February 24th, 2010 View Comments
Thanks to Carlyn, I was invited to the exclusive launch party of the first Restaurant Week in Asia/Singapore at The Tower Club! Ah Jacelyn my lady, has fast fingers! She booked a romantic dinner at Il Lido right after she caught me micro-blogging during the event.
Organised by DiningCity.com Singapore, Restaurant Week is actually a highly successful event, a culinary event in countries such as The Netherlands, Austria, Belgium and USA. Thus, the launch of Restaurant Week in Singapore instead of anywhere else in Asia sorta amplifies and establishes Singapore’s position as the food capital of Asia. Gotta give credit to this tiny island for beating Shanghai for winning this launch.
After the event, I am officially a fan of Veuve Clicquot! It was lively, delicate yet powerful. Moet & Chandon, Cape Mentelle and Terrazas was also served to my pleasure.
Photo credit to Glenn!
Not to mention those exquisite canapés I sampled from four of the participating restaurants: Julien BOMPARD, Garibaldi Italian Restaurant & Bar, The Song of India and Tatsuya Japanese Restaurant. The event was tastefully done.
This one-week culinary event is a darling for lucky peeps who managed to book limited seats! They can enjoy a special three-course meal at affordable fixed prices of S$35++ for a three-course dinner and S$25++ for a three-course lunch during the Singapore Restaurant Week from 22 to 28 March 2010. Just the perfect opportunity to taste a varied range of unique dining experiences at a wide selection of choice restaurants.
That’s the guys from Tatsuya. Oh when you book your reservations, do check if the particular restaurant is a DiningCity Star Awarded restaurant. If yes, you may be charged a fixed supplement of S$15 for lunch and S$20 for dinner. Also check the menu to see if you like the offerings.
(:
Bookings can ONLY be made online via www.restaurantweek.sg. You gotta hurry if you are interested because the last time I checked, empty tables are fast filling up. There are in total 58 participating restaurants. Unfortunately, Julien BOMPARD and Tatsuya Japanese Restaurant have NO MORE SEATS! 18,000 seats gone so fast! It’s just been a day! Must be those American Express Cardmembers. Yup American Express actually offers early booking privileges to their Cardmembers! Jealous.
):
Not that I’m going to sign up for an American Express card anytime soon. So next year, I shall set my alarm clocks to be the first to reserve some Restaurant Week tables!
*Pete was resting at home so I had to grab pictures from Kyle. Thanks Kyle!*
February 8th, 2010 View Comments
Attended Esmirada’s 15th Anniversary Party with Ken. Thanks Carlyn!
The celebration was held at the new Esmirada At The Pier located in the thriving dining hub of Robertson Quay. Warm lights illuminated the interior of Esmirada At The Pier and the combination of rustic brick walls with blue accents brought an easy-going allure. Seemed like the perfect place to idle away a lazy Saturday evening with girlfriends!
Esmirada At The Pier is a really cosy and casual restaurant with a rustic charm! We spent the evening at the al fresco seating. Good thing that the courtyard was breezy and when dusk arrived, pretty candles tea lights evoked a romantic feel! Nice.
Ken and I enjoyed a glass of Sangria with Esmirada’s Famous Garlic Bread (S$6) – a towering crusty baguette loaf fragrant with garlic and butter – before digging in to the selection of appetizing antipasti, salads, soups and tapas!
My favourite starter would be the refreshing Greek Salad (S$16)! The cheese was awesome and it gave the salad enough flavor that salad dressing isn’t needed. The sharp taste of onion went really well with the red peppers and sun-dried tomatoes. Tasty! Would be perfect if I could add a bit of garlic, a dash of oregano and a teaspoon of white wine vinegar! Hehe I like my salad to be fancy.
Tossed a couple of cold prawns on our plates too to go with the wine. Fresh goodness.
Of course, Mediterranean food is not Mediterranean without some grilled meats, pita bread, and falafel. It was nearly impossible to decide what to taste first considering the selection dishes displayed on the counter.
That’s the roasted pork. I love the few unique starters especially the delectable Balkan dish, Cevapcici (S$18) – grilled meat fingers made from minced beef and lamb and served with a homemade mustard ragoo dip.
Another tasty entrée was this. Make a guess what this is.
Smoked ham! Totally scrummy! Look at the size of that humongous piece of meat!
The chef was there the entire evening making sure that each slices of smoked ham was cut to perfection. These delicate paper-thin slices of smoked ham were so well-flavoured.
Our appetite was further satiated by main courses such as the Esmirada Skewers (from S$28) – perfectly grilled quality ribeye steaks, lamp chops, chicken kebabs, king prawns, swordfish and vegetables served on a custom-made iron frame and accompanied by bell pepper relish, tzatziki sauce and oven baked potatoes.
