Friday, Sept. 12, 2008

The flavors and colors of Hungary will adorn the Royal Park Hotel from Sept. 13 to Oct. 13 during its Hungarian Weeks 2008 promotion, organized with the cooperation of the Embassy of the Republic of Hungary.

At Symphony, the coffee shop on the first floor, there'll be a Hungarian buffet prepared by chef Lajos Lutz and sommelier Janos Kiss from Budapest's famous Gundel restaurant. Some 45 dishes will be available, including authentic Hungarian selections such as assorted vegetables with gribiche sauce and traditional goulash. The buffet is available for lunch on Saturday, Sunday and holidays, and for dinner on weekdays at ¥5,250 for adults, and for dinner on Saturday, Sunday and holidays at ¥7,350.

Hungarian wines, with their characteristic intense aromas of fresh fruit, can be enjoyed with the buffet or at the hotel's other restaurants and bars during the promotion. A Hungarian cake set is also available at Fontaine, the lobby lounge on the first floor.

All this can be savored to the strains of an authentic Hungarian Gypsy band from Sept. 13 to 21. During the same period, Hungarian items, including the famous Zsolnay porcelain and pottery, and other handicrafts, accessories and wines, will be on display and for sale in the lobby.

On Sept. 16, the promotion will formally open with a special event at the Harumi banquet room from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., featuring Hungarian painter and animated film director Istvan Orosz, and a miniconcert by Sandor Nagy (viola) and Masayuki Akuzawa (piano). Orosz's artworks will be displayed at Harumi through Sept. 18.

The hotel is a five-minute walk from Ningyocho Station on the subway Asakusa Line; or there is a direct link between the hotel and Suitengumae Station on the subway Hanzomon Line.

For more information or reservations, call (03) 3667-1111.

Italian fall delicacies

Italian cafe Fiorentina on the lobby floor of the Grand Hyatt Tokyo is featuring porcini mushrooms, a popular Italian fall delicacy, and four kinds of fresh Italian cheese through Nov. 3.

Menus include salads, gratin, risotto, pizza, pasta and sauteed lamb dishes, all of which use fresh porcini and one of four cheeses — Gorgonzola Dolce, Castelmagno, Bra Duro and Taleggio — each approved by the Protected Designation of Origin label and brought to Tokyo from the Piedmont and Lombardy regions of Northern Italy. Full-bodied, silky and well-balanced Barbaresco and Barolo wines from Piedmont will be offered to wash it all down.

Dishes are priced between ¥2,300 and ¥5,000. The cafe is open from 10:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.

The Grand Hyatt Tokyo is a three-minute walk from Roppongi Station. For more information, call (03) 4333-8780 between 10 a.m. and 8 p.m.

Kobe Grill anniversary specials

The Kobe Grill restaurant and bar at the Kobe Bay Sheraton Hotel & Towers in Rokko Island will celebrate its first anniversary Oct. 1 with specially priced lunches and dinners through Oct. 31.

Located on the entire 21st floor of the hotel, Kobe Grill offers spectacular panoramic views of Mount Rokko and Osaka Bay.

The "Appreciation Lunch" (¥3,900) course includes five dishes — Norway salmon carpaccio, soup of the month, sea bream acqua pazza, grilled beef fillet, dessert and drink — and is available between 11:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. daily.

The "Appreciation Dinner" course features six dishes, including grilled Kobe beef as a main dish, at a special anniversary price of ¥10,000. The dinner course is available between 5:30 p.m. and 9 p.m., only on weekdays.

The hotel is a minute's walk from Island Center Station on the Rokko Liner Line.

For more information, call (078) 857-7000.

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