A chef at the goose liver station. Photo provided to China Daily

Down a small flight of stairs are the desserts. An incredible selection of cakes, puddings, ice-cream and even fruit. (Don't worry if that sounds too healthy: There is a vat of chocolate to dip the fruit into).

Excess and decadence is the order of the day at the Le Meridien, which, depending on how much you want to spend, comes with free-flow Moet Brut or Moet Rose champagne. The brunch has become something of a signature of the hotel in recent years, picking up a swag of awards from the local street press and becoming a Sunday staple for many of the city's expatriates.

We visit on a working Sunday before the Chinese New Year. Apparently it is quieter than usual, the tables surrounding us include a father and two teenagers speaking English and celebrating a birthday. A large table of adults, babies in tow, speaking French and enjoying a relaxed Sunday meal, and an Indian family chatting over glasses of champagne as their children dart back and forth from the dessert buffet to the free face-painting stand in a sugar-fueled frenzy of excitement.

The theme is pink, but the color is more of a highlight than a drenching. Pink balloons decorate the room, and for a little fun, two glamorous women in pink nurse uniforms circle the room with fake syringes full of chicken broth, which they administer to male customers, amid many well-natured squeals from the "patients'" friends.