Stuffed roasted suckling pig at Kimberley Chinese Restaurant

Bring a sizable party and some bigger trousers before coming to Kimberley Chinese Restaurant, which specialises in upscale Cantonese cuisine including dim sum, abalone delicacies and the like. However, its main attraction is the roasted suckling pig, a behemoth of a dish. It differs from the traditional dish in that it is stuffed with delicious sticky glutinous rice and roasted whole over an open flame. So the skin arrives roasted to crispy perfection and the inside is filled with fragrant and flavourful mushy rice.
• 28 Kimberley Road, Tsimshatsui, +852 2723 3888. Around £103 for a suckling pig that serves eight or 10. Open Mon-Sat 11am-3pm, 6pm-11pm, Sun 10am-4pm, 6pm-11pm

Beef brisket from Sister Wah

Although Central's Kau Kee restaurant is synonymous with beef brisket in Hong Kong, the city's foodies know that Sister Wah is the place to go for a refreshing bowl of beef brisket noodles. The stock's key ingredient is large chunks of daikon (similar to a large radish), making it lighter and sweeter than in many other beef brisket places. Sister Wah started in 2003 during the SARS downturn, but now the minuscule shop is always packed with loyal diners. Many are alumni from the nearby Queen's College, who make frequent visits even after they've moved away. There's a lovely familial vibe here thanks to the owner, Chan Yee Wah, who is more adoringly referred to as "Wah Jeh".
• 13A Electric Road, Tin Hau, +852 2807 0181. Around £1.60 a bowl. Open 11am-11pm.

Snake soup from Ser Wong Fun

Snake soup is considered a delicacy in the city, as traditionalists believe it wards off colds and other maladies. One of the best places to try it is Ser Wong Fun, which has a 115-year history of serving snake soups. The snake meat is shredded into thin white strips and served in a broth of mushrooms, seafood and lemon leaves. The place is a little shabby and always very packed but the experience is quintessentially Hong Kong.
• 30 Cochrane St, Central, +852 2543 1032. Around £10 a bowl. Open 11am-11.30pm.

Egg tart from the Hoover Cake Shop

This beloved Hong Kong staple is most commonly found with two different styles of crust: a crumbly shortcrust, or flaky puff pastry. But the Hoover Cake Shop continues to draw crowds because it makes its tarts with duck eggs, intensifying the custard's silky flavour and its rich yellow hue. The shop is modest and cosy, and its only ingredient for a winning atmosphere is the deliciously buttery scent of baked goods wafting out.
• 136 Nga Tsin Wai Road, Kowloon City, +852 2382 0383. Egg tarts around 40p each. Open 7am-8.30pm

Hot pot at Megan's Kitchen

Hot pot is a beloved Hong Kong tradition during the cold winter months – think hot fondue where you dip raw meats and fish balls into boiling vats of broth, rather than Lancashire stew. There are plenty of spots around town to enjoy it, but it's truly a one-of-a-kind hot pot experience at Megan's Kitchen. Megan offers a selection of up to three soup bases, and diners can choose from a variety of inventive and colourful broths – from rich crab-and-tomato topped with frothy egg white soufflé to sizzling Sichuan super-hot chilli escargot to the English oxtail, the options are nearly endless. Special ingredients to dump into the soups include Japanese beef with black truffle dumplings, rainbow cuttlefish balls, beef balls stuffed with cheese and much, much more.
• Fifth floor, Lucky Center, 165-171 Wan Chai Road, Wan Chai, +852.2866.8305, meganskitchen.com. Hot pot set menu £10-£12. Open 12pm-3pm and 6pm-11.30pm

Egg waffles from Lee Keung Kee

This egg waffle hotspot facing the bustling King's Road in North Point is not hard to miss as it's completely covered in press clippings of local celebrities that the shop has accumulated over the years. The name of this joint actually means "super hot gang" in Cantonese, but over the years it has become more commonly known as North Point Egg Waffles, or even "that place in North Point". The waffles here are a bit thicker in texture but retain the excellent fluffy consistency that makes egg waffles so beloved in this city. There are now at least eight branches of Lee Keung Kee egg waffles in Hong Kong, but the original is still the one generating all the buzz.
• Original branch at 492 King's Road, North Point, +852 2590 9726. Waffles £1.20. Open 10am-11pm

Eel claypot rice from Choi's Kitchen

Though this restaurant is fairly new on the Hong Kong dining scene, the owner, Mr Choi, had made a name for himself with claypot ventures in other parts of the city. Located in the booming foodie district of Tai Hang, Choi's Kitchen is a tidy little spot where you're commanded to place your order as soon as you've take a seat, for claypots take about 20 minutes to make on average. Don't miss the eel claypot rice. The eel, subtly sweet, contrasts nicely with the slick bok choi and the crispy rice. Choi's already has quite a reputation in Tai Hang, so be prepared for a bit of waiting during dinner hours.
• Shop A1, 9-11 Shepherd Street, Tai Hang, +852 3485 0501. Meal around £15 a head. Open 12pm-3pm and 6pm-10.30pm

Pork neck instant noodles with cheese sauce at Sun Kee

This neighbourhood cha chaan teng (tea restaurant) is so famous for its fried pork neck instant noodle topped with a giant dollop of cheese sauce, that once you step into either the Wan Chai or TST branch and utter something that even sounds remotely like "cheese" or "ramen", the servers will know what you're trying to order. The bowl of instant noodles arrives quickly, topped with thick slices of fried pork neck and oozing with a creamy cheese sauce. Both of Sun Kee's locations are frequented by Hong Kong celebrities, as evidenced by the numerous pictures plastered on the windows.
• Shop G11-G14, New Century Plaza, 151-163 Wan Chai Road, Wan Chai, +852 2574 3988 and 13-14 Champagne Court, 16-20 Kimberley Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, +852 2722 4555. Around £3 a bowl. Open Mon-Sat 7.30am-11pm, Sun 12pm-6pm

Black truffle scrambled eggs at Capital Café

In the 1950s, bing sutts (literally "iced rooms") started popping up all over Hong Kong to give the working class a chance to taste western food on the cheap. They have decreased in popularity over the years, but Capital Café, part of a new generation of retro bing sutts, has been a huge success. Decked all out in retro black and white, it serves Hong Kong's specialised version of western-styled all-day breakfasts – like brick toasts and macaroni char siu soup, but the star of its menu has to be the black truffle scrambled eggs. The super-soft truffled eggs arrive atop triangular pieces of toast and, when consumed warm, ooze a sort of creaminess that only the best scrambled eggs can bring.
• 6 Heard Street, Kwong Sang Hong Building, Wan Chai, +852 2666 7766. Meals around £3 a head. Open 7am-11pm

Milk tea at Lan Fong Yuen

Often described as the "founder of milk tea," Lan Fong Yuen currently has two locations in the city. The original shop is still holding at Gage Street, where customers are frequently found sipping on their iced milk teas amid boxes and stock. Starting in the 1950s, founder Lum Muk Ho concocted milk tea by adapting the techniques used for Hainanese coffee. The tea goes through a nude-coloured sackcloth strainer into a copper teapot before being served either hot or cold. Here, the natural aromas of the tea are still very strong and can be enjoyed either with or without sugar. Lan Fong Yuen has also recently opened a larger branch in Tsim Sha Tsui.
• Lan Fong Yuen. Shop 2, Gage Street, +852 2544 3895 and LG Chung King Mansion, 36-44 Nathan Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, 2316 2311. Meals around £3 a head. Open 10am-11pm