LA TAVERNA'S HOME MADE ITALIAN

Hope you all had a great holiday season!! This is my first post after the New Year and over the holidays and what better way to start the year than with some good old home made Italian food? I love Italian food and can sincerely eat it every single day of my life. No joke. I really don't need anything else.

On a recent visit to Shanghai and a pleasant walk around the former French Concession, Marc and I bumped into one of the hidden secrets and possibly our greatest discovery in the charming brick-lined street of Fumin lu: a little Italian restaurant called La Taverna. La Taverna boasted real home made style Italian food from the colorful signs outside, the cozy interiors and soft country ambience. Why not, we thought. Let's give it a try!

La Taverna's cozy interiors

Fresh-cut flowers adorn the tables

As we settled down into the cute chairs and smelled the fresh-cut flowers lovingly decorating the tables, we instantly felt comfortable and warm. The menu is extensive and made it really hard to choose. We chose a Bruschetta with tomato and basil to start with which was amazingly delicious. The bread was perfectly crunchy and tomatoes and basil were fresh. Then, I ordered my favorite Spaghetti Bolognese (a bolognese done well is truly incredible) and Marc went for the Risotto Milanese. For a few minutes, we were not talking as we savored the food..it was that good! 

Bruschetta with Tomato and Basil

Spaghetti Bolognese

This is a gem of a place and a great restaurant to take friends or family who are visiting Shanghai...we will definitely be back!

La Taverna

148 Fumin lu near Julu lu

Tel: +8621 64183991

Email: hello@latavernashanghai.com

www.latavernashanghai.com

WINTER HAUL

Cold weather friends: Aveeno Daily Moisturizing Lotion,
Lipton Peppermint Herbal Infusions Tea,
Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream,
and MUJI wool scarf

When the cold winds blow and the temperatures dip down, it's best to stay warm and arm yourself with cold weather essentials. Here are my favorites right now:

1. Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream - I've known and heard about this product for years now but somehow never ended up buying it. Many friends have recommended this cream to me and most recently, my friend Lezl, who showed me just how great a lip balm and all-around moisturizer this is especially in the cold and dry winter months. I love that you can use this in so many ways. I love to use it on my lips to prevent chapping, but it is also great on cheekbones for a subtle shine and if you're in Dalian (like me), it protects your cheeks against the cold wind chill burn. It's also great for rough and dry elbows, the cuticles and as an eyebrow tamer. These next winter months, it is my number one essential! 

2. Aveeno Daily Moisturizing Lotion - This really is one of the best lotions out there! This must be my tenth bottle because my husband Marc loves it too. It's great for really dry skin and is very soothing. Contains natural colloidal oatmeal and rich emollients. Really good for skin problems, sensitive skin, rashes and if you are prone to eczema. 

3. Lipton Peppermint Herbal Infusions Tea – Aside from ginger tea with honey, I find peppermint tea very soothing and calming for the throat if you have a cough and cold due to the weather. This is a pretty good one from Lipton’s herbal range of teas and it’s caffeine-free.

4. 100% wool scarves from MUJI & ESPRIT – I love the scarves in MUJI and ESPRIT. They are 100% wool and very soft and warm. The quality is excellent in both stores and loving the plaid designs at the moment!

Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream 50g (US$19.50)

Aveeno Daily Moisturizing Lotion 600ml.
(US$22.99) for a pack of two bottles

Lipton Peppermint Herbal Infusions Tea (US$5.99)
20 sachets

100% wool scarves from MUJI and ESPRIT

HOLIDAY NAILS

It’s that time of the year again when every woman wants their nails looking their very best and it’s this time when I miss my friends’ Cathy & Isabel’s nail salon, Belle & Cat, back home in Manila the most!

Jewel-toned nail polish from Dalian's Korean Market
Left to right: Deep Blue, Teal and Burgundy

I love nail polish but I've always gone down the safe route when it comes to colors over the years – classic red shades or nude/light pink shades are what I usually go for. But this Christmas season is all about spicing it up and what better way to do this than trying some holiday fall/winter jewel tones? Deep blue, wild green, teal, burgundy, dark purple and mauve are just some of the nail polish shades to look out for this season.

Jewel tones this season are inspired by the colors on my
tiny Christmas tree.

After wandering around the Korean market here in Dalian with my friend Eya, I bought a few jewel-toned polishes to try for the holidays. Having my nails painted in a deep blue color for the first time, I was surprised at how bright, festive and elegant they looked.

Deep blue nail polish with a little sparkle

Goodbye reds and nudes…at least for now!

If you’re in Manila, I highly recommend pampering your nails and a whole lot more at…

Belle & Cat Nail and Wax Studio

GF Sterling Centre, 131 Esteban corner Dela Rosa Sts.

Legaspi Village, Makati City

Metro Manila, Philippines

Tel: (632) 480-6204/ (0063) 916-6467568

Great service and great people!

