Welcome to a piece of Hong Kong’s local culture! The Star Cafe located in Tsim Sha Tsui was once the haunt of film stars. The bing sutt is still popular with locals and tourists. It was opened in 1966 by a group of Cantonese movie stars. Star Cafe is part of a unique Hong Kong dining culture called bing sutt (冰室) popularized around the 1950s as a result of the convergence of cultures. After the 2nd World War, Western food became increasingly popular in Hong Kong with the British colonization. However, such food remained beyond the financial reach of many people. Bing sutts used to be high-end places to go. Local diners started offering dishes with Western influences at affordable prices (this must be one of the earliest versions of fusion food). This type of fusion cuisine or “soy sauce Western 豉油西餐” (adding of Chinese ingredients into Western dishes) started the trend for cha chan teng 茶餐厅 and bing sutt 冰室 (smaller menu than 茶餐厅), serving localized versions of Western comfort food as well as iced drinks, coffee, and tea. Such places are no-frills, low-priced and operate round-the-clock. The perennial air of boisterousness is characteristic in such places. Star Cafe had changed hands a few times since then, and the current owner took over in 1999 when the previous owner was getting too old. There are no elegant decorations and it's hidden away in a busy area – making you feel like you went back in time 20 years to a quieter time. 如果大家想在香港能够在繁忙的生活里面抽离一下,走到一个宁静的地方,静静地坐下吃一个饭或一个下午茶,去一个好像和现实生活隔绝的空间,之后才再回到繁忙的生活中冲刺,不妨可以考虑到位于尖沙嘴的星座冰室。星座冰室是尖沙咀这边在地人必吃的老字号冰室,遊客比较少,有着尖沙咀NO.1蕃茄面的美誉,纵使放到全香港来比较也毫不逊色,如果说武侠小说里有北乔峰南慕容,那我觉得香港蕃茄面界里就有北星座冰室! 星座冰室与弥敦道最繁忙的路段只有一个路口之隔,我从金马伦道的电器舖入口行进去,经过黑漆漆的走廊、货仓和一些卖杂货的小舖,就好像走过一条时空隧道,然后转个弯就会见到星座冰室在前面,进入冰室之后找个座位坐下,环顾四周的装修摆设,就好像回到三十年前的香港一样,你不会想像到出面就是最繁忙的尖沙嘴,无论当天发生过甚么事情,都可以将它留在外面的世界,暂时让自己去到另一个空间好好地叹一下。 内部和外观一样不修边幅,有着浓浓巷口家庭式经营且代代相传的朴素老店氛围!而且空气中㳽漫着食物的气息,让人一进门就肚子饿。 The ambience at Star Café provides its own unique vibe; think 1960s bomb shelter chic. The deco here looks very retro and I felt as if I had stepped back in time. 冰室至今仍保留着开店时的木版挂墙餐牌,加上传统的卡位、长木桌、呆扇,令人有一种时光倒流的感觉。不过原来老板说装潢可以依旧,但食物水准却要不断进步,由最初只有餐蛋面之类的一般茶餐厅食物,到后来以番茄汤底为主题,都是因为收纳不少客人意见而想出来的。用料要绝对新鲜,勿加任何味精,最好做到好味又有营养,也是现代人对食物质素的要求,好像一杯普通不过的红豆冰,也拒绝使用成本较低的片糖,改以冰糖来煮,让红豆冰也份外清润过人。今日我们讲怀旧,其实能够历久常新,也要不断求变,星座冰室也就做到了,难怪多年来仍然门庭若市。 The old CRT TV was blaring news and TV dramas above the entrance, while one of the staff read the morning paper in the middle table. In true greasy spoon style, a cigarette dangled from the chef’s mouth – thankfully there was a fan directed at him and the room was odour-free, and quite comfortable temperature wise actually. This isn’t something you take for granted, as HK is the city of walk-in fridges where people buy things i.e. malls. When it comes to service, this tiny cafe is fantastic. The owner is very nice and friendly when serving customers. It