His Royal Highness Prince Haji Al-Muhtadee Billah, the Crown Prince and Senior Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office, as personal representative of His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah, the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam, bestowed medals to 636 recipients yesterday at Istana Nurul Iman.

Six hundred and thirty-six individuals including government officials and staff, uniformed personnel and members of the private sector were awarded with state honorary medals yesterday in a ceremony held at Istana Nurul Iman.

By command of His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Haji Omar ‘Ali Saifuddien Sa’adul Khairi Waddien, Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam, His Royal Highness Prince Haji Al-Muhtadee Billah, the Crown Prince and Senior Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office, represented the monarch in conferring the medals. Text by Azlan Othman of Borneo Bulletin. Images by Azrol Azmi of Borneo Bulletin and Zaim Kasmat of The Brunei Times.

Congratulations to all the recipients. A well deserved accolade and thank you for your contribution to Brunei.

The cabinet ministers in attendance

Faustina Woo Wai Sii, Lieutenant Ade Roddiane bin Haji Mohd Rosdi, Frankie Ngu and Vivi Rohkininissmah binti Hj Mahmud

 

The winners of the 2nd round lucky draw of Red Bull Boost & Win at SKH Airport Mall

25 winners were feted for the 2nd round of lucky draw for the Red Bull Boost and Win contest. The event took place at Sim Kim Huat Department Store at Airport Mall. The prizes given were identical to that of the first round – 3 shopping vouchers, 5 PowerKad value of BND 30 each, 7 Prepaid Card worth BND each and 10 consolation prizes of Red Bull gift packs.

Don’t worry, there are still on going draw where the final draw will be after end of May. So keep buying Red Bull until the 31st May and who knows you will be enlisted to participate in the draw.

Present were SKH director Hou Leh Hui, Valentine Hon, general manager of Kingston Beverage & Creamery, and Kevin Robin Jon, sales and marketing manager of Kingston.

To join, just purchase a can of Red Bull Energy drink (gold or less sugar), attach the pull ring tab to the contest form and drop it in contest boxes in participating outlets nationwide.

Participants can obtain the contest form at over 200 retail outlets in the sultanate, or download the form from its Facebook page at ‘Red Bull Brunei’ or you can get the form from the participating outlets. For more updates, check out its Instagram @redbullbn

Kevin Robin Jon, sales and marketing manager of Kingston Beverage & Creamery (left) with Hou Leh Hui (2nd from right), SKH Director and Valentine Hon, general manager of Kingston Beverage & Creamery (right) and the winner of the SKH shopping voucher

 

Luminox Spec Ops Challenge 3053.SOC.SET

44mm, carbon reinforced polycarbonate case and case back, tempered scratch resistant mineral crystal, water resistant to 200 meters, signature black PU strap, and Luminox self-powered illumination. Swiss Made. Retail price: BND 743.65

I know there are many fans of Luminox from Brune Darussalam. You can get them at Chang Ein Hong watch dealer at The Mall (Gadong) and Yayasan Complex. Last year, Luminox made its presence felt in the Sultanate by having a Luminox “Space and Time Converge” Exhibition at The Mall and it was a great timing to showcase to the public what’s great about the Luminox brand.

For you info, Luminox has a strong relationship with the Navy SEAL team for over 25 years for the reason being that SEALS discovered the unique self-powered illumination technology found in Luminox watches and the rest was history. Luminox continued to enhance the technology and specs to meet the demanding requirements of the Navy SEALS.

To make it more interesting, Luminox created a special event for the journalists called the Luminox Spec Ops Challenge, a programme developed by Luminox with retired Navy SEALS to give a chance to civilians to train like a SEAL for a day. The event took place in Langkawi in September last year.

I know my friend Aziz Idris had the opportunity to part of the programme which lasted 6 hours which was trimmed from the a 24-week programme, dealing with basic underwater demolition. From this programme, the journalists will understand the experience the Navy SEALS have to go through and get a glimpse of the mental and physical challenge throughout the procedure.

Aziz Idris (2nd from right) of Borneo Bulletin participating in the Luminox Specs Ops Challenge in Langkawi last year

The 6 hour intense training conducted by retired Navy SEALS person

Hence this is where Luminox introduce the Luminox Spec Ops Challenge (L.S.O.C) watches, sold in two different sets.

