Hollywood Steak House 荷李活餐廳

Another Hong Kong style cafe restaurant? Well, we went to Richmond for hot pot at Chubby Lamb because we really needed "real hot pot", as in having a flavourful broth (Chinese chicken herbal in our case). But, the restaurant is temporarily closed! Since neither of us felt like having seafood for dinner and there are no restaurants in Richmond we were craving for, we decided to try out Hollywood Steak House.

Although despite the name of the restaurant, they do not even offer steak! I was expecting something along the lines of La Amigo or Kingspark Steak House's steak offerings, but instead Hollywood Steak House offers generic HK style cafe food. The menu includes curry, baked rice dishes, noodle in soup, spaghetti, hot plates combos, rice dishes and sandwiches. In addition, there is nothing over $11.95! Perhaps  it is a HK style cafe version of Moulin Rouge?

As for the Hollywood in the restaurant's name, it must refer to the interior. There are black and white photos of Audrey Hepburn, Bruce Lee, Marilyn Monroe, Schwarzenegger, Stallone, and even some cut outs. Asides from the Hollywood theme, the restaurant has comfortable seating arrangements and is not cramped. 

CLAM CHOWDER SOUP ($4.95).

With an order of a two item combo, a choice of soup is included. The soup is very creamy and has a nice consistency, but tastes bland. There is no flavour at all which is a shame because there is a fair amount of clams. After the addition of salt, the soup did taste a bit better but still bland. Although at least the soup was not floury thick.

COKE AND MILK TEA ($1.00).

Drinks are included with almost everything on the menu and cold drinks are an addition $1.00. The milk tea tastes bland and very weak, although not too sweet. As for the coke, the drink tastes flat and my friend hates the addition of lemon.

GARLIC TOAST.

Like the soup, a slice of garlic toast is included with the purchase of a two item combo. The toast is very generic; a crunchy crust and a cold centre with garlic spread.

FETTUCCINE WITH PORK CUTLET IN CREAM SAUCE ($8.99).

The pork chop is well seasoned, juicy, tender and flavourful. In addition, the batter tastes crunchy and  the chop is perfectly fried. The pork chop is also not thin and mashed up; the way we like it. As for the fettuccine, the sauce tastes very similar to the clam chowder soup. Not only bland, but is the exact same sauce! No restaurant should ever be lazy and do this, especially if it tastes bland. Furthermore, the noodles are overcooked and tastes mushy. The highlight is definitely the pork chop.

LAKSA NOODLES IN SOUP ($8.95).

Laksa at a HK style cafe? Well, turns out it was the best dish (way better than Mamalee's)! The laksa tastes creamy as well as rich, and has a mild spiciness. Although the laksa could have been spicier, we were already surprised there was at least a mild level.

As for the ingredients, there are shrimp, slices of fish cake, an egg and chicken. The chicken thigh is nicely seasoned, tastes juicy, and is pan fried for that extra flavour. Furthermore, the noodles are perfectly cooked. If anything, there could have been a stronger coconut flavour but the laksa was more than good enough for a HK style cafe.

2 ITEM COMBO, PAN FRIED PORK CHOP AND TOP GRADE RIEYE STEAK IN CREAM OF MUSHROOM SAUCE ($10.99).

Since I am not experienced in HK style cafes, I turned down the dish because I did not know it was ours LOL. From what I am used to, I thought the dish would be served on a hot plate with the sauce on the side. Until my friend said it was ours… whoops.

Starting with the pork chop, it is a good quality piece of meat and is bone-in. The pork chop has a nice caramelized flavour and tastes tender as well as juicy. Following, the steak tastes tender as well and there is no weird marinade flavour. In addition, the cream of mushroom sauce does not taste the same as the previous dishes and has a very light cream flavour (not bland like the above). However, the mushrooms are barely cooked and I hate that raw flavour. As for the vegetables, they are freshly cooked and not kept in a warmer.

TOTAL: $33.55 + TIP $5.45 = $39.00.

Overall, I thought Hollywood Steak House was not very good because the only item we finished was the laksa. However, after reading my notes, the pork chops at the restaurant are a good quality especially for the price. Also, only the drinks and cream sauces were meh. Hollywood Steak House offers affordable prices but with La Amigo and Kingspark Steak House in the area as well, those two are still the best HK style cafes I have found.

POSITIVES

- Friendly staff

- Cheap prices

- Good laksa (3.5/5)

NEGATIVES

- Food can improve

- Drinks are watered down

- Cream sauces (0/5)

LITTLE THINGS

- Meats are good, it is just that darn sauce!

- Chinese dishes may be better than the HK style cafe offerings

Food: 2.5/5

Service: 2.5/5