My Birthday Celebration II

Today is the second part of my long weekend birthday celebration. It was buffet brunch with the family at mezza9, Hyatt Hotel. There are different kitchens at mezza9 such as steam basket, grill, deli counter, wok, seafood, thai, yakitori, sushi, and patisserie counter. It has been a long while since I last had buffet but I ate in moderation lol. :)

Loved the chicken pate on bread, cold cuts, salad and seafood :)

Beijing duck wrap was delicious

Enjoyed the grilled pork and meatloaf with apple sauce

Marieann's desserts

The plum tart was good and not sweet! :)

Just couldn't resist: salted caramel and yoghurt ice cream

My girls and I

I really enjoyed my birthday brunch with my family. :)

Brunch @ Grub, Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park

Brunch at Grub which is situated at Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park

Grub Breakfast set

French Toast with pork sausage, sour cream and strawberries. YUM!

Kallang River running through the park

I totally enjoyed Grub's version of french toast with the savoury pork sausage, different from the usual sweet version. :) The breakfast set seemed like the usual where you can find in any other eateries, nothing special. :(
A nice slow walk after brunch around the park will help with digestion, provided it is not too hot lol.

New Year's Eve 2013

On the last day of 2013, I had Big Brunch Breakfast at Revolution Cafe, hoping it will inspire me to have revolutionary thoughts and resolutions for the new year. :P 

My Babycino with HUGE marshmallow - Sugar overload :)

Sour dough bread, scrambled eggs, bacon and sauteed mushroom - Food for the body, soul and thoughts lol

Nope, no revolutionary thoughts and resolutions yet but had very happy and sated thoughts after the brunch. :)
I was invited by my neighbour (former) and friend for New Year's Eve dinner at her house. It was an amazing meal with lots of home-cooked goodness - both main courses (beef, ham, chicken, vegetable curry, salad) and desserts (brandy fruitcake, summer pudding, chocolate cake)! The company was great too. Although it is the first time I met majority of the guests, it was a fun group to hang out with. :) I also managed to hang out with my friend's three lovely cats! :)

It is a really great end to 2013! Farewell, 2013.

Brunch@Beach Culture, Pasir Ris Park

It has been a while since we had brunch. Since the girls' tutor is away on hols, we went to Beach Culture, Pasir Ris Park for brunch. 
Beach Culture is an unpretentious beach dining. When we arrived, a ROM event + wedding lunch was set up. Later heard that the restaurant specialises in ROM events. 

For brunch, Marieann ordered Morning Pancakes ($9.80), both Juliane and her father had Beach Culture Breakfast ($12.80) and I tried the Salmon Fillet ($18.80). We also ordered Culture Wings as appetiser, Chocolate Lava Cake ($8.80) and Apple Crumble with ice cream ($7.80) to share. It was a satisfying brunch for all. :)

Morning Pancakes

Beach Culture Breakfast

Salmon Fillet: it was cooked just right

Culture Wings: Crispy and delicious

Pasir Ris Park is a pleasant surprise: peaceful and quiet. Although it is the weekend, the park was not overly crowded and noisy. There were some people kayaking in a special cordoned off area, less than a handful of families at the beach, and a couple of runners. I only realised much later that there is a mangrove forest nearby. We shall certainly visit the mangrove forest the next time we are there. :)

First Brunch of 2012

Well, technically it was lunch since it was close to 12pm. But it was the brunch menu that we ordered from at DB Bistro Moderne at Marina Bay Sands. It is the first time the girls are at Marina Bay Sands and they are in awe of the huge space lol.

Marieann had the French Toast A L'Alsacienne with caramelised apples and fromage blanc ($15) while Juliane ordered the Poached Eggs Benedict ($24). I had the Coq Au Vin with wild mushrooms, bacon and späetzle ($34) and the girls' father tried Fried Eggs Lyonnaises with duck confit, potatoes, mushrooms and salad ($21). Both the savoury and sweet dishes were absolutely delicious. Lots of flavour. :)





After lunch/brunch, we walked around the area, taking in the sights lol.

The girls looking at the replica of Titanic. Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition is currently on.

