Harley's at Espressamente Illy vietnam

Harley's at Espressamente Illy Vietnam

By Aly Abaquin

Harley Davidson Bike Group converge every saturday 3pm at espressamente illy

No. 111-a Pasteur corner Nguyen Thi Minh Khai St. Simply called the Sailing Tower.

New Modern and hip and becoming to be the next destination for true authentic

Italian coffee experience.

You will be thrilled to see this king of the road in this "Xe om" Bike country and marvel on this well maintained jewels in mint condition in fact some are vintage and some are modern.

Come have a coffee break and see the Harley's in Espressamente illy coffee bar.

Celebrity Party at Villa FB

Saigonites are now very hip and cool. Fashion forward and welcome this sneek peek on some celebrity spotting that we did recently in saigon.... HCMC style.

Celebrity party of Dam Vinh Hung the famous singer sensation of vietnam.
We got a chance to be able to see the heart and soul of the famous singer
and was interviewed by Stlye Magazine. Look out for the next issue.
As expected yours truly was with the celebs wide eyed as we check on the Food & Fashion
statements of the crowd around an equally POSH VILLA.

The Hip and Modern Cosmo Saigon is now in the 20th century .
Meet the newest FASHION & TASTE SENSATION now on the runway : Villa FB.Its Mantra: FUSION, FASHION & BUN located at 79 Suong Nguyet Anh Quan 1, Tp HCMC. Tel : 62906671 fax: 62906572.

THE FEEL : Colors are your vintage classics: white & black.
THINK: Tuxedo, Dominos & with an eclectic modern DMC FASHION mix.
The DMC’s collection is well presented and decorated through out the restaurant.
Equation of Fusion cuisine meets hip Fashion + modern+ mod looking boutique dining enclaves equals = LUXE DINING!

The 1930’s Villa is immaculately white. While in the right corner of it is an architectural statement: a BOXY GLASS CUBICLE contraption that overflows with the water element.
Giving you a preview of things to come…. Dining in here is very experiential….as you set foot in its tropical setting & you are greeted with friendly smiles and soft courteous respectful hellos are appealingly homey.

THE SERVICE: Friendly, helpful & attentive.
THE FOOD: The menu is a fusion of colors, textures and temperatures… the noodles are also present in the soup while there are rice meals with prawns, crabmeat, and Western Continental fares are also availably evident in their Pan grilled beef, steaks are sumptiously adorable.

Overall the experience is Good. That's why celebrities are always here to celebrate.
Evidently the place is wonderfully & tastefully decorated.
Kudos to the Interior designer as the Black & White motif is a vintage classic and will never be out of style.

Fashionistas all over the globe including TWIGGY the Fashion icon & face of ‘66 will surely Live and lovingly dine here regulary….…
In FASHION either your IN or OUT and in Villa FB you chose to be seen and be IN or else Heidi Klum of the PROJECT RUNWAY Fame will say “AUF WIEDERSEHEN”….Goodbye… ;)

I gotta feeling.. FACTORY

I Gotta feeling at the Factory…
By Aly Abaquin

“I got a feeling tonight is a gonna be a good good night”.
Remember the now famous song of Black Eyed Peas. The newest gig in town opened a themed disco bar : FACTORY located at 102 Mac Thi Buoi, Nguyen Hue st.

Upon seeing the industrial façade with matching turbines and yellow and black zebra stripes color motif makes this building turn heads as one passes by this INDUSTRIAL edifice of the FACTORY: Live music café bar processing delights.

Like a good looking new kid on the block kindda thing. HIP HOPpingly different to all the bars in HCMC. Hooking up the now posh and younger set of the new generation Vietnamese. The Sexy, Cool, Hip and the beautiful.

As you take your first steps upon entry you’ll be passing inside a metal bar bridge with its wall are clustered small alcoholic beverages of different brands highlighted in metal casing boxes all arrange in a row : eye level making you drool for a drink.

