Ocean Terrace @ Carmel, US

Back in September, I was on a business trip to California, US. Over the weekend, we needed to entertain our customer and what better place to go other than the beautiful Carmel!

Located along Highway 1, one of the must-see places in the US, it is the most excellent restaurant and bar with a breathtaking view of the sea I have ever came across. Just take a seat and you are facing the picturesque sea!

Look further away!

Here is the deep fried calamari we have ordered. These are really large pieces of calamari, why, they were big pieces of steak (albeit calamari). Meaty and delicious.

I ordered the Bixby crab sandwich. The red cabbage coleslaw was to-die-for. Without any mayonaise, it was dressed with a slightly tangy, honey flavoured dressing with dried cranberries. Best coleslaw I have eaten in ages.

We have also visited the Carmel town. An affluent, quaint and chic town with many art galleries. Here's a picture to remember. Pets are well treated here. This was taken outside one of the many shops there.

Ocean Terrace is located at :

10 Miles South of Carmel

On Highway 1

Overlooking the Pacific

Japanese Buffet @ Ikoi, Miramar Hotel

I had a craving for Japanese food, but unable to decide between sashimi, ramen, tonkatsu or tempura. I did a search on several food blogs and came up with Ikoi at Miramar Hotel. A quick dial to the restaurant to make reservations and we were there by 12:30pm on a Saturday.

Ambience is definitely not one of the strong points of the restaurant. Complimentary dishes such as marinated salmon, cucumber and celery sticks, salmon soup and dobin mushi were served. Dobin mushi is a clear soup in a teapot, with minimal ingredients such as mushrooms and in this case, a prawn head was seen in the soup. It seems that presentation is not one of the key strenhgth of this Japanese restaurant.

Buffet here is served ala-carte. Their menu is widely categorized under sashimi, sushi, fried dishes such as tempura, broiled dishes such as yakitori, side dishes such as salad, tofu and niku juga, noodles and curry based dishes.

Personally, I love the tempura here. Remember to order the mixed tempura platter. The sashimi is not too bad either. For those who love grilled stuff, the bacon wrapped sausage was great.

I also liked how we can choose to customize the portions of the servings here. For i.e., the servings for tonkatsu can be specified. And those with little stomachs can get to sample as much as possible.

Well, the bad is that they don't serve beef and pork here. So, it is a little disheartening to have the niku juga and realized that chicken was the substitution.

Nevertheless, this place can be considered for a second visit again. After all, there is no limitation in the servings and at a price of SGD33++, it is quite a value for money buffet lunch.

I will definitely come back again for their value-for-money buffet spread.

Address:
Ikoi Japanese Restaurant,
401 Havelock Road,
#01-01 Hotel Miramar, Singapore
Tel : 68873788 Fax : 68870079

Enoshima Island, Japan

I have visited Enoshima Island during my last trip to Japan. It was during a very hot summer sometime in October.

Upon arrival at the train station.

Crossing the bridge by foot to the island.

Along the coastal line.

Along the streets of Enoshima Island leading to the center of the island.

To be blessed by the pure water? I really have no idea!

Really attractive looking temple.

Cute little wishes written on pink paper.

Take a closer look.

Japanese sweets on sale.

More sweets. And more sweets!

Natural Facial Toner

I have quite dry and sensitive skin. Therefore, I am always on the lookout for good quality mild facial products that suits my skin.

I have tried various toners from different established brands as well as more affordable brands. Some brands do not refer toners as toners but as softening lotions. Whilst some of them are good for use, pricing just cannot beat the toner that I am using now.

Whilst there has been time now and then that I have neglected to use a facial toner after facial cleansing, I have rediscovered the advantage of using toners.

Toners are used after facial cleansing to remove any remaining impurities on the skin. And most importantly, the toner is to help to tighten pores. Another important point to note is that the toner preps up our skin for the next phase of application. Since my skin is quite dry at my cheek area, the anti-ageing serums and rich moisturizer that I am using now just do not seem to be able to be absorbed fully if I do not use any toner. After the application of the toner, and before it dries out, I will apply the anti-ageing serum, rich moisturizier or firming lotion.

The only toner that I use now is rose water. Such a simple and natural ingredient but it really works as a toner. The faint rose fragrance is lovely and the feeling is refreshing upon application. The rose water does not leave the skin dry. For those with oilier skin, witch hazel is a good choice. I have tried witch hazel out of curiousity and indeed it is too harsh for my skin.

