Saturday, January 23, 2016

Bangkok Food Review-Guide #1

So I know supposedly this must be up before the 2016 post, but then I was very busy (lazy. to be exact) to write it out... Since that happened, I don't really remember much of the trip anymore (Sorry guys:( ) Thus, I decided that this post is gonna be a little bit different. I will focus more on "Food Review" kinda thing and provide you with the link to the websites and also the addresses and whatnot. I will also tell bits of stories here and there, so just follow the flow okay? and this post is great for those who are planning to go to Bangkok and are looking for recommended places to eat. And if haven't read my past trips to Bangkok, then you should really check that out too!;)

First and foremost, let me take you to my FAVOURITE Thai Restaurant, Nara Thai Cuisine.
I have always been to the branch at Central World.
My staple order has to be their Phad Thai Kai Krob. It's a definite winner.
The texture is just nice, ugh.. I mean PERFECT. The mixture of sour, spicy, sweet, and salty is well-balanced. I would say it's a little bit too oily, but hey, it's a stir-fried dish. And who cares? It's freaking good anyway.
We also ordered the Gai Pak Panang, which is the barbecued chicken (something like satay but their version of satay). And I think they are using chicken breast and it’s actually quite dry. Maybe they over-cooked it.
The last dish we ordered is their stir-fried roasted duck with crispy hot basil called Ped Yang Kraprao Krob. Let me tell you this. My boyfriend dislikes duck because of the smell, but guess what? He lovesssss this dish. I love duck dishes, and this one has easily becoming one of my faves.

(Central World Branch)
7 Floor, CentralWorld Bangkok
Tel: +66 (0)2 613 1658-9
Mobile: +666 157 41052

So on the first day itself, my camera was spoiled. The body couldn’t detect the lens. I received a lot of questions of how it happened. Well, I was asking my boyfriend to take some pictures of me. So there was one time when I wanted to see the pictures and I took the camera from my boyfriend. Apparently, the strap was still wrapped around his wrist and when I was holding the camera, he pulled his hand away. The strap just slipped from his wrist and the camera was pulled from my hand and it dropped to the floor… Honestly, the scene of my camera dropping is still on my head and I remember seeing it drop in slo-mo LOL is that possible? Like seriously that moment just suddenly slowed down… Anyway, so after that incidence, we quickly walked over to Sony Service Center but by the time we reached the store, it was already closed. So we went back the next morning and they said that it must be sent to the main center and it’ll take 1-2 weeks. It’s impossible for me to get it fix there so I sent my camera to the service center in KL after the trip. It only took around a week and they change my lens to a new one.

Yes, I was quite sad and emotional during the trip, especially for the first couple of days. First of all, is because I have planned places I wanna go for this trip and I was planning to go to Chocolate Ville. And my one and only purpose to go there is to take pictures. Since this incidence happened, I decided not to go because there's no point of going anyway... Secondly, I couldn’t really get it off my mind because I feel that my camera is very special to me. I bought it on my own and I remember it took me 2 hours sitting in that shop before finalizing my thought and purchasing it. So, having myself cried over my camera isn’t a surprise after all. Okay. After that being said, let’s get back to the food stuff.

So next thing I wanted to mention is Churros from McDonald’s.
It’s definitely not something you would imagine nor expect from a McDonald’s, right?
Looking at the commercial posters, I decided to get one. Truth to be told, I was laughing my ass off when I get my “churro”. The person did ask how many do I want and I said 1. And I seriously didn’t expect this to come. OMG ;’D
 So my verdict is that it looks like those Chinese Youtiao a.k.a. fried breadstick. It taste very dough-y-like and nowhere near to a “churro”. The chocolate is quite bad either because it looks quite plastic-y and doesn’t taste like real chocolate. However, it was quite a fun thing to know and try from McDonald’s.

My always go-to dessert spot has to be After You Dessert Café.
Although it’s quite mainstream, but it’s one of the best dessert places I’ve been to in Bangkok. We actually went there twice this trip and the first time we ordered the Figgy Pudding, Chocolate Lava, and definitely one of the toasts, Shibuya Honey Toast.

