Bikini Bar – Sentosa Island, Singapore

Now before I begin talking about Bikini Bar, I must show you one of my favorite spots and views on Sentosa Island, Singapore. My weekend spot. Now on to my review of Bikini Bar on the Siloso Beach walk, Sentosa.

The Bikini Bar is located on the beach.

 Entrance area of Bikini Bar. Waitresses are all clad in bikini tops.

The view…

The food – Potato wedges and a lime margarita. Both were good, especially the margarita in that HEAT of the Singapore sun. Whew!!

Lychee margarita

A close-up

Check the view in the background… Beautiful yeah?

Their spicy wings – really delicious! It’s my favorite thing to order there. A nice crisp on the outside, soft tender meat on the inside. The wings are filling.

Strawberry margarita

A close up

A Singapore Sling

I forgot to mention, in Singapore, alcoholic drinks are usually very, very weak (Singapour a friend of mine once said). Drinks are like juice, barely any taste of alcohol. Bikini Bar however is not like that. The alcoholic drinks, are actually alcoholic drinks. Thank you!!

Colors!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Nicely garnished I would say..

More views – relaxing and beautiful! I would always wait for the sunset before leaving…

Bikini Bar is one of my favorite spots in Singapore. I thank Jason – who I think manages the spot – for always making sure his guests are well taken care of.

1. Food – GREAT
2. Service – Good
3. Ambiance – GREAT
4. View – FANTASTIC!! (anything else would be almost impossible)
5. Music – GREAT!

Here’s a ink to the restaurant – http://www.bikinibar.sg

Have a great one!

Thinking Insomniac.

 

 

New York Public Library – Bryant Park, NY

Sketching in Bryant Park… this was my work in progress. It has been completed and I will share it with you soon. Have a great one! Thinking Insomniac

Homemade protein bars

In January (while living in Singapore again) I noticed that every time I had lunch or dinner I would feel bloated, so I had to find out why. A friend of mine posted on Facebook that she was probably gluten intolerant and described her symptons which sounded exactly like mine! Eureka! I spoke with her and did some research. This new knowledge made me very aware of my diet and I began cooking all of my meals. This meant no more meals at hawker centers  for a while. I am a scientist after all and I had to test my variables to test my hypothesis. In the US this would not be anything special, but in Singapore where food and eating is a tourist attraction, this is quite a decision. I not only decided to cook my own food, but I am a designer at heart and I wanted to design my food. Whatever that meant. I started a blog documenting my culinary journey but never got time to post as often as I would have liked (http://theculinaryarchitect.wordpress.com/). After approximately 2 months I realized that I was sensitive to gluten.

Managing two blogs takes time, so in the future if and when I want to share my culinary delights I will do so here on Thinking Insomniac. Today I will share with you my post from February 19th on homemade protein bars since many of my friends always ask how I made it. Enjoy!

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Today I wanted to make protein bars. I had peanut butter that I did not even open as yet and wanted to make a healthy snack. I found this website (http://neilarey.com/) which had really fantastic workout routines, I loved the drawings, and saw that Neila Ray also had a recipe for a protein bar. I actually did my own take on it and sort of combines her protein bars recipe with her energy ballz recipe.

My ingredients – Whey protein, raisins, dried cranberries, dried apricots, peanut butter, oats, dried ginger

Raisins, dried cranberries and dried apricots

Coconut cream

Whey protein and peanut butter added to coconut cream

I then added the oat mixture I had (rolled oats, raisins, pistachio nuts, almonds, and more)… MIX. I didn’t have a mixer, so I used the natural mixer, my hand.

Looking good…

I then flattened the mixture out on a plate and cut it up into bars

I wrapped them in wax paper and placed them all in the refrigerator. I ended up with a lot of them! I think 35 of them.

If I am unable to have breakfast before leaving home on mornings I take one with me and have it to tide me over until lunch. They taste great! And my favorite part is the little surprise of ginger pieces that I get in mine. Mmmmm!!!

From http://theculinaryarchitect.wordpress.com/

This work by Vernelle Noel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

Veni Mangé – Port of Spain, Trinidad

 My friend took me to Veni Mangé in Port of Spain, Trinidad last week for lunch. Here was my experience. Sign paying homage to Allyson Hennessy above.