THE PERFECT GRILL

Dalian is known for having some of the finest seafood in China all locally sourced from its rich surrounding waters. One of the best places to try these so-called treasures of the sea is at arguably the most luxurious all-day dining restaurant in the city, C Grill at Conrad Dalian.

C Grill serves the freshest and most delicious seafood all grilled to perfection and in accordance to your preferences and tastes. The décor in the restaurant is elegant and subdued and the view of the nearby port and the sea beyond is breathtaking.

My favorite area of the restaurant is the open kitchen where you can actually view the amazing chefs at work as they cook your food right before your eyes down to the intricate preparation methods up to the finish line where you behold your carefully prepared dish.

Executive Chef Philippe Egalon prepared a frothy crab cappuccino soup which left me craving for more and a wonderful seafood paella which literally made me close my eyes and want to weep! That’s how good it was!

C Grill's elegant decor

The open kitchen view from outside the restaurant

The private dining room has the
best view of the open kitchen.

The Crab Cappuccino

The Seafood Paella with Dalian's freshest catch

C GRILL

2/F, Conrad Dalian

31 Renmin Road East, Zhongshan District

Dalian, Liaoning 116001 China

Tel: (86) 411 86776666

SEASIDE PROMENADE

One of the best sights to see in Dalian is Xinghai Square, a city square known as the biggest in Asia and with a total area of 1.1 million square meters! Its sheer space and perfectly manicured greenery is impressive to say the least! But even better yet and by far my favorite is the natural beauty that awaits you right at the end of the square…the ocean promenade overlooking the waters of Heishi Reef Bay meeting the Bohai Sea. The smell of the ocean, the salt in the air, the breeze and the calm waters remind me of home in the Philippines and this has quickly become my favorite place in Dalian.

Here are a few photos from my seaside walks…

BLAST FROM A RUSSIAN PAST

Lately, I have found that walking around China’s modern, cosmopolitan city of Dalian is ironically like taking a peek into the past. The old and the new both exist in beautiful harmony. Dalian came under Russian territorial control from 1898 until 1905. Back then, the city was known as Dalny. Within those short seven years, the influence of Russian culture is still so amazingly seen and felt in the city today, especially along Dalian’s oldest street, now simply called “Russian Street.” Eight of the existing Russian buildings here have been renovated including the Russian Dalny City Hall, which is more than 100 years old.

I decided to take a look myself and walk back to the past…

The tops of two Russian buildings
Russian Street, Dalian

A building converted into an inn

The street has become a tourist destination
with lots of stalls selling Russian trinkets and souvenirs.

Russian Street stretches around 300 meters.

At the far end of the street lies the former Russian City Hall of Dalny

built in 1900.
This photo: Wikipedia Public Domain

My street souvenir: Dark Russian chocolate...yum!!!

DHC's Olive Magic

I always feel like kicking myself after discovering a great brand of products for the first time despite years of seeing it around and just passing it by..especially after getting to know the amazing wonders of DHC.

DHC is Japan’s number one direct skincare company with a legacy of over 30 years. All of their high-quality products are based on the healing principles and natural benefits of olive oil. Everyone knows olive oil is good for you in more ways than one – rich in vitamins and antioxidants, neutralizes damaging free radicals, and helps skin balance its moisture levels. DHC uses Olive Virgin Oil (Flor de Aceite) – from handpicked organic Spanish olives, cold-pressed to preserve its nutrients.

Photo credit: Pawel Kryj, pawel_231, sxc.hu

My two favorite DHC products right now that I highly recommend trying:

(Prices indicated are not the exact exchange rate. Products are more expensive in China.)

DHC Deep Cleansing Oil - 218 Rmb (US$28)

DHC Deep Cleansing Oil

This is DHC’s most popular product and a really amazing cleanser. I like to cleanse my face with this at night. It has a great soothing, natural olive scent and washes away dirt, excess oil and makeup without drying. I love how soft and hydrated my face feels right after! Main ingredients are olive oil, vitamin E and rosemary leaf oil.

DHC Olive-Corn Body Scrub & Polish
178 Rmb (US$17.50)

DHC Olive-Corn Body Scrub & Polish

I read somewhere that body scrubbing in the shower during the winter is really beneficial as it increases circulation, promotes body heat and keeps you warm. Compared to all the body scrubs I’ve tried before, this body polish is on a whole other level and I am now obsessed with it! The small granules of corn cob powder gently exfoliate the skin, are light and soft (non-irritating), and very soothing on the skin. The olive oil is so moisturizing that after stepping out of the shower, I sometimes skip applying body lotion altogether. Main ingredients are olive oil, vitamin E, corn cob powder and lavender oil. Really worth trying!

Other great DHC products:

DHC Olive Soap

DHC Olive Virgin Oil

DHC is available in most department stores here in mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, South Korea and its home country Japan. It is also available in the United States and in London, UK at certain retail stores and by ordering online.

China Website: www.dhc.net.cn

U.S. Website: www.dhccare.com

UK Website: www.dhcuk.co.uk