I'M BACK

Just warning y'allz for some sporadic posts or some shit.

Peace out
Bev

To Gap Year or Not To Gap Year?

Just as I've finished off applying to universities and writing out coursework, I am starting to think more and more about the fact that I honestly don't know what I want to do with my life. I keep looking at the list of schools I've applied to and thinking that I wouldn't really be that excited to get in anywhere and that I should've thought about applying to some schools in the UK. 

So should I just go to the best school on the list and figure it all out once I get there or give it a year to 'find myself'? I don't know.

What do you think?

x

Bev

Hair-spiration

I evidently love to colour my hair.

x

Bev

Wardrobe For A New Year

Unfortunately for me, living on the equator means that I don't get to wear any fuzzy coats and hats to ring in the new year, but it's not going to stop me from making more space in my wardrobe for new clothes! Below I've compiled all the kinds of things I've been lusting for this coming January and I hope it gives you some sort of inspiration...

Wardrobe For A New Year by beverly-cahyadi featuring scented candles

I hope these first couple days of twenty-fourteen have treated everyone well!

x
Bev

Dempsey Hill: Chop Suey Cafe

Service: 3/5
Atmosphere: 3.5/5
Food: 4/5
Price: $$$

Nestled in a little corner behind La Forketta, I finally got to try Chop Suey! My good friend Nora had been raving about how good it was for the last bajillion years and after looking at their menu online, I must admit I was quite excited to try it out.

The dudes that started the ever-famous PS Cafe (which is just right around the corner to Chop Suey) opened Chop Suey too, so I did have some expectations when I went. Nora and I went for the brunch, which was good but when I looked at the selection available I must admit I was a little bit disappointed because there wasn't as many things to choose from compared to their dinner selection.

My beautiful eating companion Nora with the Mellow Yellow (front) and Green Cooler (back)

The decor in the restaurant was so pretty. So much light came into the room because of the French windows, and the marble tables and rattan chairs reminded me a bit of the Raffles hotel. It would have been so nice to just be able to sit there and read a book or something. However, the space is a little bit small so crying babies do get amplified by a little more.

San Choy DIY Lettuce Cups 

Nora insisted that we have the San Choy DIY Lettuce cups and I'm glad she was because it was really good. It was really flavourful and slightly spicy, but not so much that it totally overpowered the other things in the dish. It's also one of those dishes that you can eat forever because it's good a tonne of vegetables in it and you feel good eating it, and that was definitely a plus.

Rusty Nails

Then came the Rusty Nails*, which I think is a really weird name for a plate of orange beef and long beans, but holy moly it was sooooo good. It was so weird eating it because it tasted a lot like American Chinese take-out style orange chicken but it wasn't gloopy or disgusting and the beef was soft and just... wow. Order it if you go. Unless you don't eat beef. Then that'd be stupid. ALSO, the Rusty Nails

Pumpkin and Cod Dumplings

We also ordered the Pumpkin and Cod Dumplings. It tasted good and was definitely special, but something I don't think I'd try again. The skin is actually made of pumpkin, so it makes it really thick and a little bit mushy, which was a bit too fusion-y for me because I really like traditional Chinese dumplings. That being said, the filling was really yummy and I knew it had to be good because Nora recommended it and she absolutely HATES seafood.

The Teriyaki Burger

The Teriyaki Burger was a great addition to the large selection of food - there was Japanese ginger in it, which I thought was really original and actually made the beef taste really good. One thing I would say about it is that you can't really taste the teriyaki flavour because there are so many other ingredients that just overpowered it. At least the beef was tender, though. 

Chargrilled Shisito and Edamame

I nearly forgot the Chargrilled Shisito and Edamame because I just had no feelings about it. I mean, it wasn't bad, it just wasn't good. It wasn't memorable and for some reason all the seasoning was outside the edamame pods, which didn't make sense to me.

Steamed Banana Pudding

Last but not least: the Steamed Banana Pudding. It was so much like the sticky date pudding at PS Cafe, that it made me almost not like it. Don't get me wrong, it was delicious, even though it was on the sweet side... I was just expecting something a lot more creative from them since a lot of their PS Cafe food is always consistently good. 

Overall, I would definitely recommend this place to people looking for a cute place for small gatherings of two to four people or for couples looking for a new place to go try out, but not for people looking to bring children or have a large party - the style of the food may not be everyone's cup of tea. Otherwise, go and enjoy yourself! I'm already looking forward to my dinner there sometime in the near future ;) 

Where is your favourite Dempsey Hill restaurant? Comment below! I'm aiming to try all the places in Dempsey before I leave Singapore.

Talk to you later!

x

Bev

*I thought they were called Screwdrivers, but *ahem* Nora corrected me. Oops.

PasarBella!

