Starbuck's Shepherd Pie & Blueberry Cheesecake Review

I love going to Starbucks for occasional pick me up sessions (cannot go there at the moment since I am still in my confinement period!). Whenever I go there, I always seem to order almost the same thing every time which is Caramel Frappucino (nope, not with 7 pumps of caramel syrup added with caramel drizzle in the blend like how my cousin Barneysayz likes it!) accompanied by either a slice of cake or a shepherd's pie. I even influenced my dear husband to buy us a Starbuck's tumbler so that we could get savings whenever we buy our drinks. Seeing that he's the person who jumps on board whenever there's a chance to save a penny or two, he agreed. Hehe..

Starbuck's shepherd's pie happens to be my favourite shepherd's pie of all. I haven't tasted a lot of shepherd's pies but so far, but compared to a couple of places, this is the best one to my liking. The pastry crust of the pie is crisp and cookie like. It is creamy and slightly sweet, a combination that seems to agree with my palate. The beef mushroom filling is not too salty but has a creamy taste to it. The beef is also tender and not too chewy or hard. I find the whipped potato a bit too salty to my liking though but only when I eat it by itself, but when eaten together with the crust and filling, the taste is nicely balanced.

Shepherd's Pie.

The first time I ate Starbuck's Blueberry Cheese Cake, I fell in love with it! The bottom crust is very nice and crumbly and has a sweet taste to it. The cheesecake layer is very creamy and does not make me get the 'I-feel-sick-cause-I-ate-too-much' feeling. It has a very soft texture and melts in your mouth. Yum! The blueberry is usually nice and has that just-right tang of tartness but this time, the blueberry in my cake tasted a bit gassy and sour. An old batch, perhaps? Anyhow, if you get a fresh slice, I am sure you won't regret it.

Blueberry Cheese Cake.

I actually cannot drink coffee because it will give me a big headache but surprisingly, I can take ice-blended coffee, only from Starbuck's! Ya, I am a prat about this, I know. ( _._ ) So whenever I have a hankering for coffee, I always go to Starbuck's and get my favourite drink which is Caramel Frappucino, no whipped cream and extra caramel drizzle. The Mocha Frap is also nice and chocolatey. Yum!!

My favourite Starbuck's drink.

Currently since I am in my confinement period, writing this review about my fav Frap, cake and pastry makes my mouth water. I am so going to get myself to Starbuck's once my 'stay-away-from-ice' period is over! ( o. 0 )

Wadihana Islamic Kitchen Restaurant @ Bangi Review

There are quite a number of new eateries popping out in Bangi recently and my husband and I took our time in trying them out one by one. For dinner one night sometime a few years back, we decided to get a taste of Wadihana Islamic Kitchen that advertised itself to be a place that diners can taste Asian, Western, Italian and Mexican cuisine as well as an array of dessert and pastry. 

Wadihana's logo.

Wadihana Islamic Kitchen Restaurant is located at the very end of the same row as Mohd Chan Abdullah's Restaurant. The restaurant is quite spacious with seatings like patio chairs minus the umbrella. On our observation, there are a lot of families eating at this restaurant which I take as a good sign.

Wadihana's front view at night time.

Wadihana Restaurant at day time.

The menu is quite extensive and there are a lot of dishes offered. Seriously they were not kidding when they claim that this restaurant serve a lot of cuisines. You can almost say that this is a fusion eatery where you can get a variety of dishes from various places. For our first time dining here, we opted to try out some 'safe' dishes. For me, as usual I always always want to try out Spaghetti Carbonara and my husband opted to try their Rice with Lemon Chicken (since I looooove lemon chicken!). For drinks, we ordered Teh Tarik and Apple Juice with Asam Boi.

The apple juice with asam boi was a bit sour and the apple juice was a little too thin to my liking. It also tasted a bit bland to me with not enough sweetness. On the other hand, the teh tarik was very nice and it was served in a cute big cup. The balance of the sweetness and the creamines of the milk was just right.

For the carbonara, the spaghetti was not soft. I do believe that it was not given enough time to cook. There was also too much black pepper in the seasoning. That slightly sweet taste that I look for in the creaminess of carbonara was not there and the cream was quite thick and a bit too salty.

