This just made me cry, I‘ve been to this amazing place in 2016 and I pray I‘ll be back soon 💙 Thank you sam for the documentary, hope your channel is going to blow up asap, you‘re doing a tremendous job here!
Thanks for watching and for the kind words Tobias, we’re really glad that this video touched you and brought back some amazing memories. We hope you are able to return to this incredible city soon!
I lived in HK for 15+ years. As Far as street food goes, wonton mein from just about anywhere is delightful, as is beef tendons on noodles., and pork knuckle or char sui. Finally let us not forget custard tarts and the sweet, iced coffee/tea for breakfast. I moved to the Philippines 4 years ago but the HK street food is something I often yearn for. For me, though not to everyone's preference, the best has to be Chau Tofu -stinky bean curd with chilli and soy from Tung Choi Street, Yau Ma Tei. My wife banned it from the house, shouting down the stairs of our village house - "are you eating piss again? Keep it outside."
Thank you for sharing your experiences Joshua, and really appreciate the recommendations of stinky bean curd with chilli and soy on Tung Choi Street- I wonder if that place still exists? Also, while I feel sorry for you not being able to eat it in the house, I think what you wife said is hilarious! 😂
It is one of those tastes that you cannot experience anywhere else, just like Leche flan, with coffee, in the Philippines or laap gai in Laos. I do, however, still yearn for Turkish kebabs and a Tamil Nadu curry. Incidentally, a steak and kidney pudding with mushy peas and mashed potatoes is my go-to dish.@@HongKongHoods
I have a hard time leaving any broth in my bowl with noodle soups like that too. I'm not even hungry right now but you've made me want to whip something up!
Sam, there are few hundreds of these beef noodle shops in HK, you must have tried and compared a significant number of shops before you single out this Sister WAH Noodle shop!! In fact, this shop is really one of the most popular and well-reputated Ngau Nam noodle Shop in Hong Kong. The radish is always the excellent partner when eating that special noodle especially when you put in the KILLING chilli sauce........thanks again Sam for bringing us into concentrating on these typical HK Style Street meals !!!? Even far away in Australia, I can now smell the stunning taste of these Ngau Nam noodles !!🌹
Thank you as always Johnson, your great and insightful comments are always appreciated! Indeed, Sister Wah is one of the most famous beef brisket soup noodle spots among locals, and it was an absolute pleasure to try this place and give our opinion on it! The radish was amazing, as you say, and the chilli sauce was delicious (although it made my nose run!) Glad you can smell the ngau lam meen through the screen!
Boy! I am craving some beef brisket noodle soup now. It’s 5am here. Never too early to eat. So many choices and easy to get to for delicious food in HK. I miss that.
The "clear soup" brisket style in HK differs from the "heavy soup" variant in that the preparation methods are different. The clear soup style involves cooking the brisket, after cleaning and blanching, low and slow with rock sugar and a few aromatics at very low temperature, to ensure the soup doesn't get cloudy. It is then cut with clear chicken broth to taste. Places that sell this tend to specialize in it due to the time consuming nature of the dish, the overall broth yield and the difficulty in procuring and prepping fresh brisket (it is possible to make it with frozen, but the flavor is considered compromised). For the heavier variant, the brisket is stewed with other beef offal and entrails separately from the broth with other ingredients like chu hou paste. This is the more common variant, as it doesn't require such slow cooking and much attention. With this method the brisket is prepared separately and then cut up and plonked into the bowl the same way as other accompaniments that can be ordered with noodles (fish balls, beef balls, cuttlefish etc.). The standard broth for this is a cloudy white and is usually made with pork bones, a chicken or two, and some dried fish (the ideal is actually flathead flounder). You can actually order standard bowls of noodles from any noodle store that serves the heavy style of stewed brisket and ask them to add some of the brisket stewing liquid ("gah lam jyup"). It's a great extra hit of flavor when ordering plain blanched vegetables or rice noodles.
In Taipe we found a Ngau Lam place that was famous for its Milky Bone Broth. The bones were boil down to nothing, leave the broth a Milky White coloring and buttery taste. I never had Ngau Lam like it. Beef Bones were used as decoration, tired around the stock pots, at the entrance to of the restaurant. The location was under a freeway. Have you ran into anything like that in Hong Kong? Enjoying your shows.
Thank you for watching! Notes about the subtitles. In the meantime, we have them on our earlier videos, so check those out and let us know what you think!
