Color Your Day, The Purple Way by [Starbucks]

[Starbucks] have launched a series of Purple treats to Colour your day!!
In this series, there are: Ube Pudding, Lavender Chiffon Cake, Purple Potato Tart, Blueberry Croissant and Lemon Lavender Scone.

I only tried the Ube Pudding and the Purple Potato Tart because I am not a fan of Lavender.
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Purple Potato Tart:

The purple potato tart tasted better than the ube pudding.

Strangely, it had more taro taste in the custard than purple potato.
The only thing I didn't like was the hard tart base as it was too thick and you can see that the thickness was as thick as the filling.

The tart base was also too buttery in taste.
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Ube Pudding:

Starbucks Puddings have been successful and now they have the new ube flavour.
In the past, they had caramel, Sakura, Green Tea, Chocolate and other flavours in Japan.
They didn't have the sleeve label so I wasn't able to see what ingredients were inside.
(Later found out from Starbucks website)

The ube pudding was smooth and not too sweet but the ube flavour was not that strong
Similar to the Purple Potato Tart, there were purple potato cubes in it.

Overall, it was quite a nice silky pudding contrasted by the cubes of purple potato.


http://www.starbucks.com.hk/

http://www.starbucks.com.hk/color-your-day-the-purple-way

I loved the Fish burger @ Burger Bar

As well as beef burgers, some places put effort into other burgers like fish, chicken or Vegetarian burgers.
At Burger Bar, I was truly impressed with the fish burger.
It was a whole fish!!
The coating was nice as it was crispy bread crumb so it was light and crunchy while the sauce was different and fantastic.
It was basil sauce which was very tasty with a hint of cumin.

The other beef burger was good too but the fish just stole the show.

There are gloves on the table which made it mess free and since there are gloves, I truly didn't mind eating with my hands.

Also had the prawns which were a bit over done.

There are gloves on the table which made it mess free and since there are gloves, I truly didn't mind eating with my hands.

Also had the prawns which were a bit over done.

[Burger Bar]

7 Lan Kwai Fong, Central

https://www.instagram.com/burgerbarhk/

Rosy afternoon tea at [嚐品慕茶 Spoon & Bowl]

As well as the tea set I was captivated by the Decoupage workshop taught by Gillian H!!!

For the tea set, there are a choice of drinks.
$298 includes two drinks or you can upgrade to other fancy teas below:
+$40 cold brew oolong tea with Osmanthus ice ball or rose ice ball tea with oolong

+$30 a pot of ginseng oolong or lychee red tea for two.

The tea set is served in a beautiful wooden box which has decoupage on it by Gillian H.

Items in the Tea Set:

Savoury items:
Tofu in Honey Osmanthus sauce, Chilled Prune noodles in Rose buckwheat sauce, Mini floral rolls and crab mentaiko

Sweet items:
Lychee and Rose mousse cake, Rose Cupcakes, Rose Palmiers, Dried flower Butter cookies, Lavender oolong icecream, Jasmine and Rose icecream.

It was a nice way to appreciate floral ingredients in different forms like cake, cookies and icecream.
My favourites was the mini floral rolls crammed with lots of dried flowers while the tofu was enhanced by the honey osmanthus sauce.
To finish off, the tea was good especially the one with the ice balls as they were pretty and floral flavours come out when it melts.

The decoupage workshop was fun and once you have learnt the technique, you can apply it to other stuff.
It felt like paper mache but using decoupage to blend in the fabric to look like it was painted.

 [嚐品慕茶 Spoon & Bowl]
M/F, Prosperity Industrial Building, 89 Wai Yip Street, Kowloon Bay

Dreamy gelato at [Dood Bottega Gelateria]

I am so glad I stumbled across this gelato shop on the way to dinner.

The gelato wasn't really labelled so I had to ask but they were really nice and gave out samples.

There was a good variety of flavours like black sesame, white sesame and mango which locals can relate too.

For me, I fell in love with the caramel because it was sweet with a strong caramel as well as vanilla taste.

You could visually see vanilla seeds in it. The texture was smooth and elastic which was impressive but not as elastic as Turkish icecream.

There was a unique cheese and tomato gelato which was quite nice because it was topped with tomato jam and there was a great savoury twist to it.

Also tried earl grey and chocolate which are non dairy sorbets and not gelato.

Strangely I found the earl grey sweeter than the caramel as it was syrupy.

As well as 3 Italiani doing chocolate sorbets, you can also get it here.
There used to be another Italian gelato parlour in Sai Kung called Bibini but the owner decided to run a pizza restaurant instead.
Will definitely return if they launch any more exciting flavours.

[Dood Bottega Gelateria]
Shop G13, G/F, Emperor Group Centre, 288 Henessy Road, Wan Chai

Donburis that are worth the wait at [Ranbashi Donburi Restaurant]

It wasn't even a Friday or Weekend but a Wednesday when the evening just begun at 6pm and there was a crowd outside.
As my friend was adamant on trying this place, we waited until we were arranged a table.
We ordered as soon as we got a table as we knew what we wanted.

I had the deluxe toro donburi while my friend had the eel donburi.

The toro donburi made me salivate as it was topped with jelly which turned out to be appetizing vinegar that made the fatty toro not so overwhelming.
On the side, there was a cute quail egg which just added to the silkiness and texture.
I finished it within a flash as the jelly vinegar constantly made me hungry and I have to admit I still felt hungry after eating it.

Definitely will be back earlier to avoid the queue.

[Ranbashi Donburi Restaurant 嵐橋丼飯專門店]:
Shop BCD, Rich Tower, 2 Blenheim Ave, Miden Ave, Tsim Sha Tsui
Tel: 2244 3238
https://www.facebook.com/RanbashiDonburiRestaurant/

Pasta to delight your senses at [Van Gogh Senses]

For many people, a meal is just about satisfying hunger as the lifestyle in Hong Kong is all about being fast and on the move.
At Van Gogh Senses, it is appreciating art in everyday life.

