Halloween Fest, the most anticipated annual event at Ocean Park, is back again this year with a series of spooktacular food creations to bring guests a fun and scrumptious Halloween experience! From 14 September – 31 October, guests can get a flavour of the creative dishes, inspired from traditional Chinese folk tales of the macabre and Western ghostly legends, on specific event dates, which is sure to embark adults and kids on a "tongue-in-cheek", as well as "mouth-watering" journey"!
During the Halloween period, Café Ocean transforms into a "Hall of Returning Spirits" for the whole family. The entrance is flanked by imposing spirit guardians with glowing eyes to welcome guests for a spine-chilling meal. Spooky lanterns hang from the ceiling and sacrificial paper offerings for Chinese funerals lie scattered around the venue as guests make their way to their dining table covered with placements resembling Chinese Ouija board. Over in a dark corner, a person resemblingmonk recites mantras to the eerie tune of his lute. Waiters and waitresses dressed up as paper dolls await to serve guestswith creepily delicious set menus.
To continue with the eerie Chinese-theme, the innovative culinary team at Café Ocean has created a deliciously derelict Chinese-inspired Halloween Fest set menu, "Freaky Chinese Folklore", priced at HK$288. The menu starts off with a Roasted Chicken Salad with Fresh Fruits and Yogurt in a creative cucumber "coffin", followed with a Traditional Onion Soup, poured out of an earthenware pot used for brewing traditional Chinese medicine by the waiter, into drinking bowls for rice wine, drowning a Roti Pratha voodoo doll. For mains, guests may choose from a Beef Lasagne topped with a Chinese Lucky Charm written in tomato sauce, or a Grilled Medallion Salmon sitting on a pool of Ratatouille and Tomato Sauce "blood". The meal then finishes with a creative "East Meets West" dessert of Mixed Berries and Yogurt sprinkled with crumbed cookies and ice cream that is presented eerily in an edible Chinese incense stick holder.
To offer junior guests a fun-filled Halloween experience, Café Ocean has also created a number of funny faces adorning the kids set menu (priced at HK$168) of Buttered Sweet Corns, Spaghetti with Shredded Chicken in a Tangy Tomato Sauce, Smiley Potato Rings, Cookie, a healthy Orange Juice and a Fresh Fruits Cup for dessert.
Up at Polar Adventure, Tuxedos Restaurant adopts the traditional western Halloween pumpkin theme with a scare-licious set menu – Trick or Treat (priced at HK$318 plus 10% service charge). An appetizer of Roasted Chicken Salad with Fresh Fruits and Yoghurt is served in a baby pumpkin Jack o’ Lantern, followed by a Purée of Pumpkin Soup garnished with whipped cream intricately laced like a web of a venomous spider. Main course options include the Broiled U.S. Angus Beef Tenderloin with Brown Toast and Ratatouille drizzled with Red Wine Sauce that brings a cute skeleton to life. Similarly spooky is the Pan-seared Cod Fillet with Mashed Potatoes, Seasonal Vegetables and Black Truffle Cream Sauce that dresses up a skeleton for the occasion. To finish the meal off in gruesome style, the Chocolate Crumb Coated Vanilla Ice Cream served in a Fresh Strawberry Purée dessert looks eerily at you like eyeballs in a pool of blood. The menu is also complemented with a special Halloween Fest Mocktail or a chilled glass of Blue Girl beer.
Tuxedos Restaurant also welcomes junior guests with a special Halloween kids menu (priced at HK$188 plus 10% service charge), which includes Buttered Sweet Corn in Vol-au-vent, Spaghetti with Meatballs in a Tangy Tomato Sauce, Smiley Potato Rings, Cookie, Fresh Fruits Cup, a healthy Orange Juice and finish with a Mini Ice Cream Cup to chill their senses.
Aqua City Bakery, the Park’s iconic bakery located at Aqua City, also gets into the scary spirit by introducing a newly designed Green Tea Mousse Cake with Red Bean (HK$380, to be ordered 48 hours in advance), presented sacrilegiously as an edible Chinese incense stick bowl made of chocolate.
A special Halloween Fest Mocktail (HK$58) will also be available at Tuxedos and Café Ocean for visitors to chill with after a spine-tingling time at the Park.
Mr. Nick Lee, Senior Food and Beverage Operations Manager, says: "The concept of Halloween Fest opens an opportunity to offer a wide range of attractions catering to both thrill-seeking young adults and families looking for a fun way to celebrate Halloween. To complement their overall Halloween experience, we have specially designed a series of innovative dishes that provide different intensity of experiences to our diners. Using Café Ocean as an example, we injected elements from traditional Chinese ghost stories into our dishes, and complemented the overall dining experience by transforming the restaurant into a "Hall of Returning Spirits" which ties-in with the neighbouring haunted attraction, Chinese Mad-icine Hall, to make the experience even more memorable."
To ensure that guests get to extend the Halloween spirit after their visit, Ocean Park is also launching a whole range of new Halloween merchandises for visitors to bring home. This year’s collection includes eerie glow-in-the-dark T-shirts, a wide spectrum of light-up toys, accessories, devil-horned headbands and Whiskers, the popular and iconic Ocean Park mascot, dressed up in his own Halloween outfit for the very first time! Mr. Gavin Lam, Senior Retail Operations, says, "This year, we have introduced a wide range of light-up accessories, convenient to take around, to provide some modicum of comfort when entering our dark haunted attractions. We also hope our guests will take these products away with them, and remember Ocean Park's unique nocturnal experience during Halloween, as well as the usual daytime fun in the sun."
To find out more about Ocean Park Halloween Fest, please call (852) 3923-2323 or visit www.oceanpark.com.hk.
*Set menus may be subject to 10% service charge.
*All Halloween Fest set menus, special drinks and themed cakes at Aqua Bakery will only be available on the following event dates during the Halloween Fest period from 14 September – 31 October: September 14, 20, 21, 26, 27, 28, October 1 (charter events by Corporations); and October 2, 3, 4, 5, 10, 11, 12, 17, 18, 19, 23, 24, 25, 26, 30 and 31 (open to public).
