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So after 2 full days of gluttony and eating almost every waking second, we ended up at Hoi Tong for another 10-course meal. From the outside, the restaurant looks nothing more than a small hole-in-the-wall Chinese joint. However, there is more than meets the eye... no not like Transformers. Inside, one will find a tidy little spot and at the helm, 72-year head chef and owner Leung Yeau Tong dishing out fantastic food. Normally, one won't get a table unless with reservations.
That we had and were started off with the Fried Shrimp Balls served with sweet & sour sauce. Coated in small cubed bread crumbs, the exterior was lightly crunchy giving way to meaty whole shrimp filling. There was a firm snap and chewiness to the shrimp while the natural sweetness really came through as well as an appealing brininess. This reminded me of shrimp toast, a dish sometimes found at Cantonese Dim Sum. Continuing on appetizers, we were presented with the Da Liang Fried Milk with fried tofu nuggets. Silky and creamy accented by the lightest of chew, the fried milk was well-balanced in texture and taste. As for the tofu, it was firm with a rebound texture while sporting mild seasoning.
Onto the next course, we had the Fish Maw & Crabmeat "gung" or stach-thickened soup. Sporting the desired viscosity where the broth was silky and just thick enough to coat a spoon, there was a considerable amount of tender (while not melting) fish maw and fluffy crab. I found the flavours to be mild with only a background sweetness. A few drops of red vinegar helped livened things up. Majestically plated atop al dente egg noodles, we were treated to Double Lobsters wok-tossed in a consomme sauce. As much as this is a pretty common dish for a Chinese multi-course banquet meal, I found this one to be expertly- prepared. Exhibiting the desired meaty bounce texture, the naturally sweet lobsters were complimented by the salt in the consomme.
Glistening in a beautiful golden brown hue, the Crispy Salt-Baked Chicken was really on point. In addition to the crispy and well-rendered skin, the meat (both white and dark) was succulent and moist. Although the whole chicken was prepared with wok salt, the dish was not overly salty. Rather, it was aromatic with as smoky salt finish to go with the natural sweetness of the chicken. Okay, normally Sweet & Sour Pork doesn't make it onto meals such as these, but this dish was elevated with the use of pork cheek. As a result, the crispy pieces of meat sported a chewy rebound texture that was still succulent. With just enough sauce to coat each piece, the flavours were balanced between sweet and tangy.
From 2 straight meat dishes, we had a vegetarian one in the Shiitake Mushrooms Stuffed in Bean Curd Skin. I loved the texture of the bean curd skin as it was buttery soft while still exhibiting a soft chewiness. Inside, the mushrooms were well-seasoned with a tender chewiness. I found the sauce to be just salty enough to flavour the dish including the crunchy baby bak choy. For the second straight night, we were served a Steamed Red Tilapia. Similarly to Vivacity, this one was steamed expertly where the large fish was flaky and moist. That was quite the achievement as tilapia can often be mushy. Finishing everything off was the usual sweetened soy with ginger, green onion and cilantro.
Ending the meal off was not the typical fried rice. Rather, we had Wok-Fried Sticky Rice instead. Great, something even more filling than just fried white rice! Hey, I still ate it because the execution was on point. Each chewy grain of rice was discernible from one another and the entire dish was not overly greasy. I liked how there was just enough seasoning where the cured sausage and dried shrimp still stood out. For dessert, we were presented with the Sweet Taro & Coconut Milk Soup with tapioca pearls. This was surprisingly light and not very sweet, hence, the aromatics of the coconut milk and taro were at the forefront. This meal concluded our 2 days of gluttony exploring hidden gems and hole-in-the-wall establishments in Richmond. Hoi Tong definitely fit that criteria as it offered up beautifully executed Cantonese food in a little shop tucked away in one of the many strip malls in Richmond.
