a growing boy needs his lunch

let's be honest. what can be better than an italian meal with the family on a saturday night? i went to a place called pavia in hong kong (85 tak ku ling road). when you first go in, it looks a little shabby. it's a little too dim. the people are a little too loud. there aren't enough waitresses. then my dad started ordering. before i continue on to what we ordered, can i just say my dad usually orders too much for all of us. he orders for one meal and we end up taking the next day's lunch and dinner with us. yes he orders that much.

first came the garlic bread and the salad, but they weren't that worth mentioning. then came the ravioli in truffle sauce. lord and baby jesus on high, this was so good. when i say good, i mean jaw-dropping, awe-inspiring, mouth-watering good. the creaminess of the sauce is a perfect match for the ravioli, making it the best dish i had the whole night. ravioli to me is just like italian wanton. i do like me some good wanton, so i'm not complaining. i must say this is better than any ravioli i've ever had. so if you're a ravioli lover, pop in a try this place, it'll definitely give you a pleasant surprise.

tip: if you want to finish the sauce yet it feels too creamy, get an order of garlic bread. it'll soak up the excess cream and add more flavour to your bread at the same time.

then came the lobster bisque. as i've mentioned in a previous blogpost, i am a soup junkie. i love soup. any kind of soup. so my father ordered this lobster bisque for me. yet i didn't enjoy it as much as i would like to. the soup is creamy, but it is too salty. it feels like someone grabbed a pinch of salt and shoved it down my throat. i'm not a great fan of the soup and i felt like i could have enjoyed something better instead of the soup. also the soup is VERY filling. after having finished half a soup, i felt full.

also, i do not like my lobster overcooked, yet when i finished off the soup, the lobster was so overcooked, it felt crispy. maybe some of you would be a fan of a crispy lobster, but i must say i am not. for its price, i would say the lobster bisque is not worth it. you can give it a go, but i do not recommend it.

 we also had three pastas (i know, papa lee went overboard once again). a clam linguine, a spaghetti aglio olio and a classic carbonara. my favourite was the carbonara (ironic: i don't actually like cheese). the carbonara was so creamy and so full of taste, i had to have seconds. the bacon in the carbonara has been fried just enough, so it's golden brown. the other two were quite spicy. i like spices, especially chilli and spiciness (what can i say? i'm a true chinese at heart). both the clam linguine and the spaghetti aglio olio are cooked just right, making sure the pasta is in fact cooked yet not losing its texture. yet again my favourite was the carbonara. they have really nailed it with the carbonara. well i guess it's a pretty safe bet, but it's the best carbonara i've ever had.

one nice little detail pavia has done to ensure a nice and relaxing meal. michael jackson is being played in the background. talking about childhood memories, me and my mom used to listen to mj and jam to him music when i was as young as four. overall, this is a nice italian restaurant, as a lot of preparation and thought have been put into the food. the waitresses are very nice indeed, letting us enjoy ourselves to the max when we were there. 

tip: 

• reserve a table before you go, or you won't get  table.
• make sure you don't have a father who over orders. not cool.
• come with an empty stomach. 

i don't want my wheaties, give 'em to the needy

a childhood memory is that nostalgic feeling you get when you eat / drink / do because you used to do it often as a child. for me it's definitely australian dairy company. to be honest with you, it hasn't changed a single bit since i was a child. the same menu. the same waiters. the same attitude. the only thing that has changed is the price, but i guess most people can put up with that. we go so often that the waiters there recognise us and would give us a table at any time of the day. talking about vips and special treatment.

my mom and i used to come when i got ill. our doctor was two streets away, so me and my mom would always come after having been force-fed pills and medicine down my throat. then it became our sunday rituals. we went every single sunday for breakfast before church, and we loved it. alas, nothing good lasts forever. i went to the uk for high school and i could only enjoy breakfast time with my mom in the holidays. waking up in the mornings is one of the hardest tasks i have yet to master, but i don't mind sacrificing my sleeping time for mom. 

though it isn't a sunday today, mom decided it would be a good idea to go just before i depart once again. my favourite dish on the menu is the macaroni. it is the creme de la creme of macaronis and i don't think i'll ever be able to find anything as good as this. as a small eater, i usually only have this and i'm done for the rest of the morning. the good thing about this macaroni is that it isn't too tasteful, nor is it too oily. it's just right for me. if you're a person who likes very strong flavours or super oily and greasy food, i would not recommend this to you. i do understand why my mom took us here when me and my siblings got ill. if you're going to eat saltless, oilless, and seasoning-less food, why not eat something that tastes amazing on its own? just because you're ill, it doesn't mean that you have to suffer.

 the second half of the breakfast set comes with toast and the egg of your choice. you can choose scrambled or a sunny-side up. mommy usually chooses scrambled and i believe this is the british way of making scrambled eggs. just like the macaroni, there isn't too much seasonings added to the egg, but it is extremely delicious. it's creamy, without tasting too milky. the egg and the toast make a perfect combo, as they complement each other. the butter on the toast brings out the egg's flavour, whilst adding more texture to it.

