Brunch at the Gold Coast

Atrium Lobby Lounge Gold Coast Hotel, Tuen Muen
Visited 2nd March

I love the Hong Kong institution of the Sunday brunch buffet. It offers an easy way to catch up with friends or celebrate in a relaxed and casual atmosphere; in this case it was the final day of Naomi's parents' Hong Kong holiday. While the Tuen Mun Gold Coast is not Hong Kong's most convenient location, it does offer a fantastic spread every Sunday. The Atrium Lobby Lounge where the buffet takes place is a large open area with views of the water and Lantau Island. The low tables and chairs are comfortable, the service friendly and the band strumming in the background surprisingly good.

Successfully surviving any buffet is a skilled strategy of portion size and pace, but the huge variety of top quality food offered at the Gold Coast Hotel means even seasoned players often end up uncomfortably full. The immense selection includes maned stations serving omelettes, fresh pasta, filet mignon, seared scallops, foie gras, roasted meats, Peking duck and waffles. There's also breakfast cereals, a big choice of seafood, salads, dim sum, hot Asian and western dishes, good bread, cheese and impressive desserts including a chocolate fountain. Drinks aren't missing and there's as much fruit juice, punch, wine and sparkling as you can handle. On this visit there was also the addition of a 'make your own hot chocolate' station, with a choice of different coco count chocolate to melt.

I like the Sunday brunch buffet at the Gold Coast Hotel. The food is of top quality, the selection broad and the drinks free flowing. The friendly staff and relaxed atmosphere means that it's perhaps a little less formal and pretentious than many of the brunches offered at other hotels. For $300 a head it's certainly good value and the only problem is managing to walk the couple of hundred metres to Med-Star for a final 'cleansing ale'.
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