The best brunch I've ever had in my life!

So, I definitely gained five pounds in one afternoon at the JW Marriott Champagne Brunch. Before I go into detail I'll just warn you in advance this post is 100% about food, so if it doesn't appeal to you just move on to the next post!

So, Hong Kong loves their brunches and not just brunch how we do it in the US with french toast or omelets at 11am after a drunken night. I'm talkin' full on gourmet buffet brunches with caviar and lobster with all you can drink champagne. It's a 2 hour affair at least.

The JW Marriott is in Pacific Place, which is like a gigantic mall with tons of designer stores that you could really only window shop at - Versace, LV,  Hermes anyone? Not in my budget! However, the Champagne Brunch is well worth the 642 HKD (about $83 USD)!! So, my coworker who lives in Hong Kong made the reservation and ensured a great spot next to the windows so we can see the view of Hong Kong. There really is no bad view of Hong Kong. It wasn't just a dining table, it was like an elegant living room. We sat in big arm chairs and couches, very comfy! I warned my coworkers in advance that I was going to town on the food and champagne that day so no judging!

Here's a little overview of the awesome spread along with some pictures. Click on the picture if you want to see it up close and personal!

The first one is all salmon - smoked, cured, marinated, etc. They even had shrimp, mussel, and tuna ceviches. Keep in mind there is another side to that table!

Here we have the hot station filled with homemade pastas, beef tenderloin, roasted duck and goose, etc.

Here we have some Italian cheeses, olives, and meats. Check out that leg - freshly carved!

Next we have some really sinful stuff. First, we have three different goose terrines and some freshly seared foie gras...omg so delicious, it was just buttery and flavorful, just melted in your mouth!

And of course we have some chinese fare - sesame buns, shumai, and pork buns! 






Here there is a little section of freshly prepared small bites. I had the duck salad and the lamb over a pumpkin puree.

And for something truly decadent (as if foie gras and salmon weren't enough!) we have the seafood! First, we have a variety of caviar served on blini. This was delicious. I tried every kind. It was just cool, salty, a little fishy of course, just amazing!

This picture is sad because I couldn't partake in :( Lobster tails, crab and shrimp. I was able to get at the sashimi and sushi section - silver lining! 

And of course last in the seafood line are the oysters. These were phenomenal! A little tabasco, some cocktail sauce and salt and I was good to go! There were super fresh, sweet and meaty.

Last, but not least we have dessert. I'm not a big sweets person, but look at this selection! In addition to what you see there was an ice cream station, baked goods and croissants and fruit on the back counter.

OK, so some added images of just exactly what I ate. Again, don't judge. I didn't eat every single bite, it was more of a taste and move on kind of experience.

I adore a good salmon breakfast spread so I basically tried every kind. They had the typical Norwegian smoked variety, some marinated in dill, some in lemon, some cured, the list goes on. I did also dive into the mussel ceviche and the tuna ceviche. I just can't describe how incredibly fresh all the seafood was! Like I mentioned earlier, guilty pleasure with the foie gras...so good!

The second plate had my little duck salad and lamb nibbles. Also had to have a pork bun, you can never turn down a pork bun in Hong Kong! The sesame ball was really good, it was crispy on the outside and doughy on the inside with a bean paste inside. Next to that you can see a peking duck rolled up in a pancake-like thing. The duck was good, but the pancake was a little stiff and dry for my liking. I love cheese and Italian meats so I had to take a little nibble!

OK, so I didn't want to seem like a total pig and while everyone's third plate was dessert I just couldn't stop eating the normal food! So, this is the weirdest grossest/wonderful plate ever. Oyster, cavier, sashimi and sushi mixed with a chocolate tart, yellow cake with chocolate frosting, raspberry cheesecake bite, and dragon fruit. I know, so weird, but it was so good! The sushi wasn't great because I didn't like the consistency of the rice, but the sashimi was really good! The fish is just so fresh. I already raved about the caviar, I mean what's not to love? The desserts - the cheesecake bite was great and so was the chocolate tart. The chocolate cake with the gold pebbles on it was not very good, kinda dry for my liking. So, dragon fruit. I don't know if they have this in the US, but the consistency is much like kiwi, but less flavorful. Actually it's almost exactly like kiwi but almost tasteless and not very juicy. I really enjoyed it though. When you go to the supermarket you'll see it in every premade fruit salad. I'll follow up on this item when I blog about the nearby supermarket.

Whew! Well that was my adventure at the JW Marriott Champagne Brunch. As you can see I did some serious damage and it was well worth it. We spent about two hours here on Sunday and it was just lovely. Oh, and did I mention I probably had about 5 glasses of champagne along with all of this excessiveness??

Needless to say, we had a great time at this champagne brunch and we'll be checking out the one they have at the Conrad next time!