Most weekends we find ourselves having dinner in Sai Kung.
This Sunday we did breakfast instead. We meant to eat in Ali Oli Bakery, but dining al fresco at 12°C without a heater didn't sound very appealing. Luckily the square it was located in had other options, and the new addition next door called Classified looked warm and inviting. It had big glass windows, and upon entering you pass a wall stacked with wine and are then greeted by a display of cheese, tarts and croissants. It was like stepping into Europe? ;-)
The coffee was not spectacular, but the food we had was not bad at all. Brad had french toast of thick bread with bananas and maple syrup, which he paired with tasty English sausage. I had eggs Benedict with Serrano ham. I also tried an almond croissant which was the right flaky on the outside, though it had a sugary filling inside which reminded me of ensaimada; a pretty good ensaimada I must say. I should order the plain croissant next time and see if I can get the right light-and-flaky that Brad and I remember fondly from our honeymoon trip in France.
Total cost was ~HKD240/USD30. This makes me cringe because it's steep for breakfast, but acceptable for Hong Kong standard (plus, Brad's paying).This Sunday we did breakfast instead. We meant to eat in Ali Oli Bakery, but dining al fresco at 12°C without a heater didn't sound very appealing. Luckily the square it was located in had other options, and the new addition next door called Classified looked warm and inviting. It had big glass windows, and upon entering you pass a wall stacked with wine and are then greeted by a display of cheese, tarts and croissants. It was like stepping into Europe? ;-)
The coffee was not spectacular, but the food we had was not bad at all. Brad had french toast of thick bread with bananas and maple syrup, which he paired with tasty English sausage. I had eggs Benedict with Serrano ham. I also tried an almond croissant which was the right flaky on the outside, though it had a sugary filling inside which reminded me of ensaimada; a pretty good ensaimada I must say. I should order the plain croissant next time and see if I can get the right light-and-flaky that Brad and I remember fondly from our honeymoon trip in France.
Consequently we are reminded of the dearth of equivalent dining options in Ma On Shan (MOS) where we live, and we ended up discussing why Sai Kung is a good market for Classified but probably not for our neighbourhood. Sai Kung has a lot more gwei lo's (literally, ghost men or Caucasians), and Classified has a look that is like a beacon for western foreigners. In fact while we were there, the patrons were 99% European/North American (the 1% would be me...). Sai Kung probably has enough expats and foreigners who would appreciate (and be okay to pay for) the dining experience Classified offered.
But still, we have a number of upper-middle class people in our town, and wouldn't they want to dine in a nice cafe without having to go all the way to Sai Kung, or other urban areas, or high end malls?
But perhaps that's exactly the reason -- that they don't want to pay Hong Kong island prices when they're only dining in MOS. It could be a matter of perception of value. Established chains like McDonald's and KFC as well as regular and fast food Chinese restaurants fare quite well in our neighbourhood. Meals here cost around HKD20-40, generally tasting average, but "fit for purpose." They are functional meals, not meant to impress dining patrons, although tasty enough to not disappoint either.
Anyway I suspect if Classified were in Ma On Shan, there would always be a looong queue to get a table, tables will be crammed close together offering little privacy to patrons, and dining will have to be a quick in and out. Rental costs in MOS are stupidly high too and I could imagine they'll need to increase customer volume and turnover, scale down on food quality to make a decent profit.
So! In conclusion, that's why we should just take the 30minute commute to Sai Kung. [It's better that way.]
- Jill
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