*All food and gratuities were complimentary*
The Good:
- Well-executed proteins
- Balanced flavours
- Well-portioned
The Bad:
- Not the most spacious of places
- Due to the small kitchen and staff, food comes out in waves
Still recovering from the first day of continuous eating at hole-in-the-wall gems in Richmond, we met up at Happy Date for some breakfast. The place is known as a quintessential Hong Kong-style cafe offering both traditional Chinese and Western favourites with an Asian twist. Case in point, our first combo featured Scambled Eggs, Ham and Hashbrown that came with a side of Macaroni with Beef in Soup. Yep, a greasy spoon type of breaky with some pasta in an Chinese broth (chicken) with tenderized and stir-fried beef. Fusion or confusion? No one really knows, but it is inexpensive and does the job was quite tasty.
We moved onto a more traditional Chinese day-starter in the Preserved Egg & Salted Pork Congee. This was thick while still sporting bits of soft rice. It remained as such all the way to the last spoonful. I thought it was mildly seasoned where it wasn't devoid of flavour while not salty either. There was plenty of preserved egg to go around and the shredded pork was moist and lightly salty. We also got the HK-Style Congee and it sported a background seafood flavour due to the ingredients. I found the shrimp to be overdone though. That wasn't a issue with the Shrimp Rice Noodle Roll as they had a buttery snap. The rice noodle itself was firm and chewy (but not in a bad way).
From our "breakfast", we went directly to lunch at Prata-Man. I remember visiting the place in the early 90's and even after an ownership change, the chicken remains a great value. Their specialty is Hainanese Chicken, which is essentially poached chicken (barely cooked), deboned and served with soup, chicken oil rice, sweet chili sauce and ginger & green onion condiment. We ended up with a free-range chicken (pre-order) and it featured more a robust meat that was still tender and succulent. The chicken oil rice was nutty and well-seasoned helping to bring the whole meal together. We also got a side of their wonderful Satay (in beef, chicken and pork). These were nicely charred being caramelized and smoky. Although the meat was well-done, it remained tender.
Leaving Prata-Man, we headed over to R&H Chinese Cuisine at Landsdowne Mall for a "snack". We got one each of their made-to-order Xiao Long Bao and Boiled Pork & Green Onion Dumplings. I've already had these several times and for the price and venue, these XLBs were solid. Except for a doughy top twist, the rest of the dumpling wrapper was thin sporting an appealing elasticity. Inside, the pork filling was tender and soft. Best of all, there was a considerable amount of soup that was well-balanced. Not to be outdone, the boiled dumplings featured a surprising amount of soup as well. Hence, the meat was succulent and moist with a brightness provided by the green onion. I found the dumpling skin to be just thick enough that it didn't overwhelm the meat filling.
We couldn't do a hole-in-the-wall food tour of Richmond without chowing down on the infamous Pineapple Bun with a thick slice of cold butter at Lido. These are continuously baked fresh during the day and sell out almost immediately. We had to wait 10 minutes for ours and of course they were well worth it. Soft with a light elasticity, the bun was warm and pillowy soft. The top crispy sweet layer of buttery goodness added just the right amount of texture and flavour. However, the contrasting slice of cold butter was the literal icing on the cake providing a creamy saltiness.
While still packing down the pineapple bun, we made our way to the nearby Parker Place to experience the "other" superstar Chinese BBQ in Richmond. This was a great way to compare with HK BBQ Master from the day before. We got a bit of Roast Pork and BBQ Duck to share. With a more uniformly golden hue and surface texture, the pork crackling was also crunchier and firmer than the airy chicharron-type found at HK BBQ Master. Meat was also more lean since they employ the whole hog rather than just the belly. Unlike the results of the Chinese Restaurant Awards, we found the BBQ duck to be less flavourful with softer skin than the one found at HK BBQ Master. But that is like splitting hairs as it was still very good.
Trying to avoid falling asleep due to my food coma, we waddled over to Lai Taste in the food court to sample their Fried Fish Banh Mi featuring a fbasa filet, cucumber, lettuce, cilantro and buttery mayo in a baguette. This huge sandwich coupled with a drink cost only $4.75! Value aside, this was also fantastic with a crunchy exterior giving way to flaky and moist fish. Loved the airy and crusty baguette as it didn't get in the way of the delicate fish. A few splashes of sriracha really kicked things up a notch. Suffice to say, it was hard to eat everything that was thrown at us, but we did anyways (did you expect any less???). Now we just had to wait another 3 hours until our next feed.
