Lychee and midori cocktails
What does a hotel have to do with a cookbook? I'm not sure, but I'm guessing that the new Vibe Entertains cookbook by the Vibe Hotel group is all about promoting a lifestyle that is one part party to two parts glam (try saying that after three cocktails).
In order to find out more, Chocolatesuze and I attended the "exclusive launch" of said cookbook at the Vibe Hotel Sydney on Goulburn Street last week. Free food, drinks and goodie bags had nothing to do with our rsvp of course.
We arrived to find the ground floor bar cleared of furniture and filled with cocktail-sipping guests mingling the room instead. The lychee and Midori cocktails were a fluoro green, poured in sugar-rimmed martini glasses with flashing multicoloured stems. It felt very New Years Eve.
After downing our first cocktail, we gathered around the demonstration tables to watch a few recipes put into action.
Squeezing lime juice into pork mince
Pork and rambutan canapes
Slicing the pepper-crusted seared tuna
Peppered tuna salad
Much more entertaining was the cocktail-making session, an impressive display of balance, showmanship and crowd-pleasing fire.
Not quite a flaming Moe
Breathing FIRE!
We kicked on with more cocktails, canapes and desserts, all from the cookbook of course.
Vibe sunset cocktail with white wine, strawberry liquer and soda water
Tempura vegetables with chick pea dip
Crystal bay prawns with wasabi
Crystal Bay prawns with chilli voda shots
Crystal Bay prawn and hokkien noodle stir fry
Blue cheese and blueberry bites; shortbreads with mascarpone and toffee;
and cinnamon-dusted mini pavlovas
The Vibe Entertains cookbook will be included with Vibe Entertains accommodation packages.
Vibe Hotel Sydney
111 Goulburn Street, Sydney
Tel: +61 (02) 8272 3300
I have to be honest, the idea of a budget hotel releasing a cook book leaves me completely cold and just seems like a money grab in an environment when releasing a cookbook without a celebrity endorsement at Xmas time may see it being a little difficult to shift units so I guess if it's a value add to a room stay, fair enough. That said, I have to ask - why would you do it from a cost/benefit perspective.
ReplyDeleteAlso, the photo with the lychee and pork canapes - they're using the outer spiny skin of a rambutan. Are you sure they wern't rambutan and pork?
Hi Benn - It's an intriguing lateral marketing concept. Although the cook books do have a retail value, I expect they'll be included as "free gifts" for customers and used as a marketing tool. I haven't had a close look at the final copy (they were still at the printers at the time of the launch) but it does include promotion of their various hotels around the country. I guess it's a novel way to ensure that customers value and keep "marketing material" on their bookshelves, presumably referring to it for a recipe and then thinking "hey, isn't it about time we had a holiday, and how about we stay at a Vibe Hotel?" lol
ReplyDeleteAnd yep you're right about the rambutans (now corrected). That's what you get when you keep staring at pictures of lychee cocktails.
Happiness is just a Flaming Moe awaaaaaaay... :)
ReplyDelete7am now. Those drinks have me licking my lips.
ReplyDeleteNo stiff drinks before lunch but is it too early for a cocktail? They are made with fruit, so we could consider them a liquid breakfast.
lol i regret not partaking in more free alcomohol... heh im surprised you didnt include a pic of the squishy toy?
ReplyDeleteWoow sounds and looks like a great night and the food yummm so very very hungry haha
ReplyDeleteOops I thought at first this sounded suss from the name Vibe (which still has me giggling like a schoolgirl).
ReplyDeleteHi Claire - lol.
ReplyDeleteHi Veruca Salt - The cocktails were pretty strong, but yes, I think the fruit definitely qualifies them as "health-giving".
Hi Chocolatesuze - Hehe, I didn't even take a photo of them, although I have two of them posing cheerfully on the bookshelf as I type :)
Hi FFichiban - It was a fun night. Good company always helps of course :)
Hi Lorraine - Dearie me, that thought didn't even occur to me! Tut tut! Perhaps they might introduce a few more gift ideas with that thought trail in mind! lol
Lol @ Flaming Moe!!
ReplyDeletexox Sarah
Hi Sarah - lol.
ReplyDelete