Pricing for rose water is wonderful too. It only costs a few bucks and I normally buy a few everytime I visit. In Singapore, the only place that I am aware of that sells rose water suitable for facial skin is at Guardian.

Coffee @ Arthoholic, Singapore

I was so full having a dinner of "bak kut teh" at Joo Chiat. Looking across the road, I spied a chic looking cafe which looks more like an art gallery. Despite my full tummy, this cafe is too irresistible to not to walk in and have a cuppa.

Artoholic is quite the tasteful art gallery with tables and seats amongst paintings and artifacts. The place is quiet and peaceful. I heard that this cafe was in fact opened by the interior design company which resides one floor above the cafe. Wow! The employees here are lucky. They can come down for coffee anytime they wish. Talk about killing 2 birds with 1 stone!

In fact, there was only 1 other customer in the cafe which is kind of convenient for us to browse the gallery and walk around. It was relaxing and peaceful with jazz music playing in the background. Coffee is extremely reasonably price for that kind of quality. Coffee costs an average of SG$4.00 and comes with a ginger (?) biscuit.

Sit back and relax and have a cuppa!

Arthoholic Gallery Pte Ltd

422 Joo Chiat Road, Nota House

427642 Singapore

Sweets from Land of the Rising Sun

Now, my brother just came back from a short trip in Japan and he has brought home an assortment of candies and chocolates for the family.

One of the more interesting sweets is the Tokyo banana pie. Well, it does not look or taste pie but more of a better croissant with a hint of banana flavour.

Meiji chocolate in both vanilla white and milk chocolate.

Sugar free mango candy and sugar free plum throat candy.

Green tea Kit Kat

Dongguan, China

This is my 3rd business trip to Dongguan, China and my 1st in taking some pictures. I managed to steal some time in between meetings to capture some photos.

We stayed at the Dongguan International Exhibition Hotel. The hotel is given a 4-star rating. I would not rave about its breakfast selections but given the hotel rate, it is an extremely comfortable stay. With its extensive amneties and toiletries, packing your luggage is less a hassle. Bath foam, shampoo, conditioner, body lotion, sewing kit, comb, shaving razor and toothbrush are readily available. The place is new therefore, the rooms are clean enough to my standards. At least, we are able to sleep on the pillows without having an extra layer of our own pillow case without conjuring images of previous drooling customers.


One of my favourite places within the hotel is their huge display acquarium in their lounge. The acquarium is proudly inhabited by a few sea turtles as well as a few sharks.

A sleepy turtle who has just woken up:

A turtle going for a swim:


We also managed to travel to the city centre and spent time drinking coffee and eating cakes at Merci Cafe in Dong-Cheng. The cafe is quaint, surrounded by pretty pots of plants and flowers and reminds me very much of an European cafe.

Pulau Ubin, Singapore

The visit on the 26th April to Pulau Ubin was a fresh nice change from my weekly shopping routine. Upon reaching the Changi Point Ferry Terminal at Changi Village, you can take a tow boat to Pulau Ubin. The cost of the ticket was only SG$2.50 per person only. The ride was nice and breezy with occassional splashings of water from the sea.

What can you do at Pulau Ubin? Some people opted for fishing at the jetty. Since Pulau Ubin has a few quarries here and there within the island, some people fished at those places too. Nevertheless, the quarries are not accessible by the general public, there were warning signs for tresspassing and fine for tresspassers could set you back by SG$1,000.

Alternatively, you can rent bicycles to ride with your family or friends. The rental of the bicycle is only at SG$2.00. The rental of a couple bicycle is SG$8.00. Keep a watch out for mosquitoes though. It is advisable to bring mosquito repellant along with you on the trip. These jungle mosquitoes are starving for fresh blood. There are also some stray dogs around the island and they could be chasing you. However, the dogs look pretty harmless.

Of course, you could choose to eat at the seafood restaurants. There is a "First Stop" seafood restaurant and one of the more popular restaurants. However, we chose to lunch at the restaurant which is further in from the jetty. This restaurant has a good view of the sea and we enjoyed sitting by the seaside and enjoying the light breeze. Other than seafood, they serve a good soya-sauced braised pork. If I am not mistaken, the pork is from wild pig or boar which is rare in Singapore now. Other than the pork dish, we ordered a steamed whole fish with black bean sauce, stir fried clams and noodles. The bill came to about SG$80.

Nevertheless, it was a pleasant trip to be able to enjoy some time being closer to nature especially the sea.