The Long Lunch

We recently took a bunch of clients out for lunch in pretty glamourous fashion. The dress code was 'Black and Bling' - don't think I should mention which client it was, suffice to say it's positioned as a tough New York brand - and the mode of transport to Cicciolina was... a massive stretch Hummer. Of course we had champagne in the limo, and of course we went cruising along the Bolte Bridge, down Chapel Street... and of course everyone stopped and stared. I think reactions were a mixture of "wow... that's cool" and "what a bunch of tossers". And think about the size of the Hummer's carbon footprint. Whatever the case may be, it was still a pretty awesome experience!

Welcome, baby Katelyn!

Congrats, Will and Joose! Their lil' cutie was born on May 15th, and will begin on-court tennis lessons on June 15th, once the'first moon' guests have left and the red hard-boiled eggs have all been distributed. She's already perfecting her toss, and is working on a combination of her dad's backhand and mum's forehand. At this rate, she'll be ready for a Wimbledon wildcard in 2018. Ladbrokes' odds of her winning the title that year are currently 2,015,689/1, but it will get better, so place your bets today...

The Day After The Wedding

This lunch you see here is a result of one man's relentless quest for babi guling. Wai Leong spent two hours on the phone in search of this dish in the Seminyak vicinity. His efforts were rewarded at Warung Sobat, which is where we congregated for lunch the day after Harris and Audra's wedding. And right outside their wedding venue too! It was quite a feast, with the precious babi guling as well as bebek betutu, ayam betutu and Balinese fern vegetables. The verdict? Well... not bad but the pork didn't quite hit the lofty heights of Ibu Oka in Ubud. But it was great catching up with everyone, especially Ray, JK, BK and Ell. See you soon, guys!

What Brought Us To Bali This Time

It used to be reaaaallly easy for us to get to Bali. Hop on a plane in Singapore, hop off a painless two hours later at Denpasar Airport. All for 15,000 Krisflyer Miles, or next to nothing. Now things are a wee bit more complicated from Melbourne lah. Regular airfares were easily into four figures, or what it used to cost us to fly to Europe or the US. So we ended up braving the no-frills delights of Jetstar. As usual, the Bubs and Babes State of Preparedness was fairly high, with sushi rolls, fruit and nuts, a blanket and a pillow etc. All this for Harris and Audra's wedding, at The Samaya and Villa Yoyo. A fun time was had by all, with everything from a romantic beachside ceremony to exotic dancing and mooning galore. Sorry, no photos of the latter two activities. Congrats to the Vertliebs, may you enjoy a glorious life together!

Suckling Pig, Bali Style

In Ubud, we've enjoyed meals at places like Mozaic and Terazo, but one of the finest offerings is still Ibu Oka's Babi Guling, a really simple warung near the Ubud Palace and Market. My apologies, that close-up shot doesn't even come close to doing it justice. Someone like Chubby Hubby would have come up with an incredibly appetising shot of the meal, but you'll just have to take my word for it. Expect no creature comforts, just squat or sit cross-legged at low tables as you partake of a stupendous combination of crispy skin, tender juicy meat and Balinese vegetables. It's hot, cramped and crowded, but worth every ounce of the discomfort. Enjoy!

Our Fave Ubud Accommodation

We stay at Tegal Sari every time we go to Ubud. It's a pretty luxurious place at a quarter of the price of the more famous resorts in the area. And service is always excellent, as is the mee goreng I usually end up choosing for breakfast (served in our balcony overlooking the padi fields). Ours is upstairs, extreme left, it's Room 24 if you're ever in Ubud and need a place to stay... no TVs in the room (be warned, TV addicts), but they brought the staff TV out to the reception area at 2.45am to watch the Man U - AC Milan UEFA Champions League semifinal first leg. So there I was watching a thrilling 3-2 win with the night shift guys...

Happy Multiple Birthdays

One of the major reasons for the Malaysian feast (not that we ever need a reason for a feast) was to celebrate the birthdays of Paul, Phanh, Babes and Mans, from left to right respectively. Two Malaysians, one married to a Malaysian, and the other engaged to a Malaysian. Happy Birthday to the four of you, hope you enjoyed yourselves! Paul and Phanh, I'm sure you'll agree that Malaysian girls are number one!

Chicken Rice a la Babes

Our contribution (OK, Babes' contribution, I was probably asleep after a late night watching soccer) to the Malaysian feast was an outstanding Chicken Rice. Here it is in close-up, as well as amongst a tableful of goodies, including Sambal Prawns, Lamb Curry and Roti Canai. Note the two bowls of Yau Char Kwei, an absolute mandatory when it comes to Bak Kut Teh. Not in the picture, or in other posts, is an Ice Kachang spread, which was a pretty cool way of finishing the meal.

Kuihs Pai Tee and Dadar

Chris and Emilynn Chio brought a wonderful Top Hat starter for the Malaysian feast, something I for one haven't had for a couple of years now. While at the other end of the night was this lovely Kuih Dadar dessert by Paul and Wei. The authenticity of these dishes was spectacular, and made me incredibly proud to be Malaysian. Thanks again to everyone (especially Paul and Wei, our hosts once again) for an amazing night.

Amanda's Masterpiece

Time for another of Wei's epic banquets, this time a Malaysian celebration. Amanda's contribution? That classic Malaysian favourite, Bak Kut Teh. Which was the ideal opportunity to test my new toy, a Nikon D40 dSLR which I had been eyeing for quite a while now. The dish was a masterpiece, and I'd like to think the picture isn't too bad either...

Japanese Women Don't Get Old Or Fat

This book by Naomi Moriyama provides useful eating advice (hot on the heels of - and one up on - 'French Women Don't Get Fat' by Mireille Guiliano), including the Japanese principle of "Hara hachi bunme," or "Eat until you are 80 percent full." Funny cos' we Malaysians usually eat until we're 115% percent full! It also features light and healthy recipes like this one; soba noodles in a warm dressing of mirin, soy sauce and dashi, garnished with spring onions, seaweed, spinach leaves, beanshoots and toasted sesame seeds which Babes whipped up to accompany panfried salmon marinated with mirin and sake. It was Ichiban, babes!

Des and Sue in Auckland

Thanks guys for your hospitality, and for bringing us with you on your relentless pursuit of authentic Malaysian and Singaporean cuisine. They found me the best doggone KL-style Hokkien Mee outside of KL, at a place called Bunga Raya. It was awesome, probably within 81.64% of the KL benchmark. The curry laksa was pretty good too... but oh, that Hokkien Mee... especially after our special request that they use pork lard to cook it, haha! See you guys in Melbourne soon, where we'll make sure the two-and-a-half of you (two-and-three-quarter by then) are well-fed!

Chocolate Fish

This Wellington cafe was one of the favourite hangouts of the Lord of the Rings cast and crew. So with an inevitable kiasuness developed after years of living in Singapore, off we went lah. It wasn't hard to find, and the drive along Scorching Bay towards and away from it is pretty awesome. We were in between meals, so we didn't try their (rather overpriced) paninis or other food, but the latte was pretty good. There was a guy sitting in the corner who looked like Peter Jackson, but... naaaah... or was it?