Simon's 43rd Hawaiian Birthday Party at The Coach & Horses Hotel, Randwick (4 Jan 2014)

147 Avoca Street, Randwick NSW 2031

http://www.coachandhorseshotel.com.au

Happy Birthday to being 43

As per my self-imposed tradition I celebrated my 43rd birthday in Hawaiian style since it's the best party theme in my eyes. So easy to dress up and makes for really colourful photos too. I chose The Coach and Horses Hotel again which has a nice private area with easy access to a bar for friends to buy their drinks. 38 adults and 9 kids came along to help celebrate my special day. I ordered platters of Vietnamese vegetable rice paper rolls, Vegetable spring rolls, Vegetarian Arancini, Moroccan lamb skewers and Tempura prawns plus bowls of hot chips. Vietnamese rice paper rolls always make for a good starter. I love my deep fried spring rolls so had to order these like last time. Vegetarian Arancini were tasty with with thin crispy shell so I'd probably order these again. The Moroccan lamb skewers were pretty tasty and the Tempura prawns were probably my favourites again and also popular with the guests. 

First drink of the day was a Pimms and Lemonade followed by some Gin & Tonics courtesy of my generous friends. $592.10 was spent by guests at the bar and my birthday cake was created from 72 Lamington Fingers with 6 punnets of Fresh Strawberries arranged in the number 43 all bought from Coles. No need for cutting, cutlery or plates to eat it which is always my preference for simplicity. I received lots of yummy gifts which I'm looking forward to eating including Tony Chachere's Original Creole Seasoning which apparently goes with everything and washing it all down with some fine wines and the bottle of Taittinger. The David Jones gift voucher will come in very handy at the food hall too.

Other birthdays for Simon:
• 4 Jan 2014 - Simon's 43rd Birthday - Coach and Horses Hotel
• 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: Nice private space for a party with access to bar service, Nice platters of food, Helpful and friendly staff, Fun times with friends

CONS: Trying to think of something new for my next birthday cake

MUST TRY: Planning to have my 50th birthday in Hawaii

VERDICT: Great private area for a party

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Airing out my trusty Hawaiian shirt and lei

Lamington Fingers ($3.40 each approx) and Strawberries ($2 per punnet)

Making my birthday cake to spell '43'

Simon's '43' Birthday Cake

Wrapped and ready for transport to the pub

Comfortable seating

A bit of Hawaiian decor to set the mood

Friendly service serving up Vegetable Cocktail Spring Rolls ($60 per 50 pieces platter, 2 ordered)
SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

Hot chips ($6, 5 ordered)

Vietnamese Vegetable Rice Paper Rolls ($60 per 25 pieces platter, 3 ordered)
SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

Vegetarian Arancini ($60 per 30 pieces platter, 3 ordered)
SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

Tempura Prawns with Wasabi & Soya Sauce ($60 per 25 pieces platter, 3 ordered)
SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

Moroccan Lamb Skewers with Yoghurt & Mint Sauce ($60 per 30 pieces platter, 3 ordered)

Pimms and Lemonade makes for a great first drink
SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

Love my gin and tonic

Kids corner

Happy Birthday Cake

Aloha!

Friendly and helpful bar service

Barbie had a good time too

Thank you for all the wonderful and generous gifts

Nice hand writing — I should make a T-shirt out of this

Very cool book 'The Kinfolk Table', thanks Jugernauts

Tony Chachere's Original Creole Seasoning 'Great on Everything'

Taittinger will be very nice for a special occasion, thanks Sip Your Style

Looking forward to learning how to make fresh pasta at Salt Meats Cheese

David Jones Food Hall here I come

Movie gift cards are totally awesome!

