LumDimSummary: Hatsroomie & ROOMsune

Hats off to both Alan Wong of the Hatsune Restaurant Group and Brian McKenna of ROOMbeijing for pulling off two exceptional dinners: Hatsroomie & ROOMsune.

A powerful collaboration between two of Beijing’s most popular culinary personalities, diners were treated to a one-of-a-kind 10-course menu created specially for this event.

Event Breakdown:

• 2 chefs / 2 restaurants / 2 nights / 1 menu
• 1 night in Hatsune/ 1 night in ROOMbeijing
• Special 10-course dinner menu with all completely original, never seen-before creations
• A Behind-the-Scenes video featuring both chefs in the kitchen setting up everything from the prep work to the final presentation touches and playful sabotage and commentary throughout. (see below)

The Result: Two sold-out events with a wait-list of over 100+ people.

For the 100+ who couldn’t make it, here’s what you missed:

Hatsroomie & Roomsune Behind-the-Scenes Video (on youtube)

**Note: video can only be viewed with VPN. youku video coming soon

A Taste of Hatsroomie & ROOMsune’s 10-course Dinner:

Alan’s 1st course –  the apps:

• torched unagi and foie gras sushi ball
• dashi poached spinach roll with shiitake mushroom and flying fish roe
• miso marinated black cod in a lettuce wrap with shredded daikon and gobo root

Brian’s 1st course – Appetizers: Shellfish 1-2-3

• Mini lobster burger
• Fresh cracked oyster with lime and anise star flavored crushed ice
• Lightly curried sweet potato soup, coconut foam, marinated shrimp

Alan’s 2nd Course – the onsen (spring bath):

Brian’s 2nd course – 1st course: Crab and avocado

• Hand picked crab meat / crushed avocado / sweetcorn sorbet / basil oil

Alan’s 3rd Course: Secret Sushi roll

Brian’s 3rd Course – Salmon and foie gras

• Slow cooked Norwegian salmon / spiced lentils / sauteed foie gras / herb creme fraiche

Alan’s Main Course – the sukiyaki:

Brian’s Main Course – Beef and Bone:

Alan’s Dessert – the sweets:

Brian’s Dessert: 1-2-3 Breakfast

While this event was all in the name of joining forces and proving that two uniquely different styles of cuisine can compliment one another, it’s also impossible not to compare the dishes from each chef and vote for favorites.

Overall, the general consensus was that Brian’s 3-piece appetizer and 3-piece dessert won hands down but Alan’s signature sushi roll and onsen beat out Brian’s crab and avo and salmon and foie gras dishes.  The tie-breaker comes down to either the sukiyaki or the beef and bone. While the beef and bone with mash melted in your mouth, the sukiyaki was both interactive between the chefs and all the guests and the marbled wagyu beef was so good, we ate it raw.

In any case, Brian’s lemongrass and mango panna cotta (served in the shell of an egg) was a big hit and Alan’s onsen dish is by far one of the best dishes I have ever had in my entire life.  Not exaggerating.

Both chefs have gone above and beyond in terms of creativity, effort and generosity and it truly showed in both events.  More than just exceptional cuisine, they gave guests an extraordinary experience.

On a scale of 1-10, both chefs rightfully deserve 11 stars.

LumDimSum Snapshots of Hatsroomie:

LumDimSum Snapshots of ROOMsune:

…and to sum up how we all felt at the end of both nights?

FOOD COMA.

Hatsroomie & ROOMsune: A Culinary Collaboration

Two of Beijing’s most talented restaurateurs: Alan Wong of the Hatsune Group and Brian McKenna of ROOMbeijing will be showing off their culinary skills, each creating their own specialties and joining forces to bring Beijing a masterpiece 8-dish dinner menu featuring completely original, never seen-before recipes guaranteed to impress.

The first night will be hosted at Hatsune Sanlitun branch on Tuesday, January 25 and the night after, Wednesday, January 26, will be hosted at ROOMbeijing.

For both nights, both Alan and Brian will be personally cooking 4-courses in the kitchen (for a total of 8 dishes) and everything from the prep work, final presentation touches and playful sabotage throughout, will all be caught on film with a video for all guests to enjoy.

• 2 chefs / 2 restaurants / 2 nights / 1 menu
• 1 night in Hatsune/ 1 night in ROOMbeijing
• Special 8-dish dinner menu with all original creations

With these two in the kitchen, expect the unexpected.  Expect nothing less of epic.

