Hong Kong (20 April 2007)

GREAT, Hong Kong's premier international food hall is launching the Sakura Festival from April 20 to May 10, 2007 to celebrate Japan's cherry blossom season with Sakura Related Products, Health Black Bean Products, Healthy Drinks and Kids Soda, Sweets and Munchies, Japanese Gourmet Food and Japanese Fruits and Vegetables. To enhance the festive mood, different food stalls are set up with master chefs from Japan demonstrating authentic street-style snacks during the promotion period.

Come down to GREAT now to savor the oishi Japanese treats!

1) Sakura Related Products
Even though you have to go to Japan for Hanami (flower viewing), GREAT has brought in a collection of Sakura related food products for your enjoyment, including Sakura Blossoms Tea ($61.0 / 5 packs) from Japan's household name Ujien and Sakura Sake ($79.0/240ml) from Takara Shuzo with a light Sakura aroma and exclusive seasonal Sakura Rice Crackers ($12.0/ 6 pcs) and Sakura Shaped Rice Crackers ($29.9/ 140g).

The original Kit Kat chocolate bar is given a pink makeover with the latest Sakura and Cherry limited edition Kit Kat ($37.0/ 17pcs). You can also add a touch of Sakura flavor and colour onto dishes such as soba and zohsui (rice soup) with Pickled Sakura ($53.0 / 50g). Pickled Sakura is preserved with salt and plum vinegar.

2) Healthy Black Bean Products
In recent years, a healthy eating trend involving a diet of black-coloured food has been very popular in Japan. One of the stables of black-coloured food is black bean. Black beans are believed to help prevent high blood pressure. In fact, they have all the good features of regular soybeans too, like rich protein, Vitamin E and B. The highest quality black bean is produced in Tanba of Hyogo Prefecture.

GREAT is offering a collection of products made with this black treasure, including Dried Black Beans ($55.0 / 100g), Black Bean Rice Crackers ($55.0 / 190g), Black Bean Green Tea ($55.0 / 100g), Black Bean Cookies ($23.5 / 9 pcs), Lotte Black Bean Cakes ($23.5 / 6 pcs) and Black Bean Coffee from the famous CORE Coffee. The Black bean coffee comes in Instant ($59.9 / 100g), Filter ($49.9 / 35g) and Teabag ($49.9 / 35g) varieties.

3) Healthy Drinks and Kids Soda
Baboo Kids Soda is made with fresh fruit juices and soda. It comes in a cute mini-glass bottle and in an array of great flavours including Mango, Lychee and Pear ($24.0 /95 ml).

Bitter melon, known as Goya in Okinawa, is a common vegetable of this Japanese island. Bitter melon is often used in Asian cuisines as well as traditional medicine and is highly recommended for diabetics. In Okinawa, bitter melons are made into a wide array of food products including healthy drinks. Calpis is introducing two Okinawa-exclusive concentrated yogurt drinks, including Bitter Melon Concentrated Yogurt Drink and Lime Concentrated Yogurt Drink ($89.0 /360 ml).

Anmar also uses bitter melon alongside other fresh vegetables from Okinawa in its low-calories Okinawa Vegetable Farm Drinks, including Vegetable and Cherry Juice ($25.0 /120 ml) and Vegetable and Lime Juice ($25.0 /120 ml).

4) Sweets and Munchies
Kyorochan, the Woodpecker is the celebrated cartoon character created by Morinaga confectionery for its tasty chocolates! Morinaga is introducing three new flavours to the popular Kyorochan chocolate series, including Corn, Peanut and White Chocolate Biscuit ($5.9-10.9/21g-50g). To welcome Spring, limited editions of Kyorochan Chocolate Cookies ($19.9 /12 pcs) on offer in two yummy flavours Caramel and Peanut Cream.

Another Okinawa specialty is all-natural brown sugar made with locally grown sugar cane. Kokinohana Brown Sugar Candy is available in Walnut and Plum flavours ($15.0/40g-60g); while Okinawan Kobuto Sweet is made with brown sugar and soybeans and comes in three delicious flavours including Mint, Blueberry and Black Sesame ($14.2 /45g-53g).

Japan is famous for its crazy variety of snacks! The Japanese create snacks for nearly every occasion you can think of. Traditionally, May 5^th is Japanese Boy's Day. On this day, families hoist carp-shaped steamers on tall polls and celebrate with Chimaki (dumplings wrapped in bamboo leaves). Now, you can also celebrate the special day with Tohato Boy's Day Special Edition Chicken or Salted Flavoured Potato Rings ($25.0/125g).

Meiji confectionary is introducing DIY Street Snacks packs. Now you can enjoy the fun of street snacking with Taiyaki Pancake ($13.0 /54g) and Choloate Crepes ($13.0 /44g).

Ginbis Japanese Rice Puff Snack ($14.0 /80g) is also available in two very distinctive Japanese flavours- Salmon Mayonnaise and Grilled Rice Ball.

