Sahaja and Sawah Villa Retreat & Spa @ Bali and Beers!

Bali was my next destination just after 2 days I came back from Langkawi. For the past 1 month, it had been really a hectic travelling schedule from Belgium to Singapore, then home and a day trip to Malacca followed by 4 days in Langkawi. Bali was an impromptu trip for my sisters and mom because my sister has 2 weeks of "holiday" before her new job commences and she decided to be generous and paid for our accommodation.  

But of course a last minute air ticket is not cheap. Air Asia gives a better flight schedule and we each paid RM1000 for the air ticket to Bali which normally could have been much less if we book it earlier. It was mom's first trip by Air Asia and she hates it already. I guess at her age, Air Asia is not a friendly airline for her. I missed their Pak Nasser Nasi Lemak onboard (not that it tastes very good but it's always the dish I will order for my flights on Air Asia) and I counted that they gave me 7 miserable peanuts on my rice dish. If you order it onboard, it's going to cost you RM15... gone are the days when it costs RM10.

Anyways, it's just a 3-hour-flight and I don't have much complaint. Yiling booked us a Villa at Sahaja and Sawah located in the Tabanan area for 5 days 4 nights. She managed to get the villa at a good deal through Groupon and we thought it was a good idea to give it a try. But what we didn't know is that the journey from the airport to the villa took us 2 and a half hours and with the addition of poorly maintained roads towards the villa at the paddy field area, we were bumping on the car seats for half an hour. I really hope that their government would do something about those roads.

After such a bumpy ride, we were relieved that we finally arrived at Sahaja and Sawah which is a boutique retreat that offers a beautiful view of the Tabanan paddy fields. There's an air of tranquillity at the retreat and it's no surprise that this area is used as a shooting location for "Eat, Pray, Love".

The consolation to such a long and bumpy journey would be their helpful and smiling staff. They were very nice in introducing the place and also helping us with our bags and luggages. We were given the end Villa and there are only 4 units of the Indah Villa with 2 bedrooms. It has a very nice view of the paddy fields and a faraway beach (which is not for suitable for swimming). All the Villas are decorated in Balinese style furnitures and lots of wood and timber are used to give it a "resort" ambiance.

Our Villa comes with a private pool (with a 1.5m depth), 2 double bedrooms, 2 open air showers with bathtubs, a kitchen and living area. The refrigerator, gas stove, cookery and cutleries are provided so that you can also cook your own meal at the villa. Most of the days we eat out (or you can also dine at their restaurant) and there were two nights where we stayed in for dinner. Their in-room menu is also commendable and there is free wifi in the villa and also at the lobby.

The Sunset View

Breakfast is provided every morning and there are a few items to choose from. My favourite is their Mie Goreng which tasted like Indomie Goreng and for a few days, I prefer their eggs, bacon and toasts menu. You can also have a glass of fruit juice, tea or coffee to go with the breakfast. The breakfast is carried into our villa by the staff every morning after we have placed an order the night before or the morning itself.

I prefer swimming with my sisters in the morning and afternoon because it can be quite chilly in this area. I found that this place is less warm and sunny compared to the Ubud and Kuta areas. Ziling enjoys sun-tanning while I enjoy swimming a few laps at the private pool.

This is definitely a nice All-Ladies-Holiday including my mom. The Lim sisters and Mommy had fun and lots of shopping. We went out on 2 days by using the transport from the hotel. It costs IDR$800,000 for a 8-hour day out and the hotel driver will take us to anywhere we like. The driver has been really nice and he even helped us to bargain at the markets and he also volunteered to carry our shopping bags. This is really a hotel with great service and staff.

I don't mind to come back again provided that something is done about the bad road conditions. This is a nice retreat away from the tourist areas in Bali and if you like tranquillity and unparalleled views of greenery, this is the place for you. If you like going out and roam around the island, then this is not recommended because going to Ubud takes almost 1 and a half hour too. 

