The Company You Keep (Review) x Shaw's Free Popcorn Combo

So last Thursday, Audi and I went to catch The Company You Keep at Shaw Lido. 

A political action thriller, produced and directed by Robert Redford. The script was written by Lem Dobbs based on the 2003 novel of the same name by Neil Gordon. The film was produced by Nicolas Chartier (Voltage Pictures), Redford and Bill Holderman.

Sypnosis 

(contains slight spoilers)

The story centers on recent widower and single father, Jim Grant (Robert Redford), a former Weather Underground anti-Vietnam War militant wanted for a bank robbery and murder, who hid from the FBI for over thirty years posing as an Albany attorney. He becomes a fugitive when his true identity is exposed by Ben Shepard (Shia LeBeouf), an aggressive young reporter. Grant must find his ex-lover, Mimi, the one person who can clear his name, before the FBI catches him. Otherwise, he will lose everything, including his 11-year-old daughter Isabel. While Ben struggles with ethical issues as a journalist, Jim and his old friends from the Weather Underground must live with the consequences of their radical past.

Here's the trailer:

I personally enjoyed it, it's more of a film than a movie. For example, it's more like Schindler's List (I strongly recommend this film btw, one of the best films I've ever watched in terms of artistic direction and cinematography) and not Iron Man (your typical blockbuster movie). It isn't as spectacular as Schindler's List however, but it's alright. 

The main highlight that I want to share with you guys isn't the film however, it's Shaw's Free Popcorn Combo promotion that will run till 31st May 2013!

The happy boy with his free popcorn combo. Haha. 

It's really easy to enjoy this free popcorn combo. All you have to do is to present two 1.5 litres participating drink labels (7Up, Pepsi, Mug Root Beer, Mirinda) at Shaw concession counters with a full priced movie ticket to redeem your regular Popcorn Combo Set (worth $7). That is all! :)

On a side note, I am really really really really really excited for The Great Gatsby. It's gonna be out tomorrow and I can't wait to catch it. I've been waiting for so long!

Happy mid-week y'all! xx

Shunji Matsuo - April

As some of you may already know, Shunji Matsuo is now my official hair sponsor. (yay!) April marked my first month with them.

So, about 2 weeks ago, I went down to my appointed salon - ICON by Shunji Matsuo at Wisma Atria for my very first appointment. I never really liked having straight hair, and mine is just naturally pretty poker straight. I've always preferred curls because it adds volume, texture and movement. So, I just told my stylist, Kim, that I wanted a perm. I didn't tell her what kind of curls I want, a perm was all I said and I left everything to her.

And here we go!

Before the perm, she put some treatment into my hair first.

And perming in the process!

Time to be patient now. I've always felt like Medusa whenever they use this machine for my perm. Hahaha.

And after the wash and blow, I was excited to see how the perm turned out. 

There we go! And I'm super pleased with it. I usually have bigger, rounder and more defined curls but Kim wanted a more natural-looking one and this is how my perm turned out! I'm really glad she changed up my look a little.

Here's a clearer picture. I posted this on Facebook right after the appointment, so some of you might have seen this already! :)

Some people whom I've just met at events, shows, etc thought those were my naturual curls. I wish! Haha. My friends have also commented that they love my perm. Well, I love it too so I think Kim did a brilliant job!

***

I did a runway show for Nurul's Bugis Plus x Star Style Blogger Showcase about 2 weeks back too, and I had my hair styled by Kim of course! Nurul wanted my hair to be slicked back in a high ponytail with curled ends so, here's Kim working her magic on my hair!

And here's my look for the show!

Backstage with the other models!

And with Nurul! :)

***

Like ICON by Shunji Matsuo Wisma Atria's Facebook page here to get updates instantly! Give 'em some love! :) Also, I'll be going for a hair treatment next week and a colouring appointment the following week, can't wait! Look out for my May post on that! xx 

I*CON by Shunji Matsuo

Wisma Atria, Isetan Basement B1,

435 Orchard Road, Singapore 238877

Tel: 6836 6567

www.shunjimatsuo.com.sg

Follow them on Instagram! @shunjimatsuo

Sponsored Review: Asience's New Leave-on Hair Treatment Range

I like to change the shampoo/conditioner brand I use from time to time, and Asience is one of my favourites. So, when I received the sponsorship email, I was only more than happy to try their new leave-on hair treatment range.


The products came in a nice and sturdy gold box.

