it's a piece of cake!
If we've whetted your appetite and you fancy some Chinese pastries or cakes, you're in luck; there are some great places to buy them in Chinatown. Here's a couple of our favourites:
Kowloon Bakery
Right next door to (and part of) Kowloon Restaurant, Kowloon Bakery at 21-22 Gerrard Street is something of a Chinatown institution, noted for the queues that regularly spill out of the door as much as for the tempting treats found inside. If you can get in, here are a few you might like to sample:
- Pineapple Buns - named for their pineapple-like golden crusts rather than any pineapple content, these sweet, doughy buns are best served hot from the oven with a thick slice of butter in between them.
- Jin deui - a Chinese staple, jin deui look a little like doughnuts covered with sesame seeds. Instead of jam though, these crispy, chewy balls usually come filled with lotus paste, although sweet black bean or red bean paste is also used.
- Nuomici - like jin deui above, nuomici are little round balls made with sweet, sticky rice but are covered in dried coconut shavings, making them look like delicious edible snowballs. Inside you might find sugar with coconut and crumbled peanuts, red bean paste or black sesame seed paste.
- Marry Girl Cake - you probably won't be surprised to learn that this delightfully named pastry is often given as a gift at Chinese weddings. A lightly sweetened sponge cake that can come in any number of shapes and sizes, it's often filled with that old favourite - lotus seed paste.
- You tiao - these golden-brown, deep-fried strips of dough, usually eaten for breakfast, have an interesting story behind them. Meaning "oil-fried ghost" in Cantonese, legend has it that you tiao used to come shaped like two human figures meant to represent a traitorous official and his wife who plotted to frame general Yue Fei, an icon of patriotism in Chinese culture. Deep-frying the pair was thus a daily (and delicious!) act of revenge.
A form of organized chaos reigns inside this tiny shop but it's all good-natured fun; fill you bag up with whatever catches your eye and you're given a slip with your bill on it, pay at the door and you're good to go!
Golden Gate Cake Shop
Just round the corner at 13 Macclesfield Street you'll find the Golden Gate Cake Shop, a small but packed cornucopia of cakes and sweet treats. Step inside and discover shelves heaving with every conceivable pastry and bun. The protocol here is to grab a pair of tongs and a tray from just inside the door and load up with whatever takes your fancy. Try the Pedan Cake, an amazingly light sponge-style cake with a cream filling. A bit like a Swiss Roll, the most noticeable difference is the green(!) sponge. If you're after something a little more savoury, the Red Bean Cake, made from aduki beans and tasting a little like chestnut comes highly recommended, as do the huge BBQ Pork Buns, pretty much a meal in themselves. Enjoy!
