Tuesday, September 29, 2015

Porsche Panamera S - Practical 4 Door Sports Sedan with High Performance

 I arrived in Macau with high anticipation of test driving the 2014-2015 face lifted Porsche 4 Door Sports Sedan  -  the Panamera S model now featuring an updated V6 3 Litre Twin Turbo engine with 420bhp Horsepower or 309KW.   The low torquey twin-turbo configuration allows it instant throttle response at any RPM range and a quick acceleration of 0-100kph of only 5.1 seconds.   The new 7 Gears PDK dual-clutch Automatic Transmission also behaves more like a Manual gearbox as I found out from the way it holds gears especially downhill -  there is also an assistive “Launch Function” which helps to maximize acceleration from still at the Traffic Lights or from the Circuit Grid Box for the enthusiast.

 


 

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The Front End Resembles a Classic Porsche 911 -
This time the longer wheelbase Panamera S with 4 seats and 4 doors.   This Porsche is actually currently one of the biggest selling models in China,  Macau and Hong Kong side.   It’s sporty but with the Active Air Suspension and different Sports Modes,  also makes it practical to carry your passengers with comfort.

 

 

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The Panamera S Rear View -
The Twin Turbo’s and Exhausts are adequately muffled when driving inside and outside the car,  I found this ultimately comforting plus the acceleration potential is lurking within anytime ready to be unleashed.   Overtaking another car in traffic was instant and swift.




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20” Inch Panamera Sports Wheels Painted in Black on this S model -
The other entry level Panamera riding alongside us,  sported 19” Wheels in comparison.
I should mention the Braking System on the Panamera in general is not as abrupt as those on a typical super car.   It’s tuned initially to brake gradually comfortable,  but rest assure when you need to stop on a more enthusiastic drive,  press the Brakes harder and it will always stop on a dime.


 

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The Interior -
Nowadays in a Sporty 4 Door Sedan,  its both as much about the driver’s cockpit, as well as ergonomics and comfort to every passenger on board.   There’s plenty of leg rooms in the back too.   And Active and Passive Safety features build in which are confidence inspiring. 

 

 

 

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It’s Growing Appeal to the Asian and American Market is Understandable -
Its fast,  it’s German Engineering at its best,  plus it’s still a Porsche !   And now you have a 4 door option which still handles on rails yet remains daily practical.   I was mentioning that if you are a Soccer Mom and didn’t want to go down the SUV path for say reasons of it being too tall or harder to park daily,  then this is the ultimate Soccer Mom or Dad’s family ride!   

 

 

 

 

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There is also this 2014 Face-lifted Basic Model Porsche Panamera 3.6L V6 Naturally Aspirated -
With a 300HP or 224KW engine,  which already does respectable acceleration and handling for daily usage.  The Panamera S model above just has that extra 100+ Horsepower handy and extra low end RPM torque from the turbos.  

 

 

 

 

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Friday, September 18, 2015

Yung Kee 鏞記酒家 after New Renovation, with It’s Family History dating back 100 Years - ( Hong Kong )

  My 1st visit to Yung Kee in it’s current updated address was more than 35 years ago,  I still remember the Gold Koi Fish 錦鯉 swimming in the pond and remember their smell,  and back then my parents almost took me here weekly and I distinctly remember when as a kid I didn’t like their Century Year Old Eggs smell,  but after all these years of mellowing I came to really appreciate them.   Nothing has changed much from the design setting and the stair case remains pretty much static all these years.    What really has changed majorly here is less tangible and involving the family re-structuring nowadays.   Eldest 1st Brother 甘健成 & 2nd Brother 甘琨禮 somehow entered into an Ownerships struggle for controlling powers.   It can hurt a lot especially when it’s your own Mom,  Brothers and Sisters involved.   Unfortunately crap will always happen in life,  I could share a lot of my own personal experiences with you too.   From what I have researched and gathered,   the 3rd Generation of the Kam’s family have expressed wills to be amicable as 3 different restaurants nowadays and finally resolving the family problems.   Crap does happen in life but when there’s a will,  there’s a way,  especially when all 3 places do a slightly different aim in conceptWinking smile


 

 

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迎賓松花豔影 酸薑皮蛋 $85 - Preserved Eggs & Pickled Ginger
Half molten and transparent,  I didn’t like this when I was a kid but I have to say I changed…   I so highly appreciate this nowadays and it has no ammonia taste.   Actually I have written from memory a bad review of Yung Kee before,  but nowadays despite the Family fall out I think the quality has improved.   Even the ginger is less sweetened nowadays..   ~ 10/10







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Hung Aged Yunnan Ham -
No Iberico black hoof but still treasured for the Chinese food culture.

