Review of Udon King @ AMK Hub

So happen to see this article on 我报 introducing the various fusion cuisine offered by Udon King. We were there last Fri for dinner.

One of the dishes we ordered was the right most item in the second row done in chicken style. The sauce was kinda sour (even for someone like me who take sour stuff quite well). Was not able to taste any tinges of butter at all. In addition, the chicken was abit tough.

HE tried this chicken cutlet thing with egg and it was quite salty.

The way they pack customers into confining spaces is also quite irritating. We got to keep shuffling the table whenever new customers are being shown to their seats or when any of our 'neighbors' are leaving their seats. Suggest that you visit the restaurant in larger groups to get those booth seats.

Service was quite bad too. Their service staff have no knowledge of the table numbers and kept delivering wrong items to various tables. Feels so uncomfortable due to the limited space and got to keep an eye on them as the wrong orders appear randomly in front of you and we got to keep correcting them.

Last straw came when the cashier lost HIS credit card after payment was made. She was not able to find it and was requested that we wait at 1 side while she serve the next customer. Was totally pissed off la... In the end, she found the card on the floor. Personally, I feel that the cashier is a very important person in the business context. The business owner should have put in some effort to train them up.

Hello Kitty promotion at Cosmed, Taiwan

Received these 2 Hello Kitties - the Big Bad Wolf and Little Red Riding Hood which comes as a set after spending a bomb at Cosmed, Taiwan.

Was super happy and lucky to get these 2 (out of a total of 6 selections) as they are packed in boxes and I wasn't able to pick and choose.

Even though I am not a Hello Kitty fan but this set somehow just appeal to me and is somehow symbolic of our relationship (HIM as Big Bad Wolf and me as Little Red Riding Hood).

There are 2 other sets available: the Frog Prince and Little Princess as well as the Peter Pan and Little Fairy.

Chicken gone bad...

Having this family steamboat gathering later and was happily planning and buying the various ingredients the past few days.

Bought 2 sets of chicken bones from Jingshan wet market downstairs on Saturday and was happily boiling water to rinse the chicken bones to prepare the chicken soup base when I realized it has gone bad!

I whiff at the bowl of raw chicken bones so many times to be certain and even asked HIM to do a whiff test to be certain.

The raw sourish smell plus the roasted chicken rice we had just a few minutes ago was enough to make me feel nauseous :(

Got to depend on my trusty pork soup powder for the soup base later...

Felt so cheated sia...

Bought for less than 3 days and the chicken bones had gone bad? Keeping in mind that I washed the items and freeze them on the same day before defrosting them this morning.

Should have just bought the items from NTUC etc.

Daiso Washing Machine Drum Cleaner

Bought this oxygen based washing machine drum cleaner from Daiso to try for fun.

Chinese New Year is coming and it is time to spring clean the washing machine too!

According to the instructions, pour the entire contents of 1 sachet (2 sachets in a pack) into the washing machine drum and operate the machine for 2-3 minutes for the water to fill up and mix the cleaner uniformly.
Thereafter, switch off the machine and let the solution sit for 2-3 hours. Final step is to operate the washing machine as per normal for 1 cleaning cycle to enable the solution to wash out.

One thing to keep a lookout for as a gauge that cleaning has completed is when the sitting solution changes from light green to white.

Personally, I think it helps to remove the musty smell which might lingers around the washing drum if we didn't manage to 'air' the drum thoroughly after each wash.

City square, Johor Bahru

Went to JB earlier today with the parents and traffic was horrible. Clearance @ JB Checkpoint was a nightmare. Queues for all counters were snaking almost till the end of the arrival hall.

Renovations at City Square seems to be completed for the lower levels. Saw this famous Hong Kong dessert outlet Xu Liu Shan inside the mall. There is also this new xiaolongbao restaurant called "Long De Chuan Ren" in Chinese. Lots of people queuing at both restaurants.

Walked past this new bakery called "Lavender" and bought some stuff to try. Their tuna bun tasted average. It has this weird red powdery topping which tasted slightly pepper-ish. RM2.90 lo! Also bought their pandan cake (RM7) and kaya jam (RM5) to try. Personally, I feel that their prices are catered for Singaporeans.

City Square is rapidly turning into another Singaporean style mall. It would be better if there is a decent sized supermarket there. The auntie cells in me!

One word of caution though, please change currency in Singapore (RM248.50). Rates were super low in JB (RM244.20).

