Lei Garden.

Know this place as expensive and tasty for so long.
We were wondering is it really that so expensive? anyway Shiu-chan didn't even know the restaurant, oh yes, he is quite foodie 100% local, but.
We grabbed our monthly dining fund a.k.a "meshi-fund (meal fund)" to try there.




Result...







From what we felt of freshness and ingredients, taste,
price is reasonable and tasty.


I really love their Xia Kao (Shrimp dumpling)!!!
We liked every dish we ordered for Dim Sum!!!


Let's go there for dim sum again =D


Lei Garden
Chijmes & Orchard Shopping centre
www.leigarden.hk

Marmalade pork, again.

Shiu-chan found of marmalade sauce very much!!!
Since we still keep the sauce in the freezer, I decided to use Pork Shoulder butt to cook with it.




Shoulder butt we usually use it to make char siew.


Hei~~ng wor.


Succeed, shiu-chan really liked it!!


Furthermore, he used it for next morning's brekkie, using the left over sauce mixed with Hong Kong noodle. Became instant wanton mee...haha

Yu Sheng 2012.

My favourite thing during CNY, is self made Yu Sheng!


This is my first one for this CNY.
A little bit western style =P





Used vinaigrette dressing as sauce!


Purple from purple carrot,
Orange from carrot,
Yellow from ginger,
Green from cucumber,
White from white radish,
Red from tomato.

I also toasted peanut and spring roll skin for garnishing, but they turned out to charred...='(

Snacking.

What do you think is this?





Looks alike french flies.
or Looks alike deep flied fish cake?


This is deep flied carrot cake!!


Seems like quite popular over here =)


Whampoa Drive Hawker Centre

CNY 2nd day.

CNY is the happening that Singapore will be very quiet.
Because alot of shops are closed for CNY.


I went to cafe with my good friend for at chit chat at Brunetti, Tanglin Mall.




Flourless chocolate cake. light cream and dense chocolate cake!!


We chatted a few hours, I have shared quite some things with her.
Thanks her for listing my rubbish always.


Time passes, our concerns changes. Our problems change.

Hope everything will be smoother than past year to both us and everyone.

CNY 1st day.

Every year, CNY 1st day we are having same dish that shiu-chan's grandparents cook.

I love their vegetarian dish and duck =)






Sad to say that after having lunch there, there will be no much chit chat with grandparents and they are just keep on watching TV or busy playing smartphone games.
I am feeling very sad in this kind of situation. I doubt what's the meaning of visiting there and spend time there.

We should visit there with by ourself instead from next year, let's do some action that much more meaningful.

Reunion Dinner 2012.

Chinese New Year is just a clock ahead.
This year Shiu-chan parents ordered Reunion dinner set from Dian Xiao Er.



He was so happy that finally he can let me try their signature roasted duck.




Umm...duck is pretty tasty, not too dry...
I understand why he recommended.





Yi Seng, I was not satisfied though...=(

Ootoya.

We visited Ootoya for lunch.
It is my first time went there in my life.



It is great that rice can be changed to 5 grain rice without extra charge!

I felt their cost performance is not that bad,





I quite like their parfait!! =D


Ootoya
www.ootoya.com

Sweet wine from Chile.

Shiu-chan bought sweet wine for me.
It is product of Chile.






If I remember correctly, this very sweet Sauvignon Blanc wine is produced only limited year and it is noble rot.


A little bit of sourness blooms in your mouth in first, after that, gentle sweetness will come to your tongue. After taste is very refreshing, not like icewine. It will not remain very sweet after taste. I like it!! =D

Green Tea!!

We found new product when we visited to Myajima island during new year.
They look very green tea infused, yes, they are.



Not too sweet green tea flavoured Momiji manju with nice red bean paste.


Seems like this is their signature sweets. Nenrin baum.

Price is almost or more than double the common taste of those products,
but, yeah, tasty. very green tea =)



Cha no wa
www.rakuten.ne.jp/gold/cha-no-wa

New rice!

I cooked the new rice which we polished in Japan just a day before we came back to Singapore.



It was so chewy as I always love.






