Bean Reserve cafe- great for quick bites

After meeting with my supervisor at UMMC, hubby picked me up and we went for late brunch at Bean Reserve. It's not easy to find. Look at how well hidden the place is. Another offpeak outlet.

Nice cosy minimalist feeling. But baby Bing had too much fun pushing the sliding doors and the stools.

Nitro cold brew. First time trying cold brew. Strangely it tastes and looks like a pint of Guinness. A bit bitter and sour. Topped with a layer of foam. This article talks about what's nitro cold brew. Interesting!

Hot chocolate. Always the best to comfort one. Warm, sweet, soothing, creamy. Too bad baby Bing didn't want any. He just wanted to run around and tear the place down.

Sourdough chicken ham sandwich. Fantastically thick cheddar slices with fresh  tomatoes in between.

Smoked salmon bagel. This has always been one of my favorite. Wish there's some side that goes with it though. Because it's RM16 per sandwich.

Overall, we rate it 7.5/10 (a tad pricey for the portion)

Kluang local products

These are the must buys every time I get to spend time at my hometown.

Kluang TV brand coffee

Kluang is famous for its railway coffee shop. People flock there during holidays. But not many know where to buy the original coffee products.

We buy coffee straight from the factory. There's the classic coffee bags, 3 in 1 sachets, coffee beans and white coffee. The owner also shares his love for coffee by offering all day long free coffee with cream crackers.



Yuen Fatt bakery 

Tau sah peah and heong peah is also well known here. It's just so fresh and one cannot resist the temptation to savor it. And it's one of the few places where you can get traditional Shanghai mooncake. One has to queue up or call for reservation because it sells like hot cakes - sold out usually before 10am!

Now this ogura cake is not from kluang. The first Family Pastry Shop started in Batu Pahat. It had since then expanded and we always drive past the Yong Peng branch to grab a few boxes for gift. The cake is very spongy and light in texture while full of flavors. We have started to support this bakery when the cake was just RM7. It's now selling at RM12.80 each.



This is our list. Is there anything else that you think is a must buy?

Training in metropolitan KL

I haven't tried taking any public transport in the city after I started working. So it's been 5 years! The aim is to get to HKL from mid valley on time and without making a fool of myself.

Alarm rang at 6am. Hubby shut it and I overslept. Ready at 7am. Didn't have time for breakfast because baby Bing wanted to breastfeed. Rushed out. Took a few minutes to locate the KTM station in mid valley mall (connecting bridge on level 1).

At the KTM station, you can't just use touch and go for all the entrance. Just one special lane. Unfortunately, there's a lack of signage. So I boarded the wrong train as everyone was rushing to that train when I boarded (doink. Jumping on the bandwagon) I came off the next stop then waited for 10 minutes for the right train. KTM has come a long way from 30 minute interval or late to a 15 minute interval service. Well done!

The not so busy view at KL central station at 10am.

Then I really understand what peak hour train traffic is like. It's just people everywhere. Didn't take a photo of the crowd because people stare. KTM has its own female only carriage so I feel pretty safe in the crowd. But a few elderly gentleman still decided to share seats with us. That's why I think Malaysians are so cute. I hope none of the ladies felt threatened by them : p

KL central station is a maze. It's the interchange. One can change to LRT，MRT, KLIA express, monorail, taxis and buses. However for the later 3 options, there's still quite a bit of walking to be done. The signboard for monorail is incredibly small comparing to other services. And it's right at the other end of the station. One then has to walk through Nusentral shopping center by taking the escalator up. Then down again to the outdoor station.


The lazy KL view outside the monorail early morning.


Finally gotten on the monorail and just gonna wait and get off at Chow Kit station. Then I Google mapped my way to my final destination. What an experience! Generally speaking, I feel safe taking trains alone and it's pretty clean and economical. It took me just 1 hour 15 minutes, including walking.

Comparing to train services in other countries, Malaysia has come a long way. I have tried Singapore, Australia, France and UK. The service is efficient and effective in relieving peak hour traffic on the roads. However, there's still room for improvement. For example, proper signage for directions of train. It should also be integrated ie no confusing names for the train services. Instead of having LRT, MRT and monorail, people just want to know how to get to their destinations.

Just my two cents.

Paul's cafe kuantan

Another night out. Last minute decision as usual. Decided to try Paul's cafe for the very first time. It's a meeting for siblings and in laws on a casual Friday evening. Of course we have to use discounts from Offpeak!

There's a variety of western and Asian fusion dishes.

Grilled chicken burger. Burgers here use yummy charcoal buns that taste soft and moist with a hint of buttery goodness. Classic and goes well with the extra helping of sunny side up egg and cheese melting in the mouth.

Wagyu burger! The much anticipated dish because it's wagyu.  Wagyu is fresh and juicy but will perhaps taste better if it's marinated and in steak form. The burger also needs more sauce.

Grilled chicken wrap. Chicken is tender and taste great with the mayonnaise. A healthier version for those who doesn't want burgers.

Grilled chicken chop with pepper sauce. Just the right punch of pepper. Look at how much the chef loves eggs! Scrambled eggs  with chicken chop.

Surprisingly, the best dish of the day is this braised pork leg with rice. The pork is so well marinated and full of flavor. It's so soft that it melts in the mouth. There's an amazing amount of meat with very little skin and connective tissue that I don't eat. It goes so well with the hard boiled egg cooked in the same gravy. Must try! Reminds me of my grandmother's cooking.

