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Make it all legal at the Crown Promenade and The Merrywell, Crown Perth

Posted by  | Categories: Accommodation, Featured, Hotels, Luxury, Perth, Pub, Restaurants, Wedding

In March this year, I married the love of my life in the most magical fairy-tale wedding of my dreams.  Because we chose to get married in Thailand, our wedding was not legally recognised back in Australia unless we made a pre-wedding pilgrimage to Bangkok to arrange the necessary papers. Prior to getting hitched, the Boy and I had already spent more than ten years together and we had always celebrated our anniversary in April often with much greater enthusiasm than for either of our birthdays. It seemed logical to us, that upon our return from Thailand we would arrange a very private official ceremony back in Perth specifically on our anniversary date. This enabled us to invite special friends that weren’t for able to join us in Thailand. It also means we now get to celebrate TWO anniversaries! 😉

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In total contrast to the extreme detailed organisation of our Thailand wedding, this second wedding was a much more casual affair. Ann Lord, a lovely celebrant I met at a Wedding Upmarket day helped with the proceedings. We found a patch of grass in Burswood Park and without all the fanfare, anxiety, nerves or build up we repeated our vows once more.

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To celebrate the legalisation of our marriage, we booked a Loft room at the Crown Promenade to enjoy one more night of luxury before we started making a serious attempt at paying off all our wedding debt! I had called in the morning to request an earlier check in and was told by the reception desk that this was not a problem. Unfortunately upon our arrival this was to prove not true; we were informed our room wasn’t ready for another hour and to make ourselves comfortable with our suitcases in tow in the lobby area.

"macaron" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Perth" "Perth travel blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth hotels" "Perth luxury hotels" "five star hotels Perth" "Perth hotel reviews" "Perth luxury hotel reviews" "Perth casino" "Crown Perth" "Merrywell" "merrywell Perth" "Crown Casino" "Burswood casino" "Perth Wedding" "Crown Metropole" "loft room" "Crown hotels" "casino hotels"

This would have frustrated me greatly if I hadn’t managed to find to find myself a beautiful collection of macarons to snack on. Seeing as I no longer had to fit into wedding dresses, I slipped back into my excessive ways and ordered a whole box to share with the Boy. By the time the reception staff gestured to us that our room was ready, all the macarons were gone.

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The loft room has an expansive balcony that gives glorious panoramic views of the city’s skyline. It was not as breathtaking as the views from our Andara villa in Thailand, but it was by no means shabby.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Perth" "Perth travel blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth hotels" "Perth luxury hotels" "five star hotels Perth" "Perth hotel reviews" "Perth luxury hotel reviews" "Perth casino" "Crown Perth" "Merrywell" "merrywell Perth" "Crown Casino" "Burswood casino" "Perth Wedding" "Crown Metropole" "loft room" "Crown hotels" "casino hotels"

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The loft itself is of considerable size with a living room, dining room and well stocked kitchen complete with a full mini-bar. There was an iPod docking station for music and flat screen TVs screens in the living room, bedroom AND the bathroom. Not that we watched any television that is!

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The bathroom is ginormous with separate his and her vanities, wall to floor mirrors and a lovely deep spa bath. The flat screen television is positioned directly facing the spa…how relaxing would it be to sink yourself into bubbles while watching a movie. And drinking bubbles of course!

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The bedroom is similarly spacious with a full King sized bed and reading area overlooking the city scape. The curtains successfully make the room pitch black no matter what time of day meaning a late checkout can be well utilised to gain those extra ZZZs if you need. We certainly did.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Perth" "Perth travel blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth hotels" "Perth luxury hotels" "five star hotels Perth" "Perth hotel reviews" "Perth luxury hotel reviews" "Perth casino" "Crown Perth" "Merrywell" "merrywell Perth" "Crown Casino" "Burswood casino" "Perth Wedding" "Crown Metropole" "loft room" "Crown hotels" "casino hotels"

After the very short ceremony, we all headed over to the main casual pub of the Crown complex; The Merrywell. The Merrywell’s style of cuisine has been coined “dude food” by a number of professional food critics and whilst I don’t really like this terminology it does describe it well.

"Quesa Fun-dido" "Mexican Cheese fondue" "Chorizo" "Pico de Gallo" "Pretzel" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Perth" "Perth travel blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth hotels" "Perth luxury hotels" "five star hotels Perth" "Perth hotel reviews" "Perth luxury hotel reviews" "Perth casino" "Crown Perth" "Merrywell" "merrywell Perth" "Crown Casino" "Burswood casino" "Perth Wedding" "Crown Metropole" "loft room" "Crown hotels" "casino hotels"

Quesa Fun-dido ($19) (Mexican Cheese fondue, Chorizo, Pico de Gallo, Pretzel)

"Chipotle crema" "Jalapeno" "Tomato" "Pink Snapper tacos" "fish tacos" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Perth" "Perth travel blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth hotels" "Perth luxury hotels" "five star hotels Perth" "Perth hotel reviews" "Perth luxury hotel reviews" "Perth casino" "Crown Perth" "Merrywell" "merrywell Perth" "Crown Casino" "Burswood casino" "Perth Wedding" "Crown Metropole" "loft room" "Crown hotels" "casino hotels"

Pink Snapper tacos ($22) (Chipotle crema, Jalapeno, Tomato)

Artery clogging Mexican cheese fondues, fish tacos, burgers and hot dogs regularly feature on their changing menu. At the time we went, the waitstaff were not overly familiar with what dishes were gluten free and what wasn’t, but I have since noticed they now offer gluten free buns with their burgers so I presume they have improved their understanding.

"lamb chops" "Fiery Mojito Lamb Chops" "Cucumber yoghurt" "Bacardi 151" "mint jelly" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Perth" "Perth travel blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth hotels" "Perth luxury hotels" "five star hotels Perth" "Perth hotel reviews" "Perth luxury hotel reviews" "Perth casino" "Crown Perth" "Merrywell" "merrywell Perth" "Crown Casino" "Burswood casino" "Perth Wedding" "Crown Metropole" "loft room" "Crown hotels" "casino hotels"

Fiery Mojito Lamb Chops ($34)

"Lollipop Buffalo Wings" "Blue cheese fondue" "celery sticks" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Perth" "Perth travel blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth hotels" "Perth luxury hotels" "five star hotels Perth" "Perth hotel reviews" "Perth luxury hotel reviews" "Perth casino" "Crown Perth" "Merrywell" "merrywell Perth" "Crown Casino" "Burswood casino" "Perth Wedding" "Crown Metropole" "loft room" "Crown hotels" "casino hotels"

Lollipop Buffalo Wings ($21)

One of my favourite snacks of the night was the lollipop Buffalo wings served with a rich blue cheese fondue and celery sticks. I am pretty sure I slurped at least half a dozen of these wings off the bone each one mouthful at a time. All my bridal grace was thrown out the window!

"room service" "egg white omelette" "roasted shiitake" "mushrooms" "avocado" "feta" "micro herbs" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Perth" "Perth travel blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth hotels" "Perth luxury hotels" "five star hotels Perth" "Perth hotel reviews" "Perth luxury hotel reviews" "Perth casino" "Crown Perth" "Merrywell" "merrywell Perth" "Crown Casino" "Burswood casino" "Perth Wedding" "Crown Metropole" "loft room" "Crown hotels" "casino hotels"

The drinking session progressed fairly late into the night and by following morning the Boy and I were nursing a fairly rocking hangover. But we didn’t mind one bit because it was official.

From this point we are now legally “Mr and Mrs”.

Just the very thought of this fact was enough to cast away most of our pain and we eased our stomachs back into the real world with some ultra-healthy room service. My egg white omelette was so fluffy is nearly looked like an Aerobar and it came with some roasted shiitake mushrooms, avocado, feta and fresh micro herbs. Washed down with a black coffee I was re-energised and ready to officially be a Mrs!

A big shout out of thanks to my dear friend Tara for taking most of the above photos. On the day I decided to give Chompchomp a night off and Tara was more than happy to take over the job role of photographer. She got some awesome shots and I am very appreciative. xxx
 
Crown Metropole Perth, Crown Perth, Great Eastern Highway, Burswood WA 6979 | (08) 9362 8888
We stayed in a Loft room and took advantage of their advance purchase rates which gives a significant discount off the standard rates. The full price for this room is around $1250 per night.
 