I am very bread craze and I only eat rice if it is like this, 50% polished or 70% polished...
Very picky!!

Different frm looks

There was a time this kind of sweets are very popular.
(maybe only I thought so??)







I always feel like trying Okonomiyaki-Cake...
Always feel like...only..haha

Taiwan ver UNIQLO!!

I didn't know this shop exists in my home town!!!








I was so so so surprised!!

SAKURA!!

Luckily I got chance to take Sakura this time round.






Its body colour is blueish, and have gold line sandwiches blue line.
This is obvious difference from Nozomi 700 series.


Also interiors are different, more Japanese feeling.


Hope to get to ride on Sakura again soon =)

Rice.

My family's typical practice.
Polishing rice.

My mum has received new crop brown rice from her friend this year too.
We went together to polished them.




Important to choose which polishing level you want.

I asked my mum to polish only 50% instead of her normal 70%.
I love 50% polished one. =P



easy set-ups, hor?

This self rice polishing machine can polish 10kg of rice by 100yen.




The rice, this year is from the place called 'Chiyoda' town in Hiroshima,
Where famous for its unique rice planting festival are organized.

It's uniqueness, now recognized as a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage.


Shiu-chan actually saw this festival during his very first Japan visit with host family.
Since then, what a coincident, he got chance to eat their rice.

Matcha sweets.

One of my must and favourite things to do when I go back is,
To get some green tea flavoured dessert or product.


This is very tough to get in Singapore.
Green tea taste is incomparable. Totally different.


I bought a few green tea product this time round too, of course.



This bamboo shaped matcha mousse, I assume too much gelatin used.
And very little matcha flavour infused =(





This cake is called Arashiyama. Wonder if this cake shop is from Kyoto...
Their mousse is rich and have nice green tea flavour =D
I think I wanna get their green tea cake again next time!!


My next travel back is targeted in early summer or late spring.
I am sure more green tea product is launching soon as new tea season is around there...kekeke!

Masuno sushi & Wine

I was keep telling shiu-chan that 'I like Masuno Sushi alot!'.
And shiu-chan was keep complaining me that 'You are always only keep telling me, till now, I have never tried it yet!'.
for a few years...



Shiu-chan got luck, nearby supermarket was having occasional Ekiben (Station lunch box) fair and there were some Masuno Sushi.


Masuno Sushi (Masu is something like Japanese salmon)

So today, shiu-chan finally got to try Masuno Sushi and he believed me that it is tasty.





He bought Beaujolais Nouveau, drink it together with it.
His first Beaujolais Nouveau, he didn't know a lot of Japanese people every year book and waiting for its release date, it will also be reported on news in Japan.

I didn't know Beaujolais Nouveau is not a single wine name or winery name, it is new wine from Beaujolais village in France.


Suddenly my mum joined us and she said 'Let's drink the wine I was gifted together!' and brought a french wine, cheese and some snacks.


Haha, I didn't know she also likes to drink wines, furthermore cheese and snacks are must for her. Now both them got nice Wine kaki in Japan =P

full of ingredients soup.

As per shiu-chan's request, we had his belated birthday lunch at our favourite restaurant.


We love their many texture soup =D





This time, soup was pumpkin soup with western style chawanmushi, taraba crab topped with cream foam, home made Karasumi and paper gold.


Some are said that their soup is too much ingredient in it and it is not like portage soup, but it is our liking kind.
We enjoy many different texture and taste in just a single bowl.


The course was appetizer, soup, fish, meat, dessert and coffee with petit fours.


They served Hiroshima beef ramp stake as meat, surprisingly, they never used any salt to season beef but to take saltiness from anchovy.
It was amazingly matching!




It is kind of new year menu, so beef was accompanied with lily bub, Kuwai（Arrowhead?）, Micro potatoes with bamboo charcoal sauce.



This is 3rd time for shiu-chan to have Kuwai in this year,
Hope he can step up his career in this year..=)

Restaurant Shimamura @ Urban view grand tower 12F

Osechi 2012.

My mum ordered Osechi for this year from Same person as last year.
Come across very salty taste memory on my head...I was pretty scared.


