-- In 1967, Lin Yutang—who had long interacted with Hong Kong’s publishing and educational circles—accepted a research professorship at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, overseeing the compilation of the Chinese-English Dictionary of Modern Usage. After 1971, he and his wife moved from Taipei to Hong Kong to join their daughter. He obtained permanent residence in 1972 and spent his final years in the city.
(Photo) The host of HKTKWW is at Ziri's “Mee Cheung Photo Studio.” The studio is currently awaiting relocation and is not yet open to the public.
Starting at age ten, the Minnan-born linguist traveled from his hometown of Pinghe to study in Xiamen, briefly returning in middle age to teach at Xiamen University. Throughout his life, he loved local delicacies such as Baobing (Xiamen spring rolls) and braised noodles. His wife, Liao Cuifeng of Gulangyu, was an exceptional cook, known for her refined Xiamen cuisine. The flavors of Xiamen became the Lin family’s “taste of home,” accompanying them from Xiamen to the world.
Zhou Jianchang, associate researcher at the XMU Library and fellow Pinghe native, notes:
“Lin Yutang once said, ‘Eating goes beyond satisfying hunger.’ He wasn’t a gourmet, but a connoisseur. He introduced Xiamen cuisine to the world. Even in Hong Kong, he made Baobing and satay noodles himself, while his wife was the ‘head chef’ behind the family flavors.”
Naturally, when Lin Yutang wanted the thin, soft wrappers of Baobing—stuffed with pork, shrimp, mushrooms, bamboo shoots, dried fish, and crushed peanuts—where could he easily find all the ingredients in Hong Kong?
The answer: North Point, the place with Hong Kong’s strongest Xiamen flavors.
Bai Hua, Hong Kong media professional, Xiamen Tongwen Middle School alumnus, and history enthusiast, says:
“To cook authentic Xiamen dishes, all the specialized ingredients are in North Point—noodles for braised noodles, sweet potato flour for oyster omelets, everything needed for Baobing. Nowhere else in Hong Kong has such a complete selection. In the past, Marble Road was full of Minnan dialect and Xiamen tastes. There was even a beloved ‘Xiamen stir-fried rice noodles’ stall at City Garden.”
Bai Hua moved from Xiamen to Hong Kong in the 1980s for media work, later settling there. Many of his classmates from Tongwen Middle School—originally the Tung Wen Institute—reunited in Hong Kong and formed the Hong Kong Tongwen Alumni Association in 2000, followed by the Xiamen association in 2002.
He cherishes a photograph gifted by his friend Ziri: “Commemorative Photo of the Alumni Establishment Meeting of the Xiamen Tung Wen Institute in Hong Kong,” dated April 1, 1942. The image captures Xiamen residents displaced by war, reunited briefly in Hong Kong before dispersing again. Sixty years later, in peaceful times, younger alumni reassembled on Hong Kong Island, echoing the gathering of their predecessors.
Another treasured photo in Bai Hua’s collection is the family portrait of Guo Chunyang, one of Southeast Asia’s four major sugar merchants in the late Qing and early Republic. In 1921, Guo invested heavily in reclaimed land beside North Point Power Station to build a sugar factory. Due to the Canton–Hong Kong strike and falling sugar prices, he pivoted to real estate, constructing a famous row of 40 connected buildings known as “Si Shi Jian” (Forty Rooms). The area attracted many Fujian migrants and eventually became the famed “Little Fujian” of Hong Kong. In 1933, the Hong Kong government named Chun Yeung Street in his honor. Guo also invested significantly in Xiamen, leaving traces of his legacy on Gulangyu’s Huangyan Road and the Jinxiang Street district.
Hong Kong’s economic and cultural exchanges with Xiamen—and Minnan more broadly—have long been frequent and intertwined. Among the witnesses to this history is the Mee Cheung Photo Studio, founded in Hong Kong and later opened in Xiamen.
Ziri (Xue Shijie), photographer and collector of old photos, says:
“I have many photos of Lin Yutang, and this one from the Xiamen Mee Cheung studio is a favorite. Based on English newspaper ads, Mee Cheung in Hong Kong should date to 1894. Around 1898 it opened a branch on Gulangyu with the ‘Mee Cheung AMOY’ mark.”
When he registered his own studio in Xiamen, “Mee Cheung” was surprisingly available, becoming his tribute to the century-old brand.
The original Mee Cheung produced numerous high-quality images admired domestically and abroad. It sold cultural landscape photographs as postcards through its Hong Kong and Xiamen branches; some featuring Gulangyu might have been casually mailed home by foreign sailors arriving at Victoria Harbour.
Another symbol of this shared history is Amoy soy sauce, familiar to Hong Kong households. Its origins trace back to Taohua Company, founded in July 1907 in Neicuo’ao, Gulangyu, later merging with Datong to form Taohua Datong Industrial Company. In the 1920s, the company expanded to Hong Kong and gradually relocated its business there. Despite ownership changes, the names “Taohua” and “Amoy” still evoke its Xiamen roots.
After 1949, parts of Taohua Datong’s Xiamen facilities were incorporated into the Xiamen Soy Sauce Factory. The “Amoy” brand was restored in 1994 and today belongs to the Xiamen Seashine Group. Its brands—Sea Dyke, Amoy, and Huangjinxiang—continue to represent hometown flavors for generations of Xiamen residents. On the original Neicuo’ao site, the Xiamen Canned Food Factory was established in 1954, later renamed Xiamen Gulong Canned Food Factory in 1986, producing iconic items like shiitake mushroom meat sauce and braised pork that define childhood memories for many.
Among Hong Kong’s 7 million residents today, about 1.2 million are from Fujian, mostly Minnan. Hong Kong and Xiamen have become two key nodes in this population’s movement. Generations have traveled between the cities for livelihood, opportunity, and investment, resulting in deeply intertwined customs and flavors.
In 1953, when the tram line extended to North Point, trams began running directly through the open-air markets on Chun Yeung Street—creating one of Hong Kong’s most distinct urban scenes. More than 70 years later, the tram still slowly passes through the same streets, where Minnan families continue to live, as if time has stood still.
Today, walking along Chun Yeung Street, one can still hear Minnan spoken in the markets. Shops sell green bean cakes, spiced rolls, and Xiamen Mee Sua; menus list fried rice noodles, meat zongzi, and peanut soup—dishes that feel like classic eateries in old Xiamen. A bowl of Mee Sua with a plate of fried oysters in sweet and spicy sauce remains a beloved Minnan pairing.
Beneath the nostalgic streetscape, however, Chun Yeung Street is closely tied to modern logistics. Fresh mustard greens from Zhangzhou, fatback from Quanzhou, and mushroom meat sauce from Xiamen arrive in Hong Kong almost overnight. The Minnan-rooted satay noodle soup evolves continuously: from traditional alkaline noodles and fresh beef at Tsim Sha Tsui’s Niutian Palace restaurant to new satay hotpot trends in Xiamen.
As exchanges between Hong Kong and Xiamen accelerate, the stories of their people continue to unfold. A century of dialogue and integration has shaped a shared cultural and culinary memory—one that keeps growing richer with time.
Written by: Liu Fanfan, Lü Heng, Long Feng
Photography by: Wu Yuchen
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