We’ve never tried the Figgy Pudding before. It sounds interesting so we ordered one. It tastes like butterscotch and the cake is very light and delicate. However, I should warn you that it’s very very sweet. It’s butterscotch after all?
Next is the Chocolate Lava. It seriously looks quite sad for me and kinda fail, too. Especially the plating… Can’t comment much. What’s with the dusting of cocoa powder on one side of the plate? Thankfully, it tastes good and it’s Chocolate Lava… who doesn’t love oozing chocolate?
One last thing is the signature, Shibuya Honey Toast – Crispy on the outside, fluffy and soft on the inside. The warm, buttery and salty, yet sweet bread pairs well with the cold vanilla ice cream. You can drizzle it with more honey, but I choose not to, because the thing is sweet enough for me.
We also bought back the Applesauce Brownie because it looks good. And it does taste good. I believe they use the sweetness from the applesauce so that it doesn’t taste overly sweet. However, this brownie isn’t those kinds of fudgy, gooey and dense brownie. This is more to the cake-y side and very light indeed.
The second time we went there, we only ordered 1 thing because I was the only one who eats. I ordered Strawberry Crumble which is served with cream. For me, this is DA BOMB. I love sour food so yeah… The sweetness from the crumbs really balanced by the tartness of the strawberries and the cream just add a nice richness to the whole thing.

They have a number of branches across Bangkok. Check out their website for more locations.
Ground floor, SIAM PARAGON                                                                                                          
Tel: 02 610 7659
Sweet Hours: 10:00am - 10:30pm

If you’re going to Siam Paragon and you walk pass by the BTS Siam Station, you’ll definitely pass by Naeki Sushi. This small Japanese stall/shop sells UH-MAZING onigiri and sushi. YOU HAVE TO GIVE IT A TRY. Their food is packed in the premium way, it looks very neat and clean, and also fresh. I was kinda craving for onigiri so when I passed by it, I instantly just stop and take a look at it. We bought 1 Salmon Teriyaki Onigiri and Mentai Cheese sauce, too. The Onigiri melts in your mouth and I believe that they use authentic sushi rice to make it. The salmon teriyaki is good and well-seasoned and the SAUCE!! YAS THE SAUCE. It’s FREAKING GOOD. If you like mentai sauce and cheese sauce, this is the hybrid – the next level of sushi sauce.
Few days later, we went back to this place and tried out their sushi. It’s clearly is as good and delish as the onigiri. This place is a proof that good Japanese food doesn’t have to be from a famous Japanese restaurant. At this place, I am assured that they provide good food with high quality and freshness. You’re missing things out if you don’t give it a try.

BTS Siam Station
Tel: 02 658 4001
Opening Hours: 7:30 am - 10.30 pm 

I guess this post is long enough lol. I'm not going to continue any further as it might just bore you to death. Thus, I shall continue my food review story on the next post. See ya there! xx Julia 

Friday, January 8, 2016

2016

I know it's a bit late but HAPPY NEW YEAR 2016. 
Can you believe how fast the time has flown?
I can’t remember what I did each day of 2015… It feels like I’ve done very little things…
Anyway, here’s the story of my 2016’s celebration/trip to Singapore with my boyfriend and his family. First thing first, I would like to say many thanks to my boyfriend and his family for bringing me along. Secondly, I know I haven’t post the story of my trip to Bangkok, but I think this should be up first so stay tune for that!

**If you haven’t knew, I’ve uploaded a short video summarizing the whole trip on my YouTube channel. You can watch it here too.

30th December 2015

We arrived at Singapore in night time. So after we put our stuff at the apartment, we head over to Boon Tong Kee for dinner. It’s a chicken rice shop but I didn’t take a picture of it because well, I just forgot about it. Probably I was already very hungry… lol. We didn’t do anything much tonight or head to somewhere else so that’s what all we did.