But this year's, tasted so much better and cooking style is also much modern=)



These were all tasty! very gentle taste too.


Shiu-chan and mum liked Peanut & Carrot venegratte

We enjoyed having them.

Ponyo town - 2 -

Here I introduce Ochikochi dinner.




Dinner and breakfast will be served at their main dining restaurant.
It is important point for ryokan to use seasonal fresh ingredients for meals.


Sashimi variety. just nice quantity. tasted normal.




Chef's complementary. Tessa (Fugu fish sashimi)

I didn't know this area is famous for Tai (Sea bream), we had quite some tai dishes such as tai kamameshi, tai nabe and tai sashimi.
I thought this area is famous for octopus...=P



Here are breakfast. Guest can choose Japanese or western.
Shiu-chan choose Japanese while I choose western. I wanted to have more vegetables that's why.


Japanese breakfast set.


Western start with local organic salad, followed by soup, egg dish and breads.


There is no common big onsen bath room in this ryokan, there are 2 private onsen bath.
We enjoyed both in-room onsen and private onsen bath, overall of staying there.

I am glad that shiu-chan really enjoyed as he was quite missed about onsen. =)

Ponyo town - 1 -

I was secretly planning our early wedding anniversary cum short trip.
Yes, I was secretly planning. kekeke...


Actually I my self also first time visiting the town.
Small small town.


I was aiming to stay this ryokan (Authentic Japanese inn) since I got to know that this place opened.


This renovated entrance bldg is existing from Edo-era.



I love to see this kind of old bldgs's beam. thick timbers.

It was pretty surprised that such nice ryokan in my hometown.



They use simmons bed. I felt harden than our house one!! ours quite hard thou!!


In-room onsen. I like!! no one disturb and more relaxed!!



View from room. can see Sensui island!! nice


Regret that onsen (hot spring) is not direct flow from the origin, yet cozy small town and scenery is good enough to treat our self.

Migiwa-tei Ochikochi
www.ochikochi.co.jp

Hatsumoude

We visited to Itsukushima shrine for Hatsumoude (new year prayer).


Returned last year's Hamaya (kind of arrow shaped charm) and received this year's one.
Shiu-chan and my mum picked first oracle of the year, they got exactly same one. What a coincident!!



Tie to return oracle back to the nature god.

Itsukushima shrine is well known as one of UNESCO world heritage and its symbol, huge red gate is often used to symbolize Japan (like Paris : Eiffel tower, US : Statue of liberty etc).

While stroll down back to Ferry terminal after the prayer, my mum bought interesting steamed bun and had it with shiu-chan.



Hiroshma-na (very local leafy vegetable) steamed bun.

Once we arrived back from Miyajima island, we met our friend P-chan and had nice chit chat. We then had lunch together with what this area famous for, Anago-meshi.
Surprisingly, P-chan has not tried Anago-meshi yet, and happy knowing that she likes it =D

Afternoon tea.

My hometown is country side town.
Even in the city, there is only one world chain hotel, Sheraton.
Furthermore it opened very recently only.



This few years, Afternoon tea in Japan also comes to quite popular.
Sad to say, it's only applies to Metro police like Tokyo.



BUT!
Surprise!! There are at least 3 cafe/restaurants offer afternoon tea in my hometown!!
It's very happy and big news!!


So we visited one of it, and enjoyed it so much!! =D
Price also reasonable, 1600 yen / pax, you can choose cakes from daily selection.



See, typical 3-tier afternoon tea set!!


Of course, I immediately choose Matcha pudding =P

We loved almost everything.
Scones were so tasty and matching with clotted cream and jam. It was perfect combination.

I'm looking forward to visit other shops soon!!!

Liberty @ Mielparque Hiroshima
6-36, Notomachi, Nakaku, Hiroshima (Next to Hiroshima Sogo)
www.mielparque.jp/hiroshima

2012.

First dawn of the year.


We greet to sun from above the cloud.
It was our first time in our life.






Thanks to year 2011.


Sincerely wish it will be good year for everyone.

2011 was too many tragic things happened.
Earth, People, every single soul...