thenomadGourmand

RebeccaSaw.com

noreply@blogger.com (thenomadGourmand) — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 08:42:00 +0000

Hi everyone!

I will be blogging on my new blog RebeccaSaw.com from now on.

Regrettably, my new domain is not thenomadGourmand.com, though I wanted it to be.
Sad to say, 85% of people I met does not know what a Gourmand is, much less how to spell it.
Another 60% does not know what is a nomad.

Adding all that together equals to difficulty for most to visit or even remember my blog. Hence the new domain name.

Template-wise, I had to use one of the free ones on the internet. Would have preferred one that is exclusively designed for me of course, but I have to work within my means for now.
Also, no thanks to the old laptop who decided to die on me now, of ALL times. Thanks to UnkaLeong who generously funded a part of the cost. *muaks*

The Cilantro fund is being sacrificed for now, even Bali & Phuket. But I refuse to sacrifice my Japan trip & had pushed it forward to June instead of April.

Anyhow, the new blog is a mess. A big HUGE mess.

Bryan has done most of the features editing, adding widgets and realigning the template.
Thank god for him!! * Thanks so much Bryan!!!

Now it's on me to edit the every post, realign the text & pics. This is gonna take some time so bear with me ya!

So that's it. A new spanking blog, not quite ready but I guess I will have to start using it or it will be dormant forever, considering that it has been 4 weeks since Josh last imported all my post over & I was still blogging on thenomadGourmand.blogspot.com.

A big thank you to all who have been following my blog & let me welcome you to my new blog home - RebeccaSaw.com!!! See you there!!

ps: Don't leave comments here please!!

Bloggers Chilling Out at Kindori, Sunway

noreply@blogger.com (thenomadGourmand) — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 09:00:00 +0000

It wasn't that hard to organise this one.

Just got to go "Want ah, go eat ice cream??"
And replies are "yes yes yes yes!!".

So the 11 of us polished off 14 cups of Kindori's FRESH, blast frozen on the spot, added with REAL fruits ice cream.

And for a reasonable price too.. yup, I'm a sucker for good deals. Sue me.

Flavours are either RM6.90 for local fruits or RM8.90 for international fruits or mixed of 2 flavours, served in a CUP. Add RM1 to the price if you prefer the cone.

What I love about Kindori is the fact that ACTUAL fruits are used. And they got a whole medley of choices available!
Below are the local options; with watermelon, CEMPEDAK (gasp!), jackfruit, pineapple, papaya, CARROT (???), mango & rock melon among the more interesting choices.

Then we have the international fruits such as Grapes, Blueberries, Blackcurrants, Strawberries,
Raspberry, PUMPKIN, Passion fruit, Green kiwi, Golden Kiwi & Lychee.

For each order, 38grams of fruits is first weighed on a digital scale.

"The 100% milk" they used to make the ice-cream is actually frozen and the amount required for each order is measured out before it is added together with the fruits into the machine. What you see here is the chocolate one, used for the chocolate or chocolate banana ice cream.

The process of making the ice - cream.
Add frozen milk, add fruits, pull the lever and voila! Ice cream out alike those from soft-serve machines.

My first visit was at their outlet in Times Square, near the cinema ticket counters.
Here, the fruits selection were a lot better, versus the outlet at Sunway Pyramid.

I had the Morello Cherry, which was so sour I couldn't finish it & I end up scooping spoonfuls off my friend's Green Tea.

Powders are used for the sumiyaki coffee, green tea & black sesame flavours. I have only tried the coffee and green tea so far and I find them decent though a bit light in flavour.

You will find bits of skin from the fruit, and parts of the ice cream not very well blended but I didn't mind.

Clockwise from top: Choc (not very chocolatey so be warned), raspberry & grapes (all I tasted was the raspberry), choc banana (a bit too light on the banana) & Grapes (barely tasted anything).
Below left: Watermelon, which was very refreshing because texture-wise it has become almost like sorbet, no doubt due to the percentage of water present in the watermelon.
Below right: Green kiwi, so sour that my face remained scrunched up even after 5 minutes of tasting it. The CEMPEDAK is a must if you like cempedak. Think durian and durian ice cream. Creamier, smoother and sweet.

From top left: Sumiyaki Coffee (nice but light in taste) & the Pineapple, which was one of the better ones we had.

Service is good in both outlets, with the service staff ever smiling and patiently waiting while you lament over your choice of fruits for your ice cream.
Do not however, compare this to Haagen Daaz or Ben & Jerry's. This is after all, low fat milk and fruit based ice cream. Haagen Daaz goes for RM12++ per scoop versus RM6.90 to RM9.90 per serving here.
A fairer comparion would be Tutti Fruitti (post coming up in.. like next month if I ever get to it), and I personally I find this wayyy better. I would return soon for the coconut & red bean flavour. That should be interesting, no? ;)

Kindori outlet at Times Square. On the same floor as the cinema, near the ticket counter.

