Unceremoniously wedged into a one-hour slot during the work day, lunch rarely gets the respect it deserves, with many resorting to a sandwich hastily wolfed down at their desk. Thankfully, the wealth of lunch options in Hong Kong makes it easy to add a spark of gastronomic excitement to the middle of your day (and there’s no excuse not to). Keep reading for our pick of the 10 best lunch spots below.

Mr Brown

Conveniently located at the tip of Ship street, just sidestepping the hustle and bustle of Wan Chai, is grill and smokehouse restaurant Mr. Brown, whose new 3-course lunch menu (HK$160 p.p.) offers a refined midday serving of Head Chef Asher Goldstein’s boldly-flavoured dishes in an intimate wood-lined space primed for business meetings and casual gatherings alike. With three appetizers and six main dishes to choose from (including a light dessert), diners can revel in the rustic reverence of wood-fired cooking with the fresh nuances of Mediterranean ingredients. Such flavours in harmony include the smoky roasted eggplant carpaccio with yoghurt and burnt green chilli, the whipped mackerel cream with salmon roe and a warm homemade pretzel, and the utterly satisfying smoked chicken thigh smothered in tahini and tomato.

G/F, 9 Ship Street, Wan Chai; 3101 1081

Chifa

Peruvian-Chinese food might sound like a strange mix, yet it has a very real grounding in the Chinese diaspora who first settled in Peru in the mid-1800s as coolies and manual labourers. Today, their descendants are well-integrated into Peruvian society and their hybrid cuisine is the focus of Chifa, a Central eatery whose lunch menu (HK$148 p.p.) is a great way to break away from your usual açaí bowl. Start off with a selection of Peruvian-style dim sum before moving on to the more substantial grill and wok dishes, which feature classics like chaufa (a word borrowed from the Cantonese chow fan, or fried rice) and lomo saltado stir-fry.

26 Peel St, Central; 2311 1815

Cô Thành

Don’t let the unfinished concrete walls and flimsy plywood door of this Vietnamese noodle joint fool you – Cô Thành is a proven crowd-pleaser thanks to its authentic soup noodles, which restaurateur Brian Woo perfected during an apprenticeship at popular Anthony Bourdain-approved Saigon food stall, The Lunch Lady. Chow down on the bún bò Huế with an iced Vietnamese drip coffee to start your afternoon off right.

2-4 Kau U Fong, Central

Ramen Cubism

This chic basement venue is the brainchild of award-winning ramen chefs Hayashi Takao and Matsumura Takahiro. The focus here is on the soup bases, which incorporate hybrid aigamo ‘rice’ duck, organic Tanba chicken, and artisanally-harvested kagome khumbu kelp. Go for the Premium Cubism ramen and Matsu Hayashi dumplings, dipped in their signature chilli sauce.

B/F, Yuen Yick Building, 27-29 Wellington Street, Central

KALE

Blink and you’ll miss this flexitarian favourite, hidden behind a market stall in a Central laneway. Customers can order from a selection of wraps, sliders or salads, combining elements like quinoa, beetroot and roasted vegetables, with cajun or pesto chicken and crispy sweet potato fries. Making up for a lack of seating, this eatery’s generous portions will satisfy even the most ardent meat lovers.

G/F, 26 Lee Yuen Street West, Central

Spiga