Sunday brunch with the Make-make Girls

As do most people, I have several whatsapp group chats representing different groups of loved ones whom I try to meet up as often. Schoolmates, Uni friends, Work colleagues, Family members, etc. It is definitely a good and easy way to keep in touch and gather certain groups of friends to meet up that jive with each other and all. Too large a group usually makes it difficult to get the most suitable time to meet up.

On this particular Sunday, it was a meet up with the Make-make girls. Make- make girls? Yes, as in make-make (Makan-makan in Kelate slang) girls.

S recommended Dua in TTDI.  It's situated in the same row as Ismail and right above Domino's. Food were not bad at all. They serve a selection of Malay dishes and desserts. The pricing is also good given their large portion. I give an A for the authenticity of their local dishes. They didn't lose that essence of our local dishes like most new hyped places.

I ordered the Soto. Terkezuts once I saw how big the bowl was. Yes, I tak habis. I tried though...oh how I tried.

S, J and I i.e. the Make-make girls. 

Once we were done for brunch, S suggested we move along to Foo Foo, TTDI for dessert. Perut dah nak meletup but if dok rasa-rasa and share-share ok lar.

Choc and orange combo is always good. Don't exactly remember the name of the dessert. Those white bits are candied nuts by the way.

With awesome desserts at Foo Foo, no girls would leave unhappy.

S happily snapping at my jakun reaction. That Hot Choc is to die for by the way.  So rich with a dash of spice.

Balsamic Vinegar Ice Cream on Strawberry Tart. Again, sorry, I didn't memorise the exact name of the dessert. It was awesomely lovely. 

You can also see how rich my hot choc was.

Side profile of the ice cream and strawberry tart. 

We were laughing and chatting most of our Sunday away sampai lupa dah kahwin kot. Got a call from Hubs asking when I was coming home cos' he was already hungry. Jahatnyer BINIE!!! Tak BERHATI PERUT!

Yer lar, gatal kan offer tapau Nasi Tomato from Dua for him. That was for BRUNCH. Balik pukul 3 petang pulak bini dia! Sorry yer Sayang! Lama tak jumpa the girlies.

#DuaTTDI #FooFooDessertsTTDI

Lunch at Greenhouse by Muir

It was close to a year till both my friend and I finally decided and get to meet.

Lama weeeihh...

And the location of choice?

Greenhouse by Muir.

I didn't know there was such a place nearby. Selalu gak pass by biler lalu Gleneagles. For those who are interested, it's located exactly next to Gleneagles, Ampang. 

The reason we chose this place was we both wanted to sample their red velvet waffle with fried chicken. Sounds interesting right? Well, too bad we went on a weekday. Only upon arrival, we were informed that it's only served during weekends for breakfast. 

Bummer... 

But alang-alang dah sampai, and both of us belum pernah makan sini, we went ahead and had our lunch here as initially planned.

I love how the building stands out among the trees. Steel meets a bit of nature...just a tad bit. Not too many trees surrounding it.

So on the ground floor, they serve Japanese. 

Do you like oysters?

Look how pretty the fish is. Eyes are clear. It means it's fresh right?

The selection of Japanese food to choose from.

Fish heads and octopus.

There are those pre-packed for those on the go.

The selection at the Japanese Pastry shop are very tempting too.

Macha Croissant anyone?

Droooooool...(waist and hips screaming Nooooo while I drool)

Ooh, there's also a florist on the ground floor. Famous gak dengar kata.

On the 1st floor they serve Tex-Mex dishes. The place we opted to have our lunch.

Nampak bestkan? This is the red velvet waffle. Alas, tatap wajahmu ajer lah Red Velvet Waffle. Next time round.

To start off, we opted for the deep fried cheese cubes served with lemon dip. Ayoyooo...sedaps tapi bagi yang nak berdiet, buang idea tu jauh-jauh luar tingkap k?

Beef quesadillas. Not bad.

Nyumms...make way for the Buttermilk fried chicken with two sides. For the sides, we had grits and mac and cheese. Sinful yet satisfying.

We also managed to try their beignets for dessert. 

Hmm...unfortunately nothing special. However, I think the head waitress noticed we were first time visitors and was asking how our meals were. We gave an honest opinion, highlighting that the beignets fell short of our expectations. 

You know what she did?

She apologised and took it out from our bill. Informed us they will improve next time and thanked us for our honest views. That's tip top customer service babes!

Korang jangan ar nakal gi melantak semua and kata semua tak sedap to get a free meal. 

In our case, it was evident we didn't touch the beignets as much. Both of us had a bite of our beignets and letak balik. Too doughy. The sugar was fine and coated the dough fairly though.

Malacca Getaway

No matter how many times we go to Malacca, there is always something to do. 

Despite our regular brief weekends or short getaways there, we still can't cover everything in one visit. And we're not ashamed in repeating or revisiting places in Malacca too!

Upon checking into Estadia, our chosen accommodation for the brief weekend, golek-golek atas katil dulu jap then off to dinner. Will share a bit more info on the hotel in a bit.

