Two Bakers and The Bravery. Horne Road

I love the Horne Road area for the cluster of cafes which is easily accessible from Lavender Mrt and it definitely helps that I live so close! Tx and I decided to do brunch one Saturday morning long ago and we picked Two Bakers. It had been a long long time since I did brunch with the her! So long that I forgot when was the last time we did brunch oops.

The menu at Two Bakers below. (Update: the menu has since changed).

Tx picked the Truffle Omelette ($15.80) which was truly an explosion of mushrooms, truffle, cheese in an omelette! It tasted so good that I think I will go back and try it one day. I picked Eggs Royale ($14.80) with the usual poached eggs, smoked salmon and hollandaise sauce. It was really good too! Brunch at Two Bakers is really unexpectedly good. I thought they were popular for their desserts but omg, I am so pleasantly surprised that their brunch was also fantastic.

UPDATE: Returned to Two Bakers recently and the menu seemed to have changed or at least it no longer looked like the picture above. The boyfriend and I used the Entertainer app and realised that the brunch items were no longer considered mains so we picked other stuff instead. I had the Lock, Stock and Barrel bagel which came with a sunny side up, hash browns, streaky bacon and a thick juicy portobello mushroom. This was good! The boyfriend picked the Vongole Pasta which was quite bland unfortunately. The cafe was still comfortable, cozy and quiet on a warm Saturday afternoon and I still like the vibe at this place as we sat back and discussed adulthood problems like housing.

Back to my Saturday with Tx. Moved over to The Bravery where I had trouble finding the door (it is the middle pane) and we settled down at the large communal table with our flat white and lavender earl grey. Talked and laughed about life in general, leaning back in our little chairs and giving each other updates on stuff. Also received an awesome early birthday present. A Milan Kundera! Also the same one I commented on when I saw a picture of that book on her Instagram :) Thanks for the gift! Will let you know once I have completed the book. 

To many more brunches in future!

Two Bakers

Address: 88 Horne Rd, 209083

Phone:6293 0329

The Bravery

Address: 66 Horne Rd, 209073

Phone:6225 4387

USA (Orlando) Itinerary Day 5 - Universal Studios Orlando, the Wizarding World of Harry Potter - Hogsmeade, Owl Post

To beat the crowd at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Universal Studios Orlando, we woke up when it was still dark, drove to pick up some breakfast at the large MacDonald's along International Drive (the fries with neon lights were such a classic!), and reached the Universal Studios' car park before the sun even peeked out from the horizon. We were so early that the park was not even opened yet but! There was already a crowd at the gates. When the gates rose, the crowd surged forward and we hustled along with everybody else towards Hogsmeade. 

The Orlando Universal Studios have two separate parks namely, the Islands of Adventure and the Universal Studios Florida. We bought park-to-park tickets which meant we could ride the Hogwarts Express (certainly a must!) between Hogsmeade in Islands of Adventure and Diagon Alley in Universal Studios Florida. We allocated two days for Universal Studios (one day for each park) and paid a bit more for the Express Pass on the first day. We figured that we would cover Hogsmeade and all the popular Express Pass attractions on the first day while leaving Diagon Alley and the other attractions for the second day. 

Hogsmeade at dawn.

We took the Forbidden Journey ride the minute we hit Hogsmeade because we heard that the queue get pretty bad by late morning. It was such a wonderful ride, I truly felt like I was flying along on a broom stick with Harry!

Being in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter was amazing. It was exactly how I imagined Hogsmeade would be like (ok maybe not really, I always imagined Hogsmeade to be a lot bigger but, you know, space constraints). Everything here felt so real. The moving portraits, the magical "spells", the colourful store displays, the butter beer (which really tasted like root beer with butter foam on top), the moving books. Ah! I felt like a kid all over again. Then again, I strongly believe that we never truly grow up. Inside every adult is a kid at heart, suppressed by the daily grind of work, adult responsibilities, money matters, and "maturity". We never truly mature, you know? We just believe that we do. Some people are just better at hiding that childish side of us away. 

Owl Post. We stumbled upon this discovery accidentally and it was truly such a remarkable joy. We purchased post cards and stamps from the Owl Post, wrote our post cards, and mailed them from the Owl Post complete with the Hogsmeade postmark! I was so thrilled by this discovery that I wrote a bunch of post cards to my friends and myself!

The Hulk roller-coaster. Stef and King went to try it first while Zg and I watched with trepidation. Eventually I mustered enough courage to board the roller coaster and omg! It was such an intense ride but so much fun! I felt like I was zooming around upside down at a crazy speed and before I know it, I was back. So glad I tried it :D

We made a small mistake, took a wet ride sometime in the middle of the day, and left the ride soaked to the bone. Everything was wet - our clothes, shoes, bags, socks, hair. Everything. So we paid a bit to dry ourselves in the drying box and left the rest to the sun. Took a long while before we stopped dripping water everywhere we went. The other rides were good though! We did the Minions, Simpsons, MIB, Spiderman and Transformer. Some of the rides were in the Universal Studios Florida park so we hopped on the Hogswarts Express for a nice relaxing journey from the Islands of Adventure to the Universal Studios Florida. Will share some pictures of the Hogwarts Express in the next post!