Banjar Kelecung Kaja, 

Desa Tegal Mengkeb  Kecamatan Selemadeg Timur, 

Tabanan, Bali 82164, Indonesia
Tel: +62 361 8747489

Website

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When I came back from Bali, I immediately asked my friends to come out for a beer. I have not seen them for a few months as I was in Belgium spending time with my partner and I missed hanging out with them. One couple recently got engaged and planning to get married next year and I wanted to take this night out to congratulate them too. There's always a reason to indulge in a pint!

I chose 42 East at Taman Tun because it's less crowdy and they are my friends' favourite football viewing place. But the best part is that they serve Kilkenny draught at a good price from 11am to 10pm at only RM55 for 3 pints! The service was very good and they allowed us to "park" our drinks too. I think that night, we easily drank 20 pints of Kilkenny.

Of course we have to have some "beer food"!!! The BBQ ribs is quite good which comes with a choice of sauces. I like the crispy bacon and the chicken wings. These are definitely good complimentary dishes to the ale. Just look at the perfectly poured Kilkenny with bacon strips... makes me want to have one too now as I was writing about this beer party with my friends.

All my Kilkenny Beer Kakis...

I miss working with them and some of them has left my previous workplace but we continue to meet up even when we are not working under the same roof. It's the camaraderie that keeps the group together. It's funny how a bunch of co-workers can turn out to be great friends instead of us killing each other in the process of climbing that corporate ladder. And for this very reason, we cheers to that!

2013 NYE Party @ My Crib

Finally I am hosting my first party at my crib aka party pad. You see, I don't really live at my new house although I have done it up so nicely simply because I am staying in my parents' house which is just 2 doors away. Then one day, my colleagues asked me to host the new year's eve party at my crib and I thought it was a great idea too since I haven't really invited anyone to my new house. And I'm also glad that Emily was able to join the party as she came back for a few weeks before returning to Sydney.

I set a theme for the party. One would have to come in any green or yellow attire with a head piece. It can be anything from headbands to bunny ears. Failing to do so is a penalty of 1 bottle of single malt. And true enough, everyone turned up following the theme and because everyone wears green, it looked like we are having a "perhimpunan hijau" right at my home! Lucky no one was caught for obvious reasons.

 

And the night before the party, I prepared some marinated chicken wings to be barbequed. I marinated the chicken wings in 2 type of sauces - Honey & Soy Sauce chicken wings and the other a Buffalo Wings version. Then, I made my own Teriyaki sauce following the Wagamama cookbook and it turned out to be very nice and thus I used it to marinate the pork.

This is the wonderful present that my colleagues and friends bought for my party. Err.. are you guys expecting me to host more BBQ parties now?!! I don't mind hosting the party but the cleaning up takes away the fun everytime...

Most of these dishes are cooked and prepared by me with the help of Hue Gee and Lauren before the party. After having tasted a Watermelon salad at Kim's Xmas party, I searched for the recipe in Nigella Lawson's "Nigella Fresh" cookbook and I found the Watermelon with feta cheese, olives, mint & parsley recipe. It's my 1st attempt preparing this salad and it turned out to be really good! It's really an interesting salad and I also make another salad using lots of greens with a Japanese mayo and mashed egg sauce with lemon juice, truffle balsamic and olive oil. 

The "Hasselback Potatoes" was awesome and I followed the recipe found in the same Nigella Lawson cookbook. The secret lies in cutting the potatoes and I shall share the tip the next time when I write about my cooking experiments. It was so nice that the potatoes were all snapped up within minutes. I roasted the buffalo wings instead because I expect many guests to be hungry by the time the BBQ pit has been set up and true enough the wings were all finished even before the fire starts. I think I did a good job there with the food! heheh....

 A party isn't complete without drinks and by drinks I meant alcoholic drinks. Ziling made a pot of grapefruit, lemon, cucumber, mint leaves and lemonade punch which is non-alcoholic and I made a coconut vodka after trying some made by Michael during the last Xmas party at Kim's place. I love the coconut vodka as it was refreshing and it tasted just like normal coconut juice to my unassuming guests. Later did they know...