The Merrywell, Crown Perth, Great Eastern Highway, Burswood WA 6979| (08) 9362 7551 

The Merrywell on Urbanspoon

 

Our Most Amazing Wedding at Andara Resort, Phuket

Posted by  | Categories: Accommodation, Featured, Hotels, Luxury, Perth, Resorts, Thailand, Travel, Wedding

It is literally impossible to put down in words the sheer joy and emotion of our wedding day. I have wanted to share our big day with you, my dear readers, for months and months but every time I try to put pen to paper I come up blank. How do you describe the best day of your life?

We chose to have a very intimate wedding with only 34 guests including our close friends and family. Every single one of our guests came with such wonderful love and happiness and this injected immense energy and passion into the whole day. Here are some moments from our day. (Note all photos are copyright and by Julian Wainwright)

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

I booked Lisa Allen for my hair and make-up and I cannot sing high enough praises for her and her team’s professionalism, kindness and talent. Her calming influence and total focus on perfection for her work is something to be admired. Thank you Lisa!

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

 

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

 

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

Our photographer Julian Wainwright was truly a master at work and I was amazed at how quick he was at capturing each moment. I love his photojournalism style; I never wanted a bunch of posed stiff plastic images. I wanted photos that would take me back to the emotions and experiences of the day. Whilst I have avoided including any photos of our guests for their privacy, you can still feel how successful he was at achieving my wishes from these images.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

 

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

Our ceremony was held at our Andara Resort Villa. They placed a podium out on the infinity pool allowing us to be surrounded by the most incredible views as we pledged our love to each other. It was like something out of a fairy tale. No detail was left over looked and every staff member from Andara worked around the clock to ensure our day was perfect.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

The night before the wedding we were sitting out in the sala overlooking the ocean with my family and bridal party. Trying to kick back and relax as much as one can the day before one’s wedding, we could see out in the distance a number of glowing Sky Lanterns or “Kom Loy” being released.  I had already gone well over budget for the wedding so I had chosen not to have these for our wedding. As my Dad watched these gorgeous beacons float off into the sky he turned to me and said “What do I have to do to organise some of these for tomorrow?” Isn’t he the best Dad in the world? So thanks to my father, after our villa wedding ceremony we journeyed down to the beach front and released our own family of flickering lanterns up into the night sky before heading back to Silk restaurant for our Reception.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

We arranged to have our own personalised wedding dance choreographed to Muse’s Dark Shines by dance instructors Kate and Craig from Ceroc Perth. Ever since we got engaged I envisioned this track being our first dance however as neither of us dances I wasn’t sure whether we would be able to pull it off. In the weeks preceding our wedding day our dance practice became a roller-coaster ride of success and failure as we kept repeating it over and over in the hope we could perfect it. On some occasions we achieve this but more often than not we would keep making mistakes or forget our moves. You can imagine our nerves by the time it came to the actual dance on our wedding day! We both walked in silence out onto the dance floor and it was like there no one else was in the room. Focused, elated and totally in sync we became one united force and completed the performance from beginning to end without pause or hesitation. What an incredible, bonding experience.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

Many thanks go to:
Spa in the Park for all my pre-wedding preparations,
Ceroc Perth for choreographing and teaching us our wedding dance, 
Lisa Allen for my hair and make-up,
Luci DiBella for my dress, my shoes were by Dior and the pearl earrings by Jan Logan,
Peter from Les Diables Patisserie for our stunning cake,
Julian Wainwright for our perfect photography,
Mod, Su, Daniel and all the Team at Andara Resort
And last but not least, to Dexter and Dan for our tear jerking video
 
"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara suites" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding" "Lisa Allen" "Les Diables" "Cake phuket" "Wedding cake" "wedding video phuket" "wedding photography phuket" "Dior shoes" "Luci Di Bella"

The breath taking villa at Andara Resort: Our home for the week of our Phuket Wedding

Posted by  | Categories: Accommodation, Beach, Featured, Hotels, Luxury, Thai, Thailand, Wedding

Part Two: Our Phuket Wedding Villa at Andara Resort

After a few short and very hectic days staying at the stunning Andara Resort in one of their Pool Residences we finished off our last-minute Phuket wedding planning just in time for our wedding guests to start to arrive. This moment signalled our “moving day” where we were to move into the villa of our dreams. This would be the place where we would say our vows, become husband and wife and spend our first days as Mr and Mrs together. Eeeeek! So exciting!

Andara’s villas are situated up high on the mountain side overlooking the Andaman Sea.  Each villa has its own full-time staff including a private chef. The villas are kept in an immaculate state and no matter where I took photos from various points around our enormous lodgings; I could never completely capture its incredible emotion and beauty. After an initial scare where our original choice of villa was alleged to have water damage, we managed with some persuasion to negotiate getting a larger but just as beautiful villa replacement.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara villa" "phuket villa" "villa wedding" "phuket villa wedding" "buffet breakfast" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara villa" "phuket villa" "villa wedding" "phuket villa wedding" "buffet breakfast" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding"

Our master bedroom opened out onto our private balcony with expansive views of the Andaman sea and angled to afford glimpses of the sun setting into the sea. Our bathroom was as big as our living room at home with a massive spa once again with those incredible sea views. Our bath was filled with rose petals both on our arrival and also for our wedding night. We each had our own separate walk in robes meaning all my wedding attire could be hidden away from prying groom’s eyes until our big day.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara villa" "phuket villa" "villa wedding" "phuket villa wedding" "buffet breakfast" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding"

Master bedroom (Photo courtesy of Andara)

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara villa" "phuket villa" "villa wedding" "phuket villa wedding" "buffet breakfast" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding"

So cheesy but so adorable

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara villa" "phuket villa" "villa wedding" "phuket villa wedding" "buffet breakfast" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding"

The master bedroom spa…if only we had time to relax in it!

The villa was an enormous building set over three levels allowing each of our guests their own private areas. There are two separate indoor living areas; a living room with a ten seater dining table and a separate family room. Both are equipped with large flat screen TVs and entertainment systems.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Phuket Food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "travel blog" "Thailand" "Thailand travel blog" "Phuket restaurants" "Phuket food blog" "Phuket restaurant reviews" "Wedding blog" "phuket wedding" "andara wedding" "kamala wedding" "destination wedding" "thailand wedding" "luxury thailand wedding" "Andara resort" "andara residences" "andara villa" "phuket villa" "villa wedding" "phuket villa wedding" "buffet breakfast" "gluten free thailand" "Julian Wainwright" "Bella figura" "Wedding invitations" "annie P paperie" "luxury accommodation thailand" "luxury accommodation phuket" "luxury accommodation wedding"

Dining and living room

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No matter where you were in the villa there was a view

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Family room

Despite the opulence and spaciousness for indoor relaxing; most of us spent the week outdoors basking around the infinity pool and eating under the sala. I couldn’t understand why you would want to dine indoors when there was such a beautiful view to gaze upon outdoors.

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The view never stopped being awesome.

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Ok. Maybe I had a little time to relax…

Our villa’s chef Su proved to be one of the biggest assets to this breath-taking villa and we would have all loved for her to return home with us to Australia! Every time we chose to eat out in Phuket we were reminded how much better Su’s food was and we should have just stayed at the villa and let her look after us.

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Prawn and mushroom soup

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Papaya salad

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Tom yum goong

She would approach us each morning after we finished eating our cooked breakfast in order to plan our menu for the day so she could head down to the markets and buy all the produce fresh. Nothing was too much trouble for her and she never complained about all the “blow-in” guests we repeatedly invited up to the villa to join us.

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Red duck curry

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Duck larb

For our first night we invited all wedding guests up to the villa for a “casual” BBQ to welcome them all to Thailand.  Expecting something simple, we were in no way prepared for the half a dozen or so staff that came up hours in advance to set up for the party.

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Photo courtesy of Andara

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Just a casual BBQ at our villa

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Pool Sala: Photo courtesy of Andara

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This is where I wish I had a better camera lens!

Tables were set with white linen, flower centrepieces placed on the tables, bamboo flame torches embedded in the garden around the pool and a bar was set up complete with a bartender. This was to be the standard of attention and care we received throughout the duration of our stay making us really feel like we were kings and queens. This could be a lifestyle I could easily get used to if I had the money for it to be sustainable!

