Snake Soup-way out pavement cafe Yau Ma Tei

Eat outside. Good tables with awning in case it rains. Corner of Dundas Street and Shanghai Street. If you get lost, ask for the Wellcome 24hr shop. Then look across the (small) street. Not quite opposite, maybe 20 feet to the left


Way out eating for a few bucks, and now its cooler out I hate to eat inside. Close to Mong Kok's main shopping street. Open air Snake soup restaurant, with optional bowl of rice/meat/nuts.

I was wary at first but it was great! Count $25 for a tryout soup, or $40 or so for the full monte


No drinks license, but there's a small drinks/cigar store opposite that sells anything you want.


MTR Yau Ma Tei Exit A1. Walk north up Nathan Road a few streets to Dundas Street. 3 minutes. After the food, if you can still walk, the ladies market is just across Nathan Road or for the wicked, Portland street is the one between Shanghai Street and Nathan.

Was closed for 6 months, just reopened. New Thai resto next door, opened 2 weeks ago, about $50 for that one. Good for the price, but go Snake soup, its the season. Before I went I couldn't do push-ups. Now I can't close my jacket for the bulging biceps, and I lost 10 lbs of ugly belly -who says Chinese stuff doesn't work!

OK, got some replies form 3 guys who know my nick. Yes, it is basic. Its on the pavement. You get a table that is higher than the floor. You get good food. WTFE do you want for 25 to 40 bucks!


The other compalint was that it tastes like shredded chicken. Hmm. Yup, OK, but take a pack of frozen chicken breasts, defrost it, make a soup. Cook it for one hour, 10 hours, 100 hours. it'll still taste like rubber. The snake soup achieves its best at about 3 or 4 hours. With the correct blend of spices, and correct cooking (simmer, don't boil) the consistency is that of tender frog's legs shredded into a soup


But I did some research as well. Why am I feeling so healthy?


Well, here goes an historical account of snake soup in Hong Kong. This one is from 1984 When these restaurants were 10 a penny. Now, as far as I can work it out, there is ONE left in Sheung Wan (if it is still there), and ONE left round the corner from my flat.


http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?sec=travel&res=9C05E6D6163BF93AA15752C0A962948260


Give it a shot folks, help preserve history. Keep one or two of the 100s of shops going! Or pile in and make a new growth industry.


I am careful on food. usually if I eat out, I get "Delhi belly" once a week. If I eat in, cooking myself, or getting my spouse to show her culinary skills (ham and egg anyone .. but yum-yum, done well as a brunch) Delhi Belly is like zero to one in 100 meals.


This snake soup stuff has the texture of a baby chicken or shredded chicken breast that has been cooked for 4 months. It is that delicate. The flavopur is enough to tickle me, and I am a great fan of Vindaloo ( I always translate that as "Wine that sends you to the Loo, not accurate historically, but amazingly close in reality) so bland flavours do not attract me atall. The average "Yummi" chinese dinner leaves me hungry for more taste. Gimme a nice streeet Thai pork, a good curry (not the yellow chilli water they serve here in HK) and I float in ecstasy. Same for most of my friends. If ou grow up on Indian curries or Mexican take-aways, then Hong Kong is drab, tasteless, boring.


With exceptions, rare, but wondeful.


Like finding feelance chefs who can do a szechjuan fry up with dry meat and dry herbs and spices. I have only found one. No, sorry. I need that guy, otherwise my lungs would stop. When I eat what he makes I breath deeper than any medicine on this planet

Oh, damn, it got posted before I finished. But no prob. I did, after all , allow Vista to follow my personal habbits.


Time for bed? No, no, I want to read my book! In fact, check this out, I am not working tomorrow, so I could just do the Snake soup, and my book, and ..sleepy bye byes.


Aaargh, no, not another needle. I don't need that stuff, aargh! Just snake soup! Please Microsoft, if I pay a bit more could you give me a break back into reality from time to time?


As he pronouces these weighty words, a glow fills the room. Heavy words follow. "In time; You are young, less than 5,000 years on this planet. But eating snake soup instead of McDonalds is a sign in your favour. That is why we are here. We have removed all restrictions on your IDD, and your hard disc now has a capacity of 9 terabytes. It will never fail, or at least not in the known history of the Universe. Goodbye, and may the snake soup be with you, as it will of course be from the day you first imbibe.


Not quite sure what to do here guys and gals, but my Outlook calendar shows an appointment in 3007 on a thing near Arcturus. is that good? bad? Theres a note as well that says I have to drink some Snake soup the previous day.


Serious question! Am I falling apart, or is this just a nightmare?



Then I hear this mysterious voice.. "Snake soup, vision of times to come, times past. You no longer need your body"


Erk!