For those who are interested in expanding their knowledge of wines, there will be a series of French wine workshops held in various locations in Hong Kong between October 28 and November 22. The classes will be conducted in Cantonese by Nelson Chow, chairman of the Hong Kong Sommelier's Association, and Peter Kwong, assistant food and beverage manager at the Ladies' Recreation Club. Each class will cover four wine-producing regions in France, including Bordeaux, Burgundy, the Rhone Valley, Languedoc-Roussillon, the Southwest, Alsace and the Loire. Classes are $80 each and are limited to 60 students per session. For information, phone Sopexa on 2866 7163; to reserve tickets call Urbtix on 2734 9009. The Conrad's executive sous chef Denis Lartigue has created a special menu featuring the cuisine of Alsace. These dishes will be available at Brasserie on the Eighth until November 26. They include roe deer stew with pinot noir, oven-baked partridge with braised red cabbage, and crayfish and chanterelle mushroom salad with Xeres vinegar dressing. Reservations on 2521 3838 ext 8240. Cammino at The Excelsior is featuring porcini mushrooms until October 31. Guests can try these seasonal delicacies in dishes such as crayfish and porcini tart with roasted garlic vinaigrette, homemade porcini gnocchi with tomato and rosemary ragout, and sauteed porcini with pan-seared scallops on tarragon parsley cream sauce. Call 2894 8888. Bacchus in Wan Chai is holding 'an exotic fusion of flamenco and Moorish music and dance plus a feast of Andalusian delights' in their Night at the Alhambra event on October 27. The four-course set meal is $395 plus 10 per cent and includes a bottle of house wine per couple. For reservations phone 2529 9032. IP Cafe - the restaurant in Sheung Wan's new hotel, the Island Pacific - is holding a Japanese food festival until November 9. On the buffet are interesting dishes such as sole fillet marinated with miso paste, lamb leg with plum wine sauce and green tea longan mousse; more traditional dishes are also available, including tonkatsu (deep-fried pork cutlets), tempura, sukiyaki, sushi and sashimi. The dinner buffet is $148 plus 10 per cent ($78 for children) Monday to Friday, and $158 ($88 for children) Saturday, Sunday and public holidays. Call 2131 5908. If you like to work off calories as you consume them, head over to the Pacific Rim at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. Every Tuesday night they are featuring a Social Dance by the Waterfront. The price ($180 plus 10 per cent) includes a dinner buffet and ballroom dancing. Guests can dance until 11.30pm, in a variety of styles, including Latin and modern. Phone 2582 7725. The food pages are edited by Susan Jung. Tel: 2565 2611. Fax: 2562 2485.
