Seeing that my introduction to The Fine Wine Experience came from the very welcoming, very…read moreknowledgeable team member Francois Tran and also a very interesting wine tasting experience of discovering "2014 German Auction Rieslings"...clearly the bar has been set high on expectations of boutique wine shops. With their small retail front in Sheung Wan and extensive collection housed in their off-sight warehouse, on-line is actually the best way to see and research the wines they have for sale, about the expansive breath of talented staff on their team and also about the long list of events they promote and host. They have just a fraction of their overall wine stock for actual sale in their store, but Francoise could not have been more welcoming when we wandered in to find out what this shop was all about. In this retail location, along with what is for sale, we attended a wine tasting of rieslings. At a small cost of $400 per person (which is then credited back to you if you make a purchase at the tasting of at least $2000). Informative, informal, interesting, engaging, humorous. We had a lovely time and really enjoyed learning more about rieslings in the presence of about 15 or so other attendees. The discussion was held by Linden Wilke, with 20+ years of experience in the wine business. Although we were a touch out of our league in this group with our knowledge of rieslings specifically (truth be told, I am a Pinot drinker of countless years), we could not have been more welcomed and actively encouraged to talk and learn and discover. It was lovely! We look forward to exploring their website, popping in to ask questions and continuing to learn and discover wines of the world with the Fine Wine Experience as a partner in our education.

The Hitachino Brewery is hidden away in an industrial building in Fotan and is split between the…read moreground floor and 10th floor. The ground floor is where you'll meet to start the tour. You'll be warmly welcomed with a glass of beer to get the party started. The facilities aren't that big so the tour itself is actually pretty short. Although very sweet and knowledgeable, the person guiding us through the tour wasn't particularly experienced in taking tours or engaging the participants. It could be that I'm biased because of what I do but whatever, haha. After the tour, you're lead back to the ground floor where you just hang out and sample the beers that they have on tap. It changes by season and they have experimental beers that are very fun. Additionally, there is a supply of bottled Hitachino beer for you to purchase and they're only $30 a bottle. Overall, I wouldn't say this was the best brewery tour I've been on but the seemingly bottomless beer you can drink is worth it.

Very upscale. Lots of shops and restaurants.read more

Civic Square reminds me of Exchange Square-only that this side is actually the better one. This…read morecould be described as the roof top of the elements mall where you can have the best view of the ICC/Ritz Carlton Hotel, as well as the residential estates at Kowloon Station. Its a park/outdoor area where you will see high heels and expensive suits on weekday evenings whilst wild children and defeated parents on the weekends. its a comfy area to be in as the shops act as a natural barrier to the sun and you do find yourself in the shade whilst you eat/drink/smoke outside. There are a couple of choices including Grand Central Bar & Grill, the Kowloon Tang, Stormies, Joia, café iguana and Madam S'ate. As said there is a wide range of choices are the prices go from moderate to eye gauging expensive- just remind yourself how many I-banks are upstairs. For a casual drink I think this place would be a good choice for the quieter types-those who are looking for a chat and simply want a place where the ambience seems a little classier than anywhere else on the dark side. The place is also transform itself from a work centric location to a family centric location at the weekends with kids running around the fountain and having a great time in general. If you were looking for a nice clean, easy to get to place for a drink without crossing the harbor than this would be it.

