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| - The way that every Chinese dinner ends is with (Tong Sui, which literally means, sweet water). The term itself refers to any sweet, warm soup or custard and is a Cantonese specialty that stands in a category of its own for desserts. [1]The most common type you'll encounter would be (Red Bean Soup). However, it can get tiring. So when I want to have a Chinese dessert that is anything other than red bean soup, I either turn to Hung Fook Tong or Double Ming Chinese Dessert. Unfortunately, Double Ming was closed (around 9PM on Sunday) so we went to Hung Fook Tong.
I find the crowd at HFT is a mixed crowd. You have your older couples that come here in groups of couples, families, and adolescents. The lighting is extremely bright and there are a mixture of booths and wooded chairs for seating options.
The service here is a hit and miss depending on when you're here and how busy they are. You basically write down the item number, whether or not you want it hot/cold (if applicable) and then wave down a server.There are quite a few items on the menu that require 15 minutes preparation (e.g. Steamed Whole Papaya with Egg Whites & Milk, Steamed Egg Whites to name a few). That is because these dishes need to be steamed slowly on low heat (obviously because you don't want to be eating curdled egg whites). My tip would be to call ahead so that when you arrive its ready. Otherwise, your dining companions might be long finished eating, and then there's the awkwardness that ensues when you're the only one eating!
Other than your regular Tong Sui, there are also various jellies, mochis, herbal teas, and even waffles if you're not brave enough to try out foreign things.Tonight we were a party of four and opted for individual desserts and we also ordered a few to share.
I ordered the Steamed Whole Papaya with Egg Whites and Milk. This is somewhat of a "delicacy" item and is available sometimes at dim sum restaurants, but usually for a hefty price tag (around $9 or so). Its not that its particularly hard to make, because you basically take a baby papaya and then scoop out a square where the milk and egg whites go. But it always amazes me how good a simple steamed papaya, filled with what is basically a steamed egg white custard tastes. The papaya's natural sweetness was definitely enhanced through the steaming process.
To share, we ordered a Chrysanthemum, Longan & Wolf Berry Jelly. Presentation-wise, its not impressive, but this is a very refreshing dish to have - especially in the summer time.We also ordered the Durian "Hearts" which are basically mochis with a durian filling in the centre. This mochi reminded me of ice cream mochi as the durian in the centre was nice and cold and the natural creamy and buttery texture (in a good quality durian) made for an ice-cream-like consistency. Yummy!
For those of you who are familiar with durian, it is sort of like the stinky tofu of fruits and a rather acquired taste. You either love it or hate it. It also makes a huge difference to buy it fresh. Most people who hate it, are the ones who have had the frozen variety. The reason why that is is because it is a very precise art to open up a durian. A durian is a very spiky fruit that grows on trees (hate to stand under one and have one fall on me - eek). The fruit itself is contained in "pouches" or "pods" and so the way in which one opens the fruit is crucial. If you don't open it properly, you won't be able to access the fruit. I also got to try the Black Sticky Rice with Toddy Palm Seeds. I was not a real fan of this dish as I found the bit of sourness from the coconut milk unpleasant. The toddy palm seeds were also a little too firm for me, and I would've liked them to have been a little softer.
I usually steer away from their desserts with glutinous rice balls as they don't have any filling in them and I would rather not be eating flavourless globs of dough.
The total for 4 individual desserts + 2 desserts to share came to about $43 with the steamed whole papaya being the most expensive item (at $9). Desserts here range from $4-$30 (if you get anything with swallow's nest in it).
Verdict:
Hung Fook Tong is everything that you would expect out of a Tong Sui shop and Leung Cha Po (herbal tea shop). The two usually go hand-in-hand.
Chinese desserts tend to err on the side of being less sweet as we tend to enjoy savory as opposed to sweet. In fact, most Chinese (especially the elder generation) tend to find western desserts to be too sweet.
Most Chinese desserts claim to have some sort of health benefit to them. Stories of how papayas lead to breast enhancement, and hasma leads to improved skin clarity means the ladies are frequent customers at these tong sui shops.
For me, I just come for the steamed whole papaya in all its sweet glory!
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