去了台北不下10次，可是嘉義雞肉飯還真的是頭一遭。
身為《康熙來了》的忠實觀眾，對於每次介紹美食的單元都極度感興趣。就在去台北之前的幾個禮拜前，康熙就有了介紹美食老店的單元。深深的被黃小柔所介紹的雞肉飯所吸引，所以便決定把它列入這次台北之行的必吃食物當中。
梁記嘉義雞肉飯不算好找，因為店面在住宅社區中，從松江南京捷運站出來之後也還要走一段路才能到。可是，一切辛苦都是值得的！
進入店面之前，你只需要點你想要吃的小菜。雞肉飯是等到你到位子的時候才點的。除了雞肉飯，還有滷肉飯可以選擇。可是，重點當然是雞肉飯！在點小菜的時候千萬不要忘了要拿荷包蛋，還要選那種蛋黃半熟的。（有些荷包蛋煎的有一點太熟了，所以要慎選哦！）
貌似簡單的雞肉飯。
誰知把荷包蛋放在雞肉飯上就猶如神來一筆。
把荷包蛋切成小塊攪拌入雞肉飯。當然半熟的蛋黃就會滲入飯中！可以大快朵頤了！
有機會去台北的話，應該抽空去梁記吃吃看！在去梁記之前的半小時，我的朋友剛吃完了一大碗的燉肉飯，可是他在梁記還是嗑下了兩碗雞肉飯，可見梁記雞肉飯的魅力！
被收錄在《尋訪全球最美的20間書店》當中，除了日本的Tsutaya Books，VVG Something好樣本事是另一個亞洲的代表。
VVG = Very Very Good
隱藏在一堆綠葉當中的書店外觀，營造一種身在大自然的感覺。
書店真的就只有這樣大！真的是一目了然！有一點小失望。
店裡的書籍多數是原文書，和台北一般書店的翻譯書不一樣。設計和飲食的書籍為大多數。日文書也很多。可是，找不到自己喜歡的書。又失望。
店裡有售賣咖啡。除了櫃檯的位子能利用，還能在店外的小角落休閒渡過。不過，書店的對面就是VVG系列的餐廳。與其在小角落餵蚊子，不如到對面的餐廳靜靜的享受餐點。
書店外觀最吸睛的應該是紅色的腳踏車。
雖然被選入全球最美20間書店之一，可是就是美吧。沒有太達到書店的用途。話雖如此，還是很推薦到此一遊，並在週邊享受VVG系列商店的魅力（書店，針織品，餐廳，咖啡座，等）。
最近一直非常困擾我的一句話。
被爸爸（我哥哥）痛罵後突然跟我說的一句話。
美好的家庭，就這樣如此的脆弱。看似幸福的愛情，就這樣如此的不堪一擊。
為了這個家庭，為了兩個小傢伙，我還要更加的努力。
Aoshima. A small island in Miyazaki Prefecture. Can easily access the island by taking the train from Miyazaki station to Aoshima in 20 minutes.
I like the peace and simplicity of the island. Just a small shrine on the island and nothing else. My friend said that newlyweds and couples used to come to this island for their honeymoon in the past, so this is considered a “love blessed” destination.
Aoshima Shrine
Wish tablets outside the shrine
Devil’s washboard: Basalt rock phenomenon formed along the coastline
Who drew this??!!
When you go to a place with nothing, what matters is the company.
Recommendation: Go to any onsen (hot spring) in the nearby hotels after a walk on the island.
Returned to Japan for 2 weeks at the end of March. It has been more than a year since I last visited my “this second hometown” and 3 years since I left the country, but everything still seems familiar and comfortable here.
Took a day-trip to Mount Fuji in my friend’s convertible BMW, and it was simply awesome! Other than the fact that I got tanned in Japan due to the open car. Just looking at the below picture is evidence how worthwhile the day-trip has been.
逆さ富士
During the 14 days in Japan, I met up with different friends almost every night for meals and chat. All I can say is, my impulsive decision to go to Japan in 2006 is definitely most worthwhile and the best experience in my life. Suddenly makes me think of, there are many “once in a lifetime” in life. The Japanese saying of 一期一会 certainly very chim and meaningful.
Will continue with more posts about my travel and food in Japan.