Once you reach the receptionist. Black Drums with yellow pedestrian colored promotional poster read : Wednesday night is LADIES NIGHT…meaning Party people of the female kind are free to enter this premises and the male specie kind has to cash up:70,000 vnd or $4. Take note ladies you have two drinks free!!! With GUSTO from 8pm to 11pm.

Mesh wiring and black metal tubing with the steps in yellow & black all over envelopes the whole entry level till you reach the second floor.

The Hi-TECH lighting, State of the art sound system and special screening of the factory insignia twirls and turns in rhythmic mode.
Synchronize with the music & green laser beams coming from the DJ.’s booth make a spectacular light and sound show that’s thrilling everyone to dance and let loose their hair.

“I got a feeling that tonight is gonna be a good good night”…...music playing…
As the whole crew dress in yellow construction worker hat with matching miner lights and boys in orange overall treats you to dance the night away. “

Music continues….
“I know that well have a ball if we get down and go out and just loose it all.
Here we come. Here we go. We gotta Rock.
Easy come .
Easy go now we on Top”
“ Feel the shot body rock
Rock it don’t stop.
Round and round around the clock. “

As the Factory is really living it up to its name. A new place in town that boost
That we need to let loose and To ROCK!!!!...”Party every day …Party every day…”
Mondays to Sundays the factory never sleeps.

A cool well dress crowd was seen partying with gusto while you forget your blues away.

“That I know we gonna have a ball , let go way out of control, you better paint the town red”. ….music still playing…

So Let’s live it up .. Pump up the factory… I feel I wanna let go….
Because DJ WANG DM & DJ BNUTS is in the turntable and mixing something hot and you must be dancing your heels off with that fantastic music ….. lets do it….lets live it up… RAISE THE ROOFFFF for FACTORY!!!!

HAUTE CUISINE now showing in vietnam

Haute Cuisine : Food & Hotel Expo Vietnam 2009
By Aly Abaquin

The recently concluded Food and Hotel expo Vietnam was well attended by visitors as well as participating countries from Thailand, Singapore, France, Germany, USA, Italy, Korea and of course Vietnam.

The culinary scene is culminating with vigor and vitality in HCMC.
The exciting battle of the Chefs plus the Barista competitions was a success.
Truely the pictures above will tell you a thousand words.

Vietnam's culinary scene is now a melting pot to all and is considered a gastronomical paradise...its so mouthwateringly wonderful as you sample exotic fares or luxurious meals is continually meeting customers expectation and providing us a peek on a legendary experience wherein cuisine & culture become one.

TRUELY Haute cuisine is now showing in vietnam.

Aly's Dish: VIVA Market: Street Treats

Aly's Dish: VIVA Market: Street Treats

VIVA Market: Street Treats

Viva Market....Street Treats
By Aly Abaquin

If you want to visit a mall and dash towards having a quick bite of the vietnamese cuisine check out Viva Market. Under one roof they incorporated the basic food a tourist must have or at least taste before going back to his/her home country.

It is an unlikely location for its in the third floor of a Lotte Mall in Dist 7and too far too, Hoping there would be one in Dist 1 much nearer to tourist.

We chance upon this quirky colorful and street smart resto that houses all the hawkers fair or street treats as we say.. when my friend Carol and family visited me and she wanted to visit and see Dist 7 Phu My Hong the new developing piece of real estate wherein expats are now housed and living... TRIBING is a approriate word ...and see the newest addition of a Mall Lotte Mall...MALL CULTURE now present in HCMC...

Viva Market :it stages a street scenario out from a movie set or shall we say a Broadway production of Hcmc street scene.. wherein all the hawkers/ food stalls are lined up, configured in corners and its interior designed making use of re-use, recycled window frames, wood, metal, old tiles,vietnamese lanterns in red, white and yello,, bird cages in vibrant colors ... even the roofing mis-matched to evoke a street scene.. only missing are people wearing thier hats and shouting their wares...as if you stamble upon or step inside this one alley way in downtown HCMC...Colorfully & artistically improvised.

