Vancouver Special: Corner 29

Jumbo prawns cooked vermicelli in clay pot

Our newest restaurant discovery in Vancouver is called Corner 29, as in the Chinese restaurant is located on the corner of Main Street and 29th Avenue.

My parents' friend took them there last week and this time brought another round of friends including myself.

The restaurant has been open here for over a year, and it's definitely value for money for solid Cantonese cuisine. Here's the menu. 

Bits of red snapper in black bean sauce and tofu

The dinner started with egg white drop soup with crab meat, a bit on the bland side, but perked up with white pepper or vinegar. Across the room we could see another table had a whole winter melon soup.

Soy sauce chicken was very tender, the sauce not too salty. Even though there were eight of us, we couldn't finish the entire bird and packed up the rest of the pieces. 

We were told that the restaurant had red snapper and suggested it be cooked two ways -- filleted and stir-fried with kale, and another dish using the rest of the meat and bones with black bean sauce and tofu. Both were very good, though at least one piece of the filleted fish was not cooked! 

Another highlight was the prawns and vermicelli cooked in a clay pot. It arrived sizzling hot at the table, and there was a lot of vermicelli. We had to hunt around for the prawns (one per person) and they were jumbo sized, very meaty. I couldn't resist helping myself to more vermicelli.

Pork dumplings with noodles

We also had stir-fried Romaine lettuce with fermented bean curd, but this was quite salty and the more you chewed on the lettuce, the spicier it got. We returned it to the kitchen, thinking they would give us a less saltier version, but it didn't come back out again.

Instead we had pork dumplings with alkaline noodles in broth. We didn't really ned more carbohydrates, but someone at the table requested it, and even had another helping of the pork dumplings.

By now we were all pretty stuffed and requested the deep-fried egg twists or daan san. They were very light and fluffy, and came with the desiccated coconut and sesame seeds and the corn syrup separately to avoid them getting soggy.

In addition to that dessert, we also received the house dessert of sweet mixed bean soup. Needless so say I was so full and am still full hours later... 

One thing's for sure -- we will be back, probably trying the dim sum, which we hear is good...

Corner 29

4488 Main Street

Vancouver, BC

604 559 8660

 

Review: Mommy Dead and Dearest

An "ill" Gypsy Rose with mother Dee Dee

Another documentary I saw on the flight to Hong Kong was Mommy Dead and Dearest that was released in 2017, about the shocking tale of Gypsy Rose Blanchard and her mother, Dee Dee Blanchard.

The film opens with Gypsy Rose at the police station and is told that her mother is dead.

She reacts with horror and fear, but the young woman is arrested -- for her role in her mother's murder, while her boyfriend Nicholas Godejohn did the dirty deed.

Gypsy Rose was sentenced to 10 years in jail

But soon the motive becomes clear and viewers begin to realise what kind of life Gypsy Rose had up until this point.

When Gypsy Rose was a baby, her mother claimed her daughter had numerous illnesses, and constantly took her to see doctors, who prescribed medicines that would make her have those actual symptoms, and even underwent surgeries that she didn't need to have.

Dee Dee claimed her daughter had muscular dystrophy and couldn't walk, which led to charitable people and communities giving them free housing and donating clothes and necessities to them.

However in reality, Dee Dee had Munchausen syndrome, where a person fakes illnesses for attention, and in this case she forced her child to be sick for over two decades in a horrific form of physical and mental abuse.

There is a lot of archival footage and photographs of them in the film, which tries to be as objective as possible.

She married Anderson but are now separated

The documentary features long interviews with Gypsy Rose in her prison uniform, as well as with doctors and psychiatrists, police, lawyers, and her estranged father, grandparents and other relatives. It seems Dee Dee was shunned in the family as she stole from them and never seemed to tell the truth.

Gypsy Rose has picked up this trait as well to get what she wants, making one wonder how much they can trust what she says. 

But at the same time can you blame her? She spent so much time with her mother that it was the only behaviour she knew of, and her naivety is apparent in how she and Godejohn planned the murder. Gypsy Rose was desperate to get out of her situation but didn't think much of the future or the consequences. 