This was a fun outing for us today. We live in Sheung Wan and decided to take the subway to the…read moreother side of Hong Kong island, putz around in Shau Kei Wan and go to Hong Kong Museum of Coastal Defence and then take the Tram/Ding Ding all the way back to get a great sight seeing tour of the city. The Hong Kong Museum of Coastal Defence is a short walk from the subway or the ding ding and easily posted on the pink directional signs on the street. Maybe 10-15 minute walk from either one. This area was once a stronghold fort and battery built by the British over a hundred years ago. It was a battlefield of a Japanese invasion in 1941 where many soldiers lost their lives. It is nice that it was preserved as a historical location to Hong Kong. When you arrive, you check in to an administrative building, pay the $10HKD entrance fee and take an elevator up eight floors where you are dumped then outside into the hill where the fort is actually located. Hang a right and explore all that and then when you leave, in lue of taking the elevator down, you can walk the entire length of the hill and see a whole lot more of the history of the fort. The museum and complex is a great place to roam and stroll outside and walk around and explore. The fort itself is preserved and is the actual museum building where historical installations and information is displayed. There is a lot of historical informaion to read If you have kids who need to run around, this is a great outside space for some running around. They also have like a kids corner/activity area inside up on the top floor that was packed with kids and families doing an activity of some sort. We enjoyed the wandering element to all that is outside and in the open. Trees, green, beautiful views, quiet, historical relics, fresh air. There a small cafe if you wanted to grab a snack or drink. Lots of outdoor benches and photo ops. Lots of military equipment, tanks, cannons on display. We enjoyed our day here. We enjoyed the grounds. The museum quality is OK, but the experience was great. They do have a gift shop, but it is really sub par.

This place is real far! After getting off the Shau Kei Wan stop on the Island line, it is about a…read more10-15 walk to the museum. The best exhibit here is the torpedo room but the other exhibits are informative. It is cool to see the original rooms/areas where all the history took place.

I'm a fan. I like the ambiance, and the food ain't so bad either. But I have deducted 1 star for…read morethe following reasons: For a cafe that's a bit farther out of the way, I think Common Ground's pricing is still pretty expensive. Don't get me wrong, I kinda like the idea that it's a bit farther out, it makes the place a bit less mad and crowded, but for that reason, I think the owners would drop the price a little. I had the smoked salmon open sandwich and a glass of lemongrass tea. Both were delicious! However, for the price that I paid, I think the portions were measly. The smoked salmon sandwich was flavourful and light but I definitely could have had another half portion easily. The lemongrass tea was also very yummy (something that i've never tried before) but for the price you pay for a coffee, I don't think it was worth it. (Esp finding out later how easy this was to make at home!!) I would recommend this place if you want a place where you can chill out forever. (Maybe that's the price you pay for not feeling obligated to rush) Sometimes it gets crowded that people sit on the steps outside, and the area surrounding it is quiet and perfect for it. It's a nice place to bring somebody from out of town and you want to show them a unique place, but for me, it's not a place I would afford to go regularly :(

I had heard really nice things about Common Ground before I decided to give it a go this afternoon…read more It's located in an ultra quiet street right by PMQ and it's just lovely. It's rather small which makes it cozy and when the weather is good, as it was today, you can seat outside at the tables or in some wooden seats stairs-shaped. The atmosphere was great but I couldn't find a free seat outside so decided to take a seat at the common table inside. As I was waiting for someone else I looked around and could tell that things are well taken care of here. The girls seating next to me were having an all day breakfast (or so that was my conclusion by looking at the menu and back to their board) and it was very nicely presented. I only had a green tea, which was nice, but I'll probably try out something else next time as their menu is rather big for a cafe. Next door to Common Ground there's an art jamming place which makes the atmosphere even nicer... Love this newly found hidden cafe!

Great service here more like concert as a church area…read more Good nabs play as well useful bible . The area is very accessible to a train station

English speaking church located in Wan Chai. They have three services every Sunday at 9:15am,…read more11:30am, and 4:00pm. If you are new in the city and looking for a church and maybe a small group to go to I would suggest to check out their welcome lounge after the service.

Choux Creme is recognizable from about a mile away from the red block letters that the words 'choux…read morecreme' are written in and the sweet, wafting smell. As its name suggests, Choux Creme sells cream puffs. I always walk past it when I'm at the Sha Tin station, and it seems that there is permanently a line of people plus groups huddled over the displays and deciding which flavor to get. The temptation is hard to resist and I find myself gravitating towards the end of the line more often than I'd like to admit. The cream puffs here come in a variety of flavors - there's original, of course, and there's Hokkaido milk, tiramisu and strawberry yogurt flavors, to name a few. In keeping up with the matcha trend, there's an uji matcha green tea flavor too. My favorite of them all is the original - there's just something refreshing about sticking with the classic that I really like. The cream is nice and cold, and the puff is a little crisp on the outside but soft on the inside. I've also tried the crispy chocolate cream puff, which I didn't like as much because the chocolate taste was overwhelming and the puff was messy to eat. I had to go wash the chocolate sauce that had clung onto my hands afterwards! The matcha cream puff is not bad too though the matcha flavor is quite sweet. I would definitely recommend giving Choux Creme a go. The puffs start at $16 which isn't too expensive (they've increased in price though; last year I had an original and it was $15), but I would say that they are slightly smaller than the ones at Beard Papa.

