Wednesday, December 20, 2017

FoodLine Christmas Catering

It's nearing Christmas again!

I'd be celebrating it with the family this year and I've been trying to order a log cake and other festive goodies online. The first site I went to is of course FoodLine.sg! I've been recommending them ever since I used them during my Guo Da Li earlier this year. I like how convenient it is to search and compare a wide variety of vendors on one platform.




If you are also looking to order catering for Christmas parties or platters for small gatherings, you can check out the Christmas tab on FoodLine.sg. You can easily filter your search to party sets for small group of 5-10 pax to full buffets for 20-100 pax. There are a number of menus available depending on your budget. FoodLine.sg has a Best Price Guarantee and some vendors give exclusive Catering discounts up to 50% off if you order it through FoodLine.sg!






For additional discount, you get $38 off all orders if you input my exclusive coupon code ESTHER38 (min $350 order, valid for all orders till 31 Dec 2017)!


--- This post is brought to you by FoodLine.sg ---

Monday, December 11, 2017

Melbourne: Great Ocean Road

We allocated time for a one-day road trip along Great Ocean Road and it was the most memorable part of my trip to Melbourne... The spectacular scenery is extremely worth the long drive out! As we had limited time, I researched in advance on the highlights along the route and decided on some key stops.



Thursday, December 7, 2017

BTO Keys Collection

Finally collected the keys to our new home today!



He initially suggested to shorten the typically 25-year loan to 20, but I felt that 5 years make no difference. Hence, we made the impulse decision to reduce it to 10 years. This also means that we cannot slack for the next few years liao... must work hard :x



We only started to look out for contractors a week ago.... Hopefully we can finalize one soon. Very excited to start on renovations!



Can't wait to host family and friends in our new home :)

Monday, November 6, 2017

Melbourne Day 1-2

A year back, my sister had a two-week study attachment in Melbourne and we decided to make it a family trip! My dad and me were there for 9 days while my mum stayed with her throughout. S tagged along as well and we took the chance to have some photos taken for our prewedding album! Read about the photoshoot here: www.estherxie.com/p/wedding.html

I have very fond memories of Melbourne and I will be sharing our itinerary in detail!




Friday, October 20, 2017

Birthday Staycation

The husband booked a weekend staycation at Naumi Liora for part two of my birthday celebration! (Part one here - http://www.estherxie.com/2017/10/happy-27th-birthday.html)

Naumi Liora is a boutique hotel full of character. The contemporary interior with its chinese townhouse facade is centrally located at Keong Siak Road, well known for its rich heritage.



He booked the porch room, which comes with an outdoor area.





Finally went out for late lunch at Potato Head opposite the hotel. There are plenty of other eateries around the area too!



The truffle cheese fries are da bomb. The hamburger is yummy too.



Went back to the hotel to rest before we headed out for Korean BBQ dinner.


The next morning, I was craving for toast so we had tradional breakfast at Keong Saik Bakery.



After that we picked his mum up for our favourite ramen! :)


Weekend well spent!

Gotta clear up my travel backlogs soon! One of them goes way back to almost a year ago already :x

Saturday, October 7, 2017

Happy 27th Birthday

Anyone still here? Haha. It's been awhile since I last blogged because I have been busy with work! (Omg I just realize I only posted once in September?!) Adult life sigh. We are getting the keys to our BTO very soon so I foresee my schedule will become even more packed. Feel free to email me if you have awesome renovation vendors to introduce :) I have some friends who offered their contacts and I'm looking forward to sharing more about our renovation journey creating a home of our own.

So anyway, I turned 27 yesterday! Woke up to a bowl of birthday meeswa cooked by my mother-in-law. If I can choose, I'd have hot noodle soup over cake anytime!



We went into JB today! It was supposed to be only dinner after work but I decided to take leave at the last minute and the husband suggested we drive in. We thought that the traffic would be smooth since it's a weekday but nah, we kena jam both ways -_- Is it everybody no need work one?



Did some search online for cafes in Johor and Bev C was one of those that popped up on almost every blog. Decided to visit since their food looked interesting enough.

For example, the ice cube expresso. It was supposed to look prettier but my cubes weren't very visibly cubic so I didn't manage to take any nice photos of it. There are various variety in addition to the original and I had the chocolate and milk option while the husband had Spicy Mango, which came with a piece of chilli padi in the drink. I love the combination of sweet chocolate and expresso here, except that it became more and more bitter towards the end after the ice melts.


I ordered ham & cheese croissants and chose the charcoal version. The croissant is yummy but the rest were meh.



Then came along the husband's dish and I was green with envy because it looked so good!!!


Everything about Bev C is just visually pleasant. I knew I had to order the Earl Grey Dark Chocolate dessert when I saw it on display. Too pretty for words.


Here's the address of Bev C'afe if you are keen!
54, Jalan Tan Hiok Nee, Bandar Johor Bahru, 80000 Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia


Afterwards we drove to Mount Austin where Little Paris is. This place is like a combination of Parisian streets/ dreamy outskirt town... It looked nothing like Johor Bahru!



I LOVE THIS PLACE, also the reason I took so many photos! Gonna spam it on my instagram over the next few days haha.




We came for the picturesque Cafe De Flore. 



We were still full from brunch so we only had tea and some snacks. I'm quite amazed by how nice the staff are over here.... Both cafes had great service!




Cafe De Flore
Jalan Jaya Putra 1/1, Taman Mount Austin, 81100 Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia

After tea, the husband offered to sponsor a classic mani pedi session at the nail salon nearby. Yay! Feeling very pampered!


Went back to Singapore after that and we headed to Oso Ristorante located at the level 27 of Oasia Hotel. Just nice for my 27th birthday! Haha.











Ambience and food was good. Would love to come back here again! I really like dinner dates like this :)

After dinner we went back to my parents place for cake cutting with the family.


Feeling so loved this year. The husband sent flowers to the office which made me so happy ^_^ A bouquet never fails to please!


Celebrated with my work peeps a week in advance at a nice Japanese restaurant too! Had so much sashimi we all concluded that we will not be having it again anytime soon hahahah.