Hong Kong Phooey

Well, the weather hasn't fully cooperated here the past few days, lots of gray skies... but we've still managed to get out and about and try some new things.

Wednesday started off with the standard breakfast buffet at the hotel dining room. Typical breakfast fare... omelettes, toast, juice, coffee... spring rolls and beef balls??? Okay, having had spring rolls many times before, I knew what to expect, but I must say however that Beef Balls Rule! A beef ball is a fluffy white ball filled with chopped bbq beef. I think I ate about 11 of those tasty treats before I was completely and utterly stuffed.

Needless to say, breakfast was skipped as Patty and I spent a bulk of the afternoon walking around the Western Market in Sheung Wan and then visiting the different shops of Times Square in Causeway Bay.

Along the way, our stomachs were beginning to grow hungry again as we passed shop after shop of interesting food delicacies and we thought about our dinner plans at the Spring Deer for some Peking Duck.

Before heading to dinner, I made a stop in to see Sam. Sam is a famous tailor in Hong Kong... tailor to celebrities, dignitaries, and presidents, both former and current. Fortunately for me, Sam makes suits for regular everyday schmoes too. So I walked into his shop and asked him to make me a suit. He immediately took my measurements and then directed me to one of his assistants to pick out fabric. I picked out a navy blue with a slightly lighter blue stripe and was told to come back in a day for a first fitting. Stay tuned...

Okay, after my initial visit with Sam, Patty and I headed to dinner. We had made reservations the night before, having been advised by the Maitre'D that they were booked solid well into the evening. When we arrived, it was as if he had been waiting for us all day. He welcomed us and whisked us away to our table. As recommended by the Time Out Hong Kong, "There's one reason to come here: Peking Duck." And so that's exactly what we ordered, along with some spring rolls (deva vu) and some fried pork dumplings.

The waiter took our menus and placed on our table a small bowl of what looked white beans at first, and a dish of chili sauce. The beans turned out to be boiled peanuts. It was like trying to pick up a greased marble... eating boiled peanuts with chopsticks is definitely a skill.

As soon as I mastered the technique of eating those damn peanuts, a new man with a cart arrived at our table. It was something out of a strange movie... he took the barbecued duck by the neck (head still on) and raised it in the air as if presenting it as a trophy. Patty and I looked at the duck-wielding man, looked at each other, back at the man, and then he swiftly chopped off the duck's head and began slicing it up for us. Another waiter placed the accompaniments on our table: thin flour pancakes, hoisin sauce, spring onions and cucumber. Can anyone say AWESOME?!? Well, I can, and it was just that. Long story short... I ate a buttload of duck that night.