Battling the BUG

It’s been 3 days on to the 4th, and I am still not recovered. Thankfully my fever subsided yesterday but I am still coughing and blowing. Sorry I am using this space to whine but I’ve pretty much been cooped up at home for the last couple of days and all I have been doing is pretty much eat and sleep. That’s great considering I think I needed the recharge after a hectic and stressful first few months of the year at work, but hibernating sick is not as rejuvenating as hibernating at will, when one feels well.

I travel to Taipei quite a bit for work, and so I decided to share with you some of my yummy food finds. I know I kept the business cards of these places somewhere but I can’t seem to find them now. Still, I will do my best in giving you the deets so that you may check them out on your own.

In general, Taipei is significantly cheaper when it comes to taking cabs. As such, I wouldn’t really recommend taking the subway as cabs are readily available in Taipei and they cost about a third of Singapore’s cab prices. Food is generally cheaper here too especially quality food. The Japanese food you get in Taipei is of excellent quality yet the same in Singapore would probably cost you twice as much. Even their steaks are done to perfection at about two-thirds of the price in CUT or Mortens. So here goes:

No. 168 Prime Steak @ Grand Victoria Hotel

The steak here is done to perfection. Nicely charred on the outside yet raw and tender on the inside. I like it how they have the entire steak nicely cut for you into strips, making it much more palatable and the colour just whets your appetite. The meat is juicy and it is done beautifully, not too dry and with just the right amount of fat to give it that extra umph. The lobster is also a star on its own. I was pleasantly surprised by the generous portion served given the price of the set meal. The lobster was fresh, sweet and very tasty.

When visiting such restaurants in Taipei, I strongly recommend ordering the set meals instead of ala carte as they are often value-for-money and you get to try a wide variety of dishes for a very reasonable price.

TEL: 02-8502-0007

FAX: 02-6602-5165

Address: 10466 台北市中山區敬業四路168號
No.168, Jingye 4th Rd., Taipei, 10466, Taiwan

URL: http://www.grandvictoria.com.tw

Danny & Company

Said to be the sister restaurant of Prime Steakhouse, Danny & Company offers a similar perfection in their steaks. Their set menus are also well thought-out and every dish is done with meticulous effort and attention to detail. The layout at Danny is very simple, cosy yet clearly more up market. The staff are very attentive and accommodating. I was extremely satisfied with my meal except for the escargots which were part of my set. The escargots were hard and rubbery and didnt’ seem very fresh. I must say I was disappointed as I am an escargot fan and was delighted when I saw escargots were offered as part of my set. The staff were very apologetic and replaced my escargots with another dish without any form of contesting. Personally, I was very impressed by the service and how they sought to please me first rather than question my complaint as some restaurants do.

If you are a steak lover, I highly recommend Danny & Company.

http://dannyandcompany.com

Gan Bei/ Kanpai Japanese BBQ

This place reminds me a bit of Gyu Kaku and Chang’s Korean BBQ @ Dempsey. I love the ambience because every table is in a little private room, which makes a great place for catching up with friends and just chilling. Toasting sakae whilst enjoying a casual meal of Japanese BBQ. I love the way the meat is being displayed and in a similar style  to  Mortons and CUT, the chef comes out with an entire slab of meat for you to take a look before cutting a portion for you. The ventilation of the restaurant is key and I must say despite all the little small “rooms”, the place is not smokey or greasy. In fact, you don’t inherit and BBQ smell after your meal. Love it.

1, Lane 198, XinYi Rd, Sec 2
(02) 2394-9388
Hours:Mon-Thu 5 pm-1 am; Fri & Sat 5 pm-3 am
Credit cards accepted. 10% service charge.
www.kanpai.com.tw

There a few more good ones but I will save those for another time. Feeling drowsy after my meds. :S

A few of you have asked me why I haven’t blogged in so long, and yes, I know I am behind in my entries. This year has been a crazy year since the beginning in terms of work for me, not to mention my weekends burnt by the countless weddings, so I haven’t really found the time. But I will try my best to update more regularly.

Some of you have asked me to not just write about food but also some beauty/fashion related entries. Frankly, I am no guru. My beauty consultant is S. She is the one who picks up new products and encourages me to try this and that. Recently, perhaps it is due to the coming of age, my complexion has been horrendous. There are so many possible factors that I can’t quite pin-point the cause. The fact that I am getting older definitely plays a part in terms of how my body and skin react to certain things, and on top of that my sheer laziness at make up removal. Sometimes I am just so tired that I plop into bed without removing my make up resulting in clogged pores and just bad skin. So my #1 tip is to REMOVE  YOUR MAKE UP no matter how tired you are! I have tried cleansing wipes from The Face Shop and it’s not bad, but somehow doesn’t quite feel very clean. Recently, a friend introduced me to Bifesta (Cleansing Express).

It’s a non-rinse make up remover so all I need to do is just pump it onto my cotton pad and wipe my face. I generally don’t use much make up so this works very well for me. It’s non-oil based and I chose the SEBUM range because I have relatively oily skin. I don’t use foundation and I don’t put on eye shadow or mascara so I am not sure if the effect will be as good when you have heavier make up on. But my friend who applies more make up swears by it. Typically, all I need are 2 cotton pads and I am done. It doesn’t feel sticky but rather you feel clean and light after using it. You may top it off by using your facial cleanser again but for me, I use this when I am really lazy and tired so I pretty much just leave it. For the busy working girl, this is for you!

Fancl make up remover, something I have been using for a long time. It’s very effective for removing thick make up and although it is oil based, it is very mild.

Speaking of which, have you ever wondered why your eye make up smudges after a couple of hours? Well for those of you who have oily skin, your eye area produces oil during the day and because waterproof makeup typically removes with oil-based removers, the oil produced by your eyes actually dissolves the make up resulting in smudges. So if you have oily eyes, don’t go for waterproof make up but just regular ones.