She didn't have much experience in making friends, let alone romantic relationships, and mostly went along with what Godejohn wanted in their sexual relationship. 

Therefore it's surprising Gypsy Rose married a Louisana teacher by the name Ryan Anderson while in prison in 2022, but it turns out last month she announced her separation from him after being released in December last year.

One wonders how much rehabilitation Gypsy Rose has had in prison and since she left jail serving a 10-year sentence. She has had a tough life and a skewed outlook that will greatly affect her future in her 30s and beyond.

Mommy Dead and Dearest

Director Erin Lee Carr

82 minutes

HK Market Sees Spectacular Trading Flop Debut

Chabaidao had biggest debut flop in Hong Kong since 2015

Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing, which operates Asia's third-largest stock market, had a 13 percent drop in profit for the first quarter with fewer new listings and lower turnover. 

From January to March this year, net profit was HK$2.97 billion (US$380 million). 

Hopefully the second quarter gets better?

Bloomberg followed Chabaidao's first trading day

The city's largest IPO in 2024 was a Chinese bubble tea chain, Sichuan Baicha Baidao or Chabaidao (2555), which raised HK$2.59 billion (US$330 million), or HK$17.50 per share back in November.

How did it do on its first day of trading yesterday?

Soon after the markets opened, it plunged 38 percent to HK$10.80 before finishing the day slightly higher at HK$12.80.

It was considered the worst debut since 2015 for a company that had raised at least US$300 million, according to Bloomberg.

Yikes. 

Another company, Tianjin Construction Development Group also made its debut in the market and it also tanked, dropping more than 30 percent in value after having raised US$20 million in its IPO.

Not exactly what the Hong Kong government had in mind when it had hoped the stock market would help reboot the city's trading market, which has seen a drop in new listings for four consecutive years.

Lee optimistic the market will be bullish 

However, Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu remains optimistic that new measures by China's securities regulator will help boost sentiment.

"Dozens of companies have applied to the mainland regulators for going public in Hong Kong, including large companies from traditional industries like manufacturing and logistics, as well as key companies from high value-added industries like AI and fintech," he said.

"We have also been actively promoting financing in Hong Kong to top unicorn companies in the mainland," Lee said, referring to startups worth at least US$1 billion.

Last year the Hong Kong exchange only saw 73 IPOs, raising HK$46.3 billion...

Picture of the Day: Xiaohongshu Photo Shoots

Everyone taking pictures of the street sign in Kennedy Town

Walking around Hong Kong I saw a lot of young Chinese tourists, mostly women in their 20s, dressed up and carrying cameras or their phones mounted on selfie sticks, posing in front of specific streets and landmarks.

They were taking pictures where others on Xiaohongshu or "Little Red Book", a social media and e-commerce platform somewhat similar to Instagram, had posted. 

This was their idea of a Hong Kong holiday, or any trip for that matter -- posing in front of places like Bakehouse, a popular bakery with the coveted blue paper bag, or in front of Arabica coffee shop with the coffee cup that has a percentage sign at its Kennedy Town location.

There are other better places to take photos...

While some of these shops may have a bump in business thanks to these visitors snapping up coffees and pastries, I've heard some of these tourists find empty bags or drained coffee cups to use as props.

Can we say these places have been Xiaohongshu-ed?

Why replicate the same angle as everyone else? Or why not create your own memories of the place with other kinds of pictures?

But no, they seemed obsessed with recreating the same picture (different outfits), and patiently waited for others to finish shooting before they set up their own shot. 

Meanwhile they crowd the sidewalks making it hard for local residents trying to get from A to B.

How long will this trend last? Asking for a friend...

Review: Made You Look: A True Story About Fake Art

This "Rothko" was declared real, then not

When you have over 14 hours to kill on the plane you watch movies. In my case it's documentaries.

One that was fascinating to watch is called Made You Look: A True Story About Fake Art that was released in 2020. 

It's a fascinating tale about how fake paintings were sold in a red hot contemporary art market, making both the dealer and the supplier very rich, thanks to the talent of a Chinese immigrant who had a way of making canvases look like the works of Mark Rothko, Jackson Pollack, and William de Kooning.

