We ate our way down Hong Kong's Michelin-star Mile - here's the verdict

It's known as Hong Kong Central's Michelin Mile, where you can find mouth-watering food at any time of day without selling your firstborn. Although, if it does come to that, you might consider it to eat at a restaurant with a Michelin star.

A piece of flounder, its skin perfectly crisp, is topped with spears of grilled white asparagus. Beneath the fish is a pile of Bo-Kak mussels. They're tiny and I'm immediately glad my job isn't to remove enough shells to feed 30 covers. "I remember eating them as a kid," says executive chef at VEA, Vicky Cheng.

It's the end of service and he's sat down for five minutes as the diners along the counter overlooking the open kitchen finish their desserts. "They came into season two weeks ago and when they go out of season, this dish will come off the menu," he says. "It might last a month and a half, but if I don't capture it at the right moment, I'd miss the opportunity to use it." It means VEA's menu is ever-evolving; and ensures regular guests at the restaurant, where French technique meets Chinese ingredients, never have the same dish twice.

Cheng trained with chefs like Daniel Boulud, but when he opened VEA with cocktail guru Antonio Lai eight years ago, he knew he had to master some local ingredients. "I didn't know anything about dried seafood: sea cucumber, fish maw, bird's nest, dried abalone," he says. "But I knew I wanted to tackle these elements. It's the equivalent of going to a fine-dining European restaurant and having caviar and truffle and foie gras. In a Chinese fine-dining restaurant, you have dried seafood elements."

Read more on Explore:

Cheng's dedication paid off: VEA has long had a single Michelin star. Over six courses, guests might eat tiger prawn-stuffed sea cucumber in a prawn broth, or - my favourite - tiny firefly squid served on a bed of snap peas and preserved turnip. Of course, combine this fare with sparkling level-30 views and exemplary service and you'll pay for it. The six-course menu at VEA costs $HK1880 ($360).

There are three more Michelin stars in the same building: zero-waste Whey, root-to-shoot French restaurant Feuille and creative Korean Hansik Goo. Further down Wellington Street, there are even more. That's why some have dubbed this road the Michelin Mile.

Dig around the corner into Stanley Street, however, and you can get the star without the hefty price tag. Yat Lok is a tiny shop, popular for a single dish: its gleaming roast goose. Don't be put off by reviews of rude service; I'd say it's more perfunctory. After establishing I am on my own and have cash in just three words, the waitress seats me at a bench near a box. I order the roast goose leg on rice with some tangy plum sauce. It arrives in minutes.

Apparently, 20 steps are involved in getting this goose cooked, but it'd be worth it if it took a hundred. The skin is lacquered and crisp, the juices from the succulent flesh seeping onto the rice and packing it with flavour. The man sitting next to me is sucking the meat from the bones. It's the perfect meal for one, so cough up your $HK143 ($28) and tuck in.

Just steps down the road is Michelin-mentioned Luk Yu Tea House. Operating since 1933, the three-storey eatery is a landmark in Central. I doubt it has changed much since, with carved wood panelling, ceiling fans, art nouveau-style stained glass and booths so tiny anyone over 150cm tall would struggle to fit in them.

When I arrive at 10am, I'm seated on the ground floor, usually reserved for locals. My fellow diners include a multigenerational family, a group of men with every condiment imaginable - even Worcestershire sauce - and two women drinking Tsingtaos with their dim sum.

For those who don't speak Cantonese, the white-jacketed waiters provide an English menu. Of the many dishes, I choose prawn toast, siu mai and steamed prawn dumplings ($HK270 - $52 - with tea). Would I come back? It's not the cheapest, but the people-watching is excellent and the siu mai so plump and tasty, they're hard to resist.

Back on Wellington Street, check out some Michelin Bib Gourmand eateries - the places judged to be selling high-quality food at wallet-friendly prices. Tsim Chai Kee serves noodle soup with a choice of three toppings: fish balls, shrimp wontons or sliced beef. This is a mix-and-match affair, but - hint, hint - the huge fish balls, handmade in the store daily, go perfectly with the plus-sized wontons. It's $HK46 - just $9 - for the two-topping bowl, so it's no wonder there's often a line down the street.

The second Wellington Street Bib Gourmand, Wang Fu, serves the sort of dumplings, either boiled or pan-fried, you'd normally get around Beijing. Mutton and green onion dumplings are the specialty of the house and damn fine they are, too. After 2pm, you can order tomato and egg dumplings. Even the local guide I'm with hasn't heard of these. Their filling is far more delicate than any other dumpling I've had in Hong Kong. A plate of 10 costs about $HK62 ($12). A fitting end to a fine street feast.

Getting there: Qantas flies direct from Sydney and Melbourne daily, with connections to Canberra.

Staying there: Located in Tsim Sha Tsui, just two stops from Central MTR Station, is The Langham, Hong Kong, a five-star property with its own three-Michelin-starred Cantonese restaurant, T'ang Court. The plush rooms are a relaxing departure from the bustle on the surrounding city streets. Double rooms are from start at $HK1163 ($225). See langhamhotels.com

Explore more: guide.michelin.com; discoverhongkong.com

The writer was a guest of Hong Kong Tourism Board.