Hua Hin in a flash and Dining in the hills

Sad to say, besides the luxury hotel in my last post, I was mostly in business meetings throughout my time in Hua Hin and I did not have the opportunity to explore this little town much, though the opportunity came on one evening when our organizers transported our entire team in a convoy-style to breathe in the fresh air from the hills and dining out experience.

My images of Hua Hin were formed from the many slides traveling through my window on the bus; which was like my only window view of how Hua Hin town really looks alike, and mind you, these were captured when the bus was in motion and I was juggling between talking with my business mates and discussing our corporate plans (yeah, the working bug strikes!)
I can't comment much; with that sneak peek that I get of the local neighborhood, which, at a glance does looks pretty peaceful and less touristy compared to the other regions of Thailand.


Sad that my memories of Hua Hin consist only of these moving pictures in a flash, and I yearn for the day I return for that leisure trip. I can feel it, I will be there again soon *winks*

The bus ride was a long one; and we were busy chattering in the bus that we did not realize that we have transitioned from the soft hues from dusk to pitch dark of the night as the bus moved with its might to drive up the higher grounds where our dining location is situated.
It was a pleasant surprise and indeed fresh air beckoned as it was a vineyard valley with a breathtaking view; if only it wasn't so dark, or that I was using an actual camera instead of my smartphone.
The Monsoon Valley is their own vineyard which covers a rather vast area; though not clearly captured from where we were seated.


It was an event where everyone is supposed to mingle around, and we were also pleasantly surprised by the awesome hospitality from the folks at the vineyard here as they served us with cocktails, finger food and their locally produced fragrant yet sweet tasting wine which were also on sale at their vineyard store.



A sneak peek into the dining area - the whole place was reserved by my company I guess; as the waiters were rushing to serve and attend to all of our needs. It was quite a handful already, with the crowd we have among ourselves.




The upper deck

Garden salad with a rather unique periwinkle colored mousse as the dressing



Pan fried seabass served with asparagus and in their special stew



Home made fresh ice cream with their home grown grapes, with the little chocolate tag marking the Monsoon Valley Wines' 10th Anniversary celebration.

I may not have seen everything in Hua Hin, but feels like this was an experience which says everything, don't you think?

Hard Rock Cafe Honolulu

It's funny how we never seemed to pay attention to the places where we stayed as we always assumed that we could just visit it anytime and rather, would drive all the way to all the other attractions far away to ensure that we could cover them in our itinerary.
Yeah, it is just ironic that way, don't you think? Are you also like us, or you always make it a point to visit the place closest to you immediately upon arrival?

We were staying near the famous Waikiki Beach area; and surrounded by the beach and streets lined with famous brands, boutiques and even restaurants and we only started exploring the place on the third day, but oh well, we were not that late either as we had a whole week ahead of us for our honeymoon vacation.
Therefore, as soon as the sun set after our day out at the ranch and all, we decided to take the free shuttle service provided by our hotel to the streets of Waikiki Beach!


Yes, this is the awesome view from my hotel room and it just fits me perfectly as I am a huge yacht and sunrise/sunset fan!:-) I missed this view so badly right now....

The free shuttle service from the hotel takes off and pick up passengers at designated points and according to the scheduled times; typically one ride every 15-30 minutes.


We were out to hunt for dinner, and our destination was as stated in the title of the post; no surprise...
Hard Rock Cafe Honolulu.


We just wanted to try out some local American chains; after all, we are in America, aren't we?
It is not that easy to find Hard Rock Cafe anywhere, and they have it here, right up our street and it does not seem right if we were not to pay a visit to the legendary and iconic cafe restaurant originating from the country itself.
The restaurant's design is similar almost everywhere you go; with the symbols and icons from the hard rock era and graced by their famous and iconic guitars hanging on the walls and even ceilings!





Live band performing on stage to entertain the diners


The inner dining area


The dining area is separated into the inner arena and also the al-fresco dining area where one will be exposed to the outside under the transparent ceiling roof while enjoying the soft, cool breeze





Dining under the stars, pretty romantic, don't you think?



It was quite crowded when we got there; and therefore we had to wait for quite a bit before our food came and also, the lights were rather dim inside due to the live band performance and also the intended dining atmosphere of the restaurant.
We had a hard time getting the attention of the servers as well, who were just too busy most of the time to notice us.

