Happy (belated) New Year – I hope you all enjoyed the holidays and are looking forward to 2008 (well, as much as I can – it’s raining cats and dogs in San Francisco today). Returning from sunny, tropical Hong Kong was quite a shock to the system! This shock was due in no small part […]...
Mooncakes in Mid-Autumn
Whenever my parents come to visit from Hong Kong, I can guarantee that at least half of their suitcases will be filled with little treats and gifts for us. They’re great parents that way. When they arrived last weekend I knew that among the clothes, candies, and baked goods (yes, my mother has been known […]...
Hong Kong Bakeries
Just as there seem to be an infinite number of cuisines you can taste in Hong Kong, so there is a myriad of sweets and desserts to choose from. Both traditional-style Chinese desserts and western/European style pastries seem to be increasingly in vogue, with dessert places popping up on every street. Whether you want traditional […]...
Dessert Before Dinner: Hui Lau Shan
If you would like a refreshing break from walking around the streets of Hong Kong, there are few places more well known or more appealing than the Hui Lau Shan dessert restaurant chain. Why don’t they have more of these types of places in the US instead of opening more Starbucks? (Actually, I just found […]...
HK Dim Sum, How I've Missed You
Living in San Francisco, most people would think there is easy access to great Chinese food. I won’t say there isn’t good Chinese food to be found, just that it is not as prevalent as one would assume given the large Chinese population. The thing about Hong Kong is that not only is there great […]...
Back from Beyond the Looking Glass
Traveling to foreign countries is always like stepping through the looking glass for me: some things are similar in strange ways, while other things are completely different in stranger ways. When you land in Hong Kong after a 14 hour flight from San Francisco, the sun’s in the wrong place in the sky, the cars […]...
Anita Chu, also known as pastrygirl, is a baker, writer, and photographer with a passion for pastry. She trained at Tante Marie's Cooking School and is the author of Field Guide to Cookies, Field Guide to Candy, and Lollipop Love. Anita lives in San Francisco with her husband, daughter, and dog Max. 
