After dinner at Sun with Moon Japanese Restaurant last evening, Hubba & I wandered around Wheelock Place en route to ION. The original intension was to purchase chocolates from Royce, to satisfy both Hubba's and my craving. We never reached Royce in the end; as we stumbled upon the Chocolate Research Facility. And oh my, it was chocolate heaven!


Pic courtesy of Chocolate Research Facility

There were so many different types of chocolates in there! Alcoholic chocolates like champagne, cognac, Irish cream and lychee martini, tea chocs like earl grey, jasmine, and Darjeeling, coffee chocs like cappuccino, latte, mocha and espresso; the variety seemed endless! Their prices ranged from $8 - 12. And the packaging was equally attractive; small and very colourful, almost like fabric designs. After browsing for more than 20 minutes, we ended up buying the lychee martini, champagne, earl grey, and two Autumn/Winter 09 specials: Horlicks and white truffle.

Once we reached home, Hubba couldn't wait to try them out. He picked one lychee martini to taste, and my oh my, it was scrump-licious! The milk chocolate was tasty, but the omph came from the lychee martini centre that was so heavenly that one couldn't just be satisfied with one bite. Hubba and I would have finished all the chocolates at one go, had we not controlled ourselves. In the end, we finished half the bar of lychee martini, and felt super guilty after that.

Had a nice dinner sesh last night with our friends. Met up at Sushi Teh @ Tampines One to have a deliciously healthy meal of Japanese sashimi, sushi and mains. Took the opportunity to catch up with each other on various things that had happened in the past month. Like always, it was fun to meet up, chill and catch up with our friends, FK & Judy.


The people were right to go crazy over the tarts. There was a nice balance of pastry with banana, cream and chocolate in my tart and one couldn't stop eating after having tasted the first mouthful. Really great! Now, am toying the idea of whether to get this for Hubba's birthday cake, as his birthday is just a few weeks away. (Plus he kinda hinted at it.)

After all the catching up, it was time to call it a night. However, we made a pact to meet up soon, in a few weeks, to have a crazy late-nighter at probably my place and celebrate Hubba's birthday. :)

More photos here: www.facebook.com/album.php

After a week's hiatus from running, decided I couldn't procrastinate anymore. So I texted Hubba while having a meeting (oops) to tell him that I was gonna run tonight, and he could join me if he wanted too.

As usual, Hubba was gamed, coz it gave him a chance to train up for his coming IPPT. However, as both of us were caught up in meetings, it meant that we would be running round the estate rather than at the sports stadium. Which was fine by me, coz I wanted to see if I could run at least 2.4km without the usual warm up walk to the stadium, as what I was used to doing.



As a whole, didn't find the run that bad, despite a week's hiatus. Stamina was still good and I would have gone on further, if not for Hubba having finished his sprint-endurance training super early.

Total distance: 2.74km
Time: 20'04"
Pace: 7'18"/km
Calories: 169

After the work out, we set off for a late dinner. Originally, we had decided to have prata and briyani at Simpang Bedok. But en route, we changed our minds and decided to try this cosy place along Jalan Pari Burong called Foo House, which my dad had once recommended some time back.

The interior was rather homely, and had this lovely retro feel about it.





Despite having just ran, I wasn't that hungry. It took us some time to decide on what we wanted order, which is a first for us, since I usually decide the fastest.


Hubba's Root Beer Float


My Hamburger Steak, with mashed potatoes and extra side of caramelized onions


Hubba's order of Hainanese Pork Chop with rice and bak choi


My non-alcoholic Mojito, with loads of lovely mint sprigs

The food was super delicious, and it made Hubba a little sentimental, as the pork chop reminded him of his late grandma's cooking. Although not presented in some "atas" way, the cooking however had this homely feel about it, and it made me feel like the food was made with lots of love. This was probably also contributed by the very homely atmosphere as well, as the decor around us was made up of things one would usually see in used as decor in someone's home. The feel-good emotion and yummy homely food was enough to earn a thumbs up from Hubba and me, and we both knew this would definitely not be our last visit to this makan place.

