Tai-O Egg Waffle Uncle

Seriously the best Hong Kong egg waffles I have ever eaten in my life. No joke.
This man is apparently super popular and brings quite a number of tourists to Tai O in order to try his charcoal made egg waffles. You may ask, «is it really that different from regular egg waffles?» YES. There’s a reason why people line up for over 30 minutes to get a bag of these delicious egg waffles.
There’s something special about the charcoal and the wooden log that he uses to cook these egg waffles. I’ve had some good ones that were cooked using the regular cast iron and electricity, but the texture is so different. Once you’ve had a bite of the charcoal egg waffles, you’ll know what I’m talking about. The egg waffles come out a bit browner than usual, taking on a little color from the fire. The outside is extremely crispy, but there’s still enough filling in the middle to retain that fluffy contrasting texture. The batter that he uses to make the waffles has been perfected — definitely sweet enough, but not overly sweet that you need to wash the waffles down with milk. I really loved the crispy shells of the waffle and the fluffy insides of each waffle. I think we polished off the bag within a few minutes — they were that good. And the best part was that despite the sweetness, they still were a light snack!
So the man cooking up these waffles is definitely the boss of the whole business. He’ll rock sunglasses, a tank top, and some flip flops and have his incredibly huge dog lounging around on the floor next to him. He’s made so many egg waffles that he instinctively knows when to flip the iron over and when the waffles are ready. He’s that good. You tell him how many sets of egg waffles you want, pay up, and he’ll make them one at a time. Once one is ready, he’ll set it on a rack for it to cool down before placing it into a bag and handing it over to you.
Unfortunately he only has one waffle maker, so he can only make one set of waffles at a time. They’re amazingly good and yes, worth the wait, but just know that if you order more than 2, you’re probably going to get a few stink-​eyes from the people lining up behind you.
Tai O isn’t incredibly big, but there are lots of twists and turns. He’s located on Kat Hing Street and chances are, there’s going to be a line. We came to Tai O and were stopped by another vendor selling plain ol’ regular egg waffles that were pretty much the second to worst I’ve ever eaten (the worst being in China). There’s also another man who sells charcoal egg waffles in another part of Tai O. That one isn’t as cool as this man, although I don’t know how the flavors compare. All I remember is that this location was cheaper and drew a bigger crowd. You just have to intentionally search him out. I don’t remember the exact price, but it was still cheaper than what you’d pay for these egg waffles in California.
tl;dr — The trip to Tai O is worth it just to try the egg waffles. And of course while you’re here, take a look around and explore Tai O. Waffles are incredibly addicting and super tasty. Super worth the wait!

