Eat Drink Man Woman

The rumours have been confirmed. Yes, the exact same rumours that this neighbourhood friendly blog site has been propagating - Astro Girl will officially become Lady Banana on 9 October 2009.

And Eric Banana and Astro Girl are pleased to announce the finalised venue of their wedding dinner:

Antica Ballroom, Orchard Parade Hotel

It will be an eight-course dinner, not counting the last course... which is "of course". The event is highly exclusive and strictly by invitation only. If you get invited, please try to show up because not everyone will get invited. Guests are expected to pay an entry fee, hopefully above the minimum, partly to show their appreciation to the dinner hosts but mainly to help the organisers cover their costs. Door bitches and bouncers will be positioned at the reception area. Red packets will be ripped apart on the spot and if your amount is below the minimum, the door bitches will attend to you. Visa, Mastercard, Diners and Amex payments are all accepted, as are Nets, Cashcards and even EZ Link cards. Ditto for cash. Personal cheques will be assessed on a case-by-case basis. Gatecrashers will be *erm* mercilessly bounced off like deflated basketballs.

Anyway, it has not been easy for Eric Banana and Astro Girl in deciding the venue because they have differing views. The following is a list of their preferences and how their final venue choice fits the bill.

• Eric Banana wants to hold the wedding dinner in a central location that is easily accessible by public transport. He hates to attend wedding dinners in "ulu" locations. Remember, the impossibly pampered Eric Banana's view of the world, or rather Singaland, is delineated by MRT stations - namely Orchard, Bugis, Harbourfront and Clementi. Orchard Parade Hotel is *erm* in Orchard, obviously, and within walking distance of Orchard MRT station.

• Astro Girl is particular about the quality of the food. She has heard too many horror stories about wedding couples getting married in posh hotel ballrooms but the food sucked big-time. There should be no such worries come her wedding date though, 'cos the food is from Club Chinois, which is part of the Tung Lok Group.

• Ambience is important to both Eric Banana and Astro Girl, which is why they did a recce of Orchard Parade Hotel last weekend. Actually, Eric Banana went a step further. Prior to the recce, he spent an entire afternoon one day reading online reviews and assembling a package comprising photos that other couples have taken. And the photos were all neatly resized and properly categorised. It helped them make a preliminary decision on whether the "feel" is right.

• No discussion is complete without considering Astro Girl's amazing calculative skills. The prices of wedding banquets have been rising in recent years, and $1,000 per table is fast becoming a norm. (Interestingly, the hotels in the Marina area are charging more than the hotels in the Orchard area.) Nonetheless, Astro Girl believes that she can find value-for-money somehow and squeeze lemon juice from oranges... and Eric Banana was forced to concede that the Future Wife knows best.

Unlike many couples who will check out many potential venues first before making their decision, Eric Banana and Astro Girl just zeroed in on one location and satisfied themselves that it is the ideal venue. The typical advice is to negotiate, negotiate and negotiate prior to signing the contract. In the case of Eric Banana and Astro Girl , the so-called negotiation did not take place. They met the banquet sales manager, Mr Eric Tan, signed the contract and paid the deposit within 30 minutes flat. No hassle whatsoever.

The confirmation of the banquet venue was a critical step before the wedding date can be finalised. Eric Banana and Astro Girl are glad that it is out of the way now.

Oh, by the way, Eric Banana managed to take a quick glance at the banquet sales manager's calendar planner for 2009. Although it's still more than one year away, popular dates like 9 Sep 2009 (09.09.2009), 20 Sep 2009 (20.09.2009) and 26 Sep 2009 (农历八月初八) are long gone. Yes, Singaporeans are kiasu indeed.