The only downside of Andara’s villas is their price tag. This level of luxury and opulence doesn’t come cheap. In the lead up to our stay I cannot deny I was cringing at the cost, but in all honesty our week staying at our villa was truly the best week of my life and I would do it all again in a heartbeat.

For all my Phuket Wedding related posts click here

Andara Resort and Villas 
15 Moo 6, Kamala Beach, Kathu, Phuket 83150, Thailand

Our Phuket Wedding Preparation & Accommodation at Andara Residences, Kamala, Phuket

Posted by  | Categories: Accommodation, Featured, Hotels, Restaurants, Thai, Thailand, Travel, Wedding

Part One: Finalising our Phuket Wedding Preparations!

Prior to getting engaged I often toyed around in my head with the idea of eloping off to somewhere exotic.  Like many people I have a divided family with my real parents and my respective step parents not exactly being the best of friends.  Having to brave getting all these loved ones in the same room sounded like a daunting feat and one that could prove best to avoid. Our engagement party at The George provided me with a safe way to test the waters and despite all the anxiety and tension in the build-up to the evening along with very disappointing customer service from the George’s staff;  everyone managed to get along wonderfully. In fact we all had an absolute ball. It dawned upon me that I should give my family much more credit.

As with all brides, the last few months before our big day flew past at the speed of light. No day seemed long enough and I forgot what it was like to relax. Some may say I got a bit pedantic about details however I prefer to see it as purely just ensuring everything was done properly and thoroughly. Consequently, despite previously being so paranoid that I wouldn’t be elegantly slim enough, in the last few weeks before the big day I could barely keep weight on for all the running around I did.

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Photo by Julian Wainwright Photography

Our wedding invitations were designed by Jessica, one of the lovely designers at Annie P Paperie.  My theme if you can call it that was “simple elegance”.  I didn’t want any froo-froo, lace, feathers or glitter and opted for letter pressed stationary instead.  Following with the Thai theme they designed me a simple “logo” of orchids intertwining gracefully around the edge of the page.  I used this design throughout our wedding; on our invites, personalised canvas tote bags used for the welcome gifts, small gift note pads, menus and name place cards. The orchid design was sent to the Bella Figura in New York where they used antique cast iron presses to make the invitations the old-fashioned way.

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Our beautiful Bella Figura invites

After visiting many different resorts in Phuket during our previous trip in November 2011, we both agreed unanimously that Andara was the place of our dreams. Andara has two accommodation options in its expansive resort; they have massive privately owned villas perched up high on the mountains and then they also offer smaller, apartment style residences lower down the scarp by the beach.

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The master bedroom

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We never got to try out the spa :(

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There were his and hers bathroom areas

Both are managed by the hotel and ooze luxury and attention to detail. We arrived about five days prior to all our wedding guests and initially stayed in one of their residences for a few days before moving into the opulent villa with our bridal party. Although the residences do not quite have the wow factor of the villa, each is still appointed with great care and attention. We were lucky enough to get upgraded to a pool residence for these few days and on arrival received a bottle of champagne on ice.

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The perfect place to unwind before our guest arrived

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The view from the residences is still pretty good!

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Some decent coffee to fuel our late night dancing

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The full sized (and stocked) fridge

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The spacious living area

Each residence has its own fully equipped kitchen, full sized fridge and all the utensils you would ever need while on holiday.  Not that we did any cooking. For four days we busied ourselves organising welcome packs, choosing wedding music, practising our dance and finishing off all the important little wedding details whilst the hotel’s room service kept us well fed. The kitchen went above and beyond to diligently ensure all my allergies were strictly catered for without sacrificing on taste.

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Smoked eggplant (room service)

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Ginger fish (room service)

Breakfast for the residence guests is served at the hotel’s only restaurant Silk.  They provide a combination of a continental style buffet coupled with a freshly cooked hot meal off their al la carte menu.  Every morning the food and beverage manager would come over to our table and reassure me that my gluten free bread and muffins along with my hot meal was on its way.  The gluten free muffins were sweet, coconutty and fluffy light and I had to stop myself from eating them all each morning. They were served warm and spread generously with Lescure butter they were close to heaven.

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Eggs benedict

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The gluten free muffins served hot

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The Main Pool

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Three egg omelette

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The Boy’s protein packed breakfast

If I hadn’t already had my socks knocked off by the impressiveness of our wedding villa then the Andara residences would have had the same effect. However I knew we were soon to move into even bigger and better lodgings and the beauty of our suite was somewhat lost on me. Looking back now on our stay there I can appreciate what stunning accommodation it was and for a couple travelling on their own the suites are a more affordable way to stay at Andara.

In my next Wedding blog post I will take you through our breath taking Villa where overlooking the Andaman Sea the Boy and I declared our vows to the world and became husband and wife!

For all my Phuket Wedding related posts click here

Andara Resort and Villas 
15 Moo 6, Kamala Beach, Kathu, Phuket 83150, Thailand

A Chinese Wedding Banquet at Szechuan Court, Fairmont Hotel, Singapore

Posted by  | Categories: Chinese, Degustation/Fine dining, Featured, Hotels, Restaurants, Singapore, Wedding

The exciting event of the wedding of a close friend brought us back to the lovely city of Singapore for the first time in over ten years.  It was to be my first experience of a Chinese wedding banquet and was to be held at Szechuan Court, Fairmont Hotel, Singapore.  I felt so privileged to receive an invite and prepared myself right from the outset that for that one night I was just going to have to eat gluten.  Avoiding gluten in a Chinese banquet of any occasion is literally impossible due to the ubiquitous use of soy sauce. I knew that if I was to eat the banquet regardless of the gluten I was going to suffer for it the next day however I figured it would be worth it.

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The Menu

As we were shown to our seats I noticed that both our table and the bridal table next to us was much more lavishly decorated than the rest of the tablets. Our table was covered in a bright red table-cloth and decorated with bigger bouquets of flowers. As the night progressed I also observed that our plates were filled with more food and served to us in larger bowls.

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Szechuan Court Cold Cut Combination

In eager anticipation for the feast I forced myself to only graze on a few small snacks over the day. As we headed to Szechuan Court I was so hungry I could have nearly eaten my own arm. If only I had known before that it is common custom at these important Chinese events for there to be quite a wait before food is brought out! By the time our starter combination arrived I was so utterly famished that I demolished it all far too quickly. There were beautifully plated slices of roast duck sandwiched around a fresh sliver of mango, there was a richly coloured chunk of Soya chicken, a thick wedge of succulent honey glazed pork and a cute little lettuce cup of chilled spicy jelly fish. This was one of my favourite dishes for the night and I really regretted my gluttony wishing I had savoured its flavours for more than a millisecond.

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Braised crabmeat soup with bamboo fungus

I love the deception of clear soups.  Gazing into my reflection in the bowl I always wonder how something so watery looking can manage to pack such a powerful punch of flavour. This crab soup was no exception and the table went silent for a few minutes while everyone slurped away hungrily.

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Braised crabmeat soup with bamboo fungus

Bamboo fungus is a type of mushroom that is claimed to have many medicinal properties including antibacterial and anti-cancer effects. Another more unusual fact about this fungus is that the smell of the fresh fungus has been reported to trigger spontaneous orgasms in women!

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Steamed live marble goby in superior soy sauce

The next course was some lightly steamed live Marble Goby served in a broth of superior soy sauce. Marble goby is a type of freshwater fish that considered something of a delicacy by many Chinese as for its flesh is delicately tender yet has a lingering sweet flavour.

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Crispy fried wasabi prawn

With a number of gluten containing courses now under my belt, I accepted my fate that in a few hours I would start to feel the aftermath of my indiscretions therefore I really had nothing to lose and must press on.  I had psyched myself up for this banquet for months and certainly wasn’t going to turn any of these sumptuous dishes away! The next two dishes steered away from the more traditional Chinese style infusing some modern fusion flavours.  The wasabi prawns crunched loudly as I bit into their crispy exterior and I couldn’t help but feel liberated to cast off the shackles of my allergies for one night even if it made me unwell and covered in eczema!

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Pan-fried pork spare rib with mocha coffee sauce

I was informed earlier that evening by the dear mother of the bride that sea cucumbers are very laborious to prepare for eating. There is an extensive amount of work involved over several days which include slitting them open, turning them inside out and then repeatedly washing and boiling them over a few days.

