Siu Mei is the generic name in Cantonese cuisine given to meats roasted on spits over an open fire or a huge wood burning rotisserie oven. It creates a unique, deep barbecue flavor and the roast is usually coated with a flavorful sauce before roasting.
According to CNN Travel, Hong Kongers consume 66,000 tons of siu mei every year with an average person eating siu mei once every four days. The most popular meat is char siu (barbecue pork), siu yuk (roasted pork) coming in second, and siu ngor (roast goose) coming in third.
I spent a week in Hong Kong and had the opportunity to dine at two of the most famous Siu Mei restaurants: Yung Kee in Central and Joy Hing's in Wan Chai.
And we're back on Wellington Street. I told you about Wellington Street in my previous post. There's so much to eat on this street. You can see the sign for Yung Kee just to the right of the street sign.
Yung Kee's began selling siu mei at a dai pai dong in 1938. After some success, the Kam family converted it to a restaurant in 1942. Today, they own that entire building. Yung Kee received a Michelin star in 2011 but was reduced to the "Bib Gourmand" section of the guide in 2012. It continues to be a very popular restaurant among tourists and locals.
You supposedly can't dine here without a reservation but I came early around 5pm and had no wait and had a large round table all to myself.
Should have taken some pictures of the menu but this is the combination of Suckling Pig and Roast Goose. It was quite pricey at 310 HK Dollars if I remember correctly (about $40).
Excellent.
I particularly didn't enjoy the roast goose. It was very gamey and rough. Quite disappointed.
Yung Kee had quite the menu and I hope to return here with family or friends and try out some of the other dishes.
Now to Joy Hing's.
Joy Hing's Roasted Meat dates back to the late Qing Dynasty when the Teochew family started the first Cantonese Roasted Shop in Guangdong. The business eventually moved to Hong Kong as a dai pai dong and now has a permanent place on Hennessy Road in Wan Chai.
Joy Hing's is listed as "Highly Recommended" by the Michelin Guide and named as the best Char Siu restaurant in town by Eat & Travel Magazine.
Ah yes. I love hole-in-the-wall restaurants that serve good food.
Forgot to take a picture of the menu so I found this online. The most expensive dish on the menu is 38 HK Dollars, which is roughly $5. But you can mix and match as you'd like which is what I did. One of the servers luckily spoke broken English so I was able to communicate that I wanted a combination of Roast Pork, Roast Duck, and Suckling Pig regardless of price. Charge me whatever you want - I just want all three, separate from the rice. She said it'd cost 110 HK Dollars - about $14. I was very curious as to what $14 would get me here compared to what I got at Yung Kee for $40.
The tea here is either free or they didn't charge me for it.
Server asked me if I wanted some vegetable as well. It was only 10 HK Dollars. Why not.
O. M. G.
Roasted Duck
Suckling Pig
Barbecue Pork
Amazing crust on the Suckling Pig.
I was about to explode after this meal.
Lens started to fog up. It's hot back there in the kitchen.
If you are looking for just siu mei, there's no question that Joy Hing's trumps over Yung Kee. I actually think the quality of the meat and flavor is much better at Joy Hing's despite the lower price. The good thing about Yung Kee is that they have a very diverse menu besides siu mei so you can eat just about anything at Yung Kee. Give both a try when you are in Hong Kong.
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