2008 Woodie Awards
Hong Kong Cafe king of Boston Chinese food scene
Andrew Berlanstein
Issue date: 3/20/08 Section: City Pulse
No longer do Northeastern students have to suffer from a poor selection of dingy Chinese food joints. Throw away the Nan Ling menus you have collected from your building's front door and head across the Fens to the Hong Kong Café.
HKC (for short) is a full-service Chinese restaurant with an expansive menu and high-quality cuisine. The restaurant specializes in Szechuan-, Mandarin- and Hong Kong-style cuisine.
Customers are often disheartened by the seedy exterior of the old Howard Johnson hotel in which the café is situated, but don't be fooled: The Hong Kong Café is a hidden treasure buried deep within a poorly designed 1980s constructed building directly adjacent to Fenway Park.
Some HKC loyalists have never even stepped foot inside the Howard Johnson to enjoy their favorite dishes. The café provides what is perhaps the most efficient delivery service in Boston, at no extra cost. The super-friendly driver comes from 1271 Boylston St. to apartments near Northeastern in about 20 minutes, and food is always hot and fresh.
With such a stellar delivery service, it can be hard to find the motivation to haul over to the Howard Johnson and eat at the Hong Kong Café; that is, until you and your friends discover one of their Scorpion Bowls.
Start your HKC experience with one of these volcano-shaped porcelain cauldrons. These massive drinks are big enough for two and come with extra long straws for drinking from a distance - which makes a good icebreaker for a potentially fruitful romantic outing. The beverage is made with a combination of gin, rum and vodka mixed together with orange juice and pineapple juice. While it may sound like a simple recipe, it isn't a true scorpion bowl unless it's served in a volcano and enjoyed with friends. This is true fortune.
It would be easy to order an entire meal consisting of only appetizers at HKC. Tender beef teriyaki ($5.95) served on a skewer is coated in a sweet, smoky sauce; crab rangoons ($4.95) are stuffed with cream cheese and fried crispy; and the wonton soup ($1.95), with delicate pork dumplings, is incredibly satisfying. For the vegetarians, there are scallion pancakes ($3.75), vegetable spring rolls ($3.25), vegetable ravioli ($4.95) and vegetable tempura ($4.95).
HKC (for short) is a full-service Chinese restaurant with an expansive menu and high-quality cuisine. The restaurant specializes in Szechuan-, Mandarin- and Hong Kong-style cuisine.
Customers are often disheartened by the seedy exterior of the old Howard Johnson hotel in which the café is situated, but don't be fooled: The Hong Kong Café is a hidden treasure buried deep within a poorly designed 1980s constructed building directly adjacent to Fenway Park.
Some HKC loyalists have never even stepped foot inside the Howard Johnson to enjoy their favorite dishes. The café provides what is perhaps the most efficient delivery service in Boston, at no extra cost. The super-friendly driver comes from 1271 Boylston St. to apartments near Northeastern in about 20 minutes, and food is always hot and fresh.
With such a stellar delivery service, it can be hard to find the motivation to haul over to the Howard Johnson and eat at the Hong Kong Café; that is, until you and your friends discover one of their Scorpion Bowls.
Start your HKC experience with one of these volcano-shaped porcelain cauldrons. These massive drinks are big enough for two and come with extra long straws for drinking from a distance - which makes a good icebreaker for a potentially fruitful romantic outing. The beverage is made with a combination of gin, rum and vodka mixed together with orange juice and pineapple juice. While it may sound like a simple recipe, it isn't a true scorpion bowl unless it's served in a volcano and enjoyed with friends. This is true fortune.
It would be easy to order an entire meal consisting of only appetizers at HKC. Tender beef teriyaki ($5.95) served on a skewer is coated in a sweet, smoky sauce; crab rangoons ($4.95) are stuffed with cream cheese and fried crispy; and the wonton soup ($1.95), with delicate pork dumplings, is incredibly satisfying. For the vegetarians, there are scallion pancakes ($3.75), vegetable spring rolls ($3.25), vegetable ravioli ($4.95) and vegetable tempura ($4.95).
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