Hong Kong offers travelers so much—stunning landscapes, top-notch public transportation, colorful markets and temples to explore—but for me, the major highlight of our week in Hong Kong was the FOOD. Perhaps it was because Vikram and I had sorely missed Asian food during our time in South America, but even under normal circumstances one must cherish (and gobble up) Hong Kong’s food.

At the heart of the food scene lies dim sum (alternate title for this post: “dim me sum-thing good”). Hong Kong is the home of dim sum—endless bamboo containers of dumplings, pork buns, vermicelli rolls, spare ribs, and more.

Tim Ho Wan was our favorite dim sum joint. It’s the cheapest Michelin-starred restaurant in the world and is now a chain restaurant throughout the city. We actually ate at a very unassuming spot in a metro station, but from my limited perspective, it seemed well-deserving of the Michelin star.

The best items were the shrimp dumplings and pork buns—seriously, I’ve never been into pork buns before but the ones here have 100% converted me into a loyal cha siu bao follower.

We also brunched at Maxim’s Palace, a dim sum restaurant situated in a grand ballroom in city hall. This was definitely fancier than Tim Ho Wan, but still reasonably priced. Here, servers walk around with large carts full of different dim sum, so there was a danger of over-ordering because it’s so easy to say yes to more. But with our group of 11, we did a pretty good job of eating everything!

Hong Kong offers even more tasty treats beyond dim sum. Our favorite overall restaurant was actually Crystal Jade. Vikram and I split an order of their famous soup dumplings, pork buns, and fried pork dumplings—plus two noodle soups to boot. The “la mian” noodles are homemade and so tender and delicate to eat. Somehow we managed to finish it all, while enjoying every bite! But be warned, the soup can be very spicy. I had a medium-spicy soup that made me sweat out of the back of my head, and Vikram’s soup was even spicier. Luckily, our beers helped to manage the intense heat.

Then of course, it’s fun to just wander the streets and find hole-in-the-wall eateries. We stumbled upon Lan Fong Yuen in the Central district while searching for breakfast. Inside were mostly locals, always a good sign for authentic and yummy food. I had instant ramen noodles with chicken wings, spicy pork cubes, and a fried egg—may sound weird for breakfast, but I loved it!

We later learned that this spot is famous for their Hong Kong-style French toast, so we returned on our last day to try that. Unfortunately, we don’t have a picture of it because we immediately devoured the buttery goodness.

For a change of pace—in terms of both location and food—we took an hour-long ferry ride to Lamma Island, known for its relaxed island vibe and its seafood restaurants. All of these restaurants display their still-live menu items in tanks outside, so we knew what we’d be eating would be very fresh. While the prices weren’t ideal for budget travelers, we don’t regret the splurge on delicious grouper, scallops, squilla, and shrimp!

Travel Notes

• If you only eat one thing, it should be the pork buns from Tim Ho Wan! The lines can be long, so we’re glad we got there early (around 9 am when they opened). We were pleasantly surprised that our large group could be seated together.
• While dim sum and Chinese food dominate the Hong Kong food scene, food lovers of any cuisine can find something great in this city.
• Ferries to Lamma Island leave from Central about once or twice an hour. We only went for dinner, but there were some walks to do around the island if you have more time.