Food In Melbourne // Market Lane Coffee

Market Lane Coffee.

A full time instagram user would have heard of the oh-so-famous MLC. Situated in the heart of Queen Victoria Market, the laid-back coffee shop has it personal vibes that stands out in a subtle way. Very minimal & humble indeed. Did some coffee research and after 10 mins of professional scribbles, we manage to draw down a short list and MLC was right on top!

Ordered Cappucino as usual but this time round, accompanied by a side of Blueberry pastry. To my disappointment, the coffee was just alright. Tasted better ones in Melbourne therefore MLC's version of Cappucino did not rock my socks. But. Oh. My Gawd. Fresh blueberries on flakey pastry goodness was so delicious. The unexpected explosion and juicy surprise made my day :)

Have never been a berry person but since that day onwards, I ventured out into berries from different colours to sizes. I guess that's what life is. Sometimes we've just got to take the plunge and then realize: " That wasn't that bad too huh ". Thank you for reading beautiful and Happy Friday!

Food In Tasmania // Machine Laundry Cafe

A place with major personality. The <Machine Laundry Cafe> reminded me of restaurants in the 90s where hipster kids would hang out at. There were washing machines spinning literally. Also, a little walled-humour tickled my funny bone. Stood there reading every single piece of poster & artwork stuck onto the mint green wall whilst waiting for my food to be served. 

Ordered the oh-so typical brunch option. Bacon on toast with poached eggs and hollandaise sauce. The toast was normal, good, because we were spoiled by the fantastic sourdough from here and here so it wasn't a huge breakthrough. However, those poached eggs and coffee were delightful. Aromatic and way stronger than the others I've had in town. Yet again, the place was packed by locals so you know its a must go when you're in Hobart, Tasmania.

Snagged some free postcards on the wall and saw a lady chowing her cereal bowl thing. Darn. Wish I had that so now it only means I gotta head back for that cereal, coffee and free postcards. Hehe.

Machine Laundry Cafe

Address : 12 Salamanca Square, Battery Point TAS 7004 Australia.

Hours   : 7:30a.m.-5:00p.m.

Thank you for reading and Happy Friday!

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Food In Malaysia // The Lobby Lounge @ Ritz Carlton

It's pretty hilarious how every single meet up means only 2 things. Either someone is turning a year older [cheers] or is leaving the country [booo]. Ladies if you are reading this, I suggest we meet more often. Trip to the hair removal salon maybe? Anyone?

Other than the compulsory jokes and awkward laughter [It was a quiet place so choking on our own laughter was a more elegant option then laughing out loud], lets talk food. The afternoon tea set came with a 3-tier silver rack filled with 12 assortment of savory pastries & sweet desserts accompanied by a pot of tea. Afternoon tea was all right. Nothing too exciting except for the mushroom pie, buttery scones and pot of tea. Those were good!

A wonderful weekend and definitely a fruitful one since I had 5 appointments that day itself. What are your plans for the upcoming weekend?

Thank you for reading and Happy Friday People!

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The Lobby Lounge @ Ritz Carlton

Address : 168, Jalan Imbi, Kuala Lumpur, 55100 Malaysia.

Phone : +603-2142 8000

Price : RM75++

Food In Tasmania // ZEPS

Never knew that it was humanly possible to bump into a fabulous restaurant [4 stars rating @ Trip Advisor] in the middle of no where! As the sun started to set, we pulled over at Campbell town to grab some food before continuing our journey to the next destination.

Everything were delicious, beautifully prepared and flavors were all on point. From the typical Fish n Chips with a capsicum side salad to Barbecue Chicken Burger with Cut Fries, Carbonara and Lemon Meringue Tart. My parents felt that the Carbonara was a tad too heavy & cheesy for them but people, if you love you some stinky cheese you have to try this!! I've had many variations of Carbonara in my life. Most of them tastes ordinarily good. Nothing too outstanding that makes me wanna throw a party. But the one from ZEPS was a game changer. We literally smelt it from afar as soon as it left the kitchen. 

Random thought, Campbell Town reminds me of a piano piece I used to play when I was 7 years old :) Thank you for reading and have a wonderful weekend ahead!

ZEPS Cafe

Address : 92-94 High St, Campbell Town TAS 7210 Tasmania.

Hours : Daily 7:30a.m - 9:00p.m

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Food In Tasmania // Cargo Bar Pizza Lounge

Located just right in the heart of Salamanca Place, Cargo was a definite stand-out. A restaurant serving solely wood fired gourmet pizzas accompanied by coffee, wine bar & gelato is pretty hard to come by. I could tell Cargo targets a more mature market segment as customers who were dining looked like they just got off work! Wonderful place for casual business meetings and gatherings.

