2 What were the biggest challenges in your journey here?
People. In my job I meet different sorts of people with different needs and learning to communicate with each of them is a challenge. Over the years I have learnt to communicate with customers in a diplomatic manner. I always have to remember that the customers come first and I represent the organisation I work for when I communicate with them. Communicating with my staff are a different thing altogether. With staff I have to manage and lead them and I had to learn the balance of being firm without offending them.

3 What is the best part of being a restaurant manager?
The best part is the people. It is also the hardest part. I enjoy communicating with the different parties, discerning different needs. I enjoy meeting their needs. I enjoy discerning their tastes.

4 What do you want to achieve in life?
Owning my own business and being a part of my family business, which I am now helping out in anyway. I believe that all my jobs and what I am doing now are steps towards that goal.

5 What three pieces of advice would you give to our readers for running a successful food outlet?
Work smart and hard. We have to use our brains. Value relationships and people. People are important in life. Make responsible choices. That is about it.

6 Who has been your greatest inspiration?
Most successful people inspire me. There is always an inspiring story behind each successful person. Their stories are often lessons to me.

7 Finally, a personal question: what is your dream guy like?
My dream guy would be a good guy. He will be someone who is well-groomed and manly, responsible and someone who values his family, friends and does his job well. I will not be able to tolerate a sleazy man and looks is not an issue for me. The important thing is his ability to communicate with me, and be at the same wavelength with me.

Wikipedia says: Xiăolóngbāo, also known as soup dumpling, is a type of dumpling from the eastern Chinese region of Shanghai and Wuxi. It is traditionally steamed in small bamboo baskets, known as Xiăo Lóng, hence its name.

Xiăolóngbāo is more often known in Shanghai and its surrounding areas as xiăolóng mantou. Mantou describes both filled and unfilled buns in southern China, but only describes unfilled buns in northern China. To avoid confusion, the name Xiăolóngbāo is usually used in other areas.

Shanghai-style Xiăolóngbāo originated in Nanxiang a suburb of Shanghai in the Jiading District. The inventor of Xiăolóngbāo sold them in his first store in Nanxiang next to the town’s famous park, Guqi Garden. From there, the Xiăolóngbāo expanded into downtown Shanghai and outward.

Chocolate isn’t just a candy. Before maids started leaving wrapped mints on hotel pillows at night, chocolate had some varied and esoteric uses. The beans, which emerged from the forests of Central America, were used as a monetary unit in paying taxes to the Aztecs in 1000A.D. Cocoa had been grown and harvested for centuries, with evidence of its existence in the region going back another 5,000 years.

Besides serving as money, it was considered a beverage only for royal males, when ground into pasted and mixed with boiling water and various flavourings. Christopher Columbus got to sample it in the 15th century but passed it by as an item of interest and set off for what he thought were the East Indies. That left it to Spanish explorers to seize on the idea of calculating the worth of something in beans, and soon the drink of the Aztecs made its way to the royal court of Spain. They kept it to themselves for almost a century, substituting cane sugar for the spices, and making a delightfully sweet drink. Then a Spanish princess married the King of France and they inherited the secret. And of course, English guests at court seized on the idea as well and it made its way across the English Channel, where in the 18th century, it was used as a preventative for stomach aches. Chocolate’s medicinal role actually dates back to the Aztecs, with the emperor Montezuma declaring that “The divine drink, which builds up resistance and fights fatigue. A cup of this precious drink permits a man to walk for a whole day without food.” Chocolate isn’t just a candy. Before maids started leaving wrapped mints on hotel pillows at night, chocolate had some varied and esoteric uses.
Source: http://www.amusingfacts.com/facts/Detail/chocolate-medicine.html

Envisioned to be the “Rolls Royce” of bottled water, Bling H2O was only available to hand-picked athletes and models. Recently they extended their availability to the public. Bottled at the source in Dandridge Tennessee, Bling H2O is the award winning natural spring water that won the gold medal for the best tasting water at the Springs International Water Tasting Festival. NSF International, a non-profit organisation certifying products and writings standards for food, water, air and consumer goods, certifies Bling H2O’s quality. Using a nine-step purification process including ozone, ultraviolet and micro-filtration Bling H2O is glam water to the max. Bling H2O comes in the Limited Edition; corked, reusable frosted glass bottle exquisitely crafted with a variety of coloured, or clear Swarovski crystals. You can get your Bling at http://www.blingh2o.com/store.

Source: www.blingh2o.com

Barbequing can be so much more than the boring fishball, crabsticks and hotdogs affair.