Event Details:

• Dates:
  • ‘Hatsroomie’ Dinner: Tuesday, January 25 @ Hatsune Sanlitun Village
  • ‘ROOMsune’ Dinner: Wednesday, January 26 @ ROOMbeijing
• Time: 7:00-10:00PM
• Addresses:
  • Hatsune: Sanlitun Village South, 3/F, S8-30, 19 Sanlitun Road 三里屯19号院, 南区三层S8-30
  • ROOMbeijing: 301-302, 3/F, PARK LIFE, Beijing Yintai Center, 2 Jianguomenwai Street,
    建国门外大街2号, 银泰中心3
• Cost: RMB 488 for dinner only or RMB 588 for dinner + free flow beverages (red & white wine, sake, beer)
• RSVP Required:
  • Bookings for “Hatsroomie” event: contact me directly: e-mail: Kristen@lumdimsum.com
  • Bookings for “ROOMsune” event: call Lisa Zhao 8517 2033 or e-mail: lisa@room-beijing.com

LumDimSaying: by Leo Rosten

“The purpose of life is not to be happy -

But to matter, to be productive, to be useful,

to have it make some difference that you have lived at all.”

- Leo Rosten

We may each be one person, but we can all do something. And something is better than nothing.

Thank you to each and every person who came out to the Chi Fan for Charity event last night! From all the individual dinners to the After-Party at Hatsune Sanlitun, it was an incredibly successful event and none of it would have been possible without all the wonderful people who made it happen - all of you!

Sharing a part in such a positive event was not only gratifying, it was inspiring.  We raised a butt-load of money and it’s all thanks to each of you for your generous support and donations. Thank you because each of you made contributions to three very worthwhile organizations that will make a difference.

Stay tuned for final numbers and pictures!

*What is a LumDimSaying? A quote I find worth noting. And sharing.

Chi Fan for Charity After-Party @ Hatsune Sanlitun

As a proud sponsor of the Chi Fan For Charity event this Saturday, November 6, Hatsune Sanlitun will also be hosting the Official Chi Fan for Charity After-Party from 10PM-1AM featuring free flow drinks, DJ Patrick Yu spinning tunes, an awesome silent auction and raffle prizes and best of all, everyone from the various restaurants will all be coming together!  …and YES, there will be sumo suits. 

For those who don’t have the time or the budget to commit to dinner, the after party is a great way to come out to contribute to these worthwhile causes and show your support.

ONLY 3 DAYS LEFT TO GET YOUR TICKETS ONLINE!

Tickets are RMB 150 in advance or RMB 200 entrance at the door.

Advanced Tickets can easily be purchased here: www.chifanforcharity.org
*Guests who buy a seat to a sponsored table will gain free entry

Background on Chi Fan for Charity:

One of the strongest charity events of the year, Chi Fan for Charity has gathered 33 of the city’s top restaurants to simultaneously host a table of ten people for a minimum three course meal and wine. The restaurants are donating the food and drink for free, so your payment for the meal goes direct to three, genuinely great local charities (Prevention Through Education (HIV/AIDS Awareness), Dandelion School and Rural Women’s Charity, a practical skills training School for Migrant Women). This event is perfect for people who want to enjoy an exceptional meal while contributing to worthwhile causes by “eating for charity”.

Website: www.chifanforcharity.org

LumDimSummary: Hatsune’s 9 Year Birthday Bash

After a month of rallying and putting the word out calling anyone and everyone who loves Hatsune to come out and show their love and support for this beloved restaurant group, we were joined by over 450 friends and fans in celebrating our 9 year anniversary party.

Gathering over free-flow sake, cocktails, legendary sushi rolls, brilliant sumo wrestling entertainment and Japanese drumming shows along with old school tracks courtesy of DJ Patrick Yu, Hatsune’s 9 year party exceeded not only our max capacity but our expectations.

On behalf of Alan Wong and the entire Hatsune Team, I want to give a giant bear hug and sincerely thank everyone for their continued support and for making Hatsune a Beijing legend.  It was an overwhelming turn-out, thank you to everyone for making this party such a memorable event!

What’s next for Hatsune?

Get ready for an awesome new Hatsune menu coming soon featuring new salads, new steak and seafood dishes along with over a dozen new sushi rolls including the five winners of the Hatsune sushi contest (click here to view winners).