Just when we were totally filled up and waiting to pay up, I spied on a rather interesting poster behind me, that very much described what I would have loved to ingest after the very filling meal:

Very fitting for people like us who have just finished indulging and have problem digesting.

Place: Foo House Pub & Cafe
Address: 6 Jalan Pari Burong
Tel: 6445 3110

Hubba & I had a date. Set several weeks ago, we had agreed to watch Aimee Mann - Live, at the Esplanade. And I had been waiting impatiently for this day to come. After a good rest in the afternoon, we set off for our activity-filled night.


Us taking a touristy shot with the Esplanade and the Singapore Flyer

( Super long post here )

In any case, we had great fun last night. Can't wait for another groovy night out like this soon!

More photos of the night here.

Hubba & I were supposed to jog this evening. Instead, we ended up pigging out big time with great food at Etna. Here's what we had:


Starter: Parma ham with rock melon


Pizza Napolitania (with anchovies, yum yum!)


Spaghetti with crab meat in pink lobster sauce

As with our first visit, the food was just as superb and we enjoyed it so much that we finished every last morsel of the food. It's no wonder that the place is always packed; that's why we usually head out later than usual if we want to dine there.

Now I really need to jog tomorrow, as I haven't jogged for more than a week! Yikes!

Mum decided to give Aunt a break from cooking dinner today and so we met up at the Zi Char stall to have dinner. Originally Hubba & I intended to go for a jog and not eat home, but after a full day audit, I felt that I had already run a marathon, so I ended up forgoing the run and joined them for dinner instead.

For the benefit of tiffanyx, I remembered to take photos of the dishes we had, to give a visual on the food standard of the zi char place. Here is what we had:


Sweet & sour pork ribs



XO Fish Soup


Fried omelette with cai por


Can't remember name of this dish, but it has broccoli, mushrooms, scallops, clams, sea cucumber and cuttlefish in a nice thick broth

Tummy's now super satisfied with a simple but yummilicious meal. :)

Place: Zi Char Coffee Shop @ Blk 144 Tampines Street 12

Went to settle a little something after work, so dinner was late. To make up for the lateness, I picked up Hubba, who had diligently gone for his run, from home, and we set off to T3 to have dinner in a nice & quite environment.


Peace & quiet @ T3 - the ideal place to chillax.

We didn't know where to eat, so after wondering around, we decided to head to our all time favourite, TCC, instead.



What we had: Potato wedges, The Veal Thing, Azuki Freeze, Mentaiko Spaghetti with Salmon, Saffron Bouillabaisse & Nougat Milkshake. (Clockwise from left)

Was so famished such that I ended up overeating again, and am having digestion problems. Hubba on the other hand, just negated his run by finishing every single last piece of wedges, which I hardly touched! Now, we're just about ready to hit the sack and convert all those calories to fat! Argh... I need to burn all that calorie consumption soon!

With our original lunch plans to meet up with some friends postponed last minute as someone was unwell, we decided to try out this new ramen store, Yoshimaru Ramen Bar, at Big Splash instead.

Hubba had gone to the main branch at Holland Village with his colleagues and was won over by the way they did their boiled eggs (the egg is done such that the yolk has just nicely congealed into gel whilst retaining a nice orangy colour, the way I love my eggs done) that he knew I would love it too.


The interior of the ramen bar


Hubba's choice: DIY Hakata Ramen with soft boiled egg and Takana (Japanese version of giam cai)


My choice: Moridakusan Ramen (All-in): comes with soft boiled egg, Takana, seaweed, cloud ear mushroom, Meitaiko, on top of the basic char siew


Chicken Gyoza (they also have prawn gyoza)

On a whole, we were super happy with the ramen. Was the closest to the ramen we had in Sapporo Ramen Alley, in my opinion, and miles better than Ajisen's ramen. I think coz they use less MSG and less oil, so on a whole, the ramen isn't so jerlak. Highly recommended to try, if you near either of the branches.

