Thursday, March 19, 2015

Hermes- Girl on a Wire


So simple in execution yet I couldn't help but be captivated by Hermes' spring/summer 2015 Women’s Shoes Collection video. And that first pair of red hot heels? Phwoar!

Read More...

Wednesday, March 18, 2015

Cochine Fragrance Candles



March madness is in full swing judging from all the social media feeds and chorus of "I'm exhausted" that I'm hearing from everyone. I've been trying to balance the craziness with some quiet time at home and finding that there's nothing more relaxing than having some nice scented candles alight while reading and unwinding. (Currently reading the Tales of the Otori series, a vast departure from my usual reading material but quite enjoying it. Thanks RB!)

Anyway, these candles from Cochine seem like just the thing I need and I'm interested to check them out given that they are now stocked at niin. They have delicious scents like White Jasmine & Gardenia, Agarwood & Amber and what I feel the most intriguing, Water Hyacinth & Lime Blossom. All the candles are made in Vietnam using the high quality essential oils and ingredients which are ethically and sustainably sourced.

Available at niin. Priced at HK$450.

Read More...

Tuesday, March 17, 2015

Monday, March 16, 2015

Marijoli Sample Sale

MARIJOLI
PMQ, Unit S412, 4/F, Block A
35 Aberdeen St, Central, Hong Kong
Open everyday from 1-8pm
Visit Marijoli for more details.

Read More...

Friday, March 13, 2015

Bag Lady: Tod's Cape Bag


Check out Tod's latest addition to the bag family, the Cape Bag. So named due to the shape of the bag when it lays on a flat surface when fully opened, the bag has that soft supple feel to the leather that the brand is renowned for. Perfect for the every day bag when you want something classy but versatile.

Price: $9,800 (Parrot Charm $1,800).

Read More...

Thursday, March 12, 2015

Wednesday, March 11, 2015

Review: Ore-no Kappou


It's rare that I've returned to a restaurant before I had time to put up the review but I guess this is just one of those places where people are anxious to go check out. Hence I've somehow have ventured here twice in the span of a few weeks. This review will focus on the dinner I had as the other time was lunch where the review can be summed up as such. We had the set lunch which wasn't too bad. I had a decent sashimi with good quality fish for about HK$200. The only grievance was that they wouldn't let me substitute out anything even though I had allergies. Done.

For those of you who aren't aware, the concept of Ore-no was to bring Michelin food at an affordable price. At least that's the concept in Japan where they get away with delivering top notch food for good prices by having everyone eat standing so you basically perform a dine and dash which quite feasibly would work here I'd think. However, the folks behind the brand obviously disagree as they have taken over an entire floor of the new California tower, giving us a restaurant that easily seats 100 pax. There are still some tables for the dine and dash experience but the two times I've been, no one has utilised those standing tables even though the restaurant was pretty much full during lunch.


On to the food. We started out with the Monaka Surprise. We didn't plan on ordering this dish, however we saw the next table order it and was so intrigued that we couldn't help but get us a piece of it. It was a twist on the traditionally sweet monaka filled with miso marinated cream cheese and terrine de foie gras, smoked radish pickles sand with a wafer exterior. It was a decadent party in my mouth. You can’t go wrong with cream cheese and foie gras really and the texture was awesome when combined with picked radish and the crispy exterior.


This was the Uni jelly chef takku style - sea urchin and mousse with chicken soup jelly. We had high expectations for this especially given the beautiful presentation but overall found it quite disappointing as the mousse didn’t have much Uni flavor. The portion was also a bit on the large side and I suspect we only thought it was large as we didn't quite enjoy it and felt it was a waste of quota to consume too much of it.


This was also a bit of a disappointing dish especially since we ordered it due to the fact that the waiter kept telling us it's a signature dish and really good. It was also one of the pricier dishes on the menu so we weren't sure if we were just being upsold but we decided to give the waiter the benefit of the doubt. Described as deep fried lobster wrapped in lotus root with tosa style vinegar, we felt it was a bit of a waste to deep fry lobster. But it did have a nice crunch with the lotus roots and had a nice citrusy tang. The vegetables though were oozing oil which made for an uncomfortable mouthful.


I just wasn't able to get a good shot of this Saba sushi which was delicious. It was a bit of a disconnect when we felt this dish was a much better value for money given that it was about $60 while the lobster above was $500. This dish had a freshness to the mackerel that was lacking in the lobster.

We ended with a very standard matcha dessert that was so nondescript that I can't quite remember what it was anymore. Overall, I'd say the experience wasn't bad, there were some hits and misses and I'd be interested in trying out some of the other dishes if I return. (There were quite a few dishes that wasn't available for some reason on the evening we went.)

Dinner for the two of us came to about $970 where we had two mocktails in addition to the food.

Ore-no Kappou, 6/F, California Tower, Lan Kwai Fong, Central.

Read More...

Tuesday, March 10, 2015

Emporio Armani Men's IP Watch


I'm a big fan of large watches but given that I have relatively thin wrists, they inevitably get banged up. As such, I'm always on the lookout for watches that aren't too pricey. This was a lesson learnt with my current Hermes watch where my brother literally winces every time he sees the scratched up silver frame. So when this Emporio Armani watch came into my inbox, priced at HK$2,500, I can't help but take a second look at it. Thoughts? I've not had a white watch before as I have a fear of it just ending up being yellowed and gross but I'm thinking I might make an exception for this one.

