Goodbye Mum.....

A young man shopping in a supermarket noticed a little old lady following him around.
If he stopped, she stopped. Furthermore she kept staring at him.

She finally overtook him at the checkout, and she turned to him and said,
"I hope I haven't made you feel ill at ease; it's just that you look so much like my late son."

He answered, "That's okay."

"I know it's silly, but if you'd call out "Good bye, Mom" as I leave the store, it would make me feel so happy."

She then went through the checkout and, as she was on her way out of the store, the man called out, "Good-bye, Mom."

The little old lady waved, and smiled back at him.

Pleased that he had brought a little sunshine into someone's day, he went to pay for his groceries.

"That comes to $121.85," said the clerk..

"That can't be right... I only bought 5 items.."

The clerk replied, "Yeah, but your Mother said you'd be paying for her things, too."

Bet you thought this was going to be a tear jerker. Don't trust little old ladies!!!

ROFLMAO!!!

Hokkien Prawn Mee at Hougang Mall

The Hokkien Prawn Mee at Hougang Mall used to be one of my highly recommended food in the Mall's Food Court, however, I changed my mind, after I tried it one Saturday.

That day, somehow the chefs were not wearing their signature straw hats, they were wearing caps instead.

This Hokkien Prawn Mee store is the same one which used to operate at Glutton's Square at Somerset, and they have a branch at Vivocity Banquet Food Court. They are famous for their chefs wearing the straw hats, as apparently, it was a passed-down tradition from the 1800s.

I used to always rave about this Noodles to my friends, and that day, when I was expecting a really fulfilling meal, I was disappointed.

Somehow, their standard has dropped drastically. They have either changed the chef, or the recipe for the base have changed, because the noodle was really bland. Worst of all, the noodles used to be "Q", but it was SOGGY, as you can see from the picture.

Hai, one more food stall striked off from my "To-Go-And-Eat" List.

Ralph Lauren Big Pony Series Polo Shirt

Bought my Chinese New Year clothes from Polo by Ralph Lauren at Ngee Ann City.

I was lucky, because the day I visited the store, they had just stocked up on their "Big Pony Series". I bought 2 Polo Shirts, in red and blue.

$170 per piece X 2 = $340

The cutting is good, it is a slim fit cut, and the material is good too.

I think I am going to visit Polo Ralph more frequently from now on.

Pizza Hut Delivery

After neglecting Pizza Hut for the longest time, I decided to give their food a try again one fine day.

As it was just for myself, I ordered the Drumlets (10 pieces), and a Personal Pan Pizza.

The Drumlets - this is my favourite, thus I reckoned 6 pieces wouldn't be enough for me, and ordered the 10 pieces instead.


This Personal Pan Pizza was disappointing. The crust was thick, the pizza was dry, I felt like I was eating stale pizza, that was left untouched for 2 days.


And where was my "Hot Dot"?
There was no dot for me to gauge whether my pizza arrived hot, as per Pizza Hut's Guarantee?!

I wonder is it because their delivery / preparation team couldn't be bothered, or my "Personal Pan Pizza" was too small for their to even care?

Disappointed, because they kept going on and on about this "niche" idea in their TV commercials, and they couldn't deliver.

THUMBS DOWN FOR PIZZA HUT!

A New Sofa Set

A new set of Sofa and coffee table from Novena Furnishings for $583! Good deal!

Sakura Japanese Restaurant at Dhoby Gaut

10 of us went to Sakura at Dhoby Gaut to "Lao Yu Sheng".

This year I had 2 such sessions. One is this, which we organized for the Mid Management, and we had another session at "No Signboard" with the Upper Management, which I will blog about later.


Salmon. I finally like Salmon, after giving it one more try that day.
Its not so bad afterall. Maybe the first time I ate it, I was served the 'not so fresh' ones, thus I always had the impression that Salmon had this stale taste, but after trying it at Sakura, I was proven wrong.


Yu Sheng


The cracker

The selection of food in Sakura is commendable.

They have so many variety that we were spoilt for choices.
That day (weekday lunch), we were the only customers in the whole restaurant, so we had the whole buffet area to ourselves.

I only took pictures of a few of the food which I had taken.

Ebi Tempura (Fried Prawns)

Mock Sharks Fin Soup - THUMBS DOWN!!! Sucks!

Crab Bee Hoon - Not good, its full of ginger taste, I can barely taste any "crab" soup base.

Peking Duck - Average, the meat serving was a little pathetic.

Durian Puffs, Chocolate Cakes - Good, their desserts here were pretty delicious, generious serving of durian paste in the puffs.