2013年裡，中文流行音樂歌壇似乎沒有甚麼極度傑出的作品。（2012年有蘇打綠的《你在煩惱甚麼》、曲婉婷的《我的歌聲裡》，還有年底一鳴驚人的新人白安的《是甚麼讓我遇見這樣的你》。）雖然陶喆交出了暌違3年的專輯，而且每首歌在乍聽之下都很出色動聽，但是可惜的是耐聽度不及之前的作品。反觀嚴爵自從3年前出道以來，專輯裡張張都有自己爵式風格的情歌，不失流行度，亦同時保持了自己的風格。
1. 畢業生
應該可以是說延續了嚴爵每張專輯的開幕曲的風格。輕快的曲風、《畢業生》的歌詞訴說著嚴爵這3年來在音樂上的付出與成績單。口白的“嚴爵，祝你鵬程萬里”也似乎在隱喻著4張專輯＝4年大學生涯的結束，也意味著嚴爵從今以後的新發展。
2. 貮零零零年
有點出乎預料的曲風。中國樂器搭配電子音樂的風格，雖然可能不算是新鮮的嘗試，但是出自嚴爵的音樂卻讓人有種耳目一新的感覺。歌曲中敘述著2000年流行的音樂，帶你回到陶喆、林億蓮和五月天（是嚴爵的老闆，怎麼可能不包括在歌詞中！），當然還有剛出道就以《可愛女人》爆紅的周杰倫。不過，怎麼少了《天黑黑》的孫燕姿呢？
3. 好的情人
延續爵式情歌的風格。從《好的事情》延伸到這張的《好的情人》，朗朗上口的旋律加上配合《鋼鐵人》的歌詞，讓人輕易對歌曲留下深刻印象。不過，似乎上一張專輯的情歌太過突出，所以來到第4張專輯只能交出這首情歌。當中最喜歡的一句歌詞：複製一百個分身 一百個替身 複製不了一公克靈魂。
4. 潔癖
與五月天的合作。專輯未發就已經在電台熱播，而且在網上也能購買數碼版。歌曲出自嚴爵手筆，可是聽起來像是五月天的標準慢板搖滾，不像是嚴爵的音樂。
5. 沒有答案
典型爵式風格歌曲。平平無奇，適合放在專輯中間。
6. π
利用圓周率作為歌曲名稱，嚴爵應該是第一人。歌詞由陳沒所寫，所以其實跟嚴爵也沒太大關係。喜歡歌的節奏，讓人不禁會跟著擺動。MV中的嚴爵也破天荒首次展現舞技，有點同手同腳的感覺，讓人噗漬一笑。
7. Everyday
專輯中最喜歡的歌。對很多爵迷來說可能算是冷門的一首歌，可是對我來說，R&B中帶有輕微的Jazz（不是嚴爵的爵式哦～），讓人聽得非常舒服。
8. 超級巨星
到底誰是嚴爵心目中的超級巨星？還是他想成為大家心目中的超級巨星？
9. 勝券在握
與MP廷廷的Rap合作。兩人的說來唱去為歌曲增添了不少聲色。值得一聽，但本人不是Rap的支持者。
10. 至少我有我
嚴爵《鋼鐵情人》演唱會的主題歌。不過，真是抱歉，這是我在專輯裡覺得可聽度最低的一首歌。
11. 沒有你的日子的我
剛聽這首歌的時候，歌曲的開始竟然騙到我，讓我覺得是Michael Buble在唱歌！
第4張作品之後，除了爵式情歌，嚴爵還會帶給喜歡他的創作的歌迷甚麼驚喜呢？真讓人拭目以待。可是，首先還是最期待1月25日嚴爵在新加坡的首次演唱會！
Shall start with a new post, since I am in the mood.
Have been to Robertson Quay twice for the past 2 weeks, because it is really a good place to chill out with friends. The usual restaurants I go to here are mostly Western, but an adventurous mood made me step into 2 oriental restaurants that I have been always wanted to visit.
(1) Damatory Korean Restaurant
Pleasant environment with open-air seating outside the restaurant, and also traditional floor seatings and chair seats available. Was tempted to try the open-air seats, but the heat in Singapore made us chose the indoor traditional seats. One of the reasons I like Korean food is because they also serve all kinds of side dishes for free, and I was expecting the same from this “supposedly authentic” restaurant. But my, was I wrong! Only 3 side dishes were served, though the good thing was, they were all refillable.
