The Vanilla Place ~ its all things nice:D

Vanilla ~ isn't something I like. So I was a wee cautious when Ah Bok mentioned The Vanilla Place.



Braced myself and voila, I love this place in Empire Shopping Gallery. I didn't have enough that night and went back again with a pal over the week. Food is reasonably priced and the quality is good. This post was delayed so as to ensure that what I ate at the review and when I returned as a normal paying customer was the same:P

First that I tasted was the Oreo Mint. One can't go wrong with this and The Vanilla Place certainly didn't go wrong either. I liked the Mixed Berry Milk Shake. These 2 drinks are at RM9.80 each.

Some pals tried the affogato at RM7. Its basically espresso and a dollop of ice cream. Looked heavenly but I opted not to drink it least I am kept awake. Over a weekend soon, I will return for this affogato!

I'm quite a salad person. And a good salad pretty much secures me as a return customer. This colourful yummy Honey Roasted Chicken Salad at RM13.80 is a steal. Not many places serve sun dried tomatoes in their salads...well The Vanilla Place does! Crunchy vegies with cashews and the chicken is such a healthy idea. And the mustard sauce on the side goes well with the salad too. I didn't use much of the mustard sauce and the salad on its own was just nicely flavourful.

I am Chinese. Or more accurately half Cantonese. So I love soups! And to date the date the best onion soup I have had is cooked by my sister in law Gloria. Here the onion soup is just heavenly. A tad salty but I wouldn't mind having a second helping. See what I mean? Its so oniony onion. LOL

And the mushroom soup is also equally mushroomy mushroom:P The onion and mushroom soup goes a RM9.80.

Breads are another weakness of mine. Here check out their homemade bread with the dips at RM9.80. The darker one is olives and the other hummus. Heavenly reason to carbo load on bread!

Pasta pasta come to momma! I love pastas and have been quite well pampered at Trattoria Cucina Italiana. The Vanilla Place wasn't disappointing like many other places that I've been. As they are not Italians, I half expected the el dente not to be taken seriously. I was proven wrong. Pasta came el dente when I revisited subsequently. Bravo.

A highly recommended is the Spaghetti Seafood Pesto at RM14.80. Yes I love my seafood. And pesto pretty much seals the deal. The flavours were not overwhelming and the seafood was not overcooked till chewy.

The Aglio Oglio is also a recommended dish though I personally plainer without the seafood etc thrown in. Here the Spaghetti Carbonara is also good. Nice and creamy and went well with the mushrooms and ham. The 2 pastas are priced at RM14.80 and is quite a huge portion.

Lasagna is available in beef or chicken at RM14.80 is quite good. I had the beef and it was yummy. It was juicy mince beef and richly cheesy with the slightly tangy tomato puree. Bliss!

If you love meat, the 2 must haves are the Lamb Shank at RM19.80 and the Beef Stew @RM18.80. Unfortunately this must be ordered in advance. Call 03-5022 2198 to order a day ahead. Both were a tad salty for my personal preference but it was so flavourful and yummy, I went on eating. Be forewarned, I can't eat salty stuff very well. So its perhaps just nice for many of you:P

Mentioned above that I love seafood. So the Poach Salmon Fillet with Saffron Sauce was quite a turn on for me. I must admit the fish was a bit dry that night but the sauce and the mash potato made up for it:P This is priced at RM25.80 - ok pricedlah. And yes this must also be ordered a day in advance 03-5022 2198.

Chicken Rendang - I was surprised that this was on the menu. Wasn't expecting any local dishes. So this chicken rendang was a pleasant surprise. And surprisingly, it tasted good. The fluffy rice went well with the spices and the chicken meat. Priced at RM15.80 please call 03-5022 2198 to order a day in advance:P

And if you're thinking of just having some light bites or just desserts, The Vanilla Place is the place to be. Tea for 2 is only RM18.80 with with delectable yummies and tea for 2. Choose from its wide selection of tea. Definitely a good offering for Rm18.80 compared to many other places I've been. This is perfect for a girlie afternoon tea chit chat & gossiping:D

+

Looks delectable right?