雞蛋仔 (eggettes/​egg puffs) are these cute little egg shaped waffle snacks with a nice toasty light crispy exterior with a light delicate spongy interior. They are cheap, addictive, and bring back super fond memories for those who grew up in the 70s or 80s in Hong Kong. Even when it re-​surfaced in the late late 1990s (e.g. Toronto/​Richmond Hill area), it was welcomed with open mouths (and coin pouches).
And to think that apparently, some guy back in the day tried to make something, but instead an accident happened and he either had to salvage what was a total F-​up (and ended with eggettes) or that he had leftovers like the typical Asian mother, and decided to see what he can make with flour, eggs, sugar… and the rest is history and a whole lotta memories.
Nowadays you have whacky fusion, or upscale versions (e.g. Bo Innovation’s savory rendition with parma ham or proscuitto inside), and then maybe they are integrated with some trend of the season (like a replacement for the ice cream cone). I’d say put in some roasties, negi-​toro, or Italian/​French charcuterie, or offal /​head cheese if you are going to go food crazy with this chit! Hey why not shave some Parmesan Reggiano on top while we’re at it?
These days if you find an eggette (whether in Toronto/​Richmond Hill, California, or even most of Hong Kong), chances are it’s made with some standard refrigerated batter mix, no doubt infused with lots of different flavors. Some work better then others. Then you see a mass production factory lineup of plug in electric egg waffle iron grills that have seen better days than a sweat shop for Disney or Nike. And that’s not necessarily the vendor’s flagship product! If you are lucky, you’ll get crispy connector parts but mushy and scrunched up «eggs» or some of them look like they have dents. Or if we’re talking about HK proper, it looks legit but something is missing… maybe a crispy exterior but an empty interior (and if you are lucky, there are some fluffy bits inside, but uneven).
So then you take a step back and try to somehow throw yourself back in time. Fortunately there are around a couple vendors still doing it super old school, and not because they are trying to be «cool» or «hipster», but they are firm believers in just doing it the way they know. Plus the live in the area where life is still simple. Pretty much taking care and heart, ensuring quality, and taking time to get the product right, even though it is just a street snack item that sells for cheap.
So when you can, take the MTR Tung Chung line all the way to the end (on Lantau Island) then take either the bus (or a cab ride if you are feeling like a baller) to Tai O Fishing Village.
Go on the weekend, when most of the food vendors are open, and once you find Kat Hing Street, look for the elderly «birth of the cool cat» man who could have been on a Chinese Matrix Wachowski Brothers movie cast backup (or a kung fu film of lore), sporting a pair of shades. On hot days he could be wearing a «wifebeater», or if during the winter, he dresses warmly.
Either way, expect a line. Be patient, because greatness takes time (same with «overnight success» takes years). Pay the man and tell him how many orders you want. (Fingers will do if you don’t speak Cantonese). You will see him take batter, pour it into a cast. He then closes it and proceeds to hold the handle and heat it over charcoal, carefully and smoothly (and artfully I may add) rotating frequently to ensure even heat distribution. When the goody is ready, he removes the super sexy looking set of eggettes and leaves them to cool for a bit, before using tongs to place them in a paper bag with circular holes (to allow excess steam to escape, moisture/​condensation turns the product soggy and makes it less crispy). While the paper bags with holes are standard everywhere, charcoal grilled eggettes are unfortunately a dying breed, and pretty much don’t exist on HK island and likely Kowloon (not sure about NT).
The exterior may not necessarily have that requisite crunch or crisp, but the interior is ridiculously awesome, an almost sponge cake like texture that is incredibly spread even across each eggette interior. How does this cool cat do it?! Think castella style «tamagoyaki» (katsutera) at those high end Tokyo Ginza style nigiri restaurants (Jiro Has Wet Dreams Of The Good Stuff).
If you are an eggette fan, you owe it to yourself to try the original style. He does it right (and so does the other vendor, though I haven’t tried his craft yet since he is not on Kat Hing Street but you can find him on the road towards the pier/​hotel).
Tip: This eggettes chef won’t mind being photographed or video’d for your InstaTwitSnapChatBook social media collection, but his dog will (and you will know when it barks while you are standing there with your smart phone capturing the moments).

Crispy exterior with a little bit of moist custard inside. Just like what 雞蛋仔 should be. Nothing can beat the Charcoal cooking

This dude is a boss. You can find him cooking up his egg waffles in one of the alleys of Tai O wearing a tank top and rocking his sunglasses even on a chilly day. Unlike the other egg waffle stands around HK, the ones made here are made using charcoal. Compared to other places, you’ll notice that the ones here taste a bit crispier, just a notch before tasting burnt. Each one is $ 13 HKD.
Tai O is insanely far from everything else in HK but if you happen to be here, a trip out to Tai O wouldn’t be complete without visiting the guy; he’s probably just as iconic here as the pink dolphin tour boats.

There are many egg waffles places in Hong Kong, too many to count. But what makes this one so special is that he cooks it over charcoal. The guy here is somewhat of a legend, he’s been doing it for over 20 years. There’s usually a line, but it’s worth the wait. Each waffle is less than $ 20, I forgot the exact amount.