Since I was so busy, I only managed to prepare the "welcome" drink for all my guests in the middle of the party. In one glass I filled it with green tea and in the other glass, I had it filled with 1 shot of limoncello. Nobody knows what is in the glass and they had to pick a card from the 3 cards I have. There will be 2 aces and 1 joker. The joker gets the green tea and the aces will have to drink the limoncello. Of course the motive was to get everyone to take the limoncello. To my surprise, no one could guess that it was a limoncello and nobody likes it either! Haha... looking at their expressions after drinking the limoncello was just fun!

After that, it was time for the gifts exchange time. I like the concept of gift exchange that we played every year at KY's Xmas Eve party and thus I made all my guests play it. The rules are simple:

• every participant contribute a gift worth RM 20, and then draw a number 
• smallest number start by picking and unwrapping a gift
• next number can snatch the opened gift, whereby the person who lost it gets to open another gift, or snatch another's opened gift
• only 3 snatchings per round

This was so funny. Marcus brought a big air-con box which was so darn heavy and made everyone so curious what was in that box. Calvin has the smallest number and he starts by choosing a present which he chose to open Marcus' gift. OMG it was a box filled with 20 coconuts! After that, we all had a coconut juice party!

  

The most sought after present was 3 boxes of Sweet Delice cookie with chocolate and Hue Gee was the luckiest as she had the last number which she snatched Janelle's prized Korean instant noodles gift from Lih Yeng. The gift that I bought was a packet of Lays, Ruffles, Wise Cottage Fries and a can of Pringles!

I was also lucky to have a big number which I managed to snatch the RM20 worth of bacon from Kee Chin who opened Yiling's gift. Then Lauren had 2 packets of Tong Garden nuts and some other presents include candies, chocolates and Famous Amos cookies.

After the funny gift exchange, we proceeded to some drinking games and then more drinks and more food until wee hours in the morning. The aftermath is lots and lots of cleaning! I was so tired that I only woke up at 1pm the next day...

I'm happy that everyone had fun!

E! Pop of Culture @ Vertigo, The Gardens

E! Entertainment Television launched a new logo, look and tagline in Asia and I joined the party held at Vertigo @ The Gardens on 24th September. Since the dress code is Pop colours, I went there in my bright yellow top, my girlfriends wore orange and red. When I went to work in that top, everyone was asking me what's with the yellow and tassles... heheh... Maybe it just wasn't my style.

Pic from Venusbuzz.com

I didn't think much about the party nor did I have any expectations towards it. However, when I arrived there in the evening after work with my friends, we've already spotted a buzz at the E! facade and lol and behold, there were quite a bunch of celebrities there. These are the celebrities you see on E! and also DIVA universal channels. I saw Dominic Lau (pic above) and I couldn't believe it was him! How come he looked so "well-fed" now?!! Gosh... I'm sure he looked so much better on TV when E! Asia started.

I really like the rope dancing show that they put on. Very impressive and she even poured champagne to guests who held their glasses towards her while she hung on the rope. There's also a nail bar where you can have an instant nail design, a candy bar where girls looked like Barbie dolls who scoops candies for you and a lash bar where ladies can have a free lash extension. I had the ones with glitter and Hue Gee chose an elaborate pair of lashes. She said she looked like a "drag queen" after she had them on. I wasn't sure about the drag queen look but I'm sure she had her eyesight blocked from the top. She even had to take it out to drive home!

Babes enjoying themselves with free flow of Vitamin A. 

A for Alcohol.

Then, there's this guy who talked to me. Well there's nothing wrong with talking but as he was asking me questions, he took both of my hands and flip it from palm to the back of my hand to check if I was wearing a wedding ring. I was so M.A.D. It was very rude for him to do that and considering the fact that I've not even talked to him for 5 minutes! I regret I gave him my namecard and you know what?!! When he was quite high from the drinking, I asked him for the stack of namecards he has in his pocket and I secretly took back my card! Voila... problem solved! He can go fly his kite and I just hate people like that. So rude!

But you know what was the climax of the whole event?!! It was the amount of hot guys at the party. Besides the cute and hot celebrities from the series "Hot Guys Can Cook", there was also a few others whom I don't even know what their names are. I can recognise the guy from the Amazing Race Asia and only a day after that I remembered his name - Allan Wu. It's like everywhere you turn in that club, there's a hot guy around the corner. There's even a "Hot Shots" counter where hot guys serve you shots!! How cool is that?!!

