From the unique extraordinary décor with custom Irregular Choice mermaid print flooring, black pom pom trims and white chesterfield quilted ceilings, the whole experience is all about creating a fun and vibrant shopping atmosphere and breaking with convention.

There are no boring or safe footwear in this shop and hence the name ‘Irregular Choice’. In keeping with the spirit of individuality, limited quantities of each style are produced to ensure that customers walk away with a ‘one-of-a-kind’ look.

SimplyFab were invited to take a sneak peek and in the process I got to meet and speak with the brand’s owner and brand designer, Dan Sullivan amidst cupcakes, Vitamin water and the most amazing shoes that look good enough to play with or eat.

Dan also showed off a clothing range that he will be selling in store along with fun accessories like handbags and glasses.

A family business which started in the UK in Brighton n 1999, Irregular Choice creations are inspired by Dan’s travels around the world. He is their Head Designer and he launched the Irregular Choice brand with a collection of shoes based upon the traditional Japanese split-toe look. These original inspirations are carried forward into many of his present collections, continually allowing the brand to adhere to its original philosophy of creating fun and comfortable shoes that women want to wear.

Embraced by shoe fans, retailers and the media alike, the brand has every style from flats and low heels to gaga-esque shoes and tottering heels and boots. It has become a great favourite with supermodel Agyness Deyn, Gwen Stefani, Katy Perry, Nicki Minaj, Kylie Minogue, Taylor Swift, Fergie and Sienna Miller who have obviously visited the brand’s one-of-kind shops in London at Covent Garden, Carnaby Street and King’s Road.

The opening is the first in Asia and part of a series of planned international expansions for Irregular Choice this year with new stores to open in Europe and the U.S.  Irregular Choice carries a main range with brand exclusives such as the Wedding and Mutiny collections and the brands sister label, Poetic License.  In addition, an exclusive high-end range, the ‘Dan Sullivan collection’ will be introduced and sold in the store for Spring/Summer 2012.

See: http://www.irregularchoice.com/

So it was no wonder that I dragged my feet back to Fitness First Hong Kong, a few days after recovering from my Lose-It class for the Fitness Assessment, part of the media trial for the complete Lose-It programme experience. The PR people explained that it was part of the programme so that I could understand where I was at, fitness-wise and also what my eventual exercise goals should aim towards. No point losing 500 calories without a goal, right? Hmm…..

I was greeted by Jason Li, my personal fitness trainer  for the next few sessions. Friendly, well spoken and definitely knowledgeable .. he was also just that tiny bit intimidating judging from  the size of his biceps and obviously well toned rippled bod.

We sat down for a detailed interview where words like exercise and eating habits, current weight, body mass index and tolerance tests were tossed up in the air. The results were brutal – all my lovely bingeing in Hong Kong and the 3 times a week sessions in the gym on my own ‘working out’ to ease the guilt had left me with a staggering 7kgs to lose and a Fat percentage of 31.7%. Not good when at my age and height, I should only have a Fat percentage of 20 to 27%.

Me crunching!

If that was not depressing enough, we went through a short trial workout to understand my tolerance level. This included a 10 minute light warm up run on the treadmill and a few routines that I had not tried before including Ab Crunches (3 sets of 15), Torso rotation with Fitball (3 sets of 20), Cable Tricep extension (3 sets of 12) and lastly the Machine chest press (3 sets of 15).

I was admittedly much humbled after that session.

“So exactly what had I been doing all that time in the gym, three times a week for an hour each time for the past year?”… “Obviously I was hardly being efficient”.

These thoughts were silently turning in my head as I listen to Jason introducing to me what exercises would complement my workout and help me increase strength, energy levels and eventually maximise my metabolic rate.

The sobering truth of the matter is that there are plenty of people like me who buy a gym membership, who actually go each day or a few days a week, work out aimlessly and set a routine for themselves without optimising their workouts, having a goal or understanding what they need to do or work towards.

