By TAN EE LOO and EE-LYN TAN
Photos by AZMAN GHAN
THE suspense of waiting finally ended when the five chosen couples for StarEducation's “Table for Two” met over a delightful candle-lit dinner on Valentine's Day.
The 10 guys and girls, selected from over 70 applicants, were treated to a sumptuous dinner hosted by Hotel Nikko Kuala Lumpur.
It was a feast fit for a king: the semi-buffet spread at Cafe Serena Brasserie had an enticing assortment of seafood, including oysters, mussels, scallops and crayfishes, topped with cheesecakes and pralines.
The romantic evening kicked off with a speed-dating session lasting five minutes each, which enabled the guys and girls to say hello to each other, before learning whom their blind dates were. After being paired, dates, they sat down to dinner.
Most of the participants had made an effort to dress for the occasion. Everyone also brought along gifts, to be exchanged with their dates.
The couples had all read about the “Table for Two” candidates, who were featured in StarEducation on Feb 10.
However, many of them said that meeting each other in person was an incredible experience.
To add a little spice to the evening, the StarEducation team asked the participants to vote for the Best Dressed and Best Smile awards. For the Best Chemistry prize, the team picked a couple that it felt got on best during the night. The winners received bags of goodies, courtesy of L'Oréal Paris.
Contrary to stories about disastrous blind dates, the evening ended with everyone adding new names to her/his address book. Who knows, the dinner could be the start of some beautiful friendships, or, even romance?
Well, want to know what happened at the “Table for Two”? Here are what the participants have to say.
Eknaswaran and Esther
Eknaswaran Matandor, 19, chose to give his date a large pink box of colourful marshmallows.
“I wanted something that was sweet, soft and colourful,” said the Limkokwing University of Creative Technology (LUCT) software engineering student, fondly called Vickey by friends.
Then, when it came time for dessert at the chocolate fountain, Vickey noticed that his date, Esther Wong Shuey Wye, 22, had scooped everything except the marshmallows.
“When I asked her why she didn't take any, she said she hated them!” said the Kuantan native.
Apart from the 'wrong' gift, he also found it a challenge to break the ice with his blind date.
“I think I drank more than six glasses of water just to fill the time,” Vickey revealed. “But I learnt not to judge a person by how she looks. Esther was quieter than I expected.”
Marshmallows aside, Vickey and Esther share a love for sports, especially Formula 1 racing, and a love for food.
“We had some common interests, but there were slight differences as well,” said Esther, an applied science student at Deakin University. “I like to bake instead of cook, but he likes to cook instead of bake.”
Esther gave Vickey a tin of Famous Amos cookies.
“With boys, it's always safe to buy food, especially since I didn't know who my date was going to be. I was lucky that Vickey likes food!” she said.
Both agreed that they had fun, nonetheless, and it was exciting to meet so many new people at the table.
John and Sue Yee
John Chang Shang Hao, 24, said many of the participants recognised him as “the guy who travels”!
“I was surprised that they knew who I am. Since last week, when it was announced that I was one of the finalists, I have been bombarded with messages and calls from family and friends!” said the Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman journalism student.
John made a present for his date, Tang Sue Yee, 20, by shaping a yellow ribbon into a rose. He wrapped, folded and glued the flower, then gave it a stem made of paper clips.
It took him five days to make the rose, which was then carefully placed inside a beer bottle – the first beer bottle he ever bought in Tasmania, Australia, where he used to live.
Sue Yee loved the gift and reciprocated with a box of Japanese chocolates – which turned out to be John's favourite!
“I told John if he really loved me, he would have made 99 of those roses for me!” said the Taylor's College mass communications student, with a laugh.
John remarked that Sue Yee talked a lot and asked him lots of questions.
“Because of that, she knows more about me than I do about her!”
Sue Yee added that as John was older, she learnt a lot from his stories about his experiences.
“He was very talkative and friendly, and he made me feel comfortable as the night progressed.”
Chuin Keat and Amanda
To make the Valentine’s Day dinner truly special, International Islamic University Malaysia law student Pang Chuin Keat had asked his brother to buy him a small bag and key chain during the latter’s recent trip to Barcelona, Spain.
“Barcelona is my favourite football team and I thought it would be nice for my date to have something that showed my interest,” said the 22-year-old from Penang.
Chuin Keat's date was Kasturi School of Accounting student Amanda Wong Shan Ming, 20.
Amanda had also wanted to make the occasion special; she made a bracelet and necklace using wooden beads for her date.
“It was the first time I’d made jewellery for a guy, so I researched ideas on the Internet before getting down to it. It took a couple of tries before I finally got it right.”
She added that she admired Chuin Keat for his ability to handle culture diversity.
“The fact that he is the only Chinese student in his batch shows that he adapts well to change,” she said.
On his part, Chuin Keat found Amanda very funny.
“She talked a lot and she also encouraged me to talk. Whenever I didn't say anything, she'd ask, “’Why are you silent?’” he said,
Both swapped phone numbers and e-mail addresses and said they would continue to keep in touch.
Darren and Jasmine
The Feb14 dinner turned out better than Jasmine Ong Kim Li expected. “The ambience was romantic and the food was good. And my date, Darren, makes a good friend to begin with,” said the Brickfields Asia College law student.
Jasmine, 20, gave Darren Dinesh Navaretnam, also from LUCT, a bottle of “round rubbers” that multiply when watered, and received a bracelet in return.
“My wrist is quite thick ... I'm just glad that the bracelet fits me nicely,” she said with a laugh.
Not knowing what to expect during the evening was part of the deal. Even so, Darren, 22, could not help but have the jitters.
“I was very nervous when I arrived at the hotel. It was only after my blind date and I started to open up and chat that I felt more relaxed,” he admitted.
The creative multimedia graduate was paired with Jasmine for the evening. In fact, he said he had a feeling that she would be his date as soon as he saw her picture in the paper one week ago.
“I did my own 'calculation' and thought it could be her,” he quipped.
Jasmine and Darren both won the Best Smile awards.
Kang Xian and Josephine
Lee Kang Xian, 20, had a tough time picking a gift for his date.
“As I didn’t know whom I would be paired with, I chose something neutral,” said the social sciences student, who showed up with a set of Adidas toiletries.
His date, Josephine Chin Fong Leng, got him a mug and chocolates.
Although there were a few awkward moments at the start of the evening, they became more comfortable with each other as the dinner progressed.
In fact, Kang Xian confessed that he had plans to meet Josephine again. “I will make the first move, but whether or not we see each other again depends on her.”
Josephine, 23, wore a strapless white dress accentuated with lilac beads. She completed her look with a pretty evening bag and peep-toe pumps – and took home the Best Dressed award.
On her outfit, she said she wanted to look simple and not too fancy.
Although she was getting calls and SMSes throughout the night wishing her good luck on her first blind date, Josephine said she chose to pay attention to Kang Xian.
“I also didn't get to eat much because we were too busy chatting. I thought I should focus on the person rather than the food because it's a date after all,” she added.
