The Celebration of My Fabulous Life : How to Celebrate Outside Your Kitchen Without Any Allergy Attr

"To see in color is a delight for the eye but to see in black and white is a delight for the soul.” – Andri Cauldwell.

The night of 23rd January 2015 was adorned by beautiful souls dressed in Black and White.

As I entered the space set in a coveted three-storey mansion, I could sense some romantic vintage feel, an interior design of white walls, terrazzo floors, modern crystal chandeliers and white tablecloth-covered tables…..indisputably classy. This classy ''home of mine for the evening'' was Maison Francaise. To my little dismay however, there was no classic Rolls Royce parked on the driveway out front to be sighted. Oh nevermind.

As I've been nicknamed, Cleopatra, captured through the lense of my dear friend, Arif Ramlan. I've always loved his work of art and when he accepted my invitation and request to be the photographer of the evening, I was contented and happy. Arif loves high contrast B&W photography and I recommend to check out his Facebook page and Instagram.

A sample of his latest work: THAIPUSAM 1 and THAIPUSAM 2

You can stay connected with Arif through his FACEBOOK PAGE, click here: SHUTTER ADDICTION PHOTOGRAPHY

We savoured not only the best of French haute cuisine in KL but more importantly the finest taste of emotions that lingered in the air and friendship bonds that are ever lasting....to be treasured.

Perhaps some of you may be wondering, how did I survive the evening without any allergic attacks due to food intolerance?!

Read on...I will let you know one, two or may be more tips!

These days I've found new strengths in me to dine out ever since I'm equipped with knowledge and tools for my food intolerance. For this celebration, I made arrangement a week prior to the event. Outlined every single details from the theme to my special menu. The menu recommended was Gourmand Menu consisting of a 4 course. I took a look and already knew I will not be able to savour them.

So here are some tips how I went about to organise this evening that swelled my heart with love and got me home overjoyed without any allergy attacks (Gott sei Dank!!) :)

Tip 1: Knowledge is power. Know which foods you can tolerate and which foods are off limit! By now you would have jotted down a list of foods based on your system/body feedback.

Tip 2: Make a list and keep it handy. Thanks to The Low Histamine Chef , Yasmina Ykelenstam, I've developed my own restaurant card which I adapted from her e-book.

Tip3: Preparation is key! Make a selection of restaurants that you think can and will accommodate your request. These days many restaurants especially the fine dining establishments are aware of food intolerances/diet requirements and are prepared to accommodate. They just need to be informed clearly and if you are catering for an event, be mindful to let them know ahead of time. Call each one up and explain your conditions and enquiry if they can meet your food intolerance requirements in addition to others (pertaining to your guests' requirements and evening arrangement/settings etc).

Tip 4: The pen is mightier than the sword! I prepared a letter to the chef. After the phone conversation with the Manager of the establishment, I wrote an email to confirm my reservation and outlined the specific requirement and further queries which I wanted to be clarified. Together with the email I attached a letter for the attention to the Chef. I was very pleased with the responsiveness of MiJin Choi in replying all my email messages. She was warm and accomodating. In her reply, she recommended the DEGUSTATION MENU consisting of 6 course and the GOURMAND MENU consisting of 4 course with choice (which was chosen by the majority amongst my friends) and also including the Ala-Carte. To see the MENU, you can click here.

Here was the 4 Course Menu Specially Designed by Chef Thierry Based on My Safe Food Requirement:

Cauliflower soup with asparagus head

Codfish Carpaccio with beetroot and green apple, olive dressing Duck breast with ginger sauce Blueberries and green apples dessert (which was my Birthday Platter/Cake!)

Tip 5: Be grateful and stay at peace. Enjoy every single bite. How we appreciate foods that enter our body does play a role in our overall health, healing and well-being.

During the dinner I approached Chef Thierry and thanked him for accommodating my requests. He said that food intolerances isn't something new or unheard of with a smile on his face.

So here I share with you some photos of his creations. Hope this will inspire you to have wonderful celebrations outside your kitchen without any fear.

Appetiser: Cod Carpacio with beetroot and green apple, olive dressing

Main Course: Duck Breast and Cauliflower served with Ginger Sauce.

To me, it was a beautiful wonderful evening and my heart swelled with so much joy and so grateful for this beautiful life, friends and daughters in my life.

The best gift I have in my life are these beautiful darlings of mine - my two daughters. The treasure of my life.

It was a memorable experience and I returned home overjoyed and free from any allergy attacks. Thank you to everyone who served my friends and I that evening especially to Chef Thierry and the lovely MiJin Choi for the extra love ingredients, the cooperation and coordinations.

Heartfelt thanks to all my friends who came to join me and making it one of a memorable day of my life!

Thank you again Arif Ramlan for the photography and memories in Black and White for us to treasure!

Photos paint more than thousand words and with that you can peak into the evening by clicking THE CELEBRATION OF MY FABULOUS LIFE.

Angel Aina and her Charlies They say LIFE BEGINS AT 40 and it’s the year I can be downright naughty *wink*! Ahahaha

Lots of Love,

Aina

#lifestyle #glutenfree #dairyfree #grainfree #lowhistamine