Could I change things now that I knew how much I had to lose (fat wise) and gain (from having a Personal Trainer) at my albeit temporary disposal?

Fitness First in Hong Kong at http://www.fitnessfirst.com.hk/hk/home.asp will be partnering with me on this one and frankly I am so glad that I am not going to go at it alone.

The great news is that they are sponsoring 30 Personal Training Sessions over the next three months to help me get out my rut! So over the next few weeks.. do look out for my updates as I share my journey at the gym …

My goal .. is to lose the extra weight and learn what exercises I should do each time I work out.

There is still hope, I tell myself….7 kgs is not alot … yeah sure it isn’t! But positive thinking is half the battle won…

So find out how and where I end up on this road to fitness first (no pun intended).

And at the end of my adventure and hopefully good results, we will be offering ONE SIMPLYFAB READER in HONG KONG, a chance to win their very own Package with a Personal Trainer to help them achieve their goals!!

Weigh in with me .. watch this space for updates soon!

What is Lose-It? Lose-It is a programme that was developed by Dave Nuku, the company’s Regional Fitness Manager for Fitness First Asia. If you are wondering why his face and name ring a bell, he was the Blue Team trainer in The Biggest Loser Asia, the reality weight loss show that ran aired from 2009 to 2010 on the Hallmark Channel. He also trained the cast and crew for the Lord Of The Rings Trilogy.

This revolutionary programme helps you lose anywhere between 3 to 15kgs and gives you a simple solution to cutting the fat, eating right and living healthy.

Unlike hitting the gym or personal training, the group is primarily your motivation as this is all about a group working out together and encouraging each other.

The Lose-It Programme is presented in a cereal box package that houses two guide books to explain the exercises that you are doing, insights on how your body works, great workout suggestions, trainer tips, nutritional advice and helps you to chart your progress

It comprises of Lose It! workouts, a set of Lose It! guide books, 2 free personal trainer sessions and unlimited access to Fitness First gyms and it costs HK$648 (original price at HK$2000) is valid for a month.

I arrived at the centre on a Friday evening, an hour before the class was due to start, full of nervous energy and anticipation and was was ushered to the locker room at the back of the gym to store my stuff, get into training gear and wait for the class to start.

My trainer that evening was Missy who ran the class that evening for about 10 people who came ready to sweat-it out. These are people with a serious goal in mind – no slacking and no half heartedness with each routine. Missy, undoubtedly drives a hard but convincing bargain in keeping you motivated and encouraging you as you go through the ‘not-so-easy’ class.

Together we went 3 rounds about 6 different workout stations, taking one minute each time to stop at each station. I always complain that I hardly break into much of a full-bodied sweat even after a half-hour run at the gym .. but this workout had me melting buckets. It was cardio and weights all rolled into one.

At station one, there was the alternate overhead plate circle, where you had to pick up two sets of 3 pound hand weights and move them in circular motion around your head.

At station two, there was the V sit up with alternate plate twist and at station three, we did burpees and then the plank (which is this move below in the picture).. It was gruelling to say the least.

To keep you alert and interested there were also ‘tolerance’ games. At least ‘tolerance’ is what I call it. This game-style work-out is called the Plank Circle, where everyone has to hold a plank position which basically is a push up position for one minute in a circle whilst someone runs around the circle. Believe me, you would be cheering for that person to run fast because if there are 8 people in that circle, you will have an 8 minute plank-hold exercise with only 15 to 30 second breaks in between whilst the runner makes his/her round. Sounds easy on paper but is far from it. I was ready to hit the shower and sack after that evening, silently thanking self that it was but a one-off media trial.

That was not the end of my experience – I was invited back a few days after to do a full fitness assessment (read about it here: http://www.simplyfabulicious.com/rtp-i-failed-the-fitness-test) and a personal training session which would reinforce the overall benefits of the Lose-It programme. More importantly it would help me understand how to get the best out of my workouts when I visit the gym in the future.