Awww... this is so sweet..

I spotted this "cute" guy and took a picture with him. Can't recall what's his name until I googled it and found out that he is George Young, half Greek, Half Chinese lawyer turned TV celebrity/model/presenter in the "Hot Guys Can Cook". I asked him if he really can cook?!! And he said yeah and he's slowly learning to do it better.

Too much eye candy for the night. I went home drooling... not for the guys but for the alcohol.

More pictures at this website.

The Butter Factory is in KL

 Getting ready to paint the town RED!!!

It's finally here. The Butter Factory (an establishment from Singapore) has finally made its way onto the shores of Kuala Lumpur city. I've only been to the Butter Factory at One Fullerton in Singapore once and I must say that they do have a great location in overlooking the Marina Bay and the one here in KL is located at Jalan Kia Peng (where the previous Borneo Baruk Club is) and it's just next to Neverland. I guess the Butter Factory is giving them a stiff competition in trying to woo the clubbers. And maybe some clubbers came from Zouk as well.

As usual, I'm not one of those happening people when it comes to the party scene but it's great that we have some friends who wanted to check out this club after it was launched in August. The facade looks like a big retangular concrete block and the layout in the club is pretty simple and straightforward with no confusing corners.

Simple layout, nice lighting and I like the victorian style chandeliers. Makes the place looks a little more posh. Just like any other clubs, the space is tight and the tables are small - space is precious. Or should I say that they are giving people a chance to brush against each other?

We had 2 bottles of Glenmorangie at RM781++. Was disappointed with the drinks. Next time I should just get a vodka because I ended up drinking cola instead.

Whisky or cola?!! To drink or not to drink?!!

That is not the question.

Or how about drinking it the "KL Style"? Whisky + Cola?!!

Glenmorangie is not going to be happy to see this and considering the fact that I'm doing this in my fine blog?!! Oh well... when in Rome, do what the Romans do. I have a reason for doing that and that I will only reveal when you ask me why in person. Not here.

Cola - checked! Whisky on the rocks - checked! Whisky with water - checked! Whisky with cola - checked! Water only - checked! (you know who you are....)

Here they have Ladies Night on Thursday where ladies enjoy free entry all night long and drinks from 10pm to 12 midnight. They also have a Models & Air Crew free entry nights Wednesdays and then Koreans and students free entry on Tuesdays. Hmmm....

The crowd on Friday was very good but the people only started to fill up the place at around 11+ to 12 midnight. We left the place at about 2+ and it's still buzzing.

Cool champagne bucket with LED lights. I want to have that bucket too!

Overall, The Butter Factory is a nice club and I think right now the clubbers are in the age range of mid twenties to mid thirties. Hopefully they maintain the standards and the quality of the club and it wouldn't turn into an Ah Beng place. Cheers!

The Butter Factory

The Butter Factory KL is located at:

#1 Jalan Kia Peng, 50450 Kuala Lumpur

Tel : +603 - 2141 9998

Fax : +603 - 2141 0998

Dawn to Dusk @ Sands Skypark // Sky on 57 // Ku De Ta

Have you ever tried to spend a day on a sky deck of a hotel? It is not impossible to spend the whole day on a 380-metre long rooftop deck which spans across 3 skyscrapers of Marina Bay Sands on the 57th floor. If you really want to know how big it is, it's actually the size of 3 football fields connected end to end. I might sound like a crazy woman but I ain't one yet!

Morning Swim @ Sands Skypark

The day for me started at 7am where I forced myself to get out from the comfy bed, put Bangsarbabe on the line, adorn my bikini and head towards 57th floor. How about a swim at the 150m long infinity pool at 7.30 in the morning? It was pretty chilling in the morning BUT if I had not taken the swim at that hour, I'll never have a chance to due to the hectic schedule and crowd.

