STEPPING INTO OLD HONG KONG: YAU MA TEI

老香港情懷：油麻地

Yau Ma Tei is an area sandwiched between Mong Kok to the north and Tsim Sha Tsui to the south. Together, the three areas make up Yau Tsim Mong, Kowloon's core urban area and the district with the second highest population density in Hong Kong. Before the ceding of Kowloon to the British in 1860, Yau Ma Tei was a bay where Tanka fishermen gathered, and the harbour has survived several rounds of reclamation. The Yau Ma Tei Typhoon Shelter became an area where restaurants on boats served indigenous seafood, and ‘typhoon shelter' dishes remain popular to this day.

油麻地位於旺角及尖沙咀之間，三個地區合稱油尖旺，是九龍的核心地段，是全港人口密度第二高的地方。在九龍於1860年給割讓予英國前，油麻地是個海灣，有不少蜑家漁民聚居，經歷了數次填海工程，海灣依舊存在，油麻地避風塘還有艇家在船上經營餐廳，提供地道海鮮及避風塘風味的菜式，直至今天菜式依然大受歡迎。

Food & Beverage美味餐飲

The Yau Ma Tei Fruit Market is arguably Yau Ma Tei's most famous landmark. Founded in 1913, it originally also sold vegetables and fish, but the vendors moved with the opening of the Cheung Sha Wan Vegetables Wholesaling Market and Fishery Wholesaling Market. The fruit wholesalers still operate to this very day, and the busiest hours of business are in the early mornings from four to six o'clock. It's always fun to watch traders dealing in the eye-catchingly colourful produce. This is also a good place to stock up on larger quantities of fruit for gatherings over the festive season.

Kubrick bookstore houses a café with a nice range of food and drinks. If you're not put off by people inevitably milling around waiting for seats to free up over the busy weekends, nobody will actively kick you out and it's all too easy to while the day away there. Opposite the Tin Hau Temple, Mido Café is a bit of an institution. With its décor of mosaic-tiled walls and floors consistent since the 50s, it emits a very old-school vibe that is a large part of its charm. Try to grab a seat along the curved wall; when the neon sign outside lights up at sundown, you'll feel like you've stumbled into a Wong Kar Wai film.

油麻地果欄是該區最著名的地標，於1913年啟用，最初果欄亦有出售蔬菜和鮮魚，但自長沙灣蔬菜及魚類批發市場啟用後，菜販及魚販搬走了，鮮果批發商營運至今，最繁忙的時段由早上4時至6時，看著販商出售色彩鮮艷的蔬果，是件賞心樂事，這裡亦是購買大量生果過節的好地方。

Kubrick除了是書店外，亦有咖啡館，周末等位的人十分多，當然如果你不怕要排隊，也可以在那裡慢慢消磨一個午後。在天后廟對面的美都餐室是遊客必訪之地，50年代開業的餐室，仍然採用馬賽克瓷磚作裝飾，瀰漫著懷舊氣息，十分吸引，不妨坐在窗邊，日落時份，室外霓虹燈亮起，你會察覺自己像是在王家衛的電影中。