維記咖啡粉麵

As I was in Kowloon, went to Sham Shui Po to try out this little noodle shop. Their specialties are: pork liver/beef noodle and kaya toast.

The pork liver/beef noodle was very good especially the soup that was probably used to boil the pork liver. For those who like it, it comes with that sweet taste without necessarily the innard taste the comes with the poorer versions. It also has a firm texture which is what I like in pork livers.



The kaya toast was just OK.



I have definitely had better and nothing special about it. It was quite cheap given it was Sham Shui Po but I don't remember the exact costs anymore. Definitely a place to visit when in the area.

Food: 8 (out of 10)
Ambiance: 1 (out of 10)
Service: 2 (out of 10)

2007 HK Policy Address

Just got a chance to read through the policy address of Hong Kong. As is usual in HK these days, every action by the government attracts criticism. But in this case, I find them mostly misplaced. The policy address lacks action steps in some respects but all in all, it hits on all the major issues - plans to improve infrastructure to lift employment and productivity, address pollution to make HK as a better place to live, medical support for the elderly, ..... I find the policy address refreshing since it coincides with my personal view of the opportunities and challenges that HK faces.

HK has many strengths and one of the most important is its position as a regional hub. While HK is the best base for regional executives, it is also an expensive place to live with its high cost and standards of living. This cost will be further exacerbated as the current population ages. The way forward is to make HK a better place to live and continues to attract highly paid expatriates and immigrants, i.e. highly paid finance executives and senior management of MNCs. This will be the future of HK and it looks like the Chief Executive is on the right idea.

Asia Financial Forum

Attended the Asia Financial Forum organized by the HK SAR Government this past Friday. A high level group of speakers from HK and China but the ones from other parts of the region are at best middle level. Overall, the Government should get an A- for effort and C+ for results. Despite the many prominent speakers, the conference failed as it doesn't have a coherent theme. Without a theme, speakers only spoke in general terms and there were close to no debates on the panels. It was clear to see that people were losing interest and the attendance in the afternoon has declined substantially.

PS Some of the mainland Chinese attendees are the most impolite bunch I have seen for some time. They have the audacity to carry on a mobile phone conversation while speakers are on stage speaking for 5 minutes. If you don't know how to respect the speaker, at least know how to respect yourself. Too bad HK doesn't have caning.

HK + SZ

The Bauhinia Foundation Research Centre (智經研究中心), a thinktank close to the HK Government, has recently released a research report recommending the closer integration of Hong Kong and Shenzhen to create a new "HK-SZ metropolitan". While the idea has received mixed review from newspapers' editorials, I am very supportive of the idea. There is no question in my mind that the integration of the two cities has started some years back and the proces is already underway. One only need to spend an hour at the various border crossing to realize this fact. Everyday, more than 400,000 people cross the border by land with Shenzhen. There are businessmen with factories in southern China, professionals with clients in China, housewives looking for a good bargain and even school children going to school in HK while living in SZ. There is just as vibrant a trade in goods and like it or not, this is the future of HK and SZ as the two are intricately tied together.

For HK, its economy is too small and structurally, it has no choice but to be external facing. Historically, this has mean serving Western clients but the trend has reversed and increasingly, the clients are in China. This is the only way that HK can continue to grow, remain vibrant and maintain its current standard of living.

For SZ, it is growing rapidly but it has a tough time competing with other Chinese cities. Taking financial services as an example, SZ does not have a large pool of experienced managers and it is facing a difficult time attracting talents away from Shanghai and Beijing. I have experienced first hand that good managers would rather stay in Shanghai despite promotion and a more attractive compensation package. HK can help as it has a larger pool of managerial talent and also present a more attractive place to live when combined with SZ.

Like it or not, I believe it is inevitable that HK and SZ will co-operate and integrate more closely over time since it is in their respective best interests. My key takeaway here is that HK+SZ has a bright future ahead. With a larger economic base, HK will continue to draw the more affluent segments of the population and expatriates. This will bode well for high-end property prices and I don't see a decline in that market over the long term. For mid-end properties, they will like retain a premium over SZ properties but I suspect it will be range bound as the movement of people become easier.

Here is the link to the report: http://www.bauhinia.org/publications/BFRC-HKSZ-ES-ENG.pdf

Evening at Robuchon

Last night was an enjoyable evening with friends at Robuchon a Galera in Macau. Good food, good wine and great company! What more can one ask for?

Food is excellent as usual and at HK$1,200 per head for 8 courses, quite reasonable. The wine lovers were seated at the "high rollers" table and we splurged for some really nice wines.

Started with a 2001 Ürziger Würzgarten Riesling Auslese Goldkapsel, Dr. Loosen. Lovely German Riesling with a slightly sweet taste to start off the evening. Decent acidity to balance the sweetness and best serve very chilled.

The stand outs of the evening are:
1) Crispy French frog's legs with parsley and garlic sauce. Tiny little frog's legs are fried like a mini chicken drum sticks to be picked up as a finger food. Despite a very large group, the frong's legs are crunchy and a good complement to the 1985 Montrachet, Jacques Prieur.

2) The Duck Breast and foie gras cooked in rock salt with pepper in a reduction of juice from seasonal fruits is to die for. Very small portion with a small piece of foie gras on top of a slice of duck breast. The duck carries a good amount of fat and blends perfectly with the foie gras. We paired it with a 1996 La Romanée, Domaine du Château de Vosne Romanée, Bouchard. Goes reasonably well together. The La Romanée has good bouquet but is in rapid decline after being opened for 45 minutes.

Other courses for the night: Turnip raviolis of lobster, nutmeg and rosemary flavoured with a sweet tangy vinaigrette, Green peas bouillon perfumed with mint and onion royale, Back of seabass with an essense of vegetables and basil, Lamb au jus with a salad of herbs, served with mashed potato, Chocolate ganache with prune compote, apricots, figs, orange and white chocolate ice cream.

Other wines for the night:
1989 Clos de Vougeot, Méo-Camuzet: bouquet OK but good taste of berries. Decent but expected a bit more from a 18 year Grand Cru.
1981 Château Haut-Brion: not a great year but still an Haut-Brion! This is my first one so no basis for comparison.
2000 Château Tertre-Roteboeuf (RP98): a young Bordeaux with smell of leather that tastes of fruits at the same time!
2001 Château Climens sauternes (RP100!): this is a wow! taste exploded in mouth!