Date Cafe
Hong Kong's best cha chaan teng
Food
Indoor
About this place
Unlike the flashy hotel bars or the luxury restaurants in Hong Kong, Date Cafe (同芯冰室) is one of the go to places for locals trying to get a taste at one of Hong Kong's most traditional type of restaurants. the cha chaan teng. With great portions and an affordable price, it's easily one of my top favourites in Hong Kong.
Find your way
Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong
Loading map...
Don't miss
- Try the baked pork rice
Plan your visit
Cost, access, and what makes it distinctive.
cost
accessibility
uniqueness
- Cost
- Not the cheapest meal you can find in Hong Kong, but for it's price, it's definitely worth it. You can expect to spend around $60 - 80 HKD here, but most set comes with a drink and soup.
- Accessibility
- As a local eatery, it's quite far from any MTR station. The easiest way to get there is to take the subway to Causeway Bay or Wan Chai, and then take the tram to the Happy Valley terminus and enjoy a short stroll through the neighbourhood to the restaurant.
- Uniqueness
- While cha chaan tengs are everywhere in Hong Kong, and you can experience the famed culture and food at almost any of them, Date Cafe simply does it best.
A personal note
My experience
To be honest, since moving to Hong Kong, one of my biggest disappointments has been the cha chaan tengs. Many of the ones I've tried have been bad or mediocre at best, but Date Cafe single-handedly restored my faith in them.
If you don't know what a cha chaan teng is, it's a casual Hong Kong-style diner known for its menu of Western-influenced comfort food, local drinks, and quick, "disrespectful" service. Although it used to be the cheap, go-to place for the average worker, I wouldn't say the price points are cheap anymore.
Nevertheless, despite my disappointment with most cha chaan tengs, Date Cafe has become one of my absolute go-to spots. Unlike many other cha chaan tengs now, the set meals here still come with soup and a drink, and the portions are genuinely generous.
I'll admit, I haven't explored much of the menu, because every time I come, I can't resist ordering their baked pork chop rice. It's hands down the best I've had in Hong Kong. The portion is huge, and it's incredibly flavorful.