Art is Alive

Since Marieann is interested in art and Alive Gallery is ending its run on 3 October, we brought the girls to Alive Gallery at Downtown East. This is the Children's Day compensation for the girls. As we were in the line to buy the tickets, this lady came up to me and offered me 4 tickets. She explained that she had 6 tickets but she would only need 2 tickets for herself and her nephew. She gave me the remaining tickets and left. Bless her, what a kind soul. She saved us from paying $50 for the Family deal. :)

The girls were most enthralled by the paintings that came "alive", e.g. the ancient Egyptian drawings on papyrus, the Greek gods and goddesses, da Vinci's "The Last Supper", Michelangelo's "The Sistine Chapel Ceiling Fresco" as well as great artists like Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Claude Monet and Jean Millet who told inside stories of their works to the audience. I am surprised that Marieann recognised some of the art work on display, e.g. The Birth of Venus, The Gare St-Lazare by Monet. She is really interested in art. :) A strict no photography policy was enforced throughout the gallery except at 2 photo-taking points: mocks of the paintings - The Avenue at Middelharnis by Meindert Hobbema and Van Gogh's Cafe Terrace at Night. We had fun pretending to be in the "paintings" while the girls' father took our photos. :)

After the visit to Alive Gallery, we browsed around Downtown East. Juliane and I went for a ride on the indoor Ferris wheel while Marieann worked on stain glass art. The girls were really happy about their belated Children's Day celebration. :)

Juliane and I taking the Ferris wheel ride

Before going to Alive Gallery, we had brunch at Hatched which is down the road from where we stay. The girls shared a Pancake Party ($10): 3 pancakes with caramelised banana. I had a Ozzy Baked Egg ($8) with bacon, mushroom and tomatoes and cheese on top as well as a Blueberry Bircher Muesli ($4). I was hungry haha. I just love bircher muesli! :) Used to have it as breakfast every morning throughout my student life. The girls' father had Waffle with ham and egg.



The bacon, mushroom and tomatoes in my baked egg. Simple dish but filling.

My bircher muesli with rolled oats, raisins, green apple and milk. YUM! :)


Hatched candies given to my girls by the Hatched staff

Have You Seen The White Rabbit?

Marieann decided to stay home for lunch for her grandfather's home-cooked fried noodles and also because she wanted to watch "Cafe 13" at 12pm lol. The rest of us went to the nearby Dempsey Hill for brunch.

We settled with The White Rabbit at Harding Road. I love the quaint old white chapel that The White Rabbit is housed in. The old chapel has been beautifully restored, the decorative window grilles and the stained glass windows are charming.





Juliane ordered a Fish and Chips ($9) while her father ordered a Ricotta Hotcakes ($14) served with fruits and caramel syrup. I was really hungry so I went for Eggs Benedict ($23) served with sauteed spinach, black truffles, muffins, salad and roasted asparagus. Juliane's fish was really fresh and crispy while my Eggs Benedict was really filling. :) For dessert, we shared a Carrot Cake ($14) served with ginger milk Bavarians and mascarpone ice cream.Yum!! I love the ginger milk Bavarians, not very sweet and exotic in taste with the spiciness of ginger. :) The ice cream was not too sweet as well and went well with the carrot cake. :)






After brunch, we pick up Marieann for her 1pm lesson. Juliane and I went to Square 2 to do some shopping while waiting for Marieann to end her lesson at 3pm. I got more new clothes for Chinese New Year. Actually CNY is just an excuse to buy more clothes hahaha. :P

Dining at Dempsey Hill II

Due to the change in time for Marieann's lesson from 3pm to 1pm, we decided to go for brunch at Dempsey Hill despite the fact I was just there recently lol. I don't mind, I welcome the greenery. Feels like I am not in Singapore. :)

I chose to have brunch at PS Cafe, Dempsey Hill amidst protests from the girls who wanted to have dim sum. :P But the girls were soon won over with the greenery, the ambiance of the place and the food. :) It was packed when we arrived at 11am so we were No. 1 on the wait list. We chose to sit indoors (in case of mozzies :P) and were shown to our table under 10 minutes.

The girls shared a plate of Blueberry Pancakes. The blueberry pancakes were nice and had whole blueberries in them! For dessert, the girls each had a scoop of vanilla ice cream.


The girls' father had PS Breakfast Club Sandwich which had eggs, bacon, tomato, asparagus and baked beans on the side.


I had the Portobello Stack which came with 2 poached eggs stacked with roasted portobello mushrooms, grilled bacon, wilted spinach and creamy smoked cheddar potato gratin. This is what I call a real hearty breakfast or brunch. :)


For dessert, I had steamed Ginger Pudding with Earl Grey Creme Anglaise and topped with vanilla ice cream. I really love this pudding which is not very sweet. With lots of ginger shreds (real ginger mind you, not artificial flavouring!), it is one of the more exotic puddings I have ever tasted with its pairing of the earl grey custard sauce and vanilla ice cream. It is a wonderful pudding/ dessert that warms one up on any cool day. :)


I think we will definitely be back for more - the food and the greenery.