And here's a closer look:P

And desserts here is divine. My fave is the Apple Crumble RM8.80. The warm tangy yet sweet apple filling went so well with the cold ice cream on the side. Oooo the crust actually crumbled real well - rich rich rich! Oh! I actually returned for this. LOL

Pavlova - not many places serve this. And here for RM8.80, you must try the Pavlova. Share it with someone though as the portion is huge:P

I was told the Carrot Cake here is rather popular. A wee sweet for me but it was flavourful and definitely went well with the marmalade that was served on the cake itself. Brilliant idea! It added more zest and ooopmh to the very flavourful carrot cake.

Tiramisu RM11.80 here is cute. Hmmmm...cute is a bad description. Its pretty and fun. Served in a tall glass, you dip your spoon all the way into the bottom of the glass. And voila you get everything that goes into a tiramisu. Its fun and a must try. Its quite fun to eat this with your darling and have fun feeding each other.

And if you just want to nibble on pretty cupcakes and macaroons, check them out here. RM4.50 for the standard size and RM2.50 for the minis.

The Vanilla Place

FK01, 1st Floor,

Empire Shopping Gallery,

SS/1 16 Subang Jaya,

Selangor, Malaysia.

Business Hours: Monday – Sunday 10am -10pm

Contact No.: +603-5022 2198

Email: thevanillaplace@hotmail.com

Landmark: opposite Toys R Us

GLEE ~ Forget You featuring Gwyneth Paltrow

I'm in my Sleepy But Have To Work mode. Kate rescued me with a lil entertainment interlude. THANX babe. A very addictive cute song that has you singing to it:D

Glee - Forget You feat. Gwyneth Paltrow! from Yana on Vimeo.

And if you're gonna sing along, here's the lyrics:

I see you drivin' 'round town with the guy I love
And I'm like, forget you[oo oo oo ]
I guess the change in my pocket wasn't enough
I'm like, forget you

Yeah I'm sorry, I can't afford a ferrari
But that don't mean I can't get you there
I guess she's an Xbox and I'm more atari
Hmm, but the way you play your game ain't fair

I pity fool that falls in love with you
(Ooh, she's a gold digger, just thought she know niggia)

Ooh, I got some news for you
Yeah! Go run and tell your little girlfriend

I see you drivin' 'round town with the guy I love
And I'm like, forget you (ooh)
I guess the change in my pocket wasn't enough
I'm like, forget you and forget him too

Said, if I was richer I'd still be with ya
Now ain't that some shh (ain't that some shh)
Now though there's pain in my chest
I still wish you the best
With a.. Forget you!

Now baby, baby, baby why do you wanna, wanna hurt me so
bad (so bad) so bad
(so bad]
I tried to tell my momma but she told me this is one
for your dad (your dad, your dad)
Yes she did, Yes she did

(Ooh) WHY?
(Ooh) WHY?
(Ooh) WHY? BABY?
(Ooh!) I love you! I still do! oo ooo ooo

I see you drivin' 'round town with the guy I love
And I'm like, forget you (forget you,oo oo oo
I guess the change in my pocket wasn't enough
I'm like, forget you and forget him too

Said, if I was richer I'd still be with ya
Huh, now ain't that some shh (ain't that some shh)
Although there's pain in my chest
I still wish you the best (wish you the best)
With a.. Forget you! Oooh

Socks For Japan ~ Let's do it

Socks for Japan ~ let's do it!
The quake has shaken Japan. But it has not shaken our faith in what us fellow humans can do for one another. Its raining now in Sendai and soon it will be snowing. And hyporthemia can set in anytime for the victims if they are not kept warm. As I gather the new warm socks for the victims on my end with some pals, read on and see what you can do to help the victims too.

Japan in crisis: Live Blog ~ Al Jazeera Blogs

In Ishinomaki, Patrick Fuller, of the International Federation of the Red Cross, says:

It is the elderly who have been hit the hardest.

The tsunami engulfed half the town and many lie shivering uncontrollably under blankets. They are suffering from hypothermia having been stranded in their homes without water or electricity.

