Category: Review It!

Review of anything under the sun except food.

Hotel Boss Singapore – Easy Access, Convenient, Good Location

Posted on By sweet surrender No Comments on Hotel Boss Singapore – Easy Access, Convenient, Good Location

I was supposed to post about Hotel Boss in the last post but I totally forgot about it. This is the hotel we stayed in on our previous trip to Singapore. So, here you go. I did a short review on my Instagram a few weeks back. I will write about it in more detail in this post.

There were 4 of us. After looking around many OTAs, the only one that could fit the 4 of us in one room is Hotel Boss (500 Jln Sultan, #01-01, Singapore 199020). The price wasn’t cheap at all. After conversion to Ringgit, it’s RM3K+ for 5 days and 4 nights! Gosh! I can stay comfortably in a 5-star hotel in Malaysia with the best service provided at that rate. Then again, the key problem is with our currency because it is just too weak.

Getting There

We took a taxi from Changi Airport to the hotel. It was around SGD30 (inclusive of the airport surcharge and 25% peak hour charge). The taxi ride was not cheap but with the night-time arrival, a 14.5kg bag, our individual hand luggage, and two elderly, getting a taxi is more sensible.

You can also get on the MRT and ride to Lavender station. The station is located about 200m from the hotel.

Upon Arrival
Hotel Boss

I was expecting the concierge to greet us and help us with the luggage but no. No help was rendered. Instead, he tried to look away and avoid eye contact with me. I know you saw me, dude! I’ve stayed in many 4-star and 5-star hotels for work and leisure over the years in many countries and even worked in one before. This is not how a 4-star hotel should be. Heck! Even a 3-star hotel gave better service than this.

Was greeted with a busy lobby. In fact, it was packed the whole day. It’s a busy hotel. We made our way to the reception counter to check in. I’m so glad that the front office staffs were attentive, friendly, and patient.

The Room

We stayed on the 19th floor. The highest floor. The room could fit 4 pax. It has two queen-sized beds. There wasn’t enough space for our check-in luggage and we had to put it in between the two beds otherwise there won’t be space to walk. Luckily we only had one. Imagine 4 people traveling and each with a piece of check-in luggage.

Hotel Boss

Not only that, the room does not have a cupboard too. There wasn’t an iron and ironing board. You will have to go to the 4th floor to use it. There’s a laundry area with coin-operated washing machines, dryers, iron, and an ironing board there. Oh! There wasn’t a laundry bag in the room. However, you can request it if you need it. It’s FOC.

Bottled water, coffee, tea, sugar, and creamers were provided. There’s a TV, kettle, fridge, and safe box. In-room WiFi is included in the room.

Hotel Boss

By the way, the floor wasn’t carpeted. It was cold and there were no bedroom slippers provided. I called the operator to ask for it. They came fast. That’s good. I had a good experience with the operator and the housekeeping staff during my stay. Do take note that they don’t provide face towels. Only bath towels.

Hotel Boss

Our room had a balcony. No view though. Just balconies of other units.

Do note that the check-out time is 11 am. If you need a place to store your luggage after check-out, you can store your luggage near the entrance. The concierge will help you with it.

Breakfast

By the way, our room didn’t come with breakfast. If there’s breakfast included, it would be even more expensive. I would say that just go to the nearby food court called Kopitiam or any food establishments along the way to the MRT or go to Bugis and have local food at the market.

Conclusions

It’s expensive for Malaysians due to our weak currency. However, it is still high without currency conversion based on my expectations. If it’s on par with other 4-star hotels that I’ve stayed in before, then I would say it is reasonable but it’s far from that. It felt more like a 3-star but I’ve stayed in a 3-star hotel that provided more than this before.

As for the staff performance, they were good except for the concierge that night when we arrived. Meanwhile, the room was small, and everything was basic but the sleep experience was OK. Cleanliness and maintenance were good enough too.

The best part would be the location because it is very strategic and convenient.

Book the Hotel

If you would like to book this hotel, feel free to BOOK HERE.

Going Places, Greeting the Merlion - Singapore, Review It!