As expected, food in Universal Studios was expensive and not the best but I guess nobody was really too bothered about the food because we just wanted to have fun all day under the warm Florida sun!

Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, Day 6, Day 7, Day 8, Day 9, Day 10, Day 11, Day 12, Day 13, Day 14, Day 15 up too!

May May, Tras Street and 5 the Moment

Dinner a long while back with Stef and W at May May! Read a lot about their rice bowls served during lunch but haven't had the chance to drop by for lunch yet. Their dinner menu was slightly different and came without the rice bowls but was still delicious nonetheless.

I love dinner dates around the Tanjong Pagar, Tras Street or Keong Saik area. The row of quaint little shop houses are just so much love and a great place to chill over dinner after a hectic day at work. 

5 Spiced Pork Chop with baby corn, potatoes and marmite butter sauce ($28). Extremely fresh and tender pork chop with all that marbly fats. Ok I confess, I ate a bit of the marbly, melt-in-your-mouth fats and left quite a chunk of fats aside. But I truly enjoyed the pork chop because it is so rare to find tender juicy pork chop which was so well-marinated in the delicious marmite butter sauce. I also love the butter poached potatoes!

Lobster Noodles ($32) with rice noodles, lobster, lemon grass, lime and coconut broth. This was a bit like lobster tom yum pho. The rice noodles were thick, similar to what you have in vietnamese pho, and the coconut broth was sour with a strong hint of lemon grass. It was good, but not my favourite dish. And many thanks to Stef for being the best hand model!

Crispy Rice ($28) with scallop, prawns and seafood broth. The crispy rice was served in a large black bowl and the waitress brought a small tea pot filled with seafood broth and poured the broth into the rice before us. I am assuming that this ensured that the rice was not soaked in the broth for too long hence retaining its crispy texture. This was sooooo good! I love the crispy chewy rice grains, the thick fragrant seafood broth (it reminded me of lobster bisque), and the fresh seafood!

We took a short stroll along Tras Street after dinner and found ourselves in front of 5 the Moment. Such a sweet little nostalgic place. The decorations were haphazard and different, like an amalgamation of things from all over the place. There were large princessy white arm chairs, vintage displays, folded metallic chairs and random stuff around the place. We picked the white arm chairs, only because the folded metallic chairs were likely unkind to our aging backs. Had a waffle with Thai Milk Tea ice cream and Cheese Cake ice cream. The waffles were not bad and I liked the Thai Milk Tea ice cream. 

Love the great night chatting about work and school, relaxing over yummy food and just enjoying the moment.

May May:
65 Tras Street 
Mon-Sat 11am-11pm & Sun 11am-5pm 
+65 6221 4698

5 The Moment
73 Tanjong Pagar Road Singapore 088494

Tanjong Beach Club

Another very overdue post oops. So I spent my birthday along the beach where I have always felt most alive. There was no better way to spend my birthday than with sun in my face, sand between my toes and wind in my hair. So when Zg asked me where I would like to go for my birthday celebration, I chose Tanjong Beach Club because I missed Potato Head Beach Club too damn much and Tanjong Beach Club was the closest substitute in Singapore. It was also a tiring week for me and I wanted nothing more than to get away from it all to a place as far away as possible and escape from reality for a bit. Also my birthday was a splendid reason to start drinking at 11 am in the morning and down a Corona with my brunch. Bye to flat whites! Thank you for taking me to Tanjong Beach bright and early on a Saturday morning, for joining me in the unhealthy habit of drinking early in the morning, for hanging out with me on this warm breezy morning. It was a blast. 

Food was all right. Usual hearty brunch fare. Not the best but certainly good enough when you add the wonderful vibe of the place into the equation. We had a Yoghurt Parfait to share and I took the Weekender Fry Up ($29) while he chose the Chorizo Quesadilla ($27). I had my eggs poached which were not the best poached eggs I have tried before but it was not bad. The mushrooms, bacon and baked beans were good. I also loved the slab of avocado! 

I had a mouth of the Chorizo Quesadilla and it was not bad too!

It is not a beach club in Bali and it still feels distinctly Singaporean. But I felt like I was away from everything for that few short hours. It was like I could take the time to slow down, breathe in the salty air, drink a few sips of beer and enjoy the moment. I was not rushing to somewhere else to do something else and there was nowhere I had to be. I was just there on Tanjong Beach doing nothing but enjoying myself. I love such moments.

120 Tanjong Beach Walk, Sentosa Island, Singapore 098942
62701355

USA (NYC - Orlando) Itinerary Day 4 - Avanti Resort and Pio Pio Restaurant

Wanted to eat a quick breakfast around Kips Bay so we dropped by this place called Bread and Butter where they serve salad and breakfast items buffet style. Basically, you pick up a takeaway box, pile the items you want inside the box, take it to the counter and pay according to the weight of your items. We chose a bunch of stuff, ordered coffee and settled down upstairs for a quick casual meal. 

