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St Regis Bangkok – sophistication and timeless luxury. Love this hotel!

Post author:Rebecca Saw
Post published:October 9, 2012
Post category:Accommodations Thailand Travel
Post comments:21 Comments

So I have told you about my rather funky, tech savvy hotel in Aloft Hotel in Sukhumvit 11, Bangkok. Judging from the comments, everyone seems to love it as much as I do! 🙂

While Aloft Bangkok is contemporary and trendy, my next hotel was pure sophistication and timeless luxury.

The St Regis Bangkok is breathtaking. I was unwell for a few days in Bangkok and had 2 injections during my stay in Aloft Bangkok. By the time I shifted over to St. Regis, I was on the recovery and craved peace and tranquility as I hurt all over.
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Day 6 – Pulau Redang – Malaysia Tourism Hunt 2012

Post author:Rebecca Saw
Post published:October 8, 2012
Post category:Food Fun
Post comments:7 Comments

This day marked the day I released a baby turtle into the wild!

Turtle hatchlings are released from June to October and it’s a popular activity here in Kuala Terengganu Malaysia. Our beach here is one of the few coasts in the world to be visited by giant leatherback turtles. In an effort to conserve and lessen the extinction of these rare leatherback turtles, sanctuaries and conservation efforts are in place and public education are much more wide-spread now. These sanctuaries diligently collect the eggs, put them into incubation and hatched baby turtles are baby-sat till they reached the correct point of maturity to be released back into the wild.

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KL Photography Festival 2012 – Sony NEX 5R, Sony NEX6, SLT- A99, DSC- RX1, NEX-VG900

Post author:Rebecca Saw
Post published:October 6, 2012
Post category:Technology
Post comments:35 Comments

Sony unveiled its latest Full Frame cameras at the KL Photography Festival 2012 yesterday!

Note: Launch Photo – From Left, Masahiko Ishida, Head of Digital Imaging Dept and Kikuo Okura, Managing Director of Sony Malaysia.

.A total of 6 new cameras was shown to visitors and media including the much anticipated Sony Full Frame cameras; SLT- A99, DSC- RX1 and NEX-VG900. I was personally more interested in the Sony NEX range, being a faithful Sony NEX user since I was introduced to it from the Sony NEX C3, NEX-3 and the NEX-5 series.
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Malaysia International Gourmet Festival 2012 – it’s NOW!

Post author:Rebecca Saw
Post published:October 6, 2012
Post category:Food Glamour
Post comments:7 Comments

Every year in October I religiously did my rounds for almost all of the restaurants that participated in the MIGF . 2012 marked my 3rd year, and in preparation I have doubled my gym and runs sessions to accommodate the additional calories as I eat my way through some creatively crafted menus by some of the top chefs in the country! 🙂

Malaysia International Gourmet Festival marks 30 days of ~~gluttony~~ gourmet pursuits, starting 1st to 30th October where chefs of selected restaurants from hotels or stand-alone establishments craft their best menus to best showcase their culinary skills.

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Penang with Chef Michael Han – Hennessy X.O Appreciation Grows Gastronomy Dinner

Post author:Rebecca Saw
Post published:October 5, 2012
Post category:Food
Post comments:5 Comments

Barely 48 hours after 6 days of driving over 1500km for the Malaysia Tourism Hunt 2012, I threw out my stinky tees from the very same luggage bag, threw in a gold dress and was whisked to the Pearl of the Orient for a night of luxury; a night where the golden elixir of Hennessy flow continuously and the humble hawker food of Penang Island were given a new interpretation.
I was told to expect Penang fare, but deconstructed and matched with cognac. If that didn’t set my digestive fluids into overdrive, I’m not sure what else will.

What is exactly is deconstructed food?
In simple terms it means taking apart a dish or an ingredient, separating the individual components and in the process producing a new usage/dish. The components should be recognizable by themselves but when eaten together should bring about the idea of the original dish – meaning still recognizable in taste; whether it resembles the original version in appearance or otherwise.

