Hong Kong Rooftops: BBQ
There are signs that something is amiss as I make my way up the narrow stairs of this nondescript building, passing by boxes of empty beer bottles towards the smell of charcoal and the sound of laughter.
What’s going on becomes clear when I emerge onto the roof, a verdant oasis filled with smoke and lively conversation. It’s a barbecue. To be precise, it’s a cook-it-yourself barbecue restaurant, no different from those in the countryside of Hong Kong except that this one in the middle of Mongkok, high above a busy shopping street.
The location actually makes sense. Rooftops are the most obvious point of escape from a crowded city, a place to get away without leaving anything behind. Up here, among the plants and sizzling chicken wings, the noise of traffic recedes and a kind of tranquillity sets in. It’s not the same kind of quietude you experience in the country, but something else entirely: an urban retreat, a cocoon amidst the highrises.
Tags: Hong Kong, Kowloon, Mongkok, Rooftops
