Hong Kong: Peking Duck at Spring Deer

One night, I was craving Peking duck and I remembered reading about Spring Deer, which was in Tsim Sha Tsui, not far from my hotel. Spring Deer is located in an old, worn building, and from the street, it looks more like a factory outlet sale or a place for underground clubbing.

The restaurant is one stair up, and the entire staircase was full of people waiting for a table. We squeezed our way up to the counter and put our name on the waiting list before we went back down again to wait our turn. I think we waited for around 40 minutes, but the smell was so enticing that we didn’t even consider leaving. As we moved further up in the line, we could see how duck after duck were brought to the tables and sliced, and just the sight of it made my stomach roar “I WANT THIS”.

The best Peking duck (and the worst service) I’ve ever had was at Private Kitchen in Beijing a couple of years ago, but Spring Deer is definitely in the same league. At Spring Deer, the duck is sliced at your table, and the delicious, bite-sized pieces had crispy skin and lots of fat underneath. I know some of you might find it gross, but when it comes to roast duck and char siu (Chinese barbecued pork), the more fat, the better, if you ask me. Have you ever tried duck fat fries? So delicious!

In general, I found dining out in Hong Kong quite pricey, but Spring Deer was an exception. I think we paid around 300KHD for a whole duck, and even though we came with a big appetite, we couldn’t finish it. I don’t mind splurging on good food, and Peking duck is usually not the cheapest item on the menu, so the price level at Spring Deer was a pleasant surprise. Instead, my wallet cried a bit, when it thought about how much money it had shelled out on bad food in the beginning of the trip.

Before the Hong Kong trip, I didn’t do a lot of research because I just knew I would love the city. I was daydreaming about delicious street food and amazing neighborhood gems. Well guess what: There’s almost no street food stalls in the central parts of Hong Kong. According to a friend, who lives in Hong Kong, it hasn’t always been like that, but in recent years it has become so expensive to rent street space for food stalls, so it isn’t a profitable way to make a living anymore.

Spring Deer, 2F 42 Mody Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong, Tel: +852 23664012