Freedman gives her side of the story in the film

Director Barry Avrich gets practically everyone to tell the story, from Ann Freedman, the art dealer who was working at Knoedler & Company in New York, to various art experts, clients like Domenico De Dole and his wife Eleanore, art forensic experts, and numerous journalists. 

The story all came out in a court case in 2016 so there isn't much new except Freedman gives her side of the story in several interviews, though the reporters pour skepticism on her claims. 

She said in 1995 an unknown Long Island art dealer named Glafir Rosales approached her with a Rothko painting that Freedman thought was so beautiful -- except there was no paperwork to certify that Rothko had painted it. Rosales gave a long concocted story that seemed plausible -- if you wanted to believe the painting was real.

Freedman also took the painting to a Rothko expert, who declared it was authentic. So she bought it from Rosales for US$750,000 and sold it at auction for a whopping US$5.5 million.

Rosales doesn't have her say in the documentary

Over the next 10 years, Rosales sold Freeman some 60 paintings that were eventually sold for US$80 million to not only private collectors, but also museums and galleries. 

Things began to fall apart when a wealthy collector was divorcing his wife and he needed to sell the painting he had bought from Knoedler.

But when he tried to get it authenticated by art experts, they refused to say it was real.

And that's when he demanded a refund from Knoedler, and caused the gallery, which had been around for over 165 years to suddenly close in 2011, and its clients wondering if they had bought fakes too.

Even though the court case was in 2016, the documentary is still fascinating to watch. However, there are two people the viewers really want to hear from and don't -- that's Rosales and the forger, Pei Shan Qian.

A Pollack painting that was later declared fake

In the end Rosales was sentenced to nine months of house arrest and three years of probation as well as being ordered to pay US$81 million to the victims of fraud. 

However in reality, it was her boyfriend, Jose Carlos Bergantinos Diaz who was the mastermind, as he had been involved in selling fake art before. He fled to Spain, and efforts were made to extradite him, but Diaz claimed his health was poor and could not travel to the United States.

As for Qian, he hightailed it to Shanghai and the film crew are seen knocking on several doors looking for him. At last Qian's wife opens the door, but she says he's not available to speak on camera. They apparently stalk him walking around freely, and living relatively well for the decade of "art work" that he'd done.

But Made You Look also reveals the murky trade of art, and how provenance is so important, though greed can get in the way of rigorously testing a painting to ensure it is real -- or not. It also shows the desire of private collectors to own a famous work of art as a status symbol, something most of us would never even begin to entertain.

Qian made money from his fakes over 10 years

The film also "discovers" Dafen Village in Shenzhen, where an army of artists produce fake art for customers around the world. It's not new, people! It's been around for years and yet filmmakers and journalists claim to have found it, just like Avrich.

Made You Look: A True Story About Fake Art

Directed by Barry Avrich

94 minutes

Shanghainese Cuisine in Hong Kong

Stir-fried river shrimps are a classic Shanghainese dish

Hong Kong has some Shanghainese associations where residents with ties to the city can have their favourite Shanghainese dishes.

On this trip I was lucky to eat at two of them. At Ning Po Residents Association at the foot of D'Aguilar Street, my friend ordered stir-fried river shrimps, drunken chicken, stinky tofu and spinach with broad beans.

Two giant (and pungent!) pieces of stinky tofu

River shrimps aren't readily available in Canada, they are tiny, yet plump and sweet. I can't even imagine de-shelling them... stir-fried they are coated in a glistening cornstarch sauce and then dipped in dark vinegar. Delicious.

I haven't had stinky tofu in Vancouver either, so why not here, especially as my friend likes eating it too? At Ning Po we get two giant slabs that are deep-fried and before they even arrive at our table we can smell them. The tofu is piping hot, and then biting into it, it has a slightly crunchy exterior and then very soft and smooth inside.

For dessert we had Shanghainese deep-fried souffle balls filled with banana. The egg whites are whipped up, and then dollops of the mashed banana are added to the egg white to create a ball and then put in hot oil and cooked for a few minutes before they are scooped up, dried and then icing sugar dusted on top.

Lion's head meatball with cabbage in broth

The ones here were so light, fluffy and delicious. 

