I find myself drawn to this area in the eastern district on Hong Kong island called Tin Hau (天后), named after the Tin Hau Temple nearby. In case you are wondering, Tin Hau ("Heavenly Goddess") is a goddess of the sea to protect fishermen and sailors during their sea voyage.
Tin Hau is famed for small eateries and eclectic shops. For the past few weeks, Dar and I have been trawling the area and considering the option of making the area our home for the next year. (Our lease would be up soon and going by the rate that property prices and rental are hiked, we may not be able to afford our current place now.)
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| Love to live in this cool walk-up apartment! |
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Last Sunday after Dar's basketball game, we had tunch at a cafe in Tin Hau called Pumpernickel. It's a home-grown cafe, popular for its bakery items. It's specialty bread is .... guess what....Pumpernickel bread. The outlet in Tin Hau (later I found out that it has a couple of outlets and a restaurant.) is a small, cosy place of about 7 or 8 small tables (yes, a very intimate size. This is Hong Kong, remember?)
The cafe was fairly quiet with patrons chatting nearly inaudibly (thank you for that!) and soft music playing in the background. In Pumpernickel, you are transported away from the noise and crowds that Hong Kong is associated with.
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| An old piano sits with some old books. |
You can flip magazines, fiddle with your Ipad, nurse a coffee and while an afternoon away, not to mention escape the withering heat in this air-conditioned enclave. There is no sharing of tables or be pressurized to leave after you consume your food, unlike the char chan teng (local eateries) here.
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| Love this drinking glass! |
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| Will they notice if I slip one into my bag? |
I ordered a German potato salad with bangers with soup and of course, its Pumpernickel bread while Dar ordered a steak baguette. No woots or sighs about the food we had though the soup was surprisingly robust, creamy and flavorful (much better than those watery soup that comes in a set lunch). The bread, served warm, was crusty at the top and soft to bite. Yum!
The cafe's Crumbly Cheesecake waved at both of us from the cake fridge and we were tempted. Our stomachs could fit some desserts but we decided not to push it and do no justice to it. Oh Crumbly Cheesecake...we will be back for you...
