Soup Restaurant

It has been quite a long time since I last visited this restaurant, maybe some 1 year ago. Feeling the urge of eating something healthy for a change, *mds* and I decided to give this restaurant a chance to redeem itself (I remember the last time round, they serve us super hard rice!!) and head in to settle our lunch. We ordered their set meal for two, which came with a special promotion to get one of the dish for just only $1. =)

.The Soup Restaurant speciality dish (picture above): Samsul Ginger Chicken is indeed mouthwatering. The juice of it is not in its chicken, but in the sauce they provide in the middle of the dish! The chicken slices are good, but they are not that great. Their meat are tender and not really hard (they give me chicken breast meat, though for the price I pay, I would have expected thigh meat / drumstick meat) =p. For the sauce, I have no idea how they made it, but it contain a well proportioned chicken oil mixed with blended ginger. Placed it into the cabbage leaves they provide, wrap it into a roll and put the whole chunk into your mouth. All you have to do is slowly bite it and let all the juices flow out!! Extremely fattening, I know, but irresistible!!

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Second dish: Steam "San Yu" Fish Slices.

The fish slices are all well marinated and cooked to just the correct perfection. They are solid and tender, though I feel that this dish is still lacking a bit of flavour. A good dish though I would not say that they are the best I have ever eaten.
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This is the $1 that we ordered: Clay-pot Sea Cucumber.

This dish is slowly brewed with the wings of the ducks and sea cucumber, together with the "tau key" and some vegetables that I do not know the name of. A great combination of ingredients that will leave you wanting for more. A recommendation by me is to eat this dish together with the gravy and rice. Definitely a steal given that this dish only cost $1!!
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Third dish: Fried Batry Kai Lan with Tong Kwal

I find this dish a bit weird as they attempt to stir-fry this dish together with Tong Kwal. Maybe personally, I am uncomfortable with the slight bitter taste of the Tong Kwal that are found together with the Kai Lan. Well, overall, I find this dish to be just ok.

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An overall view of our lunch. Extremely satisfying! =)

ESE Graduation Dinner

Wonderful memories shared with this graduating batch of ESE 2009. It has been a wonderful 4 years experience with you all. May the class bond be strong in the years to come.

Last but not least, thanks for giving me this title huh!! *faint*

Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (3D)

Sypnosis: The sub-zero heroes from the worldwide blockbusters "Ice Age" and "Ice Age: The Meldown" are back, on an incredible adventure...for the ages. Scrat is still trying to nab the ever-elusive nut (while, maybe, finding true love); Manny and Ellie await the birth of their mini-mammoth; Sid the sloth gets into trouble when he creates his own makeshift family after finding some dinosaur eggs; and Diego the saber-toothed tiger wonders if he's growing too 'soft' hanging with his pals. On a mission to rescue the hapless Sid, the gang ventures into a mysterious underground world, where they have some close encounters with dinosaurs, battle flora and fauna run amok - and meet a relentless, one-eyed, dino-hunting weasel named Buck. [Source: Yahoo! Singapore Movies]

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All right, I admit, it is better to watch the animation non-3D as the effect was like insignificant? Show wise, the whole plot was passable, but I am feeling a bit of the directors lack of breakthrough. The jokes are getting increasingly old, and if this continues, I think it is time for the directors to give it a finale version, where the Ice Age finally ends and the animals becomes extinct, maybe died of some heat stroke or get eaten up by the dinosaurs. Definitely not worth to pay the extras for the 3D effect.

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Rate: 3/5

Pasta de Waraku

A joyful occasion to celebrate Perry's birthday~ Thank you Ernnie for organising this wonderful gathering. The day started with some singing of K which unfortunately I could not join in. However, I did manage to make it for the dinner, while most of the others are late! =) The group later decided on going to the restaurant (Pasta de Waraku) which gladly is not too expensive.

.Having been the first time entering this restaurant, I decided to try their "sukiyaki" which is a mixture of beef, mushroom and cabbage mixed in their special Wafu sauce. I quite like this dish as the cabbage they used is sweet and it enhances the taste of the whole dish. However, I still find the portion a bit small for my stomach. For my drink, I decided to try their "Maccha Float". The waiter said that this ice-cream was made of some tea leaf favour and I initially had some expectation for this drink. However, after taking a sip, it was total disappointment as the ice-cream are pretty tasteless and hence, the whole drink was pretty spoilt.