Side dishes: Traditional radish kimchi, water kimchi & little ikan bilis w/ almond
While waiting for the latecomers to come, my friends and I ordered a salad and seafood toppoki to curb our hunger. Hmm.. the bulgogi salad was good with plenty of meat, and I liked the sauce which had a slight tangy taste (maybe yuzu?). There were also bits of ginseng in the salad! The seafood toppoki (Korean rice cake) looked impressive with the mussels and prawns on top, but we were quite disappointed with the taste, as well as the miserable servings of rice cakes in the dish. The gravy was too watery, and I think we could finish counting the number of rice cakes with two hands. Wondering if we were being served seafood, or rice cake? Maybe they should rename the dish to “Spicy Seafood” instead?
Bulgogi Salad
Seafood Toppoki (Korean rice cake)
The Korean pancake was a little too thick for me, but maybe other people might like it. I still prefer to have my pancake crispy on the outside and soft inside. Still difficult to find good pancakes in most restaurants, which makes me miss the best pancake I had in Jeju Island years ago. In addition, why is there a slice of tomato on the pancake?
Half & Half Pancake: Kimchi and Spring Onion
The main dish, Boksam, came to save the day. The serving was huge, and six of us had difficulty finishing the big portion of meat. The kimchi served with the pork belly was more flavourful than the side dish ones, and it was perfect to wrap the meat into the provided leaves and gobbled them in one mouth! One thing that I would seek improvement in this dish is that, I hope the meat could be a little softer? Other than that, this is a good dish to be enjoyed and shared with your friends.
Boksam: Pork Belly served w/ vegetables
On the whole, Damatory is a Korean restaurant up to expectations, as can be seen from the huge crowds of Korean customers in the shop. A funny thing that I have to comment is, if you and your friends are not used to sitting on the floor to eat, it would be best to choose the chair seats, so that you would not need to stretch your legs every now and then to prevent leg cramps!
Worth a try, but not fantastic!
(2) Shunjuu
Have not found a satisfactory Japanese restaurant since I have been back from living in Japan for 5 years. BUT, this is the first restaurant that I am happy with the quality of food and price. Although the price is still a little high considered to the Japanese restaurant chains, the high quality food is worth every dollar that you spend. Decided to visit this restaurant, because my student from Melbourne came back to Singapore (she’s now my friend because not a student anymore) after graduation. Since I taught her Japanese, it would be nice to visit a nice Japanese restaurant, and we somehow decided to eat here after walking around the area.
Since there were only two of us, we could not order a lot of food, so we just ordered the 2 available kushiyaki sets with a sashimi salad. The sashimi salad came to us with a bomb! The sesame dressing was the usual one that you can find in the Japanese supermarkets, but the freshness of the fish made us squirm with happiness while eating and chatting throughout the meal.
Sashimi Salad
The kushiyaki sets came in batches, since different sticks required different cooking time. And to be served as soon as they were done was the best way to make sure that you can enjoy the food once done. I have to say that all the meat was grilled to perfection, and the liver was so soft that it just melted once you put it into your mouth. Never a big fan of liver, but I have to give a big round of applause for this!
Kushiyaki = Grilled sticks of whatever you like!
More sticks…
This time, I did not ordered any Japanese sake, since I did not want to drink with my “student”. But it would be perfect to enjoy sake with the kushiyaki, and I would definitely do it on my next visit.
A definite recommendation to people who want to enjoy nice grilled sticks of food at a reasonable price!
Ok. So after a long period of rest, I decided to start writing conscientiously for my blog again. Being back in Singapore for a year, I have been eating at many new places, but it seems weird to take photos of my food everytime I eat out, because it is a little inconvenient to keep taking pictures when my friends want to eat!!
So from now onwards, I will be updating this blog on all things that I like, i.e. music, movies, art events, and of course, food!!
I don’t consider myself a fan of ramen, but my friend simply loves the Japanese noodles! Therefore, we ended up eating ramen a few times during the 1-week trip in Hokkaido during end 2012.
(1) 函館麺屋ゆうみん (Hakodate Menya Yu-min)
http://tabelog.com/hokkaido/A0105/A010501/1008113/
The first ramen that we tried was in Hakodate after landing in Chitose after a night flight and more than 3 hours of JR train. Tried to check-in at the hotel, but the check-in timing was strictly after 3pm, so we had to leave our luggage at the reception and roam outside for a while. Many shops were closed during this time (slightly before 3pm), thus we went into this shop which was still operating. Result… turned out to be a disastrous first ramen experience in Hokkaido. The soup was worse than that of instant noodles, and nothing was great about the other ingredients. Don’t really know what to write about the shop, except not to recommend it to people who are reading this?
