18 January 2013

Simon's 42nd Hawaiian Birthday Party at The Coach & Horses Hotel, Randwick (12 Jan 2013)

147 Avoca Street, Randwick NSW 2031


The answer to life is 42

According to The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy the ‘Answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything’ is 42 but for me it's another chance to put on my trusty Hawaiian shirt and lei for my birthday party. Last year I was pretty impressed with the function space at The Coach and Horses Hotel so I decided to have it there again. Free hire, air conditioned, private access to the bar and a platter menu that was pretty good were the main draw cards. I was lucky to have 61 adults and 12 kids share the special day with me. I ordered platters of Vietnamese vegetable rice paper rolls, Vegetable spring rolls, Steamed prawn & pork dumplings, Moroccan lamb skewers and Tempura prawns plus bowls of Potato wedges. I was pretty happy with all the food. Vietnamese rolls were a good size filled with fresh ingredients as a healthy option. I'm always a fan of the deep fried spring rolls in any size or form. Steamed pork & pork dumplings were a decent size although were a little awkward to eat with the toothpicks being so big. The Moroccan lamb skewers were tender and tasty and the Tempura prawns were nice and plump with a crisp batter making them a favourite for me. 

I kept myself fueled with Gin & Tonic and Long Island Iced Tea kindly bought for me from friends — thank you. $679.10 was spent by guests at the bar and my birthday cake was Salted Caramel (50 pieces) and Rosewater (35 pieces) macarons from La Renaissance which I arranged in the number 42. They were extremely popular and were bought for $1 each — thanks Christophe from Bistro Baroque for the very special pricing. I'm a big fan of making cakes that don't have to be cut and can be shared quickly and easily without cutlery and plates. I received many generous gifts which I look forward to using, eating and drinking which included a $100 Best Restaurants of Australia gift card. I'm thinking Movida Sydney might be a good one to try? Thanks again to all those who took the time to come along to make my birthday a very special day to remember and I look forward to catching up again soon.

Other birthdays for Simon:
12 Jan 2013 - Simon's 42nd Birthday - Coach and Horses Hotel
15 Jan 2012 - Simon's 41st Birthday - Coach and Horses Hotel
8 Jan 2011 - Simon's 40th Birthday - Centennial Hotel
10 Jan 2010 - Simon's 39th Birthday BBQ
4 Jan 2009 - Simon's 38th Birthday BBQ

SNAPSHOT REVIEW:
PROS: Good private space for a party with own access to bar service, Free function space hire, Nice platters of food, Helpful staff
CONS: Costs more to have your party at a venue but it's far less stressful, The more people you have the harder it is to get the food shared around the room
MUST TRY: Planning a trip to Hawaii for my 50th birthday to make it extra special
VERDICT: Much more relaxing having a party at a venue so you get to enjoy your own event and there's no cleaning up after
Vietnamese vegetable rice paper rolls with hoisin sauce ($60 per 25 piece platter)
SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

Vegetable cocktail spring rolls with sweet chilli ($60 per 50 piece platter)

Tempura prawns with wasabi & soy sauce ($60 per 25 piece platter)
SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

Steamed prawn & pork dumpling with soya, sesame oil & coriander ($60 per 40 piece platter)
Moroccan lamb skewers with yoghurt & mint sauce ($60 per 30 piece platter)
So much easier when someone else is serving the food around the room
Wedges ($8)
Long Island Iced Tea
SIMON FAVOURITE :-)
Gin & Tonic ($6.50)
My 42nd Macaron Birthday Cake with Rosewater and Salted Caramel Macarons from La Renaissance
Rosewater and Salted Caramel Macarons


Flower of the day
Photographer of the day
Bill $820 for 13 platters @ $60 and 5 wedges @ $8
Enjoyable function space with comfortable seating, air con and access to private bar

Birthday boy in the lift
After party drinks at home with Hendrick's Gin
Always love Henkell for a bit of sparkling
Trying long island iced tea with cranberry instead of coca cola — I prefer with coca cola
Generous gifts from friends
I love anything Aesop
After party munchies fulfilled with Jack's Pizza
Very cool Hawaiian-inspired gift wrapping
Birthday cards
Looking forward to using the $100 Best Restaurants of Australia gift card, movie tickets and Tetsuya's Truffle Salt


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10 comments:

Richard Elliot said...

Happy Birthday Simon! Sorry that I couldn't make it this year.

Flora Fascinata said...

Happy Birthday! Love Henkell, too. Rates quite nicely as as a sparkling. X :)

gaby @ lateraleating said...

Happy birthday Simon! Happy to hear you had a great Hawaiian celebration :)

Christine @ Cooking Crusade said...

Happy birthday Simon! Looks like a great day and a good venue - I'll definitely keep this one in mind for future birthday planning :D Love your birthday macs instead of cake as well hehe

Milktea Eats said...

happy birthday! looks like you had a fabulous time!

Aga @ a matter of taste said...

Happy Birthday Simon!

Simon Leong said...

h richard, thanks for the birthday wishes. hope is all well in the UK.

hi flora, glad to hear you love Henkell too. an affordable sparkling that's so likeable.

hi gaby, i always love a good hawaiian party. such a relaxed atmosphere.

hi christine, macarons make for such an easy cake idea.

hi milkteaxx, thanks for the wishes. i had a fun time.

hi aga, thanks so much! :-)

Amanda@ChewTown said...

Happy 42nd Simon! Sounds like it was great fun... and I'm loving the macarons!

Mary @ beyondjelly said...

Happy (belated) birthday! You've inspired me to make a bigger effort on my own celebrations this year.

Nic@diningwithastud said...

Haha looks like you have competition as the photographer ;) happy birthday Simon!!!

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