Place: Yoshimaru Ramen Bar
Branch we visited: 902 East Coast Parkway Blk B #01-12, Playground @ Big Splash, S(449874)
Tel: 63463132
Main branch: 31 Lorong Liput, Holland Village S(277742)
Tel: 64633132

Went for a run with Hubba after work. Somehow the body isn't the same after recovering from the flu. Took extra effort to cover the distance, and in the end, I was still almost a good kilometre short of my previous distance. :(



Total distance covered: 4.66km (Walk & jog)
Total time: 43'02"
Pace: 9'14"/km
Calories: 288

Took a slow walk back home to pick up some cash (silly of us to forget to bring cash out) before re-heading out to the nearby coffee shop for some good old Astons.


Hubba's Super Burger, beef patty, deep fried onions, bacon, lettuce, salad cream and tomatoes in between burger buns, with a side of fried onion rings.



My order of prime ribeye beef steak, normal cut, with a side of garden veggie and a side of pasta salad.

Now that I've had a good work out, and an equally fulfilling dinner, wondering if I should just call it a night and head off to Dreamland...

HH was always a close pal when we were working together. Super happy when Ricky came along and both of them got along very well. It's been a long three years, as a colleague & friend, to finally see them tie the knot.


More photos here.

Since our circle is small, this dinner was also a chance to catch up with all the friends/ex-colleagues I once worked with. Almost like a mini-gathering. It was great fun catching up with all, and getting to know those whom I wasn't so close to previously.

Can't believe the weekend is over. Gonna call it a night... so that I get enough sleep for the hard week ahead.

Supposed to be on MC today, but since I felt better (fever broke), I went back to work for a short while this morning for some tasks before I headed back home.

After a short rest, picked Mum up and headed down to ee_lyn's studio weloveyu to pick a dress for a dinner this Sunday. Alas... although all her dresses were terrific, I didn't quite have the right physique (read: fat). Lucky for me, I still managed to get a nice black dress named "Minutes" which can be used both for day and night, depending on how one accessorises it. Went off a happy girl. (Note to self: true motivation to continue jogging after today's incident; I need to regain that physique that I once had eons ago!!!)

Headed back down to Orchard area, right straight to Taka to settle some business with the spa. Something about the points deduction from our spa package that didn't quite add up. Settled everything quite nicely and headed off, with Pops in tow (who actually took a bus down to meet us) to dinner @ Cedele's. Of coz, the old fogies got to explore Ion @ Orchard en route, and were just as lost as I was in the crazy maze and crowds of people.

Dinner was good and dad was in a good mood, maybe coz I finally brought him to this place Mum & I had been raving about for the longest time. Mum even brought some of my aunties to Cedele's for tea once and they loved it too.



Pity Hubba didn't make it due to miscommunication and my poor dear had to eat dinner on his own instead. To make up for the miscomm, I picked up a nice dessert for him instead, just before leaving.

Tonight was some good old chilling with the other Wongs, down at Vivocity.

First up was to have dinner @ Kim Gary, whose food reminded me of Hong Kong Cafe. Food was not bad, though I felt that it was a little pricey for some stuff like the Nissin noodle range.



After that it was a nice catch-up and chill at Pacific Coffee as we were still a little too early for the movies. It was weird looking our photos and wondering about ourselves years ago when we were still in uni. How time flies. How we've aged/matured (whichever way you look at it), etc. And our physical fitness levels... haa... All the talk about going for night cycling to reminisce our youth, ended up in night driving instead, to look for food. Sighz...



Once we entered the cinema, it was all movie. GI Joe was a disappointment, in my opinion. The plot was sucky and the best bits already shown in the trailer. Shan't say no more though, coz I don't wanna spoil the fun for those who haven't watched.

It was fun meeting up, and we were a little reluctant for the night to end early. But, as we all have to go to work tomorrow, we had to bid our friends farewell and make plans for a next meet up instead.

