It only takes a 25-minute train ride from Admiralty on the East Rail Line to bring you to the University station, the location of the Hyatt Regency Sha Tin. At the core of the hotel property, a routine visit for hungry New Territories families, is Sha Tin 18, a Cantonese restaurant that has nurtured a dear devotion with communities in the north of the city.
Where Ma On Shan and Tai Po’s dining scene sees few large-scale restaurants operating, Sha Tin 18 has drawn dining families and gourmands in the east of New Territories to follow their telling of true Cantonese cuisine – no corners are cut with their recipes, I have to mention.
The two-dozen-page menu sees inclusions of wok-fried, steamed dim-sum, sauteed vegetables, oil-drenched chicken, and fresh live seafood cut and poached in-house. Our weekday lunch meal begins with a palate cleanser: the-ever piquant tossed white fungus and kumquat (HKD188) salad.
A favourite of mine in the fungus department, the white fungus holds a bouncy texture that bounces back at you when bitten. It is a playful vegetable. The kumquat fruit slices and juice help to energise your palate – and brain!
Onto the next dim sum dish, the steamed elm fungus dumpling (HKD75). Sticky to touch with your chopsticks, the three dumplings are straight out of the steamer, proving freshness is the key to Sha Tin 18’s cooking.
What results is a gelatinous texture pleasant on the tongue and an assortment of mushrooms, courgette, and carrot giving off mild umami flavours. It is a clean bite and pairs well with black vinegar for amping up the sharpness.
Where things get exciting is the wok-baked cod fish (HKD528), paired up with a homemade Chinese wampi paste. A sister to the lychee and longan, the wampi holds a similar flavour to the popular fruits with amped up acidity. The honey roasted skin of the fish, a result of the wok hei, meets a sweet pickled flavour as the paste is coated all over the protein.
Cod fish is so well-prepared at Sha Tin 18 that their simmered cod fish puff (HKD468), swimming in a salty fish broth with pak choy, made me wish we could order two bowls. The broth was milky and rich with a nutty flavour, presumably from the collagen and bones simmered down. The fish puffs were bouncy, oozing out the fish broth juice for maximum coating of the delicate cod flavours.
A visit to the Sha Tin palace could not be completed without an order of their signature Peking duck, which is served tableside with cucumber, leeks, soy bean paste, and pancakes.
We picked at their skin, breast meat, leg meat with skin (HKD568). The skin was predictably fatty, and unusually tasty once dipped into white sugar. The breast and leg meat, of course, tasted very fine with the addition of the soy bean paste in a pancake.
Our verdict of Sha Tin 18
Sha Tin 18 serves as a meeting place for neighbouring residential communities, granting big tables access to top-notch Chinese delicacies and dim sum coming from Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Fujian, and Shunde. I was a big fan of how they prepared their cod fish and Peking duck, so too with the open-style kitchen, providing more transparency and education to how their starred dishes are created.
Sha Tin 18, Hyatt Regency Hong Kong, Sha Tin, 4/F, 18 Chak Cheung Street, Ma Liu Shui, 3722 7932, book here
| Order this: tossed white fungus, traditional Peking duck, wok-based cod fish, and crispy-fried egg puff Menu: a lá carte menu Price for two: HKD400-600 | Atmosphere: familial and comfortable; the serving team tend to every need and serve with grace Perfect for: group family dim sum lunches and weekend reunions |
This review is intended to offer an individual perspective on the dining experience and should not be considered as a definitive judgement of the restaurant’s overall quality or reputation. The views expressed in this review are solely the author’s and do not reflect the opinions of Foodie.
