whiteout

Wearing: H&M t-shirt / Zara skort (similar here and here) and heels (similar here and here) / Le Specs sunglasses / Sophie Hulme bag (high street alternative) / Kure Bazaar nail polish in 'Le Blanc' (similar)

♫ Say Lou Lou - Julian (The Chainsmokers Remix)

Since I styled the black Zara skort in an all-black look last Summer, I thought it would be fitting to style the white one in an all-white look this Summer. I know some countries are transitioning or have transitioned into Autumn but I'm still in KL where it's hot and humid all year round, so I won't be able to play around with Autumn fashion until I fly back to the UK in less than a week. In the meantime, I'm sticking to outfits that are appropriate for the sticky heat. I love all-white outfits as much as all-black ones, but I rarely wear them because I'm a clumsy and messy person by nature, so I can't keep them clean and pristine for the whole day. Even if, by some miracle, I manage to do so, I'll still feel paranoid about potential stains, and being filled with paranoia for a whole day doesn't sound appealing. Nevertheless, the visual appeal of all-white outfits makes me indulge in them once in a while. I just love how crisp and fresh they look. I've also been wearing white nail polish every day this Summer, and this is one of the few times my nails actually match my outfit.

mixtape #1: summer vibes

I'm going to try posting mixtapes/playlists every now and then, so what better way to start than with one comprised of songs that I'm into this Summer? Enjoy!

hotodogu

Every time I'm back in KL, I have a bucket list of new eateries that I want to try out. Hotodogu has been on this Summer's list since I stumbled upon it while wandering around the lower ground floor of the Gardens Mall a few weeks ago. 'Hotodogu' is the Japanese pronunciation of the word 'hotdog' and the restaurant (although the one in Gardens is more like a food stall), with its Japanese-Western fusion concept, lives up to its namesake by specialising in, you guessed it, hotdogs. However, hotdogs aren't the only things on the menu. Hotodogu makes a pretty mean (sushi) burger too.

BBQ Crunch (RM 12.90)

The hotdog bun is filled with fresh lettuce and tomato slices, then a chicken or beef sausage (I chose beef), on top of which is slathered with a generous amount of grilled onions and BBQ sauce, and a drizzle of Japanese mayonnaise. Finally, it's topped with three crispy onions rings. The combination of smoky sweet BBQ sauce and creamy Japanese mayonnaise oddly works. It perfectly complements the (beef) sausage and grilled onions. The onion rings add some crunch while the lettuce and tomatoes add some freshness. I like that the hotdog wasn't too oily or greasy. Paid an extra RM 3 for the set which includes an iced drink (iced lemon tea) and fries sprinkled with paprika.

Salmon Teriyaki (RM 14.90)

The sushi burger has a piece of seared salmon for its patty and sushi rice packed tightly together for its bun. Then, it's wrapped with a large piece of seaweed. Like above, the combination of smoky sweet teriyaki sauce and creamy-spicy Wasabi-mayonnaise oddly works. My only gripe is that the rice and seaweed quickly become soggy from absorbing the teriyaki sauce and Wasabi-mayonnaise, which makes the sushi burger difficult to eat when the 'bun' is falling apart. Paid an extra RM 3 for the set of an iced drink (iced green tea) and a bowl of miso soup.

back in black

Wearing: Topshop Boutique silk shirt (similar) and shorts (similar) / Ray-Ban sunglasses (high street alternative) / Zara clutch (similar) and mules (similar) / Kure Bazaar nail polish in 'Le Blanc' (similar)

♫ Lykke Li - No Rest for the Wicked

Apologies for the long absence from the blog! Second year of University had been extremely hectic and stressful. After my final exams ended, I intended to resume blogging but put that off to go travelling for a month and a half instead. I've been back in KL for half a month now, which was consumed with catching up with friends and family. Now that I've eased back into life at home, I plan to get back into the swing of blogging during the remaining two months of my Summer break.

If you're feeling a sense of déjà vu from this outfit post, it's probably because I posted an all-black outfit last year that featured the same silk shirt and was shot in the same location. "When in doubt, wear black" are words that I live by. I don't wear a lot of colour and naturally gravitate towards neutral colours, mainly black, white, grey and navy. Black isn't a suitable colour to wear in the Summer because it absorbs heat, but I honestly can't imagine myself not wearing at least one black item. My tricks to wear black in the Summer without melting from the heat are to wear loose lightweight layers and bare some skin. I usually wear a loose top over a fitted bottom, but lately I've been into loose layers on top of each other. My mum thinks that this outfit looks like pyjamas and I can see why because both the shirt and shorts are made of silk and have an oversized fit. In my opinion, the fact that the outfit is an all-black one makes it smart and appropriate enough to be worn out in public.

