Mongkok's hidden rooftop barbecues

You may be a hardened city-dweller, but heading out to the country can feel dangerous. There are wild animals. It's dark. And who knows what all that fresh air is doing to your lungs?  And now, you can't even claim to be seeking out a great BBQ spot to kick back in an evening with some friends, because that's available right here within our skyscrapers. 

For just under a year, Mongkok BBQ, a barbecue private kitchen, has been offering flames, beer, and good conversation under the comforting gaze of Langham Place. All you have to do is find a misspelled sign ("BQQ") hanging over a doorway on Soy Street and climb seven flights of stairs. When you emerge onto the roof, it's like you've stepped through a portal into the backyard of a New Territories village house: a broad space bordered by potted plants, covered by a broad awning and filled with sizzle, smoke and chatter. Considering you're in the most jam-packed corner of Hong Kong, there's surprisingly little traffic noise.

There are five portable barbecue pits and room for a few dozen people. Simon, the owner, says that it's usually full on weekends, so it's better to book ahead.

The whole BBQ process goes something like this: Simon loads charcoal in the pit and lights it with a fearsome blowtorch. Then you grab your barbecue forks and dig into the vast spread of food that has been laid out on a nearby table. There are four types of balls (fish, beef, pork and shrimp), sausages, steak, chicken wings, chicken thighs, scallops-on-the-half-shell, squid, duck and white radish, corn and thick slices of bread. Enochi mushrooms and a lump of margarine are wrapped in tin foil and tossed into the fire. It's delicious. Watch out for the scallops, though. If you leave them by the fire long enough they'll start exploding.

A couple of fridges well-stocked with tea, water and beer (all you can drink) round off the offerings.

The price is HK$118 per person ($138 on weekends). It's a small price to pay for a full stomach, time with friends and the satisfaction, after waddling back down to street level, that comes from having had a BBQ experience worthy of Sai Kung without straying more than five minutes from the MTR.

Mongkok BBQ. 29 Soy Street, tel +852 6693 8700

View Larger Map