One featuring the traditional 3050 Navy SEAL Colormark (3053.SOC.SET) design with its trademark “Colormark” bold numerals on the dial and bezel on a PC carbon dial and PU strap, and the other, on the 4220 Authorised for Navy Use (A.N.U.) (4223.SOC.SET) model which was a direct collaboration with the SEALS, refined to specifically address the needs of maritime commandos, featuring a stainless steel case, with screw crown and case back, sapphire crystal, multi-jewel Swiss quartz movement and 10 year lithium battery.

Do check out other Luminox models at Chang Ein Hong outlets in Brunei. Images provided by Luminox.

 

Liyana Yus addressing the media on her role as ambassador for Jollibee

Liyana Yus with team Jollibee during the launch

I’m a huge fan of jollibee because of their chocolate sundae and not-anymore-available Nasi Lemak (due to low demand). Of course, their Chicken Joy is still one of their best sellers and I would it rate it my top 3 fast food chicken in Brunei.

Last Friday, Jollibee unveiled their latest project where the Philippines fast food franchise appointed its first local brand ambassador Liyana Yus famously known for her role in Brunei’s first featured film “Yasmine”.

The event took place at Times Square Shopping Centre and it was a press launch event to officially introduce Liyana as the face of Jollibee in Brunei.

Liyana has been a huge fan of Jollibee since she was a kid and her favourite is still ChickenJoy. Did you know that Jollibee in Brunei was the first ever international outlet outside the Philippines? And yes, the first outlet is at Utama Bowling back in 1987. Amazing!!!

The signing ceremony between Liyana Yus and Jhing Perais, Country Head of Jollibee Brunei.

Jhing was very delighted to share the special moment for Jollibee

The ceremonial bite from Jollibee

Present during the launch were Jhing Perais, Country Head of Jollibee Brunei, Leony Rodriguez, Jollibee Head of Marketing and Din Kamaluddin, producer at Origin Artistic.

Jhing was excited to announce the new partnership with Liyana and he believes that the young talent of Liyana embodies Jollibee’s excellence in the fast food franchise.

For Liyana, this is the first opportunity for her to be an ambassador of an international brand. I’m pretty sure this will open doors for more opportunities in the near future.

So far, there are 12 Jollibee outlets in Brunei and it will be growing from time to time.

I did highlight to Jhing on the defunct menu item, Nasi Lemak, but let’s see what happens. Let’s hope it might make a comeback even if it’s a just promotional offer. Don’t worry, we have our social media team + Liyana to push your product too 😀 Congratulations Liyana and Jollibee on the new milestone.

Now that’s a lot of Chickenjoy

Congratulations Liyana

Hi-tea-ing with the media

The Jollibee drive-thru at Kilanas

The new chocolate sundae with nuts. Apparently it’s the bomb!!

Thanks Lena for recommending the new sundae :p

As you know, Jollibee is all about product quality at an affordable price. What more can you ask for? It’s crispylicious, juicylicious inside out and anyone can afford it. The family oriented fast food chain has made it one of the most popular fast food chain in Brunei.

I wasn’t aware also of their latest drive thru at Kilanas which will be a big hit among the residents residing near Kilanas. For this commitment, you can see that Brunei remains a key market for Jollibee in its vision to become one of the biggest QSR brands globally.

I still remember the founder and chairman of Jollibee Foods Corporation (the Philippines), Tony Tan Caktiong, addressing a keynote speech at Asia Inc Forum event at The Empire Hotel & Country Club back in 2007. What an inspiring story and the legacy lives on!!

What makes Jollibee another success is the ability to localise the taste for Bruneians and now, with the Jollisavers, patrons can enjoy Spicy Chickenjoy and Crispy Chicken Burger with rice. You can follow @jollibeebrunei on Instagram for updates and competition.

 

His Royal Highness Prince ‘Abdul Mateen was recently featured in GQ Thailand magazine. Catch HRH tomorrow during the Charity Polo Day 2016 at Royal Brunei Polo & Riding Club, Field II.

It’s happening tomorrow at Royal Brunei Polo & Riding Club, Field II where you will get to witness the Brunei Polo Team in the Charity Polo Day 2016. The highlight of the event will be the Royal participants including His Royal Highness Prince ‘Abdul Mateen who is an avid polo player.

The event will be held tomorrow Sunday, 17th April 2016. The carnival starts from 2pm to 8pm. The polo match will be from 4pm to 6pm.

There are still tickets available for the BND 5 and BND 2 for adult and child respectively. Furthermore, you will be able to enjoy some of the food vendors during the charity event. If you want to enquire about the tickets, you can call 243 1204 for more details.