Took a domestic flight on Delta to Orlando! The weather was superb. So glad to be away from the frigid cold in New York City and to feel warm sunshine on my face. Picked up our rental car from Dollar and drove to Avanti Resort on International Drive. This was a cheap, good and clean resort. We came during spring break when families and students descended upon Orlando so the resort was kind of crowded but the stay was definitely still comfortable. And yes, we could see the new Orlando Eye ferris wheel from our resort!

Chasing sunsets in Orlando.

Peruvian food at Pio Pio Restaurant for dinner. Had the rotisserie chicken, beans and fried plantain (essentially fried bananas). The chicken was so tender and juicy! Ended the night with sangria and lots of laughs when we stumbled into the nearby supermarket on a high. A cool wind picked up when we headed back to Avanti and I felt so... present. I had a full belly, some wine in my system and I was hanging out with some of the best people in the world. The roads were empty, the car park was quiet, there was nobody around, and I could actually hear myself think. 

5752 International Dr, Orlando, FL 32819, United States

Day 1, Day 2,Day 3, Day 5, Day 6, Day 7, Day 8, Day 9, Day 10, Day 11, Day 12, Day 13, Day 14, Day 15

USA (New York City) Itinerary - Day 3: Union Square, Joe's Coffee, ABC Kitchen, Madison Square Park, Flatiron Building, Wall Street, Statue of Liberty, DB Bistro Moderne, Times Square

Union Square and Joe's Coffee on this bright lovely morning. The weather was prefect on the third day of our trip and all our pictures looked awesome against that clear blue sky. It was truly such a beautiful day! One of the best weather we experienced in New York.

ABC Kitchen for brunch. Another amazing meal. We ordered so much food and washed everything down with wine. It was perfect, aside from the fact that the lady at the next table was making all sorts of hand gestures and tsk-ing each time I snapped a picture of my food. I guess I live up to the stereotype of Asians taking pictures of food? But frankly, I did not understand her distress since I was clearly not bothering her when I took pictures of my food! I was rather annoyed initially but made up my mind to ignore her. After a while, I started to feel pity towards her. I mean, she must be a really sad soul to spend her entire date checking me out instead of speaking to her partner. I barely heard a conversation from her table through the entire meal! How sad. On the other hand, I was having a whale of a time digging into our delicious brunch paired with moscato.

35 E 18th St, New York, NY 10003, United States

Madison Square Park and Flatiron Building. I love this area so much! The streets were lined with warm cozy cafes, people were out with their dogs, sitting around, enjoying the warm sun. There was a happy, laid-back vibe. Maybe it was the good weather? But I really enjoyed my time at Madison Square Park. 

Strand Bookstore for an amazing variety of books.

Wall Street, the concrete jungle where dreams are made of, and a thronging crowd at the Charging Bull.

Took the Staten Island Ferry and enjoyed the view of the Manhattan skyline and the Statue of Liberty from the ferry. A tout, who was trying to sell the Statue of Liberty cruise, stopped us from entering the Staten Island Ferry Terminal and insisted that we should head for the other terminal if we "wanted to see the Statue of Liberty" and that we should trust him because he was "from around here and knows better". Word of advice - if you do not intend to take the Statue of Liberty Cruise, just walk right into the Staten Island Ferry Terminal and do not be swayed by the touts. The Staten Island Ferry is free!

Magnolia Bakery. The guys braved the crowd in the narrow bakery to bring some brownies, pies, and tarts back for us. The lemon tart was memorable!

Rockefeller Center 1240 Avenue of the Americas

New York, NY 10020

We tried to get tickets to Top of the Rock on Rockefeller but failed to do so because the queue was so crazy long and the earliest slot was 10:30 pm! So much for online reviews which said that there was no need to reserve tickets online since tickets are readily available at the Rockefeller counter!

Trying to find something to eat in mid-town and decided on DB Bistro Moderne for the Original DB Burger with foie gras in a thick beef patty and Grilled Salmon on green beans. 

City Club Hotel, 55 W 44th St #1, New York, NY 10036, United States

Times Square at night with its bright dazzling lights and insane crowd. There was literally a sea of people in Times Square and so many tourists on the red steps! Of course we had to join in. There was a giant Revlon billboard in the heart of Times Square where the "Love is On" campaign was going strong. Essentially, a crowd of people gathered in front of a camera and tried to get themselves into a heart. Those in the heart were supposed to kiss. We squeezed ourselves in for the fun of it. I have to say that being squashed in a crowd was the perfect way to stay warm on a cold spring night. 

Empire State Building lit up at night. It was truly a perfect day.

Day 1, Day 2, Day 4, Day 5, Day 6, Day 7, Day 8, Day 9, Day 10, Day 11, Day 12, Day 13, Day 14, Day 15 are up!