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Braised sea cucumber with Chinese mushroom

The Boy and I first tried eating sea cucumber many years back at Shung Fung in Perth and we both really loved its slippery, nearly rubbery texture and subtle flavour. Sea cucumbers are a highly nutritious food and contain large amounts of protein in addition to many essential compounds including iodine, calcium, potassium, zinc, iron, selenium, manganese, chondroitin sulphate, saponins and vitamins like vitamin A, thiamine, riboflavin and niacin.

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Seafood fried rice with shallot

The beauty of eating slowly is that you get full much more easily as your brain has time to actually register the food you are shovelling into it! The polite sized scoop of seafood fried rice was just enough to fill the last gaps in my stomach before dessert.

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Chilled cream of mango and pomelo with sago

Many of my dear readers may recall my obsession with food shaped in tiny balls; tobiko, caviar, sago, tapioca, you name it I’m sure to squeak with delight if you serve them to me. I think this obsession is one of the main reasons I love Asian desserts so much!  The chilled cream of mango was not overpoweringly sweet and the tang of the pomelo gave it more depth and flavour.

By this late stage of the night things had started to become quite rowdy, but in a good way.  The bride’s father proudly led the bridal party in a procession to each table individually bearing a very elaborate looking bottle of whiskey.  At each table he would stop, pour healthy size nips of whiskey to everyone before drinking some himself and then commenced to singing very loudly at the top of his lungs.  No one required much encouragement to join in and before long dining room was filled with the booming voices of all the guests joyous for this wonderful marriage of two very beautiful people.

Szechuan Court, Fairmont Hotel, Singapore
80 Bras Basah Road, Marina Bay, 189560 Singapore | www.fairmont.com/singapore
 
Tripadvisor
 
Price:                     $$$        
Food:                    8/10 (I am no expert on Chinese fine dining but my taste buds don’t lie!)
Service:                3/5 (a little slow serving drinks)
Ambience:          3.5/5 (the function room was filled to the brim with cheerful, noisy guests)
Total:                     16.5/20

Wedding band shopping, Subiaco Hotel and some Geláre gluten free waffles

Posted by  | Categories: Desserts, Featured, Modern Australian, Perth, Pub, Restaurants, Wedding

It is finally getting close enough to our wedding to start to feel the buzz and excitement and relieved to say I think I am pretty well set. Well, at least for the important stuff!. I have found the perfect dress from Luci Di Bella, I am blessed with two of the most awesome bridesmaids who also have fabulous dresses, I have a choice of stunning Dior or Jimmy Choo bridal shoes and our wedding venue at Andara, Phuket is something dreams are made of.  Best of all; I have found the most amazing man who I could have ever wished to marry.  Naw, that’s enough gushing for one post I think!

My engagement ring was designed at Linneys; a well-known West Australian jeweller famous for their Broome pearls and Argyle diamonds and it seemed fitting to return there for our wedding bands. We both arrived wide-eyed and smiling as the reality of our big day approaching fast sunk in. We helped each other deliberate over all the beautiful wedding band designs and each ended up selecting ones we both loved.

It seemed ridiculous to go home straight away while on such a high so we strolled over hand in hand like newly found lovers over to the Subiaco Hotel to relax with a few drinks and a bite to eat.

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Subiaco Hotel

It was still early in the evening and strangely neither of us had very big appetites.  Maybe it was due to all the Slim Pasta we have eaten lately because it is quite an unusual occurrence for either of us. Perhaps the knowledge we didn’t have much time left to get our bride and groom bodies in fit shape played a factor. We both ordered some small dishes to share.

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Quail breast kebabs with muscatels & eschalots

Our food took an exceedingly long time to arrive and our quick drinks started to drag out into the evening. The quail breasts served on kebabs were stringy and dry making them very hard to eat.  I didn’t try the eschalots for obvious fructose reasons however the Boy felt that they greatly improved the dish and he didn’t feel it was as great a failure as I did.

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BBQ’d lamb ribs, preserved lemon, pomegranate yoghurt

The barbecued lamb ribs were sticky and tender, slithering off the bone easily and leaving a sweet caramel after-taste in the mouth. The addition of sharp tangy pomegranate brought an exciting extra level of flavour and we were both thankful there was an even number of ribs because I’m sure we would have fought over the last one.

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Balsamic poached chicken with peppers, spinach, Reggiano

The balsamic poached chicken salad was nothing spectacular but served its purpose to cleanse the palate after a taste overload from the ribs.  Anything more complex may have been a bit much to eat all at the same time.

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Chick pea salad with avocado

I didn’t think to ask if the chickpea dish contained onions and alas it was full of it so I didn’t try much of this one. The chick peas were lacking in flavour and had a very soft texture making me suspicious they may have come from a can. The addition of avocado saved this dish.

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Gluten free waffles with cream and maple syrup

I have never been big fan of Geláre waffles; not even back in the day when I was oblivious to my gluten intolerance and could have eaten them to my heart’s content.  But let’s be honest, you don’t have to be a fan of waffles to be stopped dead in your tracks by that sweet aroma that wafts out of their stores onto the facing street.

As we walked down Rokeby Road toward Geláre on our way back to car I recalled they recently started offering gluten free waffles. Once we were hit by the fragrance of maple dough, I turned to the Boy and suggested we try them.

He declined, not really being a dessert type of guy, so I ordered a small gluten free waffle with maple syrup and cream.  I planned to just have a couple of mouthfuls then walk away.  Wasteful I know but I need to fit into that wedding dress! It has been many years since I tried a normal waffle to compare but this one had all the layers of texture I vaguely recall makes a good waffle. It was crisp on the outside, light and fluffy on the inside.  I put my spoon down and stared into the distance daydreaming for a few minutes.  Before I knew it the Boy had eaten the lot! So much for not wanting to share!

Subiaco Hotel
465 Hay Street, Subiaco 6008 | (08) 9381 3069 | www.subiacohotel.com.au
 
Price:                     $$$ (Entrée $15-25, Mains $25-37)           
Food:                    2.5/5 (interesting menu but hit and miss execution)
Service:                2.5/5 (a long delay until our food was served despite an empty dining room)
Ambience:          3.5/5 (relaxed, lots of natural light)
Drinks:                  3/5 (reasonable wine list)
Total:                     11.5/20

Subiaco Hotel on Urbanspoon

Geláre
51 Rokeby Road, Subiaco 6008 | (08) 9316 4898 | www.gelare.com.au
 
Price:                     $             
Food:                    8/10 (tasted like normal waffles to me!)
Service:                3/5 (quick, efficient and with a smile)
Ambience:          2/5 (sticky, dirty tables)
Total:                    13/20

Gelare  on Urbanspoon

Planning our Wedding Invitations at Elixir Coffee, Nedlands

Posted by  | Categories: Breakfast/Brunch, Coffee, Perth, Restaurants, Wedding

I like to be organised.  Being surrounded by a world of order gives me a great feeling of peace and tranquillity.  To avoid any confusion or lack of clarity for our wedding guests I ensured to keep them well-informed. Save the Date Cards were mailed out a year in advance and the Boy and I designed a detailed wedding website that is packed full of information about Phuket, Kamala and our chosen resort Andara.

This is not to say that a formal wedding invitation will be overlooked. In a similar vein to my early wedding dress shopping days, I found out that I know very little about such matters and was relieved to be invited to a Wedding Upmarket Expo by my friend Tara.  Tara is an expert in all things wedding and quickly steered me on the right track helping me obtain the beginning of a vision of what I would like. We came upon a stall for Annie P Paperie. I have driven past their store in Nedlands numerous times and was always curious as to their individual style.  We flipped through a few of their portfolios and my curiosity heightened to keen interest.

I made plans to meet the Bestie out at Elixir Coffee one Monday morning to fuel our creativity with caffeine before heading to Annie P’s to start the exciting process of invitation design. Elixir Coffee call themselves coffee specialists and they certainly do take their coffee very seriously.  They source single origin unroasted beans direct from traders to promote fair trade and to ensure they only buy beans that are in season and fresh. All beans are roasted on site at Elixir.

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El Salvador coffee “Finca La Fany” (left) and the house blend

I chose the El Salvador coffee “Finca La Fany” served as my usual short macchiato; it was quite sweet and nearly honey-like in flavour with hints of citrus.  The Bestie chose one of the house blends which consisted of three beans:  El Salvador “Talapo”, El Salvador “Miravalle” and Guatemala “Santa Clara Antigua” which she had served as her usual latte.  We ended up both going back for seconds.  And thirds. No wonder I felt so hyped for the rest of the day!

