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2012-05-13
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一碗(認真製作)越南河粉的湯頭，絕不比中式大地魚湯或日式拉麵湯頭簡單。據我了解，是需要用牛骨或雞骨熬超過10小時，然後再將湯頭隔渣，製成清湯的。札肉及豬肉丸河粉:但Rice Paper 的湯頭，我只嘗到香草加鹽水的滾湯。全無牛或雞或任何肉味。粉只是一般的河粉。並不彈牙。不推介。札肉及肉丸只屬一般貨色。在附近的"芽莊"雞湯，雞絲，優勝很多。雞湯有鮮甜清香的雞味，感覺上是認真熬製出來的。雞絲又軟滑，又鮮甜。那才稱得上是越南河粉。牛油雞翼就唔錯:香噴噴。有牛油香及蒜香。夠厚肉。但外層的炸槳不能包好整隻雞翼。又一城的Rice Paper 以前做得很好。 春卷幾好:包得實，炸得脆但不算油。但涵較簡單，像只有豬肉碎及馬蒂。山林道的"老趙"暫時最好食。服務有很大的改善空間: 有一位男侍可能培訓不足: (1) 他非常有效率地，以9秒9的速度將牛油雞翼有點兒重手地放在抬上。然後無聲無色地轉身以9秒9的速度快速閃開。。。最大問題是他將牛油雞翼放在我後面的抬。另一位有禮的女侍應亦以9秒9的速度將牛油雞翼拿開。一分鍾後才拿到我們的抬上。(2) 同一位男侍應又以9秒9的速度將札肉河粉，又有點兒重手地放在抬上。然
札肉及豬肉丸河粉:
但Rice Paper 的湯頭，我只嘗到香草加鹽水的滾湯。全無牛或雞或任何肉味。粉只是一般的河粉。並不彈牙。不推介。
札肉及肉丸只屬一般貨色。在附近的"芽莊"雞湯，雞絲，優勝很多。雞湯有鮮甜清香的雞味，感覺上是認真熬製出來的。雞絲又軟滑，又鮮甜。那才稱得上是越南河粉。
牛油雞翼就唔錯:香噴噴。有牛油香及蒜香。夠厚肉。但外層的炸槳不能包好整隻雞翼。又一城的Rice Paper 以前做得很好。
春卷幾好:包得實，炸得脆但不算油。但涵較簡單，像只有豬肉碎及馬蒂。山林道的"老趙"暫時最好食。
服務有很大的改善空間:
有一位男侍可能培訓不足:
(1) 他非常有效率地，以9秒9的速度將牛油雞翼有點兒重手地放在抬上。然後無聲無色地轉身以9秒9的速度快速閃開。。。
最大問題是他將牛油雞翼放在我後面的抬。
另一位有禮的女侍應亦以9秒9的速度將牛油雞翼拿開。一分鍾後才拿到我們的抬上。
(2) 同一位男侍應又以9秒9的速度將札肉河粉，又有點兒重手地放在抬上。然後又無聲無色地轉身快閃。。。
又是放在後面的抬。客人又吃了一口。。。
(3) 等了良久後，又是他。這次他站在我們抬旁，靜悄悄沒有任何動靜。
原來他應在等我幫他移開抬面上的杯碟(!)。人品差，又態度惡劣的我 ，當然不合作。我亦靜悄悄地坐著。。。
過了幾秒沉默的對峙後，他最後自己搬開一隻碟。
我(善良)的太太亦幫手移開另一隻碟。他將香草滾湯河放低。然後快閃黨又快快閃開了。
需要強調的是，其他侍應則有禮亦專業。
飲完下火的咸檸蘇打及青檸蘇打後，我們亦快閃!
再離開人車紛擾，沙塵滾滾的廣東道。
用$3元乘天星小輪放鬆心情。
We originally wanted to try the Udon shop at the food court. It seemed to be only of the few handmade udon shops left in Hong Kong. But it was extremely busy even at 2:00 p.m. so we walked around. Seats were available at Rice paper so we gave it a go.
We ordered spring rolls, buttered chicken wings and a pork pho plus a lime soda and a preserved lemon soda.