 

 

 

 

 

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蜜汁吊燒鵝掌紮 - Charcoal Roasted Goose Web,  Stuffed with Barbecued Charsiu Pork, 
Goose Liver & Cured Sausage
This is a very very traditional Cantonese dish and I think Shunde micro-region influenced.   Very lovely execution and sophisticated,  in HK you will only find this dish at Tak Lung and the original 2 Fung Shing restaurants which does it right,  may be also Lin Heung Kui if you reserve them in advance.   Very rare traditional Cantonese recipes nowadays..   ~ 10/10


 

 

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如意玉扣蝶雙飛 田雞扣 - Stir-fried Frog Stomach with Asparagus & Pine Nuts
Frog Stomachs.   I have to admit even I haven’t seen a dish before which was centred around this concept as a Main Dish.
   This is said to be a very artisanal traditional dish,  but may be I didn’t lived in this era so didn’t noticed.   Can only report back that this was utterly amazing as a Concept.  The French people also cook up a lot of frogs,  but frog’s stomachs as a central theme and crunchily good.  1st for me and executed so well..  ~ 12/10

 

 

 

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古法紅炆斑尾 - Braised Garoupa's Tail in Traditional Recipe
Cooked with Pork Belly too with the fish.  Food is always subjective and although I have eaten this recipe many times before,  I didn’t see much surprises here.   Personally I think the too starchy sauce and too much pork did killed the fish taste.   But it’s just me.   I still liked it but it was about overall balance ~ 6.9/10



 

 

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松子雲霧燻香肉 $400 - Smoked Pork Belly with Pine Nut
This is my Nth time having this.  It was very smoky today and also very tender porky.  Utterly a must order dish.   This reminds me of Braised Pork Belly - Dong Po Rou/东坡肉 from up North totally,  and HK just doesn’t make them right usually.   However the Cantonese version here passes with distinct colours in flavour and texture.   Super amazing as usual and smokily good.   ~ 10/10







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禮雲子配白玉芺蓉 $350 - Steamed Egg White with Mini Crab Roe
One of the Signature dishes here involving Mini Brackish Water Crab Roe,  from my sensations for all these years I keep thinking this is a Vietnamese recipe for an unknown reason.   The crustacean taste to me isn’t only about tomalley/crab roe,  it seems to incorporate well pounded crab shells taste if you ask me like a Vietnamese Bun Rieu Cua using Paddy Crabs,  which both are similar.   Very addictive stuff and I like this better than their rolled prawn version.   So addictive and so Cantonese in concept...   ~ 12/10







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鏞記炭燒燒鵝 $200 - Charcoal Roasted Goose
Roast Goose I have had this so many times,  and it is always controversial.   I have mentioned so many times that this version of Roast Goose isn’t meant to have crispy skin…  it is part of Micro-Regional Cantonese cuisine where the sauce is poured on top to warm it up and it is served limpy.   But if you know how to crack the system,  you can always request the goose sauce to be served on the side.   Certain Cantonese Chicken dishes are also served the same.   Yat Lok Roast Goose down 1 street is more the crispy type by default,  since it is a different type of cooking.   (Honestly it bothers me a lot that people don’t understand their regional stylistic differences…)   Having said that today’s Charcoal Roasted Goose was probably a little little over-cooked tough,  and I deliberately didn’t order the sauce to be poured on the side instead because I wanted to re-judge it’s normal taste.  Lined with dried oyster sauce beans underneath..  ~ 7.5/10








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巧手魚尾銀絲細蓉 - Wonton Noodles in Traditional Soup
This Wonton Noodles is called by many foodies to be the best in HK.   I think they have a reason.   The wontons have a swallow tail and are buried under the soup,  the thin eggy noodles are cooked well.  The Soup has good flounder and prawn shells/roes taste with clarity.   It doesn’t even have a clear rival in HK nowadays as a Cantonese concept.   This is why Yung Kee all these years have tried to keeping being Traditional even despite the slight change of Family Ownership.   ~ 9/10

