Reviewer: Foodnut.com Loaf on 49 Market St. 49 Market Street, Sai Kung, Hong Kong 2792 9966 |
We recently visited Hong Kong and dined on excellent Cantonese Chinese food and more. Hong Kong is a modern city like New York, that is progressive, packed with energy, and filled with top-notch restaurants.
Buffets: Conrad Nicolini’s Sunday Brunch Buffet, Harbourside Buffet,, JW Marriott Hong Kong, Tiffen Buffet Grand Hyatt Hong Kong.
Other Hong Kong Reviews: Lung King Heen, Chuen Kee Seafood,Crystal Jade La Mian Xiao Long Bao, Fook Lam Moon, Lei Garden, Ming Court, Sai Kung Seafood Market, Sun Tung Lok, Yung Kee.
Loaf On is located in the Sai Kung area of Hong Kong, approximately 45 min. away from Tsim Sha Tsui. This area is known for seafood. It was featured on Travel Channel’s Bizarre Eats. Many restaurants have tanks full of a wide variety of live seafood, far more than you will encounter almost anywhere else.
Our memories of this place were pretty vivid and we have to return for another meal.
This nondescript restaurant received One Michelin Star in 2011, and is located away from the touristy boardwalk area.
Take the MTR to Choi Hung (Kwun Tong line), exit through at Exit C2, walk a couple feet forward, and take bus 92 or 96R at the bus stop (arrives every 5 minutes), and get off at the end of the line after a 25 minute bus ride.
Chinese Name: 六福菜館
Summary – Loaf On serves up super fresh seafood in a peaceful environment, away from the crazy Sai Kung boardwalk.
Insider Tip – Spend a day hiking or sightseeing, and then fill up your belly here.
Cuisine – Cantonese Chinese
Chef – Sam “Tiger” Chung
Location – Sai Kung, Hong Kong, China
Decor, Vibe – Loaf On is a small multifloor restaurant that has some Chinese wall decorations, Asian style chairs, and a TV on the wall. We dined on the 2nd floor which has only 6 tables.
Menu
Menu features the seafood dishes (along with lots of pictures) that define the Sai Kung area along with many Hakka Chinese dishes, as the chef is Hakka.
Signature Dishes – Seafood! Deep-fried chili salt abalone, deep-fried squid.
Picks:
Fish soup with potatoes and tomatoes (HK $32) is a signature dish that was extremely fishy but in the end pretty good. It took a while to get used to be intense fish taste of this pure and healthy soup.
Before Cooking
Chili and garlic Fried Mantis Shrimp – lài niào xia (HK$, seasonal price) or pissing shrimp (it urinates when cooked) were 2 huge shrimp deep fried with spicy salt on top. They were the best version we’ve ever tasted. The lower legs were crispy and could be eaten with the shell intact.
The internal meat was very sweet and tender. We needed to use special scissors to cut these bad boys open. Loaf On this not maintain seafood tanks, so they go out to the market and purchase live seafood as it is ordered.
This is one dish that constantly reminds us of Hong Kong. One day, we will return to Sai Kung and gorge ourselves on these again. We once called Koi Palace In Daly City and ask for them about mantis shrimp. They do receive them from time to time, so check back with them often.
Steamed Scallops with garlic and bean vermicelli (HK$, seasonal price) were 4 good sized scallops cooked by steaming with garlic and thin rice vermicelli noodles. An excellent dish with super tender scallops balanced perfectly with the savory sauce and noodles. This extraordinary but simple dish redefines what scallops are, in our mind.
Geoduck Clam before Slicing
Geoduck Sashimi (HK$500, seasonal price) is sold by weight, with each live clam weighing in the 2lb neighborhood. Yes they look gross, but are tasty. Geoduck sashimi is sliced up super thin, and served on a bed of ice. It was a little fishy, but very crunchy, chewy, and super fresh. It is served with wasabi, lemon, and soy sauce on the side. While we’ve had fresh Geo duck at places like Zen Peninsula in Millbrae in the past, the freshness of this sashimi took our enjoyment to a new level.
Salt-and-pepper deep-fried bean curd (HK $68) possessed silky tofu surrounded by a layer of thin batter resulting in a nice crunchy coating. The soy based sauce was not very salty.
OK: (Order if you like this dish)
None
Pans: (We would not reorder these dishes)
None
Service – Loaf On service was decent but not top tier. Two guys man this floor and run things efficiently.
Value – Prices are reasonable and in line with restaurants of this class. Seafood prices are mainly dictated by market conditions.
Alternatives – Nearby restaurants include Chuen Kee Seafood which has seafood tanks in front and is situated on the main drag.
Verdict – Loaf On dishes out what Sai Kung Hong Kong is famous for, the freshest seafood you can find, cooked in a simple manner with pure ingredients, highlighting the bounty of the sea. The food here is slightly better than Chuen Kee Seafood.
Open Rice page – Rating 3.9
Restaurant Map:
1 Comment
Shamima Chiba
June 10, 2012 at 8:44 ammy husband and I have lived in Sai Kung for almost 30 years .A group of our friend ( 10 in total ) wanted to have a meal at Loaf On . We spent to see the owner personally Sat morning to book a table for Sunday . he told us he would give us an 8.15 seating , took our number and said he would call . we presumed our table was booked . On Sunday I received a call at 4pm to say they had no table for us . The cheek ! take our reservation or don’t -maybe there were other higher spenders!!??? another couple in our group told us they had the same experience and they had booked 3 days in advance .
I shall write to Sai Kung magazine and Michelin to launch our complaint about their lack of ethics
Dont care if the food is good or not – I have eaten there before BUT will advise all my friends not to bother with this restaurant . they can feed the stupid tourists instead !!