Pakistan Mess @ Chung King Mansion |
We on the other hand, being meat lovers, of course will go high and low for halal food :p coincidentally, we stumbled upon this place after an early dinner at Ziafat Restaurant (Harilela Mansion) at the opposite road of Chung King Mansion. We only noticed it because hubby wanted to look for a money changer and that place is full of money changers. The entrance of Chung King Mansion is easily missed, but it is just beside the huge SASA and directly opposite the traffic light signals. If you are a hungry tourist lost looking for halal food, fret not, the restaurants touts will zoom on you so fast, you will be helplessly escorted to their respective restaurants if you are not firm. But, once you said that "Oh, I just had my dinner" they will immediately leave your side as you are just wasting their time.
I would not encourage you going exploring the Chung King Mansions on your own, trying to see which restaurants suit your fancy unless you just want to stick to the ones on the ground floor; as the floors of Chung King Mansions are separated by 3 different lift areas and each lift area has 2 lifts serving different levels. You will get lost trying to look around. But the food outlets at the ground floor of Chung King Mansion are more like small stalls and the chairs (if some have) are just red stools which can be quite uncomfortable if you have small kids and carrying lots of shopping bags. Food also seems to have been prepared before hand. When we were there the first time (which was around 7.00pm), we passed by 4 policemen escorting one man in handcuffs!
Well, apparently that incident didn't deter us from coming two days later and I picked Pakistan Mess' representative to guide us to their restaurant. We walked straight on to the third lift landing and took the lift on the left that serves level 4. Apparently, there is an understanding between all lift users that they have to stand in queue waiting for their turn to take the lift. The lifts are also equipped with a camera, and the people waiting for the lifts can see what is going on inside the lifts, so no need to be anxious if you are with a stranger in the lift. We saw numerous people of different nationalities staying at the innumerable hostels at Chung King Mansions, Indonesians, Nigerians, and also some Caucasians. Hubby was curious to take a peek at the hostels but I wouldn't let him haha..
Pakistan Mess but The Sign Says Bombay Club: Fresh Delicious Mysterious Halal Food Name in The Town! |
Back to the indian restaurant, Pakistan Mess is on level 4 and on the right. It is a small restaurant, fits 5 tables and a few more at a private room at the back. Toilet was miniscule, only for emergencies. The restaurant is clean and the first night we were there, one table was occupied by 2 chinese gentleman having their dinner and another at the back room by a group of 4 African + Indian. The next night, one other table was occupied by a group of 3 chinese ladies. Pakistan Mess also do deliveries as I heard the telephone rang a few times and the person manning the phone taking orders from them. I assume the indian restaurant serves the hostels at Chung King Mansion as well.
Food? it was cheap and amazing. Finger licking good is what I would say. But, of course for the price that you pay, don't expect fresh seafood to be served here, best to stick to chicken and beef. The first night we had cucumber raita, butter chicken, lamb vindaloo, butter naan and plain bryani. The second night hubby wanted to try mixed grill and prawn masala. Drinks were lemon tea, masala tea and mango lassi.
Cucumber raita was amazing, the yoghurt was creamy with just a hint of sweetness and the cucumber was crunchy, I am not sure what is the black powder covering the yoghurt (as per picture) but it just enhances the flavour of the raita! I love it!
Butter chicken was creamy and just a tad spicy, way way better than Ziafat Restaurant and thicker and spicier than The Great Indian Kebab Factory. Of course you can't compare between Pakistan Mess and The Great Indian Kebab Factory since there are both in different league but I would say Pakistan Mess serves better indian food at better prices than The New Sangeet Indian Restaurant at East Tsim Sha Tsui.
Lamb Vindaloo was devilish hot! Feels like steam is coming out of my ears, meat is very tender and wow.. yes I finished the whole dish haha..
Halal Hong Kong: Butter Naans at Chung King Mansion |
Butter Naan was soft and big, it was very filling, maybe because the dough is thicker than the usual thin naans that you get at other indian restaurants. We, originally wanted to order 2 but the guy said that their naans are very big and advised us to take 1 first.
Plain Bryani rice was mediocre, edible when warm but a bit tough when cold. Mixed Grill consists of chicken and kebab only, chicken was ok, I can barely remember the kebab's taste. Prawn masala was a mistake.. not that the curry is not nice, there is nothing wrong with the curry, it's just that the prawn tasted like the frozen prawns that is sold at the supermarkets.
Mango Lassi was superb, I don't know what brand of yoghurt this indian restaurant uses or whether they make their own yoghurt, but their yoghurt is one of the nicer ones that I have ever tasted. Lemon tea was home made, the next night when we wanted to order lemon tea again, they said they have run out of lemons and Masala Tea was brewed over fire..mmm..mmm... the first night's masala tea was just nice while the second night's masala tea was over brewed.
If you are looking for cheap and good food in Hong Kong, you should try Pakistan Mess at least once and preferably before you begin to get sick of Indian food.. Restaurant open at around 11.30pm and closes around 11.00pm..
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Anyone will vouch for the higher standard of Halal meat over the other meats. It is not only compliant with the religious needs of Muslims, it is also healthy and hygienic. In Hong Kong, there is a good number of restaurants that provide halal meat in its menu. However, the clear leader of all these restaurants in Anjappar. The hotel traces its origin in the Chettinad foods but has diversified itself in many other cuisines like North Indian, Chines and even Middle Eastern foods. So, you need not worry about the availability of options for you. Anjappar provides tasty foods and is one of the Best Halal Restaurants in Hong Kong.
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