Busy bees

What a week! Photo shoots galore, friends in town and a whole lot of planning that I need to get onto already!

This week I went out to a couple of restaurants that I’d never been to before, one of them impressed immensely.

Now, since I’m a south of the river girl, I don’t venture much further than the inner city, so it’s no surprise I’d never been to, let alone heard of Prego in Floreat until one of my regular dining buddies, Jess, raved on about it and insisted on making the trek there.

And oh me, oh my, it was worth it. Sure, the decor is uninspiring and some of the waitstaff are freaking annoying, but every single morsel made up for it.

Anyway, I’ll start at the beginning.

This is the kind of place that older families might go to. It’s sort of fancy, although not pretentious.

Once we settled, we tossed up between a Malbec and a local Margs River Merlot. We asked our waitress which was better and she screwed her face in disgust at the mention of the Malbec. So Ash said ‘Okay then, so the Merlot is good?’, to which the waitress said ‘It’s okay, but this one is better’ pointing to another red that cost $20 more. Uh, okay, that’s just annoying. Go away, lady. We went for the Merlot, which, by the way, was quite fine.

Now, I’m all for free stuff but receiving complimentary food kind of freaks me out, especially if it’s not like they’ve stuffed up or are running late with food service. I think it sort of cheapens the experience a little. But anyway. We were given a bowl of felafels with tsatziki and mini salsa to start, while we waited for our entree of Italian sausages, olives and gnocchi to arrive.

I love felafels, and these were pretty good although I had a real hankering for Italian food that night. Quickly, the entrees arrived. I always pig out on sausage when it’s in front of me, but I’m hardly ever impressed with many that I try, unless it’s dad’s homemade chorizo. No exception for this one. It was tasty but not amazing. The olives were ultra salty which I love, and my mouth is watering just thinking about it now. The girls and I also shared gnocchi with fresh tomato, basil and bocconcini. Light and fluffy, this was some good stuff. I am so craptastic at cooking gnocchi well, so this was a treat. Us girls ate all that we could off the plate.

Again, we were offered complimentary food, this time a palate cleanser: sorbet drizzled in a light extra virgin olive oil. I often feel funny about mixing savoury and sweet (all this stems from my hatred of Hawaiian pizza), but I’m a lot more experimental these days so I enthusiastically dug in. I was fine with the taste and found it quite delicious and refreshing.

Next, onto our mains. Ash ordered the WA Pink Snapper with some kind of olive-encrusting and a side of salad, while Jess ordered a crispy duck on polenta, also known as fancy KFC. I tried both meals and they were pretty damn good. As I mentioned, I had a hankering for Italian food and was craving pasta all day, so I went for the pasta special: Tortellini stuffed with mushrooms, leek and goat’s cheese, topped with diced fresh tomatoes, olive oil and pistachios. What a freaking winner of a dish.

Ash, getting ready to tuck into her Pink Snapper.

The Duck.

Tortellini magnificence.

The tortellini was as exciting as I had anticipated. Pasta was cooked to perfection, nothing was too heavy or rich and the textures worked well. Mind you, I’m always a sucker for nuts. The serve was huge, so I had to give my food away, which the girls were pleased about.

Next, onto dessert. I learned my lesson last week, that I shouldn’t be such a greedy guts and this time insisted on sharing two desserts among the three of us. We went with chocolate pear soaked in white wine, served with creme caramel and the lemon cheesecake. Both were fantastic, though I’d tend to say the choc pear dessert won my heart at the end of the day. Just the nice blend of acidic wine and sweet chocolate aroma did it for me, plus creme caramel always reminds me of my nanna.

The winning dessert.

Still, this was still yummy.

One thing is for sure: I will be going back to Prego!

Next food update will be all about Beaufort Street Steakhouse!

A vegetarian’s nightmare.

Considering how much I dine out, I thought it’d be a good idea to bring my camera with me everywhere I go so that I can capture some delicious food porn.

But something happens to me every flippin’ time I go to a restaurant. The second the food arrives, I am completely distracted/hypnotised and I forget to take photos! Seriously, I’m in a trance where the smells and gorgeousness of the dish just takes over me and it’s only after I have annihilated my meal that I remember.

Last night, I managed to get a photo of the food menu at Lavestone Grill while waiting for the rest of my company to arrive – atrocious spelling error in the first paragraph, not a good start…

However, it only went up from there. Service was attentive, alcohol was well-priced and the food was of top-notch quality. We started off with a few entrees – just some dips, Turkish bread, olives, squid and roasted capsicum. The squid wasn’t fishy and came very lightly battered, which my stomach was very grateful for (it really hates anything with batter, no tempura for me).