Kindori outlet at Sunway Pyramid, NEW Wing. Near Starbucks & a floor above Tokyo G, as well as J Co.

Again, prices are as follows:
Flavours are either RM6.90 for local fruits or RM8.90 for international fruits or mixed of 2 flavours, served in a CUP. Add RM1 to the price if you prefer the cone.

And the CNY promo is on till 28h of February 2010.

Bloggers' Yee Sang @The Magic Wok, Damansara Jaya

noreply@blogger.com (thenomadGourmand) — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 13:53:00 +0000

Indeed the woks here wields some serious magic.

How else could one explain the delicious dishes that appeared from the kitchen that night?

One dish that got me hooked that night were the finger licking long ribs. It was absolutely addictive. The marinate thoroughly permeats the meat & the tender texture with the glorious soft fatty layers still got me salivating till today.

I licked the ribs, the bones, my fingers & was most tempted to lick the plate after I was done. Bliss!

What do bloggers wish for when they 'loh' Yee Sang?

To more traffic!
To more $!
To more events!
To more freebies!!
To more friends!
To more movie screenings!

To more ..
to more...
and the list goes on..

Yup, we had our fun with the Raw Mango Yee Sang ;)

The Claypot Tilapia with white pepper soup was another exceptional creation.
A whole fish deep fried; then immersed into the flavoursome medium peppery heat broth with chock loads of vegetables (the kind that comes with claypot tofu, you'll know what I mean right?) & lastly topped with siew yok (pork belly) and yam.
This is probably the only pepper dish I'll enjoy EVER; cos I hate pepper!

The Roast Duck was good, though not exceptional.
The meat was tender with very slight gamey taste. Personally that was fine, since I preferred my duck as such.
A worthy mention goes to the chilli, which although wasn't spicy enough, still packs better heat than most.

Oh, this was named Herbal Roast Duck for a reason, with the reason being the "herbal" sauce that came with it, a refreshing departure from the usual sweet ones.
I can't say much for the herbal sauce, which I disliked. The duck good enough on its own anyways.

The garlic roast chicken RM18 - half/RM35 full bird was tender & nicely garlicky. Then again, it's not named garlic roasted for nothing. If only the breast part was as tender as the thighs, it would have been superb.

I do eat prawns when they are prepared well. And here at The Magic Wok is where I make another exception.
Fry some fresh prawns, then top them with deep fried garlic and fragrant dried shrimp.
Oh my...The creator of this dish is a genius!
Ming Har with dried prawns paste RM25/40/60.

Most chinese restaurants I know boast of their own in-house made tofu (beancurd). The Magic Wok didn't slack in this dept either. Theirs was silky smooth and eggy, deep fried and served doused in tasty gravy with (fake) abalone slices.

The waft of robust beef stew (Oriental Braised Beef) struck my nostrils the moment this was served & I waited impatiently for the cameras to stop clicking.
Unfortunately the texture of the beef didn't quite match the smell. It was the only serious let-down for the evening.

The oriental lamb RM18 outshone the rest; tender yet retaining a bit of bite for the teeth.

We didn't have any complains for the twin style kai lan & stir fried Lotus Root with olive leaves, which provided the necessary fibres to round off the excellent meal.

Personally I liked the preparation of the lotus root, due to the herbal-ish nuances and sweetish flavour, credited to the wolfberries added into the dish.
RM18/25.

A sweet ending for the night.

In operation for 9 years, The Magic Wok first started out as a 'hobby' for Soon Wei's parents, once their children has left the nest in pursue of their Uni education.

Recipes were from his mum, & more were created based on their dining experiences around Malaysia & overseas. Most are tweaked a bit here & there to achieve the taste & flavour they seek for their restaurant.
Overall, the dishes contains influences from a mixture of Chinese (Hakka, Cantonese, Teo Chew, Hokkien, Nyonya) cuisine & personally, I liked the concept.
Here at The Magic Wok, I'm assured that I'm eating Chinese cuisine, yet the menu came with enough different presentations & new preparations to occasionally jolt the jaded palate.

For an outlet that has been around for 9 years, there weren't much coverage on the blogs for it's food. Perhaps Damansara Jaya is a bit out of the "main" locations for some?
A pity really, for this area does have some hidden gems. Anyhow, I hope the map below helps.

A footnote here:
As a food blogger, naturally I did a bit of homework prior to the dinner. General feedback was that the food was mediocre and the portions were on the smaller side, etc.
Well, I certainly hope my pleasant dining experience here applies at all times & to all diners & not just because it was an invited review.

Anyhow, The Magic Wok has over 50+ dishes on their menu and I am of opinion that making the right choices is crucial here. No doubt the prices may even be considered to be on the higher side, hence it would not be a wise option if you order the common preparations, ie steam fish in soya sauce.
Go for the specials & you would most likely find your $ worth.

Myself? I will be back, especially for the Claypot Rice with Waxed Duck SAUSAGES and duck meat. My, I haven't heard of this yet!

