Gosh!  It’s really taking a little too long isn’t it?  The worst part about it is, Cycle & Carriage had the cheek to say once it’s ready, we must collect it immediately or they’ll charge a certain daily fee for “storing” the car for us.  Where’s the fairness in this?  Are we supposed to keep our schedules free for Cycle & Carriage so we can run down to collect the car at their beck and call, whim and fancy?  Disgusting!

——————

[UPDATE]

Called the car agent and asked when when can we collect the car.  I made my point clear that even though Cycle & Carriage gives us 3 days to collect the car (before levying the “storage fee”), it doesn’t mean we will be free every weekday night to entertain their request.  We may have work functions to attend to, etc. 

I also told her that we need to use both cars this weekend and waiting 3 weeks to get the car is not acceptable.  The agent said that this is a normal timeframe but I said I’m not familiar with how Kia/Cycle & Carriage does things ‘cos I don’t get such crappy service from Volkswagen or Tan Chong. 

I asked the agent if there’s anyone I can speak to to escalate this matter.  She said no.  So I asked her, if I wanted to write a complaint letter, who can I address it to?  She evaded my question and said she’ll chase the delivery folks again.  I ended the call in a very calm tone, telling her to please help check on the delivery and if it’s not possible, then give me the name of someone I can address my complaint letter to.

Mid-way through typing this update to my earlier post, the car agent called.  Our car is ready for collection.

Pinky’s in front and Horlicks is lying behind him.  Weather’s just too hot in Singapore for them to get up to do anything. 

This odd structure was put together by my dad.  Funny looking it may be, but it’s Pinky and Horlicks’ playhouse.  They really enjoying exploring all levels.

Here’s a pic of the stealth, “ninja assassin” Coffee hiding in the shadows.  I had to use the flash on my hp camera in order to take a pic of him!

I have some really cute videos of Pinky and Horlicks creating havoc inside the house but I’m too tired to retrieve and upload them to youtube.  Will do it another night.  Sleepy…

Humus and freshly baked pita bread (I think it was pita bread – I’m not absolutely sure but it was yummy for sure.  The texture of the bread was light and slightly toasted.  Wasn’t tough or chewy at all).  The humus was ok… not fantastic but the serving was very generous and it was a good starter to have.

Our main courses. 

Left: Adana Kebap (chicken) – spicy minced chicken meat grilled on a skewer.  Well marinated and very tasty.  Goes great with the rice and slightly sweet onions.  If you love chilli like me, you won’t miss out walloping the grilled chilli that came with it.  Loved this!!

Right: Shish Kebap (lamb) – the meat was reddish on the inside so I didn’t try this (I’m squeamish when it comes to red meat that’s not fully cooked).  Iceman assures me, however, that the lamb was very tender and well flavoured.  No worries about it being pungent at all.  The sides were the same as mine so I assure you they were good.

We had my favourite Kunefe for dessert.  This alone, is worth going back for.  The shreds of pastry flakes baked to a crisp, filled with unsalted mozzarella cheese and served with honey syrup and cream.  Too marvellous for words.

Seeing the well done up interior and elegant setting, I think the East Coast Deli Turk may be the main branch but I didn’t ask.  Turkish music played in the background while we were there and I was pleased that the music was audible but not too loud which made conversation easy.  Whatever the case, this place is worth revisiting! 

For more information, do check out their website at http://eastcoast.turkishcuisine.com.sg/index.asp.

Amen!

Well, for those who don’t remember, or perhaps just forgot… the Hokkien version was by… Cai Lizhang!  Heh.  This was the brainchild of the original artistic director who came up with the ad campaign, Liang Weifeng (if my sources are correct).

Here’s the English & Hokkien version of the ad for your listening.  T.G.I.F.!

Simi Diam Siah?

I then asked myself who is my favourite singer?  I guess I’m a great fan of David Tao because he sings well, writes great songs and produces excellent music.  He’s also a very good live entertainer and speaks fluent English & Mandarin (language abilities always impress me). 

I can’t really decide, however, if my favourite singer is David Tao, or a local singer who has since disappeared from the scene – Cai Lizhang.  I’ve sort of forgotten about Lizhang ‘cos he has never released a solo album and I used to listen to him live at Muchuan.  That said, he was really really funny in all the live sessions, and I really love his voice. 

Anyway, the end of Feb was Lizhang’s birthday and so to wish my idol a Happy Birthday, here’re 2 songs sung by him for your listening pleasure.

疯了

每次醒来

Happy Birthday Lizhang!!

1. CHE’S CANTONESE RESTAURANT

Add: 4/F, The Broadway, 54-62 Lockhart Road, Wan Chai, Hong Kong

Tel: 852 2528 1123

This has gotta be the best char siew pau ever!  The buttery bun is absolutely light & crisp and goes unbelievably well with the sweet char siew inside.  Iceman and I first tried this in 2007 and I made Azure go back to the restaurant on this trip just for the char siew pau!

The egg tart is also marvellous.  The pastry is light and texture flaky.  The egg custard is a little wobbly in the centre and melts in the mouth.

The har gow was also delicious.  The prawns were fresh and crunchy and the filling was so well marinated they were heavenly – and coming from someone who usually skips eating prawns ‘cos I don’t like them, you gotta believe me when I say they’re GOOD!

This is Che’s special meat dumpling with bamboo shoot.  I can’t remember the official name for it but it’s the first item on the dimsum menu.  The outer layer of the dumpling is very thin and crispy.  The inner layer of the skin is a little sticky, mildly sweet and chewy.  The pork and bamboo filling was wonderfully savoury and the combination was great.