Van Gogh Senses was created under Senses Holdings Limited with an exclusive license from the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam.
Hence Van Gogh Senses is a place to share and remember Van Gogh's timeless works, while honouring his passionate dedication to art with your five senses.

At the moment, they are now serving a pasta and cocktail pairing menu featuring their freshly egg pastas that are made in house.

As well as the pastas, here are the recommendable dishes.

Salmon & Tuna Carpaccio with Gin Tonic Jelly and Jicama Salad $168:
Presented like a pretty flower, it was refreshing with the crunchy flower shaped Jicama and the slight bitterness of the gin tonic jelly.

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French Summer Black Truffle, Asparagus and Tomino Cow Cheese $168:
I love cheese as it was soft melted tomino cheese inside the crispy golden cocoon paired with nutty asparagus.

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Alaskan King Crab with Curry Coriander Couscous & Compressed Watermelon and Black Garlic Tuile $188
Compressed Watermelon never fails as it has an intensified taste due to being compressed so the juices are all locked in further making it sweeter which went well with the curry couscous and crab.

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Classic Dutch Peas & Smoked Ham Soup, Harvest Bruschetta $128
I love this ham soup which is really similar to the hearty beef soup because it is loaded with more ingredients than soup catered for people in the old days with a tough lifestyle that required physical labour intense work.

Moving on to the pastas, it was exciting as you can pair them with cocktails.

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Hokkaido New Potato Gnocchi with Roma Tomato and House Smoked Burrata Cheese $168
Exclusive Cocktail Pairing - Kiwi Basil Smash $58

Unlike other gnocchi, they use potatoes from Japan which seemed to give it a softer stickier texture.

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Italian Caviar & Bottarga di Muggine - Fresh Egg Spaghetti $228
Exclusive Cocktail Pairing - Pear Fizz $58

As well as gnocchi, this one was my favourite because I love freshly made egg spaghetti and this dish was just simple and delicious.
All that was in it was pasta and prized caviar!!
As well as the pasta, the Pear Fizz was a good pairing because pears are sweet and fragrant.

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French Summer Black Truffle - Fresh Egg Spaghetti $208
Exclusive Cocktail Pairing - Black Diamond $58

The truffle spaghetti is similar to the caviar spaghetti but it depends if you prefer caviar or truffle.

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Brittany Blue Lobster (Fresh) - Fresh Egg Fennel Trenette $398
Exclusive Cocktail Pairing - Starry $58

The secret here lies in the silky lobster foam which enriches the pasta.

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Dutch Seasonal Oyster & White Vermouth Martini - Fresh Egg Squid Ink Trenette $248
Exclusive Cocktail Pairing - Spencer Lake $58

For me I love oysters, the complete package here, oyster to the max with oyster infused pasta, oyster foam and they even put the oyster leaves that just taste like oysters!!
And of course just like bacon and oysters, it's bacon and crispy parma ham.

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24 hours Slow Cook Wagyu Beef Cheek Fettucine – 14 months DOP Asiago $218
Cocktail Pairing - Heritage Sour $58

As well as the delicate pasta combos above, I liked the beef fettucine which is very satisfying for a hungry stomach and definitely needs a strong cocktail to go with the beef.

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Overall, I was extremely satisfied as I love carbs hence for dessert I had something light.

Sweet Corn Cheesecake & Gelato with Caramel Popcorn $98
The sweet corn gelato was very soothing and a great way to end the night.

Vangogh Senses:
https://www.vangoghsenses.com/

Refreshing drinks anytime at Fu Rong to beat the heat

Fu Rong is one of the new classy restaurants at OTE with a beautiful view of the harbour.

They specialize in Chengdu cuisine executed in a modern way.
As an expat, when I first heard of Fu Rong it just made me think of egg foo-young and China Town but after reading more information it turned out to be a must try place.

This was my first visit to Fu Rong and it was for drinks but you do get a complimentary snack with it.

On the drinks list, there are nine specially crafted alcoholic beverages to choose from made from the wines shown below.

My eyes were drawn to the special cocktails concocted with Xiao Lang Jiu.

These cocktails were:
Fu Rong Cosmo (Xiao Long Jiu + Creme de Peach + Lime + Cranberry Juice)
Sichuan Tonic (Xiao Long Jiu + Lemon + Tonic)
Langjito (Xiao Long Jiu + Mint + Lime)

The drinks package is a selection of 2 drinks and a snack for $238 per person which is available all day.

There are six snack choices to choose from and they are all very different.

Toast - Avocado Butter

Chicken Wings - Sichuan Spicy

Fries - Cumin Seasoning

Roasted Sweet Potato

Mixed Wild Mushroom Spring rolls

Dried Beef Slices - Chili and Pepper

It is really impressive that they have 4 meat free choices for people who do not eat meat.

For drinks I had the Fu Rong Cosmo which was girly and it was just the drink for me because of the appetizing striking notes of peach.
I chose avocado butter toast because avocado butter is healthy and I love toast.

My friend had the Sichuan Tonic with dried beef slices.
It was another good pairing as lemon and chili go great together.

I tried the beef slices and it was so addictive because they tasted like beef jerky with a lovely Sichuan Peppercorn aroma and they were not that fiery.

Guests having dinner there will also receive a box of chocolate worth HKD135.
I received a box that evening and it was damn good, all the flavours were all equally as good but the Cinnamon Apple was exceptionally good.
What I liked about these chocolates was the ratio of filling to chocolate, the chocolate shell was thin so you get more of the flavours inside and it wasn't too sweet.

Will return for a proper meal next time.