Took the day off today to do several things:

1. Take a break - need one before I have to go on a two-week no back up period, while my colleague goes on marriage leave.
2. Send car in for servicing - been sitting on it for some time.
3. Go for a much needed spa - hot stone massage and age-defying facial.
4. Spend time with Mummy. :)

( Elaborated under the cut )

Next up: Creative Eyebrow Embroidery tomorrow morning.

Went out with Hubba after work on Wednesday to watch "Rough Cut", a Korean movie shown as part of some film arts thingee. (Apparently, Hubba didn't realise that the DVD is now also available for rental, and is fuming over the waste of the $$, though I disagree.)

Started off with dinner first. Hubba had some high-class craving to satisfy and so we headed off to his choice, PS Cafe @ Palais Renaissance.


Clockwise from top-left: Specials for the day, the interior, pumpkin soup, linguine special with honey baked ham, catch of the day, truffle shoestring fries.

Food was delicious, though we regretted ordering so much in the end, as we forgot how big the servings were. (Been a while since we last dined @ PS Cafe.) Ended up filling bloated, though I didn't feel so bad as I had a digestive tea to help aid digestion, plus had dumped whatever I couldn't finish to Hubba. :P

Afterwards, we headed to Lido to watch our film. Boy was it terrific! It was pretty funny, with some intense moments, but what drew my attention was the actor, So Ji-Sub. Haa... and to think I once thought that Korean shows didn't match Japanese ones in terms of standard. Goes to show we all have to eat our own words at some point.

Here's the trailer of the show. I think you can rent the DVD from Videoezy if you want to find out more.


Rough Cut Korean Movie Trailer - Click here for another funny movie.

Today was a pretty packed day, such that I found it exhausting.

After the morning jog, Hubba and I rushed to complete our housework before we set off for a birthday lunch at FK & Judy's place, to celebrate their baby Aidan's 1 yo birthday as well as Judy's birthday.

As expected, Baby Aidan didn't recognise me since the last time we saw him, which was during CNY. Boy has that little fella grown. He was a little withdrawn in the beginning, and even burst into tears a few times coz of all the strange faces. But after a while, he did warm up to us, and it was pretty fun playing with him.


Judy & Baby Aidan

Later in the evening, we dropped by Tampines central for Hubba to get his library books and to shop on the last day of the GSS. Hubba managed to get himself a replacement pair of sandals (his Teva of 3 years is slowly giving way after our Spain trip) and another pair of working leather shoes (which I felt was a good steal at $69), whilst I got myself another Fancl Lip Cream (somehow their lip balm is super moisturizing and not overly greasy) and a pair of Americaya heels. Think Americaya shoes somehow fit my feet pretty well, and I got this pair of comfy peep-toes to use for work such that I can send my other two pairs of Americaya heels to the cobbler to do up the insoles (the glue for the insoles is giving way). We also accompanied KH in search of his winter wear.

Dinner was at Din Tai Feng coz Hubba had a craving for their fried rice. So the two guys gorged themselves crazy with the fried rice with grilled pork chop, while I had the dan dan mian, and as we ate, I was entertained by the male nonsense sprouting from the two in front of me who were high on their food.



After such a crazy day, I can't believe the weekend is over! Totally not looking forward to working after such a lovely weekend. Why can't the weekend start on Friday and end on Monday, in which we just only work from Tuesday to Thursday?

Yeah... super belated by one month, but better late than never. Didn't get to celebrate it last month coz Hubba and I had just come back from Spain, got ostracized by everyone who was worried about getting H1N1, and subsequently I got home quarantined for a mild bout of cold.

Pops got a flyer on the durrian buffet cum international buffet at Carlton Hotel, and we just set our minds to meeting up with my in-laws on the pretext of the belated Fathers' Day Dinner that never happened last month. Since food was delicious, I didn't take any human photos, coz most of the group had to adjourn to the al fresco area to eat the actual durians. So instead, here are the foodie pics for all to drool over.

