Just a hop, skip and jump away from Hong Kong Science Museum and Hong Kong Museum of History is 70s Food Dining by Vintage House, a new food court in the heart of bustling Tsim Sha Tsui. The 7,500-square-foot dining hall is spread between two floors, with the 100-seat ground floor featuring six stalls and the upper floor offering a more refined Japanese-Italian fusion menu in a separate restaurant called Earth (this restaurant is yet to open, so stay tuned).
A nostalgic nod to founder Michael Chan’s childhood in Malaysia, 70s Food Dining attempts to bring a taste of Southeast Asian hawker centres to Hong Kong. There are an array of food stalls to choose from, ranging from local flavours to those with more international flair.
After perusing the options, ranging from popular Thai Grill, to Treasure Burger, to a Chinese vegetarian kiosk, we settled down with cups of apple and rose oolong ice tea ($28) whilst we waited for our orders to arrive. Most menus are accessed via QR code, and there’s a central counter for payment.
The daily double-boiled soup ($68–88) comes as a standalone dish as well as part of the set lunch. According to our calculations, it’s much more economical to just go for the whole set, which includes the soup and a main, setting you back around $80 in total. Our lean pork soup was packed full of ingredients, making it quite a filling dish on its own.
The delicately tender pork belly with minced garlic ($58) from Ma Spicy Cuisine is sliced paper-thin. We enjoyed the pickled vegetables that blanket the bottom of the dish, especially when soaked in all the garlicky juices.
The Malay bak kut teh ($85) comes with a side of rice to soak up all the herby, medicinal juices of this dish. The pork ribs were tender, and the slightly bitter herbal soup packed in a lot of flavour (we particularly liked the shiitake mushrooms). We were told that this dish is so authentic that the Malaysian Consulate here regularly orders from this stall!
The prawn cakes were fluffy and bouncy, fresh from the fryer. These crunchy cakes are part of a larger sharing platter ($118) that also includes satay, spring rolls and chicken wings.
The main event of our tasting was the sliced fish simmered in pickled cabbage ($178) from Ma Spicy Cuisine. This large dish is more fitting of a proper restaurant rather than a food court, with robust flavours thanks to the tart pickled vegetables and generous amount of Sichuan peppercorn. Created by Chef Bong, who used to work at now-closed L16 in Hong Kong Park, this à-la-carte main course is available daily from 12pm onwards.
Verdict
With the recent opening of more and more food halls in Hong Kong, 70s Food Dining stands out owing to its focus on Southeast Asian flavours. It’s an easy detour for museum-goers to fill up before or after an excursion.
G/F & 1/F, 46 Granville Road, TST, 2866 0111
This write-up is based on a complimentary media tasting provided in exchange for an honest review and no monetary compensation. The opinions expressed here represent the author’s.
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