Guest hotel keycards are needed to access Sands Skypark. If you're visiting the restaurants on 57th floor, you'll need to get access cards from the MBS lobby for non-staying-guests.

Let me warn you, this is probably the most-photographed pool as you can see everyone here is swimming with an iPhone or camera. It's not a place to do your laps but rather a place where photographs are a must! The pool opens at 7am and closes at midnight and mornings are the best time to have a swim here and to enjoy its bird's eye view of the city.

Morning Breakfast @ Sky on 57

At 9am, we were at one of  the Celebrity Chef's restaurant by Chef Justin Quek for breakfast and then have a chat with Tamir Shanel, Vice-President for the overall F&B operation at MBS on just about anything we want to know about the restaurants and its operations of the hotel.

We were greeted with Chinese-doll-like images on these beautiful plates as we entered the room.I thought we would be using these plates to dine but those are just for deco as the staff collected the plates when they served us our breakfast. Looks like they don't trust us with these beautiful china.

Clockwise from top left: 1. Tonkotsu Ramen - "Char Siu" Pork Ramen, seaweed, soft-boiled egg and leeks. 2. Slow-Cooked Organic Eggs - Sauteed mushroom, spanish ham and chicken jus. 3. Laksa - thick rice vermicelli with spicy coconut broth. 4. Egg "Benedict".

Apparently one of the must try here is Chef Justin's Laksa. According to Sue Lynn, it's like the Laksa Katong style but this one here is more flavourful and the taste of coconut is stronger. However, I have one complaint - the bean sprouts are just too thin! They need to get some juicy ones from Ipoh. Justin did told us that of course the laksa at his restaurant could not be compared with the stalls as the price determines the quality of the ingredients that you are going to put into the cooking. Breakfast is available at Sky on 57 for S$38++ a person with a selection of one breakfast dish and a cup of Vittoria Gourmet Coffee or a Gryphon Selections of Fine Tea.

The Pirramimma, Marina Bay Sands' own bottling of red & white wines.

While we indulge in our delectable breakfast which comprises baskets of freshly baked breads and a platter of an array of tropical fruits, we had the chance to ask Tamir on just anything! He joined MBS in March 2009, the year it was opened bringing over 25 years of experience. It's just amazing that this man here has a team of 2000 staff handling 60 different food concepts in a 1.2m square feet of F&B space. On the latest developments of the F&B section of MBS, he let us on a secret - one more Celebrity Chef restaurant will be introduced soon. This would be an Asian chef who has been running a Michelin-star restaurant but he ain't revealing the name of the chef! To Tamir, "food is so creative, it's like an art" and there's never a limited number of artists. Therefore, under his leadership, the menu is a constant evolution and he continues to seek iconic, highly recognised restaurants, unique and interesting restaurants to add to the already gourmet heaven in MBS.

Come in early January 2013 would be a 3-day Epicurean Market where they hope to hold it annually to encourage people from all walks of life to come and sample the food of every restaurant in MBS for a nominal ticket fee. This event would be marketed in late November, so gourmands out there, do take note!


Lunch @ Sky on 57

Of course we didn't have lunch right after breakfast. We did something interesting and I shall only reveal it soon as it's probably one of MBS' best kept secrets. Anyways, coming back to Sky on 57, it's helmed by Singaporean Chef Justin Quek, who has a take on traditional Asian and local cuisine - using premium ingredients, refined techniques and served with a hearty dose of Asian hospitality. It's a place where you can bring your overseas guest and wow them with the local cuisine admist stunning views from the highest point of MBS. Offering an unparalleled vista in dining be it night or day, this is the place to go!

 
We were quite lucky to be able to catch Justin in his restaurant. You'll be surprised that Chef Justin is quite a friendly and chatty chap. There's so few airs about him and he got comfortable with us eventhough we have just met for a minute or two. I can see the passion he has for the perfection of his food and his offerings such as his own wine labels and even cigars.

He mesmerized us with his stories and more importantly, his food!

Demitasse of fresh mushroom cappuccino. Served in an espresso cup, I wished I can have a bigger cup! It's one of the most refined "mushroom soup" I've had. Light textured, foamy & smooth, packed with fresh mushroom and earthy flavours with mushroom bits on the finish.

