Zebra, Melaka Raya Melaka

Pumpkin soup

Chicken

Steak

Zebra suprise

If you fancy western meal for tonight, Zebra Modern Restaurant in Melaka Raya can provide you an alternative instead of hotels or the custom Wok and Pan.

Ambience here is cozy and modern. Service is good. Food wise not too bad. I had alot more than the pictures here with friends. Salad was yumz and appetizing. Soup was also delish. I would give thumbs up for the food presentation! 

Best was dessert! As the name suggest Zebra Suprise! Worth a try if you are bored with the same old same old but be warned price is on the UP side.... It is quite pricey equivalent to Holiday Inn.

Currently they are doing set promotion on Groupon.Why not drop by and give it a try...

My verdict:6/10

Address:108 Jalan Merdeka, Taman Melaka Raya Melaka 75000 

Groupon Link: http://www.groupon.my/deals/melaka/zebra-modern-restaurant-1/719064925

The Scampi House, Kota Laksamana

Butter Scampi

 House noodles

 Tried this new place not long ago, near to Ichi Zen and Modiva.They were promoting this restaurant on groupon. Overall, the ambience in this place is simple and cozy. Food price is a little above average.

My recommendations here would be the house noodles and also the fried rice with pork and mustard. Not all the dishes are yums. The fried pork roll was to sour for my taste buds. About their star menu, the SCAMPI , no doubt they are fresh and they have a variety of preparations but I guess after eating 2 pieces can get a bit jelak.

My verdict: 5/10 (a pinch to the pocket)
Only will return for its fried rice!
Details:
Phone: 06-274 0283 / 017-641 3325 – Quinny / 012-637 6268 – Kathy (Call Tue – Sun: 11am – 2.30pm / 6pm – 10pm) 
Facebook: The Scampi House虾宴
Address:No 16 & 16-1, Jalan KSB 12, Taman Kota Shahbandar 75200 

DIY wedding card

For my wedding I did DIY wedding card. The card was provided by the hotel. I DIY the inlet.

Programme that I used to do the inlet:

    Microsoft Publisher

 Adobe Illustrator

 Adobe Reader

I also did a e version of the card using the above programme and had it saved under pdf. (saving on stamps)

Some people prefer to spend a lot of money on these cards. Some are elegant and cute but spending RM 5 per card and eventually it would end up in the waste bin was just a NO to me.

At the end I printed the inlet on 100gsm color paper. Colour printing I had it done in the shop cost about RM 1.20 per piece. The more u print the cheaper the price. I printed about 220 pieces and paper cost about RM15. I added a ribbon on the front of the card as well. I used about 6 rolls costing about less tha RM10. All in all less than RM300 for 220 cards including glue and so on. Roughly about RM1.40 per card for the inlet.

I used publisher as the basic programme. Measured the size of the card and custom the paper according to the size I wanted. Next I did the borders. Then I look for free vintage flower illustrators. I copied and paste onto the publisher. I am able to adjust the colours as well. Then I look for fonts suitable for weddings and also the words they used to describe the wedding. For Chinese weddings apparently , the order of the name of parents indicate who is the hosting party. So if it is your parents then their names goes first. If you are hosting it( aka paying it yourself) then you can put your name.

I also searched for Chinese wording templates. You can find them online. At the end I omitted the idea. When everything is done the I go to those professional printing shop. Then they adjusted the margins and voila done! Their printing is nicer as the colour would not run went it gets wet. Some of these shops do the wedding cards as well.

I learnt to tie the double bow ribbon from youtube and glued using craft glue from Daiso.

For the e version. I look for illustrator of double happiness and try to mimick the card I have from the hotel. After editing and adjusting it in publisher. I PDF the file.Then, I sent those cards to friends and family who are overseas or to those I rarely see. Save on postage and great for the environment.

  

Chuang Kee Ku Gua Tang, Taman Merdeka Permai, Bitter Gourd Soup

Opening times

Bitter gourd soup

A frequent spot to have lunch especially on a nice windy day. Bitter gourd soup , bitter yet nutritious. Ordered pork with bitter gourd soup ,omelette and 2 rice . Cost about RM20.90. Plenty of meat in the soup and a hint of bitterness only. Yummy. Its situated near the Bridgestone tayar shop near the traffic light. Its on the left side if you are coming from Malim. It has a bright purple signboard with a cute bitter gourd cartoon.

My Verdict : Nice to have comfort food lunch . Plenty of meat in the soup for 2. Definitely would frequent this place for lunch. Check the opening hours in the picture above.

Wedding- Make Up Artist

   I had a few make up artist in mind and I have survey earlier about 12 months ahead of the wedding. Nowadays people tend to book their make up artist quite early...

My first few choices were:-

1)Suki Ng : http://www.suki-makeup.com/ .