Since we pretty much ate round-the-clock, you could tell we needed something light for dinner. It's about balancing people. Haha. Ordered a regular cheesy pizza topped with basil pesto [$12]. Crispy crust with just the right amount of chewiness served on a wooden platter. It was great! In fact, the pesto could have been slightly saltier as it's a tad too sweet for my liking. Did I mention they serve vegetarian friendly pizzas as well ?

We were lucky to be there at about 6:00pm because Cargo was jam packed by 7:00pm. So if you fancy toasty gourmet pizza and a cup of Margarita, remember to make reservations in advance or be there earlier to avoid disappointment :)

Cargo Bar Pizza Lounge
Address: 51 Salamanca place, Battery Point, Tasmania 7004.
Hours  : Sun-Fri 10:30am till late
         Sat 7:00am till late

Thank you for reading and Happy Wednesday!

Food In Tasmania // Daci + Daci Bakers

Pre-booked tickets to the Museum of Old and New Art at 1pm so we went for a quick brunch before sending me off at Brooke St Pier. The weather was squally! It was so windy and cold I could still remember the calmness in me as we walked into Daci + Daci. 

Avocados with buttery texture on sourdough, sandwiching slices of fresh tomatoes. Savored my brunch slowly as I sipped on hot coffee and filled in some postcards. The bread was on top of the world. Was mummy nerd approve too! Black & white sesames and nuts coating the outer part of the bread loaf makes the bread crust extra interesting. Oh and the inside part was chewy. All and all a perfect slice of bread with crackling crust yielding to stretchy middle. 

Daci + Daci Bakers

Address : 11, Murray Street, Hobart 7000 Tasmania.

Hours : -

Contact : +613 6224 9237

Thank you for reading and Happy Friday!

Food In Tasmania // Jackman & McRoss

Jackman & McRoss is located on Hampden Rd, right in the middle of battery point. With the help of our GPS, we manage to locate this brunch spot without fuss and the journey took us about a 20 minutes drive from Hobart Airport Tourist Park [Caravan Park]. Being surrounded by beautiful houses, the brick red building right at the corner was still a stand-out. I'm about to share one of the best brunch places, hands down, so hold onto your saliva people!

Each of us had different food, from fresh baked dough accompanied by homemade raspberry sauce to roasted mushrooms and scallop wakame pie. I went for a vegetarian option with 2 poached eggs on freshly baked sourdough, hollandaise sauce, sourcrough and kale. DEE-VINE. Other than hot food, red velvet cake and cappuccino was beyond doubt the best I've had. It is impossible to rave enough how good the food was but you know its good food when a place is flooded by locals and the 4 of us went into silent-eat mode.

See it's proven, good food matters.

5 Nerdy stars from me and would recommend Jackman & McRoss to all who loves food. Thank you for reading and Happy Friday!

Food In Malaysia // Hidden Gem

Those who have known me for quite some time would know that I have a fixed family weekend routine. Weekends are customarily the same and when there are extra activities to conquer, we just add it on. Weekends must haves:

1. Breakfast at Ah Weng Koh Hainan Tea

A lazy weekend is never the same without a cup of hot Hainanese tea and chargrilled toast with kaya and butter. Normally I would go butter-less and strictly stick to kaya only but everyone who have tried the butter kaya combination finds it delicious. I guess I'm weird. Just in case you're wondering, Hainanese tea is a lovely marriage between coffee and tea. Both priced at RM2.20 each.

Address   : Jalan Melati, Kuala Lumpur, Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur.
[Closed every Monday]

Click here for a review posted by <Motormouth From Ipoh>

2.  Dinner at Yi Fang Yuan [一方圆]

The best vegetarian in town. In my opinion. Forget about the bland artificial meat, flour-y texture and weird vegetarian after taste. With a modern twist on the stereotypical vegetarian dishes, Yi Fang Yuan brings non-meat diet up to another level. If you dine in on a Saturday around 8:00pm, you would see me there for sure. Yup, we are there religiously. I love how they incorporate mushrooms and other fresh ingredients such as lotus stem to replace artificial meat.

Address  : Lot D-17, Jalan Bunga Tanjung 10, Taman Muda 68000, Ampang, Selangor.
Tel no   : 013-352 1151
[Operates during dinner time only. Every Friday is an off day]

3. Breakfast and/or Dinner at The Carpenter's Daughter

From hearty breakfast to flavorful dinner, <<The Carpenter's Daughter>> has it all. Located in the Central Business District of Subang Jaya, no one would expect a homey and down-to-earth cafe to serve such heart warming artisan bread and beautifully executed cooked food. My favourite out of all that I've tried, is the <Morning Brekkie>. Well seasoned scrambled eggs and fluffy pancakes with organic agave drizzles and a dash of crispy bacon. Enough said. For dinner, my parents always go for the vegetarian pizza and creamy al-funghi pasta combination. [I might have named the food wrongly but you get the drill] We really do appreciate restaurants serving vegetarian friendly food. Extra brownie points for that.