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Pollastrini sardines on gluten free toast with added fried egg

For a bite to eat I ordered the Pollastrini sardines on toast. It was served with some fresh fennel, capers, tomato and parsley.  I requested a fried egg on top which I was told I could have “only this once”.  I figured they must get very busy and don’t do any menu alterations normally. Pollastrini sardines are not like your standard supermarket variety.  They may cost $7 a can at Scutti our local green grocers, but you definitely get what you pay for.  There is no overpowering fishy odour and the meat is chunky.  Cantina 663 often has them on their menu. The thinly sliced fennel was wonderfully crunchy and the addition of the egg gave some gooeyness to tie it all together.

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Granola clusters

The Bestie chose the house made granola clusters with berries and yoghurt.  Initially she was a little disappointed in the small number of clusters however once she started eating she could not stop raving about how fabulous it was.  She was amazed at the juicy bursts of tart flavour and was thankful the only sweetness was natural.

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Soursop tea and cake

At this point we had overdosed on coffee and needed something a little more refreshing to the palate before we headed over to Annie P’s.  The Bestie chose a pot of soursop tea for us to share with a slice of flourless orange cake.  The tea wasn’t sour at all and had a tropical fruit flavour a bit like a combination of pineapple and pear. It was immensely revitalising and just what we needed.  The flourless orange cake was fairly standard; reliably delicious but certainly nothing out of the ordinary.

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Flourless orange cake

Excited albeit a tad jittery we left with full tummies guided by Google maps in the direction of the Paperie.  It was a gorgeously balmy day and so we both decided to walk but after about 15 minutes of walking I started to get the feeling we were heading in the wrong direction.  I couldn’t understand how Google could be wrong.  Google couldn’t be wrong could they?!

After a few more minutes as we walked past each landmark my feeling grew much stronger until we eventually agreed we were on the wrong track.  By this point in time we were running extremely late for our appointment with the graphic designer so we turned around and sprinted for the car! No more walking in the sunshine! Hot and sweaty we both piled into our cars and I plugged the address into my Tom Tom which confirmed my suspicions that Google was totally wrong! A quick few minutes hurtling through the back streets of Nedlands and we arrived all flustered but pumped for action!

Elixir Coffee
45a/145 Stirling Highway, Nedlands 6009 | (08) 9389 9333 | www.elixircoffeespecialists.com
 
Price:                     $ Under $15 /meal, cash only, free WIFI               
Food:                    3/5 (small selection of dishes, gluten free bread available)
Service:                3/5 (quick and efficient but don’t ask for alterations!)
Ambience:           3/5 (alfresco, café or living room style areas to choose from)
Drinks:                   5/5 (the coffee is out of this world – I will be back if anything just for the coffee)
Total:                     14/20

Elixir Coffee on Urbanspoon

Epilogue: The George and Our Engagement Party

Posted by  | Categories: Perth, Pub, Restaurants, Wedding

Do you remember when we celebrated our Engagement Party late last year at The George?

Although everyone had a fabulous evening, our night was tainted by some terribly rude attitudes and comments coming from the bar staff upon our departure from the venue. To make matters worse, they then refused to call us any taxis and left us standing outside the hotel well into the wee hours of the morning.

In the course of the following few weeks I tried via various methods to speak with one of the managers in order to retrieve my iPod that I left at the venue.  After weeks of her avoiding my contact (including refusing to meet me as I stood outside the venue) it was too late and the iPod was nowhere to be found. I wrote a formal letter of complaint to the Venue Manager detailing all my grievances.  I thought some of you may be interested in reading their reply…..

“Good afternoon,

I was extremely disappointed to receive your email late last week. We do value all of the feedback receive both the positive and the occasional feedback that gives the venue something to improve on or fix.

I can appreciate that this has been a frustrating experience for yourself and I would like to thank you for allowing me the time to investigate and ensure that I could get to the bottom of the issues you raised. I have spoken to all the staff members and managers working that night and Katie prior to her leaving on annual leave. I went through your email with them high raised the various matters and got their view as to what happened.

The staff members that were working that evening were spoken to about the profanities that your guests believed were directed at them. They all claim that they did not say anything inappropriate towards your guests, however I have reiterated to all staff members and the management team how unprofessional and inappropriate that kind of behaviour is and that it will not be tolerated here at The George.

In regards to your guests being asked to vacate the venue, Liquor licencing laws state we have to have all patrons off the premises within 15 minutes of our closing time, we have no control or any flexibility with this. Both the managers on duty and the venue are liable for fines if this does not occur, hence why at 1230 your guests who were still on the premise, in breach of our  liquor licence, were asked to leave the premises immediately.

I spoken to the manager who was on duty that evening and he reassured me that he did in fact call for taxis for yourself and for your party. However, I do know from past experience that calling for a taxi to the premises often takes significantly longer than both hailing one from the street or walking across the road to the taxi rank. Whilst I can appreciate that two people from your party were unable to make their way down to the taxi rank, I can say that taxis were indeed called. When speaking to the manager on duty, I brought to his attention the importance of tone and delivery and how it can affect the impression left of people and that he needs to be aware of this.

The London Room is open to both tenants of the building and their guests when not booked by The George, and is left unlocked and fully accessible from the foyer of the building. In the three weeks between your function and your email advising of the lost iPod, the room was open and many functions were held in it, functions that were not just booked by The George but also by building tenants who have full access to the room and its facilities, including the Audio Visual system located in the cupboard where the iPod was left. Therefor I cannot say if the iPod was still there when you sent you email three weeks after the function, as we were unaware of its presence.

I have spoke to Katie and she said that she did make several unsuccessful attempts to contact you by phone after your initial email before contacting you via email. I will have a meeting with her when she returns and talk about the length of time it took you to get a response from her and highlight the need to respond promptly to enquiries, especially when it relates to missing property.

I have brought up all of your feedback at our regular management meeting and we have introduced steps to ensure that, in future there are no repeats of your negative experience at The George.

I hope that you will give the venue the opportunity to live up to the high standards for both the food and service they we are know for. With that in mind I would like to offer you a $200 voucher for dinner at The George. If you could please provide me with a suitable postal address I will arrange for the voucher to be sent to you.

If you could contact me directly when you would like to redeem the voucher I can ensure that you have the proper George Experience.

We look forward to seeing you soon.

regards

Venue Manager” (name withheld)

Unbelievable.  This is how the manager and his staff choose to resolve this issue: deny, deny deny. Since that night, nearly everyone of my friends have come up to me individually with their own story about something the staff said or did to them.  But surely the more likely truthful story is that all 70 of my guests and I would make all these elaborate details up? How insulting. I am not perfect but I am in no way a liar!

And as for their offer of a dinner voucher? After making such a complaint the LAST thing I wanted to do was return to their restaurant to eat their food!!! Cripes.  If they were quite happy to blatantly lie to their boss regarding the true events of the evening, I would hate to think was they might do to my food! Thanks but no thanks! Considering the very hefty bill we had at the end of the party an offer of some sort of partial refund would have been more appropriate.  Especially when I emailed him to decline his voucher offer.

Since then, it has amused me to note the number of excessively positive reviews on Urbanspoon for both The George and their sister venue The Aviary. Most of these reviewers have never written anything else. With the collection of top-notch eateries opening up along the Terrace this year, I have a sneaking feeling that if The George don’t get their act together and actually start listening to their customers; they may be in for a nasty shock!

Read my original Post: The George and Our Engagement Party

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The George
216 St Georges Terrace, London House, Perth 6000 | (08) 6161 6662 | www.thegeorgeperth.com.au/

Cultural Tastes, Mount Hawthorn and some Wedding Dress shopping!

Posted by  | Categories: Breakfast/Brunch, Perth, Restaurants, Wedding

I was woken up abruptly at around 3am feeling very nauseous and sweaty with my stomach churning and cramping.  I had a big day ahead of me with a number of appointments booked at bridal boutiques and I refused to accept that anything could ruin this special day.  I gobbled down some antacid tablets and managed to scull a few mouthfuls of Gaviscon.  I lay still in bed hoping that my increasing desire to vomit would pass and that I would at least get a couple more hours of sleep before I had to rise in the morning for what would be a very busy day!

