Overdue: All you can eat!

Sorry this post has been way WAY overdue!  It was just sitting in my compilation since I didn't have time to post it up. 

Let's go back to 1st December 2012.

1.12.2012

 I can't believe that a month has already passed. I remember the day when I decided to come back to Melbourne like it was just yesterday. Time flies and it's graduation day soon! Before the family arrives in Melbourne, I want to make sure I spent my time wisely. Spending as much time as I can with friends and also eating too!

My usual days are filled with eating, shopping, resting, and meeting up with friends. It is definitely nice to wake up late and have a relaxing day ahead. Not much longer till my job starts in January and there goes my holidays. 

The sisters made it a point to meet up at least once a week for dinner. Sometimes we go for brunch and do some shopping after. (Girls thing)

My favourite meal at Manchester Press- Smoked Salmon with poppy seed bagel! This little cafe serves brunch at Rankins Lane, a little alley in Little Bourke and Elizabeth St. It's also famous for its coffee art. However, this bear looks a little retarded. LOL. 

We also had dessert and Laurent Patisserie at Little Collins and Swanston St. Absolutely fell in love with its Lemon Tart. I am a lemon person, love any food or drink with lemon flavour.  I've tried quite a lot of lemon tarts and I must say that this is one of the best I've tried. The pastry is at its right amount, not too thick that it will spoil the taste of the lemon filling. 

However, I wasn't a fan of the Raspberry Frangipane and the Strawberry Vanilla Slice.  Was a bit too hard and it didn't taste sweet enough for me.I felt like I was eating too much flour.

Wouldn't you want this as your Christmas cake instead of the old school traditional fruit cake with a log house on it? A la folie macarons definitely caught my eye and for those macaron lovers, you can get it at the

 Royal Arcade at Bourke Street Mall. 

It's all Christmassy in Melbourne now. Christmas trees everywhere. Red, yellow, green lights filled the city streets too. Ah, my favourite season of the year especially when they have good sales going on! :D

As always, after brunch is time for shopping! Favourite spot - David Jones and Myers.

We bought ourselves another set of sisters charm - matching keychains and bracelets!

My colleague also brought me to try the very famous 8 flavoured pork (Palsaik Samgyupsal) at Changgo. We waited for half an hour for a table and it was definitely worth it!  Flavours included are wine, herb, original, garlic, curry, miso paste, hot, and ginseng. Definitely a unique dish that is a must-try! You'll need to go there really early to queue and wait for your turn. Best time to go would be around 5.30p.m. AND don't bath before eating. Bath after! Trust me, you'll smell like barbecue!

Last but not least, got the privilege to try Auction Rooms. Didn't thought about eating there before because it was too far away to walk from where I am staying. But thanks to a friend that drove me and le roomie there, we got the chance to try this famous place. Another approximate wait of 20 to 30 minutes before getting a sit. You'll need to go really early in the morning, best before 10a.m. to avoid waiting.

I had sourdough toast with avocado and poached eggs. Was not too bad, really simple brunch but I absolutely love the tomato relish. It's a side dish ordered by itself and it is the best tomato relish I've tried. Really yummy. Not forgetting their lemon tart! Really sour for not-lemon-lovers. But for me, a lemon lover, it was just nice.

Stay tuned for more updates on graduation day and the family comes to visit Melbourne!



Yours truly,
Mabs Chan

Nightlife

I'm sure everyone looks forward to Friday! It marks the beginning of the weekend, which means off days and party time! When I used to work full time last time, Friday nights are my off nights. I don't work even though my boss wants me to. I work every single day, yes even the weekends but I made sure that my Friday nights are free.

What do I do on a Friday night?

Party! 

Where?

Usually at Alumbra and sometimes Maze.

Ever since I got back to Melbourne, I missed the first two Fridays of clubbing. I was determined to club the following week. Went all out by clubbing two nights in a row. Maze had a special event at Studio 3, Crown on Thursday night - Epic III, EOX Party.

The little sister just finished exams on that day and wants to have some fun that night itself. So, we bought ourselves tickets even though we both don't like tranz music. We are more of the RnB genre. Flower jie also went together with us. ^_^

Getting all dolled-up is the fun part of clubbing. Wore a pink peplum top from Temt, and a regular black skirt, and a chunky necklace from Diva.