I learnt this from my stint at the Singapore’s World Gourmet Summit 2012 from Chef Andre Chiang and Chef Dani Garcia.

Below: Chef Andre deconstructing his lemon.

And here’s Chef Andre Chiang’s final deconstructed lemon – all parts of the original were used and “put back together“. The gelatin skin for the “lemon” was made from the original lemon rind, the pulp within was made from the original lemon pulp. Trust me, it was mind-f*** mind-blowing and I barely blinked throughout the demo.
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World Gourmet Festival 2012 – Fours Seasons Hotel Bangkok: Buffet Lunch

Post author:Rebecca Saw
Post published:October 4, 2012
Post category:Food Thailand Travel
Post comments:6 Comments

Other than the World Gourmet Summit in Singapore this year, I flew to Bangkok in September to catch the The 13th Annual World Gourmet Festival, hosted by Four Seasons Hotel Bangkok.

The gastronomic affair showcased a sizzling selection of award-winning international chefs including chefs from Michelin star restaurants, such as Shiqin Chen, Diego Irrera, Galvin Lim, Igor Macchia, Michael Mina, Víctor Quintillà Imbernón, Masa Shimakawa and Frédéric Vardon who prepared delicious food paired with premium wines, wine tastings, and cooking demonstrations plus the world’s finest culinary purveyors such as Jeannie Cho Lee, Jean-Francois Antony and Robert Schinkel.

Unlike the World Gourmet Summit 2012 in Singapore, the opening night for WGF 2012 BKK was rather exclusive and attended by HRH Princess Soamsawali together with the participating chefs, principal sponsors and official partners. I didn’t managed to secure a seat.
Moreover, I got to know about this a bit late and had problems scheduling my work. But I was lucky to have made it there for the last few days.

On one day, I caught Chef Michael Mina (San Francisco, USA) for his demonstration of Roasted Foie Gras with Pineapple Confit, Macadamia Crunch, Green Cardamom Glaze and Chef Frédéric Vardon (Le 39V, Paris, France) for his Argenteuil line-caught Sea Bass with Cooked and Raw asparagus. The next day I watched Robert Schinkel; an award-winning bartender and mixologist and Dilmah’s ambassador pulled tea and learnt about tea mixology.

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Chef Justin Quek – Sky on 57, Marina Bay Sands, Singapore

Post author:Rebecca Saw
Post published:October 3, 2012
Post category:Food Glamour
Post comments:6 Comments

Chef Justin Quek’s Xiao Long Bao is somewhat of a legend. Luxuriant is not a doubt, since his comes finely minced with added foie gras and truffle within its delicate folds.

This rather fortunate dining opportunity came thanks to Marina Bay Sands, where at the end of May I spent a lovely weekend in its Tower 3 hotel and had the amazing opportunity to interview and set foot in the kitchens of the Celebrity chefs restaurants such as Waku Ghin, Guy Savoy and db Moderne Bistro.

I was even more fortunate to find out that Chef Justin himself was in the restaurant during our lunch. Being a busy man with restaurants in Taipei and Shanghai, he is known to be on the fly most of the time and the group of us were very lucky to catch him that day.

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Cape Mentelle wine and lunch by West Australian Chef and Ambassador, Kate Lamont

Post author:Rebecca Saw
Post published:October 2, 2012
Post category:Food
Post comments:9 Comments

Australian wines are nothing new. I daresay most of us would remember our 1st sip of wine to be from an Australian vineyard. My visit to Australia last year bought me to many vineyards, from Domaine Chandon to Red Hill estate and more. Yes, Australian wines are that famous and its easy availability in Malaysia has made it pretty mainstream and widely acceptable.

Other than the popular Yarra Valley (where I went), Margaret River is also well known for its wine production and tourism. I haven’t been there, but I had my taste of Margaret River when Robert Mann, Estate Director of Cape Mentelle, one of pioneers of Australian winemaking and Kate Lamont, West Australian Chef and Ambassador visited Malaysia recently.

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