Address  : No. 46G UEP Subang Jaya, UEP, Jalan USJ 10/1e, 47620 Subang Jaya, Selangor.
Tel no   : +603 8081 1218
Hours    : 8:30a.m.-10:00p.m.

So are you up for food? Thank you for reading and Happy Saturday!

A Pastel Night Out // Koh Sa Mui @ Gamuda Walk

Another fun night filled with intensive giggles and tears. Okay fine, I was the only emotional one with tears but yeah you get the drill. *embarrassed* Went there straight after work and ingeniously kept my favourite co-ord in the car to change because I didn't want to show up as dull as a dishwasher.

Had dinner in Koh Sa Mui @ Gamuda Walk. Ordered basil fried rice alongside with a cup of hot lemongrass drink and dang was it delicious! I haven't tasted Thai food this Thai since my previous trip to Thailand. Priced at RM15.80 before tax and would definitely recommend to anyone who loves authentic Thai food. 

We unintentionally dressed in matchy-matchy outfits which could totally pull off as another Pre-Hen's night or a casual spring wedding. Goodness gracious. It wasn't an easy night because we had to fake laugh, pose for 3 cameras whilst finding our own slimming angle to hide the food baby. Come on ladies, you know that's a challenge! Funny how it has only been 2 weeks since I've met them and is already eagerly waiting for the next meet up like a giraffe.

Thank you for reading and Happy Friday! :)

Nerd Travels // 24 Hours Up North + OOTD

10:00a.m.

The day where we travel up North to meet up with the fam. Packed up some essentials, blogging gadgets and attire then up we go! Dug out my old DSLR and is ready to learn more about photography. Here goes pictures taken with a dreamy effect. Since it was a pretty chilled day and it is practical for me to wear a skirt, I busted out my crotchet top and chambray skirt to look feminine yet put together.

Top - Korea

Skirt - Mango

Sandals - Zalora.com [Enter "ZBAPqLL" upon checkout for additional 15% off]

Bag - Massimo Dutti

12:30p.m.

If you have tasted traditional food I shared, 100% its from Ching Han Guan a traditional pastry shop owned by a TeoChew [潮州人]. Situated alongside the famous old streets and in the heart of Ipoh. Heang Piah is one of our all time fav. It is heart warming to see how Ching Han Guan actually has pastry options for vegetarians. Prepared using vegetable oil instead of lard. If you are somehow lucky enough to have a chance to get hold onto some freshly baked pastries, do not hesitate. Get some. Enjoy.

Everything in the store aren't cheap but reasonably good because of the value you're getting. How cheap can food be nowadays anyways?! 

Address: 145 JLN SULTAN ISKANDAR 30000 IPOH.

Tel: 05-2545126

Mon - Sat: 9:30a.m. to 6:30p.m.

          Sun: 9:30a.m. to 6:00p.m.

Tue: Closed

1:30p.m.

Located somewhere in old town, just around the corner of the Ching Han Guan. I personally fancy curry noodles with nyonya influences, minimal coconut milk and a tad bit of sourness running through. Nam Zhou's curry noodles tastes exceptionally amazing when the restaurant is packed! #itchybutt As you are reading this and somehow recalled me telling you about the curry noodles I had in Ipoh, here you go.  

Everyday: 7:30a.m. to 3:30p.m.

Wednesday: Closed

2:30p.m.

Oh those alleys. Every corner comes a surprise. Had a short stroll around town just to take some pictures but oh was I impressed by sprouting themed coffee shops and little pubs. Ipoh is slowly becoming a place with heavy cultural essence and modern vibes.

8:00p.m.

Vegetarian sushi and homemade cheesecake with marshmallow, Oreo cookie base and pistachio. Took my aunt 7 hours to come out with this glorious piece of dessert!

11:00a.m.

The first thing in mind was to shoot some pictures for my blog. It was quite a fail because I should have stayed with "auto" but the whole shoot was did in a "manual" mode. Aiks. The lighting and colour was so off I can't even..T_T That particular post will be up real soon!

12:15p.m.

You can tell we do love spicy food eh. Left Ipoh right after that. Hopefully the next round I get to explore the alleys a little more. But till then, back to reality!