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Hong Kong’s own global High Street fashion brand Esprit is launching its Autumn/Winter range in style by enlisting top models for its ad campaigns.

The face of Esprit Men is GQ Best Model of the year and all round hottie Jon Kortajarena (who also had a bit part in Tom Ford’s A Single Man), while the gay connection is cemented by the inclusion of model and author Boyd Holbrook who you may recognize from Sean Peen’s Harvey Milk biopic Milk.

Esprit, 100 Queen’s Road, Central

The Goods Of Desire boys have teamed up with the Savanna College of Art & Design (SCAD) to launch a pop-up store at G.O.D Peak Galleria featuring a large range of innovative home décor collections. The collections feature cutting edge creative design from SCAD students and alumni, designed under the auspices of their Working Class Studios. Get your funky pillows, dinnerware, clocks frames and kitchenware and stationary while stocks last.

G.O.D, Shop 32-41, Level 2, Peak Galleria, The Peak

Coffee drinkers with a conscience will be delighted with Central’s newest independent café. The brainchild of a husband and wife team who aim to emulate Sydney’s renowned coffee bar scene, Oscar’s expresso bar uses only the highest quality beans from environmentally sustainable farms. Half of Oscar’s coffee beans come from Rainforest Alliance Certified farms, and the establishment is being run as environmental friendly as possible, with carbon offsets from the Australian Orang-utan Project being purchased to offset energy use. A “good ”cup of coffee in more ways than one.

OSCAR’S Espresso Bar, 85-89 Wellington St, Central

Fed up of scouring the supermarkets aisles for veggies while trying to decide what to cook? Have you eaten out every day this week because you don’t have time to shop for groceries? Well, why not turn the corner to healthy living by signing up for a weekly basket from Homegrown Foods. From as little as $244 a week, you can have a basket of 7-9 specially selected seasonal vegetables delivered to your door.

www.homegrownfoods.com.hk

Words: Jared Stalder

In 1963 Hollywood dropped in on a little known beach area on the coast of Mexico. It was a who’s who (or who’s sleeping with who) star fest that drew attention from around the world. Tennessee William’s play Night of the Iguana was being filmed and all the stars descended onto the jungles and beaches of Puerto Vallarta.

Richard Burton brought his lover, Elizabeth Taylor and out-of-the-closet Tennessee had his lover Freddy in tow. Eva Gardner and Deborah Kerr completed the entourage and I bet were fabulous fag hags. After the filming, many built houses and lived in the soon-to-become resort city. Puerto Vallarta would never be the same after that – tourists would arrive to soak up the rays just like the stars. While it’s not the “glamorous” retreat it was once considered if you squint you can almost see Elizabeth Taylor glistening on the beach. Oh no wait… that’s just a drag queen hawking jewelry.

GETTING THERE
PV isn’t an easy long-weekend getaway like Cebu or Phuket. Most flights to PV leave from the US (San Francisco, LA and Phoenix). It’s a short flight from the US west coast so it’s a perfect excursion if you’re planning a California trip. To include some city with sand consider combining it with a trip to cosmopolitan Guadalajara, Mexico – only three to four hours away from PV by first class bus.

SLEEP
There’s a full range of hotels in PV to fit your budget and required creature comforts. Quaint guest houses and budget hotels (and many gay-friendly hotels) can be found in the Zona Romantica. Four to five star establishments dominate the Zona Hotelera (as do Starbucks and designer shops). All-inclusive resorts (i.e. food, booze and hangover included) line the beaches of more remote Nuevo Vallarta where the only locals you’ll see are the maids.

Blue Chairs Beach Resort
Malecon 4, Zona Romantica
www.bluechairs.com

“Resort” is a bit of a stretch but this is THE gay hotel of PV. It boasts an excellent location in Zona Romantica, right on the gay beach. There’s a bar hosting popular drag performances and aggressive stripper nights. Kylie won’t be using the rooftop pool in a video anytime soon but why would you hang at the pool when there’s a beach 30 seconds away. The best part about staying here is joining the gay gaggle in the beach chairs (blue of course), charging cheap food and booze to your room and watching the meat market, um.. I mean brilliant sunset.

Villa David
Galeana 348, Gringo Gulch
www.villadavidpv.com

For something more intimate (in more than one way) this men only, clothing optional bed and breakfast is located in a slower paced neighborhood but only a few blocks to bars and beach. It’s a hacienda with character and not short on comforts such as a pool and Jacuzzi. It has a homey feel with traditional hardwood furniture and a leafy courtyard.

San Franciscan
Palitas 213, Zona Romantica
www.san-franciscan.com

For longer stays consider an apartment at this boutique condo-hotel. Sizes vary from studio to four bedroom/four bath suites– perfect for a group traveling together. All units have either a kitchenette or full kitchen. The pool is nicer than most in this price range and, for those who just can’t do without pumping iron, there’s a full gym.

