Adelaide Dining experience - The Marquis

Describing each row from left to right:

Row 1: Dining at the Marquis a place of contemporary Parisian food; The waiter says to us there is a list for wines they sell by the glass, but if it was a bottle we were after, feel free to explore the extensive wine shelves they have; a private room setting if you are so inclined.

Row 2: My first Escabeche but certainly not my last. A perfect appetiser that opens your palate to want more food; A Delightful tile of the finest SA seared scallops; Rack of lamb for two? Or Five?

Row 3: My Fish Main; Jenga chips with sirloin steak; Complimentary Tiffany-esque box; Inside holds a delightful hand-rolled chocolate truffle.

Other elements of the meal worthy of a mention is

1) The baby beetroot and goats cheese salad. A must-try if you are ever there.

2) The 2009 bottle of Vouvray we ordered. It was a very chalky wine to begin with on its own but took on depths of flavour with the Escabeche and scallops and really grew on us to become a yummy accompaniment to our meal

3) The desserts of a Chocolate Marquis and Bombe Alaska were really indulgent. Pity I could only watch on as my colleagues powered through it. I was pleased enough with my petit fors, but if I am ever back again, I will leave room for dessert there.

Hilton Adelaide





We traveled to Hilton Adelaide for work this time, but I sure wished we had more time for play.

 

Plump Bed, Natural lighting, inviting furnishings, what more would you need from a home away from home?



The pool was a gorgeous outdoor one, but no one was game enough to brave this cold weather to swim in it.




The view from the hotel's deck/ barbeque area




In room spa. Samples of Peter Thomas Roth products if you have been lazy in packing your own. They also had a menu of beauty items you can purchase/ borrow from the hotel if you have forgotten to bring your own. This included a GHD Hair Straightener!




In room dining. I ordered a beautiful chilled red wine which came in a little decanter. And SA grain-fed beef sans the Rosemary Chats but a large bowl of greens instead. I'd have prefered a bit of avocado or Havarti cheese in my salad, but hey it was a lot more healthy this way I suppose.




In Room Indulgence. A Pot of Haigh's Hot Chocolate. It wasn't as rich as Lindt, and not very sweet at all, but full of chocolatey goodness to be sure!




Chocolatey Goodness continues: The Hilton Haighs Chocolate Martini made with real Haighs chocolate flakes, tequila, Kahlua and 87% Mozart chocolate liquer, this drink alone is worth flying down to the hotel for.

Fooding in KL



Sakae sushi at Paradigm Mall: Cha soba, Sakae Blossom salmon sushi, Sakae cawamushi. Oishiii!!!





Wooh Pin Fish Head Noodles in Danau Desa is so well known for their milk-based broth, that they only sell four varieties of their noodle. This one pictured above is the fish paste rice vermicelli for those of you who prefer to be elegant when cnsuming your meal and not suck on fried fish heads. At RM9, the price is well worth it because the portions are bigger than your average noodles from hawker stalls



This drink is called Michael Jackson. It's black, it's white, get it? It's really black grass jelly mixed with sweet soy bean milk so its very refreshing in a hot country like Malaysia



At a Chinese wet market: The infamous Laksa adapted by the local chinese into Curry Mee (Mine with Fishballs for RM5) and a cup of mixed tea and coffee, also known as 'Cham'

At a typical Mamak indian restaurant, this plate of Mee Goreng and frothy teh tarik costs just slightly less than RM5.





Wantan Mee! A childhood favourite of egg noodles tossed in a dark soy sauce, garnished with sweet slices of roasted pork and a bowl of wontons cooked in broth on the side.




Pork noodles. This version held back on the pork innards and focussed on only the mince. Otherwise, I think you'd also get some chopped liver and coagulated pig's blood. I was less adventurous and asked for an additional egg instead, dropped into your boiling hot stock at the end so that it is still runny when you dig in.



 More often than not, these dishes I have savoured above can be ordered too from swankier establishments in air-conditioned shopping centres nowadays in Malaysia. The board above sums up the lure of why these places have become so popular. I guess, patting off beads of sweat will never be a good look, but will always be what you'd face when dining at the local stalls and chinese coffee shops (kopitiam).

It was a very satisfying trip back home and I know I have displayed my weakness for noodles in this post. The challenge is to now try and fit back into a non-carb loaded brunch every morning. Sighz.

Bought: Two American labels

My Shopbop purchases are finally in my possession! I practically leapt out of the plane to the office to get at them. You've seen them before in a previous post where I mulled over whether I could justify the purchase. A $100 dollars off with a discount code really sealed the deal for me.

This Rebecca Minkoff Quilted Affair is gorgeous and such a fantastic mix between fun and elegant that I have no regrets choosing this as my very first Rebecca Minkoff handbag. Check out the fun interior that matches the dustbag. The linen lining keeps the bag young, but what wins me over is the quality of the leather and the weight in the solid metal chain strap. If you think the studs are a bit much, wait till you see the STUD I found in the side pocket, a signature token that accompanies each flirtatiously named bag. After all, Rebecca Minkoff did rise to fame with her Morning After bag.

So that's the impressive part. What's not so impressive is that the tag on the bag says the suggested retail price is $395, and I paid $395 for it only after a code discount, which meant that I really never got a discount to begin with. What a let down, that fact, and not something I had ever experienced with ShopBop.

This Tory Burch red skinny patent belt is true to size and it is brilliant in quality. I can't wait to rock this and take modelling pics! Oh and I did pay the suggested retail price for this, so no problems there!

Tai tai for a day

Heard on Fly.fm this morning in KL: reason number five for why girls dump guys,"You don't earn enough money to support the lifestyle that I want to lead"

I comprehend. There is a term for this particular lifestyle. And it is 'Tai Tai' Chinese for the Lady of the house. The woman is married to a house of good wealth and she does not work. Life is generally indulgent. If the lady proves her worth by keeping the house in order (instructing the maids that is), and making sure the children are well cared for (ferrying them to and fro school and tuition), and if her time management is spot on, she'd find time for activities such as these:

1) Getting French Manicures and Pedicures:
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RM120 from Soong Ai Ling's Chic Nail Spa at Bangsar Village II

 2) Getting a lovely facial purge of all the impurities from the polluted air in KL, comes with a heavenly Neck, Shoulder and back massage:


$190 Ampoule Facial by 128 Faubourg, Salon by Sothys


3) Shopping! For clothes at Boutiques, cheap and cute pumps from local shoe stores, cosmetics and food. A sneak peek into my Malaysian Haul so far:

4) Catching up with relatives, friends and the news and then transmitting advice, information and gossip to update those you care about, usually over tea and food, savoury or sweet.

If this is the lifestyle you want to lead, I am not sure how much it would cost to upkeep all the time in KL, but I have budgeted about AUD1,000 for these activities for a week's stay here. I think most expats will find it comfortable if they are earning USD or AUD, but you'd have to have a fairly successful career/business otherwise if you are a guy aspiring to have your beloved indulge in a TaiTai lifestyle.

For the rest of us, holidays like these are a blissful treat of pretence and indulgence. Next week, it's back to the slough of working for dough and bringing home the bacon with my perfectly manicured nails. More blog posts to finalise when I get there!

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