   Package 01: WEDDING ( within a day ) Price: RM900

-2 Makeup Sessions & 2 Hair Styling Sessions -Eyelashes, Ampoule/ Moisture serum -Basic hair accessories ( must be return within 7 days )

This was her quoatation .Contactable via facebook. Prompt reply. I was a bit too late... Didn't manage to book her.

2) Yen Make Up :  Eye Do Make Up Studio .contactable at : 012 2151152. AD 2 session cost about 1.2k

3) Aivy Yong : Provides air brush make up. Was not available for my date.

4) Carmen Meng : She is from the weddingisle. Senior make up artist. AD 2 session cost from RM900. At the end I have engaged her. She answers promptly via email as well.

5) Chris Fong : Cost about Rm900 for AD make up. No trial make up. Contactable via facebook. 

https://www.facebook.com/chrisfongyintheng?fref=ts&ref=br_tf


Below are my AD make up by Carmen Meng from the weddingisle . Very natural. Hubby love the low bun for my hair.

Other artists are quite good as well. You can see their portfolio on FB.

https://www.facebook.com/weddingislegallery

AD morning make up

AD- wedding reception

My reception hairstyle i requested for side sweep. She suggested another bun cos of cheongsam but I preferred side sweep. She used the roses pinkish purple colour theme and pin on my hair.

Prewedding shoot locations

Dusun Fairies,Ulu Langat

After setting the date for the prewedding shoot we started doing research on location to shoot and also props we would like to bring along for our shoot.

Due to time limitation we finally settle for Dusun Fairies in Ulu Langat for half day session from 9-1pm which cost RM 300. We were considering between this and Sekeping Tengiri in Bangsar. On that day , it was raining and I was early to have my make up done on site. Above are the few selected pictures. Not bad for a shoot location.Scenic.

After 1pm with a bit of traffic jam we were on to our second location. Poco in Bangsar.It is a small cozy cafe. For exchange to shoot there we payed RM5x excluding buying lunch. We only can start shooting at around 3pm when there is less customers. Parking is a hassle in this area. We were considering Wondermilk and after asking their manager, their price was exorbitant for our pockets and for mere 2 hours.

Poco,Bangsar

Next shot was at UPM, initially we were told to pay RM50 for the pak guard to keep the gate open in the evening but at the end we had to pay Rm150 because there were functions going on. So had to get some official papers. So from 5pm till about 7pm we were shooting here. By now we were exhausted and who would have thought prewedding shoots are fun! By now we were forcing ourselves to SMILE!

We bought props like alphabet, heart shape blocks and glasses from TYPO pavillion. We also bought chalkboards from Kaizon (Festival City Mall) for a very cheap price like 10 bucks per piece or less. Balloons were Rm5-6 bucks per balloon we had 15 . We bought this from One Utama. Had the extra long thing spray so that the balloon can last longer.

Make up and gowns are from Valerie Fan in SS2,PJ. For brides out there, on the prewed shoot bring some snacks,water and mosquito repellents. You can choose to wear neu bra earlier if there is no changing place. Button up shirt and strapless bra is helpful to change quickly. Shorts and short skirts too. Bring slippers and wet wipes.Sometimes the costume jewellery the bridal gallery provide is not up to your taste , hence bring some spare. Especially if you have casual shots.I forgot to bring :s

When we choose the shooting location, we were ready to top up some money. If you would like free locations then consider putrajaya, lake gardens ,public places and etc... Others usually requires you to spend a bit more. Of course if you are shooting outside KL...then the charges increases :)

Plan ahead, if out of KL or overseas location the be ready to 'pau' the photographer and make up artist for food & accomodation. We were actually thinking of Cameron Highlands... but abandon after thinking about weather predictability, distance, extra day,extra cost!

UPM

UPM

UPM

UPM

HOPE THIS HELPS!

Old newton food court

pork satay and intestine

ikan bakar

pari bakar assam style

Have u been to melaka? Have you been to Old Newton Food Court at Jalan Parameswara. I used to live next to this food court. This food court have always been busy and cause of traffic jam on this road.

My favourite food here would be satay and the ikan bakar. Usually we have to wait for 30 minutes for ikan bakar on the weekends. This food court is open almost everyday and in the evening till late at night! So if you are in melaka and have a craving for pork satay at night , you could get some here!

Don't miss the ikan bakar! Yums sauce!

Verdict: 7/10
Location: Near to central ,ample parking at the back
Value for money: alittle bit expensive 70 cent per piece satay and ikan bakar for 2 cause about 16 including rice n salted egg for 2.

wedding vendors- Videographer

Well preparation of  your own wedding can really well turn you into a bridezilla or groomzilla... :P . We had our wedding planned out about 1.2 years ahead . Right after our ROM last year in October. We were quite chill till the last few months right before the wedding.

We were deciding whether was it worth to engage a videographer since we have photographers. After surveying the market price ranging from 5k to 2k... depending on the vendor and type of video they produced. Some call themselves cinematographer... in that way their charges escalates! 