I'm liking these tasty VIP Nuts

So many delicious recipes to try out

I love my practical gifts from the parents including 10 bus tickets

Fun birthday cards

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Simon's 41st Hawaiian Birthday at the Coach and Horses Hotel, Randwick (15 Jan 2012)

147 Avoca Street, Randwick NSW 2031

http://www.coachandhorseshotel.com.au

Celebrating another year older

After having a casual lunch at the Coach and Horses Hotel I was inspired by the improved menu to have my 41st birthday in The Red Room function space on level 1. Sundays usually incur a $1000 minimum spend on the bar for private functions but since my event was held during the day and I knew it wasn't going to be a big drinking affair I was able to convince management to thankfully waive the minimum spend. A $200 refundable security deposit was still required and I organised five different platters of food for guests which were brought up by Barry who was friendly and accommodating along with Hiro who looked after the bar area. The theme for my birthday has been Hawaiian for many years now — how else would I get to wear my Hawaiian shirt and lei. Bar prices for drinks was pretty reasonable with the cheapest bottles starting at $23. Making it affordable enough to order a few Mt Lawson NV Brut ($23 bottle) at the very start. The private function space worked out really well and was separate enough from any public thoroughfare so security of the area could be maintained. The decor and seating was comfortable and roomy enough for 48 adults and 9 kids.

The Vietnamese Vegetable Rice Paper rolls ($50, 25 piece platter) were very good and I was impressed to see the flavoursome dipping sauce was homemade. The decent sized Moroccan Lamb Skewers ($50, 30 pieces platter) were better than I expected with nice flavours and tender meat. Prawn Wontons ($50, 40 pieces platter) were tasty and cooked with a nice crispy outer wonton shell. The Vegetarian Arancini ($50, 30 piece platter) had nice flavours too except the packaged grated parmesan used was really smelly which could be easily fixed by using freshly grated parmesan. You could smell it from across the room when it arrived — I even thought it might have been baby Isabelle needing a nappy change. The Vegetable Cocktail Spring Rolls ($50, 50 pieces platter) were crispy and tasty as hoped — I'm such a lover of spring rolls at parties. The Wedges ($8) were hot and crispy as expected and a good way to fill any hungry stomachs at the end. Chef Anthony did a great job in providing above average platter food and hopefully freshly grated parmesan will be used in the future for the arancini to make it a winner. My birthday cake was made of mini cupcakes from Coles ($30, 72 pieces) which came in two flavours, chocolate and vanilla — with a tonne of sugar. They're probably not the healthiest cupcakes in town but they suited my requirements to be affordable, bite-sized and not needing cutting or cutlery. I could also spell out '41' on the platter.

Other birthdays for Simon:

• 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

Other visits to Coach and Horses Hotel:

• 15 Jan 2012 - Simon's 41st Birthday in The Red Room, Function platter food

• 5 Jan 2012 - Octopus Salad, Buffalo Chicken Wings, Piri Piri Prawn Skewers, Barramundi, Atlantic Salmon, Prawn Spaghetti, Beer Garden

SNAPSHOT REVIEW:

PROS: Decent platter food, Friendly staff, Nice decor, Reasonably priced drinks, Function space suits around 50 people and sectioned off from public access, Easy access to bar area

CONS: Packaged grated parmesan used on Arancini making it very smelly — hopefully fresh parmesan used in the future, Minimum spend conditions may apply

MUST TRY: Vietnamese vegetarian rice paper rolls, Prawn wontons

BABY ON BOARD: Lift available to level 1, Plenty of space in function room and separated from main bar so pretty good for security of area

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41st birthday cake made with mini cupcakes from Coles ($30, 72 pieces)

Vietnamese Vegetable Rice Paper rolls ($50, 25 piece platter)

SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

Moroccan Lamb Skewers with Yoghurt & Mint Dipping Sauce ($50, 30 pieces platter)

SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

Prawn Wontons with Nutty Sweet & Sour Dipping Sauce ($50, 40 pieces platter)

SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

Vegetarian Arancini ($50, 30 piece platter)

Vegetable Cocktail Spring Rolls with Sweet Chilli ($50, 50 pieces platter)

Wedges ($8)

Mt Lawson NV Brut ($23 bottle)

Drinks menu

Function room — plenty of comfy seating and easy access to bar

Babies on board

Poker and Thai boxing next door on level 1

After party drinks with an Aperol Spritz

After party munchies with Doughboy — really like their Malabar pizza (right) with prawns at the moment

$41 for 41st birthday — clever idea!

Hang loose

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