( Pics under the cut )

Verdict: Scrump-licious! Worth the $$$. Even a non-durian fan like me (got a phobia of durians after falling sick with stomach flu due to over-consumption), I still enjoyed the durian desserts very much!
Place: Cafe Vic @ Carlton Hotel

Just because I had something insignificant to attend to in town, I decided to pull Hubba down to town to have dinner and explore the newly opened ION @ Orchard.

First we headed to Shaw House to try out this place Hubba had checked out, Tonkichi. He was having his tonkatsu craving again, so I just went with the flow. Unlucky for me, having the runs last night meant that I had to go easy on my choice of food, so I ended up going for a soupy ramen instead.


What we had

Am not sure if it was because I was not having a good appetite, despite being hungry, or whether it was really the food, but my miso ramen didn't taste as good as I thought it would. Hubba on the other hand, was happily enjoying his tonkatsu meal, which after all is what this place is known for. Perhaps if we do come back next time, I will make sure I come back on a day when my appetite is better to try the tonkatsu.

After our tummies were filled, we headed towards ION @ Orchard, where Hubba had explored while waiting for me. Somehow, I didn't like the place. Its layout felt like Vivocity all over again, very unfriendly to shoppers unfamiliar with the place, and very maze like. Finding our way around felt like forever, even though Hubba had already ventured through the place. Thankfully he remembered where he saw the shop whose ice-cream that he want to try and we managed to find our way there whilst weaving through the crowd.


The ice cream above is Belgium Noisette (No. 5), bought from a store called Marvellous Creams at basement 4, where the ice-creams were actually frozen versions of popular desserts. This was super delicious compared to the one that Hubba chose, which was Creme Brulee Banana (No. 7), which I felt was a tad too sweet for my liking.

Overall take on ION, I think I will give it a miss until the crowd dies down. After all, although today was the opening day, not all the stores were open. Think it will take some time for the craze to ease up, just like Tampines One, which is still very crowded in the evenings and on weekends. Anyway I'm not that fussed since the only pull for me to go there would be to savour the ice cream, and purchase the super yummy Royce chocolates from Japan, which I fortunately can live without.

I think I haven't had such a crazy night for a long time... 3 places in one night!

( Picture heavy post )

Places visited:
1. Etna - 110 Upper East Coast Road
2. Blackout @ QSquare - 16 Tai Seng Street
3. Chomp Chomp - Serangoon Gardens Food Centre

More photos of the night here.

Picked Hubba up from work today after my appointment and we decided to try out something new at Rochester Park.

Here's what we had:



We also had the chilli ice cream... which was totally consumed before I even remembered to take a photo of it. :P

The food was yummilicious! My ribeye was superbly done and even the fats were so good, I cleaned the plate (with Hubba's help). Hubba's ribs met his standard as well, as he almost literally licked every last morsel from his plate. The chilli ice cream was a nice surprise. Pleasantly cold at first, you don't quite taste the chilli taste till it slides down your throat. And then wham! The chilli hotness hits you at the throat, though pretty subtly. Really amazing!

Only bummer was that pricing was a little on the steep end, as our dinner cost us more than $100, inclusive of drinks (a glass of Sangria for Hubba and a Shirley Temple for me), and of course tax and service charge. But I guess, that's probably expected since Rochester is seemingly marketed for those with deeper pockets, I should say.

My take: Do visit them if you feel you have the extra cash to spare. One should always treat oneself whenever possible, I say.

Place: North Border Bar & Grill
Address: 2 Rochester Park Singapore 139213
Tel: 6777 6618
Website: http://www.northborder.com.sg

This is my treat from Hubba, to myself, for two reasons:

1. I completed an entire week full of training for the ISO 13485 lead auditor course, including preparing for exam. Except, the only thing now is to wait for the results of the exam to get my cert and be confirmed certified.

2. I actually pulled myself out of bed this morning to go to the gym. Originally it was supposed to be for yoga, but somehow the class was totally full even like an hour before class so I ended up going for a run on the treadmill.

And now, I'm a happy, happy gal.