Would you like to take up the challenge and all for free?

HERE’S A CHANCE FOR

ONE  SIMPLY FAB READER FROM SINGAPORE

TO LOSE-IT!

THE PRIZE

A 2 month Lose IT! Package that includes 3 Personal Training sessions,

unlimited access to Lose IT team workout classes

and

unlimited access to facilities at Fitness First clubs in Singapore.

HOW TO WIN?

SEND US AN EMAIL AT

SIMPLYFABULICIOUS@GMAIL.COM

tell us how much weight you want to lose and why

When the invitation for Hippopotamus Grill Restaurant landed in my mailbox not long ago, I must admit I was sceptical. How can you take a restaurant with a name like that seriously? Add to the fact that it’s got a happy hippo as a logo….errmmm…I don’t know. But the PR ladies who invited me are lovely people, so despite my scepticism, I went to the tasting. That its interiors, decked in bright mass market hues, looked like a cross between Swenson’s and Billy Bombers really didn’t help either….

The first signs that it was serious about food was its menu. I was very surprised to find bone marrow, steak tartare, carpaccio with goat’s cheese and foie gras – more often seen in upmarket establishments – on its list of appetisers. That’s when this restaurant started to prove my early impressions totally wrong.

What sweetened the deal even more was how affordable its prices were throughout the menu – $10.90 for bone marrow, not a lot more for foie gras, steaks from $16.90 all the way to $109 for prime rib to share.

A French steakhouse chain restaurant at Marina Square Shopping Centre (it’s a household name in Paris), it’s a great place for good steak at an affordable price. Of the 14-plus steaks on the menu (ranging from $16.90 to $36.90), go for the signatures of hangar ($18.90/200g) and skirt steaks (180g), and if you’re sharing, the 600g Prime Rib ($64.90) is easily shared by three. They are excellent for the mid level price you are paying, juicy, succulent and miles better than steaks you’d get in other similar-class restaurants here.

Since the tasting, I have been back once. From my two visits, I have tried the hangar steak – absolutely juicy and bursting with flavour at medium doneness – and my favourite, the prime rib which was tender and moist. The brochettes served on a skewer were very good too, though less moist and more gamey. The specialities here are the hangar steak and skirt steak, a less common but juicy cut, and the cheapest on the menu at $16.90.

Steaks are served with a choice of up to three side dishes. Go for their excellent potato gratin or fries and ratatouille. You get to choose only one sauce served on the side. I really like the Roquefort cheese sauce but the Béarnaise is also a good alternative if you don’t want such a strong accompaniment.

The French onion soup ($8.90) served with great lashing of cheese on bread was hearty and enjoyable, but the bone marrow, for all the promise it held, was a little bland and a bit too firm for my liking. For a steak speciality restaurant, they are also very strong on their desserts, so make room for sweets.

Without a doubt, the chocolate mousse and crème brulee are the hands-down winners here. The crème brulee ($8.90, enough for two) is creamy, full, smooth and not overly sweet, with an evenly crisp layer of sugar crust neither too thick  nor too thin. The chocolate mousse is fantastic – on the slightly firmer side of creamy, utterly delicious and chocolatey…though do remember it’s not Valrhona quality. (Then again, we can’t be eating belon oysters and caviar every day, right?) The chocolate platter is a good choice for sharing, and at $10, it’s a steal – comprising Ben & Jerry’s chocolate ice cream, brownies, hazelnut cake, chocolate mousse and crepes. Alternatively, they have a dinky little platter for one comprising a shot of espresso with a petite pot of choc mousse and madeleine. Lovely!

Also good to know, they have a range of classic cocktails like mojito and margarita for $9 and a small list of wines affordably priced by the bottle.