“Veni Mangé came into existence in December 1980. The name Veni Mangé is French Patois for ‘Come & Eat’ Now located on the popular Ariapita Avenue, the restaurant is housed in old Colonial home, clay colored with demerara windows, local art, tropical plants, colorful décor and overhead ceiling fans. It epitomises Caribbean ambiance. Veni Mangé is run by sisters, Allyson Hennessy (deceased – pictured above), a Cordon Bleu Chef and sister, Roses Hezekiah.” – from Veni Mange website.

We were warmly greeted by Roses (I think it was Roses) who was the epitome of the Caribbean woman, beautiful, warm, felt like family, and a beautiful smile. She escorted us to our seats, asking us where we preferred and opening the windows for us to enjoy the breeze.

 Coconut Bake

Before placing your order you are greeted by beautiful and delicious coconut bake! This is a Trinbagonian past-time. It was and still is one of the most comforting things for me to eat when I come home to Trinidad. My grandmother’s coconut bake was unforgettable. In addition to the bake looking so inviting, I loved the checkered towel it was placed in. Oh so homey!

I ordered grilled shrimp in chadon bene sauce (chadon bene is a family to cilantro) and my friend ordered the West Indian stewed beef with dumplings. Our entrees were served with (pictured above) bhagi rice (from top left), potato salad and fried plantains, vegetables (which was really pak choi) and red beans. Oh it was a feast!!!!!!!!!!! It looked and smelled sooooooooooo good! But the pièce de résistance was about to arrive..

Close up of the bhagi rice

Potato salad and fried plantains

Stewed red beans

Pak choi

Now for the entrees…

Stewed beef with dumplings. Five-finger a.k.a star fruit a.k.a carambola for decoration.

Another view with some watercress too.

This was my baby, my darling, just looking at this and my mouth is watering again…grilled shrimp in chadon bene sauce

Now, if memory serves me right the menu said “grilled shrimp.” I didn’t taste the grill on the shrimp, BUT the shrimps was one of the most delicious tasting shrimps I have ever had! It tasted like a chadon bene ceviche or a shrimp chow! BEST THING EVER!!

Another view! I ate my sides and left the majority of my shrimp for last.

We left room for dessert. I had the rum trifle and my friend had the prune dessert with custard (I can’t remember the name).

Inside the run trifle

A closer view of inside the rum trifle.

The prune dessert

Inside the prune dessert

 The desserts were great! If I were Veni Mangé however I would place the trifle in a clear glass or bowl. The beauty of a trifle lies not just in its taste, but also in its layers. Glass dish – yes. I would also put a lighter layer of custard atop. The entire thing was a little too sweet and I felt the custard overwhelmed the delicious fruits and cake below a bit. I would do the same for the prune dessert. They were both great however. Now for the decor…

The brightly colored furniture, windows, ceiling fans, demerara windows, colorful artwork depicting Caribbean life and Caribbean people. The seat covers are reminiscent of  the dresses worn by bélé dancers in the Caribbean.

Brightly colored furniture and jalousie windows (with louvers).

The artwork and plants…

A close up of the painted table top and beautiful tile

More of the interior

 White painted ceiling, demerara windows, wooden floor and furniture at the bar

A wall of famous Trinidadians

Demerara windows

View of Veni Mangé from the outside

Exterior sign

I thank Rose and the young lady who waited on my friend and I. This was fantastic! The food was some of the best I have ever tasted. The service was PERFECT! I felt comfortable, they kept asking us if everything was alright and if we wanted anything else. I am a sucker for fantastic service and they gave it to us, all with that beautiful Caribbean smile and warmth.

1. Food – GREAT
2. Service – GREAT
3. Ambiance – GREAT

Here’s a ink to the restaurant – http://www.venimange.com

Have a great one!

Thinking Insomniac.

Sagicor Building – Port of Spain, Trinidad

6” x 8.5” Pen, ink,  and Sharpie in Ryman sketchbook

I am in Trinidad for a few days and I felt the nostalgia of my time sketching the wonderful buildings in Port of Spain. I passed by the Sagicor Building and wanted to sketch it again. It’s a beauty!

Thinking Insomniac