Quick Getaway from Kuching to Singapore with Scoot

Posted on By sweet surrender 3 Comments on Quick Getaway from Kuching to Singapore with Scoot

It’s the last day of October and I didn’t do any updates since 18th October. If you did follow my social media accounts, I was away in Singapore for a quick getaway with my family for 5D4N. I’m already back for a week but procrastination got to me haha… In this post, I’m going to share what I got before travel and during the time I was there.

First Time Flying with Scoot
Scoot from Kuching to Singapore

It’s our first time flying Scoot. We bought the ticket back in July. Scoot has daily flight to Singapore from Kuching. However, only Tuesday has morning flight to Singapore from Kuching. It is nicer to fly in the morning instead of at night. Otherwise, you can always fly with Air Asia and come back with Scoot. We flew on Thursday night. So, one day is pretty much wasted. Also bought travel insurance that has COVID-19 coverage from AXA. Before you fly, make sure you fill in the SG Arrival Card with electronic Health Declaration.

Scoot from Kuching to Singapore

Just like any budget airline, you’ll be charged for check-in luggage, seat selection, food, and so on. Surprisingly, the luggage’s rate isn’t fixed. It goes up and down. Throughout my ticket-hunting days, I got three different rates each time I checked which is rather amusing. By the way, the hand luggage’s max weight is 10kg.

You can check in online when you are in Kuching but you still have to go to the counter to get your flight ticket printed. That is because there is no self-service kiosk at Kuching International Airport. However, if you are in Singapore, it’s all self-service. Worry not! There are people around to guide/help you with it.

Changi Airport arrival hall

Do print out your COVID-19 vaccination certificate or bring your vaccination card or digital one along as the check-in counter staff did ask for it.

Arrive Singapore

The flight from Kuching to Singapore was about an hour plus. It’s a very short flight. The arrival was at Terminal 1. At the immigration, the officer did ask us to show the proof of electronic arrival card. I did print it out to show them. You can show the softcopy too. It’s just my habit to print every document out when I travel as a backup. You’ll never know when your electronic device might fail you.

Singapore SIM Card
Singapore SIM Card $12

I bought a SIM card from Klook the morning before I flew. I bought the 4G SIM Card (SG Airport & City Pick Up) for Singapore (RM35.05, 7 days validity). The SIM card collection is outside the baggage claim. Once you’re out of the glass door, go to your left and head to UOB counter. Show the staff your Klook booking and they will provide you with the SIM card after keying in your passport details.

Do make sure you insert the card into your phone on the spot and check the usability before you leave the airport. I have no issue with the SIM card. It works well and I have at least 3 devices connected to my hotspot daily.

Singapore Transportation Card (EzLink)
Singapore transport card Ezlink

You can purchase a transport card that can be used on MRT, bus, and monorail from the airport or any MRT station counter. The cheapest you can get from the airport is $10 (with $5 pre-loaded) from Changi Recommends. The counter is located before UOB counter where you claim the SIM card.

There is also 4G 2 in 1 Travel SIM (SG Airport & City Pick Up) for Singapore that you can get from Klook but can only be collected from Terminal 3 hence it is not so convenient if you are flying in from Kuching.

We got our transport cards from the MRT station the next day instead. The card costs $10 each with $5 pre-loaded.

After collecting the SIM card and ensuring its usability, we took a taxi to the hotel. The cost of taking a taxi from Changi to Hotel Boss was $30+ (inclusive of airport surcharge and a 25% peak hour charge). Will blog about the hotel in the next post.

Going Places, Greeting the Merlion - Singapore, Review It!

ARS Natural Ant Bait Effectiveness Quick Review

Posted on By sweet surrender 1 Comment on ARS Natural Ant Bait Effectiveness Quick Review

Ants! Such a fascinating and annoying little creature. We’ve been having ant-problem for a year or so at home. We had tried a similar product like ARS Natural Ant Bait and it did work. I was thinking of buying the previous ant bait that we used but couldn’t find it because I had no idea of the actual name of the product. I used some keywords and Shopee recommended this instead. So I decided to try it.