When it comes to mules, you either love them or hate them. I was initially against them but slowly warmed up to the idea. I prefer a round toe over a square toe and a slim stiletto heel over a chunky block heel, both of which the Zara mules have. I was eyeing them when they first came out but couldn't justify paying £60 for a pair of shoes that aren't very comfortable to walk in. Fortunately, I managed to snag a pair on sale for £25! I love that the satin texture makes them look so sleek. Since the shirt is made of a shiny type of silk, it matches the satin texture of the mules.

21

For my 21st birthday, my sister kindly treated me to a three course meal at Dinner by Heston Blumenthal, a restaurant awarded with two Michelin stars. It's located at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in Hyde Park, London (the nearest tube station is Knightsbridge). I've heard a lot of good things about Heston Blumenthal and his restaurants. Since my sister had eaten at The Fat Duck before, we decided to try Dinner by Heston Blumenthal instead. Fine dining isn't my cup of tea because I find the atmosphere usually stifling and uncomfortable. Oddly enough, the website states that the dress code is 'comfortable'. This confused me when I was getting ready because I didn't know whether that meant casual or semi-formal, and whether I could wear jeans and a t-shirt. I did end up wearing jeans and a t-shirt, but with a tweed blazer and ballet flats to smarten up the outfit. The fact that I wore black jeans instead of blue jeans helped polish up the outfit too. At the time of our meal, the apparel of the other diners ranged from casual (polo t-shirts and sneakers) to formal (suits and dresses). I'd recommend dressing in a semi-formal manner just to be safe.

Bread basket

Despite being fifteen minutes late for our reservation, the staff were relaxed about it. We did get a phone call to remind us of our reservation, but our table was still kept for us until we got there. I read on Trip Advisor that some people managed to walk in and get tables without prior reservations. However, I would book a table in advance to avoid any disappointment. The meal started off with a complimentary bread basket (or bread board?). The bread had very hard and crunchy crusts, and a soft centre. I ended up not eating much from the bread basket because I disliked the texture of the bread, which is a shame because bread and butter normally make for a glorious combination.

Starter: Meat Fruit (£17.50)

One of their most popular dishes is the Meat Fruit, which we both opted for our starters. The focus of the dish is obviously the 'mandarin orange'. It's actually chicken liver and foie gras parfait encased in an orange gelatinous skin. The parfait was smooth, rich and creamy with a hint of orange flavour. It was packed full of flavour and a little bit went a long way, so we needed more than one piece of bread each to finish our respective mandarin oranges, which were generously provided. We should have shared a portion rather than having a portion each, as the richness of the parfait got a bit much after a while. In my opinion, the thing that brought down the dish was the choice of bread: I assume it was the same type of bread as the one from the bread basket, but grilled which made it even harder and crunchier, and there was no soft centre at all. It was probably intended to contrast with the silky soft texture of the parfait, but it ended up being difficult to bite into due to the hardness and made a mess due to the crunchiness.

Main: Powdered Duck Breast (£34)

This was my main and I was pleased with my choice. The duck meat was cooked 'medium' so it was pink and tender, but not bloody which went well with the slightly crispy skin and smoky sweet sauce. The umbles were delicious and their chewy texture was a nice contrast to the softer texture of the duck. The fennel was a good choice of vegetable as it neither overpowered nor underpowered the duck. It was slightly charred at the edges but had the perfect degree of softness everywhere else. It was exactly how I like my cooked vegetables: soft and non-crunchy, but not mushy.

Main: Roast Turbot (£38)

This was my sister's main and in her words, it was "meh". I know small portions generally come with the fine dining territory, but this dish felt insubstantial and unsatisfying. The sauce was a sublime combination of salty (from the mussel and seaweed ketchup) and sweet (from the salmon roe). However, the fish and vegetables were just average. I think it paled in comparison to the duck because it was not as flavourful or had a 'wow factor'. It was not memorable at all and didn't justify its high price.

Dessert: Tipsy Cake (£14)

The Tipsy Cake is another one of their most popular dishes and with good reason too. We shared a portion between the two of us, but we could have happily devoured a portion each because it was that good. At the start of our meal, the server informed us that the Tipsy Cake would take 40 minutes to prepare. It was a good thing he did because if not, we would have had to wait for a long time after our mains for dessert to arrive. So, if you want to try it, order it at the start of your meal to avoid waiting. I think it's called the Tipsy Cake because the sauce is a mixture of alcohol, vanilla and spices. The sauce will be cooked until most of the alcohol is broken down to its sugars, but you can still taste remnants of alcohol. The 'cake' bit, which tasted more like bread than cake, was crusty at the top and soggy at the bottom from having soaked up the sauce. Its airy light texture enabled the cake to perfectly absorb the sweetness of the sauce and the tartness of the spit roast pineapple.

Overall, bar the bread and the fish, it was a lovely meal. Service was courteous, if a bit slow. I like that the server explained each dish at the time it was served. The interior was bright, spacious and elegant. It wasn't overly posh or stuffy. Would I go back again? Definitely, but only for special occasions like birthdays and anniversaries.