A few days later I had a chance to eat at Kiangsu Chekiang and Shanghai Residents Association also in Central. Our generous host ordered several dishes, like the stir-fried river shrimps, and giant lion's head meatballs in soup with cabbage. The meatballs were soft in texture, made with fatty pork but the broth barely showed any oil. 

For dessert we had lotus root stuffed with glutinous rice in osmanthus syrup and lotus seeds. This is a pretty laborious dish, having to clean the lotus root, stuff them with glutinous rice, steam them and braise in the osmanthus syrup. 

What a treat.

Stuffed lotus root with lotus seeds

Picture of the Day: Braised Pomelo Pith

A gorgeous slab of pomelo pith braised with shrimp roe 

One dish I enjoy eating in Hong Kong is braised pomelo pith with shrimp roe, and was lucky to eat it during my trip. 

For starters not many restaurants make it because it's so laborious. The outer skin needs to be removed before the pith is soaked for a few days; every four hours the pith needs to be wrung out and the water changed. A friend tried to make it once and didn't wring it out so the pith became mouldy!

The next step is to boil the pith for about 10 minutes and then let it cool (and wring it out again).

Making the marinade involves ingredients like dark soy sauce, bean paste, oyster sauce, water, and sugar. Other variations include adding sake, mirin and sesame oil. Restaurants make the savoury sauce taste is similar to the one used for braised goose webs and abalone.

From there the pith is braised in the marinade and it soaks up the flavours of the sauce like a sponge.

The texture of the braised pomelo pith is so soft that it practically melts in the mouth. Restaurants usually serve it with a generous spread of shrimp roe, while some home recipes use dried shrimp instead. 

Usually one eats this dish during Mid-Autumn Festival when pomelos are abundant, but amazingly this dish is available year-round in many places.

Maybe one day I will attempt this recipe, but in the meantime I try to order it whenever I see it on the menu!

Delicious Budget Thai Eats in Yuen Long

Whetting the appetite with pomelo and prawn salad

When I was in Hong Kong, a foodie friend was keen to take me to a dai pai dong in Sham Shui Po called Oi Man Sang. Customers have to queue for a table, but many believe it's worth it, as the place is known for cooking fresh seafood. We were all looking forward to it -- until we found out it would be closed on Qing Ming, or grave-sweeping day, one of the few holidays the staff get off.

Braised beef in a tart soupy sauce

So, we had the second-best thing -- a Thai restaurant in Yuen Long, about a 20-minute walk from Yoho Mall II in the New Territories. 

My friend drove us there along with his cousin and her husband, along with another chef acquaintance to Thailand East. When we got there it's a large compound, with people eating outside and inside, and parking at the back.

We were shown to a indoor area and upstairs where practically all the tables were filled. While the place served Thai dishes like green papaya salad and skewers, they also had claypot rice -- very Cantonese, and soy sauce chicken.

To start the pomelo and shrimp salad was delicious, large chunks of the citrus fruit together with plump shrimp, cherry tomatoes and peanuts, with a light soy dressing that was seasoned with fried garlic chips. Soon came the pork and beef skewers dipped in a thick peanut sauce.

Claypot rice with Chinese sausages was spot on

In a large stainless steel bowl was a giant beef bone, seasoned with garlic and coriander. The bits of beef fell off the bone easily and the slightly tart soup was delicious. I could have eaten the soup on its own and be fully satiated.

Next came two piping hot claypot rice, and they had the crispy rice at the bottom. The first had Chinese sausages, including one with offal and pork belly, the other with small pork ribs. Both were delicious and just depended on which flavour your were more partial to. How a Thai restaurant prepared spot on claypot rice I don't know, but practically every table had at least one.

A pre-ordered baked soy chicken arrived sitting up on a mini stake with a bowl at the bottom to catch the drippings. It seemed disconcerting at first to see a headless chicken sort of standing upright, but we took pictures anyway. After the photo session it was whisked back to the kitchen for the chef to expertly chop into pieces.

Roasted chicken was tender, hardly dry

For vegetables, water spinach with a touch of chillis was just right, along with more fried rice with pork belly and scrambled eggs on top. 

