdled, I mix it in with the rest of the rice and whatever. I use very little soy sauce. I like fried rice very simple -- YangChow style. Probably, that center cooking of the egg, might be difficult in a flat pan. I don't know. I know this is not the best place to ask..... but what really is YangChow style? I have been eating yang chow fried rice since I was a little kid, and it always contain small shrimp, bbq pork, eggs, and the rice is light colored.

I love Indian and Japanese food. Could eat Japanese food everyday, but please give me something other than the traditional bland cusine of some region. Indian food is reserved for the weekend because I usually get sick after eating them(Some of the food is rich and too oily). The weekend give my stomach time to rest.....

I usually cook my eggs first and take them out while they are still runny. This is because there is no space in the pan to fry the eggs when it is filled up with rice and other ingredients.

I know there are Japanese restaurant that serve fried rice, but I am not how they taste compare to the Chinese one. Wouldn't Japanese rice be sticky to stir fry? I usually make fried rice with eggs, chinese sausage or preserved fatty pork, green onion, soya sauce, salt, and sugar.

Think it might partly be due to Ma Ling Luncheon Meat from China which beat SPAM to the scene here in SE Asia. I have a can of mu lum Luncheon Meat sitting on the table. It will be sliced thin and pan fried until the outside is crispy. Spam is not good....... I don't eat them.

Ovaltine and Horlick is popular in Hong Kong style cafe, and it is usually the children that drinks them. Milo can be found too but not as popular. One way of drinking Milo 1.) Mix lots of Milo with cold milk, mix until 85% of the powder have been dissolved 2.) Enjoy your drink with half dissolved Milo (apparently licking the spoon with half dissolved Milo is the best part) Sometimes it is Milo, Hot Water, and evaporated milk or condensed milk.

Never tried them........and not intended to do so anytime soon. Are they just like pasta/rice with some kind of flavorings/sauce and all you do is add proteins into it?

I tried them and they tasted kind of like weak chocolate milk. Not enough chocolate taste in them.

I tried a pack of Banana Pocky yesterday and it is not bad. The artifical banana taste is acceptable but a bit too sweet. I WANT MY CHOCOLATE BANANA POCKY.

I like luncheon "meat" from China and there is only one good brand (I usually can't tell because there are so many fake ones out there.....) They are good for -Sichuan hot pot, slice them around 0.5cm thick and drop it in -Sliced really thin and pan fried until crispy, fry up an easy over egg on the side, put the "meat" and egg on toast -good topping for traditional Hong Kong cafe instant noodles. -chopped up into little cubes and mix in with scrambled eggs I think this is enough for now.....

Buy whole chicken and chop it up yourself. Put the breast meat and legs into ziplock bag and freeze for later use. The bones can be used for stock. Look for cheap deals (asian supermarket often have cheaper price compare to other supermarket). Also farmer's market have good products but price might not always be lower. Cook a big pot of chicken soup(with the left over chicken bones) with wintermelong or hairy melong. You can drink it plain or add noodles to it. Eat lots of carb.... they are usually cheap