His Royal Highness Prince ‘Abdul Mateen playing polo. Image taken from @tmski

 

Patrons enjoying the Kashmiri Night @ Bombay Place Batu Bersurat.

The menu list for Kashmiri Night

Have you tried Bombay Palace? It’s one of the popular Indian restaurant in the Sultanate. The first branch is located at Batu Bersurat and recently they just finished their buffet promotion for the patrons to try out the dishes from their new chef from Raddison, India.

Now the former Radisson, India chef will be busy preparing the menu for the Kashmiri Night (buffet) at Bombay Palace’s second outlet at Kuala Belait. Yes, there’s a branch at Kuala Belait where it will be priced at $13 adults and $7.90 for kids below 6 years. The buffet will be from 6pm to 10pm. Do look at the poster below for the full menu.

For me, I love the Fish Kashmiri and Chicken Nawabi Roll. The garlic naan is also quite tasty. Good thing the owner of Bombay Palace scouted a good chef from India. For bookings, call 334 2513 or 869 4840 at their KB outlet. It’s located at Lot 6176, Jalan Masjid, KB Town.

What I had during the Kashmiri Night food promotion

The setting at KB branch of Bombay Palace

call 334 2513 or 869 4840 for bookings

 

Check out the KFC Crispy Tenders.. Yummy

KFC introduced its all new Crispy Tenders range that comes in a variety of combos offering fans its succulent KFC chicken without the bones.

Crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside, the KFC Crispy Tenders are made of 100% whole boneless chicken fillet fried to perfection. For a limited time only, it is available with all time favourite jalapeno cheese sauce dip to complement the Crispy Tenders, adding to the enjoyment, from as low as BND 2.50 ala carte.

“We want customers to have a hassle-free way of enjoying their favourite KFC chicken minus the bones. It’s convenient, has all the meat in every bite and has the same great KFC Hot & Spicy satisfaction. KFC Crispy Tenders is also available in a variety of combos including the Bucket Sensasi that gives you even more value,” said Jaymee Lau from the Marketing Department of KFC Brunei.

The KFC Bucket Sensasi includes KFC’s new Crispy Tenders with jalapeno cheese sauce dip, KFC’s signature fried chicken, coleslaw, mashed potato and Pepsi at a value deal of only BND 23.90!

The KFC Crispy Tenders and Bucket Sensasi are available nationwide at all KFC restaurants while stocks last. Relish in your KFC chicken with or without bones with this limited time offer!

We were hungry during high tea 😀

Thanks Jaymee for your hospitality

 

I don’t know why but this is the fourth year running that I broke my fast at Excapade Sushi at Regent Square. The number one local sushi franchise has never fail to disappoint in the variety of dishes it served. This is also one of the restaurants that will need advanced bookings especially for Sungkai. It was full house on the first night as usual and it’s no surprise.

I’m a big fan of sashimi and I am impressed how the quality is still consistent. Excapade Sushi, being the largest Japanese restaurant outlet in Brunei, meant that they will have to stock up many food items to cate to the demand among the patrons. I’ve paid a visit to their supply store and wow, I didn’t realize how big their storage for food was. They have dedicated chillers for certain products and I’m pretty sure this is where most of the raw stuff especially the sashimi are being chilled. The management highly put quality as their priority to maintain the customers and gaining new ones. So if you are big fan of sashimi, you won’t be heading to the wrong place indeed. Even my friends from Miri and Sarawak frequent Excapade Sushi and ranked it higher than the Japanese restaurants at their home town. So thumbs up to Excapade Sushi for that.

There are simply tons of dishes to choose from.. Apart from the sashimi, there are also different choices of sushis and tempura. Even from crab lovers, they serve Hokkaido Snow Crabs (the claw and the leg part). Another impressive dish is the mussels. Yummy!! For me, my personal favourites are the Unagi sushi and Salmon sashimi. Every year, buffet doesn’t do me justice because I’m a light eater. I even missed out on the Edamame because there were simply too many choices at stake.

This year’s presentation has improved and they was even coverage by RTB which is the first of its kind for a sungkai outing. I was being interviewed too but I’m not sure when it will be aired.

So to my readers, I give this restaurant two thumbs up for maintaining the standard and the variety. For the price of $31 for adult, that’s a great steal indeed. Of course, more advantage if you happened to be a privilege member of Excapade Sushi $27.90. Check out the poster for mored details.