Snow is expected within the next few days.

I learnt of the following Socks for Japan campaign via Poesy:
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=146480808749798
Read it closely and see how you can chip in.

Alternatively here it is from Jason's site http://jasonkelly.com/helpjapan/

Here’s a way you can help Japan, directly and meaningfully.

Hundreds of my readers in the United States and other parts of the world have asked me how they can help the victims of the devastating earthquake that struck Japan on March 11. There are many places to donate money, and that’s a wonderful thing to do, but direct aid is also cherished by victims.

My office location is perfect for managing a direct-aid operation because it’s close enough to the primary damage zone that we can physically get there to help, but far enough away that mail delivery is working. So we quickly set ourselves up to run this operation, called Socks for Japan.

Guidelines:

• Send only new socks. All human beings are comforted by a fresh, clean pair of socks. Other advantages socks offer this operation: their sizes are easy, they don’t break, people need lots of them in disastrous times without running water, people can keep them forever and remember that somebody from far away cared. Please do not send any other items of clothing, food, etc. Just socks, but go ahead and choose nice ones that will brighten somebody’s day.
• Group similar socks in one package. To help our inventory management, put all socks of one type in a single package. For example, “men’s large,” “girls’ medium,” “boys’ small,” “baby girls’,” and so on. Different colors and styles are fine in the same package, but keep the gender and sizes consistent, please. If you include several different groups in a single box, please pack the groups in clear bags with a description enclosed, facing out.
• List package contents on the package. To help our inventory management, write on the outside of the package exactly what’s inside. For example, “ten pairs, men’s medium socks” or “one pair, girl’s small socks” and so on. This will enable us to quickly group inventory for efficient distribution without opening packages.
• Enclose a short care letter. Japanese people treasure letters, especially ones from foreigners. Victims of the 1995 Hanshin quake in Kobe said that care letters were among the most uplifting items they received. If you enclose a care letter, provide a copy of it for each pair of socks you send. This will enable us to hand each recipient of your socks a letter from you. Please keep your letter brief. You can save us time by enclosing a translation of your letter into Japanese, which you can make easily at Google Translate, then copy, paste, and print the result to attach to each copy of your English version. Machine translations are imperfect so be sure to send your English version in case we need to tidy up the Japanese. If you send only English, we’ll translate it to Japanese and include your information that the recipient can use to respond later if they would like. No guarantee on that, of course, and any replies will probably arrive months or possibly more than a year later. We’ll translate replies from Japanese to English.
• Write your email address on the package. The most efficient way for us to keep in touch with you, and track the status of your package once we receive it, is via your email address. Please write it on the outside of your package so we can communicate with you without opening the package.

Please ship your package to my office:

Jason Kelly
Plaza Kei 101
Wakamatsu-cho 615-6
Sano, Tochigi 327-0846
Japan

Thank you for your support! When your package arrives, we’ll send a note to you at the email address you wrote on it.

Need to reach me by email or phone? Please see my contact page. Note that we’re still experiencing aftershocks and rolling blackouts, so it might be hard to get through and I might not be able to respond quickly.

______________________________

FAQ

WHY SOCKS?
Several reasons. Many of the victims ended up barefoot after fleeing in a hurry. In the disaster zone, feet get wet and then extra cold at night. People often forget about socks in favor of more obvious items like blankets and jackets. Receiving a new, fresh pair of socks provides a moment of comfort. If those socks arrive with a caring note as well, it’s very heartening for victims. If you’ve ever been stuck in a pair of wet, cold socks or no socks at all, perhaps you remember how soothing it felt to pull on a warm, dry pair.

Socks aren’t primary support, but a token of care that will last beyond their small mid-crisis comfort. All supplies exist here in Japan, so we wanted something that delivered meaning past the need of the moment, something more special than what people get from emergency teams and government supplies. Military socks are not the most comfortable.

WHAT’S THE BEST WAY TO SHIP?
The US Postal Service is the most economical, and its one-week delivery time is fine for the extended operation under way. People are shipping every day, so we’re receiving a steady supply of new socks. There’s no need to pay extra to get yours here quickly.