By this point we were pretty full, but wait there's dessert! We had the standard black sticky rice with mango and coconut milk, and a plate of taro-flavoured jellies with small cups of coconut milk jelly. 

Together with good conversation mostly about food, and talking about what we ate, it was a very enjoyable evening at a restaurant on the side of the road. For five people the bill came to around HK$1,300 including drinks, about HK$260 per person. Practically Shenzhen prices! No wonder the place was packed!

Black sticky rice with mango and coconut milk

Thailand East

G/F, 1 Tung Shing Lei

Yuen Long

9790 6118

Black and White Photography at M+

Two Women (Gloucester Road) by Yau Leung

At Hong Kong's M+, there was a special exhibition featuring black and white photographs sponsored by the Hong Kong Jockey Club. Entitled Noir & Blanc: A Story of Photography, it seems like a good excuse to features pictures from famed photographer Fan Ho, known as the "Cartier-Bresson of the East". 

Ho's photos show cool composition

He was born in Shanghai in 1931 and at the age of 14 was given his first camera, a Kodak Brownie from his father. Within a year he won his first photography competition in 1949 and when he was 18 years old he bought a twin lens Rolleiflex.

A few years later Ho and his parents moved to Hong Kong, where he created numerous stunning images of the city. They include Smoky World, 1959, where he has a low angle shot looking up at people walking through Central Market. It looks very dramatic with a smoky atmosphere as people walk up and down the stairs, and there are gradient tones from white to black.

One his his most famous pictures is Approaching Shadow in 1954, where Ho composes a striking image of a lone woman stands against a wall looking down. In this photograph he manipulated the image by adding a diagonal shadow in the darkroom, apparently alluding to the fading of youth.

Another lovely photograph called Reflection, 1951, features the patterned grilles on windows and in one of them is a shadow of a person.

Liu captures everyday Chinese life

There are other photographers like Yau Leung's Two Women (Gloucester Road) taken in 1961. Two women shown from the back wearing form-fitting qipaos and heels as they walk under the covered walkways of shophouses in Wan Chai. 

For a bit of brevity, contemporary photographer Liu Heung-shing's China After Mao - Skating in Dalian, 1981, shows a man wearing drab work clothes but donning a pair of roller skates and skating past Mao Zedong, who stands valiantly in the wind.

It's a great contrast between the two, Mao serious and looking undeterred, while the man holds a bird-like pose, his left leg in the air, his arms out wide, showing that Western capitalism has made life more fun in China. 

The exhibition even has a self-portrait of landscape photographer Ansel Adams. Called Self-Portrait, Monument Valley, United States, taken in 1958, he is a silhouette, standing on a mountain with his camera on a tripod as there are lightning bolts in the sky over the mountains. 

Adams' wild self-portrait

What a lovely treat to see these photographs, particularly those of Fan Ho!

Noir & Blanc: A Story of Photography

On until July 1, 2024

M+

Picture of the Day: Singaporean Ice Cream Sandwich

Beat the heat with an ice cream sandwich

I walked towards The Fullerton Hotel Singapore with the aim of finding the Merlion, and came upon an uncle selling ice cream sandwiches!

His mobile stand featured many ice cream flavours that are in a rectangular shaped cardboard box. When someone asks for a particular flavour, he digs it out and then slices a brick off of it and then either places it in between two thin wafers, or a slice of bread.

This uncle served many flavours

It costs S$1.50 (US$1.10) for the wafer and an extra 20 cents for the bread.

He had flavours like yam, chocolate chip, mocca chip, mango, sweet corn, tuti fruit, vanilla, raspberry ripple and chocolate, and the customers before me preferred having their mini ice cream brick in a slice of rainbow bread, which is a bit pink and pistachio coloured.

I chose the cheaper option of wafers holding a slab of durian ice cream.

He dug into his cart and found a fresh box, opened it and slid his knife along the edges to make it easier to cut. Then he sliced it about an inch and a half thick before putting it in between two thin wafers smaller than the ice cream, and placed the sandwich in a small plastic bag to catch the drippings.

