Worth
the $100 billion in construction cost or not, the High Speed Rail did minimize much hassle for travelling from Hong Kong to nearby Chinese cities. Recently we spent a weekend in Guangzhou recently with our train ride taking slightly less than 2 hours from the city center of Hong Kong to the city center of Guangzhou (in the past a similar trip would have been twice as long with more stops in between)
Mandarin Oriental Guangzhou may not be the newest high-end hotel in town but remained one of the top, located right in the heart of the buzzling Tianhe District and next to one of the top shopping malls (Taikoo Hui Guangzhou) We wasn't aware of the hotel shuttle bus service available at the train station but happy to hop on one after seeing someone holding the sign at the gate guiding us to the car, saving us the trouble of navigating through one of the busiest train station in the country.
The room wasn't available when we checked in right before lunch but they did provide us an upgrade to the Mandarin Room when we returned from lunch at the mall. Room was spacious (700 square feet) with separate "living area" (more like a junior suite) and what I love most was the huge bathroom with a free-standing soaking tub next to the window. Not so much a view to show forth with the hotel located in the midst of skyscrapers but with windows on 2 sides of the room the space was bright and comfortable.
As part of our hotel package, breakfast was served in the next morning at Ebony, their all-day western dining restaurant. We were reminded it may get very busy during morning peak hours so we opted for an early breakfast. There was a good selection of the usuals, from French pastries to Cantonese dim-sum and some hot dishes made to order, all presented elegantly as in all other MO properties we have stayed in previously.
We visited their Chinese restaurant
Jiang by Chef Fei during our last visit some years ago and glad to return for lunch on Sunday before we headed back home. Now with 2 Michelin stars, they were as good as we expected. We went with a couple of Dim Sum dishes and then a few others from the all-day a la carte menu. The Roast Pigeon was perfectly roasted with crispy skin and really juicy and tender meat underneath. Steamed Hele Crab (和樂蟹) was another highlight, with the river flower crab from Hainan Island at its peak during autumn season best known for the rich flavor from the bright orange roes underneath the shell. It's served with steamed pork patty underneath and it's perfect for each other for this "surf n turf" combo.
We spent a bit of time exploring the Taikoo Hui shopping mall next door, taking refuge from the unbearable mid-summer heat. We stumbled across "Tai Er Legend" (太二前傳) at the restaurant floor and decided to give it a shot on the first day. The place is an offshoot of the popular Tai Er restaurant chain known for the Sichuan Sauteed Fish with Pickled Vegetables, but with the slogan "We don't sell Fish with Pickled Vegetables", Tai Er Legend showcased other traditional Sichuan dishes other than one that made them famous. We enjoyed the generous serving of Sichuan "Boiled Fish" with the silky fish fillet in a deep dish of chili sauce filled with nice pepper aroma but not overly spicy.
Dongshankou (東山口) was one of the neighborhood we visited this time, with the normally quiet streets (not so quiet on weekends with scores of tourists wandering around) lined with trees and old villas and residential houses built in the last century and constructed in western architecture style. That's about all we managed outdoors with temperature soaring to mid-30s during the day.
Going to a concert might have been the major objective of this weekend trip (and was definitely worthwhile!), it's great to be back in Guangzhou for a quick getaway now made easier with the new train service. There are still so much more to explore as far as food scene is concerned and certainly more hotels to check out in our future visits.
More photos:
Guangzhou: https://www.flickr.com/photos/g4gary/albums/72177720310556688
Jiang by Chef Fei: https://www.flickr.com/photos/g4gary/albums/72177720310557984
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