Mango Sago, Longan - They have a very wide selection of fruits in their fruits section - Papaya, Watermelon, Dragon Fruit, Longan, Banana, Apple, etc... You name it, they have it.

King's Ice Cream. This is good, because usually other buffet joints only give their customers 3 selection of flavours for the ice-cream. Sakura has more than 10 flavours for you to choose from.

I tried the Jackfruit flavour, with my all-time-favourite chocolate rice, and yes, it was fabulous.

I had 2 servings of 3 scoops each!

Overall, it was a pleasant experience. I would recommend it to my friends, because the selection here is value for money.

All other outlets are charging $20+, while this Dhoby Gaut branch charges $22+ for lunch.

For dinner prices, please do check out their website: http://www.sukigroup.com.sg/

Reunion Dinner

For me, Chinese New Year is a time for me to "reunite" with my friends, friends whom I usually have no time for, that is.

This year, Esther invited me over to her house for Reunion Dinner again. This was the third time, though not consecutive.

She usually prepares steamboat and Tepanyaki.
This was only one third the actual spread.
It seems most families these days like to eat Steamboat / Tepanyaki during Reunion Dinners, because its fuss free...



After dinner, I went into the room to "visit" her many pets.
Her house is literally a "Pet Safari"!

Look at the number of hamsters she have, big and small!!!!
Imagine a shelf of hamsters!

Thats a first for me.


This is Dodo, her rabbit. She also has 2 Guinea Pigs, and planning to buy some more pets.....

Her rabbit Dodo is so cute, its left to run around like a dog..... LOL

I hope I can get myself a dog (Toy Poodle) too one day.

Ramly Burger

There was a Pasar Malam near my house, and Ramly Burger was there too!
Without thinking twice, I popped over, to buy myself 2 burgers, because I was famished!


Ramly Burger now comes with proper paper wrapper, unlike last time.


I am not sure if the recipe was the franchise owner's own recipe or a Ramly's new recipe, but I must compliment the burger for its fantastic seasoning, and bigger-than-usual Chicken Patty.

Maybe I am comparing the ones I used to eat in Malaysia, thus its not apple to apple comparison.
Wow, the Singapore Ramly burgers are damm good, but I remember pretty clearly that the Ramly Burger that was sold in Raffles Place last year at the Bazaar didn't taste so good...

Either ways, I am definitely going to get myself a Ramly Burger again, the next time I see the stall somewhere!

I love Ramly Burger. Yummy!

Gyoza no Ohsho Singapore (Japanese)

Today, I am going to introduce a very under-rated Japanese restaurant (cafe? coffeeshop?), that is tucked away in a corner of Somerset, Orchard.

Its located in H2O Zone, at Cuppage Plaza.



This was my third visit to the stall, and all three times, I couldn't not rave about the Potato Salad!!! My Goodness, the Thousand Island sauce, the potatoes, and the crunchy vegetables, simply make the salad the best Potato Salad I have ever eaten, I swear!


They are pretty famous for their Ramen. Usually Jason and Yun would order their Ramens, but because I am not a big fan of Ramen, I just took a few bites from their bowls. Not too bad.


This is one of their Side Dishes, where you can order just by topping up a few bucks, when you order a Ramen. Good! Crispy, and nicely pan fried!!!

This is surprisingly, also a side dish....

Its call "半炒饭", which directly translates to "Half Fried Rice".

Why is it called "Half Fried Rice"?

Because the portion is only half, so its not meant to be eaten as a main course.
Its secondary to your Ramen.

The fried rice here is really fragrant.

This dish was new to us. Its french fries and chicken cooked with tomato sauce.
Pretty decent, but after a few mouths of it, it got really "gelared".

Overall, its worth the visit here. They also sell Japanese beer here too.

A standard meal for about 3 persons, would set you back by around $40, with main and side dishes all in.

The next time you are in Somerset, do pop by and try the food here.

**A note of warning though, they are extremely crowded during dinner time, all week.

Top 3 Chinese New Year Goodies, high in calories!!!

According to nutritionists, the top three most fattening, high in Calories, Chinese New Year goodies are:

1. Pineapple Tarts
2. Bak Kwa
3. Love Letters (chocolate)

So, the next time you are about gorge on these delectable and irresistable goodies (junk food), do think twice, and think of the consequences.

Hereby, I would like to wish all my readers

Happy and Properous Lunar New Year!!!

Children and education.

I am blogging, while on my way to my favourite food stall to buy my dinner, thanks to data roaming.