Carbonara.

The Lemon Chicken with rice was nicely presented. The rice was served with fish crackers and a small serving of veggies on the side. The lemon chicken gravy was a bit on the sour side.  There was a little bit of a gassy taste to the sauce too. But, when the sour sauced chicken was combined with the rice, the zing of the sourness was somewhat lessened a bit. But still, the taste of the lemon chicken was a bit disappointing to me since it was too sour and gassy.

Lemon Chicken with rice.

For dessert, I chose Pana Cota since it has been a long time since I get to eat one from Fish n Co at One Utama which serves my favourite Pana Cota of all time. The Pana Cota was served with a dollop of whipped cream with a halved strawberry on top and some strawberry sauce. It had a thick and creamy consistency, which is just right for me but alas, t was not too creamy in terms of taste. The combination of the whipped cream made ip for the lack of creaminess in the pana cota itself. Overall, it was just so-so for me and I think I enjoy Fish n Co's Pana Cota better than this one.

Pana Cota

The price for our meal was RM40.70 which I think it's acceptable but since we didn't really enjoy the taste of the dishes, I'd say it was on the high side.

I might go back here if I ever had a crazy craving for Pana Cota or I wanted to try other dishes on the menu.

New Clothing Line

Guys and Dudes....Lady and Women......I just got to know that a new hype and fresh online clothing store soon to be opened in the US......you guys can check it out......using this link.... http://hmnt.co/KoF

Angel's Magic Putto Ato-Secret Liquid Review

My family members (and me included) have always had sensitive skin and all kinds of allergies. Some of us have the worse kind of skin condition such as urticaria. My cousin, the loony Barneysayz has a chronic pressure induced urticaria. As for me, my skin would break out in rashes everytime I eat something with wheat flour in them. So, you can guess that any type of products promising to relieve any itchiness and inflammation will definitely catch our interest at the drop of a hat. Plus, since having a baby in the house I am more prone to shop around for products that are baby skin friendly and natural so that my dear daughter can use it too.

I was told by someone that there is a brand by the name of Putto that sells really great products that caters to baby's sensitive skin and heals any itchiness and swelling really well. I googled the Internet and came across Angel's Magic Putto and was immediately interested. 

Here's a description on Putto's products:

"Putto is a premium skincare brand for the mothers who hope to make their baby’s skin, pure and healthy like a baby angel. Putto is developed and formulated through intensive R&D and public connfidence test by *KAERI (*Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute).

Putto’s core ingredient is NHEB-05™  which is a patented ingredient (patent no: 10-2008-0032798) and has been completed Primary Skin Irritation Test according to the standards of FDA. All the products contain NHEB-05TM instead of water. Putto moisturizes and protects baby’s delicate skin from getting dry and itchy.

Putto Triple Magic Care formula NHEB-05™  has a natural soothing effect on your baby’s skin. It is an all natural herbal extract made from a combination of 5 plants - Houttuynia Cordata,Plantago asiatica, Glechoma hederacea, Morus alba L, Japanese Elm. ß-glucan is a moisturizing property extracted from Schizophyllum commune Fr. and is easily absorbed by the skin. Ceramide forms a protective barrier for your baby’s delicate skin against harsh environment pollutants.

Putto’s mild formulation protects baby’s delicate and sensitive skin. It is free from ingredients which cause skin irritation such as preservatives, alcohol and artificial coloring agent."

I went a little bit crazy (only a little bit) googling the products and finally decided to try out only two products which are:
1. Putto Ato-Secret Liquid
2. Putto Ato-Secret Cream
I received a gift pack for my purchase which is a pack of Putto Ato-Secret Shampoo & Bath and Putto-Ato Secret Lotion.

For this post, I am going to do a review on Putto Ato-Secret Liquid. I bought my Putto products from Angel's Magic Putto (Malaysia) online shop. Their service are very prompt and professional. I didn't have any trouble getting a reply from them whenever I have any enquiries. The customer service is one of the best for an online shopping experience I've encountered so far. Their delivery is also prompt but the packaging can benefit from a little bit of improvement since my package came in a very thin and unsturdy box wrapped in saran plastic wrap. Luckily the products inside were wrapped in a layer of bubble wrap and the boxes of the actual products were put in a ziploc plastic bag. The mode of payment also can be improved by adding the option to pay via interbank transfer for those who does not have a paypal account.

