Fresh Flavor Holiday @ Luk Fook Restaurant

Last Tuesday, while the weather was still good, I went to Sai Kung with Dad and friends for lunch. Since it’s rare to visit Sai Kung, of course, we chose a quality restaurant to dine at. The first place that came to mind was Luk Fook Restaurant, a Michelin one-star restaurant in Sai Kung! After dining there last year, I couldn’t stop thinking about it and privately invited friends to come back and satisfy my cravings. The restaurant has held a Michelin one-star rating for 16 consecutive years, which speaks volumes about its excellence. I especially like that the restaurant uses high-quality ingredients, and everything is clearly priced and honest. When in Sai Kung, trying the authentic Sai Kung fish soup is a must, priced at $248. It’s made with a variety of fresh fish simmered to create a sweet and delicious broth, enhanced with tomatoes and potatoes for even better flavor. The rice broth slow-cooked scallop is $140 each! Using elegant rice broth to slowly cook fresh scallops, topped with savory Jinhua ham paste, the taste is a perfect balance of sweetness and saltiness with great depth. Braised shiitake mushrooms with chicken feet is $188! Besides seafood, the side dishes are also of high quality. I was truly amazed by this dish—the thick shiitake mushrooms are braised to a smooth and flavorful texture, bursting with rich juice and exceptional taste. The chicken feet are cooked just right, tender yet with a good bite, very enjoyable. Salt and pepper baked Dalian abalone is $155 each! The abalone is palm-sized and very generous in portion. The ultra-thin salt and pepper crust tightly wraps the chewy and springy abalone, delivering a flavorful and fresh taste of high quality. Steamed eggplant with garlic vermicelli is $148! This is a dish I often cook at home because eggplant is my favorite vegetable. The eggplant is peeled, leaving only the soft flesh, paired with richly flavored garlic and savory vermicelli, perfectly suited to my taste. Seeing the salt and pepper tofu on the neighboring table for $60, we couldn’t resist ordering a portion! The thin, crispy skin is light and not greasy, leaving a deep impression, while the ultra-smooth tofu inside melts in your mouth—truly irresistible. Herbal spicy wine cooked sea snails are $298! The herbal spicy broth is filled with the rich aroma of Shaoxing wine, very enticing. The sea snails are cooked just right, soaking up the flavorful broth, making them incredibly delicious. Hakka salted vegetables and wood ear mushrooms braised pork belly is $188! This dish is perfect with rice. The Hakka salted vegetables are flavorful, and the wood ear mushrooms are crunchy, but nothing beats the tender, soft pork belly with skin. This dish is decadently sinful but hard to resist. Finally, there’s the Sai Kung boat steamed rice for $288! It’s packed with a variety of seafood and fragrant Chinese sausage. Without any seasoning, one bite bursts with salty and fresh aroma that’s so strong, it makes you want to keep eating without stopping. At the end, the manager even treated us to the restaurant’s signature Thai desserts! The coconut milk sago pudding and butterfly pea flower coconut jelly cake were both excellent. I heard they will soon open a dessert specialty shop, so I must try it next time. Sai Kung is truly a place of beautiful mountains and waters! Especially for seafood lovers like me, I often think about wandering around to soak in the holiday vibe. I believe I will be back to Sai Kung soon to eat, drink, and have fun again.