Today’s the day the world goes romantic. It’s a plethora of red ribbons and red roses and poems galore. At BluHouse restaurant, inside ROSEWOOD HONG KONG and spilling out to Avenue of Stars. There’s Chef Giovanni Galeota’s special Valentine’s menu, Australian Wagyu carpaccio and Red Cow parmesan, or Canadian lobster salad or Italian pizza with black truffle. Love is worldwide. Judging by the many young local couples lunching at BluHouse yesterday, the restaurant, designed by London-based Afroditi Studio, has a sexy feel to it any time, any day. We love the combination of marble, or soft wood, table tops and, of course, the view over Avenue of Stars to Victoria Harbour and across to Hong Kong Island is pretty spectacular. (It’s a sharing place, and we had burrata and light-as-air focaccia, on Legle plates.)
Back in Europe, Lisbon is the most romantic city, or so says something called Catamaran Charters Croatia – dom’t ask how or why. Anyway, Lisbon their most romantic capital – despite having the ninth smallest area, the city sweeps across 100 sq km and its population of 545,923 has no less than 588 ‘romantic’ restaurants and 152 ‘romantic’ hotels. Monte-Carlo is runner-up, with 54 romantic restaurants and six romantic hotels, all for a population of just over 36,686. Next comes Paris, with a population of 2,139,907 who have to share precisely 1,387 romantic restaurants and 542 romantic hotels.
All such data is frankly nonsense, and who cares? And why did Catamaran Charters Croatia bother in the first place except for self-promotion?
Let us talk real sense. DUNTON HOT SPRINGS in Colorado is an authentic old mining village that has been converted by Christoph Henkell into a retreat that is just right for today’s new-luxury. Stay in one of 12 authentic 1865 cabins, 9,950 ft ASL surrounded by 14,000 ft peaks. Snow sports in winter, hiking in summer, and riding and biking and more. Dunton has a grand food and wine programme coming up. Tonight, for instance, Fortuna Chocolate featuring cacao in a variety of culinary forms, in addition to masa, milpa beans, pepita, and other delicious treats from Fortuna’s time in the highlands of Southern Mexico. Along the way, too, are such regulars as Wine on the Fly, starring Brian Lamborn hosting fly-fishing, connection with nature, outdoor activities by day, and a memorable wine dinner (1-5 July 2023) and, on 7th October 2023, the third annual LAWS Whiskey dinner offers guests informative yet relaxed whiskey-tasting workshops in the afternoon, followed by a five-course meal accompanied by creative LAWS Whiskey cocktails in the evening.
Happy Valentine’s world.