At the end of nip picking and budget constraints. I finally engaged HVP productions. Good quality and service for an affordable price. At the time I engaged his services was 2k for morning and evening reception. This company does photography too. Their clients are mostly malay but thye did a great job for my wedding. I had 2 team videographer on my actual day. One team goes to his side and another to mine... Then they were with us until the morning ceremony is over and till the evening reception is done. Always informative and confirming stuffs. They also do the same day video highlight for additional 400 ringgit. I didn't subscribe to that as we already have the photo highlights.

HVP productions:

https://www.facebook.com/hvpproduction

Under the big tree, Bukit Beruang

Literally this shack is operated under the big tree at bukit beruang after the petronas turning in a big field. Used to be more shabby and was operated by 2 ladies and an uncle. Nowadays they went for a facelift and added more men power. This place is a local favourite and MMU students favourite. What do they serve???

Handmade wantan mee and spinach mee! It's yummy! They have other dishes to add on too such as fried wonton and also dumplings. It is nice and breezy to have lunch there but beware sometimes they randomly close!

My verdict:
worth a try. value for money. Sometimes they overcook the mee if they are very busy :)

My lunch: Herbal mee soup

Add on: Dumplings- the fillings-pork and century egg

Their menu...

Christmas Eve Dinner at Holiday Inn Melaka

Sorry for the long hiatus, this have been a busy year for me... just got hitched in December and finally after all the preparation and adrenaline rush IT IS NOW DONE! *relief*

So hubby and I *ahem* we celebrated Christmas with the usual Christmas buffet. This time we change the venue to holiday Inn cause every year we have been going to Equatorial Hotel.

At Holiday Inn buffet was priced at 68++ with complimentary glass of wine. Be sure to make your reservations early. We didn't make any cause was a last minute decision and we went there at 6.30pm (kiasu)

They offer a range of menu from local delicacies, roast turkey,pastas, bbq and whole loads of desserts from chocolate fondue ,cakes and Christmas logs.

The appetizer section

Roast turkey and roast beef

The Dessert Bar

I think here is more value for money compared to equatorial but hubby says food selection here is better than EQ but taste wise EQ wins...

Till Next Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Tabletalk, TTDI

This restaurant/cafe have a very nice ambiance for a chic and cozy dining experience. Simplistic decor with a lot of natural lighting from the windows. We were there for breakfast after reading countless blog recommending this place. Finding a parking is a bit of a task if you were to dine here. We parked along the main road on the yellow line .

I ordered the ultimate brekkie at Rm 18 and my other half had pancakes with honey. If its before 11 it comes with free fresh juices. My verdict : I prefer the big breakfast at Tom,Dick and Harry. Although the baked beans has a very unique taste, delicious to me. The pancakes was slightly under cooked, you can still taste the raw flour.

Will I come here again ? I think i prefer convenience of parking and bigger better breakfast :D

Verdict : 5/10 ( not value for taste and money)

Address: No. 4, Jalan Datuk Sulaiman, Taman Tun Dr. Ismail,
                60000 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Telephone: +603 7733 7718

Opening Hours: 0730 - 0000 Daily

Restaurant Indah Sayang, Nyonya, Melaka Raya

 Curry Kapitan

 My favs- Udang Nenas masak Lemak

 Otak -otak

Paku sambal belacan

One of the staples - cincalok omelette

This restaurant is located on the main road towards dataran in melaka raya just beside watson on the right side of the road.

I love this place cause it serves yummylicious udang masak lemak and authentic nyonya otak-otak (Rm2.80 per piece)  Food here is good and i think quite resonable in price.. For 5 people we paid like 130 bucks. Prawns were fresh , curry was just ok... cincalok omelette was balance not too salt...

Service is a bit slow cause its a family run restaurant. U might miss the shop... doesn't have a bright signboard.If you are local go during weekdays.I  can imagine the crowd on weekends. If you cant find parking... turn right jsut before watson and park in the back lane.

My verdict:8/10 (home cooked nyonya food packed with flavours! 

(my other half went back with his bro again after 1 week of awesomeness...even my parents tapao the otak-otak all the way back to kl)

Charcoal burger at My Burger Lab ,Seapark

 On a rainy Saturday night after 8pm , my brother and i decided to brave the rain and travel to Seapark for yummylicious burger. We thought the crowd would be chill down by factor of rain and timing... Ooppps ...well we were wrong! Queue to the counter was about 15 mins. It was as busy as usual. Wait for the food was about 30 minutes even with rapid turnover of the crowd. Service was quick!

  Burger verdict : Yummz... i love the burger bun and the patty was just right... The fries was a tad too salty but otherwise tasteful! I would definetely go back but minus the queue...(*I hate waiting*)

Feel free to drop by their facebook page for more updates!

http://www.facebook.com/myBurgerLab?fref=ts