Hello lovely readers ~ First my apologies for being a little slow at posting lately, it was my birthday two days ago and my schedule has been jam-packed with birthday dinners, cakes and lots of love Actually I’m still celebrating ~ have a family dinner tonight YAY!

Thank you Mr Bao

I’ve had such a wonderful birthday that I wanted to share with you some of the places we went to

Celebrations started at the Ozone Bar on the 118th floor at The Ritz Carlton Hotel in Kowloon, which is currently Hong Kong’s tallest building. It’s supposed to give you really good view of the Victoria Harbour, but unfortunately, when we got there it was really foggy and pouring raining…so we missed out on the good view…but I was with some great friends that made up for it ~

Nice bar

Source: Ritz Carlton 
Drinks were approximately $130 HKD to $150HKD which is roughly $15-$20AUD plus 10% service charge I got the Sweet Life (Perfect name for me) which is a combination of lychee pineapple juice and tequila ~ loved it! Such a sweet combination ~

Sweet Life $130HKD ($15HKD) + 10% service charge

Then at exactly 12am! Mr Bao asked them to bring out my first birthday cake! I was ecstatic! It was a chocolate banana cake from Awfully Chocolate, a Singaporean cake shop that opened in Hong Kong a year ago ~ I’ve been waiting to try their cakes for such a long time. But never got the chance because you can only get a 6inch cake and not individual pieces from the store near us.

6 inch Chocolate Banana Cake $188HKD ($22AUD)

Please forgive the photo quality, it was really dark in the bar and I didn’t want to use the flash ~

The banana puree ~

It’s basically a 3 layer chocolate cake with banana puree in between the layers and then covered in chocolate ganache It was surprisingly light and wasn’t sweet at all! The cake layers were a cross between a sponge and a chiffon, so I think that’s why it was so light ~ Unfortunately, this isn’t my type of chocolate cake, I like chocolate cakes that are dense, rich and full of flavour. Don’t get me wrong, it was still very nice, just not for me but I understand why my Asian friends like it, because they don’t really like rich cakes ~ If you’re looking for a lighter chocolate cake, definitely try Awfully Chocolate.

The next day, Mr Bao and I got up extra early because Win Win was taking us to Ocean Park! For those who dont know Ocean Park is the local theme park in Hong Kong and the home of the Pandas’ On On, Kai Kai, Ying Ying and Lok Lok ~ Gifts from the Chinese government.

Because I’m a Hong Kong resident and its my birthday, I get free admission and Mr Bao got a ticket for half price. Tickets are usually $280HKD ($34AUD), however, there are discounts, so before you go check the specials online
It’s been ages since we’ve gone to Ocean Park ~ hmmm…not much has changed really…just a lot more people! And there only use to be 2 pandas and now they have 4 ~ I think I’m seriously getting old hahaha I was so scared when going on when of the rides  Thanks again Win Win for taking us! So much fun ~

Dinner time! Thanks to good recommendations from Sasa and HK Epicurus, we booked a table at The Press Room in Sheung Wan on the Hong Kong Island. After all that walking at Ocean Park we were hungry and ordered two set dinners for $280HKD ($34AUD), you get to choose a starter, side or entree of your choice and a main dish from 5 choices. This is their menu

Mr Bao ordered:

Salmon and Tuna Fish Cake

Salmon and Tuna fish cake as his starter, very nicely made! We particularly liked how the filling was so warm and creamy while the outside was so crisp ~

Lamb Shank

Then Lamb Shank for his main, Mr Bao really enjoyed it, saying it was cooked perfectly, the meat wasn’t too tough and it was a generous portion even for him hahaha

I ordered:

Onion Soup with a cheese top ~ DELICIOUS!

The onion soup was fantastic, especially with the cheese topping!!! It’s not the good old puff pastry!!! Instead it’s a good thick layer of cheese that’s slightly melted, simply delectable Gonna try doing this to my soups next time ~

Darne of Salmon

Very large piece of salmon! Quite nice only down fall were the asparagus which weren’t cooked…it was basically raw >_<

How could I NOT order dessert ~

Pistachio Creme Brulee $68 +10% service charge

Amazing creme brulee ~ love the pistachio flavour and the thick layer of sugar on top! Now I’m trying to replicate this recipe at home hehe will let you know if I succeed

That wasn’t enough! Mr Bao got me ANOTHER cake YAY! This time it was from Tony Wong a local patisserie, who had previously worked as the executive pastry chef for a 5 star hotel in Hong Kong. I’ve tried their cakes before and thought their mille feuille was quite good, but Mr Bao got me their Devil Coffee cake ~

Devil Cake $320HKD ($40AUD) for 1lb

Don’t worry we shared it with our other friends, and we all thought it was pretty good ~ it’s hard to get a good coffee cake and this was definitely a good coffee mousse cake, but I would’ve preferred a different cake base, it was a little soggy for my liking

THANK YOU TO EVERYONE FOR CELEBRATING WITH ME AND THE LOVING MESSAGES!

Ozone Bar Ritz Carlton
118/F, The Ritz-Carlton Hong Kong,
International Commerce Centre,
1 Austin Road West, Tsim Sha Tsui
尖沙咀柯士甸道西1號環球貿易廣場(ICC)
香港麗思卡爾頓酒店118樓

Awfully Chocolate
Shop G32-G33, K11,
18 Hanoi Road, Tsim Sha Tsui
尖沙咀河內道18號K11購物藝術館G32-G33舖 

Ocean Park
Ocean Park Rd
Aberdeen, Hong Kong

The Press Room
108 Hollywood Road, Sheung Wan
上環荷里活道108號 

Tony Wong Patisserie
74 Fok Lo Tsun Road, Kowloon City
九龍城福佬村道74號