History

Lan Fong Yuen on Gage Street invented the silk stocking milk tea form in 1952, named for the fabric sleeve filter that gives the drink its smooth body. The tea blend is typically Ceylon black tea from Colombo plus broken orange pekoe from Sri Lanka; Hong Kong dairies later switched from condensed to evaporated milk for the modern cha chaan teng style.

Common allergens: Dairy

Make it at home

Yield 2Hands-on 10 minTotal 15 minDifficulty Easy

Ingredients

  • 2 tbsp Ceylon black tea leaves
  • 2 tbsp broken orange pekoe tea leaves
  • 400ml boiling water
  • 100ml evaporated milk
  • 2 tsp sugar (to taste)

Method

  1. Bring water to a rolling boil. Add the Ceylon and broken orange pekoe tea leaves.
  2. Simmer 4 minutes, swirling the pan occasionally to extract body.
  3. Pour the tea back and forth between two jugs through a fine cotton sock or muslin filter, at least 4 times.
  4. Strain the filtered tea into two cups.
  5. Add 50ml evaporated milk per cup. Sweeten to taste.

Tip from the editors. The repeated pouring through cotton is what gives the silk stocking texture; without it, the tea tastes weak and watery.

Where to eat hong kong milk tea

Hong Kong milk tea in Hong Kong

Lan Fong Yuen ★ 4.1

Cantonese$centralMon-Sat 07:30-18:00, Sun closed

Lan Fong Yuen on Gage Street in Central invented Hong Kong's silk stocking milk tea in 1952, with paper cup tea and a pineapple bun set landing under HK$60.

Try: Silk stocking milk tea and pineapple bun

Tip: Use the side hatch for takeaway; the dine in counter has a 20 minute queue.

2 Gage Street, Central, Hong Kong

Australia Dairy Company ★ 4.2

Cantonese$$yau-ma-teiMon-Wed 07:30-22:00, Thu closed, Fri-Sun 07:30-22:00Until Daily until 23:00 (closed Thu)Cash only

Australia Dairy Company on Parkes Street in Jordan trades until 23:00, the Hong Kong cha chaan teng for late dinner scrambled eggs on toast and steam milk.

Try: Scrambled eggs on toast and milk pudding

Order: Scrambled eggs on buttered toast with hot milk pudding.

Tip: Closed Thursdays; on other late nights, order before you sit, eat fast, leave fast.

47-49 Parkes Street, Jordan, Hong Kong

Capital Cafe ★ 4.1

Cantonese$$wan-chaiDaily 07:00-23:00Until Daily until 23:00

Capital Cafe in Wan Chai is the modern cha chaan teng with Canto pop memorabilia on the walls, trading scrambled egg with black truffle on toast and milk tea.

Try: Scrambled egg with black truffle on toast

Order: Scrambled egg with black truffle on toast.

Tip: Truffle scramble plus a milk tea is the Wan Chai late night order; weekend evenings get noisy.

6 Heard Street, Wan Chai, Hong Kong

Mido Cafe ★ 4.2

Cantonese$$yau-ma-teiThu-Tue 08:30-20:00, Wed closed

Mido Cafe on Temple Street is a 1950 cha chaan teng with original wood booths and a tiled mezzanine, surviving as a daily cha chaan teng among tourist stalls.

Why locals love it: Original 1950 wood booths and tile work on the corner of Temple Street, a film set you can sit in for the price of milk tea.

Tip: Climb to the upstairs window seat for the Temple Street view; weekday afternoons are calm.

63 Temple Street, Yau Ma Tei, Hong Kong

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