flâneur

Kwan Hong Bakery keeps tradition alive with Mid-Autumn mooncakes

hongkongfp.com · 1,419 words · saved by 1 readers

Five years ago, unaffordable rents forced Kwan Hong Bakery to close its doors. Now at a neighbouring address in Sham Shui Po, the traditional Hong Kong-style bakery is still hanging on, defying a sluggish economy that has hit the catering and retail industries. Charles Ng, 37, helms Kwan Hong as the second-generation successor of the family-owned bakery. When HKFP visited his shop in mid-September, he was busy preparing mooncakes for the Mid-Autumn Festival, which falls on Monday. Dressed in a pink tank top, Ng balanced trays of the traditional Chinese pastry from the decades-old ovens – a testimony to the shop’s almost half-century history. Cantonese curse words from family members and relatives working for the bakery were occasionally heard in the cramped kitchen. The bakers took out freshly baked traditional mooncakes from the ovens as others prepared a new batch, pressing lotus seed paste and salted egg yolks encrusted in dough into wooden moulds – its surface smooth and worn down

Words by James Lee . As Hong Kong’s economic boom faded and manufacturing moved to China, some long-established, family-run companies preserved their traditions as others innovated to survive. In our new series, HKFP documents the craftsmanship and spirit behind the goods that are still proudly “Made in Hong Kong,” as local firms navigate the US-China trade war. Five years ago, unaffordable rents forced Kwan Hong Bakery to close its doors. Now at a neighbouring address in Sham Shui Po, the traditional Hong Kong-style bakery is still hanging on, defying a sluggish economy that has hit the cater

related reading