The ice cream was fragrant and creamy, and paired with the wafers gave it a bit of a crunch, much like an ice cream cone, but thinner. You couldn't savour the ice cream sandwich for too long as it was hot and so within minutes it had disappeared into my satisfied stomach!

What a fun treat to have if you can find it!

Wandering Around Peranakan Joo Chiat Road

People live in these colourful Peranakan shop houses

Yesterday my friend took me to a colourful area in East Singapore called Joo Chiat Road. She described it as something akin to Happy Valley in Hong Kong, a little neighbourhood known for its Peranakan culture. 

These shop houses have various businesses

Peranakan means a person of mixed Chinese, Malay, Indonesian and Indian heritage, dating back to 15th century Malacca when Chinese traders married local women. These interracial unions led to the mixing of cooking too.

The Joo Chiat area is named after Chew Joo Chiat, a wealthy Chinese landowner in the early 20th century. A few years ago the area was very sleazy, but it's cleaned up or perhaps gentrified with quirky shops, boutiques and restaurants.

In addition there are many rows of shop houses, narrow small homes that have two or three stories. Peranakan shop houses are known for being very colourful and as a result make for ideal Instagram backdrops for those looking to pose for pictures.

A Singaporean designer with minimalist designs

Many shop houses are very old, with some still occupied by people, while shops can go for S$6-S$8 million, and will still need a lot of money for renovation. However, if you put in the investment and rent it out, you could still make your money back...

When we wandered the street we saw several vintage shops selling not only second-hand luxury fashion brands from clothes to handbags and Hermes scarves, but also jewellery like rings, earrings, and brooches. 

My friend pointed out when she lived in Nanaimo, British Columbia several years ago, she scoured the vintage stores in Ladysmith and bought brooches at a fraction of the price sold at these shops in Singapore. 

We also encountered some designers based in Singapore selling their clothes. One was originally from Tokyo who has lived in the Lion City for some 20 years and has a business creating fabric and clothes made of silk made by villages in Cambodia and Laos. The silk is light and airy with some batik-like touches, and they are idea for wearing in tropical places because they are loose and flowing.

Mini bottles containing shots of whisky

Another is run by a Singaporean designer who studied in Milan and so she is involved in the entire process from sketch to pattern to sewing. She said she likes being in the store on the weekends when there are more customers so that she can meet them and get feedback on her clothing that is made in China.

We also saw a natural wine shop that sold biodynamic wines with no sulfites, and had a selection of small bottles that had a shot of whisky in each of them. Another was a coffee shop that claims to use electro-magnetic waves to change the molecular structure of coffee or juice so that it tastes better. It's a curious concept but they claim it is used in food production to cut out the use of preservatives and wanted to use it on customer beverages. 

For dinner we headed to Blue Smoke, a restaurant where the chef-owner used to be in advertising. He used to cook Chiu Chow, but it didn't draw customers so now he smokes meats like beef brisket, and pork belly, and skate wing which is a slightly different cooking method, and adds a curry sauce for a spicy kick. 

Wood smoked beef brisket at Blue Smoke

But apparently his restaurant is better known for its off-menu items like fish porridge which intrigued us but we were already full! He likes to have people try the restaurant menu first, and get to know them before they know about the other food items, including chilli crab! Next time!

Picture of the Day: Glittering Star Wars

Who is going to buy this bling-ed out Star Wars "toy"?

Spotted at Takashiyama department store in Singapore -- a limited edition Swarovski crystal-encrusted Millennium Falcon going for S$25,000 (US$18,363).

Any takers for this bling-ed out Star Wars toy?

It's more like why?

Picture of the Day: Changi's Jewel

Checking out the world's tallest waterfall

Had an early morning flight to Singapore and just my luck (and everyone else in economy), we had  to put up with a wailing baby who had lungs of steel and cried non-stop until the plane took off. 

What was funny was a friend of mine had a flight to Singapore too, an hour earlier than me. However, his Cathay Pacific plane had issues with its cargo hold and was sitting at the gate for 45 minutes; I boarded my Singapore Airlines plane and we pushed off from the gate before my friend and actually landed in Changi Airport before him too!

I ended up having to meet him where he was at Terminal 4, rather than Terminal 3 where I landed.

