[Travel Tuesday] Clubmed Phuket December 2015 - Day 1

We just came back from Phuket this morning and I thought it would be ideal to do a "Travel Tuesday" post!

 

We put up at Club Med during our stay and the kids enjoyed themselves at the Mini Club and Petite Club so much!

Kids 4-7 go to Mini Club (Free)

Children below 4 go to Petite Club (chargeable at 1900 baht per full day)

Club opening hours are 0830am - 4:45pm.

Additional hours that you require after the Club closes will be charged at 100 baht/ hour for a babysitter.

 

Club Med Phuket

Checking out the Mini Club was the first thing we did after dumping our suitcases in the room!

After Adam and Ashton went to the Mini Club, we went around the resort and to nearby Kata beach to recce our surroundings.

 

 

Did pretty awesome things on the first day like climb a tree.....

 

and Parasailing...

 

 

 

 

After hanging out at the beach, we went back to the resort at 4pm for the Mini Club kids party.

 

 

The water slide was fun! Both boys went for it for 2 rounds.

Our kids more happening than us - having a swell time at their foam party while parents could only stay on the outside of the foam pit to watch.. LOL

Adam made a new friend, Hayden, a fellow Singaporean boy from Opera Estate Primary :)

 

 

 We have been to many holidays with the kids the past several years and I can tell you, anywhere with sun, sand, and copious amounts of water are the perfect ingredients for a Happy Family Vacation recipe!

 

As a sidenote, however, the service at Club Med Phuket falls short of some of the resorts and hotels we have been to, for eg. Shangri-La Cebu, W and Westin hotels.

For an instance, check out timing is at 11:00am instead of the largely universal 12noon, and requests for late check-outs are charged at 300 baht per hour per room (Club Med charges per pax instead of per room, so for a family of 4 like us, we were given 2 rooms)

 

Other than that, we were quite happy with everything else - 3 square meals provided in the resort, free alcohol and drinks. Yay to all you alcoholic anonymous out there! :)

 

Their rooms also do not come with toiletries and terry cloth slippers, and I understand it is part of their committment to reduce environmental waste, so if you are a first-time guest to Club Med, please bring along toiletries.

 

 

 

Do check back soon for our Day 2 and Day 3 photo installment :)

 

 

{media invite} NEW T-Play indoor playground at Home Team NS.

{media invite}

We were really thrilled to be invited to the opening of Home Team NS' all new indoor playground -

T-Play, a transport-themed play zone!

 

T-Play is located at 2 Bukit Batok West Avenue 7 Singapore 659003,

Level 2 (above swimming pool).

 

There is a nursing room and toilets.

Tunnels, trampolines, slides and ball pits!

Even mummy is having a ball of a time!

 

 Thanks Benny from Home Team NS marketing for inviting us!

Our boys had so much fun and utilised their 2 hours.

Best thing is, just below T-play are a range of eateries to satiate our rumbling tummies :)

*** GOOD NEWS ***

From 5th to 13th December 2015, join Home Team NS for the sneak peak grand opening at their spanking new T-Play indoor playground (Home Team NS is next to Bukit Batok Driving Centre and ESSO kiosk) and enjoy the following:

- FREE Entry for Home Team NS/ Family Member.

- Free T-Play Membership when you sign up for Home Team NS Family membership (limited 1 Family Membership to 1 T-Play membership).

- 50% Dsicount for Walk-in guests and SAFRA members.

Opening hours:

Monday - Thursday (exclude PH): 1pm - 7pm

Friday: 1pm - 9pm
Saturday, Sunday and PH: 10am - 9pm
School holidays Mon - Fri: 10am - 7pm


** Don't forget to bring your socks and sweaters!
More information on the Home Team NS website.
 

 

 



{food review} Food-tasting at 1 Tyrwhitt Italian Bistro and Bar.

Wondering where's a good place to meet up with friends for your yuletide gatherings?
How about checking out 1 Tyrwhitt Italian Bistro and Bar?

Working in KKH, I sometimes hang out with Andy around the quirky and lesser-known neighbourhoods of Rangoon Road and the Balestier/ Ceylon radius, where they are homes to many brunch cafes and the like.