You're staring at hair goodness right there hahaha.

Their new leave-on hair treatment range contains (from left):

• Leave-on treatment water : For tangled and untamed hair
• Leave-on treatment oil : For dry and frizzy hair
• Leave-on treatment milk: For severely dry and damaged hair

"Containing ASIENCE’s exclusive Beauty Essences (Lotus Flower, Camellia Oil, Pearl and Shell Ginger Leaf), the range provides intensive repair and moisturises hair from within. Enhanced with a hair ‘veiling’ ingredient, ASIENCE’s advanced Moisture-Lock Complex retains moisture to give long-lasting smoothness and manageability, so you can flaunt those silky tresses at any moment, everyday!"

Time to try them!

First, we have the Leave-on Treatment Water (200ml).
"Light as water, it instantly repairs and retains moisture without weighing your hair down."

I've always loved hair treatments/or any styling products that come in the form of a spray because it's really easy and convenient to use and less messy (in a way) because you won't have any product on your hands. And it isn't my first time using this product by Asience. :)

Second, we have the Leave-on Treatment Milk (100ml).
"Nourishing yet non-greasy, it instantly repairs and retains moisture to keep hair beautifully soft and healthy."

It's my first time using this so I read the instructions, just in case there are any tips or anything.

And last but not least, we have the Leave-on Treatment Oil (28ml).
"Concentrated yet non-oily, it intensively repairs and retains moisture to keep hair glossy and healthy."

Both the treatment milk and treatment oil work the same way, apply it on your hair like that! ^

I feel like the moisturizing level goes like this: Treatment water < Treatment Milk < Treatment Oil.

The treatment milk already made my hair feel soft and moisturized, but the treatment oil was that and better! It made my hair feel incredibly silky and smooth, I couldn't stop touching it for a good few minutes.

I will use the treatment water after coming out of the shower every morning, and then the treatment milk at night. And the treatment oil? Once every week!

Here's a before and after picture:

Left (Before): You might have seen this on Facebook if you subscribe to my updates. This was taken in the office cos my old spine injury acted up. Was super thankful for the bean bags we have in the office because that meant I could lie down for awhile to take some pressure of my spine. And, I can still do my work at the same time! Okay back to the point, as you can see, my hair looks kinda dry and frizzy.

Right (After): This was just 2 days after I started using the products. My hair already looks better - more moisturised and bouncier. This is because these products contain a new Moisture-Lock ingredient to provide moisture, which will result in smoother hair! Side note, this picture is taken from an upcoming post about Nando's! So, look out for that. :)

So, for smooth, manageable hair all day, you might want to give the Asience's new range of Leave-on Treatment a try! These products retail at $14.90 at selected supermarkets and pharmacies.  

Review: Smoulder at Raffles City

Almost everyone is a fan of chocolate. And if you are, then you would most definitely be a fan of lava cakes too. Just think about the molten, velvety goodness swirling in your mouth, mmmm. Hahaha okay I shall stop the attempt at being descriptive right here and feed you pictures instead.

Smoulder doesn't just sell lava cakes, they sell better - they sell bite-sized molten lava cakes! I think that's just brilliant, it's just perfect! The usual serving size of lava cakes is a little too much for one person to finish after a meal (like lunch/dinner), don't you think? And being bite sized, that means you can have more than one flavour too! You wouldn't need to restrict yourself to just one flavour, having more variety is always good!

Look at the different flavours they have!

And the food tasting begins, chocolatey goodness, let's go!

This is a classic and a favourite among everyone (well, it's a safe flavour) - Intense.

Do you see that molten chocolatey goodness?? haha. 

And this is Hazelnut! I always love my chocolate with hazelnut so I really like this one.

Whoo!

And this is Pistachio, which is one of their popular flavours!

I've never really had anything pistachio-flavoured before so this was kinda a first. And I really do like it! The chocolate and the slightly nutty taste of the pistachio complement each other perfectly.

Thank you Smoulders for your kind generosity in hosting me and giving me a total of 11 lava cakes to bring home to share with my family and colleagues at work! Yes there are two more in a separate bag. 

The flavours at a glance! (Side note, gotta love having a wacom, if not the above "handwritten notes" wouldn't be possible hahaha)

I'm not lying when I say I love all the flavours, really. It's not easy to get the right molten texture, etc. And I know the Smoulders team put in a lot of effort in research and all to give us these bite-sized molten lava cakes which just taste divine! Ahhh it's really really good. I'd love to have some right now.