The sun rose a few sleepless hours later and I continued to try to force myself into believing I felt ok but to no avail.  Our first appointment time crept up way too quickly such that I was relieved to get a message from Kate saying she had slept in and was running late as I was struggling to get going myself.  She cancelled the first booking for me and embarking in the pouring rain we managed to make it to our second booking.  Woozy and achy I worked my way through so many dresses as best I could and prayed I wouldn’t vomit when the assistant cinched the dress as tight as she could to “show off my figure”.  The problem with our first two boutiques was that their display dresses were all size 12s and they were all far too large, so the girls in the store would clamp the dress with a bundle of clips and pins. From this I was supposed to be able to visualise what the right size dress would look like! A very difficult task indeed, especially with a gastro developing in the mist.

As an interlude to all this rushing around Kate suggested we look along Scarborough Beach Road for a gluten-free café she recalled seeing previously.  We initially stopped in at the New Norcia Bakehouse where the only gluten-free options they had to offer were a selection of cakes.  Given the state of my stomach I wasn’t one to brave the stickies and we continued further down the road.  We stumbled upon Cultural Tastes which is both a shop and café rolled into one.

I walked in presuming that my on-the-spot demands for no wheat, no gluten, no onion and all the rest would be too big an ask for such a small quaint little café.  To my delight I was met with a series of “of course, no problems” to all of my requests – no onion in the omelette, gluten-free toast, and finally a freshly juiced fruitless, fructose friendly drink made especially for us with carrot, celery and ground coriander.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "food blog" Chompchomp "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "wedding dress" "gastro" "Cultural Tastes" "Mount Hawthorn" "Scarborough Beach Road" "breakfast" "brunch" "omelette" "vegetarian" "organic" "carrot juice"

Vegetarian gluten-free onion free freshly cooked omelette

Our omelette came out quickly and was fresh and piping hot, full of delicious roasted vegetables and packed with flavour.  The side salad was crisp and dressed thoroughly but not excessively so.  The gluten-free bread was the only downside of the meal and could be improved.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "food blog" Chompchomp "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "wedding dress" "gastro" "Cultural Tastes" "Mount Hawthorn" "Scarborough Beach Road" "breakfast" "brunch" "omelette" "vegetarian" "organic" "carrot juice"

Carrot, celery and ground coriander juice

Our juices were divine.  Iced and not watery; the dash of ground coriander gave it an ideal flavour boost.  They were a refreshing improvement on my own concoctions at home for sure. Thankfully our rest stop saved the day and gave me enough energy to solder on and continue our journey.

Our last stop was at Fara Couture, where our appointment had fortunately been changed to later in the day.  This allowed my darling bestie/personal chauffeur for the day to take me home for an exhausted slump on the couch for a few hours before braving the bridal world once more.  We received a warm and animated welcome from Fara herself who had opened the store on her day off for us and another bride to be. I noted her dresses were all a little bit different from the bog-standard ones we had looked at over the course of the day.  I also liked the idea she makes them all herself rather than outsourcing overseas.  We have definitely found a couple of potentials but I’m not ready to stop looking by any means yet…..

Cultural Tastes
167 Scarborough Beach Road, Mount Hawthorn 6016 | (08) 9242 1688
 
Price:                    $$ (I was too sick to remember to take a pic of the menu but it came to $40 for 2 omelettes,
                               2 juices and a coffee)
Food:                    3/5 (great omelette, they need to source better GF bread though)
Service:                3.2/5 (not overtly friendly but very accommodating)
Ambience:           3/5 (quaint little courtyard out the back in the sunshine)
Drinks:                  3.5/5 (I didn’t get to try their coffee due to my illness but the juice was excellent)
Total:                     12.7/20

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The George and our Engagement Party

Posted by  | Categories: Modern Australian, Perth, Pub, Restaurants, Wedding

What a blissful and sunny start to our day!  Starting off with a delicious brunch at the Greenhouse with my family and the boy, the morning got even better when Dad gave me a generously sized suitcase filled to the brim with beautiful Robert Robert and Diavolina shoes.  Most importantly, the suitcase contained some super-hot shoes for the party tonight!  I headed home with my love to spend the afternoon preparing ourselves to look our very best for the big party.  One of my bridesmaids, Amber was so kind to offer to go The George without me earlier in the afternoon so she could set up everything for the night.  This meant all I would have to do would be to arrive on time!  She is such an angel!

The afternoon flew by surprisingly quickly and before I knew it we only had a short time until things were due to kick off!!  I slipped on my shimmering Alannah Hill dress matched with the cutest flower headband, kicked on my most awesome shoes from Dad and jumped in the cab hand in hand with the boy!

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "food blog" Chompchomp "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "The George" pubs bars Perth engagement "Robert Robert"

Upon our arrival my heart sunk for a brief second as I expected to walk into an ambient lit room and instead was nearly blinded by bright ugly fluoro lighting.  I subsequently found that some of Amber’s instructions she had carefully given to the staff about setting up the lighting, heating and visual equipment had not been followed through.  Consequently some further little instructions were given to the function staff and they slowly assisted us without an accompanying smile. Not that anything could take the wind out of our wings! Grabbing a quick round of pre-party G&T’s, we all felt our nerves settle ready to greet all the special people in our lives that would join us for our celebrations.

Amber is a very creative person – something my scientific brain is most definitely not – so when she suggested we have a lolly bar at the party I initially struggled to visualise what she actually meant.  We had shopped all around town together in the weeks prior to the party buying a collection of gorgeous vintage vases and bowls that she filled to the brim with lots of colourful sweets.  It looked fantastic!  The boy wasted no time getting stuck into the assortment, tossing handfuls of lollies into his mouth for a strong pre-party sugar kick.

Before guests had even started to arrive, the waitresses started bringing out plate upon plate of turkish bread with dips to scatter around the tables.  I rushed up to the waitresses and advised them stop them filling up two little cocktail tables with plates of food and to try and stagger them a bit with the arrival of our guests.  The food provided was delicious – a part of me wishes I had stopped talking and mingling among everyone for two seconds to be able to snap some photos, but it didn’t even cross my mind until the following day!  I guess us food bloggers should be allow a night off once in a while!  The selected canapés including freshly shucked oysters, spring onion aranchini, lamb koftas, sun-dried tomato and asparagus tarts and a variety of sushi rolls.  The special gluten-free options included five spiced duck pieces – amazingly succulent little cubes of meat marinated in a sweet chilli caramel sauce.  I’m sure I must have greedily gobbled a number of those!

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "food blog" Chompchomp "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "The George" pubs bars Perth engagement "lolly bar" cupcakes

A major feature of the night was the amazing efforts of two of my guests (one of those being Amber) in joining forces together to bake enough cupcakes for seventy people with a third of the cupcakes gluten-free! They sparkled glamorously in the centre of the lolly bar and almost looked too good to eat!   Being able to enjoy devouring cupcakes with everyone else at the end of the night was such a treat although the way I stuffed the butter cream frosting into my mouth may not have been so nice!

The highlight of the night to me and my sister was surprisingly not food related.  My Mum and stepmum have not spoken words since over twenty years ago when Mum and Dad separated.  We have all accepted this and our family events have always been planned separately to accommodate for this.  So when I looked over and saw my Dad arm in arm with my dearest Mum on one side and his wife on the other my eyes started to burn hot.  My sister came running over to me in amazement and we shared watching this special moment together before flicking away our tears of joy.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "food blog" Chompchomp "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "The George" pubs bars Perth engagement

Toward the end of the night I wanted everyone to be able to have something more substantial than just the canapés so we arranged for some noodle boxes to come out with sticky pork with ginger, chilli and bok choy.  The pork was so scrumptiously juicy and the sticky marinade had nearly caramelised but not burnt.  This was the most popular food for the night and I’m sure I saw a few people go back for a second box!

As with all good parties, the night flew by at the speed of light and before I knew it we were standing under those hideous bright fluoros with the reality that it was over.  All those weeks of preparation and anticipation for a night that felt like it only lasted one hour!  I was extremely chuffed to see that our budgeted bar tab lasted for the whole night and no one had to dip into their pockets to pay for a drink.

After such a fabulous occasion, the events that followed on next totally took me by surprise.  Bear in mind that the venue was nearly empty in the main bar for the whole night so our party of 70 people would have been the only real income for the night for The George.  As we were all slowly drifting out of the function area and leaving through the main bar a couple of the bar staff got annoyed with us not leaving quickly enough for them.  As they walked past the bar, a number of my guests clearly overheard the staff retorting insults and foul language directed at us presumably because they wanted to us to hurry up so they could go home.  None of my guests were unpleasant or rude to any of the staff to call for this attack.

