Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Sky Lounge, Felix & Dada - A rather boozy evening in Hong Kong

So as you might have guessed by now, here at the Empty Fridge we happen to enjoy having a drink or two. You can even say that our second persona is that of the Empty Liquor Cabinet. No we don't have drinking problems despite evidence to the contrary. It's purely coincidental that our drinks bill always costs more than food. All jokes aside though going out to bars for a drink and some snacks is a very enjoyable past time and what better place to go and indulge in that past time than Hong Kong.
Hong Kong is a truly remarkable place. Everything is open until late and there is a constant hustle & bustle even in the late hours of the morning when you are stumbling around looking for the next drinking spot. One of the great things is that there lots of very nice hotel bars. We decided to start one such evening at the Sky Lounge at the top of the Sheraton Hotel. Arriving early at 8 we got a good table with panoramic view of Victoria Harbour and decided to have some Bollinger to kick things off. What better way to start our first night in Hong Kong with a bottle of champers - doing 'Strayas Bogans proud. Don't worry, we got some tapas too. Don't call AA yet. Thanks. 
People enjoying the panoramic views and Asia's biggest light show while listening to the Sheraton's 80's inspired sound track and voice over narration. All that jaw dropping neon splendour.
Some of the small fare we ate to take the bite out the champers and prepare our stomach for the onslaught ahead. Croquettes and some Wagyu beef.
Sky lounge has a very interesting take on the traditional dim sum menu - but instead of dumplings and spring rolls, they serve a more mediterranean tapas selection. They also have a fun cocktail list with customised drinks that relate to your chinese zodiac sign. This was a perfect venue to experience the iconic and electrifying lightshow that lit up the Hong Kong Skyline and Victoria Harbour.



The entrance to the Sheraton and Sky lounge - arty sculptures aplenty.
Wine dispensing machine to sample wines on offer. We asked if you could stick your head under the machine - didn't go down too well.
Everyone loves some greenery on the wall. Especially when done in such an arty manner. Too bad upon closer inspection you realise it's plastic. Saddened by the lies we were encouraged to move on to our next drinking spot.
A hop, skip and stones throw away we ventured to Felix. Felix is a bar at the top of the Peninsula Hotel. We were excited to go because a few of our friends had touted this as a pretty cool bar, seeing as though it was designed in part by Philippe Starck it would be worthwhile to go. 
From the minute you enter the elevator you could tell that this would be fun. Dimly lit and clad in what can be described as something out of a Lady Gaga video it was a fun ride up. A nice touch to make you wonder what the bar upstairs is like. 

So after the elevator ride up you get to the bar upstairs. Following a curved glass wall up a set of stairs you arrive at a round bar. A leather orange bench seat follows its way around the bar sitting atop a perspex floor with orange light. The bar is a round ring in the middle of the floor and people gather around to order drinks. We ordered a few cocktails to start and were given some bar snacks to eat. Sitting and soaking up the nice space we were in was an enjoyable experience. The lighting, the glassware and the view all made for a pretty cool bar. It was just a shame that the atmosphere was lacking, probably because it was a work night. 
1. Tropical Beach - Rum, Midori, OJ, Pineapple Juice. 2. Sunset on the Peak - Absolute Vanilla, Malibu, Peach Schnapps &OJ
Our bar snacks consisting of different types of nuts coated in things we don't remember & A very sleek barstool.
The glassware is pretty cool, being spiral shaped and sticking with the theme of the bar. We were convinced that the martini glasses hanging from the celling were purely for decoration. The leather seating circling around in my opinion was fantastic. There is no comfort whatsoever and you could only sit down in the most awkward position - but it did look amazing. Maybe it was designed to get people standing around the bar talking and ordering drinks. 
The infamous spiral leather seating. Suited only for small people to fit half an ass cheek.
Unknown nuts. Even the plates are specially designed.

Having had enough of sitting on half an ass cheek and taking in as much of the design as possible it was time to depart from the all too tame atmosphere and go check out the last design frontier - the little boys room. The trip to the bar in itself pays off when using the bathroom. Too embarrassed to take photos it can be described as one of the nicest bathrooms with a very interesting urinal, positioning and panoramic views combined - it makes for a great experience.
After the "comfortable" seating at Felix we ventured to Dada, a bar that can be described as the polar opposite to the co-ordinated design features of Felix. There were what looked like a million cushioned seats and lounges littered about. Dada is in the Luxe Manor Hotel.
Plush surrounds, ornate and quirky decorations, curtains, drapes and lamps littered about dimly lighting what is a large and cavernous space full of chairs and lounges. Such a nice bar except for one little thing - we were the only two people there. Not wanting to waste an opportunity we ordered some drinks and went about testing all the chairs we could. After all that walking around there was nothing better than kicking back on a purple suede pimp lounge adorned with giant diamante studs. So after a sip or two of a drink we started our game of musical chairs jumping from lounge to lounge. Apologies to the bar staff. 
Some of the lamp and decorations at Dada.
We ordered a Dadagria - the Dada's twist on the Sangria topped with diced mangos and a Long Island Ice Tea. Hammer time. 
More unknown nuts. So many unknown nuts by this stage. Sorry nuts. Plus more chairs for the collection.
Musical chairs. With so many chairs to chose from being the only two patrons in the bar was too good an opportunity to miss. 
Well and truly spent by the end of our foray into the bars of Hong Kong it was time to call it a night. Well not really, we were kicked out because Dada had to close sooner or later. Thank you Hong Kong for these awesome bars, awesome drinks and unknown nuts - It was a great night!