Next came our mains – I ordered the Prime beef. Here, you’re served your meal on a stone grill and you cook it yourself according to how you like it. The stone stays hot for around 35 minutes, so even those who love to charcoal their meat can do so. The beef was extremely thick (about 3cm or more) so I let it cook for about 2.5 minutes before flipping over to the other side. I like my meat medium so I would cut up a piece and just seal the outside before eating it. Not that I had to chew, this stuff just melts in your mouth. The sides were a field mushroom and roast potatoes with a Bearnaise sauce and nothing to ride home about, but the beef truly made up for it.

I was fully content, but my dessert stomach felt like it had been left out so I ordered the warm chocolate mud cake served with vanilla icecream. That was a bit of a mistake because while it was just the right moistness and certainly delectable, the serving was really too large and me, being me, still ate the whole lot. Greedy guts.

So as you can tell, I forgot to take photos of the food once again, even though I left my camera sitting right next to my beer all night. Le sigh. Next time.

Hair stuff

So, I’m in an unhappy relationship with my hairdresser and I think I’m going to cheat on her while I’m overseas.

It’s not easy for me to do. This person welcomed me into her salon when she wasn’t accepting any more clients. She’s won numerous awards and what I love most about her is that she works alone, so I’m never handballed from one apprentice to the next. Also, prices are reasonable! At previous salons I was noticing the amount would creep up every visit, daylight robbery.

But she isn’t perfect, I’ll tell you that. I’ve always loved getting my hair done and getting experimental, and while she’s always done a great job, it’s never that exciting. I’ve brought in magazine cutouts of the kind of hair colours and styles I’m after, only to be told “I am not doing that – that is disgusting”. Well, okay then, Narky Pants.

So it’s time to get myself out of this monotonous relationship and head (pun intended) somewhere adventurous. I’ve been doing my research and booked an appointment for Marie Robinson’s salon, where I’ve read she is not only an amazing hair stylist but a lovely person, too (tres important). She and her team have styled a heap of celebrity crops and I’m hoping to feel just as special when I get there in August!

Could I be so bold and chuck a Katie Shillingford? (Dazed and Confused Fashion Director, my hero)

Photo by moi.

56 sleeps…it’s that in between stage. Not quite ’round the corner, but close enough that I should be buckling down and saving.

Saving. That’s the hardest thing for me. Working in fashion, having a love affair with food and always abiding by the rule ‘buy the third cheapest wine’ all tends to chew through my funds quickly, leaving me very little money at the end of each pay. And yet I am obsessed with the moulah. I am fascinated by the stockmarket and property, have a load of books about saving and investing, but my ING account has a measly balance of $431.24.

So, it’s time to spend the next 56 days on the cheap.

Some rules:
- no purchasing bottled water
- no new moisturisers or skincare products. I have enough samples to last the rest of the year.
- eating out at restaurants no more than once a week, always eat a cheaper meal, avoid drinks. This one will be difficult as I really wanted to get some food reviews onto my blog.
- NO MORE SHOPPING. Urgh, just spent too much on clogs and pants from Gorman (tres cute, mind).
- 10% of pay goes into ING and won’t be touched, even when I’m on holiday.

Just a few things, but hopefully it’ll mean I don’t touch my credit card. How the hell am I going to cope with a mortgage?

Movie review: Sex and the City 2

I just got back from watching the film Sex and the City 2.

Now, I hadn’t read any reviews or spoilers, but I knew the general vibe was that the film was downright terrible. I gotta say, I agree: it was heeeiinous. From the marriage of Stanford and Anthony at the beginning, to the subtle as an H-bomb ‘SISTAH-HOOD’ theme spattered throughout, I felt like gagging. Most of all, it was offensive, patronising and racist. Do not get me started on the let’s-all-wear-burqas-so-the-angry-oppressive-Arab-men-outside-don’t-try-to-kill-us scene.

I was a massive fan of the series and while the first film wasn’t that great, it had its enjoyable moments. It explored relationships (from infidelity to family love and lots in between), and true, long-lasting friendship (who doesn’t love that moment when Charlotte chucks a spack-attack at Big when he arrives at the church). I’ll admit, tears are shed every time I see it.

Another reason I loved the series so much is because the heart of it was New York City. In this film, we see bupkis. Such a shame.

