囍宴 Xi Yan

In a business district like Taikoo, it's not very easy to find places that are open till late at night. Th Other Dude and I were booted out of a couple of places at about 1030 at night, but we managed to stumble upon 囍宴. They're open till 11 at night, but they let us stay past their closing time. Such nice folks!

We really just wanted dessert, but 囍宴 has a full menu that actually looks pretty good. The menu seems mostly composed of milder Sichuan and Shanghainese dishes.

Anyway, after some deliberation, I decided to break out of my comfort zone and get lychee ice cream in osmanthus wine. This is a risky choice for me because I don't really like ice cream, and I'm terribly lactose intolerant. But the wine part sold it for me.

It was quite good, the wine was a really nice touch. I think if I liked ice cream, I would have really enjoyed this.

The OD got the Japanese sesame and sago combination, which came with a syrup. She offered to let me take an action shot.

Me: It's like syrup bukake.
OD: Thanks for ruining my dessert.
Me: Huh? Why?

I think I might try that next time. I also want to try the Okinawa black sugar Japanese dumplings treat. I actually wanted to eat a durian dessert, but it's not in season right now, tsk. DURIANS ARE ALWAYS GOOD TO EAT ANY TIME.

I wouldn't go so far as to say that 囍宴 is cheap. The desserts were about HKD30 to HKD 50, and the main dishes are from HKD50 to HKD100. But it is affordable enough.

囍宴 is Shop G505&508, Ning On Mansion at stage V in Taikoo. It's just around the corner from Island East. You can call them for directions at 2380 0919.

Bafang Dumpling

I know you can't say the same for other cities, but food courts in Hong Kong are actually places where you can find some really good food. For example, the CitySuper food courts are home to really delicious and cheap eateries, such as Curry in a Hurry. I think Chinese people just love food courts because it's just like eating at a cooked food market, except with airconditioning.

Anyway, I met up with the Other Dude at the food court in Cityplaza, which is called Food Republic. She swears by a fried dumpling place there called Bafang Dumpling. Unfortunately, I wasn't really hungry at the time, so I didn't sample any dumplings, but that place did smell very good.

Jesus Christ, that dude is so tall. Kids nowadays are giants, I tell you. It's a bit disheartening to take pictures of food places with the staff because half the time, they look really disgruntled to be there. I've only ever worked retail and not in F&B, but I totally understand.

The OD's dumplings. That sounds kind of sexy, doesn't it? Anyway, Food Republic was quite full even though it was already late, which is a good sign. To get there, get out at Taikoo MTR Station at Exit D and head over to Cityplaza One. From there, just take the escalators up to the 2nd floor. Food Republic is across from H&M.

East Hotel, Taikoo Shing

My friend, the Other Dude, is in town to review a couple of hotels, so I thought it would be a good chance to have a couple of hotel-related entries. She's not staying at cheap places, though, so be warned.

Incidentally, we met up on Valentine's Day, and the funny thing is that we always seem to be each other's lesbian date. This time around, we even have matching bangs, although she's rocking the eyebrow-length and mine is still Bettie Page-length.

The first hotel she's staying at is East Hotel over in Taikoo Shing. I was a bit puzzled at first because it's weird to have a hotel in that location (it's mostly office buildings and residences), but looking at East's Web site, they promote themselves as a business hotel, so I guess it makes sense.

It's very nice, but it still kind of feels like an office building on the inside. The Other Dude -- from now on, I'm going to abbreviate to OD, a pair of letters that unfortunately, I'm quite familiar with -- noted that the staff, like the concierge and the door guy, look just like guests, wearing suits with Converse trainers. I was itching to photograph, but decided not to invade anyone's privacy.

I completely forgot to photograph the door to the OD's room. It's sort of "embedded" into the walls, making it look seamless. The OD had to grope around a bit to find it (yes, you know you did, dude) because she forgot where it was.

The room was small but quite well done in a low-key and tasteful way.

It's very conducive to working, though, rather than relaxing during a holiday, which I guess is the point. Can't you just imagine being in your bathrobe with the television turned on to Al Jazeera and working on a report at that desk? And then your breakfast arrives, brought in by a really hot bellboy, and then you say, "Do I get any additional service with my tip, Takeshi?" and then he unbuttons his shirt and then...oh, is it time for another painkiller already?

For some reason, the OD wanted me to photograph the safe. What are you trying to tell me??

Minibar. I like that curvy kettle. You can brew a nice cup of tea after the hot bellboy who delivers your room service leaves the next morning.

That isn't a very well-stocked minibar, though. I guess it gives you a good excuse to order room service and the hot bell...why yes, I've taken a painkiller already.

Shower stall. I'm struggling very hard not to say anything about room service.

Vanity and sink area. The OD and I just flung our stuff on it, so it looks lived in already.

Door to the toilet. I was going to ask the OD to go inside so we could find out if you can see when people are pooing inside, but meh. Lazy.

Fancy lift lobby.

Anyway, East Hotel is right outside the Taikoo MTR Station, across the street from the Cityplaza Mall.