31st December 2015

It’s a rainy day today – a legit whole-day rain. It drizzled for few minutes and all of the sudden the sky just became so bright and half an hour later, it was drizzling again, and it keeps on going on until midnight…
So headed out around 1pm and our first stop was Tiong Bahru Bakery (the main outlet). I ordered the Almond Chocolate Croissant + a cup of cappuccino and he ordered Original Kouign Amann.
Oh mannnnn. Love at first bite! Both stuffs are freaking good. After the first bite, we were like “should we order more?” After few arguments, we decided not to because we wanted to eat some other stuff afterwards.  The place is quite noisy when crowded, but it’s quite a nice place to chill, too.
ION Orchard was our next stop. We went to the lowest floor and get some newly opened MR. CHURRO.
Well, honestly, it’s not as good as the Churro101. I would give it 5/10. I can taste that the chocolate isn’t that “high” quality either. Thus, I wouldn’t eat it again if I’m not really, really, craving for churros.
It wouldn’t be a Singapore trip if I don’t eat the Chicken balls from Tori Q. It’s a MUST whenever I go to Singapore, especially if I’m at the orchard road area.
After all the snacks, we were already quite full. I’m the one that was full actually… But we decided not to eat anymore. Therefore, we just walked around and waited for his family to come. They came around 5pm and we went to the food hall to eat. I didn’t eat because I was still full… So we strolled around ION for a couple of hours and headed to Marina Bay afterwards. Because all of us don’t want to carry all the shopping bags while watching the fireworks, we decided not to shop today. Basically, we just walked around The Shoppes and wait.
The securities told that they will be closing the door to go outside by 9.30pm, so we went out by then. Unknowingly, we could still go out even after 9.30pm. For few hours we stood outside, we were annoyed by the every-15-mins drizzle. We were quite hungry while waiting for the fireworks show time, and thanks to Ericko, he bought some snacks from don’t know where. There were fish balls, French fries, fried dumplings, and chicken wings. It doesn’t taste good, but when you’re hungry, you gotta eat what you have right? Hahaha.
When it was almost midnight, the rain finally stopped. At 00:00am, the fireworks were light up and it is beautiful. It lasted for around 8 minutes, if I’m not mistaken. I was amazed the whole time and kept saying “Wow” like seriously… LOL. We don’t see fireworks very often, am I right? (Unless you’re working in Disneyland ;D) 
After the “ohhh-ahhhs” and even though we were tired, we made a stop at Spize River Valley for supper because WE NEED FOOD.
The fried rice is not bad, but the fish & chips are nizeeeeee. Give it a try if you’re there. It’s probably one of the best I’ve had so far. It’s not oily and the fish is seasoned very well (Don’t forget to squeeze the lemon!). I wouldn’t say much for the fries though. It’s not that good. Overall, the meal is a good energy replacement and also my first meal of 2016 ;)

1st January 2016

It was a very hectic day yesterday so we headed out rather late today (I think around 3pm?). And our first intake is CHURRO101 :9 A good start isn’t it?
And we also found this egg tart stall at Bugis street so we bought one box of 3. It’s quite good actually. I could give an easy 9/10. It’s not very sweet and the tart is flaky, crispy, and buttery. What’s more to ask?
As we found this cheese fries last trip, my boyfriend was craving it so we bought it again. And it is still as good as the first time.
I don’t know whether you know that apparently Old Chang Kee’s curry puff is very famous and I’ve never had it before. So with my almost full stomach, I gave it a try. It is okay… quite nice… but I’ve had a better one. Or probably it’s just my taste buds. One thing I like from this curry puff is that it’s not very oily. Some curry puffs are very oily and this one is not. So that’s the main highlight of it.
After the curry puff, we took the MRT and went to ION to meet up with his family. As what others would do around ION, we shopped. Though I think I didn’t buy anything… After tired of shopping, we went outside and ate the S$1 ice cream, though it’s no longer $1. Hehehehe
A while later, we decided to go home and order salted egg chicken. A funny story. I ordered the $8 and $10 portions, which in fact should have been the $6 and $8 ones. Simply because the $10 ones are wayyyyyyy too big for one person ;’D and the $8 ones are quite filling, too, for me. But it’s okay, holiday is meant to get fat. If you don’t get fat, it means you’re not enjoying the trip :p
And by the way, I received a lot of requests to share with you all the address of the salted egg chicken. Unfortunately, I have no idea where it’s located, but I can share with you the phone number, which is +6592374545. Probably you can call the auntie and ask where the place is.

2nd January 2016

We are quite early today, we were out before 1 pm. Like we have nowhere else to go, we went to ION, again… Anyway, do you remember the Strawberry and Rhubarb cake I had last trip from Plain Vanilla? Yes, as I said, I’ll definitely be back to try more and I did. This time I got the Peanut Butter Brownies and Dark Chocolate Marbled Tea Cake.
A bite disappointed with the peanut butter brownies cause it’s only normal cakey brownies with peanut butter frosting… but the chocolate tea cake is divine. It’s buttery, rich, and chocolate-y, but not overly sweet.
As I was indulging in my sweets, my boyfriend had Spicy Chicken Curry from Monster Curry.
We both agree that this is the best curry so far and it will be better if it’s spicier (you can choose the level of spiciness). And please be mindful that the portion is damn big. If you’re not a big eater, it’s best to be shared to avoid being too full. After food, what else to do than to shop?
Before going out of ION to eat the ice cream with his family, I got myself the Awfully Chocolate Dark Chocolate Ice Cream because I found that it has good reviews. 
My verdict is that it’s very rich and creamy, but it’s not addicting though. I can go crazy about chocolate or ice cream, but this one doesn’t give me the feel of craving for more. However, I can imagine it being paired with a warmed croissant from Tiong Bahru Bakery… I would be a magical spark in your mouth. I will definitely try combining it one day.
It was quite an unusual thing to see that they blocked the orchard road from being entered by cars. So the main road has become a walkway for tonight.
Really babe? Shades at night?

