10 December 2016

Earle Swensens @ Vivo City Review








We went at dinner time, so there was a small queue. However it only took about 5 to 10 minutes before we were seated! The waiters were really friendly and helpful!







For my main, I ordered "The Perfect Burger". For drinks, "Lychee Glacier", for dessert, "Chocolate Crunch".

The burger is really nice, the meat was tender. 

For the drinks, I really recommend the "Lychee Glacier"!! You could taste the hint of Lychee in the raspberries, plus it is actual blended fruits! Really a yummy blend. Too many seeds though.



As usual, Swensens' ice cream is yummy and rich!

Definitely recommend people to come here. Although the price is slightly more expensive compared to the regular Swensens restaurants, the service is two times better and I can definitely feel a difference on the whole.



















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03 November 2016

"The Restaurant" at SPGG review

 I ordered the "Chicken Mushroom Spinach Au Gratin" and "Deep-fried Churros with Apple Cinnamon and Ice Cream".



The Au Gratin was extremely salty and the spinach inside was in big pieces.. It seemed more like Chinese cuisine than Western.

The churros were not as fluffy as others I ate before (elsewhere), the apple cinnamon was really nice and the whole dish went well together. Their ice cream was not very creamy though, it was more 'icy'.


Overall, I will not order these two dishes again.






Their website- http://spgg.org.sg/dining/the-restaurant

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31 October 2016

Book Review: "Choupette: The Private Life of a High-Flying Fashion Cat" by Jean-Christophe Napias

Choupette: The Private Life of a High-Flying Fashion CatChoupette: The Private Life of a High-Flying Fashion Cat by Jean-Christophe Napias
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book gave readers an extremely tiny glimpse into the life of Choupette- Karl Lagerfeld's cat.

The contents were probably 1/3 about Choupette, 1/3 recipes and 1/3 of other stuff.

For the recipes part, it would have been more interesting to read if there were photos of the final product.
It was definitely amusing to see how different the life of a 'rich' person's cat would be compared to my own. Though most of the things in the book about Choupette were the same as lots of other cats. (Liking weird things, having similar habits..)

Honestly, not worth the read.

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23 October 2016

Dragon Phoenix Restaurant Review

Their website- http://www.dragonphoenix.com.sg/home/

Food was average, service was really poor.

 Although the restaurant was almost empty (at most 4-5 other tables besides ours, probably only 10% filled), the servers were really slow. A bowl of rice took forever to come, after 15- 20 minutes, we had to ask a different waiter for the bowl of rice. Surprisingly, the two vegetable dishes we ordered came about an hour after all the meat and tofu dishes came.. (I thought veggie dishes would normally be faster)

Our first dish was the free Peking duck. The first waiter who was slicing the skin off the duck was really inexperienced. We could tell from the way he sliced and how long he took. After about 10 minutes, the other waiter (more experienced) took over. The other waiter took half the time the first waiter did. The worst part of it? Both of them were TALKING over the food while preparing the Peking duck dish. So UNHYGIENIC! 

Food wise, the beef dish was my favourite. Compared to other Chinese restaurants, the beef here was not super chewy and was well cooked.

For the Peking duck skin dish, we would have preferred if they didn't use crepe. Their crepe was folded in such a way that made it thick and hard to chew. It was also not as crispy as those served in other Chinese restaurants. 

Definitely do not recommend anyone to come here, just based on the fact that the waiters were unhygienic.


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21 October 2016

Ruyi food review

My friends and I decided to eat at Ruyi because of their set meal prices. The set I ordered consisted of: Stewed Minced Pork Rice with Egg, Coke and a Mango Pudding.




 For $9.80, it was very worth it. Do take note that depending on the drink you want, you might need to top up a bit more cash. 

The veggies were too salty for my taste though.





