Where to go this weekend? Here's an idea. Some might think that Lei Yue Mun is a typical tourist rip-off place that's not worth visiting. Oh, that doesn't need to be the case. This was my first visit to Lei Yue Mun and I could not believe that I haven't discovered it earlier!
I visited the place with my family and we had an awesome time. I mean... look at THAT beautiful pink sunset. It is just breath-taking.
I'd recommend arriving Lei Yue Mun before 5:30 pm, especially if you drive - so that you can still get a parking space easily and you can enjoy the beach and the seafood market a bit before dinner. Once you've arrived, walk towards the seafood market and walk all the way to the beach.
The beach is unique in a way that...there is no fine white sand, but there are shells and broken glass everywhere. I'd recommend wearing appropriate footwear (with thick soles) at the beach.
Beautiful display of seafood.
Feast for your eyes.
We didn't do the "select your own seafood and get a restaurant to cook them" thing. We tried that in Sai Kung and it ended up really expensive. So, this time we chose a set dinner instead.
There are some food souvenirs to buy too.
Not overpriced at all. We bought pork jerky and it's really yummy.
I bought HK$15 worth of honey coated walnuts too. Really nice!
After exploring the market and enjoying the beach, it's time for dinner. We didn't pick any restaurant near the beach with wall to wall sea view. We're pretty happy with this restaurant. Decent seafood, great value for money!
Here's our set dinner.
We started with a nice fish and tofu soup - which I didn't photograph. Duh! And then this plate of snails. These are nicely cooked, but I just never liked anything of this texture. It came with sweet hoi sin sauce, but I prefer dipping them in soy sauce.
Razor clams - beautifully cooked. Sweet and fresh.
Scallops. Perfectly cooked and those noodles are SO FLAVORFUL, I'd love to eat them with rice. The perfect companion for the sweet scallop.
Abalone. Again, I am not a big fan of abalone texture... I won't look for it, but if it's there, I'd eat it. Nicely cooked.
Steamed crab with egg white. Silky smooth egg white. Love love love it. The crab meat's lovely too, but I am not a big fan of crab roe cooked this way.
Prawns. Tasty sauce, sweet and fresh, but the meat is just a tiny bit over. I enjoyed licking the shell.
Perfectly cooked steamed fish where the meat's satiny smooth but gets off the bone really easily. Love it.
Mantis prawn. Perfectly cooked, tasty crispy bits. Licked my fingers clean.
The beauty of seafood meal is... that you don't get full so fast. We all needed some carbs at that point. This sticky rice with Chinese sausages is subtly flavored (to me that is equal to being under-seasoned, but I am sure I need to watch my sodium level, or my palate is dead and I can only taste something when it's really salty T_T). This is not ground breaking, but it's nice.
I've never been a big fan of lobster, but everybody raved about how much meat we get (daam daam yuk) and how we didn't have to struggle to take out the meat from the lobster's shell. I just enjoyed the noodles. The sauce can be saltier (again, dead palate). It's a nice end to the meal. We got a platter of fresh fruits too. Icy cold but not frozen. Just the way I like it.
The whole meal costs HK$350 per person. Wayyy better price that the seafood meals I had in Sai Kung.
After dinner, enjoy a nice sea-side stroll. The sunset's changed to a sparkling night view.
Tips:
- Get there before 5:30 pm for easy parking/exploring the market/beach
- Book restaurant ahead and ask for the price and the set menu
How to get to Lei Yue Mun:
Taxi from Yau Tong MTR Station or ferry from Sai Wan Ho MTR Station
The restaurant we tried:
Kam Lee Loy (funnily, their signage says "Kam Lee Lok")
金利來
G/F 54B Lei Yue Mun Praya Road, Lei Yue Mun.
Hong Kong.
Address in Chinese for taxi: 鯉魚門海傍道西54B號地下
Tel: +852 2244 3003
