[Paris] Café Saint-Régis

Café Saint-Régis

Add: 6 Rue Jean du Bellay, 75004 Paris
Tel: +33 1 43 54 59 41
Hours: 6:30am~2am (open daily)
Price: [breakfast] €7
Website: www.cafesaintregisparis.com
Visited on:  Mar 2013

I probably would’ve never discovered Café Saint-Régis if Paris in Four Months didn’t suggest this place for our meet up (so first of all, thank you :). This old school Parisian café isn’t anything out of the ordinary, but it’s a charming and comfortable place to rest tired feet or fill empty stomachs if you happen to be wandering in the Notre Dame area. The cherry on top? Free wi-fi.

Can’t comment on the dishes here since we only stopped by for breakfast (€7), which includes freshly-squeezed orange juice, croissant/tartine, and a hot drink of choice (coffee, tea, or hot chocolate).

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[London] The Wolseley

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The Wolseley

Add: 160 Piccadilly, London W1J 9EB
Tel: 020 7499 6996
Hours: [Mon-Fri] 7am~12am [Sat] 8am~12am [Sun] 8am~11pm
Website: www.thewolseley.com
Price: [breakfast] £15~20
Visited on: Jan 2013

Breakfast at The Wolseley is an institution. There’s even a book dedicated to it, literally titled “Breakfast at The Wolesley”, written by British restaurant critic A.A. Gill – and this could very well be a marketing gimmick, but I did find breakfast here to be an enjoyable experience. Grandiose decor, lively atmosphere, and pleasant if not especially memorable food. A must do in London? Not really, but if you have the spare time, why not?

Beautiful interior.

Busy bees in and outside the kitchen.

Freshly baked viennoiseries.

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[Hong Kong] Ritz-Carlton: Checking Out

The Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong

Address: International Commerce Centre, 1 Austin Road West, Kowloon,  Hong Kong
Tel: (852) 2263 2263
Website: www.ritzcarlton.com/en/Properties/HongKong/
Visited on: 2011-12-23

Good morning Hong Kong! After we reluctantly wriggled out of our ultra comfortable bed, we made our way to the Club Lounge for breakfast. Floor-to-celing windows, soft velvety morning light, jazz in the air, and the sweet smell of fresh pastries and coffee – a fine way to wake up.

Note: for those not staying at the Club Lounge levels, breakfast is served at The Lounge & Bar on the 102nd floor. 

The buffet features a selection of cold cuts, fresh fruits, yogurt, pastries, hot dishes, fresh juices, and eggs made to order. I’m also guessing the kitchen can conjure up whatever you fancy at the moment, but I was very happy with what was already on the table.

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[Taipei] Liu Mama’s Rice Ball 劉媽媽飯團

Liu Mama’s Rice Ball 劉媽媽飯團

Add: No. 88, Hangzhou South Rd Section 2, Taipei 台北市杭洲南路二段88號
Tel: (02) 3393 6915 / 0918 670 727
Hours: 6-11am
Price: 35~55 NTD/rice ball
Visited: Oct 2011

What gets me up early in the day? A good breakfast, but of course. On my last morning in Taipei, I set out in the drizzling rain to find the city’s best breakfast rice ball. 劉媽媽飯團 (Liu Mama’s), a little hole in the wall on Hangzhou South Rd, is reputed to be the best in its class. So is it worth sacrificing a few hours of sleep for? Absolutely.

Here’s the menu at Liu Mama’s, you can see that there are quite a few options. Basically, you can choose between regular sticky rice and purple sticky rice, and pick from an assortment of ingredients like tuna, sausage, pork chops, cheese, kimchi, smoke chicken, plum, corn, bonito flakes, etc., etc., etc.

But all I wanted was the simple 招牌紫米飯團 signature purple rice rice ball (35 NTD). What’s in it? Braised egg (滷蛋), pickled cabbage (酸菜), dried turnips (蘿蔔干), pork floss (肉鬆), deep-fried dough stick (油條), all wrapped up in sticky, chewy, freshly-cooked purple rice. Nothing fancy, but oh my gosh, what a totally satisfying mouthful.

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[Ghent] Simon Says B&B – The Breakfast

Simon Says B&B

Add: Sluizeken 89000 Gent, Belgium
Tel: +32 9 233 03 43
Website: www.simon-says.be
Price: €100/night for 2 people, discounts for 2 nights or more
Visited: Jul 2011

The bed at Simon Says is ultra comfortable. The only thing that lured me out of it was the enticing aroma of freshly baked croissants and freshly brewed coffee from the downstairs cafe. When breakfast smells this good, sleeping in simply is not an option.

At the cafe, we were greeted by Christopher and Vache the B&B cat. Vache is “cow” in French – just look at his fur and you’ll know why this name is so befitting.

Breakfast at Simon Says is a feast. Freshly squeezed orange juice, amazing croissants (I’d say one of the best I’ve ever had) and other pastries (pain au chocolat was delicious as well), perfectly boiled eggs (so soft so tender), yogurt, organic museli, fresh cherries, and of course, luxurious coffee.

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[Taipei] Fu Hang Dou Jiang 阜杭豆漿

Fu Hang Dou Jiang 阜杭豆漿

Add: HuaShan Market Building, 2F, Zhongxiao E. Rd. Sec. 1, No. 108 台北市忠孝東路一段108號華山市場2樓之28
Tel: (02) 2392 2175
Hours: [daily] 5:30am-12:30pm
Price: [soy milk] 20~25NTD [shao bing] 25~55NTD
Visited: Apr 2011

With breakfast joints occupying every other street corners of Taipei, Fu Hang Dou Jiang has done impressively well in attracting a loyal following who would travel the distance and wait in a long queue, just to sink their teeth in one of the most satisfying shao bing (roasted flatbreads) in the city. This is what gets me up at 6:45am even when I’m on holidays.

Tip: It’s a popular place and it closes at 10am, so come early or leave hungry.

Since 1958, Fu Hang has been churning out 燒餅 (shao bing, or roasted flatbread) and 油條 (you tiao, or deep-fried cruller) made fresh daily in the traditional Nanjing way. Look through the glass to get a feel of the hustle and bustle in the kitchen.

After a short wait, here’s what we got on the plate.

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