“Be authentic and original”, Interview with Derrick Yeung, the owner of Honolulu Cafe

In Hong Kong, we refer to our local cafes as cha chaan tengs. With their affordability, fast-service dining and of course a promising taste of authentic Hong Kong, cha chaan tengs have become go-to restaurant locations for the local Hong Kong community whilst gradually also making their way to Chinatowns all over the world.

Post-World War II was an era filled with British influence, leading local Hong Kong’s to adopt the use of milk in their tea-drinking culture. The Hong Kong milk tea and iced lemon tea, staples of the Hong Kong cha chaan teng menu, along with many local delicacies, soared in popularity within the local population, thanks to cheap pricing that allowed for the replication of ‘western food’ in an authentic Hong Kong way. 

During my dining experience at the Honolulu Cafe, I had originally planned to interview our server. But when I asked, he walked me from my table to the other side of the chaa chaan teng to meet the owner, Derrick Yeung, who just so happened to be in the middle of a newspaper read with a hot milk tea by his arm. 
He was a small and friendly man with a bright smile on his face. “How can I help you today?” he asked, before I could even introduce myself, and warmly invited me to sit down at his table. Yeung spoke quietly as he did not want to disturb his customers at 9:37am – but it was clear this restaurant was his prized possession. 

We spoke about his business, the presence of international food chains and the restaurant preferences of younger people in Hong Kong…

Derrick Yeung, owner of Honolulu Cafe

How long has your business been going for?

Yeung: This business started in 1960, so 84 years now. I’m currently the second generation to run it. 

How do you think your restaurant has been impacted by the modernisation of HK, with the introduction of places like McDonalds and Starbucks?

Yeung: We serve two different types of people. To be honest, I don’t think there is any direct competition between these two types of businesses. We don’t do self-service like the fast food restaurants. It’s a chaa chaan teng, very different styles at the end of the day. 

If you were to tell young people how we should preserve local HK food culture, what would you say?

Yeung: That’s a difficult question. It is really up to the person and whether or not our restaurant style along with the food is their go-to preference. I mean, you can’t really find any foods like this outside of these chaa chaan tengs. If you look at Fairwood [a HK fast food chain] for example, they use processed food that has undergone a lot of manufacturing. Meanwhile, we serve our food fresh. 

In your experience, do young people enjoy this kind of traditional food?

Yeung: I can’t be sure. We see young people coming in here as well. But there are also people like my 16 year old daughter. She’s not a fan. She prefers the western food, you know – the spaghetti, that type of thing. 

Honolulu Cafe, Luen Sen Mansion, Hennessy Rd, Wan Chai, Hong Kong

Any last thoughts on HK culture?

Yeung: Honestly, we are just trying our best to be authentic and original.