Crystal Jade Kitchen at Plaza Sing

HIYEE!! so i went to crystal jade for dinner the other day, (a friend spotted me through the glass from Itacho HARHAR *amused)

had a window seat, which was nice, since there was NO SPACE ANYWHERE!

looks pretty cramped up man! my family got a booth. but the seat space was like, as long as a chopstick (see table for reference. SO SMALL LAH) so yes, zero space. oh well. 

food was good though, and came pretty fast, although the service was SHIT. so yes. not for a hot date. maybe speed dating, you're so close the next table i suppose you could just say hi. 

Boy (to girl next to him) : I'm sorry do i know you?

Girl: *blushes, no leh why ah?

Boy: your chopsticks are fighting with me / your elbow keeps knocking mine.

TADAH! friends.

Beef with really nice mushrooms! I loved the mushrooms!

Shioba, roasted pork. crunchy, soft, but ICE COLD! not nice. dun get. tasty, but cold. very wierd.

pork with long beans

fish slices with cucumber and pine nuts

the fish was really soft and tasty! and the pine nuts were cute to eat.

but the portions weren't that big! that's nice though, so you can order more types of dishes. =)

and yes, the queue was for forever, so take a number, shop and come back once in awhile to check.

Oysters at Redondo Beach Pier, LA, California

One of the nights when I was visiting my parents, my dad decided to take me for a drive to Redondo Pier. It's kinda nice how the pier looks nothing like the asian piers we got, very different. =)

cute playground!

before the sunset!

boats parked all around!

the sunset! such a nice glow!

the pier even had a pretty big arcade!

aphrodisiacs! haha yes, ^^last longer. LOL

crabs and lobsters!

some wierd conch.some of them were trying to run away.eeks!

 more oysters! various kinds!

ordered a few and a guy shucked them on the spot. when i squeezed lime on one of em, it kind of squirmed, i was so grossed out. but it looked too yummy so i ATE IT LIVE! and it was MAGNIFICENT! hahaha

definitely a must-try if ure in LA! and the pier is too pretty to miss!

the beach at night =)

Les Bouchons Rive Gauche at Robertson Quay

Les Bouchons is situated at 41 Robertson Quay, kind of hard to find! I walked in a few circles before I found the place "(>_<) be sure to make a reservation, the Ann Siang restaurant was fully booked! 

I had the 'best thing on the menu' which was the Ribeye, with their special butter on top which made the steak really juicy, their home made fries, and a salad to start! 

The ribeye was very tender, some parts were fatty the way I like my meat! haha, and I was super full by the time I got to the fries. My steak was Medium Rare and it came well cooked. hurhur.well.cooked. but yeah, I like how the steak wasen't over cooked! nor undercooked! and the cut definitely satiated the steak-craving. 

the ambience is nice and quiet, and the restaurant is small and cosy, about ten tables inside, ten tables outside alfresco style. great for hot dates ;) birthdays, and somewhere nice to just enjoy the night =)

Bon appetit!

November's movie: Skyfall 007" & the hot women

James Bond. easy to watch, great plot, good filming and lots of action =) I particularly like the Aston Martin. old school, and very shiny =D The plot was interesting too, with twists and a good story. alot of people died too.drama! also, spot the Omega commercials subtly placed in. lol.

Interesting fact: The running on the rooftops in Istanbul kind of looked the same as the running scene in 'Taken 2'. cept dirtier and grittier.

The movie starts off with Adele's uber dramatic song, 'Skyfall' which captures the Bond theme very well I must say. 

1) epicness

2) classy

yup, Adele satisfies both, with the chorus soaring into an awesome tune-to-run-in-slow-motion-to.

the visual effects are slightly trippy, very much like falling down a rabbit hole, so it was colorful to watch!