After a 6-7 minutes wait, we saw a guy holding the butter chicken approaching our table...... only to see him walked past our table and then placing the buttered wings at the table next to us. The whole process of him placing the wings, somewhat roughly, on their table, swiftly turning his back away without saying a word and speeding away lasted for approximately 5 seconds.
Another, probably more senior waitress, took away the buttered wings just as swiftly 5 seconds later.
Because I wasn't too hungry at the time, I was still in the mood to feel quite amused by witnessing that and was wondering when the chicken would arrive.
It eventually did after 1 minute:
The buttered wings at Rice Paper (Festival Walk) had a much fuller batter which could completely coat the wings. That was one of the best I've had. But I"m not sure whether they've changed their recipe or not. I haven't been able to have that for quite a while. Anyway, about the chicken wings here, it was quite crispy and the wings were quite big. The meat was tender and had the nice aromatic combination of garlic and butter. It was about HK$66 dollars. So that's HK$11 per wings. No cheap but OK.
Then came the spring rolls. Served by a different male waiter, who was very polite and professional - which no doubt facilitated our spring rolls arriving successfully on our table.
The spring rolls were wrapped properly and then deep fried. It wasn't too oily. The springs rolls basically consisted of some chopped pork which was slightly marinated, Chinese water chestnut. You can then have the spring rolls with the lettuce and the mint provided. The veggies provided were fresh.Not as good as those I've tried a "Lo Chiu" in Jordan, Hillwood Road, but not bad.
The pho came last. In actual fact, I believed our bowl of pho came before the spring rolls. However, it was served by the same guy who misplaced our buttered chicken wings. As a result, it was again placed swiftly, efficiently, silently...... but again - mistakenly - at the table behind us. This time I wasn't so amused by the same mistake committed by the same guy, especially when the customer started consuming it.
Again, the polite and more professional female waitress came and apologized to us and to the table behind us. When our bowl finally came, it was served by the same guy again......
This time round, he wasn't that efficient. In fact, he was standing next to our table, again, silently. I was wondering what the heck he was doing then I realized - he was expecting me to move the dishes away for him to place the pho down. Needless to say, given this rude attitude, I did not oblige and just sat there as still as he was standing. Finally, after some deafening silence, he moved one of the dishes away himself, silently and my (much kinder) wife helped him move the other dish away - I never said I was a nice guy.
Back to the pho: Some say "Pho" had it's origin in the Chinese "Fun". The rice noodles here really tasted like normal Ho Fan in Chinese cuisine and not the chewy thinner type. I'm OK with that as long as the broth was good. But unfortunately, it wasn't. There is a world of difference between "light" aftertaste and "no" taste. There is also a world of difference between a properly made Vietnamese broth and a casually made one.
From what I understand from a Vietnamese cooking teacher, a Vietnamese broth takes almost two days to process. You have to make the stock with a lot of bones, usually cow or chicken, for about 10-15 hours and further process it to turn the murky broth into a consomme. Only after the consomme was made then you place herbs on the noodle.
This was definitely not a beef consomme. I don't think it's a chicken consomme either - perhaps it was meant to be, but not enough time and effort and, crucially - bones, were put into the broth. It barely had any chicken taste. The herbs, coriander and mint, were all very fresh but that's what the broth tasted like only. The broth here tasted like lightly salted boiled water with mint and coriander o.
The meatball and Vietnamese sausage were normal stuff. Practically the same as the pork balls I had in any Ho Fun Shop. The Vietnamese sausage was nothing special either. The taste was slightly lighter than most Vietnamese restaurants I've tried in Kowloon City or at Nha Thrung. I've tried their other pho before, such as the "crab meat tomato" pho. That was not bad and tasted like crab meat and tomato! Come to think of it, the broth didn't have any taste either......
This, plus the service and price, dragged the points down to "Not Recommended" on my scale.
The chicken broth at "Nha thrung" 芽莊 (the Ocean Terminal branch) beats here every time and the chicken pho there is recommended. Not here. No bones in it.
Luckily, the preserved lemon soda (good for cooling "internal heat") and the lime soda cooled my temper, and internal heat, a bit.
After escaping from here and the crowded Canton Road, we took a relaxing ferry ride for HK$3 and enjoyed the rest of the day.
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