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(Hong Kong – 17 July 2012) With the launch of Ocean Park’s Polar Adventure last week, the public not only can experience Asia’s newest attraction dedicated to raising awareness of global climate change, they can also dine at Tuxedos, the world’s first theme park restaurant offering views of over 70 penguins swimming in their habitat, as well as low-carbon menu options. Themed on penguins and the Antarctic region, Tuxedos presents diners with a choice of 12 meticulously prepared dishes featuring low-carbon, organic and sustainable ingredients. Helping promote low-carbon living, the low-carbon dishes exemplify the six principles of a low-carbon diet advocated by the Government. Ocean Park has also made available for purchase at The Lodge its first collection of souvenirs themed on a mascot – the Tux Collection – and over 380 adorable merchandise items, some of which feature the use of eco-friendly materials, making them extra innovative and educational. Continuing its long history of supporting local creativity, Ocean Park also collaborated for the first time with well-known local comic illustrator Yeung Hok-tak, who designed a series of T-shirts with environmental and conservation messages.
The low-carbon dishes available at Tuxedos are designed in accordance with the six principles of a low-carbon
Mr. Nick Lee, Ocean Park’s Senior Food and Beverage Operations Manager, said, “We are proud to be the first theme park in the world to introduce low-carbon menu items to raise awareness of the importance of a low-carbon lifestyle, which can help slow global climate change and conserve wildlife and habitats. As a trendsetter in green dining in Hong Kong, we removed shark fin from our menus way back in 1995, long before it became a matter of public concern. We were also the first to introduce sustainable seafood when we opened Neptune’s Restaurant in Aqua City in 2011.”
Sets Green Dining Trend by Being First to Introduce Low-carbon Menu with Organic Ingredients and Sustainable Seafood
To complement the opening of the eco-friendly Polar Adventure themed area, Ocean Park offers a collection of mouth-watering low-carbon, organic menu items, with ingredients sourced from local and mainland suppliers with low-carbon and/or organic certification. For low-carbon appetizers, guests can choose between Organic Green Bean Salad with Tomato Salsa and Organic Garden Mixed Salad, both offering healthy and refreshing options during the scorching summer. For the main course, Roasted Organic Jade Perch Fish Fillet is a fantastic choice. The fish fillet is roasted with organic oats and presented with a fresh, organic herbal lemon sauce for a delicious and healthy meal. Guests who love local ingredients would want to try Pan-Fried Local Free-Range Chicken served with Organic Vegetables and Pumpkin Puree. Renowned for its rich flavour and tender texture, the locally developed Kamei chicken used to prepare this dish is paired with a fresh pumpkin puree to accentuate the taste of the chicken. Served with organic cashew nuts, Organic Forest Mushroom with Organic Brown Rice is both healthy and crunchy. For dessert, both grownups and kids will fall in love with Local Organic Strawberry & Organic Bean Curd Cake, which offers the perfect level of sweetness and loads of nutrients, without being too heavy.
In addition to low-carbon dishes, Ocean Park also offers a wide variety of signature dishes. A must-try item is the Chef’s Special – Tux Pizza – made with organic vegetables and mozzarella cheese. Not only is the pizza tasty and healthy, its crust is shaped like the Park’s new mascot Tux, giving this quintessentially Italian dish an Antarctic twist.
In terms of cooking method, Ocean Park uses natural gas, which emits less carbon dioxide during gas production, transmission and usage compared to other forms of cooking fuel. Moreover, Traditional Roasted Pork Rib and Slow Cook Duck Pizza are prepared using only the remnant heat of the oven after it is turned off at night. The process saves energy and allows the ingredients to retain its freshness, tenderness and authentic favours.
Tuxedos also became the newest restaurant in Ocean Park to be included in its ISO22000 certification for food safety management system. In April 2011, Ocean Park became the first theme park in Asia to be awarded ISO22000 certification, covering catering services by Café Ocean, Panda Café, Bakery Café, Neptune’s Restaurant and kiosks; central processing unit, warehouse and logistics operation. Also, Ocean Park has engaged a company that collects food waste from its food kiosks, restaurants, staff canteens and the central kitchen. The collected food waste is converted through a fermentation process into fish feed for the Park’s use. During the 2011/12 fiscal year, a total of around 96 tonnes of food waste was collected.
The Lodge Presents Polar-themed Retail Items with Educational Value
Joseph Leung, Ocean Park’s Executive Director of Revenue, said, “As Polar Adventure is Asia’s newest attraction dedicated to raising awareness of global climate change, we have developed over 380 creatively designed and adorable retail items available for sale at The Lodge. Many of the items feature strengthened educational elements, including environment- and conservation-themed books like South Pole and North Pole, both written by local explorer Dr. Rebecca Lee – famed for being the first Hongkonger to set foot on the South Pole, the North Pole and the Tibetan Plateau. There are also various children’s books about polar animals. We hope to enable every guest to learn more about polar animals and inspire them to play a part in promoting the messages on conservation and global climate change.”
In continuation of Ocean Park’s longstanding support for local creative talents, Ocean Park has collaborated with renowned home-grown comic illustrator Yeung Hok-tak to design a collection of T-shirts to mark the Grand Opening of Polar Adventure. This collection, available in both adult and kid sizes, not only offers commemorative value, but also conveys the significance of environmental protection and conservation.
Also available at The Lodge are retail items themed on various new polar animal ambassadors, including the best-loved penguins, which come in different species and 12 unique styles, all set to make these endearing friends from the South Pole even more popular. Eco-friendly materials are featured for many merchandise items, such as the Biodegradable Bamboo Cutlery Set, the Husk Mug and the Recycled Stationery Set. Handsomely designed, these items help promote recycling as a way of reducing the use of natural resources.
Ocean Park has also created the Tux Collection, themed on Polar Adventure’s mascot Tux. Inspired by the diminutive Southern rockhopper penguin presented in Polar Adventure, Tux can be easily recognised by its iconic tufts of yellow feathers above its eyes. The collection includes plush toys, apparel, stationeries, an 8GB USB drive, metallic keychains, a pin, a smart phone bag and an iPhone Case.
diet advocated by the HKSAR government, also known as LOVERS – which stands for ‘Local’, ‘Organic’, ‘Vegetarian’, ‘Energy saving’, ‘Reduce, reuse & recycle’ and ‘Seasonal’. In addition to the design of the dishes, Ocean Park also takes exceptional care in sourcing ingredients and choosing suppliers to maximise the sustainability of the total dining experience for guests. As well, Tuxedos offers diners a panoramic view of the penguin pool area and an opportunity to help protect the environment – as 5% of gross revenue from the restaurant operation will be donated to Ocean Park Conservation Foundation, Hong Kong (OPCFHK) in support of conservation projects concerning the impact of climate change on wildlife in general and on animals living in icy habitats.
