Lost in the Moment

There are a few friends whose birthdays I insist on celebrating every year, and this friend is one of them. When I ask her what she wants to eat, her reply is always 'anything is fine, something simple will do.' We've had Chinese food the last few times we dined together, including her birthday last year. So this year, let's change it up and go for Italian cuisine! Bluhouse, once a hard-to-get reservation, was 90% full on the eve of the holiday. In today's market, that's quite impressive. As soon as we sat down, the staff brought us a bread basket. The hard-crusted sourdough bread has never been my first choice, but dipped in oil and vinegar, it's still enjoyable. None of us have big appetites, so we didn't order much. Carbonara is a signature dish here and also my favorite, so I indulged a bit. It's the traditional version without cream. The thick, straight pasta is chewy, coated in egg yolk sauce and cheese, with flavorful Guanciale. It's unbeatable. The pizza here doesn't have to be ordered whole; you can get a smaller portion (four pieces). It's really good. There are quite a few pizza options, but you won't find pineapple pizza here. We went with the classic Margherita. When it comes to pizza, less is more—simple tomato sauce, cheese, and basil make for a timeless and delicious choice. A birthday celebration must include something sweet. It's easy to get overwhelmed by the choices in the dessert display, wanting to try everything. But as she said, you can't go wrong with any choice because everything is sure to be delicious. We picked the Chocolate Deliziosa and Zeppola. The restaurant thoughtfully added a candle and birthday sign as I had requested when making the reservation (many restaurants don't follow through on such requests). Both desserts were full of traditional Italian flavors and quite tasty. Sipping coffee and chatting away, we always have endless topics to discuss, staying until the restaurant closed. Restaurant Information: BluHouse Ground Floor, Rosewood Hong Kong, 18 Salisbury Road, Tsim Sha Tsui 38918732