Overheard in South Lantau

Guy A: So, you live here?
Guy B: Yup
Guy A: Lucky sod

Resort tea

Silvermine Beach Resort is looking better under new management so we decided to give the restaurant a second try. The prices are slightly higher than cha chaan teng prices in the village. 

But the atmosphere and view is definitely nicer. 

The food was okay, better than when we were first here two years ago. But still, a word of caution. Go for the local stuff because the chefs are obviously local.

Don't bother with the more exotic Southeast Asian food because they simply can't get it right here. This is supposed to be char kway teow, a Malaysian specialty. Instead, it was just rice noodles fried with curry powder, the way they do the spurious "Singapore noodles" everywhere in Hong Kong. It tastes weird, to say the least. 

 Their black pepper beef hor fun, a local specialty, tasted so much better.

Service still leaves a lot to be desired. We had to go and call our waiter and when he turned up eventually, he gave us only one menu to be shared between us. The food took half an hour to arrive.

I must say though, they were consistently slow throughout - the bill took forever to come and we could have walked off for all the staff cared.

Silvermine Hotel's new lease of life

I must admit I was pretty sceptical about the rebranding of Silvermine Beach Resort, especially since people who've stayed there tell me the rooms are just the same, just more expensive.

But they are trying. And I like the idea of refreshment kiosks. 

The kiosks are open only on weekends and are only about a month old so it's too early to gauge the response yet. But I think they'll do a roaring business during the upcoming dragonboat races.

I tried the lime slush for HK$10 and it really hit the spot on a hot day.

Even better, the hotel is also offering free space outdoors for people wanting to set up their own stalls... a great idea for summer.

Buffalo Wilbur and I are wondering what we can sell to take advantage of the free space. Any suggestions?

Mui Wo Inn-formation

Some people have been asking me to get more information on the room rates at Mui Wo Inn (Tel: 2984-7225/8597), which doesn't have its own website – so here it is:For those who don't read Chinese (me included), garden view rooms are HK$400 (HK$600 on Saturdays), sea view rooms are HK$500/$750 and sea view with balcony rooms HK$580/$850.

I suspect though that they don't take credit cards as they have also provided a bank account number in their name card.

Silvermine Beach Resort shows some initiative

Good to see the new management of Silvermine Beach Resort taking some initiative to advertise the hotel.

Never mind that the first time he saw it, Buffalo Wilbur thought: "Great, Mui Wo has an brothel."

Treasures of Lantau

Spotted at Hotel Novotel in Tung Chung. Wonder how a Treasures of Lantau buffet is different from a Treasures of Anywhere Else in Hong Kong buffet. Mui Wo clams? Tai O pink dolphins?

We weren't about to spend HK$208 to find out, though.

Silvermine Beach Hotel's rebirth

The new owners of the Silvermine Beach Hotel certainly didn't waste any time reopening it.

I guess, in the hotel industry, every day of closure translates to hundreds of thousands in lost revenue.

They seem to have breathed new life into the place, if the buzz at the buffet is anything to go by.

If this upward trend continues, we may just give the place another chance. That suckling pig really looks too good to miss.

Who's Daily Treasure?

So Silvermine Beach Hotel has been sold.

Hong Kong Ferry announced that: "On 12 May 2011, the Vendor has accepted the tender by the Purchaser to purchase the Property at the consideration of HK$280.8 million subject to and upon the terms of the conditions of sale.

"Taking into account the carrying value of the property and certain furniture and fixtures remaining on the Property, a gain in an estimated sum of approximately HK$240 million before tax."

Woweee, that's a lot of profit. So does that mean HKF bought the hotel for a mere HK$40.8 million? Small change, that.

But more interestingly, who is Daily Treasure Limited?

A quick Google search brings up only Daily Treasure Industrial, established in 1990, and specializing in producing decorative jewelry boxes made of real egg shells... I doubt it's the same company.

Friends in the hotel industry said they've heard rumours that the place will be turned into a conference centre. And when you come to think of it, it does make sense as the hotel is close to the airport, fairly self-contained and has a beach for team-building exercises.

I just hope they have a nice restaurant (or even spa, dare I hope?) open to the public.

First swim of the year – in fluorescent waters

I took off today instead of Buddha's birthday, which is tomorrow, and boy am I glad I did. The sun was out and, as today is technically a working day, the beach was just the way I like it – quiet but with enough people to make a buzz.

Last year, the waters were warm enough by April for me to take my first dip but we've had an extended winter this year so the sea never looked inviting – till today.

So I got my first swim, first ice-cream.. and was feeling such a sense of wellbeing, until I reached home and noticed that the sea had gone a fluorescent green.

Buffalo Wilbur says that's probably just harmless dye that they use to test the sewage system for leaks. But even the intrepid fishermen (the ones who wouldn't mind eating even the ugliest of fishes which have been fed on the strangest of things) are nowhere to be seen.

Coincidence? I think not.

Silvermine Beach Hotel up for grabs

The Silvermine Beach Hotel is ripe for redevelopment. It has so much potential: an amazing location right on the beach, a growing number of visitors willing to try something beyond Central-TST and an expat population looking for something a bit upmarket to hold celebrations and parties.

It's looking a bit shabby and dated at the moment. Just take a look at the hotel-provided photo of a guestroom - that bedspread is so '80s.

Hopefully someone will come along and make the most of this distressed asset.

If I had HK$280 million, I would...

Here's the article from The Standard:

Door opens to owning landmark hotel

Prospective buyers of the Silvermine Beach Hotel may be looking at more than a few possibilities for the site.

The landmark tourist hotel on Lantau Island - being sold by HYFCO Properties for around HK$280 million - has 128 generous-sized rooms and sports and leisure facilities, and can be repositioned as a conference or training center.

It may also be turned into a five-star spa, away from the hustle and bustle of urban Hong Kong. CB Richard Ellis, the agent for the sale, believes the site also has great redevelopment potential: "Silvermine has an area of more than 80,000 square feet, allowing for a low- density redevelopment in its setting of beach, sea and mountain."

In other words, it may be a gold mine.

Hotel food

The rule of the thumb when looking for a good restaurant when you're in a new place is to see where to locals go. Unfortunately, we decided to ignore this and strike out on our own. We had seen Thai food advertised in Silvermine Beach Hotel so thought we'd try the restaurant out for some variety.

Big mistake. The seafood linguini was on the menu as having clams and mussels and in a tomato wine sauce. Instead, we got spaghetti in an lumpy cream sauce with a handful of peppers thrown in (peppers being a "Western" sort of vegetable).

The pad Thai was another disappointment. The seafood was fresh and the scallops were plump, I grant it that. But it was all cooked into a soggy mess, more hor fun style than anything Thai I'd seen.

To add insult to injury, the bill came up to about the same as if we'd had a meal at China Beach Club... which would have been infinitely better.

It's a pity, really, as the location is great and the staff are friendly. If only they'd get a new chef or do away with dishes the existing one cannot cope with. A good hor fun cooked well would have pleased us more than an interesting dish cooked indifferently.