.: s h a r e e n :.

Saturday, August 22, 2009

Yup the classic mortar board throwing.. To mark the end of 18 years of formal education, and especially the last 4 gruelling years of undergraduate life... Kinda bitter-sweet though..

To satisfy the curiosity of what was exchanged on stage that took so long, he asked me whether I would be continuing with Masters studies. To which I replied that I am working and would like to have a taste of industry first before considering my options again. And the poor guy seemed slightly disappointed, or perhaps I misread his expression. Oh well.

My parents who have supported me in all senses -- morally, spiritually, financially... Without whom it would all not have been possible. Looking back, it is quite amazing how they put up with my late nights and crankiness during exam periods etc... =P

My darling whom I'm blessed to have met at my stinct at NUS.. And my photographer for the day too! Noticed how amazing most photos turned out, like the sun-rays in the first photo? ;)

My lecture buddies for the 4 years (not including Mr Teddy Bear though)! Can't count the number of lectures we slept through together and lunches we had in and out of the LTs...

My fellow CSS Mech Engin friends! Still remember the first Xmas Celebrations when we took a photo making 'M E's with our fingers..

Must mention that my mum specially flew back to Singapore just to share in the joy of my commencement! And my sis and family flew back too! Many thanks to my sis and Andy for treating all of us to a celebration dinner at Town Restaurant, Fullerton Hotel!

Always been curious about the cafe seats along Fullerton Hotel which overlook the Singapore River, opposite Victoria Concert Hall. Was reading through reviews online to scout for a good place to eat and chanced upon rather good ones on their seafood buffet, and so learnt that Town Restuarant's the one I've been wanting to check out too! Lots of salmon (as in photo above), cold lobsters, scallops, sashimi, delicious mee siam and minestrone soup, chocolate mousse with a crunch, refreshing pomelo etc fruit punch to wash it down... And a great view of the Singapore River and VCH to boot!

- ...but i care ;

Thursday, May 28, 2009

Laksa Pesto Pasta
Doesn't that just look like a beauty? Haha... Ok I admit I think I'm going nuts, but I finally tried this fusion dish I've been dying to cook! =P Fell in love with pesto sauces in Germany, and restaurants boasting fusion cooking in Singapore have been using local herbs like the (in)famous laksa leaves you see all ground up on the noodles... Supposed to use egg pasta but happened to have egg noodles at home so they came in handy. ;) Supposed to have prawns too, but I spotted these rib-eye steaks on offer in the supermarket so that was our meat for the meal. Adapted from a recipe I googled online, and it turned out really well!! My dad totally loved it! Haha.. I guess it's still dependent on whether you're a fan of laksa though.

Been meeting up with friends, trying to watching the stuff I've been hoarding (yes, I procrastinate entertainment gosh), catching up with my reading, playing some music at home... Sometimes it feels like I'm rushing to do all I've been wanting to before my last weeks of freedom's up.. Sometimes can't believe that I'm going to work for good next week already. Not a vacation job, not an internship, but a proper full-time job.. Argh can't help but feel a 'lil old...

- ...but i care ;

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Hainanese Pork Chop
Been trying some new recipes and perfecting some others, now that I have a few weeks left before I start work... Teriyaki sauce is surprisingly easy to make, with most ingredients readily available in most Singaporean kitchens! Also tried making some inside-out californian maki, which can be quite messy hee... The above's largely following my mum's recipe for Hainanese Pork Chop -- it's as yummy as it looks! =D Used the artificial vinegar the previous time, but found it a bit too sharp for my liking so had to add lots of sugar, but used the jap rice vinegar from my sushi making this time and it's so much better!

Gingerbread Cupcake @ Auntie Shahz
Been baking with Auntie Shah too, forgot to take a photo of the yummy oatmeal cheesecake we made before finishing it off argh! Just made some gingerbread cupcakes last week too, it's oh-so-delicious with the aroma of ginger and nutmeg and cinnamon, with a tinge of ginger that's not overpowering at all (yes, coming from someone who usually detests eating ginger). Some like it cold, but think I still prefer it warm, as the insides are nicely warm and moist yet the crust has a slight crunch to it mmm...