Its safe and clean eating here. Food are good in taste and if one is afraid to try the hawkers fair in Cho Ben Thanh market...and if you have kids to feed like my friend ... so we settled in this safe food haven... this is an alternative..of course to those who are not a culinary daredevil as for myself who has accustomed my stomach in trying all the street fares has to offer...

Viva Market its Good Food & Cheap eats in a modern mall... One only remark is that its Neon sign of VIVA MARKET is kindda LAS VEGAS... not at all appropriate.. i think they need to re configure this one out....

BLACK FOREST CAKE & BOOTY CALL!

Black forest cake and a booty call.
By Aly Abaquin

This is the plot. The romantic misadventures of 3 individuals in their 30s & 40s. Set in HCMC, the common thread of the story is that one person is into a relationship and is more enamored with it.

At the core of these multiple stories is a young woman we must call our “Gigi” remember that character in the movie HE IS JUST NOT INTO YOU actually it started with the a book guide to women by Greg Brendhert & Liz Tucillo. Actually she is our accidental tourist friend who came to visit to nurse shall we say a broken heart???? O yeah bring on the tissue…. Girl friend we must talk… so off we go to Givral in one corner as we listen to her intently…..

As she relates her own story…. I begin to imagine that at one point in time in our search for love we’ve been a GIGI of sorts. So we continue to tell our own tales about rekindled love, lost love or just simply loving and getting that damsel in distress or play the waiting game of that Prince charming. But we must practice how to read the signs.. Radar up…or

More like on kissing the frog and presto Prince charming…. as we talk of our past, present & future relationship in this Saigon environs.

Dating scene in HCMC is quite limited we all hollered… Okey it’s a Given ( notice the captial “G”)… so over cake we poured our hearts out as we just talked and drink up our usual as this conversation we did actually with sharing a piece of cake the Black forest…

In between drinks she our “GIGI” relinquish her heartfelt rendition of her love affair with this men …from outer space… or shall we say women are from mars.. Whoa… that’s another book by who… kidding aside…..

As I actually was eyeing for that piece of cake and half hearing her.. got destructed as it seems….It not the usual balck forest cut piece but a black forest dress to its sevens so to speak… Crowned with its semi dark milk chocolate twirls and dressed up with white chocolate figure that was brush-up ganache that encircle this little waist line and topped off a red cherry…. A Party Girl forest cake.

So good to taste that we always order one from Givral. Givral has been a baking sensation in HCMC for years as we where told and now turning its successful bakeshop into a bistro type all present in HCMC..

Perfect cake conversation to nurse one broken heart as our Gigi is just finishing her tales poke my shoulder to listen up and advise her.. I simply told her HE is not into you. PERIOD.. so harsh but true….so while she was contemplating ….. a perfect call or shall we say…..her phone is ringing in mid evening 10pm..at that….

Who might this be????
We looked at her iphone and to our surprised THE “GUY” that one second ago she was bolstering about…. She hysterically saying what do to.. I said don’t answer the phone???

DON’T ANSWER The Damned PHONE!!! Actually telling her... just a friendly advise to let her wake up for once… WAITTTTT!!! she hollered he’s Calling me. He’s calling … he’s calling three times... Yes sistah we heard you right!!!…....We all said BOOTY CALL!!!! Chorus needed again folks BOOTY CALL!!!!…

What is booty call.. as if she didn’t hear us say… its booty call …. She answered anyways……. Hmmh so much for our advised…

Our “Gigi” who repeatedly misinterprets the signs that men give her about their level of interest. Is now saying.. goodbye and running off with our cake..so what’s with her.. a friend questioned????…. I told him LOVE IS BLIND…..okey…. so can we get another cake then… lets try the OPERA CAKE ... this time no more GIGI…