HOT BABES women. if you're into older women, this is the show for you. With Berenice and Naomie at 33 and 36, they look really amazing for their age (with makeup and lighting, of course). They've also got class, which is definitely important for a Bond girl. =)

I thought Berenice was Chinese. HAHA she's actually french, which would explain the strange accent. Her I'm-so-scared scene was kind of feminine and she was a typical damsel-in-distress, but the cig in her hand made it look abit like bad withdrawal symptoms "-_- hot dress, great body, and I love her gothic look. Though her murder scene was much less glam. that, was an ugly dress "-_-

Next is Naomie Harris, who gets extra star points from me cus she could shoot (although her misaim led to the 'death' of 007) at least she knew when to quit, and looked hot when she turned up for 'room service', talk about a great hotel he stayed in! haha! but she looks hot, with less effort than Berenice. hot accent.

Extra star points for being Calypso in Pirates of the Caribbean! great acting.

MEN!

So the evil guy was M's pet before 007, I like the twist how he turned evil, but I guess it's true, he was just a pawn, albeit an important one. He's more brain than braun, but his madness is his downfall. All geniuses are a lil kookie i guess, but i LOVE the extremely gay scene HAHA very funny. goes sumthin like this...

Raoul: how do you know if you haven't tried it before?

(rubs inner thighs of 007)

007: How do you know I haven't tried it before?

HILARIOUS! it's like *facepalm OKAY GUYS cut out the flirting ;) haha. but yes, Raoul's story is about a rat infestation, solved by catching all the mice in a hole, leaving them to starve and eat each other till there are only two left, and setting them free, but they both now eat rat, no more coconuts! an interesting thought. how you can change how animals act, in desperation. doesn't our real selves get tested most when in the most dire situations? not when everything is comfy.

Fav actor: Q

Uber Geek. (geeks ftw!!)

Q: It always makes me feel a bit melancholy. Grand old war ship. being ignominiously haunted away to scrap... The inevitability of time, don't you think? What do you see? 

James Bond: A bloody big ship. Excuse me. 
Q: 007. I'm your new Quartermaster. 

He's rather cute, and he created extremely complicated map looking thingy. that looks cool. impressed, I definitely was. Although his brains seem to be in computer programming only, and not real life, since he got owned by Raoul. but still cool.

Overall, the plot is really nice, sensitive, yet funny. Detached, yet strong in sentiment. Lots of gore and action, not alota romance, but its definitely a good watch. 

Bond. James bond.

Spageddies

Spageddies!!

181 Orchard Road

#04-01 Orchard Central

Discounts: UOB and Amex cards

I love Orchard Central cus it's quieter than the rest of town, especially on weekends!

and they've got quirky shops to browse at!

So for appetisers I had Mozzarella cheese sticks that were basically sticks of mozzarella, 

covered in batter and FRIED! yums, comes with salsa to dip =)

 Surf and turf! this is Steak and Crayfish, with pasta on the side, covered in creamy alfredo sauce. The crayfish was really sweet! =)

I ordered the chef's special, black pepper soft shell crab with pasta in olive oil sauce. There was definitely a generous serving of ingredients! lots of crispy soft shell crab pieces, mustve been a few crabs in there, I had trouble finishing my food because there was so much of it, but it was so good! and the mushroom are really soft, squishy and it's got that nice strong wild mushroom taste i love, which went well with the pasta, cooked al dente,  just the way i love it! the tomato sauce was not that strong, although the flavor was very full, so the whole dish was REALLY yums. and the plate was bigger than my face! haha! very delicious!

The best part was that there was no queue and I got a booth seat! on a Saturday night YAY! =) I'd definitely recommend this for a nice outing with friends (it's quiet enough to have a conversation! i detest how some restaurants are so loud I end up having to speak uber loudly!)

Bloody Mary cocktail

In Folklore, Bloody Mary was the name of a witch who could tell you your future. Now, it's just a yummy drink, great as a pre-drinks drink, even better as a post-drinks drink. It's rich in vitamins! so it's great for a hangover cus it's got all the vitamins you need to replenish, or if you're feeling peckish on a hot day. Good for brunch too!

esp since tmw's a holiday, this is gona come in handy HAHA

Some love it, some hate it, so here's how you make a glass.

