Located to the north-west of Hong Kong Island, Sheung Wan is the ramshackle neighbour of Central and Sai Ying Pun. Traditional medicine and dried seafood shops line Wing Lok Street, Ko Shing Street and Bonham Strand, remnants of the area’s vibrant trade history, but it’s the plethora of trendy restaurants, bars, shops and art galleries that have popped up in recent years that draw the weekend crowds. It’s a perfect mix of old and new Hong Kong, with stylish eateries nestled subtly between lively streets, colonial buildings and Man Mo Temples.
EAT
Chachawan
There’s plenty of frenetic energy to be found at this Thai restaurant in Sheung Wan, where an open-kitchen dishes out powerful plates from the country’s north-east Isaan region. With old Thai movie posters, advertisements and classifieds adorning the walls, this is a trendy space but that doesn’t mean it lets the dishes take a back seat. A beautifully balanced menu of sweet, sour, salt and spicy Thai flavours includes som dtum goong — a fiery pounded green papaya salad with dried shrimp, crispy pork and a tamarind dressing – and whole salt-crusted seabass stuffed with lemongrass, pandanas and lime leaf, with a chilli dipping sauce.
206 Hollywood Rd, Tai Ping Shan; chachawan.hk
Frantzén’s Kitchen
Run by head chef Jim Lofdahl who has imported some classics from the original Nordic kitchen of the same name, but added some creative twists of his own, Frantzen’s Kitchen is a small restaurant set in a 1960s tenement building on Upper Station Street that serves up spectacular dishes made from unusual ingredients. The French toast with winter truffles, balsamic vinegar and mature cheese is iconic, while dishes such as the one-bite “swedish sushi,” green asparagus with a fermented sauce, and the house-smoked Norwegian salmon all come as elevated small plates.
11 Upper Station St, Sheung Wan; frantzenskitchen.com
Tate Dining Room and Bar
Immaculate food is the name of the game at the Tate Dining Room in Sheung Wan, where Chef Vicky Lau plates up dishes that are both artistic and tasty. Set on Hollywood Road, the huge space is a lesson in stylish minimalism with a muted palate of greys and pinks serving as the backdrop to an inspired dining experience. At the heart of each dish are premium and seasonal ingredients prepared in a way that stimulates all senses.
210 Hollywood Rd, Sheung Wan; tate.com.hk
Dandy’s Organic Café
Chef and owner Vivi’s healthy and satisfying dishes have made her trendy mural-filled café a popular lunch and dinner spot. The avocado chicken salad with pesto dressing, fish collagen vegetable broth, and green vegan curry are a few must-try items. The shelves are stocked with gluten-free pasta, homemade dressings and health-food products that you can buy and take home too.
32 Upper Lascar Row; facebook.com/dandysorganiccafe
Sheung Wan Cooked Food Market
Photo: K. Y. Cheng/South China Morning Post at Getty Images
With neon lights, plastic stalls and menus haphazardly jutting out from all walls, this buzzy food hall is one of the most popular in the city for an affordable meal and lively atmosphere. It’s one of Hong Kong’s largest, and uses the fresh ingredients from the wet markets on the floors below to create plates of international cuisine. There’s Italian at ABC Kitchen, which has red and white patterned table clothes and serves up pastas and meat mains, while Thai curries and Indian food can be found alongside the always-busy Chinese restaurants.
Sheung Wan Municipal Services Building, 345 Queen’s Road Central, Sheung Wan
Man Mo Dim Sum
This contemporary Dim Sum restaurant brought a Din Tai Fung Master and Robuchon Sous Chef together to create a Chinoiserie-esque food experience in the form of small dumplings full of flavour. The décor is intriguing, the drinks are top notch, and each little morsel will have you coming back for seconds and thirds.
40 Upper Lascar Row; manmodimsum.com
Yardbird
Founders Lindsay Jang and Matt Abbergal have created one of Hong Kong’s most famous restaurants that specialises in Yakitori chicken. Nothing goes to waste here, and every piece of the bird is marinated, spiced, grilled and skewered perfectly for anticipatory diners. The KFC (Korean Fried Cauliflower), Sweetcorn Tempura and Cucumber Salad are a hit with veggie lovers, and the Sake served with a smile always goes down a treat, as does the ice-cream sandwich. You can’t book a table, and the wait is long but worth it so show up early to get a seat.
154-158 Wing Lok Street; yardbirdrestaurant.com
Oddies Foodies
The most Instagrammable spot in Sheung Wan is this egg-waffle ice-cream sundae joint complete with a Pepto-Bismol pink wall. The signature Night Wolf features Nutella-filled ‘eggettes’ atop low-fat Italian gelato, chocolate syrup and passion fruit pannacotta. Sounds random, tastes delicious.
45 Gough Street; facebook.com/oddiesfoodies
DRINK
Halfway Coffee
Serving good, strong coffee in eclectic porcelain cups, Halfway Coffee is a contemporary Chinese cafe nestled between haphazard heaps of memorabilia on Cat Street, selling jade bracelets and vintage posters. Inside, it’s all brushed and exposed concrete, antique school tables and retro lamps, while a spacious area outside hums with the energy of the surrounding market stalls. There’s a short menu of delicious sweet and savoury breakfast items, that’s presented exquisitely.