Ken tried the famous Spanish saffron rice dish, Paella Espanola (S$30), that is brimming with fresh mussels, squid, prawns, chicken and vegetables. That was a hearty dish.
Always have space for dessert when it is chocolate fondue and fresh strawberries!
I’m sure no one could resist creamy smooth chocolate cascading down a chocolate fountain. Sinful.
Craving for some Mediterranean goodies? Well there’s something going on now. You can enjoy 15% discount off Total Bill from now to 31 March 2010 (not applicable with other promos) at all three Esmirada outlets.
Esmirada At The Pier
80 Mohamed Sultan Road
#01-03 The Pier at Robertson
January 14th, 2010 View Comments
4 naughty peeps pulled a great surprise on me!
Stank is gonna love this post because I cried on MY birthday! Was cheated by Cablenazi as usual. Oh he does that very well. Whisked me away to Kim Choo Kitchen, a pretty peranakan restaurant right in the Peranakan enclave of Joo Chiat and kept me wondering what is he up to.
At Kim Choo Kitchen, the colourful patterned tiles and attractive floral porcelain dining ware caught my eye. Beautiful. Totally embodies the distinctive Asian culture of Peranakan culture. This place really gave me the vibe of a humble Peranakan home.
Just when I was admiring the decor, he almost gaveaway his act when the waitress mentioned ‘table for 5 right?’ and when I was about to tweet about his suspicious behavious, Winnie popped into the seat next to him without a sound. The next second when I lifted up my head, I was extremely shocked! But what comes after made my nose turned red. Never expected Stank and Elaine to appear from the stairs! Shockers!
lol. And here are my two lovely ladies.
A ghastly face Stank pulled.
And this, the smug-looking sly mastermind.
Of course will cry la . Never expect Cablenazi to surprise me with these three unexpected guests during dinner! Stank, Winnz and Elaine! Oh my goodness. They actually came all the way from JB for me? Such sweeties! After all the drama, We enjoyed peranakan food at a restaurant and mm the Kueh Chang was very very good. Yum yum. Must eat while its still warm!
Here’s some pictures of the peranakan fare we had that evening. Well, food was passable probably because I’ve tasted better peranakan food. Remember Restoran Nyonya Suan? Anyway what you must-try here is definately the Kueh Chang, beef/chicken rendang and probably the cendol.
Anyway good food is just secondary. The company is what that matters and this year was perfect! Don’t you love surprises! I do! Especially when it happens on 8 Jan. Definately a birthday I will never forget.
Thanks loves. xoxo, C
January 6th, 2010 View Comments
2009 was an exciting year where I survived an internship at Hill & Knowlton, ROM-ed, graduated from NUS and joined 24seven! There’s no better way than to end this marvelous decade with a lucky invitation to a yacht party!
Thanks to Cablenazi‘s client, Ensco (the largest offshore jack-up oil and gas well drilling corporation), we boarded the Harbour Queen on New Year’s Eve at Marina Keppel Bay and celebrated the coming of 2010 with a bunch of happy people! I fell in love with this place instantaneously. Wouldn’t you?
Before long, the Harbour Queen left Keppel Bay and went island sailing! It cruised passed Marina area, Sentosa, Kusu Island and St.John Island. Ah the warm sun, blue water and a good breeze were so indulging . Wine was free flow on board!
Back in the cabin, we camwhored with funky hats! Haha Yes funky. Although not as funky as those I saw at the Hat-py Party, it was enough to keep us entertained. Hehe.
The vessel was circling Marina area, Sentosa, Kusu Island and St.John Island the entire time while waiting for the spectacular fireworks display at Marina to go off at the stroke of midnight. Unknowingly we spent close to 7 hours on the yacht. The initial waves of excitement kinda drowned as I felt a little dizzy and drowsy from the rocky-rolly motion of the craft.
Ah should had taken some anti-seasickness or nausea capsules before coming. But it’s too late. I had to take a short snooze and thankfully, the uncomfortable sensations disappear after that. Was only told later that I should go outside where fresh air could blow on my face and keep my eyes directed to a fixed shore or horizon, where possible to prevent seasickness.
When I woke up, the peeps were having fun with glow sticks and the beer funnel.
FYI the act of is using a funnel to rapidly consume a large amount of liquid, most commonly beer is referred to as Bonging a Beer! lol. That’s Dean.
Anyway the party continues with rock and roll and great music! There was plenty of space for guests to twist and grind to the music. Some dance moves were super hilarious! Check these cool moves out!
Finally the moment everyone was waiting for has arrived. Minutes before midnight, we scurry up the upper deck and anticipated the fireworks display. Poof! Bang! Kaboom! We had a blast watching fireworks explode across Marina Bay! Beautiful! Singapore’s night sky turned magical in glittery shades of green, red, blue, purple and gold!
