Lung Kee Wanton 龍記招牌雲吞, Hong Kong
My mom is on a flight to Hong Kong now, and I cannot be more jealous. While I'm stuck doing final projects in Beantown, she will be enjoying the warmer weather and the endless feasts of Hong Kong food. There are many things that I miss eating when I'm in America, but on the top of that list today is a bowl of wonton noodle soup.
A bowl of wonton noodle soup is not that hard to come by in any Chinatown across the world, but having a great bowl of wonton noodle soup is surprisingly challenging. Most places don't put much thought into their wontons and put a thimble amount of pork and mushy shrimp served in overcooked limp wraps. There are many conflicting schools of thought on what the perfect wonton should be like, but I'm going to have to say the following:
1. thin slippery wrap
2. stuffed with fresh succulent shrimp
3. served on top of thin bouncy egg noodles
4. all in a bowl of umami (maybe msg) heavy clear broth
5. with plenty of red vinegar and Chiu Chow chili oil on the side
Now, those are my credentials for a satisfying bowl of wonton noodle soup and like I said, there are very few places that meet all my standards. So I'm going to let you in on my favorite wonton shop in Hong Kong. It's located on Kowloon island in Tsim Sha Tsui embedded in Carnarvon Road, which is packed with bustling restaurants serving everything from Vietnamese to Turkish to Chiu Chow cuisine. Lung Kee has been around, and you know it's legit because the menu only has three entrees options: wontons, fish paste balls, and sliced beef on thin or thick noodles. They do what they do the right way and their limited choices make a killing.
Their wontons are larger than the average size, amounting to somewhere between a ping pong ball and a golf ball. And though some people find this sacrilegious, the filling is 100% fresh meaty shrimp and no pork. For all you shrimp lovers, this is the wonton for you. You will never remember ever eating a wonton noodle soup with such bounce. Add some of their beef to your order, too. It's unbelievably tender. 27HKD a bowl may be steep for locals, but that comes out to about $4USD. That with a plate of lard laden chives... noodle nirvana.
Carnarvon Road
Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon
Hong Kong