You can literally SMELL the fresh puffs right when you step inside the Sha Tin Station. After…read moregetting teased by the heavenly aroma for days, I finally decided to try the Tiramisu Puff ($20HKD). Let's just say they smell so much better than they taste. Most disappointing thing was that the puff wasn't crispy! It wasn't "stale", but it didn't have that airy crunch I was expecting. Also, the "tiramisu" flavoring was just simple cocoa powder/coffee powder on top of the cream. Definitely not worth $20 and probably won't be getting it again.. :( I'll just continue to admire the smell from afar.

The HK Wine and Dine festival only takes place once a year in Oct, so of course I had to attend…read morewhile I'm here. ;) Location: about a 10 min walk from Central, HK, and Admiralty stations Best way to get here from the Kowloon area is by ferry from Tsim Sha Tsui~ 3 minute walk!! The event overlooks the harbour so the view is beautiful and it's breezy, even when crowded. Note: They ONLY take cash or octopus card!!! Admission: 30hkd Different wine tasting packages available: 100hkd for a plastic wine cup and 5 wine tokens 200hkd for a glass wine cup (good souvenir!) and 8 wine tokens Etc & Up. Wine tastings ranged from 1-4 tokens, depending on the quality and price of the wines. Luckily, most were only 1 token, a few being 2 tokens, and a couple rare ones costing 3-4 tokens. Sampled some wine and bought a couple food items, which were all sooo delicious!!! The wine and food came from all over the world - Argentina, Europe, Japan, America, and more. I'm not a wine drinker, so I probably can't tell the difference between a $3 vs $300 bottle of wine, haha, but I know what my tastebuds like! Iced wine (wine w/ dry ice) was definitely the hype of the wines, with the longest line. 6 flavors to choose from: mojito, long island, sex on the beach, margarita, strawberry daquiri, and mai tai. But it barely had any wine taste and tasted like juice. The drink still tasted pretty good, but definitely not for wine lovers. Many other lovely wines available as well, ranging from red to white, floral or fruit hints, sweet and dry, etc. There was also a booth that had non-alcoholic wine as well (aka overpriced grape juice!) It won't make you feel buzzed or tipsy ;( , but I picked up a bottle anyway b/c it tasted great!!! xD Annnnnd it came from my home state of good ol' California! Hehe. Also, they had live performances on a fake grass lawn, which gave the event a very lively feel. Overall, great way to spend a lovely Sunday evening with friends, family, and loved ones.

Hong Kong's Annual Wine and Dine Festival is held every October by Central Piers 9 & 10, which is a…read moregreat location. The harbour front on one side and the skyline on the other. There are two entrances, and the queues snake around several times going back on to itself several times, but very orderly and moves really quickly, so the wait is no more than 20 or so minutes. Once inside, after paying an admissions ticket of HK$30, you queue up for tokens for the wine tastings. There is a tokens package of 8 tokens and a proper glass in a glass holder, for HK$200. Additional plastic tasting glasses can be bought for HK$5 each. You can spend 1, 2 or 3 tokens to taste, dependent on the quality and price of the wines. You also get a little booklet with vouchers for a free bottle of water, a small bag of nuts, and a small bag of biscuits, and discounts on some wines. The wine and food tastings are group into different zones, you can meet wine dealers from different countries, there is the Gourmet Trials to sample dishes from Hong Kong's premier hotels and restaurants. We tasted wines and champagnes from Argentina, Spain, Australia, France, Italy, and Germany. My favourite, of course, is the champagne, my kind of drink! The atmosphere is really great and it is a lot of fun. The event is running from 22 - 25 October 2015.