Slow cooked organic egg. With artichoke puree, foie gras emulsion and runny egg. I love the sauce which has robust earthy and nutty flavours from the mushroom.

 Oriental Seafood Fried Rice "Mui Fan". The rice was wok-fried with egg, and then immersed in a light starch broth with asparagus, big scallops, grouper fillets, tiger prawns and bok choy. I love the silky texture of the starchy broth which resembled the porridge except that the rice was still in perfect grain and slightly burnt on the edges due to the frying. Scallops were a little overcooked but the prawns were just juicy, succulent and fresh!

 

Australian lamb cutlet. Served with wok-fried julienne vegetables and tapenade jus. Perfectly grilled to a medium, tender and juicy.

Jack Fruit Tart with Crumble. Paired with cream anglaise and accacia honey ice-cream. Although I'm not a dessert-kinda-girl, I have to give this a try. I love the filo pastry that was so crispy and went crumbly when I sank my teeth into it. The tart has a base of jack fruit and topped with red raspberries. Goes extremely well with the honey ice-cream. I thought I would die of sugar rush but I didn't and I've even managed to finish up the dessert. For that, I deserved a pat on my back.

Gosh! Writing all these at 12 midnight makes me hungry especially when I didn't have any dinner tonight. My eyes are squinting already but I am determined to write my longest blog post ever on this historical day.

Cocktails @ Outdoor Terrace of Sky on 57

With Joyce sipping on cocktails & other media members.

I can't count the number of times I've been stepping into Sky on 57. At 4pm, we are already on happy hour at the pinnacle of pleasure and prestige on the highest floor of MBS. This is also the place to savour an exquisite pairing of Krug Grande Cuvee and steamed Foie Gras Xiao Long Bao for a limited time only at S$88.

 There's no lack of good drinks here. See those Cristal bottles?!!

 Sky on 57 has a total seating capacity of 240 seats in the entire venue. That includes 150 seats in the main restaurant and 90 seats at the outdoor terrace.

Signature cocktails - Pink Gin Asiana, Raspberry & Nutmeg Martini, and Mango Tango. 

All for $18++.

Bar Menu - Clockwise from top right : 1. Wok-Fried US Kurobuta Pork fillet in black pepper sauce (S$20) 2. Croque Monsieur with classic French ham and Gruyere cheese sandwich and potato chips in wasabi flavour (S$22) 3. Sauteed King Prawn with Chilli Sauce "Singapore style" (S$49). Time: 2.30pm - 11.45pm

I like all the dishes served during our cocktail session particularly the Croque Monsieur (minus the wasabi potato chips). What I don't get is Singapore's rave about the wasabi-flavoured chips. Why?!! Anyways, I wished I could get some of these finger food in the KL bar scene too.

Do you know that they even provide binoculars for your to appreciate its panoramic sky view. Ask and you shall be granted!

Night Cap @ Skybar KU DÉ TA

One of the best places to have a drink at night would be the Skybar at KU DÉ TA due to its iconic bar that is perched on the obeservation deck of Marina Bay Sands. You get music, DJ, panoramic views and a long list of drinks.

Just remember to get the access card from the lobby of Tower 3 if you are not a staying guest. There's cover charge of S$38 on Fridays and Saturdays after 9pm which does not come with any drinks.

The drinks aren't too expensive. Cocktails are priced from S$22 and above and I had a glass of Suntory Hibiki 17yo for S$20. The bartenders are very nice people as well and of course nothing beats the view. This is really a happening drinking scene in Singapore!

 Sue Lynn looking all posh and pretty for the party!

You can really spend the whole day on Sands Skypark! I've not even mentioned the Chocolate Buffet that one could indulge in the afternoons at The Club @ Skypark. I'm glad I've tried my best to summarize everything that I can do on 57th floor in one post. The post could be longer but I'm having a difficult to keep my eyes open. Good night peeps!

Marina Bay Sands

57th Floor

10 Bayfront Avenue, 

Singapore 018956

Tel: +65-6688 8868

Website