12 Tung St, Sheung Wan; facebook.com/halfwaycoffeehk
Dai Bing
From the team behind Sai Ying Pun’s Ping Pong 109 Gintonería, is another stylish destination bar that specialises in long drinks and Portuguese petiscos. It’s name means ‘big ice’ in Cantonese, which makes sense when you know that this is home to Hong Kong’s first Artisanal Ice Suite – a cold chamber behind the bar that produces custom-made, purified ice for each cocktail. Dancing is encouraged on Saturdays when a DJ takes to the decks and the bar is open until 2am.
52 Bonham Strand West, Sheung Wan; facebook.com/daibinghk
teakha
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Nana Chan opened teakha on a sleepy, leafy street in Sheung Wan in early 2012, to recreate a space where tea and cakes could bring people together, inspired by cultures from all over the world, where tea stalls or teahouses are often gathering grounds for conversations. From Hong Kong’s very own milk tea or yuan yang to masala chai from India and Moroccan mint tea, teakha creates a varied tea-drinking experience for its guests using tea that is carefully sourced from small plantations around the world with the help of its sister brand Plantation by teakha. The rustic cakes are worth sampling too, homemade with an Asian fineness.
Shop B, 18 Tai Ping Shan St, Sheung Wan; teakha.com
Kaffeine
This blonde-wood fronted and filled spot in Sheung Wan brags, as it’s name would suggest, great coffee but also impressive food for a space so small. From pastries and breakfast classics to heartier dishes like overstuffed (in the best possible way) burgers and wagyu steaks — there’s plenty on the menu to satisfy everyone’s cravings. Served in a coconut is a healthy granola and greek yogurt bowl with fresh blueberries and strawberries, or sweeten your morning with a chocolate french toast.
108 Jervois St, Sheung Wan; facebook.com/kaffeinehk
18 Grams
No neighbourhood list is complete without a strong coffee contender, and 18 Grams hits the spot. The world-class barista serves up beautiful locally-roasted beans in every style imaginable. The cold brew bottle is particularly impressive and is a perfect afternoon pick me up.
77 Wing Lok Street; 18grams.com
SHOP
Château Zoobeetle
This chic concept store founded by three Parisians has it all: fashion and accessories, food, wine and music. The two-storey boutique specialises in designer leather goods inspired by art and travel. Labels change with the seasons, but everything is stylishly curated featuring accessory brands for men, women and children, plus perfect gift ideas and books. One of the partners of the co-owners is a former record executive and watches over a small music section that spans several genres from the electronic to indie rock.
Château Zoobeetle, 38 Sai Street, Sheung Wan; zoobeetle.com
Select 18
This haphazard shop in Sheung Wan is filled to the brim with vintage memorabilia and retro knickknacks, from old-school Hong Kong paraphernalia to remnants of the colonial era that once included a stained portrait of the Queen that used to hang in a school in the 1970s. There are vintage posters and lights, sunglasses and jewellery collected by the owner Mido Dhillon, a Hong Konger who fell in love with the local history, while exploring his own heritage, and began collecting items.
14 Tung Street, Sheung Wan; instagram.com/select18_mido
Cat Street Curiosities
Upper Lascar Row (also known as Cat Street) is the perfect place to pick up handicrafts like rose quartz jade rollers, real and replica Ming dynasty antiques, light fixtures, Cultural Revolution memorabilia and other second-hand items. If you have a good eye, you will stumble across some interesting ornaments, either for gifts or for your home.
Upper Lascar Row/Cat Street
SEE & DO
Contemporary By Angela Li
Photo: Flamboyance by Ng Chung. Courtesy of Contemporary by Angela Li
Since it was established in 2008, Contemporary by Angela Li has become one of Hong Kong’s top galleries for promoting contemporary and avant-garde artists primarily from Hong Kong and mainland China. From paintings to three-dimensional sculptures, photography and video work, the gallery represents both established and emerging young artists, including Chen Wenling, Li Hongbo, Lv Shanchuan, Shi Jindian, Peter Steinhauer and Martin Wehmer.
248 Hollywood Rd, Sheung Wan; cbal.com.hk
Liang Yi Museum
This four-storey museum on Hollywood Road is home to one of the world’s largest collections of Chinese antique furniture from the Ming and Qing dynasties. It started in the 1980s and has grown to include almost 400 pieces, some of which have been exhibited in museums around Asia. The museum also houses a collection of bejewelled clutches, compacts and powder boxes made by designers such as Cartier, Boucheron and Van Cleef & Arpels using precious stones and exquisite craftsmanship. It’s by appointment only from Tuesday to Saturday, and guided tours can be arranged for $200.
181-199 Hollywood Rd, Sheung Wan; liangyimuseum.com
Man Mo Temple
Donate dollars for incense and pay your respects to the God of Literature in one of the oldest and most photographed temples in Hong Kong. Taking in the Qing Dynasty architecture in this spiritual spot is a great way to relax in one of the busiest cities in the world.
124-126 Hollywood Road
Western Market
Photo: Marcio Rodgrio Machado/S3studio at Getty Images
Set in an impressive red-brick Edwardian building, this shopping complex showcases everything from traditional arts and crafts to the fabric merchants who were originally located in the old alleys of Central and now dominate the top two floors. Chinese restaurant The Grand Stage sits on the balcony, overlooking a huge dance floor that’s a popular spot for ballroom dancing and wedding parties, below a shimmering 10-foot crystal chandelier.
323 Des Voeux Rd, Sheung Wan; westernmarket.com.hk
Editor
Dervla Louli & Emma Russell