That meant taking the train from T3 to T2, which is near T4. As I took the train, it entered Jewel Changi Airport, the highlight being the stunning HSBC Rain Vortex, a ring of water that rains down from the ceiling. 

It was designed by Canadian architect Moshe Safdie, and at 40 metres tall, it is the world's tallest indoor waterfall.

Needless to say it was quite cool to see it finally and be in awe of it!

Hong Kong's Problem of Closures

FB Concern Group documents shop closures in Hong Kong

A Facebook group called "HK Business Closure News Concern Group" started documenting all the shops and restaurants that shuttered recently. Members could post pictures of places they saw that had closed or were closing, and others would comment that they shopped there, or ate there.

The Facebook group quickly garnered 100,000 members, then 200,000 then up to 315,000.  

But then on Wednesday the Facebook group announced that it would be "closing down" to the shock of many.

However the administrator clarified later that the group wasn't closing down, but in fact changing its name to "Hong Kong Stores News Awareness Group", changing the tone to be more neutral.

Some say this is because someone related to the Hong Kong government complained the group was focused on bad news stories and should stop doing this...

But what is wrong with documenting the fact that shops and restaurants are closing down? It is a public service announcement... 

Saying Goodbye to Sevva

This stunning dining room will close its doors

Socialite and Sevva hostess with the mostess Bonnae Gokson looked different today. Then I realised she hadn't used eyeliner to accentuate her eyes. Instead she wore sunglasses indoors donning a thin sweater and jeans as she sat inside her restaurant, surveying who walked by her.

At one point she leaned over and whispered, "Do you know who is sitting behind you? She owns Lee Gardens."

One of the best views of the city at Sevva

The top floor restaurant and bar in Prince's Building in Central that has one of the best skyline views of the city is closing on April 17 after 16 years, and many fans of the place have been booking reservations to eat and drink there one last time. 

Gokson says she was forced to close after Hong Kong Land claimed it was looking to freshen up the space with a new food concept. And given the current challenging economic climate, she has decided the time is not right to reopen elsewhere or do something else. 

So now practically everything in the restaurant is for sale, from the cutlery and glasses to the light fixtures and wine. She said people have even asked her if she is selling the wall full of plants is for sale. 

Sevva was the place to see and be seen, with a list of celebrities from Pharrell Williams, Jennifer Lopez to David Beckham, Sting, Bill Clinton and Robert De Niro having visited the restaurant when they came through Hong Kong.

Vik Muniz's artwork graces the dining room

During the 16 years in business, Gokson organised numerous events such as drag queen Courtney Act, and musician Alfredo Rodriguez. She also invited Nikki Yanofsky, a singer from Montreal to perform, and another time chef David Hawksworth from Vancouver to cook.

When I asked Gokson what she would miss most about Sevva, she said the people, meaning her staff. Many of them are loyal employees for years.

Before I left I asked her if I could have a last tour around the place and she obliged. One of my favourite art pieces is the meticulously designed collage by Brazilian artist Vik Muniz, an homage to Edouard Manet's A Bar at the Folies-Bergere. It will have a new owner.

And that ceiling with so many strands of coloured glass decorated with flowers... Gokson had spent a lot of money and time renovating the place in 2019 to bring back customers, but then the protests disrupted business for many months, then the Covid-19 pandemic.

Gorgeous colourful chandeliers

Yet Gokson persevered, but was eventually stopped by the landlord from continuing to deliver good food, service and a classy ambience for her guests, many of them socialites who are wondering where they can hang out now.

"Jimmy's Kitchen!" she said and laughed.

After Sevva closes on April 17, everything will be taken down and then stripped to bare concrete to hand over to the next tenant. Gokson explained this could only be done at night, which will take three nights and cost millions of dollars.

What a way to go.

Not Dressing for the Occasion

Beware this hotel has a specific dress code!

This morning I met up with a friend for a tea at the lobby of the Peninsula Hong Kong in Tsim Sha Tsui.

He is known for wearing T-shirts, loud Hawaiian shirts, Bermuda shorts and flip flops. But today he dressed up and wore a collared shirt, shorts, and a pair of Birkenstocks.

