Ritz Carlton Hong Kong - Mediocre Afternoon Tea with Spectacular Views

Tea room at Ritz Carlton Hong Kong

When on vacation in any city once occupied by the British, I’m always looking for restaurants that serve afternoon tea. Ritz Carlton Hong Kong boasts its afternoon tea is the highest in the city, as in it physically occurs at the highest height. Their room afternoon tea was held in on the 102 floor, although is not located at the very top of the building, is located high enough that my ears popped taking the elevator there.

Chef Xavier Perez Stone Showcases Harmonious Melange of Mooliciousness for Grand Velas Riviera Maya Resort

Palate Cleansing Cocktail

When I was invited to a dinner by Chef Xavier Perez Stone of Cocina de Autor restaurant at the Grand Velas Riviera Maya Resort in Playa del Carmen, Mexico, hosted at Rostizado, I was expecting a tasting menu full of what we in North America generally associate with Mexican food - tacos, moles, poblanos, yucca, plantains, tamales, etc etc. Instead we were presented with a series of dishes utilizing modern techniques and Mexican ingredients. Chef Xavier Perez Stone is quite accomplished, having won Canada's Iron Chef competition in 2014. Grand Velas has a series of high class resorts in Mexico and is touring around Canada in an effort to encourage more Canadians to visit.

Going Old School at Gary Danko

Glass of champagne to start

On the humans first trip to San Francisco in 2009, they had dined at Gary Danko. At the time, none of us were foodies, and it would be years before I would start my blog, Mr. Moo’s Adventures. However, they were looking for a nice restaurant to have dinner at, at the concierge at The Argonaut Hotel where they were staying arranged a reservation for them to dine there. Since they hadn’t been to Gary Danko in almost 6 years, they wanted to try it out again to see if it was as good as they remembered, or if it was because they hadn’t done a lot of fine dining previously.