Set amid a striking natural harbor and backdropped by imposing jade-colored mountains, Asia’s hyper-vertical metropolis commands attention from any angle, at all hours. But Hong Kong’s famed views are perhaps best savored over the city’s equally celebrated cuisine.

For a quintessentially scenic lunch, ascend Victoria Peak by tram for dim sum at Tien Yi in the renovated Peak Tower shopping complex. With its lofty panoramas of Hong Kong and the surrounding islands, this restaurant is a must, especially for those accustomed to eating their barbecued pork buns and shrimp dumplings in gaudy Chinatown banquet rooms. Ask to sit next to a window overlooking Victoria Harbour, and you’ll understand why the restaurant’s name means “the pinnacle of the world.” Read the rest of this post »

If there’s one thing Hong Kong does supremely well, it’s shopping – from high-end malls to vibrant open-air markets, there’s always something for sale (sans the sales tax!). While strolling in the boutique- and gallery-filled Soho neighborhood, just off trendy Hollywood Road, I happened upon Vintage HK, a very chic second-hand art, clothing, and knick-knack store run by a sharp-eyed hipster named Nadia. Equal parts kitsch and cool (mostly a combination of both), Vintage HK stocks everything from giant plastic Chinese characters (like the Cantonese word for “happiness” pictured in this store window) to funky shoes and accessories to adorable gold shaving kits decorated with animated tigers, horses, or pandas (see photo after the jump). Read the rest of this post »