I popped in there with my daughter again just a few days ago on a Friday night, and despite the full house, the service was absolutely friendly and the food came out faster than expected.  So all in all, a good place for steak if fancy surrounds isn’t top priority. If you want affordable steak, you won’t go wrong here. For the price you pay, you get excellent value, great food and a surprisingly excellent range of intelligent choices.

6 Raffles Blvd #01-204/205
Marina Square
Tel: 63385352

In case you don’t know HOW, here is Actually’s ‘Idiot’s guide to swapping’ (Its like a barter trade!!)

Step 1: Unveil your goodies

Step 2: Spot an item you like

Step 3: Approach owner and negotiate! Eg: 2 blouses for 1 pair of pants

Step 4: Say “Thank you”

Step 5: Repeat steps 1-4

Step 6: Leave happy

Also another one to look out for is a collection called Diligence in ultra-luxurious crocodile. Find your favourite in cinnamon or grab a clutch tinged with inky blue or chilli red.

Their Metro bag takes on a new shape for Summer 2012.

And their new leather accessories and bags line designed in coated printed canvas with leather trim and launched by Bruno Frisoni in 2011 has great new ochre-toned leather finishes

Also look out for their evening clutches which are full of vibrant colour incorporating the most extraordinary acts of craftsmanship – divine and utterly uninhibited in their extravagance. See: www.rogervivier.com

Fancy going to a real fairytale castle? This Spring, bring your little princesses on a trip to the real castle which inspired Walt Disney’s castle in Disneyland. The Mandarin Oriental, Munich is offering the Fairytale Castle Package from EUR 863 per person, which includes  accommodation for two nights, airport transfers and a guided tour of the Neuschwanstein Castle in southwest Bavaria.

Just over an hour away from Munich, this castle was built by King Ludwig II of Bavaria, known as “the fairytale king.” Dating back to 1868, Neuschwanstein Castle is a 19th Century Romanesque Revival palace set above the village of Hohenschwanga Hohenschwangau and set against the Bavarian Hills.

In this package, transport to the castle is not in your mouse-drawn pumpkin but a private limo; and if you lose your glass slipper on the way home, you are entitled to a 10% discount at the castle’s gift shop which is, at least, a little consolation.

The Mandarin Oriental, Munich itself is luxurious, contemporary accommodation with personalised service (only 48 rooms and 25 suites), and an evocative setting in the heart of the Old Town. It promises “stunning views, a heated rooftop swimming pool, Michelin-starred dining and a newly opened fitness and spa”. Valid til end of the year, the package includes breakfast at Restaurant Mark’s, but no Prince Charming, we’re afraid.

www.mandarinoriental.com/munich

Do you like chilli? Most true blue Singaporeans do. If you think you have a strong stomach for spicy food, then head over to Traders Hotel Singapore’s Café Biz this week and blast your pores out at its Sichuan promotion, from now until 14 May. The hotel has flown in their unofficial Sichuan food ambassador, Chef Du Fe, the Sichuanese cuisine executive chef of Shangri-La Hotel, Chengdu to do the cooking and in our preview earlier this week, he served up authentic Sichuan dishes as they like it over there – meaning, no dialing down the fiery factor.

It was no easy feat to eat a meal made up entirely of ‘ma la’ flavours. For those who don’t know, that literally translates to ‘numbing and (chilli) hot’. You can bet Sichuan is a cuisine that easily makes grown men cry.

Chef Du started us off with baby steps. First up was spicy asparagus beautifully presented in a floral arrangement (above), and sprinkled with chilli oil. The lovely crunch of the thick asparagus and its natural sweetness countered the heat well.

The ‘mu er’, black tree fungus, was also a delicate dish which played nicely on the fungus’ springy, crunchy texture, it’s refreshing lightness pairing with a sauce of chilli and black vinegar (left). The sting was softened by a touch of sweetness in the vinegar. This was by far my favourite dish. Chef Du had brought the fungus over from Chengdu as the quality was much better than what can commonly be found here – and indeed it was a most superior ingredient, with its circular curved contours and uniformly crisp, lively texture.

