Please note that this Establishment has Ceased its Operations.
Review Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (Highly Recommended)
Address: Hong Kong, Sha Tin, 地段 311號 Pai Tau Street (Located right in the Middle of 10,000 Buddha Monastery Hill)
Google Map Link: https://maps.app.goo.gl/1CaETMCvFHRwzBxa9
(Please refer to the Timings provided in the Google Map Link for the Operating Hours.)
豆腐花 Beancurd = HKD20.00
豆漿 Soy Milk = HKD15.00
No Service Charges
⚠️ For Strict Vegans, you might want to take note that this place serves Eggs. 🥚
Here is the Full Menu of the Eatery/Restaurant.
Prices are Accurate as of the Date of the Post.
This was a Very Unique Eatery I visited when I was at the 10,000 Buddhas Monastery (萬佛寺) at Sha Tin (沙田). 🪷 It is actually located in the Middle of this Steep Hill that you climb, ⛰️ so you actually need to have abit of Fitness to actually reach this place. 💪
Actually, I myself missed it completely when I ascended the Steps myself and only really noticed it when I was on the way down. 😅
At that time, after visiting the Monastery, I had wanted to try out some Vegetarian Place, 🌱 and I don't know if it was Pure Coincidence or just Pure Fate, I discovered this place just as I was descending the Steps. 😅
Interior of the Place
When I first entered the place, I didn't even see anyone inside initially. 🤔 And if there weren't any Menu Signages, I though the place totally looked more like Someone's Private Residence instead of an Actual Eatery tbh. 🏠😅 Its has a Small and Cozy, Hole in the Wall Feel. ❤️
It is run by a Very Friendly Middle-Aged China Lady 💁 and an Elderly 85 Year Old Gentleman. 👴 I guess I wasn't wrong when I say this felt like a Private Residence, 🏠 because according to them, I learnt that they actually own the piece of land and have lived here for many years already. 🤔
The Whole Place is really very Small and is separated into a Main Dining Area with about 3 Tables and a Back Kitchen which they were happy to let me visit. 😄 Because they actually live in this place, the Kitchen totally looks like someone's Personal Home Kitchen. 🏠 No professional Kitchen Equipments or any other Fancy Kitchen Gadgets at all.
齋飯 Vegetarian Fried Rice = HKD40.00
Having no idea what to order except that I just wanted to eat something Vegetarian, 🌱 I ordered this. Its really a Very Simple Bowl of Fried Rice with some Veggies, Peas and Corn. 🍚🥬 It does have a Nice Fried Taste that uses a Good Quality Oil.
The Rice Texture is interesting because even though it looks like Standard Jasmine Rice, 🍚 its consistency is actually closer to Japanese Calrose 珍珠米 stickiness. They showed me the Rice they used and its actually a Thai Brand 🇹🇭 called Golden Peony which is supposed to be a Good Quality Rice. 🍚🤔 This is the first time I've eaten a Jasmine Rice that I can actually clump and pick up to eat with a Chopstick like Japanese-styled 珍珠米. 🍚🥢
There is Really Nothing Complex about this Bowl of Fried Rice. 🍚🤔 It tastes Very Homemade, Not Salty at All 🚫🧂and not Overly Bland. But there is something about its Pure Simplicity that actually fits in the Theme of this Place so Well. ❤️ Imagine eating this right in the Middle of a Sacred Religious Hill and after visiting a Quiet and Peaceful Monastery. 🪷 Just for the Experience, this is Unmatched! ❤️
豆腐花 Beancurd Taufufa (Hot) = HKD20.00
I ordered this only because when I toured their Kitchen, I saw Huge Vats of these lying around. So apparently they make their own Beancurd Taufufa themselves! 😳
The Taufufa here is Soft and Smooth, almost close to Australia Dairy Company's version but not quite. 🍮🤔 The Best thing about it however is that THIS comes Default Sugar-Free! 🚫🍬
This means I can ACTUALLY taste the Actual ORIGINAL Sublime Taste of the Taufu without the Sweetness of Sugar covering it. 🍮😋 So while this didn't felt as Soft or Smooth as the Version I had at 澳洲牛奶公司 Australia Dairy Company, it had the MOST AUTHENTIC Plain Taufufa taste I've ever tasted in Hong Kong by far. 😋
豆漿 Soy Milk (Hot) = HKD15.00
Because I've already tried their Taufufa, so of course I had to order this too. Personally, I've made Soy Milk myself and it is quite a long process. 🥛😅 The end result however beats ANYTHING you can buy outside. 🥛😋 豆漿 is completely different from the 豆奶 that we're used to seeing in Singapore. It has a Much Thicker Creamier taste. 😋
Real Handmade Soy Milk has a Very Very Rich and Thick Creamy taste that you can NEVER taste when you buy from outside. 🥛😋 Imagine the Most Beany Creamy Soy Milk that you've ever tasted. Its very hard to describe if you have never tasted it before. 😅 The one sold here IS Authentic Homemade Soy Milk. This is basically their Already Amazing Taufufa in a Liquid Form. ❤️ Amazing!
The Best Part of this Meal however was actually Chatting with the Elderly Old Gentleman. 👴
At 85 Years Old, he is a Sprightly Active Chap and Loves to Talk Very Much! 😄 Regularly, I can see him enthusiastically greeting Good Morning to every Regular Visitor who climbs the Hill greeting them by Name. ❤️ So you can imagine how familiar and well known he is to the Locals of the Area. ❤️
Although he smokes, 🚬 I didn't mind sitting next to him and chatting about Life and Everything. 😄 He was still very Sharp of Mind even at his Advanced Age and it really was a Joy to chit-chat with him while I ate. 😄 The Middle Aged China Lady 💁 that lives with him is not his Daughter but more a Distant Family Friend of sorts. They were both such Wonderful Meal Companions that I think I spent over an Hour here. 😄
Was it Fate that brought me here?
Personally I'm not sure but undoubtedly I feel this may be the Best Meal I've had in Hong Kong in this Trip. 🇭🇰❤️ Throughout the Meal, I thoroughly enjoyed my time here. THIS is the sort of experience that I want from an Overseas Experience. 🌏❤️ It really doesn't matter if the meal itself is simple. It's the Human to Human connection that's more Important. 👍
As I left the place, I can't help but feel that this may be the First and probably the Last Time I will see this Dear Old Man. 👴🥲 But instead of feeling sad, I actually felt a sense of Zen 😌 because it truly was Fate that allowed us, 2 Complete Strangers living Completely Different Lives to meet just at that Special Moment. 👍
The Japanese have a Very Nice Phrase for such a Situation called "Ichigo-Ichi-E" (一期一会). ❤️
Roughly translates to "For this Time Only" or "Once in a Lifetime", this term describes the concept of treasuring the Unrepeatable nature of a Moment. 🧘♂️🧘♀️
And indeed to stand in the Middle of the Watchful Eyes of Multiple Buddha Figures 🪷 right in the Middle of a Sacred Religious Location meeting up and enjoying a Nice Simple Meal 🍽️ with this Elderly Gentleman 👴 and this Friendly Lady 💁 was truly a Once in a Lifetime Transcendental Experience I will never forget! ❤️
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