Japan’s country price group is 3. Packages sent via First-Class Mail International cost $10.76 for one pound, $17.64 for two, $24.52 for three, and $31.40 for four.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

PS: Please send proper warm socks. Not torn holey ones or peep toes. Its snowing not a fancy dress party:P

A girl isolated due to radiation greets her dog through a w... on Twitpic

A girl, isolated due to radiation, greets her dog through a w... on Twitpic

I could not resist sharing this pic of a girl and her furkid. Separated through the glass. The whole earthquake, tsunami and its aftermath is quite depressing. Can't say much except #PrayForJapan. For this girl and her dog, I pray that they are united real quick.

God have mercy on Japan and its folks. The earthquake and the tsunami is bad enough. They don't need any more nuclear meltdowns or even volcanoes (Shinmoedake volcano in Kirishima ~ south west of Japan erupted this morning).

Earthquake / tsunami checklist

The major 8.9-magnitude earthquake that hit the northern east coast of Honshu, Japan today followed by the 10m tsunami has many of us shaken.

The following is a mini checklist at the top of my head (a mixture of earthquake and tsunami) and some that I have gathered off twitter minutes back.

(1) Google has set up a person finder as a response to this quake:
http://japan.person-finder.appspot.com/?lang=en

(2) Malaysians, if you are in Japan please inform the Malaysian Embassy that you are safe.

+81334763840

Encik Wan Aznainizam Yusri Wan Abdul Rashid Minister Counsellor
Embassy of Malaysia
Mobile phone: +8190 9975 3122
Email: wayusri@kln.gov.my

Puan Rina Hanis Rodzli
First Secretary
Embassy of Malaysia
Mobile phone: +8180 3506 7636
Email: rina0377@kln.gov.my

Meanwhile the Malaysian Foreign Ministry has set up an operations room in Putrajaya to monitor the situation and to help Malaysians in Japan.

03 8887 4570

03 8887 4770

03 8889 2746

03 8889 2830

(3) Please avoid the coastal areas (tsunami alert has been issued) if you're from:
• Phillipines
• Taiwan
• Russia
• Papua New Guinea
• Hawaii
• Australia
• New Zealand
• Pacific coast of South America but does not include North America.
•• Sabah and Labuan (Malaysian Meteorological Department said that no tsunami alerts issued but you've been advised to stay away from coastal areas)

(4) Avoiding the coastal areas means:
• Stay off the beaches
• Stay out of the water including boating activities
• Do not go sightseeing
• Do not drive out to survey the damages (you're in possible danger and hampering rescue efforts if any)
• Tune in to the radio and/or TV for updates.
• Follow evacuation orders from your local council / civil defence authorities

(5) Survival kit for humans:
• At least 2 torchlights
• At least 2 battery operated radios for you to get updates
• Extra batteries (for the torchlights and the radio - important that you've sufficient batteries for the radio to run 24/7)
• Candles & lighter (or matches in waterproof containers)
• Fire extinguishers
• First Aid Kit
• Cash
• Tools for clearing debris and building shelter
• Disposable utensils such as cups, plates, forks, spoons, and knives
• Paper napkins or towels
• Drinking water for 5 days
• Non perishable food for 5 days
• Can opener
• Plastic bags (garbage)
• Zip-lock bags for food storage
• Change of clothing for each person (include raincoats)
• Sleeping bags / blankets / tents
• Prescription medications and copies of prescriptions
• Sanitary supplies
• If you have infants then you'll need diapers and baby food
• Toys for children to keep them entertained / distracted
• Emergency contact numbers of your loved ones, doctors and local authorities

(6) Survival kit for pets:
• Pet carrier or cage
• Well-fitted collar, identification tag, and leash
• One-week’s supply of dry pet food
• Non-spill food and water bowls
• Non-breakable water storage containers with 3 days supply of water
• Newspaper
• Plastic bags
• Cleansers and disinfectants
• Paper towels
• Special medication, if needed

Rini's at rainbow bridge. But justice must be done.