This is the char siew cheong fun.  The cheong fun is silky and thin while the char siew is lean.  It was good, but not as yummy as the prawn cheong fun.  Once again, I was surprised at how delicious the prawn cheong fun was ‘cos I usually hate prawn.  It was so good… we walloped it before I remembered I was suppose to take a photo…

This is the pau with sweet custard filling and bits of salted egg.  The caramelised custard was quite good but it could probably do with a few more bits of salted egg as the overly sweet pau got a bit jelat (腻 – a little too cloying).

We also had the siu mai and their golden pan cake – both were ok but nothing to shout about.

2. TONG TAI SEA FOOD RESTAURANT (along Temple Street)

We originally wanted to check out this noodle place that Azure got from some guide book but didn’t quite make it there – we got distracted by this seafood place which Iceman and I ate at in 2007 and decided to have dinner here instead.  Heh.  We didn’t manage to order a lot as there were only 2 of us but food is about the quality… not quantity!!

We had the squid (aka sotong) fried with salt and pepper and this was soooooooooo sedap!  I suspect there was a dash of curry powder in the dish but whatever it was, the sotong was terrific especially when dipped in the vinegar that came with the dish.

We also had razor clams stir fried with black beans & a bit of chilli.  This was tasty but I would’ve preferred it if it were a bit spicier.

To ease our guilt from pigging out, we also ordered a plate of chye sim cooked with garlic – it was good too!

This is a pic of a very satisifed Azure.  Haha.  We took a short walk at the night market after that and that’s when I saw the fake iPhones from China.  Was very tempted to buy one given how it has more functions than the real iPhone.  Haha.  It was cheap you know – only HKD500.  That’s like SGD90!!

3. KAM MOON KOK (opposite BP International House along Austin Road, near Jordan MTR)

This is my favourite cha chan teng (茶餐厅) in the whole of HK.  Azure and I first chanced upon it on our first trip together in 2002 and I’ve returned to eat here every time I visit HK.  The milk tea is so smooth!!  Even if you leave it sitting untouched for a period of time, the milk remains well blended in the tea. 

The spicy pork cube noodles (五香肉丁面) is also fabulous.  After you’ve tried it, you can never step into a HK cafe in Singapore for the same dish.  The pork cubes are spicy and salty and they retain the taste even after being submerged in the soup.  *Slurp*!  Iceman loved it when we had it back in 2007… and Azure is fan now too!  (She had it twice on this trip).  Hehe.

Another must have for me is the French toast (西度斯 – sai tou xi – not sure how to spell the Cantonese words).  The slices of bread are buttered and dipped in egg before being fried.  The edges of the bread are crispy and the centre is soft.  The secret ingredient is the peanut butter in between!  Served with a splash of buter on top and a container of maple syrup for you to drown the toast in, this is fantastically delicious!

4. MAK’S NOODLE LTD

Add: G/F, 44 Jardine’s Bazaar, Causeway Bay, H.K

Tel: 852 2895 5310

I first tried the wanton noodles here with Azure back in 2002.  Am glad I had the chance to eat it again this trip.  I had the shui jiao soup this time.  The broth is tasty and the dumplings had a nice succulent bite.  Really yummy.  This place is going into my list of “must eats” for my next trip!

5. Jenny’s Bakery

I initially promised my colleagues I’ll buy a tin of cookies from Jenny’s Bakery but they were closed!  Twice!  Azure and I popped by the branch at Melbourne Plaza around 6pm+ on Friday and there was a notice saying that everything was sold out and so the shop was closed.  We returned hoping to buy the cookies on Sun but they were closed again!  Boohoohoo.  I really love the cookies here!

6. Xu Liu Shan / Fa Ji

We visited almost every Xu Liu Shan we saw.  We had dessert every lunch and dinner!  *Faints*.  At first I thought I was the OCD one… but now I think not. 

We had mango drinks / desserts so many times that I decided not to post any photos.  Ok… to be honest, I slurped everything down too fast so I didn’t get a chance to take any photos.  Haha.  But I did take some photos of other desserts available at Xu Liu Shan.

Left: Walnut & Sesame paste

Right: Boiled pear, dates and I can’t remember what else… hehe.

7. Cheung Hing Coffee House

This cha chan teng is supposed to be popular with celebrities.  I thought the breakfast was ok… but not fabulous.  Didn’t see any celebrities either.  Instead, we were treated to the fire alarm going off 3-4 times.  I sort of suspect it was a ploy to get customers out of the shop..

8. Shopping Haul!

Left: A belt from Esprit.

Right: (Top Row) – Top + slip from Giordano Ladies, boots from Island Beverly (really comfortable!  Love them!), purple mouse shoes from… some shop at Tsim Sha Tsui (a little tight for my right foot unfortunately), brown shoes from Argyle Centre, black top from ATO (another shop at TST area).

(Bottom Row) – 2 bandeaus / tubes from some dinky little store at I can’t remember where, leggings from the same store, DVDs for my mom and a bag from Esprit.

Didn’t manage to find anything I liked / fit me at H&M.  Looks like I’m still more of an Esprit & Giordano Ladies person.

Accessories from Times Square and Argyle Centre. 

Now this is a totally random photo I took at the toilet at Che’s Restaurant.  Gosh!  Can you see how tiny the entrance to the loo is?  Hong Kongers are sooo slim.  I’m usually an XS / S size in Singapore but in HK, I’m easily an M!  Damnit.  If the weather wasn’t so hot and humid, I might consider walking up the 5 storeys of stairs to my flat just to be a HK size S!

I thought this was a cute “maintenance” notice.

Our Kia is on the way…

Posted by Wordmobi