Loots from Kwerkee - Cityscape Wall Organiser

The nicely packaged item was delivered by the delivery man during a weekday evening.

As there was no call beforehand informing us of the delivery, it was rather lucky that we happened to be home.

In addition, we deliberated for quite a while, peeking through the peephole trying to ascertain the identity/purpose of the caller.

Met too many cases of persistent ice cream sellers/salespersons.

Furthermore, there are also neighbours who have come across drug users in the estate.

Really regretted installing a doorbell at times even though HE has diy-ed a switch to turn it off when necessary.

 

After unwrpping the package carefully...

After installation today...

The package actually included 2 small thumbtack like nails that was totally useless in securing the wall organiser.

Even though HE hammered the nails carefully, they were very fragile and bent out of shape in no time.

Resorted to using strong double sided tape instead.

So pretty and useful!

It really jazzed up my plain kitchen entrance and yet hidden from view from anyone standing outside the main door entrance.

Items are organised and easily accessible just before we leave the house.

I just hope the tape wont fail on me.

Review of iRobot Roomba

So far, we are quite happy with this purchase. It might not be the latest model with the latest technology at mapping its cleaning path (compared to LG Roboking) but it has certainly lightened our housework load.

Although there are areas that the Roomba is not able to clean, eg: under the sofa, tv console and tight corners, it has served its purpose well. Vacuuming is still required for squeaky clean floor but at a lower frequency, perhaps once a week.

At least we come home to relatively clean floor everyday with our current cleaning cycle every 2 to 3 days. Just set it to 'Clean' mode before we leave for work and come home to clean floor.

I admit Roomba has made me even more lazy but with the current heavy workload, I am just glad that I have an extra helper. HE is even more glad as no one will be nagging at him to vacuum the floor.

More importantly, I am sure Roomba will be even more essential when construction of Cheng San Court commences.

New helper in the family - iRobot Roomba

Anyone selling Scanteak Casual Side Table?

Source: http://www.scanteak.com.sg

Thought of getting this item for quite a while...

But the price tag of $299 just puts us off.

Currently, there is this Scanteak Mid-Autumn promotion where you will get a free Casual Side Table with the purchase of any sofa set plus at least 1 other living room item at regular price.

More details can be found at http://www.scanteak.com.sg/promotion

If you are thinking of selling the above item, do let me know =>

Chiso Zanmai @ Central

This Tonkutsu ramen was one of the best item on menu.

The prawn and chicken tempuras are quite nice too.

Sushi spread was quite limited.

Having weekday buffet lunch which totaled up to be around $20 per pax including free flow of drinks.

But I don't think I will be coming back anytime soon...

Selling Amber Avenue WOOL BLEND PEPLUM BLOUSE IN BLUSH PINK - Size M

Source: http://www.amberavenue.com

Bought this top from http://www.amberavenue.com at $28.50 + $1.50 shipping fee.

Currently this item is OFS.

Anyone interested in getting  this item?

Selling at $28.50 exclusive of postage.

WTS iPhone 5 16GB White -Sold

Queuing up for iPhone 5 at AMK Hub now. Almost fainted when I saw the queue.

Was informed a few minutes ago that only left with 16 GB black and white models which is exactly what I want!

Even though I am going to sell this phone later, I still get the happy buzz...

Typical Singaporean behaviour I know.

Any interested buyers for iPhone 5 16 GB in white?

Antoinette cakes

Just bought 2 cakes from Antoinette - Antoinette and Framboisier.

Was informed by the service staff that Antoinette has a jelly-like texture for the inner portion (looks very chocolatey to me) and Framboisier will taste something like a cheese-cake :)

Hopefully they taste as good as they look. Was assured by colleague their cakes are quite good.

Costs me close to $20 inclusive of GST :0

Clarisonic Mia

Finally ordered and received my Clarisonic Mia from US. It really helps to clean up my pores especially around my T-zone.

Quite a good buy since I don't go facial and yet be able to maintain glowy complexion.

Even the husband has commented on my rosy cheeks which is quite a feat considering his bochup attitude on such matters.

Long Champ PLANÈTES Tote bag

Going to seek colleague's assistance to buy back 2 of Planetes tote bags from Paris.

1 for me & 1 for Mama.

1 black & 1 navy.

Hopefully she likes.

I assume it is as durable as it seems to be without requiring much maintenance.