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Overall, the staffs are quite friendly in this restaurant and provide satisfying answers whenever questions are asked. The ambient set up was pretty good for group gatherings to sit down and catch up with each other. Even though it was at the prime of dinner hours, the whole restaurant is still quite quiet for diners to enjoy a couple of quiet moments.

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After dinner activities was a journey down to a German bar for some cold lager before we decided to hit the road for home. Happy belated birthday to Perry again and hope that you have enjoy your day.

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Rate: 6/10

Happy Restaurant Buffet

To celebrate my Dad's birthday, at my mom recommendation, we three decided to try out the buffet at this restaurant. The concept is similar to the Noble House buffet that I had went before with my class, though the price is much cheaper here. For a weekend, it typically cost $27.80++ and you can order all you want with the selection given on the menu. All right, here are some of the good food recommendation given by me:
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2. Sharkfin Crabmeat Soup
The soup is tasty and they give you a generous portion of crabmeat. Add it together with vinegar and pepper... heavenly! Definitely worth a try.
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6. Salmon Shashimi
Another definitely must eat!! Not because they are especially nice, but because this shashimi are usually quite expensive outside, so..must eat back some of money we are going to pay later right? =p
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8. Bamboo Fungus with Chicken Mushroom Soup
The soup are richly tasty and the ingredients generously given in each bowl. Though for a buffet, drinking soup is considered quite a waste of valuable stomach space, but the dish is pretty good to not give it a try.
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11. Diced Chicken with Szechuan Sauce
The diced chicken flesh are cooked to just the right moment such that they are extremely tender and chewy. Stirred fried together with the onions, I find that the whole dish is similar to the taste of gong bao chicken. I would have re-order this dish again to have a second go at it if not for the so many varieties on the menu that I have not tried out yet.
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19. Stir-fry Beef with Black Pepper Sauce
Traditional dish that is available at a lot of places. The only difference that makes this restaurant stands out is the tenderness of the beef slices that they used. I have no idea how did they do it but it is the most tender beef slices that I have ever eaten before. Definitely a must try!!
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25. HK Baby Cabbage with Minced Garlic
The thing that I liked about this dish is the tenderness of their baby cabbage. You can put the whole cabbage in your mouth and savour the moment when the sauce oozes out andat the same time, slowly chew your vegetable. A good dish to try!
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33. Mapo Beancurd
The best dish in the whole of the restaurant menu. The beancurd are cooked together with a generous selection of minced meat, carrot cubes and corn seeds. The whole sensation of chewing all the beancurd and minced meat together in one's mouth are simply unforgettable.
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To sum up your buffet, there is also a assorted selection of ice-creams that have the flavours of mango, chocolate, raspberry and yam. Indeed, I find it quite worth the money paid to enjoy the dishes that I have eaten so far.

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Rate 8/10

NUS Commencement 2009

All 4 years of hard work just for this single moment. An old chapter closed while another begins. Wish all my classmates all the best in their future journeys. =)

Last but not least, thank you *mds* for taking time off for my commencement and giving me this beautiful sunflower~ =)

Picture upload problem on blogger

This problem has been going around for at least 4 days on blogger. Whenever I upload the picture and click "done", the picture didn't appear!!! not sure what is the problem but it seems like everyone else are facing the same problem.
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Scouted around on internet and this is one possible solution that I found to upload the picture manually:
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Still upload the usual way (choose ur size accordingly cos that will be how u want the pics to show on ur blog) but when the picture is uploaded, DO NOT click done. Instead, right click on the pic, left click on properties & copy the URL (add) there. Do not close the uploaded image window. Just minimise it.
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On ur blog window in edit HTML format, input the following:
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(img src = 'URL'/) substitute the bracket with <>
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where URL is the URL(add) that u hv copied. Close the uploaded pic window before u click publish. Once u click publish, u shall be able to see ur pics.
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Hope the above helps. :) Happy Blogging

Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen

Sypnosis: Decepticon forces return to Earth on a mission to take Sam Witwicky prisoner, after the young hero learns the truth about the ancient origins of the Transformers. Joining the mission to protect humankind is Optimus Prime, who forms an alliance with international armies for a second epic battle. [Source: Yahoo! Singapore Movies]
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Great Plot, excellent graphics and battle scenes!!! The developers really bring the CGI effects to another level. It is really a feast to the eyes to see the robots fighting, together with the support of the full arsenal of weapons available by human. The whole movie is not just about endless fighting as the director also tried to bring in some comedy effect to the movie. I particularly like Wheelie as he is quite a joker in the movie! Can’t wait for the 3rd installment!!
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Rate: 8/10

Morph

As of July 1st, 0000 I am officially transisted into adulthood. *sigh* No more concession to take unlimited bus rides.

Hannah Montana the Movie

Synopsis: Miley Cyrus struggles to juggle school, friends and her secret popstar persona. But when Hannah Montana's soaring popularity threatens to take over her life - she just might let it. So her father, Billy Ray Cyrus takes the teen home to Crowley Corners, Tennesse, for a dose of reality, kicking off an adventure filled with the kind of fun, laughter and romance even Hannah Montana couldn't imagine. [Source: Yahoo! Singapore Movies]

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Typical "celebrity kick back to reality" plot, where Hannah gets a dose of being an average joe where no one recognise her as she withdrew from the limelight to go back to her traditional hometown where commercialism is much resisted by the townfolks. To spice things up a bit, the director inserted some romance scene for Hannah to find during her short stay in the town. No doubt, the movie did contains some nice songs that are quite nice. I would recommend this movie for the songs aired but definitely not for the plot.

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Rate: 3.5/5

Angels and Demons

Synopsis: Adapted from the novel "Angels and Demons" by Dan Brown, the film follows the story of Robert Langdon, a well-known Harvard symbologist investigating a murder victim, branded with the Illuminati ambigram. Following his investigation, he soon discovers that a cult group is on a trail to murder four cardinals and destroy the St. Peter's Basilica during a papal gathering. [Source: Yahoo! Singapore Movies]

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Suspense, thriller, mystery and excitement, you named it, you have it. Just as exciting as the book itself, Dan Brown has managed to work around history and religion once more to craft out this exciting plot. If you have not read the book before, you will probably love this movie. However if you have, there will not be much of suspense and mystery as you would have already knew the ending. What the show can offer is the view of nice churches and scenery around Italy's Rome and the Vatican City. So just sit back, relax and enjoy the show.

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Rate: 3.5/5

Night at the Museum 2: Battle of the Smithsonian

Synopsis: Ben Stiller returns to the role of the unfortunate night watchman, Larry Daley who continues to encounter the living and breathing museum exhibits. This adventure takes the action to Washington D.C., where things at the Smithsonian aren't quite as quiet as one might think. [Source: Yahoo! Singapore Movies]

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Ben Stiller continues his encounter with the living museum exhibits in this second installation of the series. Though the humor is still there, however, I feel that the whole movie is in need of a new direction. Capitalizing on the same concept again and again is not going to draw the audience to part with their money to watch the show. Unless the producers decides to bring in fresh ideas, a third series (if there is) is doom to fail. An average movie at best to pass your time.

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Rate: 3/5

Australia Day 8 - Free & Easy Day

Day 8 - I and *mds* second last day in Australia. We decided to tour around the places that we had miss out the day before when Joanne and Wei Khoon was showing us around. Our first stop was a visit to their LG Imax for some 3D actions!! With that experience on hand, Ice Age 3 now seem like a good try to catch it in 3D in Singapore. =)Next up was a visit to the Sydney Fish Market, where the daily catches are sold directly to the public. This is the place where the seafood are the freshest and the arrays of different types and kinds of sea creatures you can ever imagine can be found here!! Most of the food sold are either deep fried in oil or oven baked with cheese. Although they are super unhealthy, but, they are nice!

Next up was a visit to the Paddy's market to shop for some local produces and souvenirs. All the items on display here are considered to be relatively cheap compared to other places in Sydney. So...if you want to have some good deals, you will know where to look. An interesting shop that we came across that are selling only abalones, which are really gigantic!!!

