Gough Street
When you're in a city like Hong Kong, with a population density of 6,396 inhabitants per square kilometre, you're bound to find something to do, somewhere. Like I've mentioned in previous posts, this city embodies sensory overload. There is simply so much to do, in such a small, confined metropolitan area (minus the more physical activities such as hiking, but I'll dive into that at a later date) that you can't help but walk everywhere and explore the little intricate side streets and see what they have in store.
Kau Kee
Gough Street is home to one of the most famous noodle restaurants in Hong Kong, Kau Kee. I'm not going to pretend that I've known about this eatery like a well-educated foodie, but apparently Kau Kee has been around for 90 years. Unlike most noodle restaurants, it only serves beef brisket. No fish balls, no beef balls, no shenanigans.
The sheer hunger I endured during the queue distracted me from actually taking a photo of the queue. You'll just have to believe me when I say that this was definitely a popular destination for locals. As Nicole from That Food Cray said, "The line moves pretty quickly considering customers are given the full local treatment of unfriendly vibes, eat your food and GTFO kind of deal."
Every option on the menu looked absolutely scrumptious. However, the scrumptiousness came at a price - Kau Kee's options were a tad pricier than most noodle restaurants, at around $40 to $60 HKD ($5.70 to $8.55 CAD).
As a fiend for spicy foods, I naturally opted for the curry beef brisket in flat egg noodles. (I actually ordered E-fu noodles, but more on that later).
The curry was thick, rich, and delicious. Kau Kee does not skimp out on the spice however, as they managed to compound its delicious curry sauce with noodles engulfed with chili oil. The sheer redness of the noodles should be a clear representation of just how hot these noodles were. This spice junkie approves.
NOTE: To those who cannot read Chinese, do note that there are discrepancies between the Chinese and English menu. I ordered #13 on the English menu, which was E-fu noodles, but was flat egg noodles on the Chinese menu. As such, exercise caution and always ask the (ridiculously rude and unapologetic) waiters. Food's excellent, service is poor - pretty typical of most HK street restaurants, so I've come to embrace it. This isn't Canada, land of the polite.
I sit here staring at these photos, and my tongue starts salivating in pain and pleasure. That's the effect of chili oil - it just lingers. At the end of this bowl, my tongue was not impressed with my actions. It was a necessary sacrifice.
Timothy Oulton
Just down the street was a retail store for the British furniture brand, Timothy Oulton. Still slightly disoriented by the aforementioned meal, my friends and I were absolutely mesmerized by the leather good and stumbled our way in. Fortunately, the employees were very accommodating to these loitering university students and encouraged us to hang around and window shop.
Nationalistic napkins, anyone?
One of my favourite decorative pieces they had on display.
The store was also home to a neat little Rube Goldberg machine in the sitting area. I was entranced by this contraption for a good 5 minutes.
The aforementioned sitting area had all sorts decorations.
There were all sorts of vintage paraphernalia to truly display the brand's traditional, classic look.
A reference to good ol' Toronto?
You can't get any more British than fancy hat cufflinks.
The selection of leather goods were endless, and they were just so beautifully hand-crafted that I couldn't help but ogle.
It wasn't just old-fashioned decorative pieces and leatherwear. This acrylic block can serve a multitude of purposes, a stool, a night table, the possibilities are endless. To me however, I think it just looks cool serving no purpose.
Our time admiring the goods of Timothy Oulton were concluded by a lovely stash of sweets, which the employees were more than happy to give us.