Ruyi currently only has a store at Resort World Sentosa
Website- http://www.ruyi-anytime.com/

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15 October 2016

Book Review: "Mindwalker" By A.J. Steiger

Mindwalker (Mindwalker, #1)Mindwalker by A.J. Steiger
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A very compelling story to read, following Lain on her journey to uncover the disturbing past of the institute she works for. The author gives readers enough hope that everything will go well for the protagonists. However at the same time, has several twists and adds new elements that keeps the readers guessing.

Hope that our world does not go down this route. Humans should not try playing God.

Really excited to read the sequel!

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12 October 2016

Book Review: "Because You'll Never Meet Me" by Leah Thomas

Because You'll Never Meet MeBecause You'll Never Meet Me by Leah Thomas
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

*SPOILER ALERT*

The book started off slightly annoying as the main characters were borderline arguing with each other. I started to enjoy the book when I was 1/5th into the story.

The author painted a really good description of each of the main character's circumstances. (the allergy and the blindness) Although they were supposed to be "disabled" (in some form), I didn't feel pity for them at all.

With all the hype from one character about their possible brother relationship, I was half expecting that that would come true.. actually disappointed that it did not.
Also wondering why a Janitor would became Moritz's father..

I would have loved it if the author continued on with the story, of when they finally meet. (if they do)

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08 October 2016

Book Review: "Impostor" by Susanne Winnacker

Read my review for the sequel here!

Impostor (Variants, #1)Impostor by Susanne Winnacker
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Super good book! Reminded me slightly of X-men in terms of the people with varying powers, under the supervision of an organisation, training to be in control of their powers. The similarity ends there however.

Though the Variants have powers or abilities, our main character is placed in very ordinary day to day situations, as she is impersonating someone else.
It would be nice to see more of what some Variants can do, in the next book.

You really cannot tell who the main culprit in this, until the author finally reveals it at the end.

Really excited to read the rest of the books in this series!

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03 October 2016

Book Review: "If I Should Die" by Matthew Frank

If I Should DieIf I Should Die by Matthew Frank
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

For his first novel, the author did a pretty good job! The storyline was quite engaging. 3/4s into the book however, the story dragged a little and got a tad boring, but picked up speed again after that.
There are a few layers to the story, which helped in keeping it interesting for the reader.

He did a good job in introducing Joseph Stark too. It would be interesting to see how the character progresses in the sequels to this book.

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02 October 2016

Katto Poke Bowls Review







"Katto" is a small shop inside Galaxis ( 1 Fusionopolis Place) that sells mainly "Poke Bowls". ( Cubed Sashimi over rice)

I have seen a few Youtubers rave about Poke (Pou-Kei) whenever they visit Hawaii, so I was really excited to try this out when I realised that there was one shop that sold Poke near my home!


We went on a Saturday noon, so it was quite empty.

This is one part of their menu. They also sell drinks, which are on display at the counter.





Both of us got the "main size", which means we get rice, 2 mains and 2 sides. ($12.90)



I decided to get White Rice, Classic Shoyu Salmon (top) and Goma Tuna (bottom) for my mains, Miso Butter Corn (left) and Seaweed Salad (right) for my sides.

I definitely loved the salmon! Sometimes, sticking to the basics is the best.

The Goma Tuna felt weird as it had a creamy dressing, which I don't usually associate with sashimi. Nonetheless, both tasted fresh and flavourful. I actually ordered the corn on accident, so probably won't be getting that next time. (I don't like baby corn)
My dad decided to get Brown Rice, Yuzu Tuna and Ginger Shoyu Tuna for his mains, Pickled Mushrooms (left) and Tomatoes (right) for his sides.

I didn't like the Yuzu Tuna mainly because of the yuzu (sour).

The Ginger Shoyu Tuna was really nice. There is a slight hint of ginger when you first bite into it. I like that it is not super overpowering. My dad felt like he could not taste the ginger at all though.

Usually I don't like mushrooms, because they often have a very strong smell to it. These mushrooms had a very light scent, which i preferred.

The tomatoes were ok, not sour at all.