Ingredients:

1. 150ml or a glass of Tomato juice
2. lemon juice (squeeze 1/2 of a lemon)
3. a pinch of salt
4. a dash of ground black pepper
5. 3 dashes of tabasco to make it spicy!
6. 6 dashes of worcestershire sauce (i use Lee and Perin's sauce)
7. 1 or 2 shots of vodka (to make it bloody, if not it's just a Virgin Mary)
8. a stalk of celery

1. Place a few ice cubes into a tall glass and add the vodka.
2. Add the lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco sauce and tomato juice. Stir well with the celery stalk ;) that way you don't have to wash an extra spoon.
3. Adjust the seasoning, to taste, with salt and pepper and serve straightaway.
   
   
   I like to use celery as a garnish cus it's nice to munch on, the lightness of the celery contrasts the thickness of the tomato juice well ;) and i like extra tabasco for the extra punch. Girls would like this drink cus it has less carbs, calories, and sugar than normal sweet cocktails, and masks the sharpness of alcohol =)
   
   
   Other ideas: use beef jerky as garnish.
   
   
   
   
   
   To make a Jappie-Mary, aka wasab-Mary (whatsup mary) geddid.. uses wasabi instead of tabasco, sashimi soy sauce instead of salt, and add Mirin, rice wine. 

Cheers and enjoy!

Lau Lim Mee Pok fishball noodles at Simpang

Jalan Tua Kong Lau Lim Mee Pok Kway Teow Mee

at Simpang Bedok

SUPER YUMMY! but the queue is super long, like everything else that is super nice. On the bright side, you can order and sit down and they'll serve it to you.

Their noodles are really delicious and tasty, with quite alot of ingredients liao,  including juicy, succulent prawns that have got that 'cruchyness', bouncy fishballs that have quite alot of fish in it (not just starch) and tender slices of pork. I suppose to cook the awesome meepok must take quite long! but the chilli sauce is really good, very spicy, but really good. On a hot day, it makes you even hotter, but totally worth it! And I'm a big fishball fan. Their noodles aren't soggy, and every bit is flavourful, and dry! and the soup they give may look clear and plain, but its really tasty! with pork bits floating in it =)

Awesome yellow noodles!

If you are a small-lunch eater, the smallest portion is good enough! though it's rather small, it's enough shiok-ness in a bowl =D ($3.50)

They even give free wet tissue HAHA!

St Jerome's Laneway Festival 2013

WHAT: St Jerome's Laneway Festival
-An annual music festival that began in Melbourne, it features unique indie bands. for hipsters, featuring hipster bands.

WHEN: Saturday, 26 January

WHERE: The Meadow at Gardens by the Bay, Singapore *YES, HERE!
-I would totally die if someone asked me to sing there. I haven't been but i hear it's amazing. got like a greenhouse and a cloud dome or something.

WHO: 14 specially chosen acts.. Here's a little intro to each of 'em, and what i think. I haven't heard some of them before so i've been youtubing their stuff hurhur. in-ter-rest-ting.


1. Alt-J: exciting new UK quartet, a group of rockers/fineart students met in school. Best known for their hit single "Tessellate", the video is a twist on Italian Renaissance painter Raphael's 'the school of Athens' with a ganstah theme and the vocals are soft and sexy. I personally like Fitzpleasure, it's soothing, gets me swaying. great guitar tones, and the riffs are really playful. 

2. Bat For Lashes: 

Natasha Khan, half Pakistani and half English is definitely one to look out for, after having writer's block, she's finally got out "The Haunted Man". A music and visual arts student, her music videos are definitely spooky, and her cooing voice and catchy tunes definitely keep you dancing. Think everyone-sobering-up-on-halloween-after-getting-high.

