Nibble & scribble: Corner Cool: Po's & Deadend

Bready artisan morsels can be found in a corner at Po’s, a corner bakery along Po Hing Fong. At my last visit, instead of the chocolate Danish which I usually have that has a dark rich chocolate and crisp pastry, I had the “Today’s Special” Pain au Chocolate which was a hit and a miss as a whole. The pastry was airy and crisp but I didn’t enjoy the chocolate that was in the croissant pastry – it was too sweet and I couldn’t quite make out what type of chocolate or was it a caramel mix? Moving away from chocolates, one other item that I love and recommend is the Yunnan ham fougasse, that will (unfortunately) cost a large amount of your daily lunch pocket allowance at HKD 50 a pop, is a seriously delicious crusty breadstick with a good chewy texture that is flavoured with cubes of Yunnan ham.

If you want a cuppa just walk a few more steps to the neighbouring Café Deadend. In terms of coffee, my favourite thing to drink here is a dirty. Actually, no make that a dirty double – hot double espresso in a chilled cup and served with cold milk. It is a tricky one. It isn’t neither a piping hot drink that some are very finicky about and the milk isn’t foamed so the milk isn’t aerated to be creamier nor is it cold enough to be an iced coffee. The temperature that you have it is warmer than lukewarm and the idea behind it is that at that temperature, you get to taste more of the coffee, which you really do. This is me having a little whinge - since it’s opening late last year the café has gained a sizable following, which means more people and limited seats. A few months ago, Café Deadend didn’t even have a food menu and only served coffee and it had a more zen vibe about it. That’s all changed; now if you sit indoors (with the roof over your head) you get service and coffee in proper cups and food from their menu. If you sit outdoors, your coffee comes in a plastic cup, you can take out from Po’s and there is no service charge on your bill. In my ideal world, I would like a proper cup, no crowds and no restrictions on takeout from Po’s regardless of where I sit. The choice is yours.