Thank you so much Peter, for the invitation! :)

Smoulders is located at: 
Raffles City Basement 1 
(It's opposite Crumpler and beside Mr Bean)

P.S: You guys should really go try the bite-sized lava cakes!

Bugis Junction Food Trail with OMY.sg: Restaurants & Cafes (Food Review)

I love food trails, and OMY.sg always organises really good ones. This one started at 11am in the morning and ended only at 6plus in the evening. We had 10 food stops to go to, so it really was a day of non-stop eating.

This post is gonna be picture heavy. So, if your stomach is growling right now, I'd suggest you read it after you've put some food in it. I'm gonna let the pictures do most of the talking, unless I think it's really good or there's something about the dish I have to mention. Also, I'm not gonna post pictures of all the food we tried, most of it but not all.

Ready? Here we go!

#1: EVERYTHING WITH FRIES

It's not my first time dining at EWF. I've always loved this place for the food. So I was happy to find out that this was one of our stops.

One Egg Soup
I adore this soup so much you have no idea, it's delightful! And I think this soup is unique to EWF. See the egg? And the taste and texture of the soup is just divine. Not too watery, not too thick, just perfect. I'd love to have this everyday (especially for breakfast) really.

Wild NZ King Salmon
Not my first time eating this either. Love it too. I prefer my salmon to be semi-cooked, and this is cooked exactly like that. And together with that crispy crust on top, ahhh, so good.


Char-Grilled Char Siew
Again, not my first time having it. It's a handrolled pork belly roulade and char-grilled with garlic sauce. I love pork belly, it's fatty goodness haha. And this was really tender, juicy and the garlic sauce was like a burst of flavour in your mouth.

Tandoori Chicken Sandwich
Who doesn't love tandoori? I like how the sauce didn't make the bread soggy.

Grilled Pork Chop
I love pork chops, but they're tricky to cook because if you don't get the timing right, the meat will turn out tough. This wasn't too tough but it could be slightly more tender. If so, it'd be perfect.

We also tried the Skinny Wings, Char-grilled Beef Karubi and Steak with Tulang. The wings were good, not spectacular but still good. Couldn't try the beef and tulang cos well, I don't eat beef. :/

Location: Level 4
Opening Hours: 11am to 10pm (Mon-Thurs), 12pm to 10.30pm (Fri, Sat & Sun)
http://www.everythingwithfries.com

*

#2: PLATYPUS KITCHEN

I really like the logo - minimal, clean and structured.

My favourite wall decor in the restaurant. Do you also realise, it looks like Platypus' logo?

Nicholas from Platypus telling us about the restaurant and the food.

Crab cakes, Risotto Balls and Truffle Fries.

I would recommend you to get their truffle fries because it is super (and I really mean, SUPER) affordable, it's only $6.90! Plus, you can actually see the truffle, actual pieces of it. Although it's not the best truffles fries I've had so far, it comes close. And at $6.90, it's definitely worth your every penny.

Cocktail Beers


Cocktail Beer - Momo Lychee Ale
May I just say that this is a MUST TRY? I definitely prefer this over any normal beer, even Kronenbourg Blanc. They have a few cocktail beers to choose from, but this is my favourite - Momo Lychee Ale. There's fresh peach and lychee nectar, mint sprigs and the lychee fruit in it. Does it not sound delicious?


Spicy Diablo Crab & Prawn Pasta


Saffron & Caviar Risotto


Squid-Ink Scallop Ragout
I've always wanted to try squid-ink pasta but I've never dared to because I don't want the ink to stain my teeth. But this one's different! The ink will not stain your teeth because the squid ink is rolled into the pasta dough itself! I think that's really thoughtful and it's also really good. So if you've been stopping yourself from trying squid-ink pasta for the same reason as me, try it at Platypus!


Iced Sea-salt Caramel Cake
Oh, this was such a joy to eat! Because, they added popping candy at the top! With every bite, you can hear and feel the candy popping in your mouth, it's like the sound of rain hahaha. Popping candy aside, the cake's still very delightful.

Location: #03-29
Opening Hours: 12pm to 10pm
http://www.platypuskitchen.com

*

#3: Nanxiang Steamed Bun Restaurant


小龙包/Xiao Long Baos (XLB)
As the restaurant's name suggests, you know that their 小龙包/Xiao Long Baos are their most popular dish.