Time for my nap. Watch this space for more reviews SOON (I hope)! Have a great weekend!

Fancl Mild Cleansing Oil: You won’t find a better make up remover for this price!

Retailing at just $33, I am swearing by Fancl Mild Cleansing Oil as the best make up remover in the market for a reasonable price. I don’t dare speak for the higher end brands but Fancl has done it for me. It was previously recommended to me by a friend and reaffirmed by the accolade of awards received by magazines and beauty product forums. If you have an oily T zone, or an oily face in general, don’t be thrown off by the word “oil” as it really is so mild you can barely feel it. And I assure you, you will not feel any slimy residue after washing. I use this purely as a make up remover. Whilst some of my friends use it as an all-in-one to cleanse their face as well, I prefer to wash my make up off with this before using my regular cleanser which at this point is the Chanel Precision series.

I have used the Fancl Mild Cleansing Oil on Halloween make up and even that was a breeze to wash off. I had a male friend who used it to wash off his JOKER make up for Halloween (and we all know just how much face paint and make up that entailed), and he was sold too.

Unfortunately I was silly enough to buy 2 bottles of another make up remover to TRY. Talk about compulsive. And after realising it wasn’t as thorough as my Fancl, I couldn’t bare to throw the bottles away as they were rather expensive. Now after using it for close to 6month, I can feel and see my skin deteriorating. My pores are clogged and according to my facialist, I am not removing my make up properly and well enough. This is getting pretty evident in the fast forming whiteheads and blackheads I now have too. Granted, other factors may be involved, but good make up removal is essential and I can’t stress on this enough. I know this now, and I learnt it the painful way. Just bought 2 bottles of Fancl and tossed the other remover into the trash.

In my line of work, I put on make up as early as 7 in the morning and I don’t get to have it removed till about 10pm at night. This can really hurt your skin if you do not remove your make up immediately, cleanse your face thoroughly and religiously follow the 3 step facial regime of cleanse + tone + moisturise. I am suffering from my lack of discipline and habit. Just hope my skin will recover soon and I can start afresh.

Really hope it’s not too late and that Fancl can save my skin! :S

Biore Pore Pack for Blackheads

I first started using Kao Biore Pore Pack when I was in college. I can’t quite recall how I was introduced to this product but I remember thinking it sucked when I first used it. Upon removal, I didn’t see any blackheads being pulled out and I concluded it was ineffective and all the advertisements were just a load of crap. However one day as I was giving it another go, it felt different. Previously I used the pore pack under normal room temperatures. The 2nd time however, I was in an air-conditioned room and I noticed that the pore pack hardened very quickly. Once it became really stiff, I pulled it out gently and off along with it were loads of blackheads. It is amazing as you can literally see the blackheads, just like it shows in the pictures! Check it out….

due to feedback given, I have removed the pictures.

I still use it till today! I have many friends who tell me they have tried it and don’t think it works. Well I implore you to try it again. I think the trick lies in using it in an air-conditioned room and allowing it to really harden. I for one, am sold to this product!

Tried the Kao Biore Pore Pack before? What do you think? Share your comments with me!

Chanel Precision Radiance series

I have been using Biothem face care products for as long as I can remember. I believe it all started when my mom was first introduced to Biotherm some  years ago. I was in Secondary school then and my mom has always been pretty anal about skin care. Whilst both she and I were convinced I suffered from oily skin, I have been led to believe these days that an oily T-zone means you have normal/combination skin – well, at least that’s what all the girls at the counter tell me.

So anyways, I have been using Biotherm Aquasource for the longest time. My complexion was never really bad, in fact I would say it was prettyu good. However once I started earning and paying my own keep, I took my good skin for granted and decided to venture into other lower range products. It was a disaster. My skin broke out in rash after using the Green Tea facial wash from The Face Shop. I subsequently tried other brands here and there but they all failed to bring my skin back to its former days. Finally I made the change back to Biotherm and all was well again.

The nature of my current job results in me having to put make up on all day. This has caused a toil on my skin, not to mention my lack of sleep, stress, and sheer ageing. Somehow, Biotherm doesn’t seem to have that magical touch anymore. My skin lacks radiance and I get the occasional zits.

Read in CLEO about the Chanel Precision Radiance series and so I decided to give it a try. Not cheap I tell ya. Then again, Biotherm isn’t exactly very cheap either. Oh well.

Just used Chanel for the first time tonight. Not too sure yet how effective it is, but for one, it looks good. I love the packaging! The box, the bottles…And it smells really good. Love the scent. The facial moose lathers easily which is quite different from Biotherm. I quite like it that way though cos it feels like I’m really cleaning my face. The toner feels rich and gives a light nice feeling to my face. The moisturiser started out feeling like sunscreen, but very quickly lost that sticky feeling and instead left a soft, sorta powdery smooth feeling behind. I like it.

I think the major difference I feel is that after cleansing my face with Biotherm, my skin always feels kinda tight until I apply my toner. With the Chanel facial moose, I feel clean and refreshed without the tight feeling. Well, it’s still too early to say I guess but I will keep you posted!

I usually go for a facial once in 3 months and I’ve discovered what I believe to be a value-for-money facial – Kose. The facial package is about $360 or so for 6 sessions and it’s really well worth it. The facial lasts for about 90 minutes and comes complete with blackheads/whiteheads extraction, massage, and masques. It’s very relaxing and my skin always feels “rebooted” after. I particularly like the Kose White Mask (which is really black, no idea why it’s called white), as it tightens my pores and manages to pull out my blackheads at the same time. Love it.

Alrighty, enough on skin care. Next entry it’s back to FOOD!!!