Top photo credit: Spot The Food with Andre
When I think of egg waffles, I think of small crowds around a little street stall and the smoke steaming from the waffle machine. I think of the scrambling to the front of the stall, the anticipation while waiting in line, and finally, the smell of the freshly-made egg waffles when they can be finally eaten.
Photo credit: Gourmet Traveller 88
This memory is probably similar to a lot of other people who live in this city; egg waffles are a popular street food in Hong Kong that date back to the 1950s. The egg-based waffle, also called Gai Daan Zai in Cantonese, has a spherical shape, a crunchy exterior and a soft interior.
Photo credit: Spot The Food with Andre
Lately, I’ve noticed that beyond street stalls, dessert shops have been gaining recognition for their egg waffles too. One such place is Oddies.
Oddies is a dessert place that puts its own twist on the iconic egg waffles (or “eggettes”, the name that the shop uses). “Night Wolf” seems to be a popular option, and features a chocolate chip egg waffle with banana ice cream, crumble, and a passion fruit panna cotta underneath to balance out the sweetness. The dessert echoes an old-meets-new sentiment, combining the “old” egg waffle and the “new” gelato ice cream. The menu at Oddies constantly changes, and the Chinese Sausage Eggette sounds interesting as a savoury option.
Photo credit: Sassy Hong Kong
It’s always interesting to see different and new interpretations and adaptions of classic Hong Kong desserts. The egg waffle is no exception, and foodies alike will definitely appreciate the outside-of-the-box creativity that dessert restaurants such as Oddies are bringing to the table.
Shop 1F, G/F
149 Wan Chai Road
Wan Chai
Hours:
Mon-Sun: 12:00-20:30
