Work tripping- 1600 pandas, green tea cheesecake, black sesame bagel and mala hotpot.

I apologise for the really overdue post and lack of updates- my time has been totally swallowed up by my constant procrastination, not to mention the painful project from hell that has got me breaking out in cold sweat in the middle of my hotel room bed and waking up in the wee hours in the morning thinking that something horrid has gone wrong.... Just kidding.

here's a crazy photo of many pandas to prove my sincerity.

I was in hongkong last last weekend, but am now in Taipei (and will be heading to Seoul) for work and this project is no joke...
Just a couple of pictures to show i'm still (relatively) enjoying whatever free time.

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Happy mother's day!

The past few weekends have been so busy- literally flying by! This weekend was mother's day; i had a nice time with my mom; how was yours? :) 

awkward smile with the mumsie :)

Just this sunday i went for a perfume workshop with bvlgari Singapore at the launch of their new scent, the Omnia Indian Garnet fragrance, thanks to Herworld Singapore and Bvlgari. They shared with us their new scent, the Omnia, which had a bit of a rich and musky scent with a faint bit for floral sweetness mixed in. The bvlgari signature perfume bottle is so pretty- in the shape of what looks like interlocking circles, forming an '8', the host told us it symbolizes eternity. 

They also had a mini quiz for us in which we had to match the scents of existing Bvlgari fragrances with their descriptions. Sadly mom and i didn't match it right, but we were still given complimentary goodie bags, each with a 2 session true yoga pass and a small solid perfume from Bvlgari. The entire workshop was in english so i had to translate for mom but hopefully she wasn't too bored. She seemed happy just to be out and about. 

Did some other things this weekend like an Iyengar yoga class with Lululemon Singapore, and am also trying out a yoga studio called master's yoga Sadhan in tanjong pagar that offers wall rope yoga, but more detailed reviews to come soon! 

In the meanwhile, hope everyone and your mom's have a blessed and happy mother's day!

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Cheap eats: Hong Lim food centre

A food post to tide you through the dreary Tuesday blues! As my office is located on club street, my colleagues and I often visit nearby hawker centres such as Maxwell food centre, Amoy food centre and Hong lim for lunch. The variety of lunch options at each of these places is wide, and prices very reasonable (ranging from $2.5-$5, though for Maxwell it is slightly pricier).

image credit to owner

Heng Kee curry mee 

If you are dining at Hong Lim food centre (located just behind Chinatown Point which you can reach via Chinatown mrt direct), aside from the famous Heng Kee curry mee, Outram Park Fried Kway Teow Mee and Famous Sungei Road Trishaw Laksa (#02-66) well-known for its fruit juice mee siam ($3-$4), here are a couple of options that you can consider:

image credit to owner

Cantonese delights 广东家乡小吃#02-03

Located at the far corner on the second floor at #02-03, a colleague who had tried this stall had recommended us to try the wanton mee from here. When we reached, i found out that they had a wide variety of other options including Laksa yong tau foo, chicken feet noodles, fried chicken cutlet noodles and also curry chicken mee.

On separate occasions I decided to have the wanton noodles, fried cutlet noodles with curry and the laksa yong tau foo and found them all very satisfying.
The serving portions are adequate, and the prices reasonable (from $3 onwards).

The wanton mee ($3) is the traditional sort with thin noodles that easily soak up the dark, slightly sweet sauce, and wantons that are large, juicy and tender. What impressed me most was their char siew- it was roasted to perfection- crisp on the outer, tender and chewy and just the right bit of sweetness on the inside.

image credit to ieatshootpost

The curry mee ($3.5) is more average- though the curry sauce is of a thick consistency and very aromatic, the taste is less strong compared to it’s smell. The curry however goes very well with the fried chicken cutlet which is crispy on the outside and juicy inside. 

image credit to owner 

The laksa yong tau foo was the winner in my opnion- with laksa gravy that is rich, full of flavour and sufficiently spicy, and yong tau foo that is unique, for $3.5 I felt this meal was really worth what I had paid.

laksa yong tau foo 

image credit to ji ji wanton noodle 

Shan Zai Ding Ji Ji Wanton Noodle Specialist

This stall is located on the second floor, #02-48/49 past the stairway, in the middle area. They have a variety of options such as wanton mee, chicken and mushroom noodles/hor fun, fried chicken patty noodles etc. Their wanton noodles are the most popular. Their noodles are their unique selling point – thick, and more chewy than the regular sort of wanton noodles, some people (my colleague included) might find their noodles a bit on the rubbery side. Fans however, find that their noodles have a lot of bite, and go very with the their slightly sweet and salty soy sauce. 

Ask for a mix of both fried and normal wantons to get a feel of different textures. I personally prefer their fried wanton over their normal wantons. Just slightly larger than typical wantons you can get at a wanton mee stall, their wantons are succulent and juicy, and crisp on the outside. Prices range from $3-6. 

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Back from paradise

Happy easter weekend everyone! Hope you're having some well-deserved rest now. I've just returned this week from bali, with a lovely tan from the sun there. Here's a couple of outtakes from my trips, detailed reviews of hotels/b&bs, eateries and places to visit to come very soon!

Koh Lipe:

Langkawi:

Bali:

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Amoy food centre: Singapore style ramen

Hi there! I’m away again/still, but in bali now, for a relax and unwind trip with W…. Hopefully we get as much yoga done as I set out to achieve (instead of too much spa/massage!) Here’s a short picture post on the review of Singapore style ramen ($5.5-7.5) from Noodle story, a food stall located in Amoy food centre, just 10 minutes walk from Tanjong Pagar mrt. 

