Braemore Vineyard – Courtesy of Thomas Wines
The Hunter Valley Wine country is New South Wales’ largest wine region. Its proximity to Sydney, a drive less than two hours away, makes it a perfect escape from the city. One day in the Hunter can pack a lot of activity and ignite the senses without wearing you out as a visitor. It’s an ideal detour from the joys of Sydney’s harbour and beaches. Continue Reading →
A year ago, a foodie friend has posted some pictures from a meal he was having in Magaret River, the picturesque wine region that is 3 hours south (by car) of Perth, in Western Australia. He was raving about a chef and a vineyard restaurant that neither I nor my wife had heard of. And since we both trust said foodie friend, we made it a point, on our recent trip Down Under, to check out Knee Deep Winery and have lunch at the vineyard’s restaurant. Continue Reading →
Ever since my last trip to Bali, where I spent four idyllic days on the beach at Nusa Dua, I have been constantly thinking about going back. But this time around, I yearned for the lush hills, ravines and lurid green paddy fields of Ubud, which I have fond memories of, from my honeymoon years ago. The therapeutic effects of being enveloped by peace and tranquility was what I desperately needed to dissolve the stress of the daily hustle and bustle of the city. Continue Reading →
My 5-year old son tried coleslaw for the first time the other day, and he absolutely loved it! I seriously don’t know what took me so long. He generally loves crunchy vegetables, and enjoys dipping cucumber and raw carrot sticks in Japanese goma dressing or Korean bean paste, arugula in vinegrette and chomping on the cold iceberg lettuce cups in Chinese restaurants that are served with steamed ginger chicken. As any mother would be, I’m thrilled by his enthusiasm about raw cabbage and carrots! But instead of drenching the vegetables in store-bought dressing, I tried my hand at making my own, and am happy to report that the slaw was a roaring success. Continue Reading →
Once upon a time, my wife S and I visited Margaret River, located three hours (by car) south of Perth, Western Australia, on an almost annual basis. In fact, we had some of our best and most romantic holidays there. We’d almost always rent a house or cottage, spend the day visiting wineries, checking out local food producers and end the day with a homecooked meal, washed down of course with a new and yummy discovery. Continue Reading →
When I go to Hong Kong I cannot get enough of dim sum. With the tradition of dim sum originating in Southern China, there may be no better place in the world than Hong Kong to experience this classic Cantonese weekend “brunch” ritual. And while I do have a few “go to” favourite spots for dim sum, I am always up for trying new places. Having heard about Tin Lung Heen from a great many foodie friends, I was sure this would be on my list for this Hong Kong trip. Continue Reading →
I come from a family of coffee drinkers. Every morning like clockwork, each person walks up to the Nespresso machine to get his or her first fix of the day. Personally, I’m not really a fan of Nespresso but do I love the Aeroccino – it’s quick, convenient and can do much more than froth milk for your latte.
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Okay, so I don’t like to use this site to flog things that often, but as a self-professed shopaholic, I am happy to write about cool products and promotions that I like and that I feel readers might find useful. Earlier this year, I decided to (finally) ditch my first-gen iPad and picked up a Google Nexus 7 (which I love). Part of what prompted me to do so was a great promo deal from StarHub. I got the tablet for almost nothing when I signed up for what I believe is a very reasonable 2-year contract. Continue Reading →
My brother D, is your typical meat and potatoes kinda guy. He is always hankering after a good slab of beef, and some weeks ago, for our regular Sunday dinner at my mum’s, he treated the family to some amazing Wagyu steaks. My job was to cook some sides to complement the meat. I instantly thought of having the simplest salad (tomatoes, cucumbers, extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper) and baking up a tray of this awesome leek and potato gratin. Continue Reading →