The Night Market afternoon tea specials
It’s odd there aren’t more authentic Taiwanese restaurants in Hong Kong. Trendy items like bubble tea, beef noodles, fried chicken steaks and ice shaving desserts have their specialty shops, but few establishments are around with a complete Taiwanese menu.
The Night Market opened in a building on Stanley Street, Central, last year and has steadily built its appeal by word of mouth. Now, it’s shooting for more mass recognition with a second, much larger, eatery in the Elements mall. To diversify appeal, they’v even launched afternoon tea specials. For HK$85, customers have a choice of a drink with Taiwanese favourites or a few dim sum treats with a Taiwan twist.
Managing director Allen Lin hosted a tasting to introduce the dim sums which are only available at the West Kowloon mall. “The Night Market menu at Elements is about 50 percent bigger because the kitchen is about 50 percent bigger (than Central),” Lin explains.
“Some people hear the name and think it’s a Disneyland version of a Taipei market but it’s not meant to be literal. It’s more about evoking a night market. That’s why we use the English word for our name instead of the Chinese word. This is our interpretation of what you get at a Taiwan food street. Also, we’re not a cheap HK$25 noodle place. We want to give people a nice atmosphere and good service.”
I’ve enjoyed their Central location previously. It’s fresh and refined while staying true to its Taiwanese flavours, which draws on a variety of food influences from the Hakka, Fujian, Shanghainese and Sichuan.
Dim Sum is Cantonese in origin so The Night Market adopting the format is an attempt to cater to Hongkongers. Are they successful? Gastronomically speaking, there’s nothing wrong with the dim sums. Everything is made with care and given a fresh interpretation.
Three Cup Chicken Mochi Balls
Among the offerings, the Three Cup Chicken Mochi Balls are a nice twist on the Cantonese sesame balls. I only wish they were bigger in size so the tiny bit of filling’s flavour isn’t drowned out by the chewy texture. The nest-like look of the Pan Fried Pork Dumplings presentation is dramatic. Equally clever is the textural makeover of the Oyster Pancake Rolls from an omelette into a crispy pastry. The ordinary Spring Roll gets an upscale rebranding with some Wagyu leek stuffing.
Pan Fried Pork Dumplings
We also asked to try the interesting sounding Taiwanese Pork Burger, which is based on the Hakka dish preserved mustard green (mui choy) with pork belly slipped into a steamed bun (bao). It’s a smart way to turn the dish into finger food but I still prefer it old school style accompanied with a steaming bowl of rice.
In short, there’s nothing to dislike with the dim sums, but the purist in me just wishes they would stick to its Taiwanese traditions rather than stretch the offering with some intra-Chinese fusion. If I want wacky inventions, I’ll go for their crazy fruity drinks and bubble teas.
Popcorn Chicken
The delight of The Night Market is in the simple pleasure of items like the Dry Noodles with Beef in BBQ Sauce (it’s Sha Cha sauce) in a classy joint. Another popular selection is the Popcorn Chicken, which are crunchy, irresistible fried chicken pieces. It’s well made fast food brought to a comfy environment. A likeable vegetable dish is the sharp contrast of the bitter and savoury in Bitter Melon with Salty Egg Crust. Just don’t tell your health conscious friends how high in calorie the duck egg crust is.
Bitter Melon with Salty Egg Crust
Omelette Wrapped Fried Rice
Another favourite of people who don’t know much about Taiwanese cuisine is the Omelette Wrapped Fried Rice. The thin layer of egg always impresses but it was downright hilarious when ignorant media at the tasting were wowed by the ketchup on top of the omelette. Humour turned to embarrassment when another nitwit asked to try the Sweet And Sour Pork. “It’s my favourite Chinese dish,” the idiot said. The truth, dear reader, is a lot of so-called food writers know absolutely nothing about food.
Anyway, the Night Market is a welcome addition to the local scene. My suggestion is to go for the real deal at night instead of dim sum and afternoon tea.
FIND IT!
The Night Market
Elements Mall
Shop 1028A,
1 Austin Road West
Tel: +852 2807 2292
Central
6-7/F, 11 Stanley Street
Tel: +852 2810 1121
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