Dim sum & bakery · Hong Kong
Pineapple Bun with Butter
菠萝油 — Nothing to do with pineapple: a sugar-crusted bun, baked so the top cracks like the fruit’s skin, split hot and stuffed with a cold slab of butter. The city’s…
The "bor lo yau" is a study in temperature: the bun comes out of the oven, gets sliced, and a thick pat of cold butter melts into the crumb as you eat. The crust is a cookie-dough layer applied before baking — the crunch against the soft bread is the whole architecture.
It is to Hong Kong what the croissant is to Paris: cheap, perfect, everywhere, and best within ninety seconds of assembly. Order it with milk tea, and do not ask for the pineapple — that question has a long-suffering answer.
Where to eat it
- Cha chaan tengs citywide
- Tai Cheong Bakery for the related egg-tart experience
Named tables that do it well
- Lung King Heen — Michelin 3 Stars
- 8½ Otto e Mezzo Bombana — Michelin 3 Stars
- Kam’s Roast Goose — Michelin 1 Star
- Tim Ho Wan — Local Institution
Routes that eat their way here
More dishes to know
- Egg Tarts (葡式蛋挞/酥皮蛋挞)
- Char Siu (叉烧)
- Cantonese Roast Goose (烧鹅)
- Claypot Rice (煲仔饭)
- Cantonese Congee (艇仔粥/生滚粥)
- Wonton Noodles (云吞面)