Twitter Sarah shares her pain and her search for justice. Can you help?

An ambulette driver who worked for Sinai Van Service Inc., ran over my family’s dog, Rini, and killed her. He subsequently drove away from the scene of the accident when my mom asked him to stop.

(Left: Rini at the ER Table, Right: Her paw prints the vet made after her passing)

This has devastated my family and we feel the pain of the loss every day since the accident. And to add insult to injury, we’ve gotten little or no help from the police, lawyers or the court system. We’ve faced indifference at almost every turn and even contempt in a few cases.

My mother has bipolar disorder and it was about two years ago that I bought her a pug. In a short amount of time I could see how Rini brought so much love into my mom’s life. My sisters and I also fell in love with her immediately. My mom spent almost every waking moment with Rini and I could see her living life more positively and happily.

On February 26 of this year, a white ambulette ran over Rini. She got run over once and possibly twice without stopping. My mom heard Rini scream violently twice. Rini was bleeding badly and my mom picked her up in a panic. A witness offered to hold her and told my mom to run down the white van and confront the driver so she did that. She knocked on the driver’s side window to tell the driver to stop. He opened the window and my mom told him that he ran over her dog and that he needed to stop. The driver said that the dog wasn’t his problem in Chinese and then started to drive off. My mom was holding on to the driver’s side door and didn’t want the driver to get away. As the omnibus drove off she was pulled alongside it. As the ambulette accelerated she couldn’t hold on any longer and fell to the ground hurting herself.

My mom called the police but they never sent anyone over to the scene of the accident.

Incidentally, the witness who was holding the dog saw a police car and managed to flag him down. The witness spoke to the police and described what happened. In the meantime Rini was bleeding and suffering badly. The police officer said he could not do anything for my mom or Rini because she was just “property” and not a person. My mom took Rini to the vet to try to save her life. The police later told us that they couldn’t file a police report because my mom left the scene of the accident but what was she supposed to do when her dog was bleeding to death? The police officer could not drive the dog to the vet and would not even offer help to catch a cab for my mom. The witness’s husband was kind enough to drive Rini and my mom to the vet.

At the vet, mom my got in contact with the Forest Hills police to see if they could help but they told her that she had to contact the Flushing Police Precinct (#109). She visited the Flushing police with her friend as the vet performed surgery to fix Rini. The Flushing police would not help her fill out the accident report and could only give her the ambulette’s registration and insurance information based on the license plate number caught in the photo.

Rini’s pelvis was broken in half and her guts spilled out below where her belly is. Her lung was heavily inflamed because of the trauma and it was filling up with blood. The vet was able to bind her pelvis together but he couldn’t stop the internal bleeding. It was so painful to watch her suffering on the operating table with tubes in her mouth and her breathing heavily. She died early the next morning even though the vet did everything he could to save her.

This loss was hard on everyone but especially my mom. She was completely devastated and the trauma triggered her bipolar disorder. My mom still feels the pain of her loss every moment.

We took my mom to the hospital the day after the accident because she was feeling pain in her body from the fall. She had pain in her back, legs and she had a headache. Although it technically wasn’t a hit and run, the driver was reckless and put my mom in danger by driving off.

We went back to Flushing Police Precinct 109 3 more times to try to get a police report filed. We were met with indifference and contempt from the lady in the office.

She was very rude and cut us off when we tried to explain what had happened. The second time we were there she told us to leave the office because we “needed to leave.” When we went back the next day one of the police sergeants came out and spoke to us. He was kind but could not offer us any help other than hand us an accident report form for us to fill out. We fiiled this out and mailed it the next day. We went back the third time to get some more information and the lady sneered at us, “Even if the police commissioner was here it wouldn’t help you.” That was a very hurtful thing to say and completely unnecessary.

We also went to the Civil Court to inquire about filing a civil suit against the driver or his company – Sinai Van Service Inc.

Even if we submit a summons we don’t have any lawyer to represent us. We contacted the NYC Bar Referral but they told us that most lawyers are only interested in cases that are a minimum amount of $20,000. All we want is to find the guy who killed our dog and nothing else.