So for the past couple months, my instagram feed has been buzzing with beautiful pictures of PasarBella, an adorably rustic indoor market place in Turf City, and although I didn't get to try the 'Crodo' (the Singaporean take on the Cronut), I had the most amazing Paella and crackling pork ever. It helped that I went with some amazing people, too.

We were there from about 4 to 7pm, and I was full pretty much the entire time, but I was at a party beforehand, so I think that constitutes as an excuse for over-eating.

I had the Strawberry & Cream ice-cream at Seventh Heaven, which was nice enough, but I must admit left a little bit of biter after taste that left me needing to drinking water. Otherwise, I really do recommend going to try them out - they have really fun flavours that you wouldn't normally come across, like Sex On the Beach and Granny Smith Apple, and they always rotate them out.

As I mentioned above, I loved the paella! You could tell that dudes at La Patio really knew what they were doing too, because a) the paella was nice and crispy at the bottom, which is how it should be, and b) the pans they used were HUGE, which clearly meant they weren't joking. I'm drooling just thinking about eating it again (not really), uggghhh it was just so good.

Unfortunately, due to the amazing-ness of the crispy pork, I got really distracted and forgot to take a picture of it :(. However, do take my word and go try it. Nowadays, I've noticed that a lot of restaurants (or at least the restaurants I go to) don't do siew yuk very well and the top is always either hard or soggy, but the crackling pork here was reaalllyyy, reaaaaallllyyy good. As a girl with a mother from Hong Kong, good siew yuk is of value to me, so really, you can trust that it's good. I didn't quite catch the stall's name, but I think it's Keith and something, right next to the russian desserts stall.

So the last thing I tried were the macarons (macarons, macaroons; read what you like) from Bonheur Patisserie. I only tried two flavours at the end of the 'food tour' (Sakura and Lavender), and whilst I couldn't stop making inappropriate humming noises whilst eating them both, my friend Leanne thought the Lavender one tasted like soap. Whatever. Her loss. The macarons were  big and soft on the inside, which is how I like them, but again, Leanne thought it was weird.

I wish I'd been able to try everything at PasarBella, but I guess this gives me another reason to go back. It was the first time I'd been to Turf City since I dislocated my kneecap (lol, let's save that for another time)

Have you guys been to PasarBella? 

How did you like it? 

x 

Bev

Weekends At Home

This is going to sound totally lame, but I really love staying in on weekends. I know that as a 17-year-old female, I should be into the whole going-out-and-partying-and-getting-crunk thing, but I'm a little bit claustrophobic and I like being able to sleep when I can, because I do the IB. So usually, I'll watch a movie or catch up on TV shows.

Unfortunately, I can't spend the whole weekend lazing around, but when I can, here is what I usually like to watch:

L to R: Educating Yorkshire, Downton Abbey, The Carrie Diaries

I don't even remember how I found out about Educating Yorkshire, but it always leaves me with a fuzzy feeling in my belly when I finish an episode because these kids are just a little bit closer to being where they want to be.  Being so fortunate to go to a school where everyone is engaged, I had no idea such things existed! Props to Headmaster Jonny Mitchell and his ace team for doing what they do. 

Downton Abbey is just so amazing. Aside from the fact that I called it Downtown abbey for the whole of the first series, I would say that I was a pretty die-hard fan. Everything they say just sounds so much better than the jargon we talk today... 

To be honest, I probably watch The Carrie Diaries, a prequel to SATC, because of Sebastian Kydd (aka Austin Butler). Sure, Carrie is nice. Sure, it's a good show, but oh my gosh he is just so dreamy.

L to R: August Rush, Superbad, King's Speech, Awkward.

 I haven't actually watched August Rush in a really long time, but when I do, I always enjoy it and it always makes me weep (although realistically, I weep at everything).

Yes, Superbad is in there. Yes, I know that only pubescent boys should be allowed to like that movie, but you know what? I think it's a fine, well-put together, entertaining, piece of art that should be on exhibit at the Met at all times. Okay, maybe that was a little bit of an exaggeration. The point is, it's really good. 

The King's Speech is one of those films that is so touching without even having any sick element of romance (i.e. Star-crossed lovers, Love triangles). I remember crying at the unmistakeable platonic bond between the two men during the last scene when Bertie has to give his speech.

Awkward. What is there to say? Poor Matty's plight makes me want to wipe his tears and Jenna makes me want to smack something. This show is sooooo addicting. I know that it's unhealthy to come home from school counting down for it's weekly release, but it hasn't stopped me yet! 

With shows and movies obviously comes tea. Or hot chocolate. Or chips. Just any type of food, really. Anyways, what type of things do you guys like to do on weekends at home? 

Happy rest-of-the-weekend!

x

Bev