- ...but i care ;

Saturday, May 16, 2009

Salmon Sashimi Rice @ Sapporo Ramen Bishamon
Tried this little ramen restaurant at Raffles City basement, somehow I guess in some extent due to the layout of that area of restaurants (cramped side-by-side with most of their tables outside along the corridor instead of within the contained restaurant premises itself), it seems to give one a fight-or-flight kind of feeling during the meal. Perhaps it's all planned for, given the lunch crowd that area would draw from offices around, hmm... The salmon sashimi was not bad, no fishy taste or smell to it at all, rice was slightly sweet (to Ivan's delight haha) and strewn with Ebiko bits (to my delight muahaha). The bento-bowl it came in seemed rather small. Comes with a tiny clump of preserved ginger (which we both can't stand oops) and a bowl of miso soup too. And that's about all to that dish though.

Special Miso Ramen @ Sapporo Ramen Bishamon
The portion's not too bad, with quite a bit of ramen (but of course), quite a sizeable slice of pork, and yippee, some bamboo shoots too! The soup's unfortunately nothing much though, would rather opt for the soups at the restaurants in Liang Court anyday... =P

- ...but i care ;

Friday, May 15, 2009

Full Moon Burger @ Delight 'N' Delicious
Tried this western food stall with a rather interesting menu, located in a coffee shop at Jalan Membina (which is really quite near my place muahaha). This burger comes in a Full Moon serving of 2 x 150g patty and a Half Moon version. Patties are quite juicy and drizzled with melted mozarella mmhmm... Only thing is that the bread and veggies come separately (burger's too large to stay together, or simply a matter of presentation?) so could get kinda messy trying to eat it together hee...

Paprika Chicken @ Delight 'N' Delicious
Chicken with spices and mozarella melted over it. Didn't find it that exciting, but that is one yummy albeit rather buttery mashed potato... Could almost square up to Popeye's mashed potato, though it would lose a few points in the sauce department...

Proscuitto di Parma Pasta @ Delight 'N' Delicious
Ingredients of the usual ham and mushrooms, but what I really like about this pasta is the creamy tomato sauce. Found their rendition of the sauce slightly too runny though...

Chargrilled Ribeye Steak @ Delight 'N' Delicious
Woot! Look at all that blood!! That's what I call medium rare. And steak for $13.80! Only slight let-down is that some bits of it were unfortunately a bit tough hmm...

Hot Chocolate Brownie @ Delight 'N' Delicious
Nice warm brownie that wasn't too dry nor too heavy, and comes with quite a sizeable scoop of vanilla ice cream on it too! Quite impressed that they even put in effort to do some art with streaks of jam and chocolate fudge, thumbs up for this $4.50 dessert! Generally not too bad a place for some western food near home, they even have a discount card that give you some free food with a certain number of stamps collected hee, only gripe would be the level of noise in the usual coffee shop setting, but oh well, that's what you get for a relatively economical bill for that quality and quantity of food at the end of the meal!

- ...but i care ;

Saturday, April 25, 2009

Strongbow apple cider @ Harry's Bar
Here's Ivan's latest rave... Zappel with a tinge of alcohol! Muahaha... =P Makes me miss the wonderfully cool smooth and refreshing Apfelwein that we tasted on our first trip to Germany, in Frankfurt mmmm... Oh, to his delight, this particular Harry's at CHIJMES is apparently some Liverpool fan territory...

Bailey's Irish Cream Hot Cake @ The Cookie Museum
Was reading how some online bloggers were going googoogaga over this dessert, couldn't help myself but splurge a bit and try it at The Cookie Museum at the Esplanade.. =P Really one opulent tai-tai place decked out in victorian... Sadly the whipped cream topping the hot cake slipped off just as I was taking this photo sigh... The cake itself is nothing much to comment about, but the sauce at the bottom is quite amazing, I actually requested for spoons to scoop up every bit of decadence hee... However Ivan found that it contains a bit too many flavours though, such that it overpowers the cake totally oh well...