For dinner, mestilar gi makan seafood kat Parameswara, Umbai.

Lovely evening...Slow breeze, almost sunset, the mood was set for some lovey dovey dinner sesh and seeing your other half stuffing his/her face with awesome seafood. Biler dah kahwin memang masing-masing makan tak control. Masa dating everything was eaten in dainty bites. Control macho/cantik. Now if mulut penuh with bits of sauce dribbling near your lips also no hal! Hahah!

Apologies for the blurry picture.

 This was the best Sweet & Sour Pepahat I've ever had. I don't regularly take pepahat, but entah malam tu ada mood to eat them. Felt like having something different. Pepahat is also known as bamboo clam. For Europeans, it's a smaller version of the razor clam. Not sure if you guys eat razor clams so I can't say for sure whether they're exactly the same.

We had a grand time stuffing our faces with these babies! Must have sotong goreng tepung!!! Always!!!

Ok, so right after dinner, we got back to the hotel. Estadia is basically owned by the Hatten Group and the hotel adjoins the Hatten hotel. Due to last minute bookings and knowing we won't be spending too much time in the room, we decided on Estadia. Not too bad I must say. A bit leceh to masuk though but so convenient due to the location being next to Mahkota Parade and our favourite Assam Pedas place is just 10-15 minutes walk away.

Takkan nak tido terus after stuffing our faces? Mesti jalan-jalan to burn some of the calories. Hmphh, tak jalan lama sangat pun. Masing-masing dah nak golek atas katil sebab kenyang sangat.

How cute is this huge None slippers.

Breakfast was included in our package. Not too bad lar the fare. Tak banyak tapi just nice. I would definitely recommend for those who are coming for a short stay or kalau family kahwin and nak longgok all family members in one place, Estadia is THE place.

Instant love I tell you. Their tiffins are so cute. They were arranged as part of the deco at the entrance of their restaurant. 

Malu nak tanya if they jual or not. I think they do tapi at hotel price lar.

See the paintings hanging on the left side of the wall? My initial intention for this trip was to find a nice painting or picture for our home. Ala-ala sketch look of Melaka tapi misi gagal. Hmpph...

This is the lobby of the hotel by the way. Love how spacious it is despite the compact and almost confined size of the hotel.

This was part of the deco near the stairs heading to their shop. Tak gi pun. Again, I love the hotel's local touches to their decor. Nostalgic and proud of their heritage.

Pagi tu lepas breakfast, terus gi ke bandar. Memang nak gi Muzium Tan Cheng Ho. Lar, betul-betul tepi Hard Rock. Selalu passed by tapi tak pernah gi.

One of the wells in the muzium. Air still bersih and cool.

 If you get the chance, try to find three of the wells in it. All of them are in the building. 

A miniature model of a Chinese trading ship.

The second well. 

A miniature of the ships. 

Seriously, it's kinda hard to imagine Melaka crowded with those ships. So many!

The is the third well. We actually missed it. We had to retraced our steps to locate it.

We both enjoyed our visit there. Hubs bought a replica of an old drawn map. The plan is to frame it and hang it in the library.

One unsettling thing during our visit to the museum was the lack of respect by the Chinese (Mainlanders) tourists. Main-main ketuk gendang, gamelan and playing with the exhibits selamber dawg ajer. I got annoyed. Hubs was already giving me the "Just ignore" look. Frust!

 Orang tukang jaga pun dah lama fed up but since it's a source of income terpaksa terima ajer. Bayangkan, drum stick untuk gendang or bits of pasu pun boleh they bawak balik. WTF! Please lar, dah visit people's country give the proper respect. 

5 mins walk away, what better way to fight the heat than by having a bowl of nice cendol. Before anyone asks "Why tak makan ngan durian?", well sebab earlier that week we just had durians so both of us nak simple cendol sans the durian. Perut pun still penuh from breakfast. Mata ajer kempunan nak rasa. Still yummy babes! Tengok how pekat and dark the gula melaka.

Before going back to the hotel, we jalan-jalan then gi makan assam pedas before checking out. Like I said, memang brief visit ajer. Sajer nak keluar KL and jalan-jalan makan and lepak bersama. 

Til' our next visit to Melaka.

Domestic Goddess In Progress

Those who know me are aware I'm no expert in the kitchen. Some dishes are good to go and edible to say the least and some are total failures. 

Recently Hubs went on an impulse purchase and bought lots of bananas. I mean lots...Why? 

"Cos they were pretty". 

Keep in mind it's just the two of us. 

Obviously it went way ripe before we could even finish the first bunch.

Friends gave suggestions on what to do with the remaining bananas and all. Out of all the solutions, I picked Cekodok Pisang. I've never made them and sounded quite simple to make.

I was WRONG. 

W.R.O.N.G.

The remaining bananas. Pretty and ripe. Ready for my attempt to make cekodok.

Banyak giler pisang kena potong. Penat lenyek!

With the amount of bananas mixed with flour, sodium bicarbonate, sugar, salt and a dash of baking powder and me trying to get the right consistency, it took half a day to mix them. Serious penat mix. My legs were wobbly by the time the batches went into the wok.