Overall the night wasn't that fun. Didn't really enjoyed the music and wasn't in the mood of drinking. Just drank half a bottle of Corona and that was it for me. My feet were absolutely killing me and I had to stand most of the time. Definitely prefer clubbing in flats. Not fun at all!

Looking forward all week to the next night, Alumbra! My friends booked a table and this time we went early to avoid the queue. It was my friend, Anthony's farewell. Another reason to party!

Wore a black peplum top and a pink skirt from Cotton On.

It is the first time, the sisters get to club together! It was such a sudden that I had to leave Melbourne before  that we didn't have time to go clubbing together. This time, we made sure we cleared our schedule.

The night was a Nandocas night. All of us are either working or worked for Nando's before. Clubbing bonds us even more. Hahaha..

It was definitely a really REALLY good night I had in a long time with all my ex colleagues and the sisters! Hopefully, more to come before I head back to Malaysia.


Yours truly,
Mabs Chan

"PJ Party"

I was so excited to attend my first Pyjama Party at my favourite club in Melbourne, Alumbra. At first we had no clue of what to wear since it was our first time. Luckily, the roomie bought me a cute shorts just for the occasion. So blessed!  First time wearing absolutely comfy clothes to a club.

We took a really long time just to get ready and we only left the house at 12 midnight. Yes, we were absolutely late! By the time we reached there, the queue was insanely long. Not only that, the queue was hardly even moving! My friends that reached about 11ish only managed to get in after queueing for 1 and a half hours. 

So, you can imagine, we were far worse. A lot of people left the queue and switched to other clubs when they noticed the line wasn't moving. The club was too packed that they could only let people enter when there are people coming out.

We waited in the cold until 1.30a.m. and decided we should just go home. Yes, we REALLY went home. A disappointing night. We were all dressed up and waiting in the cold for a long time but couldn't get in. First time going to club but actually not getting in because it was too packed. Sighs. 

Instead, we had our own pyjama party! It's definitely a waste not to camwhore since we are already all dressed up! :D Get ready to be bombed with my photos!

Then, it was time to say goodnight with Hachiko :) 

Yours truly,

Mabs Chan

The Sisters

I'm pretty sure you guys met the sisters already.  My tai ka jie and sai mui, the sisters I have never had before since I'm the only girl in my family.

Met these two lovelies when I was working in Nando's and I've been close to them ever since. With them, living in Melbourne ain't so bored. The amount of craziness, tears, and laughter is definitely uncountable. Thus, I love them to bits! 

According to them, me, the yi ka jie is the most stable and sane being amongst us three. The so-called pillar that holds their craziness into place. Lol. But I definitely don't think so. I probably am the craziest one among them. Haha..

It's really good to be back to see the both of them. One of my main reasons of coming back to Melbourne is them. We always have so much things to talk about and is just such a happy atmosphere to be in. 

We went for breakfast one fine morning. The earliest I woke up just for breakfast. I'm not a morning person. I'll start hating my life whenever I wake up early no matter what the occasion is. But for the sisters, I just have to do it since the sai mui wants to study after that and tai ka jie had some errands to run. 

Wore my new turquoise dress and a cardigan, and off I was to meet them at Hardware Societe at Hardware St. It was my first time there. Apparently, a lot of people queue for their coffees and breakfast. So, it was time for me to try it.

 My baked eggs with Chorizo sausages and slices of bread tastes really yummy. Something unique and different. 

We also went for a dinner date together with Wei Ping, another Nandocas at Movida. Another place I haven't been before. It serves spanish food that has an open kitchen concept. Has that kind of cozy feeling with its dim lightings.

We ordered some tapas for appetisers -  green beans with cheese and some sort of meatball. As for mains, we had mini lobsters, clams with potatoes, and the best out of everything, lamb risotto. Would definitely recommend the risotto. Was absolutely delicious and also cooked by a cute chef! haha..The mains are big enough to share for 3-4 people. So, be careful when ordering mains. 

It was good catching up with one another and we shall do it weekly, at LEAST once or twice. The more you  hang out, the more memories you create.  Love you girls! <3 

Can't wait to have more outings together!! We MUST go out as much as we can while I'm still in Melbourne! 

 Stay tuned...

Yours truly, 

Mabs Chan