EAT
Dining in PV ranges from five star ocean front restaurants to street taco stands. Being a beach city, seafood is the specialty and fine dining can be surprisingly inexpensive compared to home. I recommend having a large brunch, sunset dinner and a few snacks in between while sunning on the beach. For late night cravings post bar try out the food stalls in Zona Romantica on Ignacio Vallarta. “Burrito” and “taco” is pretty universal but pointing always works too.

Don’t be like Charlotte York-Goldenblatt and be overly concerned about eating the food in Mexico. To be on the safe side only eat fresh salads from nice restaurants and avoid ice in beverage… or just do what I do and kill everything with lime juice and alcohol.

Fredy’s Tucan
Basilio Badillo and Vallarta

This is PV’s version of a coffee shop and their breakfasts are popular with locals and tourists alike. Be adventurous and try out the Mexican breakfast dishes; you really can’t go wrong with salsa, eggs, cheese and beans. Nothing fancy here but you’ll leave full and with money in your wallet.

Apaches
Olas Altas 439

A favorite with the gays for early drinks and appetizers it always has full tables during their 2-for-1 happy hours. The food leaves a bit to be desired but after a few margaritas it doesn’t really matter.

Mariscos Polo’s
Francisco Madero 376

This is where to find some of the best tasting and best variety of seafood in PV. There are Mexican favorites as well as some fusion dishes borrowing flavors from Asian cuisine. My favorite is the garlic octopus but not recommended before the bars unless you’re trying to ward off vampires.

Vista Grill
Pulpito 377

For a romantic dinner head to this hillside view restaurant. Sip some cocktails while taking in the bay view and listening to live guitar solos. Food is fantastic though not too inventive with continental and local favorites.

SEE
Playa los Muertos around Blue Chairs (see above) is the place to be for gay fun in the sun. If you’re not staying at one of the hotels along the beach then you can use most beach chairs and umbrellas with a minimum food/booze purchase of about $120. On your way to/from los Muertos beach take a stroll around the cobble-stone streets of the Zona Romantica.

A walk along Isla Rio Cuale (a small “island” in the middle of the river that bisects PV) can be pleasant especially in the evenings. There are tons of stall, shops and restaurants to spend those pesos burning a hole in your pocket. It’s a bit touristy but well planned and a margarita rest can make anything more tolerable If it’s a rainy day or you want to break from the humidity there is the Museo Rio Cuale which holds a small collection of pre-Columbian ceramics.

A short bus ride down to the Mismaloya beach is well worth it. Not only is the beach less crowded and have fewer hawkers but this is where the ruins of The Night of the Iguana set is located. If that doesn’t excite you, head to the huge Hotel Jolla de Mismaloya and pay for a day pass to enjoy their swimming pools with swim-up bar and exclusive beach access. The waters here are calm and great for swimming and even snorkeling.

On the way to Mismaloya beach you won’t be able to miss Los Arcos, an ecopreserve of arching grottos made from sea rocks. Los Arcos has some of the best snorkeling in PV and while it can appear over-run by tourists there’s a lot of space and it’s a PV “must do”. Also popular are snorkeling trips to this area which can be booked at agencies all over town.

NIGHTLIFE
PV is pretty much THE gay beach destination of Mexico and there is plenty of nightlife. Things don’t get kickin’ until about midnight or later especially on the weekends. The music is usually a mix of top 40, Latin pop (who knew Shakira had that many songs) with some annoying cumbia-cum-techno that sounds a bit like carnival music on speed. There are tons of small gay bars and a handful of larger clubs. It’s pretty easy to bar hop since there are all located in the gay area (Zona Romantica).

Two of the busiest clubs are Paco’s Ranch and Club Manana. The latter is a hacienda complete with a pool surrounded by a garden courtyard. Paco’s Ranch is smaller and a more typical two-storey club but there’s always a good drunken mix of gringos and locals. Be warned that while the drag shows can be entertaining they don’t break up the performances– expect an hour or more of lip-syncing Latina divas.

Words: James Lo

STYLE & AMBIENCE
This place is about steak. The name Steik World Meats makes that pretty clear, but the glass tank of dry-aging beef joints suspended in front of the open kitchen will probably hit that home to any doubting vegetarians. The big leather booths and crisp white linen give it the air of a gentleman’s club – a place where you can tuck into a serious hunk of meat. Outside, the clubby feel continues with the leather sofas of the lounge bar and an outdoor patio for smokers.

CUISINE
The restaurant sources beef from all over the world, Wagyu from Australia and Japan, grass-fed beef from Argentina and Scotland (from HM The Queen’s appointed supplier no less), as well as grain-fed beef from the US and Canada. The huge sides of beef are then specially aged in-house for an additional two to three weeks to really concentrate the flavour – and each day a small amount of each side is trimmed for the kitchen. The cuts on offer range from popular rib-eyes to hulking great big 35oz prime ribs and t-bones.

For those not too interested in red meat (although if that’s the case, why are you here?) they have a wide selection of seafood as well. So in anticipation of our main course, we chose the Thai style scallops as a little appetiser to share. The scallops came in their shell, baked to perfection with a light green curry and ginger sauce. Large and juicy, and were lifted by the piquancy of the spices.