Our food
Fresh Catch of the Day
An 8oz. fresh fish of the day is lightly seasoned and grilled to order. Served with sticky rice, fresh vegetable and lemon wedge.




Fresh Fish Taco
Two large 6 inch warm flour tortillas filled with fresh grilled season fish and shredded cabbage. Served with Jack and Cheddar cheeses, Pico de Gallo, fresh lemon, sour cream and guacamole chipotle ranch dressing.


Our mistaken side order of Pineapples; which we thought came along with the meal but it was an additional order which we had to top up for USD$2-3 (I think)



Us enjoying our hard rock dinner among the crowd at the restaurant. We chose to dine at the al-fresco area to enjoy that experience under the stars, but boy was it cold!


After dinner, we shopped around the Hard Rock Shop downstairs and snapped a few photos before leaving the restaurant to head out for some downtown shopping.





The icon of Hard Rock Cafe Honolulu was this large jeep parked in front of the restaurant, for passers by to ogle at and to pose for photos!






Well, at least I have been to the Honolulu outlet of Hard Rock Cafe even if I am not that die hard of a fan of this famous restaurant cafe, but hey, I have a T-shirt from them, so no joke ;-)



Are you a die-hard Hard Rock Cafe fan?

Hawaii Day 1

The first day in Hawaii went by rather uneventful, as we were a little tired from the long flight we had (did I mention it was extremely long?) and it did not help that the sun was shining so brightly.
There are many islands in the beautiful Hawaii state and we were in Oahu; where we stayed near the famous Waikiki beach. In fact, our hotel was just stone's throw away from Waikiki.

We had lunch, and spent some time walking around in the mall then drove around and we did a little shopping.
Everything was rather relaxed on the first day; and we had a nice dinner at Chili's.


We made a stop at Walmart to get the necessities like mineral water and juices for our driving trips for the next few days.

We rested early on the first day, yeah, we were kinda tired, but the tour and interesting things start on the second day!

Honeymoon Special: Romantic Dining by the Sea

On our last night in Pangkor Laut, we enjoyed a lovely romantic evening, despite the stormy weather which threatened to spoil our dining by the sea.


However, since I am a big fan of the rain, I was not upset a bit even when I had to move into the restaurant for my food, instead of sitting on the verandah overlooking the sea.

The dining venue was at Fisherman's Cove Restaurant, which was just a few steps away from Spa Village (where we were staying).


Great food, excellent service, romantic ambience and lovely songs serenaded our dinner that night and are the summary of the overall dining experience at this fine dining restaurant in Pangkor Laut Resort.


I still miss the wonderful fresh seafood fare I have enjoyed here.
Appetizer


Starters



Sorbet as a palate cleanser


Our mains:
Grilled Barramundi with Tiger Prawns


Braised Lobster with citrus sauce


Desserts



If I were to describe the entire evening with only one word, it would be SUPERB :)
I truly enjoyed myself, and thanks to the excellent hospitality by the staff which made my stay even more memorable.

Dinner at Uncle Lim's

We get to choose a different restaurant for each meal; and on the second night, we made reservations at Uncle Lim's restaurant.
The restaurant is designed with Oriental elements; and adorned with Chinese decor items such as baskets, wood, and porcelain wares.



We were quite excited to try this restaurant as we were told that they are fully booked almost every night!
The food here is of the Chinese and Peranakan style.
(Most of the food photos will be posted in my food blog in a separate post)


Our dishes for the night; lots of YUMMY food :)


We were allowed to choose an appetizer, and three main dishes, and two desserts from the menu.
It was not sufficient, I tell you, as I wanted almost everything!

Appetizer: Deep fried signature beancurd


Vegetables: Stir-fried asparagus with scallops in sambal sauce


I can't remember this dish, but these were awesome prawns and they were HUGE and juicy!


The Peranakan style fish fillet


Our unique and flavorful desserts


Sliced fresh mangoes


Fresh avocado cream with mandarin pearls

Sweet, sour and bitter all in one, with a creamy texture and fresh citrus scent from the pearls which were flavored with mandarin essence.


We loved the food here, I am already wishing I could come back here every night!