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SCMP Reporter

SUSAN Powter goes on and on. The lanky Australian 'fitness celebrity' talks about liberating yourself from the shackles of food guilt and diets and the silly quest for the perfect body.

  She preaches about getting extra weight off forever, adding muscle tone and enjoying life feeling lean, strong and healthy.

 If the reader is patient and wades through her laid-back, conversational tone in Food ($298 Simon & Schuster), Powter talks sense. Don't sell her short. I nearly did.

  She is smart enough to quote credible medical sources and stresses she is no expert or authority, only a motivator who was once fat, depressed and out of shape.

  Most of her advice will work better in Australia, the United States or Britain, where kitchens and refrigerators are large, people cook at home and shop at supermarkets where low-fat and low-calorie products are easy to find.

  But her chapter on 'dining out' may help Hong Kong people. She is realistic: everyone eats out and fast-food restaurants are a fact of life.

  Deal with them; don't ignore them. Be assertive, speak up and make smart choices.

  She warns to watch out for fat content. This is more important than counting calories. But one learns (from her) that fat is dense in calories. When you cut back on fatty foods, you also slash calories.

  In the book she reprints nutritional profiles of many popular fast foods. The fat percentages are depressing. But if you think smart, you will not starve or feel like a martyr. Sometimes a plain old hamburger contains less fat than creamy coleslaw (innocent cabbage ruined with high fat dressing) and fried fish nuggets.

   Stranded at a temple of fast-food pizza? If the menu does not offer a cheese-less pizza, don't be shy. Just yank off the cheese and eat away. What you don't eat, you don't wear.

  Fast food restaurants don't have to be a threat to staying healthy.

  Just arm yourself with facts before you order.

MARK your calendars. The best Italian food will be served outdoors on Saturday, December 2, at the Italian fair and charity bazaar in the grounds of the Duchess of Kent Hospital on Sandy Bay Road in Pokfulam.

  Members of the Italian community will donate their time, home-cooked foods and skills at a sit-down luncheon and at a variety of food stalls. Besides great things to eat, there are gifts, crafts and all sorts of stalls.

  Proceeds from the annual event go to the Duchess of Kent Children's Hospital and Hong Kong Society for Rehabilitation.

  The sit-down lunch is by invitation only (easily available). Tickets are $500 per person. Groups can subscribe for a VIP table, seating 10 to 12.

   For more information contact chairman Anna Waung at 2849-6565.

     THERE are a few tables left for Thursday's wine dinner at Stanley's French restaurant. The wines of Domaine Faiveley, with Francois Faiveley, will be served with a special menu by chef Stefan Herzog.

   Cost is $770 per person. For more information contact: 2813-8873. MAYBE linguists flinch at twisted words. But that is what the folks at Bacchus are doing.

  'Bacchusing-on-Sunday' sounds like jogging. But that is what's on offer at the eatery.

  Their Mediterranean-style brunch features bottomless champagne glasses. Eats include an array of antipasto (grilled polenta with mozzarella and basil, prawn and crabmeat frittata) plus eggs (poached, fried, scrambled), mushroom saute on seven grain bread and pancakes. Cost is $245 per person; $180 minus the bubbles. Hours are Sunday from 11.30am to 2.30pm. MORE is better. That is how wine-lovers feel about wine education in Hong Kong. Last week 30 students at The Wine School graduated, after tuition from Chris Baker.

  In the same week Australian-educated Simon Tam opened the doors at the newly established Wine Institute of Hong Kong in Wan Chai. Both schools offer classes in appreciation, and courses for professionals and amateurs which lead to higher certificates.

  For more information contact The Wine School, tel: 2597-4798; fax: 2597-4613.

  Wine Institute of Hong Kong, tel: 2528-3123; fax: 2865-1909. MUCH ado about nothing? That is some people's view of Beaujolais nouveau.

  While the value of the young wine is under debate, its arrival gives local restaurants another reason to throw a promotion.

  Joining the ranks of those raising the wine's profile is Laurent Trenga, the host of Papillon in Lan Kwai Fong. His restaurant promises something inexpensive and unpretentious: a menu for $258 each plus wine ($210 per bottle).

  At Le Restaurant de France in the Regal Kowloon Hotel, the chef offers a special menu for $338.

THIS week, a Japanese chef takes the helm of the newly opened Tokio Joe's in Lan Kwai Fong.

   Paul Hsu, director of Elite Concepts, handpicked Masanoir Akisawa in Japan. Chef Aki studied cuisine in Kanagawa, worked in several cities in Japan then moved on to Milan and Canada.

PROMOTIONS taking place at the moment include a royal Danish wedding feast at Bentley's. A four-course meal celebrates the wedding of the Danish prince to a lovely from Disco Bay.

   The menu includes yellow pea soup, spiced grilled herring, fried fish cakes and lemon mousse pudding with cream. Set menu for $360. Until November 18.

  At Sabatini in the Royal Garden Hotel, Hideki Maruyama, executive chef of the Tokyo branch of Sabatini, presents a special menu to celebrate the Italian restaurant's third birthday. From November 16 to 30.

  La Ronda at the Hotel Furama is offering Coke cuisine. Foods made with, you guessed it, Coca-Cola, including fruited pork chops, sweet and sour cabbage, barbecue sauce, banana cake and chiffon pie. The promotion runs throughout November and December.

  And finally, Botania restaurant in the Regal Riverside Hotel in Sha Tin is holding an American food promotion throughout November. Food is edited by Margaret Sheridan, tel: 2680-8148; fax: 2660-5378 



Facts to help you steer clear of fat