When it arrived, I was supposed to do an unboxing but my dad opened it before I was in time to get my hands on it. Hence, all you get in this video will be just seeing the ants carrying the baits. It happened so quickly. Within an hour, many ants came out and carried the baits back to their nests.

My experience

It can be a little messy as the ants left some of the baits scattered outside of the container around its path. Hence, be sure to clear the area where you place the bait especially if there are food and water in the area. This is because we found quite a lot of ants that ended up in our drinking water!! You don’t want to contaminate your food with the bait as well.

The number of ants did reduce tremendously within a week. However, it didn’t totally eliminate it. Just leave the bait there and let those newbies continue carrying it to the nest. It’s almost 3 months since we place the bait in several locations. Some of the areas are cleared but some still have random ones coming in and out. At least no longer as bad.

I also did notice some of the ants are smart enough to avoid it by going around it. Just don’t give up. You just have to leave it there until it’s empty or had changed colour due to moisture. I haven’t seen them around already. They likely ended up consuming it as well. Do bear in mind that not all types of ants can be eliminated. Generally, it’s effective for those usually you found at home.

The main ingredient is Boric Acid with sugar in it as well. That’s what attracts the ants to carry the bait back to their nest.

Tip

Here’s a tip on how to use it. There are two containers in one pack. Each container has a packet of bait. You do not have to use one packet of bait for one container. Just open one packet and split them half-half into two containers. Then you will have one packet left for future use.

Where to buy it?

This product is by the No. 1 household insecticide manufacturer in Japan. You can find it easily in local supermarkets. I bought it from Shopee. You can buy it here at this link https://invol.co/cld9l5x

Health is Wealth, Review It!, Vlog

Updates on PerySmith 5 in 1 Hand Blender 850W Easy Cooking Series PS850

Posted on By sweet surrender No Comments on Updates on PerySmith 5 in 1 Hand Blender 850W Easy Cooking Series PS850

I bought PerySmith 5 in 1 Hand Blender 850W Easy Cooking Series PS850 last year during 7/7 Shopee’s campaign. It was quite a good deal back then. Less than RM90. Was very happy with it. I’ve been using it for making cakes, bread, cookies, juice, and even peanut butter. All was well. Here’s the unboxing video that I did last year.

So… Just a few days after the one-year mark, something happened. All at the same time! Seriously?!?! It has two years warranty but only for the motor unit. The accessories or the attachments are not covered under the warranty.

The whisk attachment wasn’t working when I wanted to whisk the eggs. I attach it to the motor unit and it didn’t turn. It had noise but the whisk wasn’t turning. I removed it from the unit and guess what?!? The plastic bit that was supposed to connect to the motor unit that makes the whisk turn fell out. No wonder it’s not turning. The part came off! I only used the whisk one time! That day was supposed to be the second time but it’s broken. Couldn’t be used anymore.

I thought I can use another attachment to whisk the eggs. My gosh! The part that gripped the hooks couldn’t grip the hooks. One side was OK, the other side was useless. I had no choice, I tried my best to whisk the egg by keeping the hook as deep as possible inside the mixing bowl so that it won’t detach while mixing.

When I’m done whisking those eggs, it’s time to remove the hooks. The faulty side just came out on its own. When I removed the OK side, a ring came out along with the hook! Guess what?! The OK side couldn’t grip anymore too! So, the two hooks(mixing and kneading) are now useless as the unit that grips them could no longer grip. I only used these hooks a total of fewer than 12 times in a year.

Go figure… How fast is that? Normal usage, only a few times, and it’s gone. Yes, wear and tear, we can’t avoid it but this is just too fast. It just translates to bad quality. My previous mixer only died after over 20 years of usage! The attachments were still going strong. It was the motor that had burnt out.

So… Three attachments for cake/bread making are gone. To date, the other two attachments (stick blender and chopper) are still OK. However, I’m quite worried about the plastic containers because I don’t think the plastic is of a durable type. In case you drop it by accident, it might break instantly. I’m seeing scratches on them already even though I never wash them with anything rough. Only used two to three times.

