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Home » City specials » Hangzhou

Sample fare at Hong Kong-style tea restaurants

By Wu Huixin | September 5, 2013, Thursday | Print Edition

Tea houses are places of relaxation and fun while chatting with friends and having a bite to eat in China. The traditional ones in China’s mainland feature Chinese architectural characteristics such as up-turned eaves, carved beams and painted rafters, and serve Chinese dim sum, including dumplings, steamed stuffed buns, porridge and mellow tea.

But the tea houses in Hong Kong differ from traditional mainland tea houses. They are a combination of Chinese tea house and Western cafe. People often call them Hong Kong-style cafes or tea restaurants.

In recent years, with the spread of popular Hong Kong TV series, mainland residents have gotten to know the tea restaurant culture of this special administrative region. Hong Kongers gather there at lunchtime or at teatime, having a satisfying meal and chatting with friends.

The delicacies offered by Hong Kong tea restaurants generally are comprised of two parts — Chinese snacks such as Cantonese dim sum and traditional noodles and desserts, and Western cuisine, such as sandwiches, salad, coffee and macaroni.  

Tea restaurants always have set meals. The breakfast set meal usually is made up of tea, an omelet, buns and a sandwich. The lunch and dinner set meals are similar but add perhaps some roast pork and fruit.

As a kind of grassroots eatery, the Hong Kong-style cafe is noted for its convenience and low cost. A set meal including beverage, staple and fruit is only around 30 to 40 yuan (US$4.90-6.50). Service usually is fast.

This type of tea restaurant is seen more and more in the Chinese mainland, including Hangzhou. Shanghai Daily has picked some classical dishes from Hong Kong-style cafes that you can enjoy in Hangzhou’s tea restaurants.

Pineapple buns

Pineapple buns, also known as rocky buns with butter, are a common food in Hong Kong tea restaurants. The name comes from its checkered top, resembling the outside of a pineapple. The bun consists of sugar, eggs, flour and lard and its top is crunchy and sweet.

The bread dough underneath is soft and fragrant. The bun is brought hot from the oven to the diner’s table, and served halved with a large slab of chilled butter between the halves.

The butter quickly melts into the hot bread. Biting into the bun fills a diner’s mouth with rich flavors and aroma.

Where to get:

• Charme Restaurant

Address: 2/F, D Pavilion, Hangzhou Tower, No. 1, Wulin Square

Tel: (0571) 8789-9245

 

• Ling Long Town

Address: 198 Nanshan Rd

Tel: (0571) 8702-5558

Hong Kong-style milk tea

Milk tea is a must-have in Hong Kongers’ daily lives, typically served as part of the afternoon tea. It enjoys nearly the same ubiquitous status that coffee holds in the West.

Hong Kong-style milk tea is made of a blend of Ceylon tea, milk and sugar, with the last ingredient added by the customers themselves except in the case of take-out. Sometimes vendors use evaporated milk instead of milk and sugar to give the tea a richer mouthfeel.

Hong Kong-style milk tea became a habit during British colonial rule over Hong Kong (1841-1997). Though the British learned to drink tea from the Chinese, they altered the plain tea by adding milk and sugar. This way to drink tea quickly became popular around the city.

During the brewing of Hong Kong-style milk tea, a cloth bag is used to filter the tea leaves. It is considered to make the tea smoother. The shape of the bag resembles a silk stocking, giving the Hong Kong-style milk tea a nickname of “silk stocking” milk tea. 

Where to get:

• Xi Wang Tea Restaurant

Address: 6 Hubin Rd

Tel: (0571) 8791-1798

 

• Jia Le Tea Restaurant

Address: 18 Wantang Rd

Tel: (0571) 8720-9188

Cha shao

Cha shao, meaning “pork skewered with long forks” in Chinese, is a kind of barbecued pork in Cantonese cuisine.

The pork is seasoned with a mixture of honey, five-spice powder (a Chinese seasoning mix), red fermented bean curd (preserved tofu), dark soy sauce, hoisin sauce (a dipping sauce and glaze used in Chinese cooking) and rice wine.

After roasting over a fire, the exterior layer of the meat turns dark red. Sometimes the chef uses malt sugar to give cha shao an aromatic taste.

In Hong Kong tea restaurants, cha shao is consumed with rice, buns or noodles. It also may be served as a main dish at feasts. 

Where to get:

• New Taste Tea Restaurant

Address: 285 Fengqi Rd

Tel: (0571) 8671-5261

 

• Ge Zai Huang Tea Restaurant

Address: 6 Baifu Rd

Tel: (0571) 8848-3436

 

Hangzhou


 

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