Seeking out the familiar in Hong Kong

WHEN YOU HAVEN’T BEEN TO Hong Kong since way before the pandemic hit, setting foot in Conrad Hong Kong will reacquaint you with the city of cha chaan tengs and roast goose in no time.

Things may change, but this hotel – which opened in 1990 as the first Conrad hotel in the Asia-Pacific region – offers a welcome dose of familiarity. It may not be a spring chicken by trendy hotel standards, but at the age of 33 it’s still going strong – delivering consistent service, spacious rooms, excellent views and location, location, location.

Sitting smack in the middle of Central and right in Pacific Place, not a day goes by that you’re not walking past Loro Piana and eyeing the proliferation of luxury boutiques on the way to your destination. But more important, you’re never far from your favourite eating place, whether it’s Kam Fung for a fluffy egg and luncheon meat sandwich or bolo bun, or plump dim sum and crackling suckling pig at Moon Bay just next to the Renaissance hotel.

Even if you want to go further to stalwart Yung Kee on Wellington, or fancy doing a goose leg tasting comparison at Yat Lok at Stanley, it’s just a five- minute taxi ride away. So are some of the hottest fine dining spots such as Tate Dining Room or Wing Restaurant.  If you want to head further out, Pacific Place is connected to the Admiralty MTR station. But with Causeway Bay, Lan Kwai Fong and Wan Chai within walking distance, it’s likely you won’t be stepping into a train any time soon.

At Conrad Hong Kong, you’ll be well-fed too at its in-house restaurants Golden Leaf and Nicholini’s. Golden Leaf serves up Cantonese cooking the old-fashioned way, such as the ubiquitous BBQ platter of char siew, roast duck and jellyfish. Those of a certain vintage would recognise the restaurant manager Samuel Tsui, who’s still there after all these years. While the restaurant no longer has a Michelin star, there’s a sense of comforting nostalgia about it, as you sip your tea, tuck into some crispy roast chicken and reminisce about the old days.

But if you’d rather go Western, then Nicholini’s obliges with its menu of Northern Italian specialties and homemade pastas. Alternatively, check out the hotel’s executive lounge for the view and the hefty breakfast spread as well as afternoon tea. Designed like a living room with a “kitchen” where you can serve yourself, you’ll enjoy homemade yoghurt and warm scones and pastries  literally from the ovens that they were baked in.

The lounge staff are also on hand to help with even the smallest query, including locating a famous Chinese sausage shop that we found out – after a wild goose chase – had closed down for good during the pandemic. Seeing our disappointment, the lady helping us suggests going to Wing Wah – better known for its Chinese pastries but apparently also famous for its lap cheong and yuen cheong. Lo, there’s a branch just a 15-minute walk from the hotel, and they turned out to be very tasty after all.

Rooms-wise, they all come with a view. You just decide whether you want a languid view of the harbour and the blue sea, or the vivid greenery of Victoria Peak. Either way, the rooms are big, the beds are cosy and there’s a Conrad bear to keep you company.

Apart from its unobtrusive service, the hotel has a hidden gem  – its spa. Not so much for the ambience as it’s fairly basic, but for the massage therapists who are among the best we’ve had in a hotel spa anywhere. Clearly experienced, these ladies manipulate you gently yet firmly as they patiently release your tight muscles kink by kink. You’ll be booking your second session the moment they finish and sadly, you’ll be gone before there’s time for a third.

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While the general compulsion is to seek out the newest and the fanciest, there’s merit in good old-fashioned pleasures. So if you’re headed to Hong Kong to relive nostalgic memories and rediscover familiar flavours, let Conrad put you in touch.

The writer was a guest of Conrad Hong Kong.