When he asked if they served tea and coffee, the Peninsula staff replied yes; when he asked what else they offered they did not reply.

At first we were seated near the foyer of the lobby, but after we sat down, they suggested that since the gentleman was not appropriately dressed, we should sit by the window, away from other guests to avoid attracting attention. We obliged, still confused.

Turns out the hotel does have a specific dress code for each of its restaurants here: 

In the case of The Lobby, it says: "Smart casual wear is permitted. Exercise attire (including vests or exercise pants) or footwear for the beach (including flip flops, beach sandals or plastic footwear of any sort) is not allowed when dining at the restaurant."

But given the times we're in now, where the business climate is "challenging", the hotel had to accept us, sandals and all.

In the end they did serve us our teas (jasmine for him, mint for me), and even gave us four small sweet bites to eat. 

But it was quite the cold reception at "The Grand Old Lady"!

MTR is Hong Kong's Pride and Joy

The Tuen Ma line is very efficient

The MTR system continues to grow in Hong Kong, and I experienced first hand how convenient it is to commute from the New Territories to Central in minutes.

This morning I went to Yuen Long to visit a friend who has a 15-month-old boy and another baby three months old. She made it easier for me by suggesting we meet in Yoho Mall, which is attached to the Yuen Long MTR station.

It took me just under an hour to get there from North Point by going to Admiralty, then taking the East Rail to Hung Hom, and changing to the Tuen Ma line, the longest line on the MTR network. 

But going back to Central, it only took 30 minutes, by going from Yuen Long to Nam Cheong then to Hong Kong station. I was very impressed. Not only that I got to my lunch appointment on time despite helping my friend with her kids, and even holding onto the older one by the hand as he walked a bit in the mall.

This MTR line enables people to live in cheaper areas and commute into work in Central or Tsim Sha Tsui East within 30 minutes. Where else in the world can you find such an efficient public transport system?

This is Hong Kong's strength -- being able to transport people quickly and efficiently. This MTR system is not trumpeted enough, the envy of every other major city in the world.

Picture of the Day: Hong Kong Rarebit

Hong Kong Rarebit at the Lobster Bar

This is a Hong Kong Rarebit that is served at the Lobster Bar in the Island Shangri-La in Admiralty

It's a take on the Welsh Rarebit, which is typically hot cheese sauce with stout, ale or beer with Worcestershire sauce and mustard on toasted bread. 

The dish dates back to the 1500s when working-class families could not afford to eat rabbit, so this was the next best thing.

This one is called Hong Kong Rarebit because it has a bit of oyster sauce in it instead of stout to bump up the umami flavour.

And it's sooo good. The gooeyness of the cheese contrasts with the light crunchiness of the toast. Pop it into your mouth and it's a heavenly revelation!

New MTR Station Brings Shenzhen Closer

One of the newest stations in the MTR system

This afternoon my friend and I intended to walk from Central to North Point, to help me digest a big lunch I had just eaten. However, by the time we got to the Hong Kong Exhibition Centre we could see dark clouds looming over us, and periodic muted claps of thunder.

When we arrived at the Wan Chai ferry pier, we felt rain drops on our heads and decided to bail and get to the relatively new Exhibition Centre MTR station. This was being built when I left Hong Kong two years ago so it was interesting to finally see it open.

Lots of space for people to move in the station

It is on the East Rail line, which means starts from Admiralty all the way to Lo Wu or Lok Ma Chau. In other words, there is now no need to go to Hung Hom to get to Shenzhen -- you can easily start the journey from Admiralty.

Talk about making it easier to get across the border...

Again at lunch there was discussion about going to Shenzhen. A great deal is getting glasses made there -- in half an hour -- at HK$200 per pair for not too complicated prescriptions.

Since it's so chea, people get more than one pair made.

Not only can you pick them up to go home, but also have the option of someone bringing these glasses to you in Hong Kong.

Even Costco in Shenzhen has a delivery service where if you buy your items in the morning, they can be delivered to you by the late afternoon.

This line goes all the way to Shenzhen

How can Hong Kong compete with that? And just a very convenient ride away on the East Rail line, the second stop being Exhibition Centre.