Girls Night Out

9 girls in short shorts and towering stilettos gathered at the Shangri La on a Saturday night. We rode the escalator up to the famed Blu Horizons Bar for a Hens Night drinks. We got there at around 10pm, which was the best time as we just managed to beat the crowd and scored a table that sat 4. For those not in the know, Blu Horizons is famous for their eye-popping view of Sydney Harbour as well as their extravagant and delicious cocktails. Well, all the tables with the views were taken, so we had to make do catching glimpses of it. Fortunately we were kept amused by the huge choice of cocktails:

• Aperitif Cocktails ($16.50)
• Champagne Cocktails ($18.00)
• Blu Martini ($17.50)
• Blu Signatures ($18.50)
• Horizon Classic Cocktails ($17.50)
• Classic Cocktails ($17.50)
• Shooters ($12.50)
• Classic Cocktails ($17.50)
• Flames ($14.50)
• Test Tubes ($14.00)
• Healthies ($13.00)
• beer
• wine
• spirits

After deliberating for 10 minutes or so, I finally setteld on a Blu Signature, A Little G-Thang - cucumber infused Absolut Vodka, Jade Honey Dew Melon liqueur, Midori, muddled kiwi fruit, shaken with pineapple juice & a sugar rim. This arrived in a martini glass, with green tinted sugar lining the rim and a cut kiwifruit as decoration. Little pieces of kiwi-fruit floated in an apple green liquid. I'm happy to report that it tasted as good, if not better, than it looks. It was subtly sweet but not overpowering. You can feel the heat of the alcohol but it's nicely balanced. The other girls were also very happy with their pretty and delicious cocktails.

While we waited, we watched the passing parade of people coming to the bar, there were old couples, young couples, groups of friends, even some kids and people dressed in kimonos. The majority were good looking people dressed up to have a good time. I actually felt a bit old and daggy here...

While still waiting (it was busy) we saw a few groups vacate their spots. We were tempted to jump ships, but was warned by one of the girls that anyone who switches seats without permission gets kicked out. And it's true, we saw 2 other groups of people kicked out because they switched seats. So we did it the smart way, we asked the waiters, and they graciously allowed us to do the swap. I can understand why they are so anal though, they have a HUGE crowd waiting to get in.

By midnight, we'd all finished our drinks, they turned the music up, the cool people were piling in, time for us to go.

But wait, it's not all good. They took FOREVER to bring us the bill, but at least it was calculated correctly.

Info

Level 36, Shangri-La Hotel Sydney
176 Cumberland St
The Rocks
NSW 2000
Phone (02) 9250 6123
Website