3rd January 2016

It’s my last day in Singapore, but not his last day though. I need to go back earlier because I thought I would have a class on Monday, which in fact, I didn’t (WTH!). Never mind, at least I have a day to rest before going to class on Tuesday. Anyway, since our first experience at Tiong Bahru is excellent, we gave the one at Tangs a try. I would say that the main outlet is slightly better. Nevertheless, I really don’t mind going to the one at Tangs, but definitely not the one at Raffles City. Tried once and it is bad…
Anyway, my boyfriend ordered the Kouign Amann, again, and Spicy Pork Hot Dog with Black Sesame Vienna, and I ordered a mini croissant and mixed berries tart plus a cup of cappuccino. The hot dog is great. The croissant isn’t that perfect, but the mixed berries tart is over-the-top. It’s sweet and sour in one bite and also smooth/soft and crunchy at the same time. PERFECTION.
We were asked to buy some jars from Takashimaya by his mom, so we need to cross over to ION and go through Wisma Atria. At Wisma Atria, there’s this cookie place called Ben’s cookies and if you remember, I had this last year during the new year trip to Singapore, too. As far as I remember, the cookies are tasty. So like I’m not full enough, I got myself one Double Chocolate Cookie. Loved it, still love it.
After we found and bought the jars, we walked around Takashimaya for a while before heading to 313@Somerset to get my last CHURRO101 (because I said that I want to eat this churro twice this trip :p)
And that sums up the whole trip. Thanks for reading this very long post and I’ll see you in my next one! xx Julia.

Monday, January 4, 2016

Annie's Way Mask [Review]

Masking is a new routine for me. I've never thought of buying myself facial masks... well, because I just didn't think of it or even want it. 
The first time I try those sheet masks was when I received an endorsement for it. I tried and I instantly fall in love with it. Even so, I've never really bought one by myself.

Recently, I received masks package from Annie's Way. It’s a brand from Taiwan and is now coming in to Indonesia. They have a series of masks for different types of skin and needs. You’ll definitely find one that suits you best.
I was told to try out their products and write a review for it. And here it goes...
(Please take note that everything you'll about to read is genuinely based on my own opinion)

Before they sent me the stuff, the person asked what my skin type is. So my skin type is dry and sensitive.
This is the first thing I tried "France Rose Moisturizing Mask".
How to apply it:
-         Cleanse your face before applying.
-         Put on mask comfortably on your face and peel off the white tough layer.
-         Wait for 15 minutes.
-         Remove mask and wash off with clean water. Apply your moisturizer or any other face products as usual.
First thing first, it smells DAMN GOOD. The moment I put it on my face, I surely know that this mask is a killer! It's really soothing and it does do a really great job in moisturizing. I applied it before I put my make-up on because there are days, within a month, whereby my skin is so not cooperating (it'll go flaky and looking gross. I hate flaky skin...) So anyway, after I applied the mask and rinsed it off (as written on the packaging), when I put on my make-up, my skin is definitely behaving and thus no flaky skin (YAY!).

Next one is the "Pearl Whitening Mask"
What's the first thing I noticed? Yes, THE SMELL. INCREDIBLE, let me tell you. 
I could literally live in this mask forever!! 
Truth to be told, as this is for whitening, I haven't really see the difference, most probably because I don't apply it as regularly as I should. 
But if the moisturizing mask works, this one should, too, right?

Last but not least is the “Honey Deep Moisturizing Jelly Mask”.
How to apply it:
-         Apply jelly mask as thick as 0.3cm onto a clean face.
-         Wait for 30 minutes.
-         Remove mask with the given spatula and wipe off excess with damp towel.
-         Wash off with clean water and apply your moisturizer or any other face products as usual.
-         Best applied 2x a week.
This thing has taken moisturizing to the next level. My skin feels extremely moistened afterwards. And again, it has a very light, sweet smell which I LOVE. It reminds me of the jelly I used to eat when I was a kid. However, I’m not a big fan of jelly mask, because I find it a bit troublesome. I prefer the sheet mask since it’s very practical and easy to put on. Regardless of that, this product gets 2 thumbs up from me.

One thing for sure, I always re-wash my face with my usual face soap after applying mask because I just feel cleaner that way. Not sure if it's a good or bad thing to do so.

My overall opinion on Annie's Way's products is to never doubt them in terms of smell and effectiveness. I know there are probably thousands of other brands, but for now, this brand suits me pretty well for my type of skin. So if you're interested in trying new face care product, please give this a try and let me know how does it do for you. You can see all their products on www.annieswayindonesia.com or visit their Instagram at @annieswayindonesia.

That's all for Annie's Way's products review and I hope you enjoy reading it! xx Julia.
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