My first attempt was too watery. Though it smelled and tasted right, they were floating and reminded me of SHHH...hmmm...so added more flour bla bla bla to get the right consistency.

The second batch looked better. But huge as F***. Hahah...pardon my language, sorry not sorry.

Besar dooooh...

These were just half of the mix. Damn banyak. Gave my neighbour loads to feast on.

One fell, sounded like a whoopee cushion. Heavy and made a "floop" sound. I was lucky it didn't turn out like one of those brick like cekodoks.

These I kept for the both of us.

I told hubs the next time he decides to go on an impulse purchase, I'll be at Chanel going on impulse purchases with his credit card. He came back from work and I forced him to give me foot massages. Penat weiii...no joke.

He had a taste of the cekodoks. His comment? 

"Tak rasa cekodok. More like kek pisang. Next time kalau I nak cekodok, I beli kek pisang ar."

He was lucky I was kind enough to not give his face a taste of the whoopie cekodok.

#nodomesticgoddess #amateurcook

Kylie's Lip Kit- Ginger

A friend just came back from a long holiday from the States. With her, she managed to bring home a small bulk of Kylie Lipkits. So, during one of our recent meet-ups, each in our group bought one lipkit from her. I was tempted to buy 3 in one shot but thought better for me to try the kit first.

So during the recent weekend, I finally officiated my lipkit.

The shade I bought was Ginger. The shade is described as a warm terracotta brown. More towards the nude side. I don't have nude shades in my lipstick collection so thought I'd better give it a go. 

For those who don't know what Kylie Lipkits are, one of her lipkits comprises a set of one pencil liquid lip liner and one matte liquid lipstick.

And what better way to test it out than against our Malaysian dishes.

This is how the shade looked before our Sunday breakfast. 

I love how creamy and matte it felt on my lips and somehow it made my lips look fuller. Easy to apply on. Definitely different from the usual shade of lipsticks I'm used to.

Nasi Dagang for breakfast. 

Note that no matter how matte any lipstick claims to be, oil still wins. So Kylie's lipkit supposedly is a bit more difficult to rub off.  So much so that you would have to apply the make-up remover a few times before it actually comes off.

Let's see how it went, shall we?

Well, it did come off a bit...Buuuut

The lipkit pretty much stayed on...yay! A tad lighter but still there.

After some jalan-jalan/weekend chores sesh with Hubs, we proceeded for Sunday lunch at my mum's. Home cooked Nasi Lemak is always awesome.

Noonish, post-Nasi Lemak lunch, it came off...

However, towards the evening, I felt that my lips were a bit dry. Upon checking on the camera phone, I found out that part of the lipkit was still on. I say part because I'm not sure whether it was the shade from the lip liner or the actual matte lipstick that was still on my lips. 

My lips were a bit crackly and dry by the end of the day and easier to remove than how I initially expected.

Please forgive my exhausted look. This was taken while waiting for my Hubs at the barber's.

In conclusion, I love it. It definitely stays on but at the end of the day, like all matte lipsticks, it would leave your lips a bit dry. Nothing like a good routine of lip scrubbing and moisturising to help maintain kissable lips.

However, due to accessibility issue and pricing wise, I'd rather just pop to the nearest Sephora and get myself one of Kat Von D's matte everlasting liquid lipwands. Cheaper and easier to get (depending on the shades available for purchase of course...that is one major con about Kat Von D's..boohoo...bummer). With Kylie's, you'd have to rush online to get your hands on them, only available in US bla bla bla...leceh sikit lar bebs. But if you can get a hand on her lipkits, definitely a good addition to your make-up collection.

#KylieLipkit #Ginger 

Anya's Geomatric Floral Collection

So a few weeks back was London Fashion Week. 

Of course I didn't miss watching Anya's Spring Summer 2017 collection. Live streaming/online only though. Don't think I'll ever have the chance to see it there live as in physically be there at the runway. Nonetheless, Anya never fails to surprise and keep us Anya fans on our toes. 

My latest craze...this mini vere! I MUST HAVE IT! Only out in their boutiques next March though.

See how cute it is. And I so love the colour! Would be a nice addition to my collection.

For her SS17 collection, Anya had expanded her designs to include new styles to her collection. Among them is the barrel below. 

I love this combination of intricate geometric leather detail on the glitter blue bag.

Arghh, can't get over this lime glitter mini vere!

Oooh, look at those capped sleeves? You think I can try incorporating the design for Raya next year?

The geometric sorbet coloured designs definitely gives off this retro yet fresh vibes. I can't wait for it to reach our shores. 

Imagine going out to lunch at work without having to lug your handbag or bring your purse in hand. Kinda cute, no?

Ooh, to end this post, from 3rd Oct to 20th Nov 2016, Mandarin Oriental serves an exclusive afternoon tea inspired by Anya's Autumn Winter 2016 collection. I've not gone for it yet but if I do I will definitely share pics and give reviews. Give MO a call to get more info and make reservations, k?

#Anyahindmarch #Baglady