Next up was the marinated chicken in spicy sauce – white chicken doused in a gravy of dried chillies and chilli oil. The meat was very tender, and the heat factor was bearable, and best eaten with white rice to soften the heat.

Things literally heated up from there, with a ‘mala huoguo’ dish of simmered sea bass with vegetables and mushrooms (top). You won’t see any of that at first glance because the huge dish is just swimming packed with chillies and peppercorns. In fact there are eight different kinds of hot spices – four types of chilli and four types of peppercorns – that go into this devilishly hot dish. You’ve got to have a strong disposition for this for even though the fish is immensely fresh, sweet and delicate and overall delicious, the spices leave your tongue tingling with a creeping numbness. It didn’t seem to really matter what else was in the dish, we (being a bunch of seasoned food writers) were too busy fanning the flames and downing copious glasses of Coca Cola with lemon, while we busted our pores glistening and sweating over our lunch. (The things that professional food writers do!)

It seemed to amuse Chef Du who came out baring samples of the spices (right), the better for us to appreciate the dish. And indeed, it wasn’t individual peppercorns but whole stalks of it lurking under the chilli-covered surface of the sauce (below). Like the hotel’s F&B Director said while we were writhing in agony: “Don’t try this at home!”

Two more hot and numbing dishes to end the meal….there was Ma Po Doufu (bottom). Yes, it may be a common dish most times, but not here with Chef Du’s flammable seasoning. It was dark with chillies, chilli oil and Sichuan peppercorns which, if you bit into it, really made your tongue go into spasms. Really nice with lots and lots …and lots… of white rice; and the firm, yielding texture of the tofu was absolutely delightful.

It ended with dan dan noodles which was a little milder on the heat, but sadly the noodles itself was overcooked and turned out mushy. We cooled our systems with watermelon and rolled off into the heat of the day.

As they say, no pain no gain. This is truly authentic Sichuan fare and even if you’re not a raving fan of it, it’s definitely worth the experience. The Sichuan promotion takes place at Café Biz’s daily lunch and dinner buffet. Here, Chef Du will present eight Sichuanese dishes which he will change from day to day, and it forms part of the restaurant’s daily lunch and dinner buffet. That mean, unlike my entirely ma-la meal, you can intersperse yours with the many other international dishes laid out at the buffet.

Good to know: Trader Hotel’s other restaurant Ah Hoi’s Kitchen will also offer six of Chef Du’s flaming fare on an a la carte basis for the duration of this promotion. It’s good, fiery fun all the way.

1A Cuscaden Road
Reservations www.tradersdining.com.sg or tel (65) 6831 4374 

With inflation hitting the highs these few years, I’m feeling the pinch on basic goods. So much harder is it for those worse off? I’ve always told myself I should get into doing some charity work, so if getting myself off my butt is going to take a while, at least there are others who are already setting the momentum going, and giving a lethargic someone like me an opportunity to help along. If this is something you were meaning to do for a while, here are three great opportunities in Singapore to do some good for others easily….

Mission to Smile
What do you do with 80kg butter, 800 kg bananas, 800 kg of Valrhona chocolate, 1500 litres of cream and 9600 eggs? Make cakes, of course. That’s what the pastry chefs at The Ritz-Carlton, Millenia Singapore and Singapore Marriott Hotel are doing, and for a great cause too. For the second year running, the 500g Valrhona Chocolate Banana cakes (S$28 each) they are baking will raise funds for Operation Smile Singapore which sends medical and support volunteers from Singapore to Asian countries on missions to provide surgery for children with facial deformities. To date, the Singapore Centre has supported 30 missions in 11 Asian countries, providing life-changing surgery for over 3000 patients. Last year alone, the two generous hotels sold 7,600 cakes, raising over S$224,000, providing treatment for over 300 children in Asia. Do come forward and support! Get the cakes online by visiting www.operationsmile.org.sg/areasontosmile or calling +65 6473 3708 to find out more. This dovetails quite nicely with Mother’s Day – so buy mom a cake and do some good for the world.