We’ve looked everywhere for help but it seems like no one can help us.

This whole experience taught me that animals have very few rights and if someone kills your dog then they can get away with it without even a slap on the wrist. Sinai Van Service refuses to help us identify the driver of the car. They said that without a police report they would not do anything for us. But it is their driver who killed our dog and fled the scene. The police said they won’t file a police report so we have hit a dead end. I feel like we will never get the closure that we seek as the driver will forever remain protected and blameless in the eyes of the law. We just want justice and closure.

If you know any lawyers in NYC or media that is willing to help us please let me know. And please pass on the story to all your friends and pet lovers.
I can be contacted at iqtsarah@yahoo.com Attn to Sarah Wu.

(The leash Rini was wearing at the time she was run over by the Sinai Van Service driver)

Hiccups, Liverpool and Man U

I've not had a hiccup for ages. And getting one last night was about the worse time it could come. A good 15 minutes worth of hiccups from our walk from The Library at e@Curve and our drive home. I am not sure what triggered the hiccups but I'll like to think it was the utter depressing malufying way that Man U played last night against Liverpool.

I hate to say it but Liverpool did deserve their win last night. Man U was taking Liverpool for granted perhaps? One may say the 1st goal was lucky. But if you watched the game, Liverpool was working hard. The 2nd goal pretty much gave them the nod that they were definitely in form and tight as a team. The 3rd goal says it all. Liverpool deserved the win. They played with passion and commitment.

Hernandez's 91st minute goal was Man U's saving grace of an otherwise insanely unbelievable game. Of course we know that we still have injured players like Valencia who have yet to return to the game but Man U must learn not to take its opponents for granted. Its time to bounce back and be in the game as proper Champions!

Now back to my 15 minutes hiccups! There are many causes to hicucps and I think in my case last night, it wasn't eating or drinking too fast. Rather it was me being too agitated with last night's case. As soon as the game ended, the hiccups started. So all the way as we walked out of the Library (yeah I watch the game surrounded by the enemies. Was just wondering if the enemies would to pounce on me, would hubby the Liverpool fan defend his wife? Mwahaha) till we reached home it was hic hic hic hiccup:D

It lasted a good 15 minutes till we reached home. I tried:
• drinking water - didn't work
• holding my breath to a count of 10 - didn't work
• breathing in and out into my hand in hope to increase my CO2 intake - didn't work (supposed to be into a plastic bag but I improvised since I didn't have any plastic bags with me then)
So I basically lived with it till we reached home.

And as I learned new ones from my colleagues that i will try next time:
• hold your breath and drink water at the same time
• put sugar under your tongue
• get someone to jump at me to scare me (hmmm)

But silly as it may also sound, I kinda enjoyed the 15 minutes hiccups. At least it tells me I am still alive:P

Super GT 2011 - guaranteed fun & entertainment for all!

Super GT is round the corner again. After all the adrenalin rush, fun and sun with the cars and babes, I can't wait for the Super GT to be in season again. And this year, my calendar is marked and booked for Saturday18 June to Sunday 19 June. You'll probably be better off doing the same as the Super GT in Malaysia is gonna be super fun. Fun ain't just for the car buffs. Its for the whole family. Keep an eye for more releases on what to come or check out the Super GT page on Facebook.

Here's a glimpse of what I caught during the signing ceremony between the GT Association and the JPM (JP Motorsport). The rides...

And the faces:D

In case you're wondering, why JPM? Well, they are certainly the right folks with passion for motorsports. They are the folks who organised the super fun Berjaya Hills Time Challenge and Kota Bahru TimeBall Challenge in Kota Bahru that we've taken part. JPM is also a regular podium "furniture" in the MME for the last 10 years. Indeed people who enjoy motorsports and appreciate cars.

And do watch out for Melvin Choo of Team ThunderAsia. Truly an Asian team boosting himself a Singaporean driver and an all Malaysian support team! An amazing fact is that this is the ONLY foreign
team participating in the Super GT. So be there at SIC to support this truly Asian team.