Ancient Charm, Modern Tunes @ She Wong Fun

When I was young, my grandpa often took me to snake restaurants to enjoy snake soup and glutinous rice! These delicacies are filled with wonderful childhood memories, but nowadays, snake restaurants in Hong Kong are few and far between. Among the remaining ones, She Wong Fun, a century-old establishment, has already celebrated its 130th anniversary. To mark this joyous occasion, the restaurant is hosting cultural events that blend tradition with innovation, and has launched a special 130th Anniversary Celebration Set Menu to evoke collective memories of Hong Kong, allowing everyone to savor the sweet, sour, bitter, and spicy flavors of life. From now until August 30th, every Friday evening from 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM, She Wong Fun will hold musical performances outside its Central Gough Street branch, bringing a youthful vibe through melodious tunes. Additionally, the restaurant has collaborated with local creative beverage brand "Five Flavors" to craft unique cocktails for the celebration. The interior of the restaurant exudes a classical charm with its historical decor, and the walls are adorned with meaningful handwritten notes from famous personalities. The fourth-generation successor, Ng Cheuk Chi, comes from a family of traditional Chinese medicine practitioners. Her great-grandparents were both Chinese medicine doctors. This time, "Five Flavors" has reinterpreted tradition by creating a limited-time signature drink, the Honeysuckle Chrysanthemum Five Flavors Cocktail ($85). It uses She Wong Fun's homemade honeysuckle chrysanthemum tea as the base, blended with gin, roselle, red dates, dried ginger, angelica, and honey, resulting in a cocktail that combines herbal aromas with fruity sweetness. The drink is even garnished with a snake-shaped design made from preserved plum powder, making it perfect for Instagram-worthy photos. Even street snacks have been incorporated into the celebration! Exclusive innovative flavors like fresh duck liver sausage and dried tangerine peel egg waffles are available. The fresh duck liver sausage egg waffles feature a hint of alcohol aroma alongside the egg fragrance, making them irresistibly delicious. Original egg waffles are priced at $28, duck liver sausage egg waffles at $35, and dried tangerine peel egg waffles at $35, available daily from 12:30 PM to 7 PM. Don’t miss out if you’re passing by! She Wong Fun has specially launched the 130th Anniversary Celebration Sweet, Sour, Bitter, Spicy Bento Box Set ($280)! Representing different stages of life through various flavors, the set is presented in a Chinese-style yellow carved box, adding a touch of elegance. It includes a welcome drink, classic Tai Si snake soup, glutinous rice with twin sausages, and a dessert of mini watermelon snake wine fruit balls, totaling eight dishes in a rich and flavorful feast. The meal begins with the "Blooming Beauty" aperitif! This roselle-infused wine is named "Blooming Beauty" for its beautifying and warming effects. The sourness of roselle, sweetness of red dates, and spiciness of dried ginger create a unique and distinctive flavor. The restaurant has selected its customers' favorite dishes from the past 20 years to form this sweet, sour, bitter, and spicy set: Sweet – Nostalgic Fried Crab Claws (2 pieces)! The crab claws are fried to a golden crisp, with springy shrimp paste and crab meat inside, bursting with freshness. Dip them in Ng Mama’s favorite lemon sauce for a sweet and fragrant taste. Sour – Hawthorn Plum Lychee Golden Ribs (3 pieces)! The golden ribs are coated in a sauce made from hawthorn, plum, and lychee, offering a tender texture and a sweet-and-sour flavor that’s perfect for summer. Bitter – Fish-Stuffed Bitter Melon (2 pieces)! This traditional Hakka dish reminds me of my dear grandma. Bitter melon rings are filled with fish paste and topped with a slice of pan-fried salted egg yolk, drizzled with a light glaze sauce. The bitterness is balanced by the savory flavors, creating a delightful surprise for the taste buds. Spicy – Chili Salt Spicy Abalone (2 pieces)! Large and plump South African abalones are stir-fried with dried red chili and secret chili salt, releasing an extraordinary aroma. The chewy and flavorful abalone offers an endless taste experience. Tai Si Snake Soup! This recipe, passed down from the Guangzhou Jiang Tai Si family, features five types of fresh snakes, paired with old chicken, pork bones, sugarcane, and dried tangerine peel, simmered for a full day. The soup is then enriched with fish maw, shredded abalone, ham, dried tangerine peel, ginger, and shredded fish maw, delivering a warm and satisfying taste. The set also includes snake-shaped white rice and glutinous rice with twin sausages! The snake-shaped white rice is adorable and perfect for photos. Preserved Meat Glutinous Rice! A signature dish of the restaurant, it uses locally made preserved sausages and liver sausages paired with perfectly cooked glutinous rice. The soft and fragrant rice is enhanced with scallions, sesame seeds, and meat floss for an even richer aroma. Mini Watermelon Snake Wine Fruit Ball Dessert! The watermelon bowl is a nostalgic treat for those with life experiences. Colorful ingredients are hidden inside the sandy mini watermelon, with snake wine and Sprite adding a sweet and subtle alcoholic aroma. In addition to the 130th Anniversary Celebration Set Menu, She Wong Fun offers many nostalgic handcrafted dishes, such as papaya stewed with snow fungus, fish maw, and conch chicken soup, baked fish intestines in clay pot, crab roe steamed buns, taro crispy duck, and tea-smoked grandpa chicken. These rare handcrafted dishes are incredibly enticing. Take advantage of the festive atmosphere of She Wong Fun’s 130th anniversary and experience the celebratory flavors!