5) Japanese Gourmet Food
GREAT has the widest selection of Japanese gourmet food items. For a twist, try Strawberry Noodles ($79.0 /180g) or Strawberry Pasta with added Saka ($79.0 /180g) from Tochigi for a delightful fruity flavour. For an east-meet-west experience, don't miss out on St. Cousair Soba Pasta ($69.0 /300g).

If you prefer traditional tastes, try Organic Soy Sauce ($128.0 / 900ml) from Hyogo and Yamamori Soba Sauce with added Black Beans ($46.0 / 360ml). Add flavour to Japanese roasts, miso soup, stews and sashimi with Grapefruit and Pepper Sauce ($XX / 300ml).

Japan is a health conscious nation and it is generally believed that, thanks for their diet, people in Okinawa have higher life expectancies. Try the Okinawa diet with Coral Nutritious Supplement ($54.0 / 100g), Fiber Supplement extracted from Seaweed ($72.0 /120g) and Ready-to-eat Seaweed ($31.0 /100g). Coral is high in calcium and coral supplement can be used in all kinds of food and drinks while seaweed fiber helps digestion.

Wasgashi is Japan's best-loved traditional dessert and is usually served in tea ceremonies or given out as gifts. Wasgashi is made with rice or beans flours, with red bean paste, fresh fruits and more. This year, GREAT has brought in three kinds of flour including Rice Flour ($23.9 / 250g), Glutinous Rice Flour ($35.0 / 200g) and Yellow Bean Flour ($19.9 / 100g) for you to create lovely sweet Wasgashi for friends and family.

6) Fresh Fruits and Vegetables
GREAT is bringing in seasonal fruits and vegetables from Japan, including Green Asparagus ($39.8/ 100g), White Asparagus ($59.8/ 100g) which are excellent for spring salads and light dishes. Other uniquely Japanese fruit species include the Amaoo Strawberry ($128.0/ pack), Dekopon Orange ($29.8/ pc), and Okinawa Watermelon ($698.0/ pc).

With its strong sweetness, intense colour, firm texture and excellent shape and size, Amaoo Strawberry from Fukuoka is considered "the king of strawberries". Amaoo Strawberry is graded EX (i.e. excellent) category. Only 3% of the total harvest of Fukuoka strawberries is qualified in this category. Dekopon Orange looks like a large lemon and is very sweet and juicy; while Okinawa Watermelon requires no introduction, it's one of local customers' favourites.

7) Japanese Delights at i-Scream
As part of the Sakura Festival celebration, Mr Palao Predonzan, Hong Kong's first gelato Master has created a series of uniquely Japanese flavours exclusively for GREAT, including Sakura Tea Gelato with Cherry Blossoms ($22.0/ scoop) and Premium Melon Sorbet ($60.0/ scoop) made with premium Shizuka melon. Special desserts include Ice Green Tea with Green Tea Gelato ($50.0), Sake Gelato, Blueberry Sorbet in Sake Liquer ($50.0) and many more.

GREAT Activities

Date & Time	Activities
April 20 (Fri), 12-4pm April 21-24 (Sat-Tues), 2-6pm	Japanese Traditional Amezaiku Candies Demonstration by Master Chef Sadahaur Ishiwari
April 20-25 (Fri- Wed), 12-8pm	Hiroshima Yaki Demonstration by Master Chef Yuji Ono
April 21 (Sat), 3-4pm	Tuna Carving Demonstration by Master Chef Nakana Masaya
April 28 (Sat), 2:30-3:30pm	Sushi Making Demonstration by Master Chef Nakana Masaya

During the promotion period, MoneyBack Rewards Cardholders who make purchases of $500 or above at GREAT will be automatically entered into a lucky draw to win $4,000 in cash coupons for Nobu Restaurant, InterContinental Hotel (2 prizes). American Express Cardholders will also get 10% off on every $500 spent at GREAT.

About GREAT Food Hall

GREAT Food Hall is a stylish food concept and international food hall that is well recognized by public as one of the best food shops in Hong Kong. Owned and operated by the A.S. Watson Group, it was created to rank alongside the world's best gourmet food halls. The Grocer magazine, an authority on the food and drink industry, ranked GREAT Food Hall as one of the world's top ten food halls in 2006 from over 40 different countries for its food quality, merchandising, and atmosphere in store, as well as staff knowledge. As a leading food hall in Hong Kong, GREAT continuously strives to bring new food concepts in town like i-SCREAM, an Italian gelato brand; Crescendo, an innovative concept for customers providing freshly bottled fine olive oils and vinegars in store; Le Traiteur, a fresh gourmet European take-away food service serving a wide range of specialties and canapes. GREAT's professional buying team continues to search for new and popular products.

The 34,500-square ft GREAT food hall is located at the basement of Pacific Place and offers one of the widest varieties of gourmet foods in Asia as well as a range of complimentary guest relations services to guests, including free parking and valet parking, porter service, free gift-wrapping, nutrition consultation, home delivery and office food delivery.

Address	:	Basement, Two Pacific Place, Queensway, Hong Kong
Tel	:	2918-9986
Opening Hours	:	10:00am to 10:00pm Daily

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