義順牛奶公司 (Yee Shun Milk Co.)

In a process I won't even pretend to begin to understand, the 義順牛奶公司 (Yee Shun Milk Co.) specializes in making milk based desserts by steaming them into solids. Yeah, I was/still am confused by that whole deal. After a long struggle with trying to order in Mandarin (and ultimately feeling like an idiot when I realized the owner spoke English), I ended up with their trademark dish... a steamed milk dessert accompanied by a layer of floating lotus seeds. I was unequivocally disappointed by what was presented in front of me. I paid like 25 HKD ($3) for this? First off it's hot (I don't want 'hot' desserts when it's 35 degrees outside!), and secondly, it's in a bowl the size of my fist. I DEMAND ANSWERS OWNER MAN!

Well, my answer came in tasting. In a mix of delicate sweetness and creamy dairy, milk is, like I said... mysteriously steamed into a tofu-like matrix. Not quite as firm as silken tofu, but certainly more than just a viscous soup, it's like an amorphous blob of milky goodness. The lotus seeds were an afterthought, but worth a mention in their own right. Stewed in syrup water for more than long enough, they were softer than any I've ever had before, with a sugary layer penetrating the entire seed. As far as it being ordered hot... well, that was my own fault. You have the choice of hot/cold... there was a lot that was lost in translation during the ordering. Anyway, back to the point. Would I get another order? Probably not, I guess I still think it's kind of small and unsatisfying, but did it hold up to the taste test? Yeah, I'd say so.



Intrigued yet? If you're actually planning on going here... just look for the delightful cow. Look how happy he is.



Goddamn, why is toast with condensed milk and butter so freakin' good? Ha, this blog is quickly becoming nothing more than a toast log. Since they serve this everywhere, I was compelled to getting it here too. There's just something different about plain bread in Asia. It's sweeter and lighter... as if a double thick slice of Wonderbread ran into a pat of honey butter. When you add butter and condensed milk on top... well, game over. It's still puzzling to me how people in HK aren't all overweight.