FoodXervices Inc Food Aid
Head to the “Every ONE Can” Warehouse Sale (Saturday 19 May, 10am to 3pm) at 39 Keppel Road #01-02/04, Tanjong Pagar Distripark and shop for charity and yourself at the same time. Here’s how it works. Held at FoodXervices Inc’s warehouse, you get to shop for your own groceries at wholesale prices. That’s the perk for being a good Samaritan. But before you do that, you have to make some purchases for charity, which would go to supporting Willing Hearts, a soup kitchen that prepares and delivers free meals every day to 2,500 people.  Willing Hearts’ beneficiaries include single parents, elderly, disabled, children, jobless, migrants and abused maids. The charity’s founder, Tony Tay, changes the menu as often as possible, depending on the resources available. At Every ONE Can 2012, consumers can buy a range of spices and sauces from coconut milk to plum sauce, as well as canned and dried products like bamboo shoots and ikan bilis, so that Willing Hearts’ patrons have a healthy varied diet. At the same time, social enterprises and charities will set up booths to sell handicrafts, organic soaps and more. More rewards for good people – shoppers enjoy a free cup of FoodXervices Inc’s own KooriMo Premium Kuri Ice Cream.

Says the food distributor’s hip Managing Director Nichol Ng, “Our strength is in supplying products in bulk so it makes a lot of sense for us to support an organisation like Willing Hearts, which prepares thousands of meals every day. As a food service company, I believe we have a responsibility to the community to fight hunger and malnutrition.
Every ONE Can is a great way to do this.”

If you can’t make it down that day, help out online by buying groceries for donation at www.foodxervices.com from 15 – 31 May. Last year, the event filled a 16-foot truck with donations that had a retail value of about S$20,000. Help them top that!

Designer Enviro Bag 

But if green issues and designer goods float your ‘Good Deed’ boat, celebrate Mother’s Day by getting Franco-Brazilian designer Anne Fontaine’s really nifty EcoBag ($40). They’ll send it to Mom anywhere around the world or just down the block for free, just for Mother’s Day. Made of 100% recyclable plastic bottles, the EcoBag retails year round at all Anne Fontaine boutiques. The Anne Fontaine EcoBag can be purchased for S$40 at both Anne Fontaine boutiques in Singapore at Scotts Square and Marina Bay Sands Shoppes.

Who loves durian? Raise your hands! Look at the pictures at the top….it’s a durian macadamia nut crumble tartlet. Yummmmm!

The Goodwood Park Hotel Singapore’s yearly Durian Fiesta is still going strong after 29 years of churning out pungent pleasures. Every year, they create a few new creations to complement their classics.

Currently ongoing until 31 July, this year’s durian fest offers a few new creations. Having done a tasting, my overall fave is the durian macadamia nut crumble tartlet, where the crunchy nuts and pastry counters the rich pulpy sweetness of the durian – and hence, pride of place at the top of this post. The new durian banana chocolate mousse ($10.80 per slice/ $58 for 1.3kg) cake wasn’t bad too but a little too sweet.

The durian cappuccino mousse cake ($10.80 per slice/ $55 for 1kg) which was introduced last year is my other favourite, with a combination of flavours that worked oddly but deliciously well.

Other oldies but goodies is the 30cm-long durian strudel ($55 per kg) with its flaky layers of pastry, and the Mao Shan Power Puff ($16.80 each), a large choux pastry puff filled with mao shan wang durian pulp. The latter is available only until 30 June.

They are available for take away at the Deli daily. (UOB and Citibank Credit cards get a 15% discount on selected items)

22 Scotts Road
Tel: 6730 1786 (Deli)