Mak An Kee Noodle

The Mak name (麥) is a prominent one throughout Hong Kong, particularly in the wonton noodle world. There are many stores fronting as if they’re part of the famous chain, but there are only a handful left that truly make the namesake proud. This branch here sandwiched between Sheung Wan and Central is one of my local haunts for a good bowl of noodles.
Unless it’s been a relatively new thing, this spot doesn’t have an English menu. Unless one can rock the Canto (or even a little Mando), it might prove to be difficult to get what you want. Pictures can do the trick, but get your smartphone cued up when the time comes. The place is extremely narrow, so keep this dining spot either solo affair or with 1 – 2 friends at most.
The wonton noodles (雲吞麺) is what most people are ordering here, so do yourself a favor and get a bowl. The wontons are delicate and plump, while the noodles swim wonderfully in the flavorful broth. A side of kai lan (芥蘭) never hurts in this scenario. For those prefering a less wet version can order the dry noodles with a little shrimp/​fish powder (甫魚撈麵), which comes with a bowl of soup in case to balance everything else out.
The portions unsurprisingly small, which isn’t a problem normally, but the price tag would beg to differ. People don’t come here for a deal, it’s strictly convenience or because the food is really that good. Cash only naturally and avoid any inclination to go to the bathroom. Service isn’t all that stellar, but for me, the food certainly makes up for it.

If you want to learn or see how classic Cantonese Wonton noodle is supposed to be served, come check it out here. First, a little bit on history — a group of siblings grew up helping in the father’s noodle shop, years had passed and they each opened their own store, and they all follow the good tradition. And that’s why all the good Wonton noodle shops have similar names and the same last name (Mak).
The Wonton noodles here are among the priciest in the city, and they know it. That’s why they are for folks that value food more than $ and folks that know their food. Given their location (in a very small side street) and the amount of business they do, they do have a good reputation.
Do not be alarmed when your noodles arrive without any wontons in sight. That’s how they are supposed to be served — the soup spoon on the very bottom, then the wontons, on top is the noodles. Only this way the noodles would stay al dente by not soaking in the soup. They call this tradition, we call it ancient Chinese wisdom.

As a child I remember some early memories of won ton noodles, and one in particular was I think Wah Lai Yuen in Causeway Bay, which used to be very near the CWB location of Tai Ping Koon. The details are now very blurry, but times were a lot simpler then. There was no Unilocal,no Openrice, no social media, no instagram, no naked selfies and iCloud security, no smart phones, egos were a lot smaller and self esteem was a lot tougher to bruise.
After living overseas for over half my life, I don’t miss won ton noodles that much to be honest.
Maybe whatever I remembered from my youth was just a faded memory, and whatever is remaining now in Hong Kong, is unfortunately being overlooked in place of trends, fancier food, with little respect for time and tradition.
It should be noted that Chung Kee Catering is the wrong English name and should actually be Mak An Kee (Chung Kee) 麥奀記 (忠記) 麵家. I’m sure some food geek historian can explain the Mak family tree better, and how the patriarch and founder made his bones from Guangzhou to Hong Kong selling nothing but won ton noodles with the equipment carried between his shoulders, to having his various children and daughters and in laws branching out (also selling won ton noodles and other things) using their family name. Not 6 degrees of Kevin Bacon, but the many facades of Mak.
It is also said that Mak An 麥奀 is in reference to the OG founder’s 2^nd (or whatever #) son, who was a bit of a gaunt and runt, hence «An 奀». Skinny underdeveloped guy. Well he did eventually branch out and also do well on his own. Look at Bill Gates. Be nice to tech geeks and won ton geeks!
Thanks to a great local food friend, I was recommended to come specifically to this location of Mak An Kee, and for one dish in particular… and that was the dried roasted shaved flatfish brothless noodles (lo mein) 甫魚撈麵. There aren’t any other places that offer such a thing, because a whole roasted dried flatfish 大地魚 usually ends up becoming the key ingredient, and used in making the classic wonton noodle broth.
As I put my order in with the waiter in Cantonese, he immediately responded «you know that is dried flatfish 大地魚 right?» (since the menu name of the dish is po yu lo mein 甫魚撈麵). I nodded and he kindly offered me a choice of oyster sauce or brisket gravy for the brothless noodles, to which I gladly accepted the latter. Sexcellent choice indeed.
The brothless noodles arrived first. A piping hot brothless clump of thin egg noodles (no doubt drizzled with a little good old fashioned lard), with a steamy side mini bowl of fragrant dried flatfish broth, and it was apparent there was some shrimp roe at the bottom… with the requisite young yellow chives on top. The dried roasted flatfish shavings appeared on a soy sauce dish (and as an out of towner visiting, still trying to get used to this, and telling myself it is portion control!). But once you pour the shavings over the noodles, drizzle some brisket gravy, it becomes a wonderland. You are not tossing salad, but noodles, lard, and a ton of flavor.
Prior to the tossing I had a taste of the roasted flatfish… a lot crunchier with a nice savory presence. It was way crunchier than fish or pork floss in Taipei! A very pleasant aroma and aftertaste.
I suppose this is not a heavily ordered itembut I quickly learned to enjoy its subtleties.
Next up was a small bowl of plain wontons in soup. I had completely forgotten that the classic Mak style was pretty much all shrimp… as wontons in the USA have more or less been infected with the Tsim Chai Kee model of «ping pong» or god forbid «golf ball» sized wonton monstrosities. It was quite a pleasure to finally have some delicately made wontons, pretty much all shrimp, and in this kind of quality.
For me, it doesn’t matter if they are not the best in town, pretty much anything around will be 100x better than in the USA.
Now even with just these two items, came the sticker shock when it came time to paying the bill. It was close to HK$ 80. Yes… we’re living in expensive and difficult times, and this is Central. If you tell locals you spent this much for noodles during lunch, they will think you are crazy. But c’mon…you cannot get this kind of quality and history in the USA!
If anything, the dried roasted flatfish noodles is worth a visit just to try.
甫魚撈麵 all the way baby! With brisket sauce on the side, for your sucka MC remixing needs.