After visiting the giant rubber ducky outside Ocean Terminal, it was time to eat some real ducky so we headed for our reservation at Spring Deer. This is a pretty old school restaurant which has been open for ages and famous for their Peking duck. Dishes here are offered in 3 sizes (small, medium, large) which is great if you are a couple, on a budget, or just want to try a whole bunch of things.
Vegetarian ‘duck’ roll (small, $70).
Shredded chicken with clear noodles in a peanut sauce and sesame oil (small, $70). I’ve always loved the slippery texture of the clear noodles mixed with slices of chicken and cucumber in peanut sauce. Spring Deer’s version hit all the right spots.
Drunken chicken (small, $88)
Shrimp toast (small, $80). Not too oily. Not bad at all but I would probably not order this again (since I can’t help comparing it to other better versions I’ve tried.)
Peking duck ($300). Crispy skin on top of meltingly tender fat and super moist meat. I also liked the thicker-than-normal pancakes since I think it did a good job of wrapping the duck with the cucumber and sauce and ensured no breakage in the skin. My only complaint is that the duck is only served one way. Where is the rest of our duck? I would have preferred drinking some duck soup or seen our duck incorporated into other dishes (like most other restaurants).
Stir fried egg whites with dried scallops (small, $80). I’ve always liked this dish as a kid but this version was missing the round egg yolk that normally makes an appearance. And I would have also liked a bit more black vinegar. Egg whites were nice and fluffy and still a bit wet which is how it should be I like it I remembered it to be.
Veggies and pork in broth (small, $70). I was so sad that we had only ordered the small size since the broth was so incredibly delicious and addictive. I kept on hoping we could get seconds (that didn’t happen). Next time I am definitely ordering the largest size possible.
Fried egg white souffle balls filled with mashed red bean and banana (medium, $60). Another childhood favourite of mine. Everyone only ate one. Maybe they were too full. Maybe they just didn’t like it. Who cares? Who knows? More for me and L. Yay us!
I ended up paying under $165 which is just crazy for the amount of food we had ordered. Service was efficient: clean plates were constantly replaced and dishes arrived quickly but not in a rushed manner. I will definitely return whenever I’m craving some yummy and wallet friendly classic Chinese dishes in a no frills, no nonsense type environment.
Reservations: Yes. Call 2366 4012 to book a table.
Where: 1/F, 42 Mody Rd, Tsim Sha Tsui