Sky Lounge




  • 18/F, Sheraton Hotel, Nathan Road, Kowloon Hong Kong

Felix
Peninsular Hotel, Salisbury Road, Kowloon Hong Kong

Dada Bar and Lounge
No.39 Kimberly Road, KowloonHong Kong

23 comments:

Helen (Grab Your Fork) said...

lol, love the Lady Gaga shots in the lift. I think it's safe to presume the seating was designed with Asian posteriors in mind!

shez said...

Hilarious. Love the posturing (and your top G!) I somehow manage to have that same problem with drinks bills. Have no idea how either...

chocolatesuze said...

i love the pics you you guys post of yourselves! i feel i know you more lol im totes stalking you guys hehe

Karen | Citrus and Candy said...

LOL before I commented, I made sure to check who was posting this... (*wink* hi Gianna! Hi Demos!).

Awesome photos! Loving the modelesque poses of the two of you :)

Peter G | Souvlaki For The Soul said...

Aaah...the beauty of catching a boozy night on camera. Love the pics guys! You certainly know how to have a good time!

Stephcookie said...

Looks like you guys had so much fun! Haha I totally would have tried all the different chairs too. P.S. I <3<3<3 Gianna's top

thang @ noodlies said...

Wow, what a fantastic experience, I was in HK earlier this year, but didn't have half the fun you had!!!!

Anonymous said...

You guys know how to have fun! That sangria version at the last place looks great. Glad you didn't have an episode of "unknown nut" poisoning.

Tina@foodboozeshoes said...

Gorgeous guys! Great view too!

Phuoc'n Delicious said...

(LOL at Karen's comment..)

Hi Demos!! All hail down to the empty liquor cabinet duo! What an amazing view of HK you guys had to start off your booze-ladden night. Love the pics of you guys, looked like a great night! Hope the hangover the next day wasn't as bad...

Dadagria sounds wonderful!

Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella said...

Ooh I remember Felix! But that was years ago. Good to hear that it's still there doing its thing! BTW you are ridiculously photogenic Gianna! :)

Rita (mademoiselle délicieuse) said...

Three bars in one night - Empty Liquor Cabinet no more! And I'm glad to see lots of nuts were consumed.

(Oh, and hi Demos! *waves* And LOL at both Karen and Phuoc =p)

Hotel bars are some of the most romantic places, in my opinion. Not romantic in a lovey-dovey way, but romantic in the notion of being some classy, possibly exotic, and all the time in the world to indulge in a drink. Or three. And to play musical chairs!

Angie Lives to Eat (and Cook)! said...

LOL Unknown nuts!! =D I do love the decor of Dada, and good on you guys for trying out all the chairs =D

sara @ Belly Rumbles said...

You say half an ass, I say a quarter of my butt. What a great evening in HK. Last time I was there Josh was only 16 so the bar hopping was limited.

Gianna@TheEmptyFridge said...

@Helen - if we had the music and a video camera, we would have made a lady gaga music video. And those seats - even I was slipping off!

@Shez - haha! the mystery of the drinks bill is always a hard one to solve, especially with sore heads the next day

@Suze - haha is that you there hiding in the dark corners following us??

@Peter - its all fun and games when the booze is involved - opa!

@Steph - musical chairs was inevitable! thank you, the top was just a purchase from H&M that day!

@Thang - i love HK, it was only our second time there but it is such an awesome city!

@Gaby - haha unknown nuts! the dadagria was so refreshin, id love to re-create it!

@Tina - thank you, view was amazing!

@Phuoc - Hiii Phuoc!! we have our hangover preventative measures in place. Always travel with panadol!

@Lorraine - Felix was so much fun, and thank you but hey you take gorgeous photos yourself!

@Karen - Hi Karen!! haha models? we are more ben & jerrys than dolce & gabbana!

@Rita - I wish we had the same feel in Sydney, some of the hotel bars here are a bit skeezy but there are a few gems! Marble bar and Sky Bar Syd are faves!

@Angie - yep, Dada is pretty cool - i just wish there was more people..to play musical chairs with of course!

@Sara - you have to go back! Its so much fun!

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