potatomato.blog: Hui Lau Shan Healthy Desserts (Alhambra)

« Dan Sung Sa (Koreatown) | Main | Sea Urchin Pasta »

Sep 13

Hui Lau Shan Healthy Desserts (Alhambra)

Food 01: San Gabriel

Hong Kong dessert chain Hui Lau Shan Healthy Desserts (?) on Valley Blvd. is a modern take of the traditional Chinese "Leung Cha Po" (Herbal Tea Room). This updated version is more commercialized with pop graphics, less herbal drinks with more focus on friendly sweet desserts. Their house specialty seems to be mango pudding. They also offer many traditional herbal desserts made of Ling Zhi Mushroom, swallow's nest, etc.

We tried the Herbal Turtle Jelly (Guilinggao). Its main ingredients are shell of three-lined box turtles + a type of root called smilax glabra + liquorice. The taste is bitter with a sweet Liquorice aftertaste. Therefore you eat with the sugar syrup. It's supposedly good for skin complexion. Since my friend never try that before, on the safe side we also got the popular Mango Dessert. It's good, the slush ice are rich with mango flavors.

Edited: this is not the real Hui Lau Shan from HK. It's an imposter~

Freda | September 13, 2007 03:24 PM

Comments:

Hi anonymous, you might be right. This could be the imposter. Their logo looks exactly the same as the HK chain...

Freda | September 30, 2007 03:29 PM

Is this the real Hui Lau Shan or the imitation one hijacking the name? A place calling itself Hui Lau Shan opened up 3 years ago on Valley Bl. in San Gabriel, but apparently they were imposters and have recently changed their name to Tasty.

| September 28, 2007 06:23 AM

I guess it is popular in HK - it is everywhere. You can walk for 5 mins and find two branches. I don't know why it is always mango...maybe sweet fruits like peach, melon etc are not available all year around, or not as cheap?? You can get some nice peaches and melon and those super sweet grapes and strawberries in Japan, but mango is rare here, so is lychee and longan and durian. Argh~~~how I miss fresh lychee~~~~

seat | September 20, 2007 09:45 PM

yeah, I didn't know it was a HK chain. ^^;;
Is it really popular? Ever know why HK sweets is ALWAYS mango theme?

Freda | September 15, 2007 11:25 AM

Hui Lau Shan!! Is it the first shop in LA? I never knew the exact names of the ingredients in turtle jelly. ^^;; My favourite is mango and tapioca in coconut milk!!