Miso ramen at 函館麺屋ゆうみん
(2) 初代一国堂ラーメン
http://tabelog.com/hokkaido/A0101/A010101/1006141/
Guess things slightly improved after the first disaster. If anything can be worse than the first try, how bad can it get? Arrived at Sapporo city after a night’s stay at Hakodate. Traveling during winter is not a wise choice, as days are so short and it turns dark slightly before 5pm. My friend suggested to eat ramen again, so after roaming the streets for a while, we popped into this ramen shop near the Susukino station. Verdict after the try, it was much better than the one in Hakodate, but having lived in Kyushu for 5 years, I still prefer Tonkotsu Ramen due to the stronger taste. Shio-ramen (Salt-based soup) is just too alike instant noodles for me.
塩ラーメン＠初代一国堂ラーメン
(3) 青葉ラーメン (Aoba Ramen)
http://tabelog.com/hokkaido/A0104/A010401/1000314/
During our trip to 旭川 Asahikawa (my purpose was to go to the zoo to see the penguins), ramen is a must-try since the area is famous for its popular ramen shops. With the recommendation from friends and the guidebook, we searched for 青葉 in the falling snow. Asahikawa-ramen is popular due to its flavourful soup base which is cooked with both pork bones and seafood, and this brings out the rich taste of both land and sea. We ordered the soy-based ramen according to the recommendation of the old lady in the shop. At the first sip of the soup, FINALLY, this is RAMEN!! The soy-based soup was so full of flavour, and the meat pieces were thick and soft. I found the egg yolks a bit overcooked, and the quantity of noodles was a little too much. Other than that, everything was perfect about the bowl of ramen. In particular, the imprinted words of the shop name on the seaweed was cute with the octopus logo. MUST-TRY if you go to Asahikawa.
醤油ラーメン (Soya-based)
(4) 山頭火ラーメン旭川本店 (Santouka Ramen, Asahikawa Main Shop)
Santouka has many branches in the world, including Singapore. Therefore, my friend was determined to try out the main shop of Santouka in Asahikawa. I have also tried the ramen twice in Singapore, thus a comparison could be made between both countries. Surprisingly, the soup was a little lighter than that of in Singapore, not so salty and I could feel the shellfish flavour in the soup, which is more prominent in the main shop. The main shop is definitely a must-visit for people who love Santouka-ramen in their own countries, because the soup is definitely better than what you can get anywhere. Plus, the pork cheekbone meat is so soft and tender that it really melts in your mouth.
My favourite Kara-Miso.
My friends and I started a new monthly activity few months back i.e. try out high tea at the hotels in Singapore. It is a luxury to be able to enjoy good food and relax during a Saturday afternoon while chatting with good friends (mostly gossiping..).
The first high tea that we went to was at Ritz Carlton. Loved the huge sofas which we were assigned to, because they were so comfy and spacious that I could easily laze and sleep in them. Though the high tea was buffet-style, I found that the variety of food was not exactly what we had expected, in particular the savoury food corner where the choices were limited. A good thing was, all the food were prepared exquisitely and delightful on the palate. My main focus was on the sweets, which met my expectations about taste. However, the thing was about variety again, as most sweets were topped either with crumbles or served in a shotglass.
My choice of the savoury food.
The sweets part 1.
Sweets in shotglasses.
The Ritz Carlton experience was a pleasant one, and this sets us looking forward to the next high tea, which was at Goodwood Park Hotel. Contrary to Ritz Carlton, the savoury food was better than the available sweets. Some of the savouries really surprised me (I have to say not many food can successfully surprise me), in particular the camembert cheese served on a cracker. Such simple food, but what a complex taste and texture. There was nothing special about the sweets, so I did not really eat many of them. Went back to the savouries for a finale of the high tea though :).
The savouries part 1.
The savouries part 2.
Famous creme brulee (plus my scone).
The sweets.
Comparatively, I still prefer Ritz Carlton over Goodwood Park, though the food in Goodwood Park surprised me with some of its savouries. Something to mention, both high tea buffets were about the same price (about S$50++), but Ritz Carlton provided a free flow of drinks while Goodwood Park only allowed an order of 2 drinks per person.
Still more to try over the next few months.
Not Just Food 