Just a while ago, I was on the train, fiddling with my iPhone when I heard the voice of a toddler. He was going ,"Mum, iPhone, an orange iPhone."

That caught my attention, and i decided to blog about it.

I glanced down the petite toddler, who was holding on to mum's hand, just to do a quick analysis of his age, and I was pleasantly taken aback, that the boy in question was a three to four year old boy. I was surprised at how street smart the kids these days are, because I remember vaguely, that when I was three, I could probably only yak and murmur nonsensical words.

Are kids growing up faster because of the food they eat, the upbringing (more educated parents), or simply just evolution?

We can now see children engaging in adult-like negotiations with their parents, when situations aren't in their favour. When I was a kid, I had no such luxury! What my parents said was final, I'm sure most of you late twenties and thirties can identify.

With better education, healthier and more organic food, better educated parents, and evolution all factored it, I believe, in the very near future, the education system, the world over, is going to get so complicated, even parents will have a hard time coaching their children.

This is already evident in the Singapore Primary Education System. A few of my friends and colleagues, who have Primary School children, have raised their displeasure with the level of difficulty in their Mathematical Syllabus.

So, is modernisation working for us, or against us?

Sun Ho attended 52nd Grammys

Why can't all of us just step back and applaude Sun for her achievements in her music, as well as her humanitarian efforts? After all, not many, in fact no one, has broken into the US Market, except her (from Singapore), isn't it? She may not be big in the US yet, but she will. Sun's English Debut Album "Cause a Ruckus" should be officially released after she finishes with her humanitarian work in Haiti.

News in The NewPaper on Sunday (7 Feb 2010) below.

(Sun Ho Grammy Award Pic)

The New Paper

February 07, 2010

DECKED out in a black Rodarte dress complete with striking stockings and Rodarte boots, Singapore singer Sun Ho looked girlish yet gothic.

But, oops, did the 37-year-old mother slip up and accidentally expose the lower part of her right breast? Did that slit across the bodice show too much skin in the wrong place?

The picture, taken by wire agency Reuters, was of Sun walking down the red carpet at the Grammy Awards held on Monday at Los Angeles' Staples Center.

However, in an e-mail interview with The New Paper from New York, where she is currently based, Sun insisted that 'the dress was made that way'.

She good-naturedly added that there was 'no deliberate attempt to create any wardrobe situation'.

'Actually, it's (referring to her get-up) pretty covered up for a red carpet dress.' Sun said. 'I don't think I was in any risk of losing my modesty.'

She had chosen the dress with renowned stylist BAkerlund, who has styled celebrities like Lady Gaga, Madonna and the Black Eyed Peas.

Sun said she loved the leather-and-lace look.

'It very much fits my style, which is a mix of hard and soft,' she said.

The singer added that she had taken all the necessary precautions to 'tape' herself up, in order to prevent a wardrobe disaster.

'There was enough tape stuck on me to make me feel like an art project,' she said. 'I was totally secure.'

However, opinion was divided about her Grammys costume.

US newspaper Orlando Sentinel picked Sun's edgy dress, alongside those worn by big names Beyonce, Rihanna and Taylor Swift, as 'one of the outfits that captured the WOW-'em spirit of the Grammys'.

However, it drew flak from some local netizens.

On popular online communities SgForums and Hardware Zone, while no mention was made of her slip-up, comments on her dress ran the spectrum from 'bad taste', 'too SM (sadomasochistic)' to 'skanky'.

Ick or chic?

Other netizens, however, called her dress 'unique' and 'classy', and said that the singer looked 'pretty and super chic'.

It's not the first time that her sexy fashion choices have met with distaste from her critics.

In November 2003, she raised eyebrows when she wore a daring red Armani gown - with a plunging neckline - to the Hollywood Film Festival in Los Angeles.

At the 2006 Global Music Awards held in Singapore, she was criticised again for turning up in a short grey-black dress that barely covered her buttocks.

Criticisms apart, she is doing well with her music. To date, she is the only Singaporean artiste to have cracked the US market.

This is her third appearance at music's biggest night. She made her Grammy debut in 2004 and attended the event in 2007 as well.

Fancy Free, her catchy dance single released at the end of last year, clinched the top spot on Billboard's Club Breakout charts - which means it was once the most-played new song in clubs all over the US.

Married to Reverend Kong Hee, the founder of City Harvest Church, she is extremely proud of Fancy Free's achievements in the US.

She said: 'I'm very happy to know that deejays and clubbers get my music. It feels good to know that people enjoy dancing to my music.'

Her debut US single Where Did Love Go, produced by David Foster and Peter Rafelson, reached No 1 on Billboard's Hot Dance Club Play Breakout charts in Dec 2003.

