Buys - Finally, A Shirt That Really Fits! Tailor Made At Just $109!

Hey! Don’t knock it. Just because the brand is CYC, doesn’t mean it's old fashioned and ‘ching-chong’. Have you seen the shops lately? Rather swanky boutiques not just for the guys but the ladies too.

When the Hubs pottered to the Raffles Hotel outlet last year, I ended up waiting over an hour just for him to choose his cuffs, collar, buttons, what have you – and this is after agonizing over materials and styles, etc. Until then, I didn’t know they customized shirts to such an extent, so it was a very pleasant eye-opener. And yes, I stood corrected! Many moons ago, I used to buy my shirts from Alain Figaret and queue outside their Paris outlet for my turn to be served. Nice - but they weren’t custom fitted. Now if I wanna buy myself some, I would shuffle over to Singapore’s oldest shirt-maker and have my 'svelte' self fitted. And these days as one is older and wiser, I find that cut is everything!

So for GSS, and to mark their 75th anniversary, CYC The Custom Shop is offering custom made shirts at $109 (UP $159). This deal is up until July 25. There’s a choice of 14 fabric designs; of these, the 100 percent, two-ply cotton from Austria, tailored to the style you want. What’s more, there’s over 20 types of collars for ladies and more than 50 for men, including your choice of sleeves, cuffs, buttons and personalized monograms. That's very good value in my books, plus you go home with a very unique shirt fitted just for you.  

(BTW, do you know what CYC stands for? Chan Yick Ching, the man who founded it in 1935. He was a tailor from Ningpo. See? We learn something new everyday!)

CYC The Custom Shop
#02-12 Raffles Hotel Arcade
#01-21 Republic Plaza II, Raffles Place
#B1-06 Palais Renaissance

- By EW

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Binge - Father’s Day Eats

Father’s Day is round the corner, and for us in the ‘Sandwich Generation’, make sure you do spend time with good old dad and let him know he’s the best. Not all our dad’s are hale and hearty – count your blessings if he is – so spending time with him is the best thing you can do on Father’s Day…and for every opportunity you are given.

So what’s out there for fatherly indulgence? How about what is dubbed ‘the ultimate crab buffet’ (4-27 June)? The chefs at Ellenborough Market Café at Swissotel Merchant Court are rolling out a serious spread of over 20 sinful crab dishes that the food-loving fathers will definitely enjoy. Consider Teochew Style Cold Crab, Steamed Mud Crab with Shaoxing Wine, Salted Egg Flower Crab wok fried with salted egg yolks, Thai Crab Bee Hoon, Dungeness and Snow Crab cooked in Beer, Black Pepper Crab and Sri Lankan Chili Crab with Fried (not steamed!) mantou. With the rich flavours and even richer cholesterol count, this is surely an indulgence reserved only for special occasions. Father’s Day is definitely one such!

Available for dinner daily, and for lunch only on weekends. On Father’s Day weekend, all dining dads get a complimentary Tiger Beer. From $45++ for lunch, and $52++ for dinner. (For HSBC card holders, one dines free for every three paying adults.)

20 Merchant Road

Tel: 62391848

If Dad is into haute gourmet, fill up on foie gras at Ristorante Bologna at the Marina Mandarin Singapore. Chef Patron Carlo Marengoni weaves the flavours of foie gras into authentic Italian cuisine, such as Pan-fried goose liver with fig jam and Brandy sauce ($32++), Pan-fried goose liver with asparagus and Madeira wine sauce ($40++) and Porcini mushroom soup with diced Foie Gras and Truffle oil ($22++). Daily for lunch and dinner for the month of June. (closed Sundays)

Ristorante Bologna, level 4

Marina Mandarin Singapore

6 Raffles Blvd, Marina Sq.

Tel: 6845 1111

For the healthy dad, a meat fest is always a sure winner. Get it at Pan Pacific Singapore’s all-you-can-eat brunch at Global Kitchen on 20 June. Apart from the necessary crustacean counter and salads, there’s roasted carved meats, plus unlimited sparkling wine and beer. Price - $88++ or $108++ with sparkling wine, beers and soda; $28++ per child (6 to 12 years). If dad’s a little old fashioned, heave him up to Hai Tien Lo (37 flr) for the all you can eat brunch (20 June from 11.30am) at a happy $62++ per person $28++ per child (6 to 12 years). The spread includes up to 60 different highlights including dim sum, roasts, soups, noodles, seafood and dessert. But if dad prefers superior quality over quantity, take their set menus (from $78++; 14 – 20 June) of fine Chinese cuisines featuring dishes like Double-boiled ‘Buddha Jumps Over the Wall’ with Black Truffles and Steamed Sea Perch Fillet with Preserved Vegetables.

Pan Pacific Singapore

Hai Tien Lo, 37 Flr

Tel: 6826 8240

- BY EW

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Buys - GSS Best of Queensland Fair at Vivocity

Did someone say ‘sale’? Do we sense the impending quiver of retail frenzy? Indeed the The Great Singapore Sale (GSS) is back and the action is hotting up for those who just need to shop. From 1-6 June, Vivocity is holding the Best of Queensland fair, so if you can’t get yourself the real thing, let the bits of weird and wonderful come to you. Craftsmen from the Eumundi Markets will be displaying their ware at Vivocity, including handmade cupcake pincushions, kits and patterns from Fiona Hocking, ceramic hand-sculpted kookaburras, koalas and other nature-inspired art by ceramicist Anna Morgan and liqueurs, schnapps, vodkas and eaux de vie, in beautifully hand-painted bottles from Tambourine Mountain Distillery. For a spot of entertainment, if you want to call it that, get up close to 50,000 buzzing bees with a live bee keeping demo and a chance to extract honey from their hive in a (hopefully) safe manner.

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