Overall for $12.90, I would say that it is affordable. However both of us feel that the portions could have been bigger. (more rice?) I started getting hungry again almost 30 mins after eating

For those of you that don't eat raw rish, "Katto" sells cooked meat too! (eg. Yakitori Chicken)


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30 September 2016

Book Review: Little Bird

Little BirdLittle Bird by Camilla Way
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Although you can pretty much tell which character is which (either in terms of what roles they play or who they are) , the storyline still holds a bit of mystery in terms of what happens next.

I like how the author used such a unique (I haven't read a book which has a similar character yet) main character. Even though there are such people in the real world, we hardly ever hear about them, or their story. (Unless we specifically look it up)

Quite a depressing book as most of the characters have troubled past/present.

Too much profanity for my taste. Even though the author might be showing how people in that area actually speak, im sure there are other slightly less sever cuss words that can replace the f word.

Nice read, but I would not put my eyes through that again.

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26 September 2016

Pastamore food review

Their website- http://www.pastamore.com.sg/ 

The restaurant was almost empty, which was surprising as we went on a Saturday evening. The place itself was cute small and cozy, has both indoor and outdoor seats. One table even had a couch as seating! 

Among the three of us, we shared a lasagne, Hawaiian pizza and Beef tenderloin.



Hawaiian Pizza


Lasagne
 My mom mentioned that they might have put eggs in the pizza, as it was quite fluffy and had a lovely fragrance. The pineapples on the pizza tasted as if they had beer inside, quite refreshing. 
Tenderloin Beef

Medium Rare

Panna Cotta










Tiramisu
 The lasagne didn't look appetizing to me, but it was yummy. 












 I felt that the beef might be a little too pricey for the size we got. It was quite thick though. Too chewy for my liking. 



It also had this mushroom sauce which I absolutely HATE. (i just hate strong mushroom smells)























Chocolate Ice Cream
 For dessert, we ordered Panna Cotta, Tiramisu and Chocolate Gelato. 
















































I would recommend trying this place out! This place IS pet friendly so if we happen to come here again, I will definitely bring my dog along!

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15 September 2016

Guzman Y Gomez Review





My mom and I ordered the Grilled Chicken Burrito bowl, Slow roasted beef with hard tacos. Ice lemon tea and lemonade.

 Overall, I would say that it was very affordable, the portions were decent and quite filling too. If I were to go there again, I would just order the burrito bowl to share with another person. 
That would be enough. The burrito bowl was a little sour though, hard to eat after a while as it was too rich. (the taste)

















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Bornga Korean BBQ Review

I have never eaten at a proper Korean bbq before, so i don't know the 'usual price' out there, but for the quantity we ordered, it was slightly too expensive. ($30-40 for 3 slices of meat)

For the bbq, there is a employee that will help you cook the meat and cut it up. The lady that served us was super nice and remembered to ask how cooked we wanted the meat. Unfortunately, one of our beef set was slightly overcooked. (we wanted half cooked/medium) Still, it was an interesting experience, having someone cook at our table for us! 

The meal does come with quite a few side dishes and a huge spread of veggies to use to wrap the meat with. 

Don't think I will return to this restaurant as it is too expensive. The meat was yummy though!

Here are some photos:

Side dishes

Beef

Beef
















Beef

Pork

Beef















































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24 August 2016

Book Review: The Various Haunts of Men

The Various Haunts of Men (Simon Serrailler, #1)The Various Haunts of Men by Susan Hill
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Love the way the author told/wrote the story. Storyline was strong and engaging enough. It was generally unpredictable and I only got an inkling of who the culprit was, when the author started dropping hints. (made his behaviour more suspicious) I just have several problems with this book. Firstly, why is it a Simon Serrailler series when he is obviously not the main character? Is this just an introduction to him since this is the first book in the series? Secondly, CCTVs. Not sure if I missed the part where the author mentions what year the story takes place in, but if it was during modern times, shouldn't there be traffic cameras the police can use? Last but not least, it was a little hard to remember all the names and who they were referring to. (Not the main characters) I had to flip back the pages several times to remember who was who. (This is just my personal opinion though, i'm sure some people have no problems with remembering names)

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23 August 2016

Book Review: Silver, Tarnished and Reflected

Silver (Silver, #1)Silver by Rhiannon Held
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A good fantasy read! Didn't realise it was a series until now... "Silver" could be a stand-alone book. It was interesting to read a bit about the dynamics of a werewolf pack. The story had just the right amount of intrigue to hold my interest. Im still confused about the 'wild self' leaving part though.. Will see how I like the rest of the series, stay tuned for those reviews!