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Secret eat: Best sesame bun in Singapore

 

Heya, how was your weekend? I'm currently away in Langkawi/Koh Lipe now… but here’s a small picture post to tide you over your Monday blues! The above photo is of t amazing sesame bun I have ever tasted in Singapore. 

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Weekends: Jazz by the beach at Coastes, Weddings by the beach at Shangri-la Rasa Sentosa

Over the past weekend I had the fortune to attend the finale evening of the  wonderful Jazz by the beach on Friday evening at lovely Coastes, and Weddings by the sea by Shangri-la Rasa Sentosa. 

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Stretch City: Yogi Brunch #2: Rooftop Yoga, Music, Haircut & Food!

 Excited me in front of Nong before yoga class

Went for a refreshing rooftop yoga class this Saturday morning, at the quirky Nong, with Yun Ng of Stretch City. I had heard a lot about nong from friends and had been wanting to visit the place for ages. Though it’s only a short 15 minute’s walk from my club street office, procrastination got in the way… so…

When I first got wind of this class, I was really excited! Being able to attend Yun’s class, and to visit Nong at the same time- literally the best of both worlds! I knew I had to attend.  

 Nong is a lovely pop up farm/garden by the people behind edible gardens. What’s really interesting about the place is that they feature exhibitions, art displays, workshops and also a retail store in collaboration with Haystakt.

things for sale at Nong 

image credit to is-asia city 

store space that gives off a cheerful and rustic vibe

Their goal to so to bring the "Grow Your Own Food" movement closer to the local community via the means of workshops, activities for families and artisanal products made with love and respect for our earth. Past workshops they've done include fermentation (kimchi and A-cha making!) workshops and soap making workshops. 

image credit to honeycombers 

Their goal to so to bring the "Grow Your Own Food" movement closer to the local community via the means of workshops, activities for families and artisanal products made with love and respect for our earth. Past workshops they've done include fermentation (kimchi and A-cha making!) workshops and soap making workshops.

The thing i really love about Nong is how unpretentious everything is- the store is quirky and quaint without being over the top or falling over to the hipster category of hangouts. You can feel that the creators of Nong made and maintain this place with lots of love and  sincerity, and there is also a certain ‘down-to-earthness’ to the place that makes visitors feel very welcome.

We arrived around 1015, slightly before the start of class, to walk around and explore Nong. Around 1030, Liv ushered us to the open space to the left of Nong to get us to lay our mats out for class. The class was an invigorating flow class by Yun.
As we were in a sheltered yet open area, it made for a lovely flow class because we could feel the morning breeze from the north, but were shaded from the direct rays of the sun. The instrumental music played by Rupak give the class a really very zen and relaxing feel.

three-legged dog 

This was followed  by a little bit of fun AcroAcroyoga by regulars of Acroyoga Singapore. 

It was the first time I was trying acroyoga and I was really thrilled to be the flyer in the position ‘bird’, which is one of the more elementary acroyoga poses. 

 After the class we were welcomed into Nong to enjoy the smoodies by Lins smoodees, coffee, herb iced tea, and a wide range of food including crisps/chips, burgers and sandwiches by Simply Eden, a local store that specializes in wholesome, fresh and healthy foods.

As we weren't quite so hungry, i decided to get a red velvet cupcake from Simply Eden. The cupcake was moist and chewy and of a good consistency. It was slightly disappointing however that there wasn't any cream cheese on the inside or outside- i was hoping for a small surprise while biting into the center but didn't get any.

Overall we had a great time at the yogi brunch and yoga class at Nong. The setting is lovely, class was refreshing, food was wholesome and people were friendly and very chatty. 

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Breakfast: Mina & Liili Muesli

There is a saying that goes- for breakfast you eat like a king, lunch you eat like a commoner, and dinner you eat like a pauper. The key to living a long and healthy life, aside from regular physical activity, is none other than your diet.

wide range of muesli to cater to your needs 

As i sometimes practice yoga in the mornings, and find it troublesome to prepare a smoothie or small snack before class, so i often do yoga on an empty stomach, shower, head to work then have breakfast at my desk, which usually consists of cereal (and maybe some fresh fruits e.g. banana, blueberries etc.). On Wednesday this week i had really wholesome breakfast, thanks to Mina & liili muesli & Stretch city. 

Berries Muesli comes with a variety of different berries including freeze dried blueberries, strawberries and wolfberries, corn flakes, seeds, and whole grain flakes. 

The technique of freeze drying the berries  preserves the nutrients, flavors and colors of the berries, and no preservatives are used

Berries muesli dry

I really love that a wide variety of berries and both oats, flakes, rice crisp and corn flakes are included. My personal preference is for my breakfast to look as enticing as possible and Berries Muesli, with it’s bright colours and mix of different ingredients with varying textures, some crunchy, some chewy, definitely fits the bill. 

I also like my breakfast oats/cereal to go with low fat milk or oat milk, because it makes chewing much easier and also gives a more rounded overall taste. This muesli went very well with my oat milk, both in terms of the texture and also it’s flavour. 

Berries muesli with milk 

At $2.50 for a single serving portion or about $16 for a refill/canister (450mg), Mina muesli is a pretty reasonably priced option for breakfast/a healthy snack. Also, having tried and really liked their berries option, I would definitely been keen to try their other flavours such as matccha, chocolate crunch and fruit cocktail.

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Commune cafe: respectable coffee and delicious cakes

Spent a laid-back sunday afternoon last week with good company at Commune cafe and Bistro in Millenia Walk enjoying some pretty good coffee and tasty cakes. 

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