Chinese Fire Pot - What?!!

Contrary to what a kitchen-challenged person like Greg would think, Chinese Fire Pot is not a secret Kung Fu technique.

An illustration of Greg's over-imagination.

Chinese Fire Pot, or it's less dramatic name Steam Boat, is something rather common that you can find in any restaurant in Hong Kong. It's basically a meal where you dump fresh edible ingredients into a hot, sweet & steaming soup which is cooking right in the middle of the table. One way of looking at it is that it's a form of communal cooking. Fundamentally, you pay to cook on your own.

Look at the horse power!

Steamboats are nothing uncommon. You can find it everywhere in Kuching, Malaysia, or in any other parts of Asia. But, having spent many years watching steamboat meals in the TVB drama serials, I couldn't help but to think that there might be something special with Hong Kong steamboats. So naturally when we were in Hong Kong, it was on my list of must-do.

According to our food bible, there's this place aptly called Yaw Guet Hei which literally meant Got Bone Smell, which explains why they gave us this.



In Hong Kong restaurants, they really make you do the work before you order.

Basically that meant Greg, being a banana, is out of the picture. Which left me (a half-baked handicapped reader trying to recall chinese characters from TVB subtitles) & CK who knows enough Mandarin to order the whole menu.

Choices for the soup bases ranges from the traditional soup bone with fresh corn and vegie, tom yam, chicken with wine and another more extensive version of traditional one.

Sww-eeeet! Where in the world did these corns come from?
They were one of the best that I've ever had.

Prices for soup base range from HKD99 to 189. This is a one off price. You order one pot to be shared and the soup refill comes at no additional charges. We went for the Eat-all you-want HKD89/person package which included an extensive list of items on the menu:

veges

mushrooms

tofus
meat slices

fish & meat balls

fish slices

This menu also included interesting dim sums, both sweet and savoury. And we dumped them in.

Quite an impressive line-up of items. For HKD89, this place is not scrimping at all. Well, for that price, it'd better not be.

However, there will always be a BUT - Drinks are not included. And there is an extra charge of HKD10 for soya sauce.

From watching steamboat meals in HK restaurants in TVB series, now I was eating steamboat in a HK restaurant while watching TVB series. I knew I was in heavenly bliss.

I have completed the circle of life. I was finally where the stars were.