Anyway, let's get on with the review.

Product Info: Putto Ato-secret Liquid contains 88% of the patented NHEB-05™, which soothes and calms problem skin areas. Together with β-glucan and ceramide, Putto Ato-secret Liquid gives you the Triple Magic Care formula which helps reduce inflammation and itchiness while keeping the skin moist.

Packaging: The Putto Ato-Secret Liquid came in a beige plastic spray bottle with a cute and simple label. There is some information about the product printed at the sides of the box and also on the bottle. All Putto's products are colour coded and for the Secret Liquid, the colour code is light green. This simplistic packaging has a clean cut look to it, is very appealing and really attracts my eyes. The product weighs 100ml. The bottle opens via a pull off cap at the top. You can also access the product by unscrewing the thick green neck. 

Nice and simple packaging.

The bottle uncapped and unscrewed.

Ingredients: Houttuynia Cordata Extract, Plantago Asiatica Extract, Glechoma Hederacea Flower/Leaf/Stem Extract, Morus Alba Leaf Extract, Ulmus Davidiana Root Extract, Butylene Glycol, Glycerin, Betaine, Sodium Hyaluronate, 1,2-Hexanediol, Beta-Glucan, Pathenol, Disodium EDTA.

List of ingredients printed on a sticker pasted on the back of the box.

Texture: The Putto Ato-Secret Liquid is in liquefied form. It is runny just like water. It also has a brownish tint to the liquid. To use the product, you just have to aim the spray nozzle at the affected area on the skin and then press the nozzle head. The liquid would have to pat into the skin softly. I felt a cooling effect whilst patting the liquid into my skin and the itchiness I felt is lessened. 

Smell: The Ato-Secret Liquid is odourless, a fact that I reaaaally like. The odourless factor is going to be a great thing especially when I have a headache and I want to use a fast relieving product that does not contaminate my nostrils whilst using it.

Urticaria Test: Since my cousin has a chronic pressure induced skin disorder, I actually bugged him to get his hand scratched so that his rashes would appear so I could try the Putto product on him but he refused. ( >.< ) I finally got the chance to try Putto's product on him after his rashes broke out one fine day. Yeay! Below is the picture of his skin afliction.

Gory, yes I know!

He sprayed the Ato-Secret Liquid on half of the rash area and pat the liquid down. The other half, he applied the Ato-Secret Cream (more on that later). He said he felt a soothing effect, and 20 seconds after spraying the liquid on his bumpy skin, the burning sensation of the itchiness subsided immediately. The itchy rash and redness of the skin disappeared after 15-20 minutes later. So, he gave his nod of approval for the product (indicating he might be purchasing one for himself! Hehe..).

Baby Test: My baby had a small inflammation on the side of her head yesterday so I rubbed in the Putto Ato-Secret Liquid on the tiny red bump. At first it looked like the bump became more redder and bigger but after some time (I didn't actually time the time), the red bump became flatter and the redness was not as red as before I applied the liquid. The only problem is that the liquid needed to be sprayed on and to spray on my baby's face is not a good idea, so in the end I sprayed onto my hand and then rubbed the liquid on her skin gently. I think it might be much easier to use the gel-type on babies and the spray type when they are a little bit older. Conclusion, it worked wonders on the small rash! ( ^_^ )

My Verdict: I really like Putto Ato-Secret Liquid because it works. And the plus point for me is that it is totally odourless to my nose. I am now itching to try the Putto Ato-Secret Liquid Gel! Definitely would recommend this and I would repurchase.

I bought my bottle of Putto Ato Secret Liquid for RM78 at Angel's Magic Putto (Malaysia).

Burt's Bees Rejuvenating Lip Balm With Acai Berry Review

Remember that one time I went on a loony shopping spree at Burt's Bees last year? Well, this is a loooong overdue review of Burt's Bees Rejuvenating Lip Balm with Acai Berry. 

