I’ve been a member of the Shanghai Dolls for a while now, so as soon as the Dolls introduced the membership card, I got one.  Discounts on waxing and restaurants?  Yes, please.  And since then, the card has served me well, though not as well as it served me on St. Patty’s day. In celebration of St. Patrick’s day, I went to O’Malley’s in the French Concession.  It was just me and a few friends, along with every other expat in Shanghai.  I have never seen O’Malley’s as crowded as it was that night—people were wedged into every corner of the pub, both inside and out.  We could barely move, let alone make it to and from the bar.  But it was a fun night—lots of singing and dancing and drinking green beer—basically, what every St. Paddy’s day is about.   It was still quite cold in Shanghai so I was wearing my winter coat, but after a few minutes of being in the bar I had to take it off, despite the fact that there was no coat check and I didn’t want to hold it.  There was great music on, and I wanted to dance!  And I can’t dance while holding my massive coat; it messes with my moves.  So I tossed my coat under a table near where we were standing, on a pile of other coats and bags.  Pretty soon my handbag joined the pile.  I couldn’t let anything get in the way of me, my green beer, and dancing to the Pogues and U2.

Beautiful and luxe, the semi-hidden (it's on the 2nd floor after stepping through a nondescript entrance and tiny steep staircase - watch your head!), El Coctel is owned by the famous Willy of El Willy restaurant. It's actually relatively empty early in the evening, until about 10 or 11PM when it really fills up (remember to make a reservation or the bouncer at the door will simply refuse you entry).The staff are absolutely top-notch. Fluent in English, polite, extremely attentive, and prompt. One of the best service experiences I've had in Shanghai. I love the eclectic mix of plush couches and ottomans though it was curious they had some sort of Buddhist(?) offering in the middle of the room against the wall.

We were delighted that they served us complimentary filtered water, not boiled tap water, upon us being seated. We were also treated to a little bowl of fluffy popped corn that was slightly salted and slightly sweet. Very tasty and lovely to nibble on with our cocktails.

I was surprised with how authentic La Creperie was. OK, it's not a very valid statement for me to make, since I've never actually lived in Brittany, France (where the cafe owner hails from). But I say this because the food was totally different in taste and ingredients to anything else I've eaten in my life.

It's primarily a crepe place, serving up a staggering selection of savory and sweet crepes. The cafe is cosy and bustling with diners, and is modelled after the seaside and lighthouse - which is what Brittany is like, I presume. Sometimes, themed cafes are pretty tacky, but La Creperie definitely isn't. It's a laid back, casual cafe that makes for a fabulous weekend brunch. Our waitress spoke fluent English and all the staff were very attentive and polite, with food coming out quickly from the open kitchen.

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I've heard SO much about Azul Viva's "fantastic brunch" so we finally managed to make our way there on a rainy Sunday. I've been there twice before but for their tapas dinner, which was generally pretty good. I like their crisp yet relaxed ambience and the polite, English-speaking staff, and was keen to see what they were like during the day for brunch.I'm really glad we booked, because they were a full house! I suppose it's the expat brunch haven in Shanghai ;) At 130元 for 2-courses or 150元 for 3-courses, they're also touted to be fantastic value. So, is that true? Well, yes and no.

I would say first of all that the ingredients are not super-high quality, expensive ingredients, like our flat-out impressive brunch at Cristal. However, Azul's brunch set is cheaper (though only very slightly) so you could argue it's fair. Also, I wouldn't say they're extremely filling - rather, yes, you'll be sufficiently full if you order all the carb meals, but only semi-full if you don't.

It was Julia's birthday and we decided to celebrate it with a small dinner in Anna Maya, since she is vegetarian. I've been keen to try Anna Maya out after she told me she loved it - they are (obviously) vegetarian, but also do a lot of vegan, and also macrobiotic food. To be frank, except for another Aussie girl friend's birthday last year (which we celebrated in a vegetarian restaurant in Singapore), I've never been to a vegetarian place before. In fact, I don't even eat vegetarian meals. So it was with great novelty to me to go to Anna Maya. It's a little cozy cafe that looks like a living room, with wood antique furniture, lamps, and just a few tables squeezed in. It's very chill, and has a definite bohemian, laid back vibe. Their food is all about whole foods, and all unprocessed, with the daily menu simply scribbled on a sheet of brown paper.

I am one of those people who is very protective of her hair.  When I say that I mean the cut, colour, the hairdresser I use, etc.  You could probably go so far as to call me slightly obsessive (only slightly, okay maybe no slightly!).  If I could I would pay for my hairdresser in Australia to come to China every 6-8 weeks to do my hair, but the budget really doesn’t cover that!

When I arrived in China 3.5 years ago I was Blonde!  Yes I know hard to believe with my current colour hair…  I attempted to go to a few different places to get this kept up, but I was originally living  Guangzhou and they are lacking good, western hairdressers who have a good supply of Blonde colours.  So Brunette I went and I love it!

In my attempt to find a hairdresser that I could trust in Shanghai I did the usual technique of asking as many women as I know who they go to and who they think are good.  At first I thought the only way I would get a good result was to pay through the roof for it…  I went to one of the famous places in the French Concession and was not only left with an empty wallet, but was really disappointed with both the cut and the colour.  I had got into the habit of leaving my hair for a very long time in between visits, because I really didn’t want to pay for what they did.  I also would try to wait for the last part of the year so that when I went back to Australia for my yearly trip I could get it fixed there!

