Winter Season Hot Pot Dinner @ Hot Pot House, HK.

Epicurean Exploits - Food and Recipes
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Wednesday night was particularly chilly in HK. Good thing Ron chose his favorite Chinese Hot Pot restaurant near his new apartment: Hot Pot House (what else?) at #2543 1/F Diamond Court, 10-12 Hillwood Rd., TST, Tel. 526 100 3366 (call for reservations way ahead as it gets jam-packed most every night). Hot Pot is a typical dinner here during winter season.

I prepared to eat a lot for this, having a full breakfast at the hotel but skipping lunch. I had a light(ish) snack of wanton noodle soup and dim sum though at the Canton Deli of Harbor Plaza Mall - but just enough to stave off too much hunger.

Mich & Ron know this restaurant well, obviously, and the waitstaff as well, so they did all the ordering. First off, a set of various condiments were placed on the table (photo above) so that we may create our own dipping sauce(s).

Two kinds of cooking broth were set before us: the “special broth” (on the left half of the communal pot, flavored by many chicken feet) and the other one tasted a little like saté. Crisped fish skins are in the foreground, for dipping in either broth for 3-4 seconds at most. Behind are a bowl of a special fish batter and a basket of assorted mushrooms (enoki, large buttons, shiitake and trumpet as I recall).

Assorted balls of beef, pork, shrimp, squid, etc…

It does tend to get a bit steamy in there.

Thin slices of very tender local beef which Ron and I “cooked” in the pot for only 3-4 seconds each. Our wives cooked theirs longer.

The special fish batter was expertly mixed at table by a member of the staff (very efficient I must say and they speak English quite well too so ordering is no problem for the gwai-lo), then sliced into strips (using chopsticks) and dropped lightly in the broths where they formed soft, lightly chewy fish curls.

There were also some slices of fresh fish that Mich portioned off between the two broths. Come to think of it, it was the very first time I ever saw my sis-in-law come remotely close to cooking anything - and I’ve known her for decades.

Ron, though, is an old and practised hand in the kitchen.

A paste of fish batter was then forcefully extruded into the now very hot broths which quickly formed savory noodles.

Throughout this entire time, Ron was pouring, and we were slugging down, large bottles of Tsing Tao and, in addition, a bottle of…

2007 Domaine Weinbach Cuvée Théo Riesling - Ron’s bottle. I’m quite familiar with the Fallers’ wines and know that the fruit of this cuvée come from the enclosed vineyards surrounding the Kaysersberg manor (i.e., the Clos des Capucins). Lush, vibrantly ripe pear, lemon, citrus, hints of white peach and faint lime with a tingling minerality. Notably hefty for a non-grand cru climat, softly curvaceous, buxom and very stylish. It bears the feminine allure of most all the Weinbach wines I’ve had.

This was a wonderful winter meal. I look forward to coming back to this restaurant next January. We wound up a bit sloshed and wound our way back slowly, walking perhaps a bit unsteadily and laughing a bit too loudly in the chilly winter air.

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Yes, Serge, actually, it is quite similar, come to think of it. The only difference, in my experience anyway, is that Chinese hot pot involves a lot more ingredients.

It also reminds me very much of the Japanese chanko-nabe (the stuff sumo wrestlers eat) except that in Chinese hot pot the broth is not sopped up by noodles or rice then consumed (not that I’ve ever seen anyway). The broth is really more just for cooking rather than being consumed itself.

Best,

N

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Hi Noel, sounds like you’re enjoying your HK visit. Love that hot pot! Always delicious, so much variety, and I enjoy the steamy, convivial atmosphere. When I was working in China a couple of years ago, hot pot was our standby dinner on cold winter evenings! I don’t recall seeing anything like the fish batter noodles - possibly a regional thing, or perhaps simply not ordered by our Chinese hosts.

Question: when you visit HK, do you BYOB from home or do you buy locally? How do wine prices compare to Manila?

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That’s a great idea for an obvious food lover like you, Serge. Your summer (June?), depending on what part of June, is the start of sale season, so your lady will love it. Prices get slashed further and further as August moves in.

Eating is good all year 'round in HK, so you will love it as well. Let me know if/when you go. HK is a very short flight from Manila, so I can easily meet you there. In any event, I can always recommend restaurants and hotels for you.

Hi, Steve. I’ve been back home since last night actually. Yes, I really enjoyed that hot pot dinner. So nice with family in the cold weather.

I’ve only BYOBed in HK once - at Gaddi’s (the French/continental fine dining restaurant of the Peninsula Hotel HK) for my and several friends’ collective 40th birthday dinner (most of us in my “Alabang group” were born in May-June 1965). I organized a special menu with the chef and our corkage was HK$300/bottle (appx. US$37/bottle) - not bad at all for that type of restaurant.

In HK, I’m sure you know they got rid of their 40% duty over 2 years ago. Prices of wines in general have dropped pretty close to prices in Manila. The exception is top-end Bdx and Burgundy that are highly prized by the rich and status conscious Cantonese - these are still easily almost double US prices (I am much more familiar with US prices for top-end Bdx and Burgs than Manila prices because, as you know, I source most all of my bottles of these types from the US).

Even when HK was just considering removing its 40% duty, I predicted to my friends that prices at the top-end of Bdx and Burg would not drop because of the status they bring to the very wealthy Cantonese. I was right. They are more than willing and extremely able to pay “top dollar” - so there was no reason for retailers to drop their prices of top-end Bdx and Burgs in HK.

That said, I buy most all the wines I drink in HK in HK. I find it too much of a bother to bring my own there, and, because I tend to drink German and Alsace whites in HK because of the cuisine, buying wine there is not an issue.

Best to you both,

N