We all waited outside The George for what felt like hours all trying desperately to hail cabs. One of my friends had taken a bit of a stack on the pavement and had developed a very swollen ankle (she actually ended up in RPH early that following morning poor thing) so I wanted to get her home quickly.  I was also mindful that my dearest mother was keen to get home as she is not accustomed to standing up in her high heels for hours on end anymore.  I went back to the front door of the hotel and knocked to get someone’s attention.  All the staff were still inside closing up everything for the night.  I asked the bartender if he could kindly please arrange us some cabs for us as my friend was injured and many others were tired and ready to hit the sack.  He refused and told me to walk down the street to the closest hotel the Hilton where apparently I could find many taxis.  I explained to him my friend was injured and couldn’t walk, he then repeated that he wouldn’t call us cabs, and that was that! He closed the door in my face and locked the door!!

After spending thousands of dollars at their venue that night I was completely gobsmacked at such rudeness and appalling service.  Despite the actual night being such a wonderful success, it was so disappointing to end on such a sour and  unprofessional note.

Price:    $$$ (Entree $18-21, Mains $25-39)
Food:    7.6/10 
Service: 3/10 (for the rudeness!) 
Venue:  4/5
Total:   14.6/25 (58%)
 

Update:

Well, things have gone from bad to worse with the level of customer service that I have received from The George.  We left my old iPod touch there on the night of the party and since then I had attempted to contact the functions manager by phone and email to let her know that I would be popping back to collect it on my day off.  As I had received no reply, I figured that it’s not too complicated a request to fill so I went into town on my only day off to collect it.Upon arrival my bestie and I spoke to the bartender who explained to us in a curt manner that I needed to speak to her manager.  She got her bar manager who happened to be very same person who had bad mouthed to my friends and refused to call us cabs on the night.

I started to explain to him that I had left my iPod behind and had tried to contact the functions manager but had received no reply from her.  I purely just wanted to collect my iPod and that was it.  He fobbed us off saying that the functions manager was in a meeting and that she couldn’t be disturbed.  So I offered to go into the cupboard in the functions room myself to collect it upon which I was then told that she was having the meeting in there so this wasn’t possible.  He said to us:  “And that’s if you actually have left it here.”  If?!?!  He offered to call me in an hour when she would be finished her meeting but then uttered that she could be in there for hours so who knows how long she would really be.

My bestie and I popped down the road to the Sentinel for a drink (where the service by the way was very friendly – a total contrast).  During this time we received no phone calls from The George.  So after one hour we left and made our way back to The George.  On my way I called through and asked to be put through to the functions manager, consequently I was put through straight away implying that her meeting was over.  She then proceeded to tell me she had no time to walk to the cupboard where I left my iPod and retrieve it for me as she was far too busy!  I explained that it was my only day off, I had come into the city specifically and I was 50 metres away!  She repeated to me:  “I have absolutely no time to search for it, I am very busy and that’s provided you have actually left it here anyway!”  She said she would try and call me back by the end of business – it’s now been nearly a week and not a peep!

Final update:

So it’s been a number of months since all this happened and I thought I better give you dear readers a final report on the outcome with The George…..click to read my Epilogue.

 
The George
216 St Georges Terrace, London House, Perth 6000 | (08) 6161 6662 | www.thegeorgeperth.com.au/
  

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Andara Resort & Villas, Phuket & choosing our Wedding Venue

Posted by  | Categories: Accommodation, Featured, Hotels, Luxury, Resorts, Restaurants, Thai, Thailand, Travel, Wedding

I cannot believe we are back in Thailand already!  It was only about three months ago we arrived in Phuket for the first time to celebrate our dear friend’s wedding and yet here we are again.  But better still this time we are here to start planning our own wedding!  So exciting!  We were both so amped to start the hunt for our venue and after our interesting culinary experiences at the Patong night markets last night we were also pretty keen to enjoy some more traditional Thai food!

I am a bit of an organisational freak – I gain great pleasure in planning things down to the finite detail. So in my preparation for our wedding venue search I had spent hour upon hour back home in Perth trawling over the internet to ensuring we would to check out every perceivable suitable wedding location in Phuket.  After numerous emails I managed to whittle my ridiculously long list down to a much more manageable eight resorts.

Our first stop was Andara Resort in Kamala.  I was really attracted to the idea of staying in Kamala as there are a lot of little restaurants and bars all within walking distance from each other.  A full spectrum of accommodation options can be found ranging from the exquisite Andara Resort and Villas to the much more economical and family orientated Courtyard Marriott Resort that we were staying in this time round.  In addition to this it is much more family friendly than the madness of Patong and a fair bit cleaner as well!

Andara Resort sits up on the hillside towards the southern end of Kamala beach overlooking the blue expanse of the Andaman Sea.  Immediately upon entering their luxurious lobby we both felt a really good vibe and looking about the place it just felt very “us” which was very good start. We were promptly greeted by the resort wedding planner Mod.  She initially sat us down to show us some photos of a few weddings set up around the resort pool and also in their spectacular villas. Having seen many of these stunning photos previously in her emails I was impatient to view the property and was hoping that it wasn’t going to disappoint.

In some ways, it was kind of shame that we both fell in love with the very first venue that we looked at as over the course of the next week we found the majority of other locations we visited just simply didn’t compare.  Not even close!  There were only two other locations we saw that could begin to match up to Andara’s beauty – Trisara in the far north of the island, and the very expensive Amanpuri.

Andata Resort and Villas – photo courtesy of Mod at Andara

The villa that Mod recommended as her favourite for us to have our wedding ceremony sits high on the edge of the cliff and is built over three levels giving every room incredible views of the sea. No detail is left untouched throughout the villa with exquisitely appointed interior design using natural dark wood and warm Thai silks to create a beautiful wow factor throughout. She said they could arrange a platform to be placed in the infinity pool allowing us to say our vows with uninterrupted views of the bay as our backdrop!  Imagine that!  Saying our vows with views like this will be breathtaking!

Mod’s beaming pride as she watched us appreciate the beauty of the resort shone through as she took us on a detailed tour of the whole resort, showing us their world class, icy cool air-conditioned gym (which rivals my university gym back at home) and the enormous and elegantly appointed spa which included a whole level of rooms for the bridal party to beautify.  We then ended the tour in their popular restaurant Silk overlooking their spacious pool deck.

Tasting plate: fish cakes, prawns in noodle, chicken in pandanus leaves and fresh spring roll

After our detailed tour, we were then treated to a complimentary four course Thai lunch where the chef’s had carefully prepared Thai dishes taking into consideration both my fructose malabsorption and gluten intolerance. Unfortunately I didn’t take any photos of this lovely meal as Mod, the boy and I were busy engaged in lengthy conversation talking about further details in which Andara could provide us with an amazing wedding. Highlights of our lunch included Goong cinnamon (Cinnamon prawn – to die for!), Tom yam soup and absolutely huge Tiger prawns cooked in garlic and pepper and presented gorgeously.

To help us to make our decision we headed back to Andara for dinner on one of our final nights in Phuket. I thought seeing as I’m actually able to punish myself with gluten while on the prescribed gluten challenge I wouldn’t be quite so restrictive and let loose a little on the menu. For entrée we ordered a started platter which had some fish cakes, chicken wrapped Pandanus leaves and prawns. The chicken was soft and fell apart in the mouth and was sweetly scented with the Pandanus. The prawns were wrapped in noodles – similar to what we ate at Old Cathay, but less oily and easier to eat. After memories of our enjoyable meal at Old Cathay returning to my mind, I also ordered some satay tofu. This was not silky smooth this time round and definitely didn’t excite either of us.

Tamarind duck, soft shelled crab and stir-fried morning glory

To keep the boy happy for mains we ordered some soft shelled crab, one of his favourites, which were deliciously meaty and crispy, some tamarind duck and stir fried Morning Glory. Morning Glory is considered a weed in Australia however is very popular in a lot of parts of South-east Asia where it is often called “water spinach”. It is quite sweet in flavour, not bitter at all, and was cooked very simply with oyster sauce and garlic.

After all this delicious Thai food, I can’t help but wonder….I do hope all our wedding guests are happy to eat Thai at our reception? I just don’t feel right going to a country that has such wonderful culinary culture and eating “Western food”.