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A few friends have been telling me to check out La Strada for months, but we never had a chance to go because it's a little out of our usual hangout areas and we kept getting side-tracked. Boy, am I glad we finally found ourselves there! Owned by Craig Willis (of Mr Willis restaurant above La Strada), the restaurant is casual and bustling with diners when we arrive for dinner. We're lucky to score a corner table by the window despite not making a reservation, and happily settle down to peruse the menu with a glass of wine in hand. The menu is not huge, but since it's our first time, we were happy with the selections available. We are particularly impressed with our pizza, whose base is thin and crispy and isn't at all soggy (so many thin crust pizzas in Shanghai fall prey to the soggy factor). The ingredients are fairly generous though I wish they'd put the ingredients on the outer edge of the pizza too so I'm not left with a large piece of plain crust at the end. The spicy salami and mushrooms are fabulous on the pizza and we merrily devour it.

There are several places every newcomer to Shanghai has to know. One of this places is Avocado lady's shop (also known as Arugula lady and Basil lady). I got to know about Ms Jiang Qin from the first issue of Time Out Shanghai and since then grocery shopping has never been the same again. Her shop at 274 Wulumuqi Rd is one of the only places in the city to buy cheap, fresh avocados (10 RMB), a rare find. Her store looks like nothing special from the outside, but the good import foods at incredibly low prices have made this woman famous.

Ms Jiang is a real entrepreneur and a smart cookie because she knows her laowai market very well. She has all those products that the other vegetable sellers don’t, such as fresh arugula, basil, frisée, blocks of parmesan, and balls of fresh mozzarella for only 17 RMB.

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After lingerie line, Sonia Rykiel, presents knitwear collection for H&M, which will hit the stores on February 20. Rykiel, known for her knits, brings adorable sweaters and accessories from her French boutiques to the public with this collection, her second with the Swedish retailer.I had a look at the collection on the official website and I doubt it will become “must have” item for me.. Expect to see the signature stripes, a mass of knitwear and cutesy shaped skirts and accessories. The collection is very cute but in a mature way, but the best thing about these collaborations is the price! We can pick up a piece of designer wear for a cheap and affordable price, maybe not 100% cashmere treatment, but we have the style, colors, shapes and the label on it!The ultimate accessory from the collection is the UNICEF bag by Sonia Rykiel pour H&M, which shows the commitment of H&M, Rykiel and customers to helping children in the cotton producing areas of India. Thirty per cent of the proceeds from the bag will go to the project.

Helmed by Brian Tan, a Malaysian, the upscale HoF is a sweet tooth paradise. I like to call it a "dessert bar", because it's a fascinating blend of sweet treats, cocktails and wines. Dark and chic, HoF gets really packed in the evenings, especially after dinner when people roll in for desserts and a cocktail or ten. I've had a love affair with HoF ever since my first bite of their luscious orange chocolate cake with caramel and sea salt - I think this was mid-year when they first opened. A dense, moist chocolate cake ("it's kinda like a brownie, no?" said my girl friend) with a thick drape of caramel on top, and interestingly, sprinkled with a few shavings of fresh sea salt. "To off-set the sweetness and it goes with the caramel", Brian says as he sprinkles it on with a flair. This particular dessert is the best cake I've had in Shanghai. Rich yet fluffy, I simply cannot resist this gem!

Two cafes, both conveniently located in the French Concession, both promising nirvana for the Shanghai chocoholic looking for something a bit more nuanced than Kedi Dove bars.  But which one follows through?Whisk: I know Death by Chocolate sounds hackneyed, but I still think Whisk should rename their Chocolate Therapy, because I pretty much keeled over halfway through.  It's the frosting that does it - imagine super-rich semi-mousse-textured candy bars sandwiched between layers of cake.  I've heard good things about the other desserts as well (if orgasmic sighs=good).  That said, this is dessert by blunt instrument: nothing wrong with the ingredients, but nothing particularly inspired in how they're combined.  Brownie, chocolate cake, tiramisu....you've had all this before.  Which is not to say you won't have it again.

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An oasis in the middle of a crazy city…  If you have been living in Shanghai for any length of time you will have come to realise that there are some things this city has to offer that other cities in the world pale in comparison with!  Everybody knows that when you live in Shanghai you should have a regular massage routine, “well how can you not, with the cheap prices and massage places on every corner of the city”!

I have found, what I think is, one of the best massage places in town!  It has it all: it is cheap, it is clean, they are great at what they do and it is open until 2am!  This place has the prices of a cheap seedy massage joint, but with none of the cheapness involved!

When you step into Yu Massage through their very discreet entry you will be greeted with a simple oriental rustic interior.  You will then be lead out to the 12 treatment rooms in the back of the property through a quaint garden.  Yu Massage offers popular treatments that cover you from head to toe and won’t break the budget.  Last time I went there I had an hour foot massage then an hour Chinese massage for 148rmb total.  They have oil massages, traditional Chinese massage, foot massage and many other options.