I contacted support about the faulty attachments. Unfortunately, as expected, they said it’s considered as wear and tear, it’s not covered under the warranty. The fact that their product failed terribly after such light usage is really unacceptable. They just apologized and gave me a quote to buy the replacement. Well… I tried to emphasize that it is used only a few times but still… Just apology. It’s understandable that they won’t buy it because they didn’t see how you used it and you might lie to them. Whatever… No point in trying to convince them because they never will bother.

Do you think I would buy it? No way! Each attachment costs RM39! I need to buy two of them. That would be RM78. I can buy a basic mixer that will surely last for years at that price. Furthermore, I bought the unit for less than RM90! Even if I got it at a higher price, I won’t get the replacement too because I’m afraid that the same thing will happen and that would be a waste of money. Once bitten, twice shy.

I can only count myself lucky for getting it at such a low price. Otherwise, I would be more disappointed than I am now. I just hope the other two attachments/accessories will last me for a few more years *fingers crossed*. I’m quite worried that it won’t as the build of the attachments is the same as the spoilt ones.

So… If you found this post because you are planning to buy it, I would say that you can buy it at your own risk (click here if you want to buy). Maybe I’m just being the unlucky one to get the batch with bad-quality attachments. *sigh*

From My Angle, Review It!

Unbox & Cook Ichiran Ramen Hakata Style Thin Noodle (One of The Most Expensive Instant Ramen)

Posted on By sweet surrender No Comments on Unbox & Cook Ichiran Ramen Hakata Style Thin Noodle (One of The Most Expensive Instant Ramen)

Finally, got hold of one of the most expensive ramen, Ichiran Ramen. I saw this in Japan and even in local supermarkets in Malaysia but just couldn’t get myself to spend that money. It costs over RM100/box. I only bought two packets of the curly version when I was in Osaka in 2019. Then, my bro came back with a box when he came back from Singapore. It was not cheap not too. After conversion to MYR, it’s around RM120.

I always wonder what the inside of the box looks like. Now I know… Hahaha… Check out the video to find out. If you ever wonder how to open the box like me, then check out the video too. I didn’t know how to open it. It’s such rocket science. How silly am I?!? It’s so easy! I didn’t know what I was thinking. Why didn’t I think of that?!?

I tried looking for instructions on how to cook it online even though it’s available at the back of the packet and on its official website. In the end, I settled with the instructions on the official site. I did not follow the exact steps recommended on the packet and website too. I made a bit of modification to the step that is to switch the heat to the lowest while adding the soup (this was mentioned in Donki’s listing on Shopee on how to cook it). The original instructions should be to switch off the fire, then pour the soup into the pot. Whichever way, I tried both, it was OK. Still tasted good.

However, I was told that cooking the noodle based on the instructions is not the right way.

Here’s the method my friend taught me:
  1. Soak the soup packet in hot water.
  2. Boil 450ml water in a pot.
  3. Cook the ramen for the duration as suggested on the packet.
  4. Separate the ramen and water. DO NOT pour the water away. Keep it!! Put the noodle in a bowl.
  5. Open the soup packet and mix the soup with the ramen.
  6. Pour the boiled water that you cooked the ramen with into the bowl of ramen.
  7. Add the red seasoning powder to the spiciness level of your liking. If you can’t tolerate spiciness, you can skip it.
  8. Ready to eat.

The soup is flavourful and salty. The water needed is 450ml but using 500ml is also fine. I’ve never tasted the real thing from the official shop so I can’t do any comparison. However, the ramen tastes much better than in some local ramen shops.

The red seasoning powder is spicy. You can add accordingly or just skip it altogether. For me, half a packet gives me just enough heat. One whole packet is spicy enough but I can still take it. I prefer to have the red seasoning to elevate the taste. I will feel that something is missing without it.

Whether it’s worth it or not to spend so much on instant ramen, I don’t know… I definitely won’t spend such an amount of money on it even though it tastes good. If I would, then I would have purchased it when I was in Japan. It’s really up to you.

By the way, this is non-halal as alcohol and pork/lard are part of the ingredients of the ramen.

Have you tried the real thing? Have you tried the instant version?

Food Porn, Review It!, Vlog