@@HongKongHoods thanks for your replied. I've watched all of those videos already. Just want to say if you can upload videos more frequently will be much appreciated. Anyway, your videos are great!👍🏿👍🏿👍🏿
Loved your videos,but had to say that this noodle place here is way over-rated (as with alot of other so-called 'famous' eateries in HK ....as long as there is a queue & ppl here loves to line-up) ...been once a few years ago & will pobably not eat there again!!! I found the noodles too soft & the soup was spiked with MSG.....Nothing special about the briskets too,in fact quite chewy & was like chewing a rubber band!! Loved your positive attitude though
Thanks for watching and for the comment. That’s too bad that you didn’t find this place to be good- we genuinely had a great meal here and thought the beef brisket soup was on point. I guess we’ll agree to disagree here, but appreciate your viewpoint!
So delighted to see you back, Sam! My understanding is the best beef brisket recipes are from the people of Chaozhou & Shantou region of eastern Guangdong and migrated to HK, Malaysia, Singapore & Chinatowns all over the world. I believe at one time most of the top noodle joints in HK were run by Chiuchow folks.
Thank you John for watching and for the kind words. Also thanks for the information on the history of beef brisket soup, it’s interesting to know where it first took root in China!
Very nice video! Beef brisket noodle soup is one of my favorite comfort foods. I love a bowl with tender cuts of meat and a good helping of tendons. But, I didn't realize that there was this debate between heavier and lighter broths. Anyway, keep up the great work. I always enjoy your videos. It's important to spotlight and promote the food of Hong Kong here on RU-vid.
Thanks for watching and for the kind words- we love beef brisket with tendons cooked to perfection too! Yes, basically the two most esteemed spots in the city are Sister Wah and Kau Kee, a place in Central/Sheung Wan that serves a much darker broth. Many other brisket places in the city also follow this darker style.
Hi Sam, another great show. When I get back to Hong Kong I'll have to come for a month, now that I've got all these places to try! Keep up the great work. Marcus and Siobhan.
This was another quality content and keep up the good work, Sam. The story behind the restaurant was also interesting to know. Also I liked the genuine feedback about the food and the pork dumplings in chilli sauce was my favourite. Thank you Sam, Vienne and Theo. Cheers
Thanks as always Satish and glad you enjoyed this video. Yes, was genuinely a great meal, not just the headliner, but also the loh bak and the dumplings especially were to die for!
Sam, I am very impressed by your extensive knowledge of different areas of HK. Your videos brought back a lot of good memories of an old guy like me who grew up there and living in the mid west of US. Thanks.
Thanks for watching and the kind words, I’ve found it very interesting learning about HK’s culture and history since moving here a few years back. Glad our videos bring back good memories for you, and more coming soon! 🎥
You didn't try the deep-fried fish skin which is also one of the best dishes this place known for? 2nd, you should also try kow-kee beef brisket and make a comparison between them.
Love your videos. Curious: is your wife always filming you at the table, when you're eating and describing the food? When is her turn to eat? You only ordered for one. LOL BTW, she's a very good camera person. Very steady hand and excellent composition and panning technique.
2:52 Sam, just rewatching this video.... Maybe now your Canto has improved.... Just when you order one bowl of noodles you said 一個 yat gor that's one piece like egg tart... The correct one is 一碗 yat woon, one bowl... Cheers mate
Thanks William, my mistake! I find it hard to say the Cantonese correctly... thank god I haven't offended any waiters yet by totally butchering a meaning!
Thanks for the video, Sam. This is another place I've marked off on Google Maps. Hopefully I'll get to go back to Hong Kong one day and try all these wonderful places you have reviewed. Speaking of noodles, though: if I'm not mistaken, you haven't done a video on the best wonton noodles? Personally I consider wonton noodles to be pretty much the "national dish" of Hong Kong, and I think it'd be great to see where are the best places to go for the best wonton noodles in Hong Kong.
Thanks for watching and for the nice comment! Glad you enjoyed this one, and we highly recommend it for a visit! Regarding wonton noodles, it’s a subject that’s definitely on our radar and one for a future episode!
Really appreciated Sam, did a lot of great recommendations…. Unfortunately this placed already closed for good… used to be good, but the rent cost & the pandemic caused them the quality and quantity getting down graded… closed on mid 2022 😒
Local way of eating this yellowish noodle is to go with the red vinegar that is served on the table with the chilli oil. Some people will find it feeling unwell after eating this noodle without the vinegar. It is something about the chemical reactionbetween alkine and acid.
You do the intro in the open with a mask on, but no mask when in the restaurant a foot away from the waitress. 😂😂😂 good think they don’t do a damn thing
Thanks for watching! The struggle is real when you’re from northern England and you’re torn between your native glottal stop that people may find hard to understand, the polished “T” of the Queen’s English, and the Americanised “D” sound… 🤦♂️ 😆
I have few things to share here. Beef Brisket is from the upper belly of the cow so I don't know what Sam really want to name just Beef Belly?? I've been eating this type of noodle soup for years and all restaurant served this recipe called Beef Brisket Noodle Soup, but I definitely will try it out at Sister Wah by Tin Hau MTR station when and how long I have to wait to come back to HK when the COVID restriction is completely lift it. Another definition for Law Bak is also called "Turnip" or "Daikon" aside from Chinese Radishes and they do have a slight taste of bitterness as well, but they do blend in with the Beef Brisket Noodle Soup. I noticed they have crispy fish skin posted on the wall. It would be another good combination to go with those spicy pork dumpling.