For the main course, we opted for their showcase dish, the tasting platter – three 7oz steaks from Canada, Australia and Scotland. Our steaks came in on a heated skillet, just the right temperature to keep them warm but not to cook them any further. This was particularly important, since we wanted two of the steaks cooked rare (the Scottish grass-fed & the Canadian grain-fed) and one blue (the Australian wagyu). While they serve a range of sauces to go with the meat, we decided to sample them nude, as it were, to best appreciate their different flavours. If you think all steak tastes the same, think again – sampling them one against another really highlights how different feeds and rearing methods change the quality of the meat. While the grain-fed Canadian steak had a smoother flavour, the grass-fed Scottish beef was gamier and perhaps a little tougher. But the blue Australian wagyu was the star, so tender that it melted in the mouth. Its flavour was nicely balanced, the few seconds on the grill searing it just enough to add some complexity.

Finally, in the interest of giving Steik World Meats a full review, we sacrificed our already bulging waistlines and ordered a sticky date pudding and a lemon tart for dessert. They were superb. The sticky date pudding was rich and densely flavoured but surprisingly light, and the thick sweet curd of the lemon tart was nicely set off against the sharp citrus tang.

BOOZE
They stock a large range of reasonably priced (around $200 – $300) wines from all over the world, as well as some grands crus for show-offs.

PRICE
Very reasonably priced for steak in Hong Kong, although not cheap. The set lunch varies from $138 to $248 depending on your choice of main course. If ordering a la carte, expect to pay around $400-$500 a head without wine.

BEST DISH
Steak, of course. For our money, the Australian Wagyu Steak, served blue. But we’re definitely going back to try out the rest of the menu.

CONCLUSION
If you enjoy a good steak, you need to go to Steik World Meats. 5 stars.

Words: Ash Pritchard

As the old saying goes: we are what we eat. Food, like sex, is a source of nourishment for all, and a hobby and obsession for many. So, what happens when you put the two of them together? What we eat, according to all sources, can affect our performance between the sheets. We all know that certain foodstuffs can influence our sex-drive. So what should you be feeding your man to ensure that both of your appetites are fulfilled?

Here are a few foods that are rumoured to have special properties:

Celery
Not only is raw celery the only the food that helps you burn calories just through eating it, it also contains a hormone known as androstenone, a pheremone that for animals, acts as a social sign of dominance and is said to enhance ones desirability as a mate. So get out that stick of celery and get ready to dominate your partner.

Raw oysters
This one you’ve all heard of, oysters are rich in zinc which raises testosterone levels, and also contain dopamine – a hormone that boosts the libido. They also have that incomparable sliminess that goes down the throat like nearly nothing else.

Bananas
Besides the pleasingly phallic visual benefits, Bananas are rich in the anti-impotence enzyme bromelain. So whip off that yellow sleeve and chow down on a juicy banana to get you in the mood.

Avocado
This luscious fruit was known by the Aztecs as “fertility fruit” and thanks to its high levels of potassium and vitamin B this green salad favourite can help boost the libido.

Nuts
Not the type of nuts you’re thinking of- nibbling on hard-shelled fruits such as almonds, cashew nuts or peanuts is extremely benefitial to the production of hormones. They also taste great when salted.

Eggs
Some people swear that raw chicken eggs are the perfect pre-sex pick me up – and thanks to their high quotient of vitamins B5 and B6, eggs do help balance hormone levels.

Figs
Succulent and tasty, figs are also blessed with amino acids that can improve sexual stamina and help put you in the mood.

Garlic
Not advisable for first dates, but garlic contains allicin, which is said to increase blood flow to the sexual organs. If you can’t stomach bad breath, it also comes in capsule form. Also useful for repelling bloodsuckers.

Chocolate
Chocolate is a food that can both substitute and supports sex. It is a natural stimulant, containing the alkaloid theobromine, and also is rich in phenylethylamine, which some believe stimulates the feelings of desire.

Kiwi Fruit and pineapple
It is said that you can taste a man’s diet in his ‘juices’, and they are all the more sweeter when he is eating a diet rich in fruits such as kiwi fruit and pineapple.

Words: Dai Man

There’s a fine line between happy, sunny guitar pop and the irritating ambitions of another bloody indie band. Generally, New Yorkers The Drums stay on the right line of the sunny, happy sound of summer and nowhere better than on the masterful Let’s Go Surfing, written on the day of Obama’s inauguration, which has been out and about for months gaining the band deserved attention. Perhaps the most appealing aspect of The Drums’ music is how easily they capture a California-esque, blissed-out sound of the 60’s. What makes this band a worthwhile addition to the music scene perhaps is that they seem to be one of the only acts around at the moment not trying to prove anything, not trying to mimic someone else or ape some trend. It’s fun because it isn’t too grown up, but how memorable it proves to be will be seen as summer fades to autumn.