Make a trip to your neighbourhood supermarket and be surprised by the variety of meats and vegetables which can be barbequed for a satisfying meal. Ready to become the toast of every beach or pool side BBQ party? Let this guide serve as an inspiration for you to enjoy great barbecued meats. BBQ can be split into the basic 3M’s; Meats, Marinades and Methods.

Meats
When using chicken, try using the whole chicken, instead of just the chicken wings. Ask your butcher to cut the chicken into twelve parts as smaller sizes would take a shorter time on the barbeque. If you are using beef, don’t trim all the fat away; a little bit of fat makes the meat juicier, as the barbequing process
caramelises the fat. It’s important to remember that when using meats, it must be thawed completely for even cooking. Be adventurous! Almost any kind of meat can be used on the barbeque – shrimp, lamb, pork or fish. Balance your meal by throwing in some vegetables as well. You can try grilling corn, peppers and eggplants, which will go well with all your grilled meat.

Marinades Using the normal barbeque sauce will cause your meats to burn easily. Try dry rubs for chicken, which uses mainly dry herbs. Marinating meat can be made easier when you use Ziploc bags – simply toss all the ingredients into the bag and leave in the fridge for a few hours. Never leave overnight as this will lose the flavour of the meat itself. It’s also best to wear gloves when handling meat, and not to handle different meats all at the same time as this ensures that the meat will not be contaminated. Lastly, keep the marinade used for basting separate from the portion used in the Ziploc bag as this prevents the marinade from going bad.

Method
Now that you’ve gotten your various meats and marinated them, it’s time to grill! It’s important to thoroughly clean your grill before using. Having a water bottle spray will come in handy too; especially when the flames are too big to handle – a light spritz is all it takes to calm the flames. Decide which sides of the grill are the ‘very hot’ and ‘medium heat’ sides as this determines where different meats should be placed. Meats with bones typically go onto the medium side as it takes longer to cook; while others belong to the hot side. Here’s a handy timing guide for steaks – for a 160g, 1-inch thick steak, rare steaks cook for about 4 minutes on each side, medium for about 5 minutes and well done goes for about 6 minutes on each side. And lastly, when using wooden skewers, soak in water and cut off the tips first to prevent them from burning or simply wrap them in tin foil. Most importantly, be sure to have fun and don’t let your fear of burnt, bland tasting grub stop you from having a great day of fun by the grill.

For more sizzling tips on barbecuing, tune in to Licence to Grill with Chef Robert Rainford on AFC on Astro Channel 703!

The rock-band U2 recently released their new album; No Line in The Horizon. For die-hard U2 fans the album is now available at all major CD-stores nationwide. The album is also downloadable online at www.u2.com. The band’s front man – Paul Hewson a.k.a Bono and his wife, Ali Hewson had been actively involved in the ONE campaign, and are both committed to the fight against extreme poverty and preventable disease, particularly in Africa.

In 2005, the couple founded their own clothing brand EDUN. EDUN is a socially conscious clothing company directed at creating beautiful clothing while fostering sustainable employment in developing areas of the world, particularly Africa. Popular for their ONE.org t-shirts purposed at delivering the message to millions of people worldwide that together, we can help fight global disease and extreme poverty and bring fair trade and AIDS treatment to Africa. EDUN is constantly working towards using more organic materials in their initiation to foster a sustainable economy through fair-trade and to advocate and practice sustainable environment. In 2007, EDUN launched their LIVE brand to help foster trade in Africa through high-volume sales of blank t-shirts to the wholesale market. These t-shirts are made using 100% organic cotton, which is not only a responsible environmental solution but also provides a healthier working condition and market opportunity for farmers in Africa. From the fields where the cotton is picked, to the final printing process, all EDUN LIVE products are 100% African, from “grow to sew”. You can also shop responsibly now at www.edun.ie. EDUN LIVE t-shirts are available, either for wholesalers or individuals at www.edun-live.com.
Sources: www.edun.ie, www.u2.com and www.edun-live.com

Apparently, a specific species of sturgeon called Beluga is considered to be the best caviar in the world, and the most expensive; with present market prices ranging from USD 7,000 to USD 10,000 per kg.

Caviar should never be served using metal based utensils which will tarnish its taste by developing a metallic-like taste to the caviar. Ideally, caviar should be scooped out using spoons made of bone or mother of pearl. And caviar served on a small cracker should be eaten in just one bite. To the caviar enthusiast, the flavour of caviar is often characterised as an intense explosion of complex flavours.