This, my friends, is not worth spending your clams on. Go see Hot Tub Time Machine instead.

Carrie: Arghh, what the hell happened, Miranda?

Miranda: Hey, for once I was the most likable character in this film.

Samantha: Hormones, menopause, labia. FUNNY.

Charlotte: I want out.

Have I gone nuts?

Okay, it’s time to let me know if I’m losing my mind. I have gone BANANAS for clogs.

Yeah, you read right, CLOGS. I remember my tiny English aunt was a massive fan of Dr Scholl’s and had a huge collection. Back then, I thought it was daggy (with the exception of the year 1995, when a mahogany coloured pair was a must-have in every Year 7′s wardrobe).

My initial adoration for clogs began some time last year when I discovered a simply amazing pair by Kaylee Tankus. I went to purchase them on the Oak NYC website when it kept declining my card, saying that my billing address did not match my credit card. I got sad but I moved on and found an almost-as-great pair by Trippen. Alas, the shop did not have my size left. The universe may have been trying to tell me something.

Well, I’ve got something to tell you, Universe. I have not given up!

Today I headed to the new Gorman store at Enex 100, which has a rather great collection of clogs from Swedish Hasbeens, as well as a designer collaboration between Gorman and German shoe label Funkis.

Goddamn, they are so cute. I am imagining myself clip-clopping on the sidewalks of Brooklyn in my cut off shorts and Chloe Sevigny legs.

I’ve lost it, haven’t I?

Free, free, free!

Today was full of free! Free entry to the art gallery (well, it’s free to everyone. Still, I’m happy), free Marc Jacobs perfumes (yea, sample sizes but perfect for my purse), a free pashmina, free Cadbury chocolate and finding out that White Rabbits are playing a freeeee show while I’m in New York. Hells yea, people!

Yesterday, I got into declutter mode, cleaning out old paperwork, organising banking, insurance papers, etc and came across some hilarious stuff. Firstly, I had a manilla folder that I had titled ‘HEALTH’, and I opened it to find the recipe to Magnolia cupcakes. Seriously, this really explains so much about me. It was typed out, but I had also handwritten ‘Add Smarties’ at the top, in case there wasn’t enough sugar in the recipe.

I also found old photos, back when I was a punk. Nowdays, I love to take fashion inspiration from the old punk era (think This Is England), but I was a badly dressed punk. Boys baggy jeans and band tees. Vom. Anyway, I found a particular photo from my 21st birthday (FAUX HAWK, PEOPLES! Large, peroxide quiff at the front, spikes at the back. Um, YES). I remember back then thinking that I was a bit chubby, never content with my weight. My boyfriend at the time was a gym buff and used to encourage me to go along with him, although I hated every gym experience I encountered. Now, looking back I realise that I was a skinny little thing and how warped my brain was at the time. I’m certainly nowhere near an eating disorder but it’s strange how we all have a little bit of body dysmorphia. Honestly, I see it in every single one of my friends, which is terrible! Is anyone ever truly content with their body?

So my new goal is to kind of get near my 21st birthday shape. I say shape because I have no idea how much I weighed, but I had great twig arms. I want twiggy arms!!! I won’t be here for the City 2 Surf funrun but I’m working on a 10k running programme, which I will hopefully complete before I go away.

Project: Le Hot Attempt 23124. Bring it.

The olive gets a little closer to the apple.

What? It’s the end of May? Without trying to sound like a pensioner, how fast has the year gone by?

I thought I should update this journal a bit more frequently now that I have the time to spare. Freelancing has been wonderful and suits me to a T. I guess because I like to sleep in and walk around in yoga pants all day, despite the fact I don’t actually practise yoga.

I also decided it would be worthwhile to update this little thing more often because I am off to the States once again in August. I’m like a child at Christmas! Despite the fact I have 70 sleeps until I board that plane, I have already made a thorough list of what I’m packing, which gigs I’ll be attending and what outfit I should wear to impress the air stewards (must be good enough to upgrade me to business class). Important stuff like that.

So yes, I’ll be spending majority of the time in New York City and hopefully get in touch with a few publishing peeps. I need to get my butt into gear and get myself an online folio, proper physical folio, set up my email (I have a business card with an email address that is not set up yet! Slacker..). I’m also applying for Post Grad studies (Masters in Internet Studies – graduate in 2014 if I go part time, hah!) just to brush up on some more skills. I’ve been looking at jobs in the US for a while now and have noticed that a lot of the work is going online and digital. I’m keen as mustard to work in NYC though, I’ll do whatever it takes!