All in all, we had fun in Australia, with the theme park in Gold Coast and the beautiful places in Sydney. If the weather is kind enough, it would be better. Thanks again Joanne and wei Khoon for giving us a ride to the airport~ =)

Australia Day 7 - Sydney Tour

*mds* and I woke up to a chilly morning to meet up with Joanne and Wei Khoon for a 1 day tour around Sydney. As our hotel (Y Hyde Park Hotel) is conveniently located in the central Sydney area such that most of the attractions are all within walking distance, we decided to start our exploration by foot. First stop: Circular Quay and The Rocks. Below is a map showing the Central Sydney and the attractions that we are possibly going to explore!
The Sydney Opera House across the mini channel

This is the Farmer's market where the farmers around Sydney gather every weekend to sell their products. Some of the items on sale include wines, jams, bread and handicrafts. I have expected the shops available in the market to be on a bigger scale, possibly around the ones I have seen in USA where there are around thirty to forty shops, unlike here, where there is only around 15 shops available. We finished grossing though the whole place in less than half an hour.

A tour around where the immigrants are housed during the pre-history of Australia in 1800s.

Our lunch of the day: Pancakes on the Rock

Hot pancakes mixed with heavenly chocolate ice-cream and specially in-house maple syrup! Delicious =)

After lunch, we proceed to explore around the Sydney CBD area. The picture above is taken inside the Queen Victoria Building, where all the high scale boutiques are located.

I forgot what this building is called, it is either the Town Hall or St Andrew Cathedral.

I speak no evil, see no evil and hear no evil. =)

The Market City, where the Paddy Market is located. In there, you can find all the things that you need. Souvenirs, local products, towels, jackets and even nuts all at bargain price!

The LG IMAX, a 3D experience that you have never experience before.

This is the Pyrmont Bridge located in the Cockle Bay inside the Darling Harbour. The day that we came, they are celebrating the Darling Harbour 21st Anniversary. Expect lots of fireworks and nice performances starting in the evening.

Do you believe if I say that this is supposed to be a bowling alley + pool entertainment center? Looks like they are throwing a party here, where beer and chips are everywhere. If only Singapore has such services. Hah.

Our dinner for the day: pork and lamb ribs at the Hurricane Grill. Guaranteed 100% full if you managed to finish the whole stack of ribs!

The night scene of Darling Harbour

And the celebration of Darling Harbour 21st Anniversary is underway! =)

Thank you again to Joanne and Wei khoon for sparing their time to show us around the wonderful Sydney~ =)

Live Life Online Anywhere with SingTel BroadBand

When the going gets tough, maybe sometimes to the point of excruciating difficulties. Wouldn't it be nice to view some funny youtube videos, see some funny advertisement or even watch a short comedy to cheer you up? Live Life Online Anywhere with SingTel BroadBand on Mobile Youth Plan! Visit www.singtel.com/youth for details.

Australia Day 6 - To the suburb: Homebush!!

It was rise and shine again early in the morning to catch the train to go to the factory outlet located in Homebush. As the shops in Australia closed rather early in the day (10am - 7pm), no time must be lost if we ever wanted to visit all the shops located in the outlet. Based on our past experiences in USA, this will probably take up a whole day. A picture of the Homebush train platform. It was simple and equipped with just the bare minimum facilities. Even the time where they announced the arrival of the train was all done by turning the minute and hour hands of the clock by hand!!

Believe it or not, there was no gantry located in this station, so literally, you can ride the train for free, unless you are caught by the train inspector or you found yourself stuck behind the gantry at your destination. =p

A plan view of all the shops located in the factory outlets. At last, this outlet have a shop that sells some decent food that is really Chinese!

One interesting fact: Although Giordano is considered the average apparel brand in Singapore, but in Australia, they are branded!! However, sadly, most of the branded shops that we went into sell clothes that we considered are really not that cheap (unlike USA, they can be rather cheap, going as low as US$10 a piece, but no such thing here...) Even the Ralph Lauren only sells polo tees that are plain!! Where is their strips?? At the end of the day, my only haul is a long sleeve shirt from Timberland at AUD$50.