Read More...

Monday, March 9, 2015

Beauty Notes: Benefit Roller Lash Mascara


I hate mascara. Not because I don’t want to have long luscious lashes but more so that because my lashes are so short that I inevitably poke my eye out every time I try to wear mascara. Added on to the fact that I’m a noob when it comes to makeup and I like to dash out the door in 20 minutes or so, I just never pay much attention to mascara. I’ve been reading soooo much hype about Benefit’s new Roller Lash that when the brand sent me one to try out, instead of putting it in my drawer never to resurface again, I had to give it a shot. So what’s the verdict?

I love it! It’s a smaller brush than what I’m used to and apparently it’s got custom-designed hooks to help catch, lift and curl lashes. I think the brush size really helps given that my lashes are so darn short. The formula is a little wet and on the sticky side but not clumpy so I was able to easily add multiple layers to make the lashes more pronounced.

The mascara managed to last throughout the day without giving me panda eyes (which is a major plus given that I always inevitably seem to end up with panda eyes while using eye makeup.) I think this might just be the game changer for me, something that I can finally use on a regular basis.

Priced at HK$230.

Read More...

Friday, March 6, 2015

Bag Lady: Diorama Bag


Love love love these two Diorama bags from Dior. It's been a while since I've stumbled upon something that gives me that little tingle of how it may be THE bag to buy if you could only afford one bag this year. Available at Lane Crawford and priced at HK$29,000 for the Deep Green archicannage grained calfskin with enamel framed badge closure and HK$37,000 for the ornamented white box calfskin. Personally, I'm feeling the green one more. What about you?

Read More...

Wednesday, March 4, 2015

Stick Figure Fun


It's March madness in Hong Kong, chockful of art happenings with the main event being Art Basel in a couple weeks. While there tends to be a bit of an arty farty veneer to art related stuff in HK, I have noticed in recent years that it's easing up and gaining a sense of humour. Just the other day, I stumbled upon Klaus Obermaier, an Austrian interactive and video artist and fell in love with his interactive installation, EGO. Would it be too much to hope for something similar in the coming weeks where we can just let loose and wiggle some stress away?

Read More...

Tuesday, March 3, 2015

Charge Your Phone with IKEA Furniture


Loving the latest announcement from IKEA that their Home Smart collection will use Qi technology on their lamps, coffee tables and bedside tables allowing customers to charge their mobile devices (of course your device will have to be compatible with Qi) but still, a step in the right direction. For those of us with iPhones or Samsungs, we will need a case or a coil receiver to pick up wireless charging unfortunately. But I'd much rather slap on a case for my phone to charge than to have to deal with unwieldy wires. What about you?

Available in North America and the U.K. in April 2015, followed by a later global roll-out.

Read More...

Monday, March 2, 2015

Review: Linguini Fini


hkLifestyleGeek visits Linguini Fini

Linguini Fini quietly closed shop at L Place late last year, apparently because of rising rents, but then moved to Elgin Street by the escalator to even higher rents. But perhaps the Mid-Levels neighbourhood suits the casual New York Italian eatery more than Queens Road Central where diners had to take an elevator to the restaurant. The space at the new Linguini Fini opens up to the street, tempting many people to walk in for a table, but it's best to reserve one to avoid disappointment.

Come here for a relatively healthy meal -- all the vegetables come from local organic farms, while the water -- still or carbonated -- is made in house. There's a food compost at the back, and to counteract the smells, a herb garden will be planted there too. Fans of the restaurant will be happy to know most of the favourite items are still there with some new additions. The homemade spicy pork sausage (HK$108) is a hearty one made with lean meat, but perhaps that's why it doesn't hold together once you cut into it. Nevertheless it has a mild spicy kick to it, and is accompanied with chili and oregano mustard, as well as stir-fried peppers and onions.

You have been forewarned the pizzas here are huge -- it's 18 inches and overwhelming if you're not prepared. The Bronx special (HK$308) is a whopper, and practically covers our entire table. It's a meaty pizza, with bits of porchetta, pepperoni, small meatballs and lots of fresh mozzarella. We only managed to eat a slice each and then pack it home. It can also be a challenge carrying it on a crowded bus...

Chef Vinny Lauria has come up with the Italian version of xiao long bao (HK$168), but sadly it misses the mark. For starters it's a rectangle and too big to fit in the mouth in one bite, so when half of the pork dumpling is eaten, the juices inside dribble out and loses flavour.



However the homemade pastas were fantastic, the very thin pappardelle (HK$178) soaked up the sauce of the nose to tail bolognese that includes pork, veal and oxtail. We also enjoyed the radiatore alla vodka (HK$148), squiggly pasta that also had more surface area to pick up the slow burning spicy sauce of 'nduja pork sausage, with a touch of cream sauce, topped with mozzarella and basil.

And for those wanting a seafood item, the garlic butter black cod (HK$188) is a delicious dish, cooked perfectly -- but then again with cod it's hard to overcook -- and came with lemon, capers and anchovies. Our only complaint was that it was on a bed of crispy kale that was doused in oil that tempered our appetite for that dish.


Nevertheless, for desserts, the caramel apple pie (HK$78) comes in a hearty slice with large slices of apple underneath and a scoop of vanilla ice cream, while the chocolate banana cake (HK$78) is a sinful treat that looks sweet, but isn't going to spike your sugar levels... too much.

49 Elgin Street
Central
2387 6338

Read More...