Hong Kong street food Westerners love … and loathe – from egg waffles to stinky tofu
- From fish balls and deep-fried squid tentacles to tofu pudding and pineapple buns, Hong Kong is known for its snacks
- Not all may appeal to Western travellers at first glance, but here’s why you should give them a chance
In Yau Ma Tei, a bustling area of Hong Kong, food stalls stand side-by-side, enticing diners with a heady aroma from the dishes they are boiling, steaming and frying.
Street food hunters nudge their way forward in the queue, surveying the offerings with craned necks. Some scarf down their food on the go, while continuing their quest for more delights; others prefer to stop and relish the snack, before resuming their food journey.
Rising above the medley of fragrances is a pungent odour that suddenly hits the nostrils. As it intensifies, the rotten smell rapidly envelopes the whole street.
It comes from a woman who is chowing down on stinky tofu that she bought from nearby stall Gui Mui Snack. Leaning forward to prevent the sauce from staining her shirt, she sinks her teeth into the fermented, fried tofu which is slathered with a brown sauce.
Lisa Xiao, from Hubei province in central China, came to Hong Kong for a holiday with her family. “The dressing is reminiscent of my childhood,” she says. “When I was a child, I often ate stinky tofu from hawker stalls. I particularly liked the sauce. Just like this.”
By her side is her seven-year-old son, nicknamed Mai Dou, nibbling on another Hong Kong street food staple, curried fish balls.