Packaging: The lip balm is packaged in a cardboard box. The tube itself is a standard tube of 0.15 oz lip balm with a pull off cap and a twister at the bottom. The ingredients are printed both on the back of the box and also on the tube.

Ingredients: Heliantus annuus (sunflower) seed oil, cocos nucifera (coconut) oil, cera alba (beeswax, cire d'abeille), aroma (flavour)*, ricinus communis (castor) seed oil, lanolin, euterpe oleracea fruit oil**, ammonium glycyrrhizinate, rosmarinus officinalis (rosemary) leaf extract, tocopherol, glycine soja (soybean) oil, canola oil (huile de colza), anise alcohol, benzyl benzoate, benzyl cinnamate cirral, farnesol, limonene, linalool. *natural flavour, **acai berry  

Texture: The lip balm has a very texture and applies smoothly on the lips. It does not leave the lips too shiny but it does moisturize very well. I did notice that my lips got a little bit dry after the product had worn off after an hour or so.

Smell: This lip balm has a very strong beery-ish scent which came across as a little bit too strong to my liking. It kind of felt a little bit on the pungent side to me. Maybe because I am hooked on those minty or mildly scented balms. 

Swatch: 

My Verdict: Although the lip balm have very good moisturizing properties, I am still put off by the strong scent of  it. For those who does not mind the scent, I think this would be a good buy since Acai Berry is supposed to have a lot of good healing attributes. Would I repurchase? Nope!

I bought my tube of this lip balm at Burt's Bees outlet at The Curve.

Yes To Carrots C Me Smile Lip Butter Review

No matter what the season is, lip balm is still my favourite thing to use. I have like tons of lip balms stashed in my drawer and all around the house. Some of them had never been opened yet! For my latest conquest, I had bought Yes To Carrots C Me Smile Lip Butter in three flavours which are Mint, Berry and Carrot. 

Packaging: The lip balms comes in the usual .15 oz tube with a pull off cap and a twister at the bottom. Each tube cap is coloured accordingly to the scent i.e. green for Mint, red for Berry and orange for Carrot. An unopened tube has an untempered plastic covering the cap. The list of ingredients is printed on the back of the tube.

 My three choice of lip balms.

 An untempered plastic covering the cap.

Ingredients: (for the Mint tube) Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Oil, Cera Alba (Beeswax), Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Mentha Piperita (Peppermint) Oil, Helianthus Annuss (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter), Limonene, Flavour, Tocopehrol, Linalool, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (OrangePeel Extract), Cucumis Melo Cantalupensus (Melon) Seed Extract, Cucurbita Pepo (Pumpkin) Seed Extract, Daucus Carota Sativa (Carrot) Root Extract. (*All of the ingredients are organic except the flavour).

List of ingredients printed on the back of the tube. 

Texture: The lip balm has an opaque hue to it and neither too hard nor too soft texture. The lip balm has a very nice smooth glide when applied on the lips. It is not overly shiny so I think guys would not mind using them. 

The three tubes of lip balms opened.

A newly opened tube of one of the lip balms.

The Mint: It has a minty tingle (which I like!) and glides very smoothly over the lips. There is no taste but I don't really mind since the mintyness and smoothness overshadows the fact that the balm is not sweetened. The balm hydrates really well and is not overly shiny on the lips.

The Berry: Just like the Mint balm, Berry glides smoothly too. It really smelled like yummy strawberries, but there is no minty tingle in this version of Yes To Carot's lip balm. The hydation effect is also the same as the Mint version.

The Carrot: This one has a subtle carroty fragrant which I find really pleasant. I was expecting to not like this one but surprisingly I found it really likeable. The texture and glide is also the same the other two lip balms.

The lip balm swatched on the back of my hand.

My Verdict: I love them! If these lip balm is easily available in Malaysia I would definitely repurchase them (even if they are not I think I would still find ways and means to repurchase the Mint one!).

You can check out Yes To Carrot's products at their official website.
I bought my Yes To Carrot C Me Smile Lip Butter via Ryan from sgDrugstore.