Siam 28 - Authentic Thai Food done Heartfully from the Thai-Chinese Lady Owner

 I love Thai Food so much,  much like I love Vietnamese food and beyond.  As I mentioned previously some Thai dishes are actually based on Chinese Chiu Chow home recipes,  when tracing back on history with the migrants,  and its influence is certainly felt either way – you can actually find many traditional Chiu Chow dishes in Thai Cuisine these days,  sometimes more than in Chiu Chow cuisine itself.   Here Owner Gigi also runs Torimen,  Bicho upstairs and Banker Bar.   She also used to live in Japan,  so that explains her special passion for Japanese food too.

 

 

Deep Fried Morning Glory or Water Spinach -
Dipped into 1 of the 5 home made sauces here..  9/10

 

 

 

The 5 different Sauces -
Plenty of Choices,  which one will the Little HKE pick today?

 

 

Fried Son-in-Law Quail Eggs -
Legend has it that this was created to either please the aunty,  or served as a warning to the son-in-law and if you don’t treat my daughter right expect to have your balls fried haha..   Coated with a tamarind sauce outside and served in a Bird’s Nest.   ~ 9/10

 

 

Seared Salmon with Lemongrass Relish,  Fried Rice – $118
Fragrantly done,  I actually quite like this recipe.   It has rice,  salad,  fish and it was balanced overall even for a Carb lover.  I don’t normally love Salmon but this recipe was very fragrant  ~ 9/10

 

 

Pad Tua Fak Yao Kapi – Green Beans with Shrimps Paste
Part of the Lunch Course.   Pretty delicious as expected and somehow this reminds me of Chinese or Malaysian cuisine…  8/10

 

Having a Coconut Juice - 
For Causeway Bay,  this was quite regional Thai food

 

 

 

Loving the Green Plates -

 

 

Roselle Flower Tea -

 

 

 

Pad Thai with Shrimps -
Served with eggs.  The dry rice noodles are still chewy and the sauce was predominantly Tamarind sauce based,  rather than Tomato Ketchup as usually experienced elsewhere.   Apparently all the sauces are made in-house here from scratch,  which really makes or breaks a Thai style restaurant…  This was addictive stuff.   ~ 9/10

 

 

Mango with Fried Sticky Rice -
The Fried sticky rice cakes are a Signature here,  normally they are just steamed!  The Mango was interesting as it was quite sour,  which suits me.  But from an Objective viewpoint,  it was probably too sour for everybody else expecting it to be ripe sweet.   I just like sour food

 

 

 

 

Price:   HKD $118 to $200 Per Person
Food:   ♕♕♕♕ 1/2 to ♕♕♕♕♕

Address:  銅鑼灣軒尼詩道525號澳門逸園中心28樓
525 Hennesy Road,  Causway Bay,  Macau Centre 28/F
Ph: 3421 0472

Eco Expo Asia 2015 - HKTDC, International Trade Fair on Environmental Protection, 28th to 31st Oct

 HKTDC is currently holding the 10th Anniversary Eco Expo Asia 2015 -  the Asia World Expo venue side near the HK International Airport,  which has attracted exhibitors ranging from Hardware to Building Materials,   Lighting and Electric Cars and Buses.   It will open from 28th to 31st October 2015,  more details are available here:   http://www.hktdc.com/fair/ecoexpoasia-en/s/2989-General_Information/Eco-Expo-Asia-International-Trade-Fair-on-Environmental-Protection/Fair-Details.html#sthash.lYYzQtd6.dpuf

 

 

Asia World Expo -
On the Airport Train line,  it is just one station away from HK International Airport.
Alternatively just take a Taxi

 

 

Its mainly Eco Sustainable Building Materials,  Outdoor Lighting and other Environmental Technologies Here,    Plus the Electric Cars and Buses -
At this Asia Expo venue.  The Wanchai Exhibition and Convention Centre side concentrates more on the Lighting side this year in 2015.

 

 

Nissan LEAF – a Zero emission Battery Electric Car with 88KW Motor and around 160Km Range
Apparently thanks to the likes of Tesla too,  Electric Cars are really taking off.  There are currently 11 Quick Charge stations in HK,  where a full battery charge can be attained in just 30 minutes.  There are lots more Medium Charge stations in HK,  where charging takes between 3-4 hours whilst you go shopping or stay in a Hotel.







Nissan LEAF Gear Control -  There is a D and B Drive mode.
If you have already driven or test drove Electric Cars before,  you might notice that operating on the maximum Battery Regenerative Mode  (B Mode here),  will automatically engine brake when letting go of the accelerator,  as this action saves and generates power much like in Hybrid Cars during braking.   As a Safety Feature,  most Electric Cars under Regenerative Mode turns on the Braking Lights automatically if you are not on the gas already. 