Pomegranate Ruby Tea @ The Cookie Museum
To wrap up a night of sinful gastronomy, we had some sips of this light tea. It smells really fruity and refreshing, but it's a bit erm too light for my taste... Let him sample the lavender cookies there too, I simply love 'em! But be warned, it takes some getting used to eating something you usually associate with solely smelling... ;)

- ...but i care ;

Thursday, April 23, 2009

Mozarella cheese-baked black pepper sauce chicken chop @ Yew's Cafe
Drove into JB for a day-trip with Ji Gu and Auntie Shah.. Initially we were afraid that our favourite roasted duck stall would be closed on Thursdays, but when we reached, to our horror, the entire coffee shop was undergoing demolishment works! And upon querying shopowners in the vicinity, the roast duck shopowner still hasn't found a new place yet. Woe to us.. =S So we moved on to another town, but on the way, we passed by this area with a bowling alley which Ji Gu has been thinking of trying but haven't got to it yet. So off we went into that shopping mall establishment that comprises mainly the bowling alley and this Bistro-restaurant, Yew's Cafe. Generally, prices are higher than the usual Malaysian fare, but considering the chic restaurant ambience and quality of western food, it's still quite a steal (after converting to SGD of course, and comparing with restaurants in Singapore).

Lamb Shank @ Yew's Cafe
My order was the chicken chop above, was quite a generous portion, albeit the sauce being slightly on the salty side. Lots of melted mozarella cheese with black pepper sauce and sausages on top mmm... Would never have tried mozarella with black pepper sauce as the sauce might overpower the cheese, but I just felt like having both that day, so why not just have the combination? ;) Auntie Shah had the Lamb Shank, which came with quite an impressive presentation. It was done in a stew sauce and was rather tender, although sadly the tulang-looking bone was devoid of bone marrow. Came with a serving of vegetables and mashed potatoes.

Ji Gu & his Tuna Spaghetti @ Yew's Cafe
Forgot to take a photo of this first dish that was served before devouring it. =P Was really not bad, having the right consistency, i.e. not too soggy nor dry, with enough sauce to go around, although the only gripe would be the rather miserable amount of tuna that came with it.

Auntie Shah & her Lamb Shank @ Yew's Cafe
That's Auntie Shah getting all prepared to dig into her succulent lamb shank... ;) I would say it's quite nice place to head to if you're in the mood for some western cuisine in JB and a pleasant air-conditioned dining environment.

Iced Lemon Tea & Curry Puffs & Goreng Pisang
Next we sent the car for servicing. We were told to return in 20 min however when we did, the mechanic was still not done, so we were chased off to have some tea first. Walked around the shophouses there, checked out some home contractors for fun, and finally got some Goreng Pisang and Curry Puffs from a roadside stall (the kind which is set up behind their own van). Only 1RM for 4 curry puffs! And with really crispy skin and tasty curry potato or sardine filling! What more can one ask for mmm.. It was quite a sweltering afternoon so we headed to a nearby coffee shop for some iced lemon tea and chendol too.

Lobster in 'Champion sauce' @ Jade Restaurant
Following that, we dropped by the kampong house and did a bit of cleaning up and had a wonderfully cold bath (no time to wash the car though sadly). Refreshed, we embarked on an hour-plus journey up to Pengarang for some seafood dinner! The previous time they were there with one of my cousins, they noticed that almost all the tables had ordered a plate of lobsters, so it's time to check 'em out! They come in three sizes and respective prices, and the waitress recommended their 'Champion sauce' that's of chicken broth base and has lots of wolfberry sweetness mmm... Mouthwatering huh? ;) Finger-licking goodness that was finished down to the last bits in their legs and all..

Steamed Fish @ Jade Restaurant
They also had two types of fish swimming around in their tanks. If I didn't remember wrongly, we had the garoupa, steamed in Hong Kong style (whatever that means haha). Really fresh, and not the least bit lor gor (referring to being more tough and not easily broken apart). Lovely delicious seafood dinner that was worth the trip up! =) Sweet ending to a relaxing pigging-out trip in JB hee...

- ...but i care ;