 

 

 

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水雲玄采糕 $22 - Chilled Black Sesame Pudding with Seaweed
Truth be told never understood this recipe with seaweed mozuku.   One can’t taste it much in the recipe and it sounds more Japanese x Chinese as a concept.   But surprisingly it has remained as 1 of the top signature desserts all these years.    ~ N/A


 

 

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Mango & Pomelo Sago Soup -
Was really full,  this came out and I was so packed I could not even evaluate this anymore fairly..  N/A



 

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陳皮紅豆沙 $24 - Red Bean Soup with Aged Tangerine Skin Peels
This has to me for all these decades the best Red Bean Soup in HK.   Although recently I think the Aged Peels presence has made it a little too bitter to my liking.   It is still good just needs more balance,  always my perennial favourite item to order.   I definitely liked it more before than now and wished it was less bitter nowadays…  ~ 8/10








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芝麻菲林卷 - Black Sesame Roll
Greatly done.   Yee Tung Heen makes a great Black & White version,   Hoi King Heen nowadays makes a Hawthorn berry version and more fruitier and less filling.   But the Yung Kee version is as good as it tasted back then.   So memorable and sticking to tradition.

 

 

 

Price:  HKD $600 + 10%
Food:   ♕♕♕♕ 1/2 to  ♕♕♕♕♕♕

Address:  中環威靈頓街32-40號
32-40 Wellington Street,  Central,  HK
Ph:  2522 1624

Saturday, September 12, 2015

Hong Kong Day 香港地 - [ Hong Kong ]

  Hong Kong Day is a new Concept by a larger consortium at large in Hong Kong,  it is aiming at creating new food concepts for what I coin as Upper-end HK food,  averagely affordable to the local population but with a core quality that is always guaranteed.   One will find this at Hong Kong Day’s outlets and currently most shops are currently promoting a Teppan hot plate concept as well.   Me and some friends were keen to visit here as a lunch catch-up as I wanted to try out several dishes to share as some lived and worked along this convenient train line.   A lot of people won’t understand my thinking – but to me personally,  I am always training myself alert to develop my business senses and instinct,  because it helps me out a lot in general when we monitor everything in the market and we have to predict trends in order to make it happen before time.   For some reason I found resonance with this group’s restaurants thus far.


 


 

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Hong Kong Day  香港地 -
I have already been to their other Hong Kong Day Shop in Ma On Shan and Sheung Wan before. 


 

 

 

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Interior Space -
It’s the latest food trend presented here which I was most interested in.  
Modernized Hong Kong food but a staple for everyone day in and day out.   I am getting hungry but hope it turns out to be ok good..

 




 

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Sizzling Pans -
We ordered a couple of these options….
Surprisingly a few were localized Hong Kong Cantonese influenced.  Interesting..


 




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蜂蜜薏米冰 – Iced Barley Drink with Honey (Included in Meal Set)
The lady serving me this said this is with natural honey and not artificial sugar.  which hits the right spot.     ~ 8/10

 




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豬腳薑醋蛋鮮雜菌雞粒芹菜炆紅米飯  –  Pigs Knuckle in Ginger & Red Vinegar,  with Teppan rice of Mixed Mushrooms,  Chicken pieces,  Celery and Mixed Red & White Rice grains $68
This recipe is usually more for pregnant women or people needing more ‘heat’ in their body if you follow Chinese medicine and it’s philosophy of slowly maintaining the balance of body..   Was surprised personally to see this recipe here,  as this is quite feminine and with more ginger and mushrooms too as a combination.   Interesting indeed and it tasted great and vinegary/gingery.    More suitable for ladies in general I still believe!   But I really liked this myself   ~ 9/10








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Fully Cooked Egg in the Chinese Vinegar and Gingery Solution -
Part of the above meal 



 


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Cheese and Fried Chicken Thigh with Kimchi,  Pork Belly Slices and Potato Starch Noodles
芝士煎雞扒泡菜腩片,  炒薯粉 – $68
This was very good as a combo,  the chicken fried tender and so were the julienned pork slices.   I somehow wished there were more gooey cheesy though to complete the package,  as is the current trend as people nowadays love to pull more cheese.   ~ 8/10







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蠔汁鮑魚梅菜腩肉魚柳炆紅米飯 – $88
This has a whole Abalone,  with Pickled Pork Belly,  Grouper Fish and Half white and red rice.   This was another highlight.  Unassuming at first,  this was cooked really well for a Fast Food Shop with a new concept.   One of the highlights for sure and glad we also ordered this to try.  No wonder this shop has gotten so many positive reviews online lately.    Just typing this up makes me hungry for supper already..   I miss this dish the most myself. 