Three other singles subsequently also took pole position.

She is also living it up in the US, rubbing shoulders with the superstars.

Besides the Grammys, she also turned up at the annual Victoria's Secret Fashion Show in New York last November.

'Full of pomp and panache' was how Sun described her experience at the flamboyant event the US lingerie brand has come to be known for.

Then, she was togged out in another all-black ensemble, topped off with a custom-made punk rock jacket.

She said: 'It was a fun show, as one would expect a Victoria's Secret show to be. I sat next to UK singer Jay Sean. It was nice to chat with someone not from the US, who understands how difficult it was to break into the industry here.'



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Sun lends helping hand in Haiti

THERE'S Sun Ho the singer. And there's Sun the humanitarian, who goes the extra mile to fix broken spirits.

Despite her hectic schedule, she spent nearly a week in Haiti last month, where she participated in aid efforts for earthquake victims.

She had SMS-ed her close friend, rapper-producer Wyclef Jean, immediately after she heard of the tragedy. Haitian-born Jean, 37, started Yele Haiti, a grassroots movement to build global awareness for Haiti and has already raised millions for the victims.

According to Sun, he was 'on the ground in Haiti the day after the quake'.

'I was heartbroken because I knew how much he loved his country and his people,' she continued. 'I told him I was going to try to pull something together in terms of relief aid.'

She soon connected the CityCare team - a voluntary organisation based in Singapore - with her contacts in the US. Together, they worked to take supplies and medical help to Haiti.

She said: 'I'm quite a hands-on person in everything I do... I also wanted to be there to personally thank and support the doctors, nurses and relief workers who responded to CityCare's callfor aid.

' I felt that they deserved more than just a phone call from me.'

Sun recalled seeing a woman who had huge gashes on her face. She said: '(They) were infected, swollen and infested with maggots because of a lack of treatment.

'When I spoke with her at the CityCare medical base, she carried herself with such dignity even though she must have been going through so much pain both physically and mentally. It was horrifying and inspiring at the same time.'

(The Electric Newpaper)

Ayam Penyet Ria @ Lucky Plaza

Albert, Joanna and myself usually have our lunch within the vicinity of Raffles Place.

However, when one of us have a craving for Chicken Rice or Ayam Penyet, we would travel all the way down to Lucky Plaza at Orchard Road.

The Ayam Penyet at Ayam Penyet Ria, is really the best Ayam Penyet I have tried.

I cannot find any words to describe the food there, but one thing I can rave about is the Chilli. The chilli is damm nice, SEDAP!!!!! You have to try it to believe it!!!


You place and pay for your order at the counter first, then they will serve the food to you.

$27.40 for three of us, for a set of Ayam Penyet each, a bowl of Kerupuk (crackers) and a drink each, not too bad ah? I think $9 per person for a meal like this is well worth it!


This is the drink that Albert loves!! Its call Happy Soda, its really just Bandung and Soda lah, I don't really fancy this drink.

If you want to avoid the crowd, try not to dine here during lunch and dinner hours, if not try to be early. They are so popular that they used to only have one branch in Lucky Plaza itself, but now they have two. One on the first level, and one on the fourth level. They also have one branch at Tampines Mall and Jurong Point each. Four branches in total.

The Kerupuk here is great! Dip them into the Sambal, and its just heavenly!

This is the much talked about Ayam Penyet Ria Ayam Penyet.

One set comes with a Smashed Chicken (which is literally what Ayam Penyet means), some Kang Kong, a fried Tauhu (beancurb) and Tempe (beancake).

Go try it for yourself, and you will know exactly what I mean.

Remember, indulge in the Sambal Chilli, because its simply SHIOK!

St James Power Station, Club Bubbery & Siam Bangkok (all in one day!)

Clubbed in 3 places, all in one day, thats what I call, SIAO!

First, we went to Powerhouse, at St James Power Station. We ordered 2 bottles of Whiskey, as they were having a promotion.

The music sucked, so we decided to change to another place, and since Eddie and Sarah were at Club Bubbery, I decided to get Clarence and Joanne along to join them.

Club Bubbery used to be called Club Cherry.

Here, both the music and singers are GREAT!

This is one of the Thai singers, one of the popular ones there.

Over here, we had a Canon of Martell....

After the club closed at around 4am, we moved on to Siam Bangkok, also a Thai Disco, and this one was utterly disappointing!

The music so-so, the singing mediocre, and the crowd...? What crowd?

This was the only other table of customers in the entire club, other than us!