When I received the invitation to attend a food-tasting at 1 Tyrwhitt Bistro and Bar, I thought, "Why not!"

Located at its namesake, 1 Tyrwhitt Road, this new reataurant was birthed on 1 July 2015, by Karen and her husband's family.

Andy and I arrived an hour earlier, because it is just so close to my work place.

We found a convenient parking lot, and took a short stroll down to the restaurant.

Location:

If you don't drive, it can be quite tricky to find your way as it is not near to MRT.

If you drive, well, chances are you may have a hard time finding a parking lot nearby as lots are limited, so you may end up walking quite a bit.

 

 

 

Food:

There are no shortages of Italian restaurants in Singapore, so in order to stand out, one must not only serve really awesome Italian food like thin-crust oven-baked pizzas and keep an up-to-date menu, but also win in aesthetics and pricing departments.

At 1 Tyrwhitt, they hire an Italian-cuisine trained chef and several assistants.
The last time I had really mouth-watering Italian pizza was at Peperoni Pizzaeria at Frankel Avenue.

That evening, I had the good fortune to try 1 Tyrwhitt's truffle and egg pizza, and it was really superb!

Their spam fries and cheesy stuffed mushrooms are also Da Bomb.

I recommend going straight for their pizzas and sides.

Spam fries (Sgd$8) and cheesy stuffed mushrooms (Sgd$8) are da bomb!

Mushroom soup

Smoked salmon salad (Sgd$12.80).

Hubby's main: chicken chop.

Fried chicken wings (Sgd$10) were very crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside!

Cabonara pasta with bacon strips (Sgd$16.80).

Mini Beef burgers (Sgd$16.80).



Truffle and egg pizza (Sgd$23.80) fresh from the clay oven!
When you use a fork to burst the egg yolk and spread it across the pizza, it is shiokness to the max!



Always room for dessert: panna cotta (Sgd$8.80).

Service:

The wait staff are friendly and prompt, and make effort to check back frequently to clear dirty plates and replenish drinks.

I have been to one too many restaurants where wait staff pretend they don't see you/ stand around but not making eye contact with patrons, so I really appreciate good customer service when I encounter it. Thumbs up!

 

 

 

Price:

Check out their Happy Hour 1 for 1 alcohol prices, and the food is priced really competitively!

As we arrived early, we ordered a Chicken chop, mushroom soup, spam fries, cheesy stuffed mushrooms and a panna cotta for only $40+ after 10% discount (these are additional orders to the sponsored meals we had after the rest of the gang came).

 

 

 

Ambience:

If you like industrial warehouse-like set-ups, this is the place for you utilitarian lovers.

Filament lights, aged steel, and minimalist wooden furniture, these are the features of the design.

This restuarant seats 100 pax, and is big enough for parties even.

If you wish to hold a private event, you don't need to pay booking fee. You only need to pay for the food for your guests and for your deco of course.

1 Tyrwhitt Bistro & Bar also does children parties, but you can't fit a bouncy in here.

Ride-on vehicles, a small ball-pit, a balloonist, magician, and face-painter would be better ideas.



The restuarant is however, a little too cold for my liking, but that's probably just me as I am terrified of the cold. I sleep without aircon, only the fan, so can you imagine!

Lastly, a parting shot with the bloggers and Karen, the restaurant co-owner.

Thanks 1 Tyrwhitt for the yummilicious food and wonderful friend-making session.
Already making plans to go back again with my girlfriends for our annual Christmas meetup!

And nice meeting and getting to know you Soon Koon (Lemon Film blog), Shirley and Audrey!
Shirley and Audrey run the parenting blog, SAys Happy Mums, and they are the friendliest "strangers" I ever met! Thank you for the invite :)
We had so much in common to talk about, namely our 2009 Ox offspring HEHE.

 

 

About 1 Tyrwhitt Italian Bistro and Bar:

1 Tyrwhitt Road S207522

Opening Hours : 11.30am – 12mn (Closed on Tuesdays)

Telephone: 63415167