Finding it hard to decide on the sizing though...

31x30x19 cm or 25x25x14 cm?

Comments on the range & dimensions anyone?

Nook Simple Touch

Ordered Nook Simple Touch at http://www.barnesandnoble.com

http://www.barnesandnoble.com

Hopefully it will be as good as the Nook Colour which is quite user friendly but its touchscreen has started to fail us.

I am quite resistive to e-Book readers as I felt that the act of reading seems to be distorted when it is done electronically.

The enjoyment I gained in reading is somehow linked to the fact that I am in contact with the physical book.

The flipping of pages, placing of bookmarks, ink pressed pages...

I also don't like the glare/brightness of the e-Book readers' screen.

Somehow my eyes gets tired easily and I won't get to enjoy the reading process for long.

Nook Simple Touch is supposed to have E Ink display whereby users are able to read under the bright sun with no glare.

Planning to use it as my daily transport companion instead of using iPhone as my e-reader.

I certainly hope that it is as light as what the website claims.

More details on Nook Simple Touch can be found at http://www.barnesandnoble.com/p/nook-simple-touch-barnes-noble/1102344735

Wonder if there will be anyone else who will be interested in getting Nook Simple Touch too?

Thinking of organising a spree...

Clarisonic Mia (Pink)

Just bought Clarisonic Mia online for S$100 via alldealsasia.

http://skincarerx.com

Have been thinking of getting a Clarisonic after reading various reviews online but was not able to really decide which model to get even with the help of the comparison table from Clarisonic.

There are so many various models to choose from.

Came across this deal recently which is really too good to miss.

S$100 inclusive of local registered delivery proves to be too tempting.

It is currently selling at US$119 at Skincarerx, not taking into account the shipping cost from US to Singapore.

Hopefully, it will helps to improve my skin condition, especially the T-zone with its usual supply of blackheads.

Some benefits of Clarisonic sonic cleaning:

- Best cleansing system directly from USA

- Removes makeup 6x better than any traditional methods with just 60 seconds

- Clears pores and reduces the appearance of pore size

- Cleanses so thoroughly that prepares skin for better absorption of creams, serums and moisturizers

- Creates noticeably healthier looking skin

- Gentle enough to use 2x a day

The alldealsasia voucher includes:

- Pink Clarisonic Mia(TM) Skin Cleansing System with 1 head (Sensitive)

- Trial size Gentle Hydro Cleanser

- 3 pin plug for singapore usage

- 1 Year Warranty against all manufacturing defects except any human mis-handling

So looking forward to getting the parcel!

Scanteak - Negative review

Bought quite a number of items from Scanteak and they were delivered on Sat.

Imagine our horror when we realized 2 of the dining chairs are obviously used goods (worn leg undersides, chipped legs, one leg of a chair had even split apart from the seat area).

How could used goods be repackaged as new goods to be sold to unsuspected customers?

They were supposed to get back to us today but so far they had not even bothered to acknowledge the complaint email I sent...

Update: The deliveryman claimed that these chairs were actually meant to be delivered to the warehouse but were mistakenly delivered to us...

Installation of lights

Have installed our lightings on 10 Sept.

Makes our painting/cleaning up job much easier especially when the weather is gloomy/dark.

Spent less than $1k on simple lightings.

Luckily within budget.

Location: Entrance of master bedroom

Location: Studyroom

Currently in the midst of painting the unit.

Super tiring from mask-taping/painting/cleaning.

Will be installing wooden planks on the planter box as well as expecting all deliveries this week.

Hopefully things goes smoothly.

We are now left with 1 main defect which is the laminated flooring.

Have been waiting for rectifications since 6 Sept.

If they still fail to settle by tomorrow, I am going to just give up.

Trying hard to juggle between work/interviews/house-related matters all at the same time =<

Our new clock!

Bought this nice black clock in Malacca for RM 59.90.

It was love at 1st sight for me.

Somehow I knew it will fit in nicely with our Scanteak loots and didn't bother consulting him at all =>

There were white/red/black versions.

Was deciding between white and black.

The clock design seems so scandinavian with its simple clean lines.

Although our main design for the living is supposed to evolve around the minimalist theme but it seems to be shifting towards 'woody' style with the amount of Scanteak items that we have accumulated over the months.

 Might spray paint certain numerals on the clock to a different colour, eg: baby pink/blue?