We also love the cafe's layout. Baby Bing's is intrigued by all the soft toys hanging at the counter! The staff there is also friendly and doesn't mind baby Bing running around.

We rate it 8/10! Will definitely visit again. Next to try their pork fries and cold brew coffee.

Stop the violence against healthcare workers

Social media has made careless and condescending accusations towards healthcare standards. It's very easy to share and viral a story without knowing the whole truth, especially when there's an attractive punchline.

People are fast to complain. Every patient wants full attention from healthcare professionals in charge of their care. Little do they know that we often have to attend to the needs of those who are much more critically ill, often struggling between life and death. I can count using my hand how many times I get to drink enough water, go to the loo when the urge emerges and when I get to have my meals on time. How many of us also work and on call when we are sick.

Me exhausted post call but still had lots of procedures to complete before I can call it a day. Face looked too horrible to be shown.

People are also fast to judge. Healthcare workers are supposed to be infallible and super humans. We act based on a standard level of care . But things aren't always black and white. It is difficult for those who aren't medically trained to fully understand the complexity of the situation. Before understanding the challenges involved, people already have preconceived ideas that we don't care and we are negligent.

I believe that all healthcare personnels started off with an altruistic goal-to serve the sick and comfort the ill. But we are humans too. We cannot work 24/7 without rest and still perform at 100%. Hunger and fatigue can also cloud judgement. We also get frustrated and depressed when patients deteriorate. We know that everyone wants to go home healthy but it's not always possible.

The medical fraternity is deeply saddened by the recent passing of Dr Pritzwald-Stegmann. A simple act of requesting a visitor to stop smoking in the vicinity of Box Hill hospital caused an assault which then claimed his life.

There are also countless cases in which doctors are under such tremendous stress that they succumb to mental illness and rendered incompetent to practise. The inhumane working hours and unrealistic expectations also often result in medical errors, even to fatal motor vehicle accidents.


I therefore would like to urge fair and kind treatment towards healthcare professionals. We are indeed responsible for human lifes. But we are also human and can only care better if we are also cared for. Stop the violence (be it physical or emotional) against us. Thank you.

Tai Ah seafood restaurant Segamat

Just started our long road trip. First leg, from kuantan to kluang, my hometown. It's been 2 months since our last trip back. We usually drive through the coastal road but this will lead us to palm oil plantation. So, we decided to pass by Segamat instead. A simple Google search brought us to Tai Ah.

Grand interior. And the whole restaurant is fully air-conditioned. They have the cleanest and newest washrooms I have ever seen one Malaysian restaurants thus far. Very impressed.

The food was equally amazing.

Seafood tofu. This is usually made of fried tofu mixed with minced seafood. But here they serve deep fried egg tofu which is then stir fried with squid, prawns and assorted mushrooms. The bottom of the dish is layered with smooth steam eggs.

This noodle dish, on the other hand is also very unique. It's braised in caramel sauce together with brinjal slices, pork slices and finely chopped bell peppers.

Both dishes are mouthwatering. All the ingredients are in harmony with each other. We order another bowl of rice just because even the gravy taste awesome! The portion is pretty generous as well.

We rate it (8/10)

3 safety tips while using beauty products featuring Pandorabox

This is the first time I have written a detailed biography for myself. I'm a specialist in internal medicine by profession. Educated in Monash university Melbourne so I had my fair share about living overseas. Besides work, I'm also a mother to 13 months old baby Bing; a wife to another orthopaedic doctor; a daughter who wish to have more time with their parents. I have blogged on and off but nothing serious until April 2017. My colleague introduced me to the wonderful world of blogging. It's not just about writing down my life events and feelings. It's about sharing my experience and knowledge to others benefit as well. And it's great because I can blog on the go, anytime, anywhere. Having an audience is a plus. I mainly blog about beauty and health, food, travel, parenting and breastfeeding.

Today I would like to share 3 things that could have gone wrong when using beauty and cosmetic products.

1. We often can't bear to part with our favorite products even if it's old and used. As with every other things, these products do have expiry dates. If it's not stated clearly, take it as 1 to 3 years after the manufacturing date. Mascara only lasts for 3 to 4 months! Regardless of how expensive and how little have you used it, you should still discard it when it's passed it's date. The reason is simple, would you eat expired food? Obviously it's a big no. Because toxins start to form and you might get sick from it. The same principles apply to beauty products. You wouldn't want your face to suffer, would you?

2. The choice of products is also very important. Most skin problems arise from wrong skin products. Firstly, for those who have sensitive skin, try the products before your first use. Ask the promoter to apply it somewhere obscure for example at the back of your hand.  Continue shopping. Leave it for about 30 minutes. If there's no reaction, most likely it's safe to use. But some people may develop allergic reaction later on. Stop using the perfected product in question immediately and wash it off. The reaction can rarely become life threatening.

3. Certain ingredients can be harmful to our skin but still used in some products. This is a list of prohibited additives from FDA.

Watch out for these in the ingredient list. Some other contents that may not be banned but should be avoided include
Paraben-risk of allergies
Alcohol- it can dehydrate your skin
You can read more about this on WebMD

Others substances can be comedogenic and should also be avoided.


This is why Pandora Box Malaysia aims to bring you the best brands which are good for your skin.  It includes top brands from Korea, the paradise for  beauty and aesthetics. The products sold are of course free from the substances listed above and are non comedogenic.  Shop at Pandora Box Malaysia for the best skin food today!

Get discounts when you shop using the code below! Hurry while promotion lasts.

Code: PANDORABOXDRANGELHO

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