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Tarnished (Silver, #2)Tarnished by Rhiannon Held
My rating: 5 of 5 stars


'Tarnished' is my favourite part in this series. The whole book is action packed and so engrossing to read! The characters really grew a lot, learning how to adapt to the situations and becoming more mature. The author shows how everyone has their own strengths, even if they seem 'weak' on the outside. Really interesting book!

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Reflected (Silver, #3)Reflected by Rhiannon Held
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book is mainly about how Felicia deals with relationships, her new family and problems in her life. Good read, but not as interesting as the first two, in my opinion.

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22 August 2016

Book Review: Daughter

DaughterDaughter by Jane Shemilt
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The first half of the book was a little boring and moved too slowly for my taste, it only got slightly more interesting in the 2nd half. As the chapters jumped between two timelines, it was a tad bit confusing at times. Also, weird that the person they were trying to find, was not identified by the police. Overall, an interesting read about a family seeking the truth, but having lies of their own. A mom trying to single-handedly hold her family together. A minor love triangle and love pentagon.

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06 August 2016

Food Reviews from Eating places at the Kallang Wave Mall


 What you see when you come out from the MRT station. (Crowded because this was on National Day Parade preview 2)












BBQ beef from the Korean stall in the food court. (first one on the right when you first walk in)

The portions were worth the price I paid. The beef was nice, the first few pieces I ate had a bit of fat in them, but other than that, really tasty!

Chocolate and Caramel Macchiato ice cream from Marble Slab Creamery. (Ground level)
When we were ordering, there was only one lady doing all the work, so she was a bit slow. She had to go back and forth between scooping our ice cream and making someone else's waffles.

The coconut ice cream they had didn't taste fresh (I asked for a sample), so I went with the caramel macchiato and chocolate instead. The caramel macchiato was slightly salty, but not overpowering. Super yummy!

Went for the NDP Preview 2!
Read my blog post on it here!
 After the preview, we headed back to the mall for dinner at around 9PM. All the food places had queues due to the NDP crowd. We ended up going to Aji-Ichi. (level 2) As we had 8 people in our group, we had to wait in line for about 30 minutes (or more).

These were the sake we ordered. Left is peach flavoured, right is plain(?). The left one was sweeter while the one on the right had a stronger alcohol taste to it. Definitely prefer the right one more!



We Ordered chicken wings and gyoza too. I felt that these two were average.



 Beef Yakiniku Ishinabe. Really tasty! Had an egg in the middle. The bowl stayed hot even after we finished the food! (I shared it with my aunt)












Matcha Cheese cake. Im not a fan of cheese cake. I actually ordered something else, but that was out of stock.

The top layer is cheese, middle is red bean and the bottom is matcha. The sauce drizzled over the cake is black sesame. The matcha was slightly bitter but overall, the combination worked. In my opinion, once I was halfway through the cake, I didn't feel like finishing it anymore. (strong taste)



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Singapore NDP Preview 2

Our family was fortunate enough to win NDP (National Day Parade) tickets for the recent National Day Preview 2 show.




Balloons ready to be released. (Weird that only balloons from this corner were released.. one corner for each day?)

Cloud from the smoke.

Colours.

Cameramen on the stage.

Singing the National Anthem.

Flypast. Can't be seen clearly from the stadium.

Reminds me of an aurora. (Northern lights)





Overall, this particular parade felt more like a concert. This year, there were no Red Lions (Singapore Armed Forces parachute team), mobile column and we couldn't see the fireworks from inside the stadium.

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