nekochan
It was BEAUTIFUL bright sunny day so decided to head out to the StKilda Esplanade Arts and Craft market. R and the kids came to pick me up and we headed to One Fitzroy for breakfast. I promptly demolised the Big Breakfast (2 poached eggs, mushrooms, bacon and spinach) while R had the Eggs Florentine and the girls had the loveliest and fluffiest pancakes I've seen! Service was great as the staff was very friendly and attentive.

After breakfast we took a nice long walk looking at stuff at the stalls - I managed to slip in a few purchases - and then we headed to Acland Street for something to munch. Had a nice spinach slice thingamajig outside the Gloria Jean's walkway. Then we walked down the other side of Acland Street and I feasted my eyes on the lovely cakes and confectionaries from Monarch Cakes, Le Bon, etc. It brought back lovely memories as one of my schoolmates used to work in one of the bakeries and I remember her bringing a lovely fruit tart for my birthday. I bought a mini Kugelhopf and cheesecake from Monarch Cakes.

After a lovely day out in the sun, went home and managed to enjoy a gin and tonic before heading out to LiLi's for Chinese Imperial Court Cuisine with family and old friends. Lili's only serve banquets so patrons choose from 3 menus priced at $48, $66 or $138 per pax. We chose the $66 set and got a whole lot of appetizers and other dishes which included fish, venison, Peking duck, pork, prawns and scallops. I wouldn't say the food was like WOW and amazing, but the preparation was very unlike any chinese cuisine I've had before. The place is worth a visit for something different.

The visit to Lili's was made even more interesting when we found out that the police was outside and when we tried to leave they asked us to go back into the restaurant and wait for a while. From the windows, we saw 4 SWAT-team dressed policemen with guns staking out the place in front. It was really unreal, like one of those Role-Playing games that CK always plays. Anyway, after a while, we went out and saw no one around so we left.

We're off to the Yarra Valley tomorrow .. keep tuned ..
nekochan
Day Two was pretty much a low-key day as I recovered from my lack of sleep and adventure of Day One. It was also a family affair, visiting my uncle's nephew's place to celebrate their baby's 1st birthday. There was some great home cooked food with lovely salads and meats though I was half expecting (and hoping) for some Vietnamese food (as nephew R married a Vietnamese lady). Pity ...

Dinner was at the pub round the corner, the Grosvenor Pub. It's gone very upmarket from the seedy place I remember passing by everyday on my way to school. Aunt D and I shared a delicious Seafood Pizza. I'm not a huge fan of pizza but this one was really nice with the freshest prawns and calamari with lots of garlic and pesto. For vegetable intake, we had the roasted vegetables.

Headed off to Crown Casino late at night. The place is crazy and quite confusing, with no numbers on the car park columns. After one round on the tables, we got thirsty so headed down to Zampeli's Cafe Greco. I like sitting out there and waiting for the hourly 'fireballs'. The cakes there are also visually very enticing as they are like giant-sized versions of old favourites. I've been eyeing the Sticky Date Pudding (one of my favourite winter desserts) and seeing that winter is just about over Down Under, I ordered one with a Iced Coffee to accompany it. Very yummy but very filling.

Don't think my stomach has been so filled in a very very long time
nekochan
Arrived in the wee hours of the morning. Didn't have to wait as the driver was there the moment I came out of Customs.

First meal was an EXCELLENT home-cooked Big Breakfast at Aunt D's place. We had lovely bacon and eggs, accompanied by tomatoes and whole grain bread. To top it off, there was also a lovely BerrySweet Pure Bluberry juice and Italian coffee.

Padded around for a while and then headed off to Chadstone for some shopping. Had a lovely roast pork and apple sandwich. The pork was so moist and tender. We were eyeing the crackling and I boldly asked the lady whether we could have some (to contrast the crunchy crackle with the moist tender meat) and she gave us a whole lot. Lovely...

Dinner was SPECTACULAR! My 2 favourite brothers, CK and CF took me to a really nice swanky Japanese restaurant Shoya at Market Lane (next to Flower Drum Restaurant and opposite German restaurant HB) for nouvelle wafu cuisine. We had the $120 11-course set which was fantastic. From the Unitama (sea urchin) to dessert 11 courses later, it was the a culinay adventure which tantalised and delighted the tastebuds with the creative and innovate concoctions and freshness.

I was a very contented Nekochan at the end of the evening ...

(Photos coming ...)
nekochan
I was recently in Langkawi and organised a dinner at Tun Mahathir's cafe, The Loaf. Chef Chandran and his team were most accomodating to my group's request and as a Dessert Lover, I asked him to do something special for dessert.


This is what his Japanese Chef came up with ...
A platter of desserts which not just tantalised the tastebuds but was also visually a joy to look at. That's so Japanese; where the art of eating is not just about how good the food tastes, but also how it pleases the eyes.
I'm happy to hear that a branch of the The Loaf will be opening at the new KL Pavillion soon.
Till then, you'll need to visit them in Langkawi ..
The Loaf
Lot No 9C, Perdana Quay
Telaga Harbour Park
Pantai Kok
07000 Langkawi.
Tel: 04 9594866
nekochan
In 2006, I announced to my then colleauges that the future is in cupcakes! Some pooh-pahed me but I still stuck to my guns.

And seriously, cupcakes are taking the world by storm (ok, maybe not so 'drama' but they are taking the Klang Valley by storm)

Why cupcakes?
Well, they're small enough to finish by yourself
You don't have to decide who gets the middle/end, bottom/top, icing part/non-icing part, etc
They're full of flavour
They're CUTE as hell :)

Apart from cupcakes, I also have my eyes on cookies - large cookies with icing on the top. Ordered some from Su the other day as a Thank You token for some colleagues. They absolutely loved it! Thanks Su!

For the record ..some cupcakes suppliers in town ..

Su
Website: http://www.ribbonsandcakes.blogspot.com/

From NST, Friday 10 August 2007
Sheila 017 8843230 - orders 3 days in advance for up to 50 cupcakes. Self Pick Up
Bisou Cafe, Asian Heritage Row Tel: 03 2697013
Wondermilk - http://cuppacakes.blogspot.com/

Enjoy!! And remember - the future is in CUPCAKES!!! You heard it here first :)

"Meow"