Friends Theme Cafe and Dongmen in Shenzhen

Another day in Shenzhen. This time, I wanted to check out the Friends theme cafe call Smelly Cat Cafe & Bar (Eat 4). It's around a 10 minute taxi ride from the Shenzhen Bay Port. Now hailing a cab/car from AlipayHK is possible. Fast and quite convenient and so much cheaper than cabs/uber in Hong Kong. The ride was about HKD23 only.

Advice for going Shenzhen, don't go to the Futian / Luohu side. Too many people there. So, I basically only go through Shenzhen Bay Port to the Nanshan area, which this cafe is located at.

Immediately greeted by Joey's dog sculpture at the front.

It's a very tiny cafe that fits around 9 tiny tables. However, they try to fit in as many Friends scene as possible. Like the iconic Central Perk window.

Lego version of Friends.

Dishes are somewhere from 30 CNY to 60 CNY.

Ordered a 33 CNY latte. It's not very strong, the way I like it. Don't like sour coffee.

Then a 30CNY strawberry smoothie. It not bad, but it's not the fresh strawberry flavor. Very artificial.

Then a Friends burger for 59 CNY. Patties are made well done. No option to choose other wise.

Surprised with the quality. It's not wagyu or anything premium, but it was still juicy and flavorful. Layered with lots of cheese and mushroom and veggies. It was good.

Then a 59 CNY meatball penne cooked to al dente. Creamy rose sauce with lots of herbs and cheese. Exceeded my expectation for that price compared to Hong Kong.

There is no service charge or tips. Total was 181 CNY~ Not something I can get in Hong Kong. Really starting to understand why Hong Kongers are all going to China for the weekend.

Then took the subway to Shenzhen Bay The MixC 深圳灣萬象城 (Shop 6). The subway in Shenzhen is so empty compared to the packed sardine style subway in Hong Kong. Mainlanders are rushing to Hong Kong on weekend, while Hong Kongers are going to Shenzhen - more on the Futian side. So, I hide in the Nanshan side where it's less crowded. Was just going to Shenzhen Bay The MixC 深圳灣萬象城 to check out their Christmas decoration. Turns out there wasn't much to see. But the most important thing about MixC 萬象城 is that they offer upright toilets instead of a hole on the floor. I haven't been to many malls in Shenzhen but only MixC line of malls have upright toilets. Hate the type of toilets that's just a hole on the floor. It feels dirty and things would just splat all over the place. Disgusting.

After the important event of relieving our bladders in MixC, headed to Dongmen area, a really big mistake, to see what it's like. Already in the subway, there were more people and in generally, they dress less well. Very dusty, run down, ghetto feel.

Got out of Laojie 老街 station and checked out 1234Space (Shop 7). There is a cosmetic shop call Wow Colour that sell various brands of make up. Similar to Sephora. There were so many cute items. The make up packagings were nice and the colors were nice, but I didn't get anything as I have never heard of those brands before and they are generally quite cheap too.

Wanted to get a drink at Naixue 奈雪 but the staff said the wait is 50 minutes. Too long too crazy. Just too many people in this area.

Drop the Naixue idea and went to Uncle Q 丘大叔 instead. Their lemon tea are really good.

The mall is generally for younger people. Lots of random toys and accessories. Couldn't see any luxury brands.

Then headed to Wenheyou 深圳文和友 (Eat 5). A place with some restaurants inside and mainly for photo taking. A replica of old Hong Kong's Kowloon Walled City that was taken down years ago. So cool inside. Reminds me of the stray cat game scene on PS4.

Then walked to the Dongmen Pedestrian Street (Shop 8). It was the first time to visit the area after many years and definitely the last time I will go. So crowded, dirty, stinky and just ghetto. Nothing I would want to eat without concerns for food safety issues. There is nothing worth buying. It is a paradise for fake branded items, I guess, of which I have no interest in. It's like everyone in Shenzhen and Hong Kong were there.