Mouthing Off | Abalone for a dollar? No wonder the aunties of Hong Kong love the Brands and Products Expo
Abalone, one of the stars of the Hong Kong Brands and Products Expo, was once an aspirational banquet item. Now, anyone can buy a tin of it
Recently, the thing to do during Christmas – even if you do not celebrate the holiday – was to attend the Hong Kong Brands and Products Expo.
Clearly, it is a local tradition. The current edition started mid-December and continues until January 5, taking over all the available football pitches at Victoria Park.
Almost two weeks in, the expo continues to draw a strong daily attendance. Standard admission is a mere HK$10 (US$1.30), but you do have to muster up some gumption to embark into the crowd. This is especially true given the many aggro-grannies with trolleys – used not just to carry goods, but to weaponise as battering rams to clear away human obstacles when they want to get to the front of a discount noodles stand.
Most things you can already find in wet markets and grocery stores, but vendors offer bigger discounts on bulk bundles. Even so, a single pack of noodles is still probably a buck or so cheaper than outside, which is a big deal for penny pinchers.