UAE

The Winery of Good Hope: South African Wine Tasting & Fine Dining at The Meat Co

After my magical experience of South African fine-dining over the tunes of shosholaza at The Meat Co, I was over the moon when I received an invite for a wine tasting session at their branch in Souk Madinat Jumeirah.

This was an exclusive media invite, and a very special menu was created by the very talented Chef Chris. However, the highlight of the evening was the wine! Chef Chris’ creations for the night were the perfect pairing with the beautiful South African wine that was overflowing that night.

I met the lovely Abi Mitton who is the Marketing Manager for The Winery of Good Hope. Abi is a Briton, and her love for fine wines took her to the prestigious wine-making region of Stellenbosch, in South Africa’s Cape of Good Hope.

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Changi Airport (Singapore): How I survived an 8 hour transit

I am back in sunny Dubai after a whirlwind trip back home to New Zealand. Where did the past two weeks disappear?

I flew via Singapore to Auckland, New Zealand and on the return path, I had an 8 hour transit in Changi Airport, Singapore.

As I was travelling alone, the thought of dwindling away 8 hours in Singapore all by myself seemed all too daunting and I was looking up Google on airport rooms and transit lounges.

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Benjarong, Dusit Thani: History on a Plate

Benjarong is Thai for ‘five colors’, and refers to the intricate indigenous floral artwork seen on the delicate porcelain of Thailand.

Paying tribute to this special art-form, Benjarong, the Thai restaurant at Dusit Thani Dubai, is beautifully adorned with the traditional aesthetics of Thailand. With a nod to the kitchens of Thai royalty, the menu offerings list tantalizing feasts from Northern Thailand.

At the reception of the restaurant are glass-encased shelves of precious Benjarong artifacts.

Benjarong Dusit Thani Dubai restaurant review Thai (14)

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A Day at the Spa: The Oberoi Experience

I spent a very blissful Saturday afternoon at the spa at The Oberoi.

the oberoi spa dubai review the oberoi experience (7)

Offering a range of holistic massage therapies including Western, Balinese, Thai and Ayurvedic, The Oberoi Spa prides itself in using high quality organic beauty products that promote the much-needed inner calm we crave.

The latest addition to The Oberoi’s Spa Menu is ‘The Oberoi Experience‘; a 75 minute full-body massage session focusing on releasing mental, physical and emotional stress.

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All Good Things (a memorable scent by Lush!)

The power of perfumes on the human psyche fascinates me. One moment the mind is living in the present reality, and all it takes is the lingering scent of a certain perfume to transport the senses to a special memory.all good things lush perfum review blog

Mark Constantine, co-founder of Lush, has co-created a number of new fragrances under the ‘Family Memories’ genre with his son Simon. The father-son duo believe that smell is the closest of human senses when it comes to triggering a memory, and their relationship is a backdrop for the creation of this range.

My current favorite from the range is All Good Things.

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Centro Sharjah by Rotana

Flying into Sharjah? A stay at Centro Sharjah might be just what you are looking for.

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The stylishly contemporary lifestyle business hotel is a stone’s throw away from Sharjah International Airport (we could even see the airport from our window!), and my family and I had the pleasure of being invited to try it out for ourselves last weekend.

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Max’s Chef Richard: An Engineer Turned Chef

Although he is a qualified engineer, Chef Richard followed his parents’ footsteps and entered the famous Filipino kitchens of Max’s Restaurant.

Richard or Chai, to his friends, has a Bachelor of Science degree specializing in Civil Engineering. He is a graduate of the Technological Institute in the Philippines.chef richard max restaurant filipino

Combining a love for cooking with the practicality of science, Chai’s career has seen him win a number of accolades across his decade-long career with Max’s restaurant including a special award for food safety. However, his greatest moment of pride was when his dish won over the finickiest of critics; his 6 year-old daughter!

When Max’s was brought to the UAE, Chai was chosen to help the team in maintaining the high quality standards of the food. For him, bringing Max’s to UAE was like planting the Philippine flag in the UAE culinary map. Chai believes that Max’s UAE has brought Filipinos closer to home.

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Iftars 2015: Tried & Tested by Tezzy!

I’ve been fortunate to have attended a number of Iftars this Ramadan, and it’s been pretty challenging keeping the weighing-scale in check!

Living in Dubai, foodies are truly blessed with the plethora of dining options and today’s post is a round-up of some of the scrumptious Iftars I’ve had the pleasure of trying this past few weeks.

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