Basket Fortune
Local and tourist-friendly Dim sum, without the city hall prices? And tea that’s never bitter? And free har gau? Sign us up!
More Fortune Here! It doesn’t have an exclamation point in the name but don’t you just want to add one?
That’s not a terribly novel or creative name for a restaurant. Sure, yeah, it may be auspicious, and in a dim sum joint that’s kind of a thing, so we’ll let it slide. Especially considering this is a little gem, currently tucked under some scaffolding, with good food, decent prices, helpful staff and clean, modern interiors. Hey, we like the manky looking kitchen through the service window too, but we prefer the seating area to at least bear the semblance of hygiene. More Fortune’s interiors aren’t chic, or innovative, or sophisticated. They’re functional and probably cost effective for the owners. But they’re clean and comfortable enough for lunch.
More Fortune Here in North Point (though it’s closer to Fortress Hill station) is the second location for the San Po Kong eatery, and as we’re all constantly on the look-out for a decent place for yum cha – you know, something that won’t break the bank (the Four Seasons has fantastic dim sum, gag cough cough), where the footballs aren’t greasy (hold on, we’ll get there), and where tea isn’t bitter – it’s worth including on your list of go-to dim sum options.
The menu is surprisingly comprehensive for a relatively small diner, covering the safe, white people stuff – char siu bao ($20), har gau ($20-$38), siu lung bao ($30) and so on are all present and accounted for – and most of the regular, traditional favourites for locals and tourists alike, including ham seui gok ($20) – AKA footballs, though More Fortune’s look more like tiny pears – cheung fan ($26-$36) and bite sized lou bak gou ($20). Chicken feet, stuffed eggplant and peppers, various tofu skin-based bites, soy rolls (good), five spice meat roll (admittedly moderate), dried scallop, shrimp and pea green dumplings ($32, and really good), and old-timey quail egg siu mai and fish maw with chicken… all those are being served up too. Most notable is the choice of perfectly brewed (at least on this day) chrysanthemum tea, an infrequent option to be sure, and the lychee ball in crispy rice ($30). That’s an oddity that’s extremely rare – possible More Fortune’s own concoction – and it is utterly delicious in chewy, delicate, crunchy sweetness. Nothing is oily or over-sauced, the har gau skins are tender but not gluey. And speaking of oddities, More Fortune has a “high tea” style dessert platter – complete with Italian cheesecake ($120) that is its single biggest left field item. That said, since when have Hong Kong dim sum joints ever not thrown something from left field onto the table? And while there is indeed free har gau, it’s for a limited time.
If there’s a downside to More Fortune it might be the lack of an English menu, though for the record we didn’t ask for one; it may be available upon request. Of course, you could also learn to read a few key characters and roll the dice. But the more the merrier of course (on sample day the bill came to $180 for six dishes for two) so someone in your party will probably be able to read the menu. But the wait staff were friendly enough they’re most likely to actually respond to you when you point cluelessly to menu and ask “Which one is siu mai?”
MOre Fortune Here Dim Sum
Address: Shop A G/F, Nam Tin Building, 275 King’s Road, North Point
Fortress Hill MTR, Exit B
Available on: Deliveroo (Temporarily unavailable)
Worth more than one trip?: Yes