Diver´s Inn Steak House @ Aonang [Krabi, Thailand]

I had already heard of Diver´s Inn Steak House when i visited Krabi in 2011 but it was a bit of a walk from the Golden Beach Resort that we stayed at. This time, we were a lot nearer at BlueSotel; according to Google Map, it's only 120 meters away.

Therefore, we decided to have our last meal in Krabi at Diver´s Inn Steak House; although tagged as "the first German Restaurant in Ao Nang", we went in without any expectation on what to have as the eatery commanded a high 4.5 rating among 696 reviewers on Google.

Beef was what i craved for and my eyes were set on the 300 grams Australian Black Angus Grain Fed Ribeye Steak; priced at 790 baht, my initial thought was that the price was comparable to Singapore.

Until i was given an empty bowl. Heck, why do i need an empty bowl for? Apparently, i wasn't paying enough attention to the wordy menu.

My steak came with a salad buffet! Granted it wasn't much of a selection but it did take me by surprise as i wasn't expecting more than just a slab of steak with the usual sides.

Fresh, leafy vegetables with onions, corns and hard-boiled egg; i was telling myself i would go for a second serving after i am done with the steak.

My steak with French fries as a side (you can also choose fried potatoes, mashed potatoes, baked potato, potato wedges or noodle) and a separate serving of the mushroom cream sauce (other options include garlic butter, pepper cream or sauce bearnaise) that reminded me of fine dining!

The waitress wasn't done when she put the plate on the table; instead, she asked me to slice the steak and check if it was of medium done-ness as per my request. That, to me, was the right service at the core of operations!

Needless to say, i very much enjoyed the ribeye steak; it was buttery and juicy and i had to clean it up all alone as Alex doesn't enjoy beef. The sad thing was that i didn't manage to get a second helping from the salad buffet!

English Breakfast - it was almost lunch but our little boy insisted on having his English breakfast which included 2 fried eggs, 2 fried toasts, 2 more toasts (yes, you read that right), grilled mushrooms and tomato, bacon, cumberland sausage, baked beans and potato patties. Filling and Alex loved it so much; he almost licked it clean!

Costing 240 baht (about S$10), it even included coffee or tea, with biscuits served on the side. I guess i would have to dine at Diver´s Inn Steak House more often the next time i am in Krabi.

Especially when i didn't manage to have any desserts this round! 

=====

Address

27 / 9 Moo 2 Ao Nang, Ao Nang, 

Krabi 81000, Thailand

Map

As above.

Website

https://www.krabi-divers-inn.com/

Pricing

Australian Black Angus Grain Fed Ribeye Steak - 790 baht

English Breakfast - 240 baht

Click here for the itinerary of 

my 4-day visit to Krabi

Tai Kok Tsui Market - Right Across Dorsett Mongkok Hotel in Hong Kong #TaiKokTsuiMarket

From the full length glass window in my room on the 12th floor of Dorsett Mongkok hotel, i always looked across and marveled at the high rise buildings ahead of me. One inconspicuous building right across didn't quite catch my attention until i realized it's a market!

So on my last day in Hong Kong, i decided to check it out. Spread across three floors, the top level of the air-conditioned market is actually a food centre which seemed more like a tze-char restaurant with plusher-looking seats. I didn't check out further as there wasn't any crowd.

According to the above notice, it's really a food centre. Strange that there wasn't any customer as food centres in Singapore would likely have someone dining at the tables or queuing to buy food at about 11 am.

Middle level was the section for wet and dry goods which include fruits and vegetables. Well, i don't know how to differentiate vegetables so i can't share if there's any unique vegetables in Hong Kong that we don't have in Singapore.

You can also find florists and stalls selling offerings (paper money, incense sticks etc) on this floor. If mom were with me, she would definitely make a beeline for the dry products store where she has a good eye for quality and can grasp the differences in pricing with Singapore. 

Ground level offered an interesting insight to the wet market in Hong Kong.

The fishmongers section was quite similar to Singapore wet markets although i did notice drier floors! In Singapore, i hate to visit the fish section as the floor is always wet and it's common to find dirty water splashing onto my feet and legs!

One startling difference was something i shared previously on my instagram; pork, beef and mutton that were openly displayed. In Singapore, the aforementioned meat had to be stored in chillers at wet markets for hygiene and safety purposes, given the climate.