 

 

Price:  HKD $58 to $88
Food:   ♕♕♕♕  - ♕♕♕♕ 1/2

Address:  大角咀海泓道1號奧海城三期UG65號舖
大角咀海泓道1號奧海城三期UG65號舖
Ph:  +852 2758 5228

Monday, September 7, 2015

HKTDC Watch & Clock Fair, the “ Salon de Te ” Section now open from 8th to 12th September - ( HK Convention & Exhibition Centre )

As mentioned in the previous post,  the ‘Salon de Te’ section of the HKTDC Watch Exhibition in Wanchai is highlighted as some of the Elites or most Creative section of the show.   Today some of us took a preview tour before it is ready for show from tomorrow 8th September onwards,  it is still being organized right now with so many Exhibitors preparing their stands.   It will last until the 12th of September,  the day when it is open FREE to the Public. 






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The Public audience can visit here 國際名表薈萃 Salon de Te -
On 12 of September.  If you are in the Watch or Similar Trade you can also register online to come starting tomorrow from 8th Sept.






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Salon de Te -
It’s almost Wizardry like this year.   With reference to the Mad Hatters or Mechanic clocks, 
Circus Shows.   Its creating a vibe which is almost Magical yet nostalgic. 






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Renaissance Period was important in the history of Mankind -
Leonardo da Vinci was one of the 1st Inventor and Artist to help define this period with the re-wakening of mankind. 

 

 


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Latest Lolli Clock Rock since 2013 – Chic & Trendy Zone
Designed and manufactured by a local HK Company. 
This has gotten quite popular and colorful,  even receiving the European debut Promotional Gift Award 2013.   Many of its rings and decoration can be substituted to create your own DIY Design.  Let’s support someone local here and the industrial design and ergonomics,  functions are all useful and appealing!      







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3 N Half Ltd Innowear – Tech World section
The CEO worked previously in the likes of NIKE and went on to understand that there is a large Health Watch Market out there.   It can sync with your iPhone or Android phone  (which personally, all depends on the Software App).   A recent 2014 founded company also based in HK,  this is certainly worth supporting if they get their technology and software apps right and incorporating GPS either via the smart phone or via itself.  The InnoBand-D here is heading in the right start and even gives you Heart Rates and Sleeping Pattern feedbacks,  a direction iPhone and iWatch are involved in…   





 

 

 

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TACS -  also being part of the Chic & Trendy Section
TACS is started by its Founder in Basel World,  Switzerland,  by Japanese Designer Yoshiaki Motegi.   His designs immediately caught my Attention much,  as it is very Humanity based.   Take for example the Nature Series of Watches which are modelled after Nature itself,  or the Tea series which is reflecting the Cafe culture…   I think none of us will digress that his retro Vintage Lens watches really caught our attention,  as is explained below.




 

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Japanese Designer Yoshiaki Motegi based this Watch design around a Camera Lens,  from the Switzerland side -
Someone just asked me online how much this costs,  apparently its only HKD $1580 – $1780 range.  Affordable but very cool,  this probably deserves to win the Watch of the Year for me considering how amazing this was finished and designed.   Red heart  There are a few Exclamation outlets in HK selling this brand,  such as at Kimberley Hotel TST,  Sogo Causeway Bay 10th Floor,  Shatin Yata 2nd Floor,   






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Horse Carousel -
Actually this was a little appropriate to the running Clocks and Watches…
Have got to say which was done well this year as an Overall Theme.




Address:  Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre, 1 Expo Dr, Wan Chai
香港會議展覽中心,  8th to 12th September

Ph: +852 2582 8888
Email:  info@hkcec.com
Fax:  +852 2802 0000

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