- Andy Simon, principal clarinettist with the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, has been enjoying Hong Kong's restaurants for over 30 years
- Many places are closed when he finishes a concert but he knows which will keep their kitchens open a bit later
Long-time Hong Kong resident Andy Simon is the principal clarinettist with the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra.
When I first arrived over 30 years ago, I was an Asian food fanatic and had lots of favourite places. Most of my restaurants are chosen not just for the dining experience but often through other reasons, such as proximity, scheduling, leisure activities and visitors.
Le Pan (Goldin Financial Global Centre, 17 Kai Cheung Road, Kowloon Bay, tel: 3188 2355) is a special dining experience in a highly unusual location. The building's owner also owns the restaurant and he has his own wine cellar.
The wine apparently is so reasonably priced that customers often buy it for takeaway. They have an amazing tasting menu. I remember specifically their cherry tomato gazpacho, where they cut these perfect small tomatoes in half and fill it with gazpacho and put the top back on.
If an afternoon rehearsal at the Cultural Centre in Tsim Sha Tsui is cancelled, I will make use of my cheese fondue cravings at Chesa (1/F, The Peninsula, 22 Salisbury Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, tel: 2696 6769) for a leisurely lunch.
If I have tickets to watch an earlier-than-usual event, I will often go to the "gardens" in Star House " Peking Garden (3/F, 3 Salisbury Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, tel: 2735 8211), Chiuchow Garden (2/F, tel: 2801 6899) or Jade Garden (4/F, tel: 2730 6888). They have good standards and open early. I love the dry-fried chilli beef at Peking Garden, the tofu or goose at Chiuchow Garden, and fried rice with XO chilli sauce at Jade Garden.
Favourite Hong Kong restaurants " congee so good he's been going since his teens
After my morning long beach walks at Repulse Bay, I usually end up at Classified (Shop 107, 1/F The Pulse, 26-30 Beach Road, Repulse Bay, tel: 2351 3454) for breakfasts.
The avocado toast is quite good. If I walk to Cyberport, I'll go to Oh Sushi (Shop 307, 3/F, 100 Cyberport Road, Pok Fu Lam, tel: 2989 6286) for crab brain sushi and to support my friend whose family is the owner.
I'm also loyal to some of my very old favourites like Nepal (14 Staunton Street, SoHo, tel: 2869 6212) and Chili Club (1/F, 88 Lockhart Road, Wan Chai, tel: 2527 2872) for Thai food.
Post-concert meals are tricky because most of the regular spots shut their kitchens early. But Paper Moon (Shop OTE301, 3/F Ocean Terminal, 3-27 Canton Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, tel: 2156 2256) has a spectacular view and can keep the kitchen open a bit later, and the Lobby Lounge (Marco Polo Hotel, 3-27 Canton Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, tel: 2113 3919) has very nice post-concert food.
For visitors, I might combine sightseeing like Shek O Beach with Shek O Thai (303 Shek O Village, tel: 2809 4426) or the Po Lin Monastery vegetarian restaurant (Ngong Ping Road, Lantau Island, tel: 2985 4736) at the Big Buddha or Chi Lin Vegetarian (Long Men Lou, Nan Lian Garden, 60 Fung Tak Road, Diamond Hill, tel: 3658 9388). The Peak Lookout (121 Peak Road, The Peak, tel: 2849 1000) is another favourite.
For a celebration, I go to Tango (1/F Carfield Commercial Building, 77 Wyndham Street, Central, tel: 2525 5808) for Argentinian steak and their fabulous provolone melted cheese.
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