Ardent's Cafe @ Neil Road

This is another week of brunch outing again. I love brunch (so I can sleep in later) and I love all day breakfast because I can never get enough of scrambled eggs. The new place which I had explored last weekend is Ardent's Cafe at Neil Road.

The decoration of the cafe is actually not bad but I forgot to take picture of the place as I was busy chatting with juju and BC most of the time when we were there. It is actually quite cozy with big arm chairs and sofas or normal dining table. The 3 of us ordered different food from the menu they are taste quite nice.

I shared a Big Breakfast and mascapone and nutella pancakes with BC. By ordering Big Breakfast, we get to choose 5 ingredients ranging from eggs, ham, bacon, snail sausages, smoked salmon, potato balls, sauteed mushrooms, baked beans, roasted beef, turkey ham with toast and salad. I like the flexibility of mixing and mataching what I want in my breakfast. We chose 2 portions of eggs (scrambled, of course), snail sausage, turkey ham and potato balls. The eggs is nice and smooth but could be a bit more salty (as it was quite plain) and the snail sausage has cheese oozing out which is quite nice. I like the potato balls because it is something different from the usual hash browns.

We had a surprise with the mascapone and nutelle pancakes as it came looking like pancakes with a scoop of chocolate ice cream. But the chocolate ice cream is actually nutella mixed with mascapone. It taste really rich and goes very well with the pancakes. However, for me who doesn't have sweet tooth, we couldn't finish the nutella spread at all. It was served with maple syrup and some pureed kiwi (i think) which we hardly touched since the nutella spread is all we need.

Juju ordered a baked omelette which looks quite interesting. It has tomatoes, mushrooms, asparagus and I think ham in it? I had a taste of it and it has a slight tangy taste from the tomatoes.



Ardent's cafe has a very interesting man-made grass area as their outdoor area. It has swing and some outdoor tables and chairs for outdoor dining which is quite nice. Unfortunately I did not managed to take any pics as it was raining when I wanted to. But if you are interested to see more pics of their cafe and outdoor area, you can check out Beatrice's blog posting here and juju's posting here.

I have no complaints about the food at Ardent's and in fact I like their all day breakfast menu. But I certainly has issue with the service staff there. When we arrive at Ardent's, we were the first customer and there were only a female staff there. Her service attitude is really bad..... She doesn't smile, and when we ask her question about the option of choosing 2 portion of eggs in our Big Breakfast, she was impatient in explaining to us and answered in a tone like we were idiots. Seriously, I am put off by it. I'm ok with no smiles because I don't smile as much too but as a service staff, it is important to take note of your tone when talking to your customers, isn't it? If I know everything about your menu and cafe, why would I bother to ask you??? For someone from a country whom I know ALOT of friendly people, I think she really need to self reflect.

Nonetheless, for brunch fans, I would still recommend this place to you for your enjoyment of their food but I will be praying for you that you do not get the lousy service I exprienced.

Dior Fall 2012 Golden Jungle collection - let's crackle!!

I have seen many beauty bloggers blogging about the croc crackle nails from Dior 2012 Golden Jungle collection for a while now it seriously look lovely on ladies who have long nail beds. Unfortunately for me, my nail beds are naturally small thus it didn't cross my mind to get this beautiful nail polish since it is not cheap. But lovely juju bought it and immediately watsapp me and offer to give me a manicure when we meet up for brunch, always nice to have such a wonderful friend. :)

While juju gave me a simple manicure, she was explaining to me the various techniques and areas to take note when trying to get the lovely crackles to look like crocodile skin.

1) You have to apply the golden base and the khaki crackle coat immediately. Need not wait for the gold base to dry before applying the khaki crackle coat
2) Skip any base coat. It doesn't crackle with base coat
3) You need an ample amount of khaki crackle coat in order to get nice crackle. But if you get greedy and apply too much khaki coat, the crackle becomes not obvious

We experimented with the different methods to prove that this is true and below shows the outcome.