King sized Nanxiang Crab Roe Steamed Soup Bun
I've never seen anything like this before haha. We thought it's a huge version of a XLB but it's actually soup in a bun.




With Hui Jin/Cookie. :)

Location: #02-53
http://www.nanxiang.com.sg

*


#4: SIAM KITCHEN


Tom Yum Seafood Soup
I found this a little too spicy and I usually can take spicy food pretty okay.


Deep-fried Whole Garoupa Fish with Chilli Dip / Mango Sauce
Fish lovers, I'd recommend you to get this.


Siam Siam Grill Combo Platter
I'd recommend everyone to get this hahaha. It has chicken, squid, beef and prawns! Something for everyone!



Location: #02-46
http://www.siamkitchen.com.sg

*


#5: KAZOKUTEI


*Take note that this isn't the usual portion/serving size. It's only the sampling size for the food tasting*


Zaru Udon
The udon was perfect. It's springy and the texture's smooth, perfect for slurping it up haha. I highly recommend this.



Zaru Soba

Location: #02-49
http://www.kazokutei.com.sg

*


#6: NYDC

Time for cakessssss! We (or at least, me) always have space for cakes, desserts and the like no matter how much we've eaten.

(Above) With Hui Yan and Cookie
(Below) With Cookie, again!


Boo Boo
Such an adorable name! It's a chocolate cake and definitely a must-try! If you've read my "about me" section, you'd know that I'm not the biggest fan of chocolates unless they're really good. And I really like this one so it's definitely good I say!


Goldmine Cheesecake
Mmm yes cheesecakeeeee.


Threesome Mudpie
Hahaha I seriously love the names of their cakes. This one's called so because it has 3 layers - chocolate  chip cookie dough, strawberry cheesecake ice-cream and graham crackers.


Jedi Mudster
Again, the name! Hahahaha. Okay, back to the cake, double chocolate chip and Macadamia Nut Ice Cream with Oreo base and homemade cookie crumbs (that's not all!), and topped with chocolate fudge and whipped cream. This was my favourite cake of them all! The burst of flavours in your mouth, damn, I'd love to have one right now.

Location: #02-47/48
Opening Hours: 11.30am to 10.30pm (Sun-Thurs), 11.30pm to 11pm (Fri, Sat, Eve of PH)
http://www.nydc.com.sg

*


#7: FISH & CO.

They revamped their menu!

And I thought it's really nicely done!

My favourite page of all. I really like the art direction/layout.


And they also have really cute "party hats"!

Side note, I really like how my curls turned out that day hahaha. And the humidity/temperature that day made my fringe do an awkward lift pointing out thing. Okay moving on.



Soft Shell Crab Salad


Clams with Curry Butter
Sounds good yes? And the clams aren't those really tiny ones either! :)



Mussels with Spicy Marinara Sauce


Shrimps & Clams Spicy Aglio Olio
I like.



Grilled Peri-Peri Chicken with Juicy Scallops
The term "peri-peri chicken" instantly makes me think of one of my favourite restaurants, I've blogged for them several times already so you should know which one! :)


The bloggers!


Seafood Galore
Galore indeed!

They currently have a promotion going on!

--

1) VIP program relaunch with bigger & better benefits!
2) 1-for-1 Paris Passion Mocktail

For more complete list of available promotions, visit http://www.fish-co.com/promotions

--

Location: #01-90

Opening Hours: 11.30am to 9.30pm (Sun-Thurs), 11.30am to 10pm (Fri/Sat/Sun/Eve of PH/PH)

http://www.fish-co.com/

*

#8: HONGUO

Sze Chuan Chicken in Basket


Zhuang Yuan Mi Xian 


Minced Pork Lettuce Wrap


Pumpkin Fries with Salted Egg Yolk
I love salted egg. This was good because you can taste both the pumpkin and the salted egg. It was a good balance.

Location: #B1-06
http://www.facebook.com/honguo 

*

#9: YUMMI BITES

(this picture does not belong to me)

Yummi Bites are known for their fried fritters and they have a variety of flavours for you to choose from, they even have durian flavour!

Location: B1-K5

www.yummibites.com.sg

*

#10: MAGGI MOO'S

Cotton Candy Ski Jump and featuring Maybelline's hand haha.

www.maggiemoos.com.sg

*

And that marks the end of the food trail! I ate so much the whole day, and pretty much non-stop, the foodie in me was completely satisfied haha.

Once again, thank you OMY.sg for having me! :)