When you think of a brunch, would you think of a Chinese Brunch???
I didn’t… well Chinese people also have breakfast…. I knew that but…
I am so used to the west culture, it could not be different, could it be??? that when I think of brunch, I immediately think of cheeses, eggs, hams, breads, and even some hot meals… but a Chinese breakfast style meal does not immediately come to mind….
So, when I was invited to try a Chinese style brunch… I got very excited….
I love to get challenged and get out of comfort zone… I love Chinese food… so for me I anticipated that it would be a win win situation…. and I was not wrong… the experience was just superb!
I have been to China a few times and I remember clearly having breakfast at the hotels and seeing at the buffet or at the menu Chinese food (obviously)… however I ordered what I was used to… for my own loss…
Thus, this invitation was the perfect reason to redeem myself and try something completely new…
What a great surprise and splurge…
I went to the magnificent Lòu One restaurant at the Kempinski Hotel in Geneva. This restaurant has been subject to a post last year… I had an amazing time there… so my expectations for this brunch were quite high…
An the restaurant did not fail me, on the contrary, it beat my highest expectations… It was delicious and the experience will definitely be remembered for long time.
First the brunch is served at the table. There is a fixed price and several courses… I mean it… several courses… no economy of food so that when you come to the end, you are almost checking in at the hotel, so all you think is to rest and digest…
As we came in, we were served a Chinese aperitif… It was a delight to open our appetite…
Then, we are served a who series of spring rolls… I LOVE SHRIMP spring rolls… I ate 3 of them.. straight away… gluttony can attack me sometimes and it was the case… if I had know what was about to come our way, I would have restrained myself…. but I just could not resist….
At the same time, it was also served to us, the chicken and the vegetables spring rolls…. I tried one each… so at this stage I had already eaten impressive 5 spring rolls…. 🙂
Further it was dumpling time… OMG… they were just perfect… these beautiful steamed little beauties full of flavour were served to us to eat, use and abuse… pork, meat, vegetables, veal, lamb… I lost count of how many I ate… I kept trying and trying with difference sauces and mixtures…. So yummy!
The server that was serving our table was just a remarkable gentlemen… he deserves an extra compliment… he taught us the best sauce combinations for each of the dumplings which just increased the favours….
Then, we were served the Chinese bread… I did not anticipate that the Chinese bread is also filled with some kind of meat… as I bit it, the full flavours of the beef just made me bite further and further… I promise you it looks like a bun, but tastes completely different.
It is not over yet… I had to make a pause because I knew there was a lot more to come…
Soup followed the bread… I must confessed I tried it but soup is not my thing… my husband on the other hand, loves it… he went full steam ahead into it and loved the mixture of textures and flavours. The Chicken soup was very savoury… even for me who normally does not even look at it…
Best to come…. the hot meals…
A whole set of hot plates were brought to us… Beef with basil sauce, Sweet and Sour chicken, Fish in lemon sauce, crispy pork… all accompanied by fried rice and Chinese noodles…
If you had seen the amount of food, you would have not imagined that we would not eat it all… but it was so good, the day was so perfect and the place was so cosy that we lost track of time and little by little consumed every bit of the meal….
At that stage and 3 hours later (yes, 3 hours of intensive brunch) I hardly could move….
Desert was yet to come and as we least expected the most amazing fruit and ice cream plate landed in front of us… mangos, strawberries, papaya, ananas, kiwi, various ice creams… the colour combination was beautiful to see…
People say that you starting eating with your eyes… I think in this case they were 100% right….
Do you think we refused it? Of course not! I could not believe myself when I saw the plate empty…. seriously… not even one little piece of strawberry left…
This is one of the greatest value for money brunches I have ever been… the quality of the food is unquestionable and the quantity could feed a whole army… It is all super well prepared and presented and the service is impeccable….
If you like Chinese food and wish to try a different type of brunch, you must visit the Lòu One… you will have an amazing time, in an amazing place (maybe with one of the most beautiful lake views ever) and eat be treated like a Emperor…
XX Valentina
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