3. Cloud Nothings: Cleveland rocks! this american rock band is more rock, loud screaming vocals. very angst. This is for tha haters out there. This band is for you. morbid and strange videos they have. *head bang.. =S

4. Divine Fits: Post-punks to minimalist electro, this american rock band is less angsty, a lil' more raw, kinda got the tones similar to "Foster the people" but slightly more rock. Their song "would that not be nice" has nice lights in their videos. more happy, more dancey. but i'm not into their stuff..

5. Gotye : (i'm expecting the famous heart-break duet with Kimbra, Somebody that I used to know) 

This Belgium-Aussie's name is actually Wouter "Wally" De Backer. HAHA. anyway, checkout his song "eyes wide open", it's definitely catchy, and the echoes of violins are a nice touch to the rhythmic beats. "everything we had, everything we did is buried in dust" is my favourite line. plus his vocals sound so persuasive. Definitely cant miss this. (kiss)(ya know, like the Carly song, *bobs up and down)

6. Japandroids: This Canadian rock duo (I thought they'd be japanitos from the band name) definitely has a high energy level. I imagine it'd be great to watch live, and their live performances on youtube seem pretty energy popping too! I guess thats the jappy-part, the high ROCKROCKROCK-ness of it.

7. Kimbra: Checkout my review for more, but she's definitely gona put on a great show, she's got amazingly meticulous vocals. Think vintage-electrosynth. if you can't, just get you're butt down, i promise you'll be impressed.

8. Kings Of Convenience: Norwegian acoustic indie-pop duo, I really like their stuff.

I like "Manhatten Skyline" and "Cayman island". The music is softer, more sensitive, the kind you'd want to picnic to and eat icecream to. The kind that'd be perfect for you to tell a girl you love her *awww, but yah lah it's romanteek! I think they do alota soundtracks.

9. Nicolas Jaar: 

Born in NY, bred in Chile, this DJ's husky voice, trippy loops and dreamscape mixes are definitely gona put you in a mood for lounging, dancing in slow-mo, and enjoying the moments get whirled up by his beats. very strange.

10. Of Monsters And Men: 

This 6 piece folky Icelandic group has very atmospheric, room-filling echoes, definitely dancey, sing-along kinda songs. I'd imagine it'd be very uplifting and joyful! I like "little Talks" and "mountain sound" by them. It's set a nice mood in a cafe to drink coffee to on a nice cool afternoon. 

11. Polica: Polish for Policy, this is an American indie band from Minneapolis that uses ALOTA auto-tune. It's a peculiar, robotic yet emoted, soulful sound.

I can't decide whether I like this but I guess it's definitely different, keeps me listening. I think i'd like it without the autotune, but Channy's got a nice voice. but it reminds me of Justin Bieber's auto-tune. hmm. =S

12. Real Estate: 

This band's from Jersey, and seems like a band from the past, using guitar tones like the oldies, mixed with nice vocals that are very ambient. Makes me think of a car-wash on a hot summer day and the kind of music you'd sit in a lawn chair and sip on lemonade to. Makes me feel like its the holidays.

13. Tame Impala:

I know this one! I heard them before tons of times.This Australian band is a psychedelic rock project! I like "runaway, Houses, city clouds, It's got the most plays on my itunes, and "elephant" is one of their more popular one. Very hippie, very dreamy, very boogie in vibe, sounds old-school with REALLY good production. confusing. haha

14. Yeasayer: Psychedelic pop too! from NY! Been used on some tv shows! Theyve got a new album, "Fragrant World" which has totally bizarre beats, synced with effects of sounds, like those from nature, or from folky instrumentals. every song seems to surprise. I like their effects.

Yup so that's my brief description, I think the day's gona be super fun, especially in such an amazing place that I can't wait to visit. =D TIME PASS FASTER PLEASE, EXAMS GO AWAY!! Overall, very eclectic, indeed.

BUY TICKETS: here or sistic
Standard – $145
4 Ticket Bundle – $493
VIP – $350