In retrospect, I still can’t believe a decade has gone. 2010 seems like a loooong way from 2000 when I was still in secondary 2! Though I cant turn back time, I can’t help but wonder if I could have spent the last decade in better ways. Perhaps, I should had set my priorities and goals right and be more focused in getting to it. Oh well! the passing of a decade feels like a wake up call as much as a fresh start. I shall look forward to the new year and new decade with anticipation and optimism!
Cheers to 2010! May it be another decade filled with fun, joy and love!
—
Cablenazi is a Lead Electrical Engineer/going-t0-be Project Engineer in February at KeppelFels. He’s a lucky boy to have such fun-loving, appreciative clients.
Hey Ensco, you need any social media help?
January 5th, 2010 View Comments
Hello hello! I was away for a very long, relaxing holiday just like you! Well before I talk about the crazy stuff I did on New Year’s eve, lets time travel to 2 days before year 2010 begin. Why? Ah that was the day 24seven organised a very happy Hat-py Party at one of my favourite place in Singapore, The Singapore Art Museum.
It was a breeze thinking of fun activities for bloggers to do in the museum. It helped that the museum had some really intriguing art pieces exhibiting during that period.
Thrice Upon A Time: A Century of Story in the Art of the Philippines was up and I would say that my favourite art piece is Anonymity. It’s a whole series of pictures taken by a witty guy called Poklong Anading. He had random strangers he met on the streets of Manila to pose, holding a small mirror, covering their faces. Then right at the moment when sunlight was reflected on the mirror, he took a black and white photograph. What’s left of the picture is a strangely stunning image of a faceless person sitting on an ice cream cart/holding a bunch of balloons/sweeping the streets etc. Nice. I like Poklong Anading’s interpretation of Anonymity.
I found this picture of Sidney posing with one art piece out of the series I was talking about. Man holding a bunch of balloons. Sidney submitted this picture for games during the event. Took this pic with his Blackberry and sent it to Hat-py Party Submission. Yeah we made the bloggers run around the galleries to so some fun stuff so they can go home with prizes! Btw nice outfit Sidney and that’s an adorable pose (:
Interesting isn’t it? Go check it out the other art pieces in Anonymity. The exhibition is still on till end of this month! Oh I’m gonna share another picture of a thought-provoking art piece in the museum submitted by a blogger. I love how the flash makes the picture more interesting. If I’m not mistaken, he was using a Samsung Pixon 12, proudly sponsored by Samsung. Picture turned out less grainy than Sidney’s. Not bad at all.
And here’s a lovely shot of the team at 24seven taken with Kelvin‘s Diana Mini and instant Polaroid accessory. Thanks pirate!
So I was helping out at the reception with molemole. Oh don’t you agree that molemole looked so sweet in her cutesy little lamb hat. Wah so hardworking.
Aw shit Kris caught me sleeping on the job.
Having played a role in organising this last minute event, I must say that this party would not have happened if not for National Heritage Board, SAM, Samsung Mobile, Sentosa, SingTel, The Lens Men, Megazip, Wavehouse, Cineblast and Sentosa 4D Magix. Thank you all for coming onboard as sponsors despite the short notice!
Since this was a Hat-py party, guests who came without a hat will be imposed a penalty. They have to wear these ugly party hats!
Fortunately, almost all of them came in funky hats! I got more and more excited as more and more bloggers found their way to the museum because their have such awesome hats! Look!
That’s Chee Chin in his Winnie the Pooh assemble.
The three ladies in kinky wigs and masquerade-ish hats.
Turkey in headphones and a Goth babe
The horny hunk
That’s Claudia‘s mini hat which looks like mine and Lester in his yellow-brown shower cap with a cute-looking pile of shit attached to it. Ingenious idea.
No fancy party is complete with pirates! Thats Jerrick and Kelvin!
Not forgetting our wonderful emcee, Ben who wore a very sweet, pretty spiky green cap!
Jng jng jng… and the winner of the best Hat for the night goes to Feliza! Yeah you’re right. Her partner for the night was the horny hunk mentioned earlier. What a lovely horny couple!
Too bad I did not have time to camwhore with them. Busy! Didn’t even have time to let Nicole try out my glittery eyeliner from Bodyshop. Sorry babe! How bout next week at 24seven’s BBQ for bloggers? It’s happening on a Wednesday, January 13 at Aloha Loyang Sea View Bungalow 6. By the way for those of you reading this, feel free to RSVP if you are interested to join us!
Before I end, I want to thank all the bloggers who made one of the biggest gathering of bloggers 24seven has hosted such a bubbly affair. You guys ROCK! Oh oh talking about a rocking crowd, I must also thank Black Diamond Ninjas and Only After Coffee for the rocking band performances! No party is a party without good music right?
Yes yes I love my job. Can’t helped it. Social media is wayy cool.
Correction: the people behind social media tools are cool! Yes you, you and YOU!
Pss. Pictures here were all taken by Kris and you can find them here. Thanks Kris!