Starting from the pinkie from the top:-

1) You can see the crackle is not as obvious as the coat applied is the thinnest
2) The khaki coat is applied thicker on the ring finger and thus the crackle does not look as nice as well
3) This is the PERFECT croc nails! Just enough khaki top coat and mind you, it wasn't even over the golden base. We experiment by applying a beige Essie nail polish instead and it works fine
4) With a base coat..... this is the worse sight as the crackle effect just doesn't comes out.

In the experiment above, no base coat is applied for the first 3 fingers and only the middle finger is applied with Essie beige polish instead of the golden base.

After the experiment, it is time for the manicure and I got crocodile nails!

Any book lovers here in Singapore?

For the longest time, I have heard of book clubs overseas. Somehow, this seems something new or uncommon in Singapore (doesn't Singaporeans like reading???? Lol) If any one of you are book lovers like me or juju, you are more than welcomed to join this Singapore Book Lover's Club that is created by juju on Goodreads.

I've joined already and is excited and hope to see more members joining in where we talk about anything under the sun and share some of our favourite reads. :)

Giorgio Armani ETK 25 Rusted Gold

My love for Giorgio Armani Eyes to Kill has only increased and not decreased especially after I find it so so so fuss free and easy to use if I want a quick way to put on some colours and head out for a date.

In the recent Aqua Collection Summer 2012, 2 ETKs caught my eyes and they are 25 Rusted Gold and 28 Red Platine. I troubled Juju to order through Nordstrom for me not knowing if this collection will reach our shore and I'm glad that they did.

Just like how the name is, it looks like a pot of rusty gold with mixture of black and gold in a pot. However, it looks more complex than just black and gold as it looks khaki as well when swatched. This was what make me took and plunge and bought it as I am a fan of khaki shade.

For the look below, I did a simple 5 mins ETK eye look by applying 25 Rusted Gold onto my crease and tap in 8 champagne lightly in the inner corner of my eyes. All done with my ring finger and pinkie and nothing wise which explains why I only need about 5 mins. Given the fine powdery texture of ETK, blending is not a problem even using your fingers as long as you don't tug and sweep the colour too hard. I do not experience any fallouts during application and even without putting on any eyeshadow primer, it last very well on me for more than 6 hours in the hot and humid weather here.

For the movie date yesterday, below are the gears I used:-

I have to say, I love Burberry Light Glow Blush in Tangerine...... !!!

Nordstrom haul!! Chanel, Burberry and more!

This is a haul that I have been waiting to receive for the longest time because I placed my order online in end July and vPost only delivered to me yesterday. Honestly, this is a huge test of my patience as I really want to get my hands on them FAST!

So here it is!!!

1) Burberry Light Glow Blush in Tangerine

2) Chanel Ombres Contraste Duo in Sable Emouvant (Yeah!!!)

3) Le Metier De Beaute Creme Tint in poppy

4) Burberry Sheer eye shadow in Midnight Brown

5) Chanel Rouge Allure Extrait De Gloss in Troublant

6) Nars foundation pump applicator

What made me haul is really just Chanel Ombres Contraste Duo in Sable Emouvant since it is no longer available in Singapore but you know just how scary online shopping is..... click click click and you have a cart full of items, lol.

Burberry Sheer Eye Shadow in Midnight Brown needs no introduction as there have been raves and raves about this shade and I'm glad I got it. Burberry Light Glow Blush in Tangerine is the only shade that caught my eyes when I look through their blush collection and I love the neutral peachy shade.

The highlight of the whole haul.... Chanel Ombres Contraste Duo in Sable Emouvant. I am a happy girl just looking at it. I love neutrals!

