Victor's Kitchen & Kooka Cafe

After learning our lesson from last time (greeted by 10% of the total menu when we visited Victor's Kitchen at 3.30pm on a weekday), we decided to reach there as early as we can. We reached at 11am which was quite a close shave before the lunch crowd comes in at 11.45am. I didn't take any photos cos I was busy eating from the giddy bus ride and an empty stomach - I cannot take long bus rides without proper breakfast. 

By the time we got there, 40% of the full menu was cancelled out so it was better than last time. We ordered minced meat porridge with dried vegetables, siew mai, har gao, deep fried prawn dumpling, fried beancurd skin wrapped with prawns, hot chrysanthemun tea and HK iced tea. The names which are bolded are the yummy ones. 

The porridge was a little more watery than I had expected for a Cantonese chok... something like a crossover between Teochew porridge and Cantonese chok. It is good in a way that I still have space for other foods served later. As compared to a Cantonese chok, the one opposite my house, it has a clean aftertaste and doesn't stick onto the mouth like a sticky porridge would. A sticky porridge tends to make me thirsty - maybe the MSG? - and I'll end up full by water. Overall, the porridge is a good "base" to go along with the heavy dimsums. 

I didn't like the siew mai and fried beancurd skin wrapped with prawns because there is this "pork taste" that leaves me jelak and turned off after a while. I love the har gao and deep fried prawn dumpling (or wanton) cos it is so full with prawns and filled with a lot less pork than the two dishes I mentioned earlier. Don't expect the fried dumplings to be half of your palm size because less is more and you savour it... not gobble it! Chrysanthemun tea is alright and I haven't got to drink HK iced tea cos I was busy eating.

Directions to Victor's Kitchen: Take 147 (leaving Hougang Bus Interchange) and sit and relax until you see Hotel Ibis Bencoolen, alight at the stop when the bus turns to the right to alight at Sunshine Plaza. If you are reaching there by foot, locate Hotel Ibis and you will see Sunshine Plaza. 

From Victor's Kitchen, my trusty Google Map led me to Kooka Cafe along Purvis Street. It took us a 15 minute walk to locate it and to digest our oily brunch. Kooka cafe is a relaxing, dim-litted cafe that serves light brunch, pastries and coffee. The cutleries and iced water are self-service and they sell art pieces that are hung on the walls. 

I ordered Pear & Almond Tart and Long Black while Xiaoli ordered Blueberry Cheesecake (MUST TRY) and Homemade Iced Tea.

Blueberry Cheesecake and Homemade Iced Tea. Credits to Xiao Li

Blueberry Cheesecake was light and its accompaniment of blueberries just pop in your mouth! Have it with some fresh cream and it tastes so amazing. I could have this all by myself and not feel sick at all.

Pear & Almond Tart

For your coming visit to Kooka Cafe, if you had a heavy lunch or not, you must try the Pear & Almond Tart. It is light and not diabetically-sweet. Just remember to eat with the fresh cream SPARINGLY otherwise you will start missing them :(

Long Black on top right corner with delicious Lemon Biscuit

I have never loved fresh cream so much before.

Trial Run for Party Makeup

My makeup skills hadn't been improving lately and I thought it was time to learn to do a proper makeup for my party. I learned from this YouTuber, frmheadtotoe, as she has monolids and slight hooded lids like mine.



I skipped the mascara and false eyelashes because I was left with a mascara I got 2 years ago and falsies just irritate the tear out of my eyes. I can't stop blinking and tearing up without feeling like there's a toothpick poking my eyelids!

Armed with my 88 neutral colour eyeshadow palette, I believed that I could get any similar colours as she had used in her Urban Decay Naked Palette. After a painful 30 minute, I realize that only the dark shimmery brown colour wasn't available in the set and I had to use the Maybelline Eyestudio eyeshadows in Autumn Spirit. 

Close enough!

This was the closest I could get. It was easier to do the left side as the eyelids were considered to be double eyelids but they are the not obvious type. The right eyelids are completely hooded lids so both eyes would end up with eyeliners of different thickness.

Downside was that my desk light is yellow coloured so the eyeshadows end up looking a little darker than it would have been in the video.

Oh well, good job Hui Yi! :)

Party DIY: Tissue Paper Pom Poms

The long-awaited tissue paper pom poms have finally completed and I have mastered it well enough to write up a tutorial - original source taken from www.bohoweddings.com but adjusted to the materials I can get my hands on. 

I have experimented with crepe paper and given its filmsy structure, it is rather difficult to handle during flipping and folding concertina style and especially when fanning out individual sheets. I would recommended crepe paper for those who likes texture on their pom poms, otherwise - considering that only the shape and unruliness of the papers will be noticed - I would still go for tissue paper.

Also, remember to do this without switching on the fan or at any place with wind. Even the slightest breeze can blow the papers over and you will have a hard time arranging them back together. 

Be generous with the length of twine and nylon string during cutting as it is always easier to handle longer strings than realizing you need 1cm more halfway through.

Materials you will need:

• 8 sheets of coloured tissue paper (about $3.20 each from Art Friend)
• Garden twine (one ball for about $3.30 from Art Friend)
• Tough paper scissors
• Nylon bead strings (from Daiso)
• Long ruler
• Smooth and flat table/any surface (I used the floor)

STEP 1. I am doing a dual colour paper pom pom to create gradient of blue by taking 2 sheets of baby blue tissue papers and 6 sheets of normal blue colour. Using a long ruler, measure a 2" gap and fold across. You can use the ruler to press down the sides gently or use your hand (shown in the 4th grid). Continue folding while making sure that the gap stays consistent.

You would have reached this stage where there is only 1" gap left to fold. Well... obviously I didn't intend to calculate the gap width using the given dimensions (20" x 26") so I gauged 2" would be good to have a fan large enough. Back to this situation; how do I rectify it? There's no need to... just go ahead and fold over! Who would notice the gap once you have fanned out the sheets and whose counting anyway?

STEP 2. Find the centre and use the long ruler to anchor nicely while you fold the left portion to the other side. The ruler helps to keep things steady and leave a faint mark so the twine can be tied over to hold the fan together. I did a double knot with the first one holding the fan a little taut, then the second knot secures the first knot.

STEP 3. Use the nylon string to loop under the twine and tie double knots at one end. Adjust the length of the string to the height you want to suspend your pom pom. 

STEP 4. I almost forgot this step! Cut a quadrant at both ends of the fan and make sure the ends are cut cleanly so as to enable easy fanning out. For the prototype, I fanned 4 sheets of paper gently on one side and did the same for the other side. 

Don't worry about squishing the pom pom; they'll do just fine. Most important part is to cover the bottom part by fanning the sheets straighter because you don't want your guests to see the "butt" of the pom pom.

STEP 5. I used the plastic bags which used to contain the tissue paper to store my "fans" so it can be protected while I bring it to my party venue next week. Neat way to recycle huh?