The moment I stepped in to the Island Shangri-La I was amazed by their interior decor, the height of their lobby ceiling and super friendly service from the moment we said hello. We booked a twin room to stay for our final night in Hong Kong and I am glad we chose to stay with Island Shangri-La and relax our Friday by enjoying our room, their facilities and a wide choice of restaurants to dine in. Our room view was facing the harbour which overlooked the neighbouring skyscrapers, prestigious shopping, cultural and business addresses with a full spectacular 180 degree view of Hong Kong.
We were welcomed with a complimentary basket full of fresh fruits and Chinese tea served in traditional tea cups – what a surprise as we didn’t expect a welcome gift from the Shangri La for all their guests.
I arranged a surprise Birthday lunch for my friend’s 30th at Shangri La’s Restaurant Petrus – a French Cuisine perched on the top floor with soaring views of the Victoria Harbour. Courtesy of Shangri-La, I approached them for a review as they welcome their new chef de cuisine Ricardo Chaneton. We were presented with a personalised lunch menu which I brought back with me to London – it was a beautiful touch (and how can I possibly throw it away).
Off the menu, we enjoyed a basket of breads with customised spreads; cheesy snaps and Hokkaido scallops, trout roe w chrysanthemum and black sesame carpaccio (excuse my French but it was bloody delicious).
Entrées Froides: Dish 1: Green asparagus carpaccio with white balsamic dressing and pistachios: light, crunchy and neutral. The wonderfully handsome sommelier recommended Nikolaihof Gruner Veltliner (Austrian white wine) to accompany our first starter.
Entrées Chaudes: Dish 2: Parsley root velouté with smoked eel and egg: the whisked egg white was later poured over for a light, frothy like consistency. It was very light indeed and portioned well to look forward to the next 2 exciting dishes ahead.
Plats Principaux: Dish 3: Wagyu beef A4 with Swiss chard and parmesan. I love a good juicy fat; it was succulent, recommended as medium rare and just as I like it. I have had a look at the original a la carte menu and this dish by far appealed to me the most. Our wonderful Sommelier again had a wonderful recommendation to go with the Wagyu beef; Collina Dalla Valle Napa Valley red wine – at this moment I was getting tipsy and fully enjoyed my main!
Dessert: Dish 4: Greek yogurt with chickpea ice cream and mint – this was an interesting blend as it was the first time I have tasted chickpea ice cream. I was pleasantly surprised how refreshing the dessert was and the chickpea flavour was not over-powering as the mint gives you a subtle after-kick to the chickpea flavoured ice cream.
Surprise surprise I had no idea they were going to present my friend a Birthday cake and it was such a sweet gesture. My friend made a wish and blew out the candles and took some photos! Our lovely waiter offered to light the candle again so we can get the perfect picture – he knows!! We had the cake delivered back to our room so that we could devour it in the evening (just so you know – there is a patisserie shop within the hotel and by sampling this chocolate mousse cake – it was phenomenal). Thank you Restaurant Petrus and Chef Ricardo Chaneton for the wonderful lunch.
Wilson, the comms officer for the Island Shangri-La gave us a wonderful tour of the hotel as to what they have to offer for their guests.
As mentioned at the start; light and airy lobby:
Library room: beautiful large chandeliers as well as a quiet space to relax. Also can be used as a function room.
Summer Palace: 2 Michelin starred Chinese restaurant from 2013 – 2016. Discover Summer Palace’s signature dishes and Chef Ip’s specialties for yourself. An extensive dim sum menu is also available for lunch daily.
Continuing with my tour: a Double room with views of the Victoria Peak:
Peek of the Executive Suite:
I am so grateful of the personal tour we had and I have just fallen in love with the Island Shangri-La. I squeezed my last hour of daylight by having a quick dip in their relatively small but private outdoor pool which was lovely. I can’t help but notice that that humidity affects our window view at night – I would say that’s the only downside as I was looking forward to the gorgeous night view and I couldn’t see anything as the glass pane steamed up from the outside 
In the evening: we invited some friends over (as you do because it’s Friday) and long story short; we were a bit too noisy as we didn’t realise what time it was (errr 2am) until we received a complaint. I felt really bad because our neighbour has a baby and they had to endure our horrible karaoke and childish laughters! When receiving the complaint we left the hotel room immediately so our neighbours can have a peaceful sleep whilst we continue with our silliness outside! Upon my return and aside from the breathtaking wall to wall view, I melted into my bed and cuddled up between the soft white sheets as I woke up to a gorgeous Hong Kong view of the Victoria Harbour. What I also really like about the service here is that despite already checked out by 9am; we were able to leave our luggage behind and use their shower room facilities in the afternoon (we had a junk boat party) and this is what I call great post-guest service! I cannot wait to come back and experience it all over again.
*Opinions are my own, only the lunch at Restaurant Petrus was complimentary.
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