Thanks for the comment as always! Regarding beef brisket being the upper belly (and more prominently the chest of the cow) is true; the point I made was that ngau lam is not, then, actually brisket as it its defined in the west (by UK and US cuts anyway), but actually more akin to flank or rough flank. This place is delicious regardless, and so I really hope you can visit when restrictions are lifted in Hong Kong! That is absolutely true about loh bak; I was actually introduced to it at first as daikon when I lived in Japan!
Hi Sam, Ngau Lam is indeed the belly, in Hong Kong they braised the full piece of belly. In England, brisket is the upper section and flank is near the lower section all part of the belly kind of piece... In England it's normally one layer of the meat where as in Hong Kong the belly is like five layers, a mix of meat fat meat fat meat... You know what I mean. I hope you're viewers understand what I'm trying to explain 😊
I believe that I have watched quite a bit of Restaurant reviews and secrets and Sister Wah is one of them that is always on those shows, as for the ingredients in the soup I can tell you they have a hint of cinnamon, with many of the ingredients that are in use for classic sauces the difference between those darker sauces and the one you are talking about is the addition or lack of use of Soy sauce. Hope that is the start of the direction for your hunt for the secret of the broth.
My grandfather used to take me there back in the 90's. For me, it was love at first bite. Back then, it was at the shop next door..and from memory, they had a falling out so Sister Wah opened up right next door. Two shops selling essentially the same signature dish. Been a few years since I've been to HK..but seems obvious that Sister Wah is doing very well.
Thank you Vanessa, for sharing your memories from back in the day! That's very interesting about the falling out, and it would make sense as these two establishments, being so close together, are naturally competitors now!
Thanks for food Vlog Sam....I enjoyed your video, brought back memories of my visit to Sister Wah. Hoping to head back to HK and try Sister Wah again in the future .
this place not bad but to be honest, it never motivated me to finish the soup, so not my top favourite place. all my western friends love it but I probably prefer those what you called meaty, gravy taste. and the price not cheap. I wonder how many percentage of the judges under the Michelin panel is local, not western local but local local if you know what.i meant. true, that meat is flank even the local prefer to believe it is brisket
Thanks for watching and for your comment. Fair enough, if you’re more partial to the thicker kind of beef brisket soup then maybe Kau Kee in Central/Sheung Wan would be more your cup of tea. Good point about the Michelin panel- I’d also love to know more about that demographic!
Btw clear broth beef brisket is different to the braised beef brisket which uses fermented chu hou sauce which is a bean paste which sounds like the version you are talking about when you said it feels heavy. Another place that people rate for clear broth beef brisket is Kau Kee in Gough Street however the less said about that place the better since it is the biggest tourist trap that serves terrible food. Ever since the shop owner passed away and the son took over and started innovating using udon or e-fu noodles and a curry brisket it has gone down hill alot.
Thank you for the information! Yes, we've heard a lot about Kau Kee, and are aware it is the other most famous beef brisket noodle spot in the city- that's too bad if the quality has dropped so much!
I will definitely go and sample one of my favourite HK dishes. But I eat it plain, never seen anyone adding chili oil on it. I am also curious to find out where this fresh local beef actually comes from 😉
Lovely video really miss these foods living in ireland we dont have this havent been back in nearly 3 yrs are u british the accent seems to be dont stop the videos they make me hungry!!
Thank you Sam. Finally you talked about "beef brisket noodle soup". We have been waiting for it ^^ And yes as you said it is a bit of debate which one is the best. I prefer Sister Wah and my partner prefers Kau Kee in Sheung Wan. We can never come to a mutual conclusion.
Thanks for watching, and yes indeed, it is a hotly contested debate between the two as they seem to be the two most reputed beef brisket soup places in the city. 💪👍
I hear you can actually pronounce the word ‘ngau lam’ pretty accurately. Even most young Hong Kongers can only say it like ‘au lam’, missing the ‘ng’ bit.
As a kid I was never too fond of the English custard tart, but Hong Kong’s answer to this, the dan tat (egg tart) is now one of my favourite sweet snacks. Maybe it’s just the changing of my tastebuds, but I suspect it’s more down to just how well egg tarts are made here!
@@HongKongHoods I bet, I remember we have a potluck at our work unit. Believe it or not, not many people were willing to try egg tarts, even though i told them its very similar to custard. Which was their lost. Wish everyone would have an open mind and stomach to eat as much delish food the world have to offer instead of judging it first.