An unusual thing i noticed was that the most butchers had a humongous slab of chopping board at their stalls; big enough to use it as their counter space! They were custom built by craftsmen involved in making these traditional chopping boards and you may read an article i found about them here.

=====

Address

63 Fuk Tsun St, Tai Kok Tsui, 

Tai Kok Tsui Municipal Services Building,

Hong Kong

Map

As above.

Floor Directory

As above.

For the summary of my seven days' itinerary to Hong Kong (with a day trip to Shenzhen), please click here.

Dim Sum Breakfast at Dragon Court (龍閣) - Near Mong Kok MTR Station in Hong Kong #dragoncourtdimsum

Before my trip, i got to know a friend who was a frequent visitor to Hong Kong and excitedly asked if he has any dim sum recommendation. Admitting he doesn't really seek for food, he did share that he frequented this place known as Dragon Court near Exit E2 of Mong Kok MTR station.

I thought it would be confusing to get to with the limited information but lo and behold; the signboard was prominently displayed outside this building that you would see right after stepping out of Exit E2. 

To make it easier for you, you may wish to note that the building housing the restaurant was Yau Shing Commercial Centre. I knew from my friend that Dragon Court was on the second or third floor; so let's continue! 

Taking the escalator, we immediately got the restaurant interior but it's not Dragon Court! Instead, it's the premises of Cafe De Coral; a popular fast food restaurant in Hong Kong that offers "both Chinese and Western at budget prices". 

One more floor and here we are; Dragon Court (龍閣)! In spite of its obscure location, the restaurant was packed with customers and i couldn't help noticing that many of them are locals and likely belong to my parents' generation. 

There was only Alex and me; knowing the former's small tummy, i know i mustn't over-order as there's a tendency i would be the one to clean up the leftovers! Hence, only four items.

Steamed Vegetarian Rice Roll with Shrimp - basically, it's the chee cheong fun (cantonese style) that we are familiar with and it's nice to see that it was already cut up for ease of taking! 

It's supposed to be a 'safe' dish for Alex but i guess the sauce was made differently in Hong Kong; there was this strong abalone taste that totally overwhelmed the rest of the ingredients. Needless to say; Alex took one piece, tried his best to swallow it and steered clear of it after that. 

Deep Fried Sesame Balls with Sweet Lotus - known as 煎堆 in Singapore, i love this snack and can finish a few at one go even though they are usually very oily with a sweet filling.

The ones at Dragon Court were surprisingly not oily and had a thin, addictive crust that was a bit sticky on the inside. It would have been perfect if the filling was the common bean paste as the ones we had appeared to have been mixed with salted egg. Even though it was pretty good, the traditional filling would still be preferred.

Deep Fried Prawn Wanton - Crunchy just like the way i like it but the overall taste was quite bland and you would definitely need the accompanying sauce which had a sweet, vinegarish tinge to it.

A whole lot of wanton skin before you get to the small prawn hidden within. 

Premium Platter - too lazy to decide and eventually went with the recommended premium platter which consisted of steamed mushroom and sea cucumber dumpling, prawn and pork dumpling with crab roe, prawn dumplings and steamed vegetarian fin with pork dumplings! 

Personally, i like only the pork dumpling with crab roe (siew mai which had more mushrooms like usual) and prawn dumplings (har gow that was larger than usual). The one with sea cucumber didn't quite appeal to us although my mom would likely enjoy it much better. 

=====

Overall, there were hits and misses but the ingredients were fresh and the pricing wasn't exorbitant for Hong Kong standard. I would love to try more things like baked barbecued pork pastries and crispy prawn beancurd roll but i guess this would have to wait till my next trip, and hopefully with my mom who appreciates food better than Alex. 

Address

Yau Shing Commercial Centre, 

51 Sai Yeung Choi St S, 

Mong Kok, Hong Kong

Map

As above. 

Menu

As above.

Pricing

Steamed Vegetarian Rice Roll with Shrimp - HK$36.00

Deep Fried Sesame Balls with Sweet Lotus - HK$24.00

Deep Fried Prawn Wanton - HK$24.00

Premium Platter - HK$78.00

Tea - HK$8.00 per person

(Subject to Service Charge)

For the summary of my seven days' itinerary to Hong Kong (with a day trip to Shenzhen), please click here.