For more about our trips to Thailand click here

Patong night markets, Phuket

Posted by  | Categories: Markets, Thai, Thailand, Travel, Wedding

We were so lucky to be part of a friend’s wedding in Phuket earlier this year as it has sparked the beginning of our love affair with Thailand. After a week of wedding celebrations in Phuket, we then flew over to the Eastern coast of Thailand to stay for another week on the island of Koh Samui. It was during this memorable and fun filled holiday that my love proposed to me. He dropped the question during the most amazing private dining experience at Six Sense’s Dining on the Rocks which he had all pre-arranged before we left Australia. A single stunning table was decorated lavishly with roses and orchids and placed romantically isolated on a wide expanse of wooden decking on the cliff face overlooking the distant neighbouring islands and fishing boats. We had our own two butlers serve us a seven course degustation while we sipped our way through bottles of Verve. It was an experience I will never forget.

Subsequently it was a bit of a no-brainer that we both envisioned returning to Thailand for our wedding vows. Choosing a venue for such an occasion wasn’t really a decision we wanted to make via photos and email so this provided us with a great excuse for an impromptu holiday. I planned a busy week for us sashaying around Phuket touring resorts and dining on their food.

To get ourselves in the mood, our first night we decided to brave it into the bedlam of Patong to go the night markets. The boy has a strange and burning desire to eat unusual foods; this is actually something we used to share in common before all my allergies came to light and I starting being more wary of ingredients. Uninhibited and giddy on the street vendors rocket fuelled cocktails (80 Baht/$2.50) AUD), we dived into one of the many night markets and found ourselves surrounded by interesting smells. There was a lot of familiar fare, such as roast pork, chicken and duck but lo and behold we found the piece de la resistance……intestines?? Now you must be thinking we have gone a little mad, but there it was all snake like and coiled neatly in its mesenteric fat like a distorted grotesque fan.

 

Before I knew it the boy had ordered us a dish and was eagerly watching them dice it up for us into smaller more bite size pieces. I cautiously ate one, and to be honest with all the soy and chargrilling it didn’t taste too bad. There was none of the unpleasant smells you would have expected. However after a few morsels I began to remember my public health lectures at University and stopped myself before I worked myself into a nauseous state. I fell asleep that night dreaming of hydatid cysts in my brain and vowed not to be swayed to such a dark side again!

For more about our trips to Thailand click here

Travelling to Thailand?  Be sure to checkout the Lonely Planet Thailand Travel Guide before you go!

High Tea at Rochelle Adonis

Posted by  | Categories: Desserts, High Tea, Perth, Restaurants, Wedding

For months I have been bursting out of my skin to get myself to Rochelle Adonis for her acclaimed high tea! So when my love and I attended a boutique little wedding expo at Mosmans recently I was attracted to her stall like a moth to a flame. Her passion and gentle nature increased her appeal to me even more and I immediately decided I wanted to have one of her exquisite cakes for our upcoming engagement party. This provided me with the perfect excuse to organise a girly afternoon out with some friends for the purpose of “engagement cake tasting”.

For us foodies in the know, we are all very thankful to have such a world class pastry chef of this calibre residing here in little Perth. Rochelle grew up in the French Canadian city of Montreal before moving to Sydney to train as a pastry chef.  She then moved to London where she worked in an exclusive wedding cake boutique making cakes for the rich and famous including both the British and Saudi Royal families before she moved onto to Vienna to work in the prestigious Hotel Sacher.

Returning to Australia, she was acting head pastry chef at Forty One in Sydney before joining Matt Moran’s at Moran’s and then once he opened Aria as the head pastry chef there. She moved to WA in 2001 with the ambition of starting her own business and has grown from a small scale home kitchen beginning to the highly acclaimed boutique she has today.

Upon entering her studio, you will be distracted by all the eye catching photos decorating the walls with examples of her handy work.  Each cake is prepared with upmost attention and care and they almost look like they couldn’t be real. The two long communal marble tables fill much of the room giving the feeling you are sitting in someone’s kitchen rather than a café. We all came very prepared with enough champagne to sink a ship and with high expectations to have our tastebuds buzzing. We most certainly were not disappointed. Our only complaint was it all ended way too soon! We could have easily done with another few courses!

We all came very prepared with enough champagne to sink a ship and with high expectations to have our tastebuds buzzing. We most certainly were not disappointed. Our only complaint was it all ended way too soon! We could have easily done with another few courses!

"Creamed corn soup" "vegetable fritatta" "pork terrine" "falafel" "harissa" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Rochelle Adonis" "High Tea" "Perth High Tea" "Champagne" "Desserts" "Northbridge"

The first course was savoury. After my recent enforced gluten indulgences, I thought it best that I stick with her gluten free options – I was after all actually taste testing for a party that will occur once I’m back on the straight and narrow gluten free. My plate contained a cup of creamed corn soup, a vegetable frittata, a cube of pork terrine and a falafel with some harissa. The soup was hot and seasoned perfectly warming us all up as we waited for our champagne to take over the job. The pork terrine had a dollop of horseradish and Dijon mayonnaise. The short sharp heat of the horseradish blended harmoniously with the lingering flavours of the terrine and was the highlight of the four.

"Pork terrine" "goats cheese gallettes" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Rochelle Adonis" "High Tea" "Perth High Tea" "Champagne" "Desserts" "Northbridge"

The girls also had the pork terrine and the soup on their plates. Their gluten-filled options included a vegetable galette with goat’s cheese and Rochelle’s famous cucumber sandwiches using entirely homemade ingredients including her own handmade butter. The sandwiches looked so cute all cut up in perfect little rectangles sitting in a row.

"cucumber sandwich" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Rochelle Adonis" "High Tea" "Perth High Tea" "Champagne" "Desserts" "Northbridge"

Our second course was desert. My plate contained mint ice cream with Valrhona chocolate, raspberry jelly, meringue with lemon curd, blueberries and violet, and a blood orange salad on top of a moist butter cake with gooey brulee style custard. The ice cream was not overly sweet or sickly, nor was it too creamy. It had the perfect balance with a fresh minty aftertaste leaving a clean fresh feeling on the palate. My first glancing impressions of the raspberry jelly reminded me of Turkish Delight. Not being the biggest fan of this I was pleased to find an absence of Turkish’s signature delicate rose flavours replaced with a much preferred and rather strong tarty berriness. For those who know Chompchomp well – you will be aware I am a huge fan of all things berry. Well, berries generally come shaped in little balls – and I’m a sucker for food in little balls.  The meringue was one of my favourites. It contained all the elements of a well-made meringue: crunchy, chewy and soft, and the accompaniment of sharp tangy lemon curd moved seamlessly into the gentle after notes of the more subtle violet and blueberries.

"dessert" "Mint ice cream" "Valrhona chocolate" "raspberry jelly" "meringue" "blueberries" "lemon curd" "violet" "blood orange salad" "butter cake" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Rochelle Adonis" "High Tea" "Perth High Tea" "Champagne" "Desserts" "Northbridge"

The blood orange salad tasted like Rochelle had successful managed to capture Spring in a cup! Seeing as our one week teaser of Spring weather has turned viciously back to wet winter windiness I was so thankful to be reminded glorious Perth Spring was just around the corner. Buried deep below the array of sweet blood orange and delicate petals was a layer of brulee and dense orange butter cake. I nearly stuck my fingers into the bottom of the bowl to clean out the last remnants.

"Blood orange salad" "Butter cake" "dessert" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Rochelle Adonis" "High Tea" "Perth High Tea" "Champagne" "Desserts" "Northbridge"

By this point we had polished off a bottle of Moet, a bottle of Cattier and a bottle of G.H. Mumm champagne and we were all in very fine form. We really didn’t want our experience to end and thus were determined to carry on with our celebrations. After pondering for some time at the counter, a number of us bought more little cakes, nougat and other delights to take home to share with our loved ones who missed out on the delightful experience. We then all skipped over the road to the Hotel Northbridge to continue our festivities. Oh boy what a contrast in standards of customer service, ambiance and food would we find there!

"meringue" "blueberries" "lemon curd" "dessert" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Rochelle Adonis" "High Tea" "Perth High Tea" "Champagne" "Desserts" "Northbridge"

Venue 8/10 Food 9.2/10 Service 7.7/10

Rochelle Adonis
193 Brisbane St, Northbridge, 6003 | (08) 9227 0007
www.rochelleadonis.com

 

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