I've seen quite a few HK apartments now and am realizing that my regular cooking habits aren't going to work given the kitchen sizes - and in some cases the complete lack of ovens.
So does anyone cook at home here?
Often - several times per week
Rarely - a few times per month
Never - restaurants and take- out
Never - helper cooks
I've seen quite a few HK apartments now and am realizing that my regular cooking habits aren't going to work given the kitchen sizes - and in some cases the complete lack of ovens.
So does anyone cook at home here?
I struggled at first with my agent because he couldn't understand that I did NOT want an electric stove. Still, all apartments I visited had no oven, except for a - useless for me - microwave. Had to move the washing machine to make space for it...
Just wondering: does anybody know if there are some areas, maybe because targeted at expats, where kitchens are on average bigger that the standard, shoebox size?
I do on Sundays. My kitchen is OK and I do have an oven that I often use. If you have no oven and no space you can consider to switch to a convection MW, better then no oven.
Look for older apartments, 40 years and older. New places are designed for FDM and exclusively used by FDM. Owner wouldn't know what to do there anyway, and for cup noodles it's fine.
Last edited by happy_camper; 17-01-2015 at 06:35 PM.
Pokfulam area has flats that quite commonly come with an oven.
I think all the Bel Air flats have ovens, but small ones.
Some more upmarket apartments have ovens installed as standard as well.
Unless u want to compromise on living room (or other) or u want to pay high rent, u will have to lower expectations.
I now also live without making my own lasagna (actually anything with melted cheese on top).
Of the 20? Apartments we saw, only one had a decent (in my opinion) kitchen. They had done it nicely too in a way that the kitchen/living was one big space but still divided. Unfortunately rest of the place was dated.
hope u will find someplace nice but yea, don't expect too much.
I cook as much as I can. I'm surviving without an oven and in a super dinky kitchen. You just learn to deal, attempt to do more one pot wonders or find other ways to cook - I often use my slow cooker for stews/braising etc. You have to push your agent to listen to you and refuse to visit any flats that don't have your specs. My agent tried that on me and I told her to stop wasting both our time.
Table top ovens are fine with baking and roasts.
No oven in my current place but I'm looking forward to returning back to UK and a full sized kitchen
Look for semi-older properties (30 years+) that are mid-rise as they tend to have larger kitchens.
Village houses and high rise tower blocks are usually the worst. Especially if built in the last 17 years.
Hard to imagine a kitchen without a full size oven and dishwasher...
The place I liked the most overall - which is a high end block probably more than 30% expat - is the one where the flats don't have ovens. So it doesn't seem that price is the reason for excluding it. The only flat that had a good sized kitchen had a ridiculously small master bedroom even for HK standards and not a shred of storage in the entire place. So you can cook but you will be piling your suitcases in the living room I guess.