What I picked here is the Unagi 😀

You will be spoilt for choices at the sashimi section

Awesome stuff this. I had a few of this alone too.

More sushi :O

Sometimes being served in small portion helps

The buffet line and they have a few dishes served too

Gindara 😀

The dessert section. I had the blueberry one 😀

The thirst quencher

Don’t forget the sushi train

Ah, I’m posting another angle of the unagi. Me loves.

A packed crowd on the first night

Yummmm.. Winnie had two servings of this Green Tea ice cream with red beans

Lots of photographers on that night too.

The social media gang

Being interviewed by RTB

Fhey holding two certificates of Excapade Sushi Regent Square. It’s never easy to get a Grade A for a restaurant. Keep up the great work 😀

This photo was taken last year during the Sungkai promotion and both Hui Chiet and I thought the beautiful Fhey looked like the star of Yasmine *lol*

 

The promotion only valid for the weekend. Purchase a Mercedes-Benz and earn yourself an Apple iPhone 6 64GB. Do check out the current models – the GLA 200 AMG Line, the E 200 AMG Sports Package, the CLA 200 AMG Line or perhaps the C 180 AMG Line. Drop by their Beribi showroom this weekend from 10am to 5pm. You will be able to test drive the latest Mercedes-Benz models too.

 

Check out Aziz Harun’s latest music video – Senyum. Nicely done and looking forward to more of your projects

 

Click image to find out more

Mark your calendar now for Cyber Security Forum Brunei, an exclusive event on 4 February 2015.

With the theme of ‘Combatting Cyber Security Threats’, the forum focuses on the importance of continued efforts to combat cyber security threats.

The forum objective is to create corporate awareness on cyber security and to ensure businesses are equipped with sufficient knowledge of being safer online.

So what can you expect?

We have gathered cyber security experts from Canada, Australia & the United States, to name a few, to share with us their knowledge and experience in eye-opening topics such as:

• Re-Thinking Strategic Cyber Challenges in 2015 and Beyond

• Strategies for Combatting Transnational Cyber Crime Threats

• Protecting Today’s Bank Against Tomorrow’s Cyber Attack

• Cyber Risks and the Board Room

In addition to that, the participants will also have a real-life experience of how a cyber attack can be carried out through a 45-min technical demonstration!

The event is organised by Royal Brunei Technical Services. For more info, you can contact Kok Hui at info(a)csfbrunei.com or call 2242 700 ext 161. You can download the forum brochure here for more details.

 

Check out the new dishes at Papparich

When was the last time you head over to Papparich? Now they have introduced new menus as well as special promotion for the delight of their patrons.

If you are not aware, Papparich is a Malaysian franchise and it’s growing in popularity in Malaysia and Australia. I have frequent their Gadong branch as I’m quite hooked to their signature Papparich dish and their egg mayo sandwich (must try).

So what’s new? Pappa Fried Chicken Wings, Pappa Deep Fried Crispy Chicken Skin (my favourite), Pappa Special Fried Rice Noodles, Fried Rice Special with Pappa Fried Chicken Wings and Pappa Chicken Chop with Curry Sauce. A plenty, huh? 😀

Last week I dined out with David the @thenomadiclion who was in Brunei for a quick trip. He had the Assam Laksa while I had the Assam Laksa Fried version and wow, that was quite impressive. I just wanted a few servings but ended up taking more portion because it was just tasty. Of course, the one big pulling factor for me is the Pappa Deep Fried Crispy Chicken Skin and I’m a sucker for this dish. How can you go wrong this dish unless you want to look toned in the gym. I believe this dish will be a big hit after my posting on my instagram and people were talking about it and recommending others. Ah, the power of social media.. I mean, fried chicken skin.

Do also try their latest promotion where you can a Pappa’s Treat of FREE laksa if you spend a minimum of BND 20 and above. So you can choose either a curry laksa or asam laksa for free.

Papparich is located at Block G of Abdul Razak Complex. You won’t be miss the huge big sign of Papparich. You can also call their number 243 2333.

Promotion from Papparich

Ok, I’m hooked with this dish – Pappa Deep Fried Crispy Chicken Skin

My dinner companion for the night. Welcome back, David!

The Asam Laksa..

Fried rice which also comes with fried chicken

Fried Chicken.. Yumm..

This is the dish I was talking about. Papparich Special Fried Rice Noodles. Let me know what you think 😀

Now this is quite an addictive drink – Herbal Tea with Citrus. This is highly recommended. Me likes!!!