Le Metier De Beaute creme tint in poppy was quite a wild card in this haul. I did not meant to purchase this but the few days before I made my purchase online, there have been a few beauty blogs posting about this and so I conveniently added to my cart since I am keen to try out a cream blush. Lovely pink shade even though it looks peach in the picture. I just can't seem to get the picture to turn out well! :(

I fell in love with Troublant when I first set eyes on the swatches online and I knew I am getting it. I am a fan of muted rose or plum shade and this was what attracted me to Troublant. It has light gold shimmers in it as well which looks lovely.

Lastly, Nars foundation pump applicator...... I have no idea why companies will want to make the design of their containers user unfriendly and Nars is one of them. A foundation bottle with just an opening is just plain stupid. But thinking of it now, Nars is not so stupid after all, isn't it? Because they just manage to make me cough out a small amount for this pump!

My shopping experience with Nordstrom so far has been quite pleasant from friendly and efficient customer service officers who can assist you via Live Chat to prompt delivery. This is certainly not going to be pocket friendly for me! Haha

It is finally going to be another long weekend so do enjoy yourself and Selamat Hari Raya to all!

Ippudo Singapore @ Mandarin Gallery

For the longest time, I have heard raves about Ippudo ramen at Mandarin Gallery. Everything I walked past, there is always a queue outside the shop and I seriously thought to myself if it is really that good.

Last Saturday, I was in need of a serious ramen fix and I told BC that I want to try Ippudo ramen (no negotiation! since BC hates queueing and Ippudo does not accept reservations). We headed to Mandarin Gallery around 530pm and there is already a queue building up. We were in queue for about 10 - 15mins and a table was arranged for us.

The ramen menu was pretty straightforward. There is only 3 types of ramen: Shiromaru Hakata (ramen with char siew, black fungus), another type (which I forgot but is pretty similar to Shiromaru Hakata but with garlic oil) and spicy version of Shiromaru Hakata. There are options to add flavoured eggs, pork belly, tender pork cubes or even bamboo shoots (with additional costs). And both me and BC chose Shiromaru Hakata with flavoured egg.

The soup is flavourful and the ramen is Q and firm. If you prefer your ramen to be softer or harder, you can indicate to their staff when they are taking down your order. I opt for normal firmness and it turn out well and Q enough. The char siew is soft and tender but a bit on the salty side. The egg is to die for because the external is hard but the centre is super soft and the yolk is still a bit runny, NICE!

We ordered potato mentai on the side and we find it was just normal with potato baked with mayonnaise, roe and cheese.

Overall the ramenis quite nice as I like the Q noodles and the flavourful soup base. However, the soup does gives me a dry throat after the meal, which I suspect could be due to the MSG. The restaurant is quite noisy as the shop space is small and crowded with people so it's definitely not a place for you to chill out and catch up with your friends. For you guys who would like to try Ippudo ramen, my advices are:-

1) Don't go in big group. Max 4 pax so it's easier to get a table

2) Queue earlier. At least an hour before the normal meal time.

Weekly Photo Challenge - Summer Must-Haves

It's the time of the week to take part in Yumeko's Weekly Photo Challenge and the theme for this week is Summer Must-haves!

1. Base Makeup – [sunscreen,powder,foundation,bbcream, whatever you use in the heat/humidity of summer]


SPF, oil control and fuss free base makeup is my key criteria in this hot humid summer!

2. Point Makeup [blush,eyeshadow,whatever you use in the heat/humidity of summer]


Lately I have been keeping my workday makeup as simple as possible without any eye makeup. Waterproof mascara and simple powder blush is all I need. :)

3. Sunglasses/Hat/Anything you are wearing to block out the sun’s harmful rays


I am not a hat person so sunglasses is what helps me to protect myself and my eyes from the strong harmful rays.

4. Deodorant/Body Spray/Perfume [whatever you are using to make yourself smell good]


I hate the sticky feeling after sweating so anti perspirant spray and prickly heat powder is my daily must have before heading out.

5. Other must-haves for Summer


Other than water, tissue papers are a must have! I don't use facial blotters for my face and prefer simple trusted tissue papers. :)

Why don't you also join in the fun and show us your summer must-haves too!