*All food and beverages were complimentary*
Posts
So after 2 full days of gluttony and eating almost every waking second, we ended up at Hoi Tong for another 10-course meal. From the outside, the restaurant looks nothing more than a small hole-in-the-wall Chinese joint. However, there is more than meets the eye... no not like Transformers. Inside, one will find a tidy little spot and at the helm, 72-year head chef and owner Leung Yeau Tong dishing out fantastic food. Normally, one won't get a table unless with reservations.
That we had and were started off with the Fried Shrimp Balls served with sweet & sour sauce. Coated in small cubed bread crumbs, the exterior was lightly crunchy giving way to meaty whole shrimp filling. There was a firm snap and chewiness to the shrimp while the natural sweetness really came through as well as an appealing brininess. This reminded me of shrimp toast, a dish sometimes found at Cantonese Dim Sum. Continuing on appetizers, we were presented with the Da Liang Fried Milk with fried tofu nuggets. Silky and creamy accented by the lightest of chew, the fried milk was well-balanced in texture and taste. As for the tofu, it was firm with a rebound texture while sporting mild seasoning.
Onto the next course, we had the Fish Maw & Crabmeat "gung" or stach-thickened soup. Sporting the desired viscosity where the broth was silky and just thick enough to coat a spoon, there was a considerable amount of tender (while not melting) fish maw and fluffy crab. I found the flavours to be mild with only a background sweetness. A few drops of red vinegar helped livened things up. Majestically plated atop al dente egg noodles, we were treated to Double Lobsters wok-tossed in a consomme sauce. As much as this is a pretty common dish for a Chinese multi-course banquet meal, I found this one to be expertly- prepared. Exhibiting the desired meaty bounce texture, the naturally sweet lobsters were complimented by the salt in the consomme.
Glistening in a beautiful golden brown hue, the Crispy Salt-Baked Chicken was really on point. In addition to the crispy and well-rendered skin, the meat (both white and dark) was succulent and moist. Although the whole chicken was prepared with wok salt, the dish was not overly salty. Rather, it was aromatic with as smoky salt finish to go with the natural sweetness of the chicken. Okay, normally Sweet & Sour Pork doesn't make it onto meals such as these, but this dish was elevated with the use of pork cheek. As a result, the crispy pieces of meat sported a chewy rebound texture that was still succulent. With just enough sauce to coat each piece, the flavours were balanced between sweet and tangy.
From 2 straight meat dishes, we had a vegetarian one in the Shiitake Mushrooms Stuffed in Bean Curd Skin. I loved the texture of the bean curd skin as it was buttery soft while still exhibiting a soft chewiness. Inside, the mushrooms were well-seasoned with a tender chewiness. I found the sauce to be just salty enough to flavour the dish including the crunchy baby bak choy. For the second straight night, we were served a Steamed Red Tilapia. Similarly to Vivacity, this one was steamed expertly where the large fish was flaky and moist. That was quite the achievement as tilapia can often be mushy. Finishing everything off was the usual sweetened soy with ginger, green onion and cilantro.
Ending the meal off was not the typical fried rice. Rather, we had Wok-Fried Sticky Rice instead. Great, something even more filling than just fried white rice! Hey, I still ate it because the execution was on point. Each chewy grain of rice was discernible from one another and the entire dish was not overly greasy. I liked how there was just enough seasoning where the cured sausage and dried shrimp still stood out. For dessert, we were presented with the Sweet Taro & Coconut Milk Soup with tapioca pearls. This was surprisingly light and not very sweet, hence, the aromatics of the coconut milk and taro were at the forefront. This meal concluded our 2 days of gluttony exploring hidden gems and hole-in-the-wall establishments in Richmond. Hoi Tong definitely fit that criteria as it offered up beautifully executed Cantonese food in a little shop tucked away in one of the many strip malls in Richmond.