i don't know if it's the breakfast that is great, or if it's how much i like going to breakfast with my mom. maybe it's both, but it would never taste the same if i haven't started going as a child, whilst holding my mom's hand, queuing for a space in the corner. 

sometime, anytime, sugar me sweet

desserts. where do i even start? in hk we had an advert for ferrero rocher that says how ferrero rocher is actually the food of the gods. i can't deny the fact that i worship desserts. every bit of sweetness is equivalent to a bit of goodness and kindness to me.

today is good friday, so my mom thought it would be appropriate for her to starve me for a day till dinner. thank lord jesus christ (in every literal sense), dinner came and we had sushi. after that we decided to go for a bit of dessert at beard papa's, a japanese chain patisserie that sells cream puffs. 

as i am the rebel of the family, i decided to not get the puff but something else. i looked around and decided to the brownie cake. i mean look at this, isn't this the most beautiful thing on earth?

tip: if you'd want to eat it on-the-go, ask for a spoon. they'll gladly give you one. it is absolutely suitable to be eaten on-the-go, as the wrapping is water-proof (how thoughtful of them).

(excuse the blurry photo)

even though i knew the insides of the cake would be runny (afterall it is called a 心太軟, which directly translates to heart too soft), i didn't expect it to be this rich and creamy. so creamy i got really full and sick after a while. all and all this is a great dessert after a long day of starvation. 

tip: if you don't have a massive sweet-tooth (like me), share it with someone (a.k.a. a fatass of a brother who has a sweet-tooth like no one else). first, it saves you money; second, you won't be overwhelmed by the chocolate-ness of the brownie cake)

until next time, stay safe humans and wear protection. i mean a bandaid you sick minded being.

a bottle of white, a bottle of red, perhaps a bottle of rosé instead

wherever there is good food, you'll find me. also where there's free stuff. i love free stuff. me and my mom went shopping for some cakes at cova the other day and they gave us a 50% off coupon for their lunch sets. so we went yesterday. 

i chose the lobster bisque and the scallop linguine. i'm a visual person and i appreciate how they've laid out my meal. i mean it is cova and cova does do things right. the lobster bisque is creamy with plenty of lobster in it. cova has put a little twist to the dish by adding a small piece of garlic bread and sun-dried tomato and sour cream.

tip: eat the garlic bread before you start the soup, it cleanses your palette, giving even more of the flavour chance to seep through when you drink it

then the scallop linguine. i would have to say i prefer the soup more than the linguine, as i am quite a soup junkie myself. the linguine is a safe choice and even though it tasted good, it wasn't too special or original. on the other hand, my mother chose the carbonara and it looked really good. if you're a big eater, you'd be delighted to know it's quite a big portion. it doesn't look much, but it's quite the stomach filler.

overall it was a good meal, but it wasn't the best italian i've had. the lobster bisque is great and maybe try the carbonara. if you're from the uk, i prefer zizzi's or jamie oliver's italian. 

do you like waffles?

time has been passing by really quickly and i have been back in hong kong for two weeks now. hong kong is a beautiful city and every time i'm here i fall more in love with it. one of the reasons has to be the food. F-O-O-D. food. 

i'm a true foodie at heart. i'm learning how to cook in my spare time and i don't mind waking up three hours earlier in the morning (i usually wake up at 7, so that would mean waking up at 4 in the morning) to go to a good place for breakfast.

i was meeting up with a friend and we wanted to go to this place, which is called the green waffle diner. it is very important for a diner or a restaurant to be situated in the right place. green waffle diner is on 35-39 graham street, central, making it really convenient for people working in  office buildings and shopping malls in the area. 

me and my friend went at 11.30 in the afternoon after we found out that little bao (another restaurant in central) is not opened until 6.30 pm, we decided to go here. only one table was occupied.

tip: if you want to get a table, go earlier. i know many would say duh, it's kinda mandatory to go early for a table at lunch. i mean go before 11.30. that would ensure you a table. or you can also make a reservation. 

we ordered a meat-lover skillet, which basically translates to bacon, steak, baked potatoes, two poached eggs, mushrooms and sausages. the diner has fully won me over with the way they've laid out the main course. the skillet isn't as hot as i thought it would be, yet still successfully retains all heat in. 

my favourite part of the whole skillet is the baked potato. it's not too oily and crispy on the outside. i used the poached egg as a sauce to moisten the potato and to give it more of a flavour. i'd say this is the best potato i've ever had. this is quite a lot, giving that i don't actually like potatoes and that i study in the uk (a.k.a. potato land).

although the skillet is mouth-watering, i would say the highlight of the whole meal is the waffle. i'm a savoury kind of a person, but the waffle was phenomenal. condensed milk waffle with strawberries. i mean c'mon. nothing in life can get better than this. 

as the diner is called "green waffle diner", the waffle does steal the spotlight from everything else. the waffle is golden brown and just big enough for two. it's soft and chewy at the same time. even though the condensed milk gives the waffle more taste and flavour, it is not too overpowering. 

all and all, i have enjoyed myself eating here. the food's nice. the atmosphere is calming and unique. the food isn't too oily or processed. one of my must-gos in hong kong. i mean what better place to be on a wednesday afternoon than eating waffles and listening to indie german music?