April 1st, 2008 pkuan
This is Yoshimi’s new friend
This is her dinner of Hainanese Chicken Rice
*Disclaimer*
The bird (above) is of no relation to the bird (top)
It is in fact, authentic Hainanese Chicken Rice, made by the original Singapore Meritus Mandarin Hotel’s Chatterbox Chef, who is now based in Rasa Singapura, which is located in The Venetian’s Festivita Foodcourt.
A few of us from the Macau.com team recently went out for dinner at 3-Monkeys restaurant, located in St. Mark’s Square in The Venetian Macao. Owned by a Singapore group, Solutions17, which also manage World Wide Wings - a sports bar offering 40 types of chicken wings and over 30 types of beer (that’s where Yoshimi’s chicken friend lives), Rasa Singapura, which specializes in Singapore dishes, all at The Venetian.
Other than the Hainanese Chicken Rice, which came with lashings of ginger, dark soy sauce and chilli, we also got the Singapore laksa. (above)
I realized I had bitten off a little more than I could chew when my dish of beef spare ribs arrived. (above)
That must be one big cow. And yes, that is genuine chilli padi and sambal to the right. Apparently the beef ribs is shipped over from the U.S. and takes up so much space, it is stored in a warehouse, and pulled out as needed.
After a soup, appetizers and picking at other people’s food, I managed to make a reasonable dent in the ribs.
I was even tempted when the sizzling fajitas were delivered to the table next door.
Apparently, the burgers here are to die for.
I have walked past 3-Monkeys on several occasions and always get distracted by the giant grinning plush toy monkeys that are hanging around the premises. It may be a family-friendly jungle-themed restaurant, but believe me, there is nothing childish about the portions of food - which are gorilla sized.
There are 300 toy monkeys altogether in the restaurant, collected from around the world. The owners say their friends grab whatever monkey they see on their travels bundle them up in glad wrap, chuck them in cargo and fly them over to Macau.
According to Gwen (above, far left), who runs sister cafe - the iconic Monkey’s Cafe in Orchard Towers in Singapore, many of them are so big, that many would require their own seat, if they were brought on board. And yes, we hear that the drycleaning bills are huge.
Despite the fact, they are the delight of many children, who squeal and clutch at the furry critters, grown-ups aren’t immune to the charms of a giant grinning soft toy monkey either.
For restaurant information, click here.
March 24th, 2008 pkuan
This comes courtesy of Jiji:
Starting with a sexy number - I Drove All Night - Celine the sellout crowd on their feet straight away.
Although she had a slight mishap - stumbling slightly when she first appeared - probably due to the fact that the fact the stairs were black and the lights were dim - ever the true performer, she recovered well.
It helped that she looked every inch the star in a short sparkling mini-dress which showed off her long divine legs.
Celine sang about 20 songs over 1 1/2 hours, with limited interaction with her fans - a Diva is a Diva after all. Not that her fans minded.
The crowd of 15,000 people included a wide range of ages - a tribute to the French-Canadian singer’s universal appeal.
Her 5 years of almost nightly performances in Vegas at Caesers Palace have sharpened her live performance skills to a deadly point. She is a formidable force to be reckoned with and had the adoring crowd eating out of her hands for the entire night.
When she thanked them using a Chinese phrase ”Xiexie” - there was a raucous cheer of approval.
Her fantastic dancers were a multicultural mix and included an even mix of males and females.
Celine ended the concert with her Titanic hit, My Heart Will Go On, in an encore that got the whole arena on their feet cheering.
Following the concert, there were after concert parties at Mcsorley’s Ale House and Cafe Deco at The Venetian.
But THE party to be seen at was the after concert party at The View - a newly opened ultra exclusive swanky VIP club on top of Sands - The Venetian’s sister casino.
Here invited, guests sipped on flutes of Moet and nibbled on canapes while enjoying models sashaying down a catwalk, as well as the amazing view.
It really was an experience not to be missed.
March 19th, 2008 pkuan
Canadian diva Celine Dion loves her LV.
The reed-thin singer with the huge voice reportedly gave the security staff of The Venetian Macao-Resort-Hotel quite a headache - and not by warbling an emotional ballad that went on and on and on…
In Macau for her Taking Chances concert, Celine, who performed to a full house at The Venetian’s 15,000 capacity Arena last Saturday apparently got a little emotional when her precious Louis Vuitton luggage was going through the standard security check - fearing that her designer bags may be scratched.
But hey, give the girl a break, she works hard for her money (she was performing 5 times a week for 5 years at Ceaser’s Palace in Vegas, taking in an estimated US400 million before ending her run in December).
The girl loves to shop - and she has a sense of humor. After paparazzi accosted her outside Cartier, where she had just bought some jewellery, the ever-friendly Celine quipped: “I do damage wherever I shop.”
We say, let the girl have her bling!