On the topic of packing, check this out. This woman’s skill is amazing:

http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2010/05/06/business/businessspecial/20100506-pack-ss.html

And I’ll leave it at that for now. Happy Monday!

2010 – BRING IT.

Weetie reminded me to write in this thing because I’ve been totally slack since my last entry. And yet it was such a promising one.

As I approach the end of the year, I always like to reflect on things but I have to say that this year has been pretty tame and possibly boring in almost every aspect of my life.

I still think about roaming through the hilly and beautiful streets of San Francisco, or spending time walking around Manhattan looking for the city’s best cupcake (for the record, it’s Sugar Sweet Sunshine on Rivington). To suddenly to be home in Perth, in the stinking heat with no job, no money and no real desire to be back in town was really difficult for me to handle.

Finding a job was the hardest bit. When I got back from the States, I was still unsure what I wanted to do with my life, and worse than that, there were no jobs to choose from! I was applying for anything and everything and not even getting a ‘Thanks, but no thanks’ response. Also, I was so bored that I just ate everything in my parents’ kitchen, and became a fatty boomba which never really helps with the confidence factor.

But in the end, I got a job plus more and since May have been juggling all sorts of freelance jobs along with my regular ‘day’ job. If there’s one thing I learned this year, it’s that I am capable of working hard and taking more pride in myself and my work. However, I am starting to feel myself wear out and really do need to slow down. All I want to do is drink a mammoth sized Long Island Iced Tea in a hammock in Hawaii. Maybe next year.

And on the Ruiz love boat? No one’s riding it. In fact, it’s in pristine condition and I’m thinking of selling it because I am totally over it. Do you know I don’t think about boys or sex or celebrity crushes anymore? Do you know I’ve tried to force myself to have a crush on a guy but trying isn’t cutting it? Tres lame.

Oh, and boys, if all that doesn’t entice you, I’m still living at home with mum, dad and younger brother. I am trying to stick it out though. Must. Save. Money.

So yes, 2010, I am looking forward to spending time with you because my horoscope says it’s going to be a good year and I believe everything Susan Miller says. I’m ready to make some big changes, huzzah!

Why you lazy piece of shit.

LE SIGH.

I forgot about this blog, which is a shame because I really, really wanted to document my travels and keep everyone posted. I’m only reminded because my good friend Emma Weetiemeister has started her own blog about preparing for the NY Marathon this year, which is just mental. She is one of the most driven people I know, so read it: http://wheaterville.wordpress.com

Reading back on what I did write, I just have to say two things: I no longer love Gordon Ramsay, I think he is a knob. Though my gastronomy experience was still delectable and delightful. Plus, I like that he named the Pimms drink ‘Wimbeldon’. Also, how dare I exist in this world -I wrote that I bought a pair of ‘Mui Mui’ shoes. That is like saying I bought a ‘Channel’ bag or even ‘Reedork’ sneakers. Clearly, I meant Miu Miu. And apparantly I know stuff about fashion. Rigggght.

So yes, this blog is going to start up again. Partly because I feel like I need to finish a bit more, partly to add more photos, a little bit because I want to keep other travelling buddies up-to-date (because Perth is just buzzing with news I tells ya) but mostly because I made a promise to myself this year that I would stop being so goddamn lazy.

And guess what? I have thus far achieved this promise. I have three work stints going on at the same time which include: a bit of freelance styling at The West; some PR/marketing + stock/inventory control at Ricarda in the ‘effluent’ suburb of Dalkeith, and; I’m doing one day a week at Scoop!! It’s at the very least boring and unchallenging work, but I am just so happy to see my Scoopies and Scoopettes. Honest to god, I almost enjoy writing about how ‘unique’ these venues are with their ‘fresh, local produce’ and ‘superior service’, just because I get to hang. So yes, I work six days a week, go me.

Non-work-related, I am keeping myself busy with the following: Reformer Pilates (more on this possibly next blog, am absolutely hooked), doing face masks every Sunday, attempting to write comedy scripts/skits with my stand-up comedy friend Natalie Lewis, partying hard, and partying really softly. Also, I am making my bed every morning which is the biggest achievement according to my mother. Who knows, maybe next time I write I may have rolled over all of my superannuation funds into one, and wouldn’t that be exciting?

D’accord, je voudrais mon bed (what is French for bed? All I can think of is ‘pan’ which I know is bread. Mmmm bread.)

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