 
Zippy Motor for a Battery Car -
Although without an actual combustion engine,  Electric Cars on average are nominally heavier than a Petrol Car due to the Battery Packs.  However using an Electric Motor instead of a Fuel Engine with a full Drive Train,  much higher efficiency is achieved with little energy wasted.  So a 88KW Electric Motor usually has better instant torque,  throttle response and actual power transferred to the wheels.  It really is the way to go for the Future plus it has Zero Emission of waste gas.  

 

 

Me Behind the Nissan LEAF Wheel -
Will also try out 2 other Car models below to compare

 

 

The Nissan e-NV200 – a 7 Seater
The Electric Motor spec is the same as the LEAF above.   The suspension and other set ups are however different.   Obviously due to the heavier weight this will be less racy,  but then it is higher up the ground and more comfortable for the family.

This Nissan e-NV200 is apparently quite Popular with locals living in HK’s New Territories -
Since living on larger housing estates mean they have spare garage space to Charge Batteries and it is for getting around local areas,  to schools and for shopping daily.  

 

The Green Electric Bus has a mileage of around 300km -
This was on the news these few days too,  you can visit and see for yourself at the Eco Expo Asia.  Hopefully this will be running soon in early 2016 is the plan for HK.

 

 

 

Some Animal Products also available -
Apparently they are natural organic and helps animals to digest..








New Eco Fish Tanks -
These are interesting because they are based on Nitrogen Cycles.  You grow Plants on the top level,  and feed your fishes in the tanks below as normal.   The Natural Cleaning and filtering cycle means,  it will grow both plants above and fishes or lobsters below without much maintenance.   If you have kept gold fish or tropical fishes at home before, you will notice how each Water Change can be a hassle and the chemical changes can hazardly affect the fish’s health.   This natural technology fixes most of those imbalance problems..

 

 

This Company does Air Purifying, 
The machine is installed at Hospital Entrances,  where it can clean your shoes before Entering and minimizing Contamination of hospital rooms.  Quite Useful in other situations too..

 

 

A MedAir Air Purifier using Metal Ionizers -  no Paper Filters required
Operating with a Static Electricity voltage that is lower than Body generated Static Electricity when pulling off your wool jumper in Winter, this is quite safe even for Children.

 

Interesting new Tungsten Lamps -
Generating less heat than before,  but maintaining the same nostalgic feeling..

 

 

Final Electric Car Test Today – a Volkswagen eGolf also with 88KW Power
The base weight is around 1600Kg and comprised of 264 different Battery Packs.  This is Sportier than I thought,  its quite adept at over taking with instant response,  again thanks to the Electric Motor with hardly any energy loss through the Engine & Drive Train mechanicals.   

 

 

This Logo flips open for the Reverse Camera during Parking -
Such a cool idea.  It also 2ndly acts as the Boot Release Handle. 
Lets hope this VW really is achieving Zero Emission. 








Feels just like an Ordinary Petrol Car -
But overall they are much quieter and throttle response is quite instant. 
I wonder if Electric Battery Cars will 1 day replace all petrol and diesel vehicles 1 day in the near future,  as this Technology really is flying these 2 years…  and Government Incentives means you pay less Taxes and also receive higher Resale Values for Electric Cars nowadays.  Even hotels like L’Hotel branches in Hong Kong and Shopping Centres are catching on this technology and providing Charging Stations for customers and it is certainly worth monitoring to understand the trend.

Eco Expo Asia 2015 – Date from 28th to 31st October

Address:   AsiaWorld-Expo
Hong Kong International Airport
Lantau, Hong Kong, China

General Enquiries
Tel: (852) 3606 8828
Fax: (852) 3606 8889
Email: info@asiaworld-expo.com

Schnee - German Restaurant done Right

 There are very few exceptional circumstances which excites me nowadays.  Apparently I have been labelled as arrogant,  ok they have a point.   I lost interest in food for a long time,  but to be fair when we visited Schnee,  I was mighty impressed for once.  The food execution was just as I remembered from Germany.   And this is coming from a small shop in Shau Kei Wan,  which is a foodie’s paradise if you ask me.

 

 

A Couple of Draft Beers available -
Wouldn’t be extensive as in Germany but this will do.

Some Wine and Beer -
My mother wanted to share both.  I said no,  it’s all hers,  since I am on detox.

 

The Bretzel or Pretzel was superb -
It had the right aromas and texture.  Can’t believe this is in Hong Kong.

 

 

Crispy Pork Knuckle with Sauerkraut Cabbage,  Roasted Potatoes -
Mightily executed.  The skin was crispy and the meat moist,  most importantly even the potatoes were crispy dry,  none of the soggy crap you receive daily.  Very impressed and although some pork knuckles are the boiled type,  I guess Hong Kong customers expect the crispy type somehow.  ~ 9/10

 

Porcini Triangoloni Pasta -
I couldn’t decide between the more German Maultasche dumpling or this more Italian influenced dish.  Ultimately we settled on this and it was excellent and full of Porcini mushrooms taste,  even when behind the tomato based sauce.  ~ 10/10

 

Price:   HKD $350 for Two
Food:   ♕♕♕♕ 1/2 to ♕♕♕♕♕

Address:  筲箕灣東大街28-40A東興大廈地下1號舖
Ph: 27951616

Biang Biang Noodles - Noodles with a Chinese Character so Complex, it’s not on your Keyboard’s Unicode yet, but is it ?