You gotta love a girl who admits that audiences at her Las Vegas shows were often tired, drunk, sick and in some cases asleep.
And you won’t find her dishing out lawsuits or getting teary on talk-shows over being ridiculed for her stage movements, conservative behavior and emotional songs - even when it’s her own fellow Canadians.
Maybe it comes from having actual talent, and a whopping 5-octave range, but Celine says she actually feels flattered that people take the time to impersonate her.Heather Mills should take a leaf out of Celine’s book.
Like the title of her hit of Titanic proportions, Celine’s heart really does go on. Forbes voted her one of the top 10 most generous celebrities in Hollywood in 2006, after raising more than US$1 million for UNICEF’s Tsunami Recovery Fund, and spending decades supporting charities.
Stay tuned for the concert review…
February 26th, 2008 pkuan
It has been raining solidly for the past week, and there hasn’t been a ray of sunshine in sight… But I promised motoring writer Ju-Len (who made a trip from Singapore to check out the track at the Motor Sports Club – stay tuned for the review!) blue skies. And I do aim to please.
So here we are at The Venetian Macao’s Festivita Food Court – the perfect place to grab a bite in between shopping, or gambling. To find it, just listen for the sound of the gondoliers singing, and follow the Grand Canal down towards the direction of the Great Hall. Then look up for the blue skies. Yes, there’s no need for sunglasses, cos you’re still indoors, and that blue is Pantone 14-4318 – Sky Blue.
It’s a great concept.
21 big brand names in fast, mid-priced food offering almost every cuisine under the sun - or in this case, the blue sky at least. In my opinion, the photos come out real, but in real life, there’s something a little disconcerting about the pale blueness of the ceiling. It could be the fact that there’s no actual sunlight or birds singing. Although there’s always classical music softly playing in the background.
Anyway, after an initial recce, we were finally seduced by Fatburger. Doesn’t the name just conjure up the image of a huge juicy, mouthwatering burger, so stuffed full off goodies that you can barely fit it into your mouth? And there were two sizeable Americans chowing down in front of the stall that seemed like a perfect advertisement for it. But anyway, I digress…
And I’m sad to report that the Fatburger wasn’t so… phat. The patty tasted rather processed and lacked flavor and texture. In fact, it wasn’t any better than Burger King’s Whopper and on the scale of satisfaction, was about equal to a McDonald’s Double Cheeseburger. Plus, at 43 MOP, it was kinda pricey.
Check out the photo and decide for yourself.
February 21st, 2008 pkuan
Hello. I have spent the last 10 years of my life living and working in Singapore. But as of Feb 10, I am now here in Macau, and part of Macau.com. So I was very pleased to find that Jetstar Asia now flies direct from Singapore to Macau. Three months ago, I was here for a look around on Tiger Airways, which allows 15kg of baggage. That’s fine for a holiday. But a girl can accumulate a lot of baggage in 10 years. 15kg doesn’t even get my shoe collection, much less the rest of my life here.
The Jetstar crew, as always, were very friendly and professional - almost to a fault. They remind me of the staff at MGM Grand Macau who warned me to zip up my bag and take my hat off. Didn’t you know? Unzipped bags and hats on heads aren’t allowed in casinos here. I’m a danger to myself, and the public at large.
Back to Jetstar, I was sitting by the emergency exit and the cabin crew taught me something new. In exchange for the extra leg room, and the privilege of being responsible for saving people’s lives, should the plane encounter any difficulties (i.e. crash land, which is when I’d have to yank the exit open), you also have to ensure that nothing is on the floor, sticking out of the seat pocket or on your lap - well, except your hands. So after the flight attendant removed my jacket from my lap, and deposited it into the overhead locker, she oh so politely asked if I’d mind making sure the strap of my handbag was tucked firmly into the seat pocket ahead of me. I assume in case I got tangled up in it, in my haste to open the exit, should the need arise. Now that’s forward thinking. Clever girl noticed I was a klutz when I tripped over getting into my seat.
I like Jetstar Asia. Partially because the nice ground staff let me bring 27kg of luggage on board when I smiled nicely and also because the flight attendants are nice. But they get brownie points for having better make-up skills than Tiger Airways, who can’t seem to match their foundation to their natural skin tone. I heard a rumor that apparently Jetstar has help from SQ girls in the grooming department.
But I especially like Jetstar because of their cheap fares - I paid $50 one way for mine, though it can cost a little more, depending on when you fly. Now it’s so affordable to come to Macau; I’m flying my friends over, in exchange for their baggage allowance. You see - paying their tickets actually works out cheaper than sending my life over by air, and only slightly more expensive than sea. Obviously, I’d have to only choose the friends that can fit into my clothes and shoes. This Friday my ex flat mate is bringing the second shipment of my shoes - just two more to go. So if you see a girl tripping around The Venetian Macao this weekend in five-inch cherry red heels - come over and say hello.
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