feels like you're right at home having a meal when you come here. Tomato soup abounds in Hong Kong. Most cha chaan tengs serve a local variation of borscht, a beet-less version that more closely resembles minestrone, as well as a straight-up tomato soup of the Campbell’s can variety. The latter features stewed tomatoes and a choice of meat and noodle type. Star Cafe is so well-known for its tomato noodles that a large portion of their menu is dedicated to it. It is one of the few places which use fresh tomatoes to make their special broth while most others use Campbell soup. You have a choice of macaroni, instant noodles, vermicelli or spaghetti, as well as to add ingredients such as beef/chicken, luncheon meat, vegetables, etc. At Star Cafe, fresh tomatoes are used rather than the canned variety, and accordingly, its version of tomato soup noodles, which occupy an entire section of the menu, practically becomes its own genre. Forget the overly salted, acidic version; this is tomato bliss. The best bet is to get the tomato noodles with mixed egg and instant noodles. The egg is whisked in the boiling soup, giving it a wispy quality that accentuates the subtle sweetness of the tomato base. I am just so impressed with the humble instant noodles that always tastes so good in Hong Kong. Don’t let the gooey appearance of the broth put you off – tuck in and slurp it all up! The taste is light without a presence of sourness from the tomatoes. 我喜欢它的番茄有着玲珑通透的感觉,酸酸甜甜的番茄加上半生熟的煎蛋令人不知不觉间就把整碗面吃清光。而另一个我喜欢点的是番茄蛋牛肉面,香浓的番茄配上真材实料的牛肉是星座冰室的另一名物。另外最难得的是老板和员工都非常之客气,不少的茶餐厅都有呼呼喝喝的坏习惯,但在这里却多了一份对客人的尊重。 In order to locate this cafe, look for the road sign which says “16-20 Kimberley Road” and enter the building next to it. There are only two staircases leading down to what seemingly appears to be a dodgy basement and the easier one to locate is to walk directly to the back and on the extreme right – there is a partially hidden stairway next to this restaurant which leads down to the rather dimly lit basement. 星座冰室的位置非常隐蔽,从破旧的商场入口,再要经过幽暗的楼梯,才能到达。我到访时,只觉装潢实在很残旧,心想也不过是一般旧式茶餐厅食物,为何要走到破旧不堪的香槟大厦地库呢? 虽然环境有点恶劣和阴森,但是食物美味,值得冒险前往,是历久弥新的老味道,吃完疲惫的灵魂有得到安慰。 Nostalgia is one of the things that keeps people coming back to the Star Cafe, a windowless, basement eatery in a run-down shopping mall.
I hope Star Cafe will continue to operate as long as they can, because it's almost impossible to find a place like this in Hong Kong anymore. 其实我对吃的要求不高,好吃不好吃也没所谓,不过对环境还是希望有点特别,正所谓喜欢吃feel。 我所指的feel不是指在高级餐厅吃顿烛光晚餐,感受一下浪漫气氛那种,而是我特别喜欢需要一轮攀山涉水,长途跋涉,原来是为了去吃一碗豆花,又或是在市区内寻幽探秘,走过一条引水道,爬上几级发出呀呀声响的木梯级,再进入一幢快将坍塌的大厦,感觉很危险,原来别有洞天,兼且可以吃到一碗鱼蛋粉的那类食肆。 我希望星座冰室能一直存在下去,现在要在香港其他地方找到这样一间食肆基本已经不可能了。 香港以有效率和繁荣见称,但是比起一些亚洲的城市,例如台湾和东京,在社区里面香港就缺少了间适的空间,可能买东西和吃喝方面香港会比较方便,但相对要找个地方静静地坐下来,抽离一下繁忙的生活就实在不容易,所以当我遇到好像星座冰室的店子,就会好好地记着,如在香港生活忙得唞不过气时,可以走进去休息一下,充充电然后再出去努力过。
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