One of the aspects that makes Hong Kong the cosmopolitan city that it is, is undoubtedly it’s varied cuisine.  You name a country and I can guarantee you that it’s food is available here.  A short, rather steep trip up either side of the Mid-levels escalator will introduce you to more than a dozen different kinds of food. 

When we first arrived in the SAR some four years ago, Howzit-HongKong.com learnt about a local website that makes choosing a lunch or dinner venue so much easier. 

OpenRice.com was established in 1999 and provides a restaurant search engine and a platform for users to make reviews and comments on restaurants. (“open rice” is the direct translation from Cantonese Chinese meaning “let’s eat”)  By systematically categorizing restaurants by cuisine, district, and price range, users can quickly and easily find information on over 20,000 restaurants.   However, at the time the website was only available in Chinese.  However, it is with great delight that we recently found that an English version is also now live online. 

OpenRice.com lists restaurants and bars in some of the most popular districts in the city like Central, Knutsford Terrace (Kowloon) Soho and Lan Kwai Fong.  In fact, the handy ‘Select District’button takes you to basically any place around the greater Hong Kong including the New Territories and Outlying Islands.

The website also categorizes different kinds of meals like Chiu Chow, Guandong cuisine, Sushi/Shashimi, Seafood, Dessert and Hot Pot.

If you’re planning a trip to Hong Kong to savour it’s fine cuisine, OpenRice.com should be your first stop.