Pronounced:  BIANG

  Some people say this word describes the Biang Biang thumping noise upon Banging the noodles against the table to flatten the noodles, which might just make sense!   Well that’s how they describe it too when anyone ‘Bang’ something else out of sheer excitement.   Okay sorry about the side analogy but I never claimed I wasn’t the kind of Food Reviewer who isn’t comfortable to push limits to abstractly hypothesize and extrapolate first,  before stepping backwards and see if every variable can be proven as such.    To me,  this Biang sound alone in terms of sound frequency complexity does not really justify inventing a super complicated Chinese Character and it is also not officially recognized under Chinese Dictionaries.   It sounds to me more like a Marketing Ploy whether it was by the poor student or the noodle maker himself as the different legends will lead you to believe,  but whichever way it really became,  it definitely highly succeeded as a result but I will always maintain this was contrived unless someone proves me otherwise.   Even this Biang Biang shop in Hong Kong has received a Michelin Guide Recommendation upon inauguration. 

 

 

Legend has it that one of the Top 10 Strangest inventions in China’s 陕西 Shaanxi Province included this Biang Biang Mian Flat noodles,  especially in Capital City Xi’an - 
BIANG is a non officially recognized Chinese Character measuring up to 58 nominal to 62 strokes thereof, depending on how one calculates Chinese strokes.   Imagine placing your own order at the table and they ask you to pen it out!    Usually it is only written in Calligraphy by hand and then Computerized Vectored or Scanned into a .gif file for printing out even upon Year 2015.   Of course,  many things in life become exaggerated and blurting out a much simpler I want a  油泼扯面 ‘Youpo Chemian’ also describes this dish clearly without ambiguity.  Just depends on the Chili Level then.  


  But it can be good for Marketing Purposes sometimes,  since this noodle has been covered online Internationally and often with slightly wrong recipes,  yet it remains sometimes nearly elusive to find a correct version in Chinese Restaurant menus.   Such is the allurement of Mystique powers even in the Food World.  Many whom happen to be spreading this concept around are not surprisingly,  don’t read too much Chinese.   Or some are more fluent than me in Chinese but spread this concept around like they knew it all along like gospel,  leverage with their Asian Mystique advantage over the Expats.    On the other hand,  what really are the chances of such a complicated Chinese character being created just for describing a Noodles dish, especially when it is not an officially recognizable Chinese Character?   To me,  None.        

 

 

5 Spiced Donkey Meat with Biang Biang Chilli Flat Noodles – $50
This was slightly drier than before.  I guess Donkey meat is hard to cook,  and Humans just like to judge without understanding this does differ and how an animal has died for you...  

 

 

Donkey Meat - 
This is a rare find in Hong Kong indeed,  no taking away the Michelin Endorsement that has been bestowed upon here for their effort for Regional Chinese Cuisine.  The Donkey meat was a little dry today but seemed a bigger portion than my last visits,  back then this shop was 2 blocks away and more tinier too.  I liked the Noodles,  Veggies and Soup.  The mixing sauce I think was a bit singular in performance but okay  ~ 6.5/10

Biang Biang Noodles -  Served with Donkey Meat as shown above
With Chili Oil,  Spring Onions,  Chili Powder,  Sesame,  Lettuce, Garlic, Seaweed,  etc.  
The Mythical and Chinese Character stories aside,  this was simple yet all of the food layerings were implemented well,  better than my previous visits overall.  ~ 8.5/10

 

Sesame Chilli Sauce -
Adjustable to upgrade to a higher Chilliness and Sesame taste soon.

 

 

陜西 腊汁肉夾饃 – Shaanxi Rou Jia Mo,   Pork Meat Sandwich $20
One of my favourite recipes for a Meat and Bread Bun.  It’s directly related to a Gua Bao 割包 / 刈包 in China,  Taiwan and Japan or the Bao movement spreading International these days actually,  many of them bastardized versions and worst than the originals,  especially the Taiwanese versions.    But somehow this 腊汁肉夾饃 version,  reminds me more of a Venezuelan or Colombian Arepas counter-part than it’s Asian deviation these days somewhat… May be coincidence.

 

 

 

 

Price:   HKD $80
Food:   ♕♕♕♕ 1/2

Address:  佐敦渡船街38號建邦商業大廈地下3號舖
Shop 3, G/F, Keybond Commercial Building, 38 Ferry Street, Jordan

Time of Opening:  Closed on Tuesday