Chungking Mansions: don’t believe the horror stories – some of Hong Kong’s best Indian food is to be had in Tsim Sha Tsui blocks

Star of a Wong Kar-wai movie and an icon of urban Hong Kong, Chungking Mansions is too often portrayed as unsafe and a den of vice. Don’t believe a word of it – or you’ll be missing out on some of the city’s best Indian food

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The always bustling entrance to Chungking Mansions in Hong Kong’s Tsim Sha Tsui shopping and entertainment district. Picture: SCMP

Published: 10:45am, 13 Jul 2018Updated: 12:59pm, 27 Jul 2018

A recent discussion with colleagues about where to find a cheap and tasty curry in Hong Kong had this writer suggesting Chungking Mansions, five blocks and 17 floors on Nathan Road, in Tsim Sha Tsui, that have long been a haven for budget travellers and those looking for an affordable feast.

“No way! I wouldn’t eat there,” cried one colleague. “I would never go there either. Not safe,” another insisted.

It’s sad to hear such opinions about a place that provides respite from the many homogenised “McStarbucks” outlets taking over our city. So what’s feeding this irrational fear?

Ill-informed and sensational hysteria, it appears, is largely to blame – much of it from media and bloggers.

Take a look at TheCultureMap.com, the blog of British-based Shing Yoong, “a 20-something-year old girl” who claims she “never feels happier than when she’s exploring new horizons and learning about different cultures”.

In her 2016 account headlined “CHUNGKING MANSIONS: ALONE, SCARED AND STUPID”, she “stupidly realises” she has booked into a house of horrors.