LumDimSum Snapshots of Hatsune’s 9 Year Anniversary Party:

Hatsune Sushi Winners Pose with their winning rolls:

Hatsune sushi winners pose with Alan (L to R: Lexie, Charles, Max, Lisa, Alan & Candy)

Japanese Drum Show:

Some Serious Sumo Wrestling Action:

Hatsune Friends & Family:

Countdown: 3 Days Until Hatsune’s 9 Year Celebration!

Hatsune Friends & Fans:

Don’t forget it’s Hatsune‘s 9 year anniversary party on Aug. 25 from 9PM-onwards.

The more the merrier, so please feel free to help me spread the word and invite all your friends to join the fun!!

If you can make it, please RSVP with me directly: kristen@lumdimsum.com.

Event details here:

Hatsune’s 9 Year Anniversary will be held on Wednesday, August 25 at Hatsune Sanlitun Village.

Party will take place at Hatsune Sanlitun Village and we will be celebrating with anyone and everyone who loves Hatsune.

A Ticket to enter a wonderful world of free flow sake, dangerously good cocktails and Hatsune’s legendary sushi rolls is RMB 150 at the door.

Expect nothing less of Epic.

    * Date: Wednesday, August 25
    * Time: From 9PM-1AM
    * Location: Hatsune Sanlitun Village
    * Tickets: RMB 150 per person
    * Reservations: kristen@lumdimsum.com

Sophia’s Birthday Bash

Happy Birthday Sophia!

LumDimSum Photo Gallery of Sophia’s Birthday Dinner @ Hatsune Sanlitun:

CW Spotlights HAITI RISE

HAITI RISE Campaign Finale Party @ Hatsune Sanlitun Village Spotlighted on the Home Page of CityWeekend:

Date: Thursday, February 4

Location: Hatsune Sanlitun Village

Photos courtesy of EventPod.

RMB 72,200 was raised within three hours of the Haiti Rise Campaign Finale Party.

GRAND TOTAL RAISED FROM THE HAITI RISE CAMPAIGN: RMB 430,935

For a full gallery of photos from HAITI RISE Finale Campaign: http://eventpod.smugmug.com/Charity/HAITI-RISE-Campaign-Finale/11168584_ytPp7#782898775_8nTA9

LumDimSummary of the HAITI RISE Campaign

In only three hours, the HAITI RISE Campaign Finale Party raised a total of RMB 72,200!

A BIG Thank You to everyone who came out and for actively doing your part to bring change in the world.

Every little bit counts, and in this case, we did pretty, pretty good. 

LumDimSummary of the HAITI RISE Total Breaking Down:

Jan. 22, Campaign Launch @ The Bookworm: RMB 103,768

Jan 24-Feb. 3, Eat for Haiti Campaign: RMB 175,600

Jan. 30, Model Citizen Auction Party @ BLING: RMB 59,601

Feb. 4th, Campaign Finale @ Hatsune Sanlitun: RMB 72,200

GRAND TOTAL FROM THE HAITI RISE CAMPAIGN: RMB 430,935

(includes Personal Donations & Haiti Rise Apparel Sales)

For a glimpse of the night’s shenanigans, check out the LumDimSum Photo Gallery courtesy of EventPod Photography:

For a full gallery of photos from HAITI RISE Finale Campaign: http://eventpod.smugmug.com/Charity/HAITI-RISE-Campaign-Finale/11168584_ytPp7#782898775_8nTA9

CRI Interview with LumDimSum

See below an interview by China Radio International (CRI) featuring LumDimSum as the event coordinator for the HAITI RISE Relief Campaign and our string of fundraising events.

With a goal of raising 200,000RMB in two weeks for quak-stricken Haiti, you can do your part to contribute by participating through some or all of our upcoming events from my “Eat for Haiti” initiative, Model Citizen Party @ BLING this Saturday & last but not least, the “Celebrate for Haiti” Campaign Finale Party @ Hatsune Sanlitun on Thursday, February 4th.

Please come out to support Haiti!  Every little bit helps.

Details for how you can contribute is included in the video and below.

For voucher sales & “Eat for Haiti” info, please contact me: kristen@lumdimsum.com

Funds raised during the RISE UP Campaign will go directly to the following NGOs, to support their relief and development work in Haiti:

Partners in Health – PIH has been providing medical services on the ground in Haiti for over 20 years. www.standwithhaiti.org

Global Potential - Empowering Youth. Engaging Communities. Inspiring Change. www.global-potential.org

Link to CRI site:  http://english.cri.cn/7146/2010/01/28/2361s546251.htm