Hong Kong Style Cafes (Cha Chan Teng)
At a Hong Kong cafe, there is an eclectic mix of food from a fusion of Cantonese and Western (Primarily British) cuisine, Cantonese fares, and even Asian food from outside of China. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, and even late night fare are often found at these cafes. These cafes tend to be a jack-of-all-trades type of restaurants and have a wide range of opening time.
A few sampling items:
Drinks
- Hong Kong milk tea - Hong Kong milk tea is a tea drink made ideally from a mix of several black tea (oddly called red tea in Cantonese) and usually evaporated milk (though condensed milk is also another option). I’ve noticed a few bay area places tend to add sugar before hand so I prefer to ask them for the milk to be unsweetened and then add a few bits of additional sugar for my own tastes.Compared to boba milk tea, the HK milk tea tends to be a lot stronger in tea taste and concentration.
- Yin yeung - A combination of Hong Kong milk tea and coffee.
- Lemon Ice Tea - A perennial classic where the black tea is mixed with rock sugar syrup and a few lemon slices poked and prodded until the juices from the lemon is thoroughly mixed. Supposedly less sugary than sweet tea…
- Lemon coke - To most people, this combination isn’t too odd… until you hear that the drink can be served hot as well! In fact, the heated version can be considered a cold remedy of sorts especially if you add a bit of ginger to it.
Food:
- Macaroni in soup: Usually part of a breakfast set, macaroni in soup is literally elbow macaroni placed in soup (often chicken broth based). There is some protein source added to it as well, usually ham, chicken, or beef. For the breakfast set, usually toast and milk tea is included. I consider the simple macaroni and soup to be a comfort food item as well.
- Baked rice/spaghetti: Typically a dish with fried rice or spaghetti on the bottom with some protein/vegetable item on top covered in a red/white sauce. A classic one would be baked pork chops over rice. Here’s a little criteria guide: [SFBA] Good baked pork chop rice?
- “French” Toast: HK style French toast is an interesting take on the snack. The French toast is typically prepared with sandwiching at least two slices of bread with peanut butter (be aware if you have nut allergies!), and then dipping it in the egg wash and then deep fried. Served with butter and syrup, it is bound to give your cardiologist a heart attack.
Where to eat?
San Francisco
- Cafe Bakery
- Tak Kee Lee
- New Regents Cafe
- VIP Coffee & Cake Shop
- Cafe New Honolulu
- Orchids Cafe
- Venus Cafe
- Smile House Cafe
- T-28 Bakery & Cafe
- S & E Cafe
- Ken Kee
- Goldendelicious
Peninsula:
- Cafe Orchid
- Cafe Salina
- ABC Bakery & Cafe
East Bay:
- Shooting Star Cafe
- Cafe Baby (Emeryville and Oakland)
- HK Home Kitchen - El Cerrito
- [San Lorenzo] Sisi's Hong Kong Cafe 香港茶餐廳
Check out all the other topics on the regional Cantonese cuisine