California Pizza Kitchen - KLCC

noreply@blogger.com (thenomadGourmand) — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 01:58:00 +0000

Alcohol is served all day.

So we loosen our ties, threw off our jackets & sipped mojitos, pina coladas, margaritas, smoothies & rum + tequila with our salads, pasta & pizza, FOR LUNCH, on a weekday.
Ahh.. if only this is a daily routine.

California Pizza Kitchen in KLCC is Sg-based Golden Pillar Holdings only franchise outlet in Malaysia.
And it's very outlet in KLCC has been in operation since 1999, a full decade and a mean feat; if you ask me, considering the frequency and number of dining outlets that has come and gone on that very floor itself.

Come lunch time, the place is packed to the rafters, but the experienced kitchen & staff handled the orders without a hitch. A decade of practice no doubt.

The imported hearth open flame oven is the trademark item in all CPK restaurants. It bakes the pizza in approximately three minutes, & the intense heat coupled with rapid cooking time preserves the natural, fresh flavors and characters of the toppings.

Our Peking Duck Pizza (RM33.00) (Pan roasted duck breast, low-fat Mozzarella cheese, soy-glazed shitake mushrooms, crispy wontons, slivered leek & ginger and Hoisin sauce) was a tad too salty for me & I find the hoisin sauce overpowering, but as all dishes on the menu are direct creations from CPK's central kitchen in the US, I'm guessing the ratio of ingredients & flavours are more suited to the western tastebuds.

Having said that, California Pizza Kitchen has survived a decade in KLCC & pulls in the crowd daily so obviously CPK has it's fans.

Most produce in CPK is imported directly from the HQ as well, & that includes the dough of the pizza crust, the DESSERTS & the Mexican Cholula Hot Sauce you see above, in replacement for the common Tabasco for the pizzas.

All of the items reviewed is part of CPK's Asian Delight Lunar New Year Menu, as well as their Valentine set; Special Dinner Menu for Two - RM88 ++ which includes:

- A choice of selected half size salad
- A choice of selected 1 pizza
- A choice of selected 1 pasta
- A choice of 2 glasses of mocktails or sparkling wine

The appetiser for CPK's Asian Delight Lunar New Year Menu is Lettuce Wraps (from RM23.00 (chic/shrimp) or RM26.00 (chic & shrimp) which consisted of minced chicken &/shrimp, wok-seared with Shitake mushrooms, water chestnuts, & scallops in soy ginger sauce, served on a bed of crispy rice noodles & a side of spicy chilli-ginger sauce.

This is very chinese indeed, especially when you eat it wrapped in a lettuce leaf not unlike the way one eats the "Nyonya Jiu Hu char".

Their chinese/eastern repertoire of salads was next.
A total of 3 to choose from, my favourite is the Miso Salad, (Half size -RM19.00, Full size - RM22.00) that came in the form of a hill of shredded Napa cabbage, fresh avocado, julienne cucumbers, daikon, edamame, carrots, red cabbage, green onions, cilantro, crispy rice noodles & crispy wontons tossed in Miso dressing.

The clean crisp flavours from the salad won me over. Or it could be that I like Japanese food in the first place.

Asian inspired salads doesn't run far from Thai & Indonesian. And not surprisingly, the next two was the Thai Crunch Salad (Full size - RM29.00, Half size -RM26.00) with lime-cilantro dressing & topped with crispy rice sticks & Thai peanut dressing & Chinese Chicken Salad (Half size - RM20.00, Full size -RM23.00) with toasted sesame seeds & fresh cilantro in a spicy, sweet & sour sesame dressing.

Out of the 2 choices of pastas, I liked the Kung Pao Spaghetti (With chicken -RM29.00/ with shrimp - RM36.00/ with chicken + shrimp - RM39.00) though I wished that it was spicier.
I find the Garlic Noodles (chicken -RM29.00, shrimp - RM36.00, both chicken+ shrimp - RM39.00) - wok-fried Chinese yellow noodles in garlic-ginger sauce with snow peas, Shitake mushrooms, mild onions, red & yellow peppers, broccoli, & scallions a tad too sweet.

Then came their legendary desserts... legendary because so many people have raved of their Tiramisu & their Red Velvet. Fully imported due to QC, it is flown in frozen & dressed up just before serving.

Overall, the desserts were too sweet for me, a reminder of the fact that they were made in US. But that could also mean more authentic recipes.
The Red Velvet Cake - RM22.00 was unlike previous versions that I have tasted and actual beet juice were used.
The Chocolate Souffle Cake - RM20.00 is deliciously RICH, made with Belgian chocolate & served warm with CPK's triple-thick hot fudge on vanilla bean sauce. Don't mess with the Americans on their fudge, I tell you.
The Tiramisu - RM22.00 is creamy, and so alcoholically infused that it deserved an order if you happened to be in CPK again.
Unfortunately banana cream was used rather than fresh bananas in the moist and rich Chocolate Banana Royale Cake. But of course, when one takes into consideration the distance it was imported from I guess it is wise to use the cream version instead.

Overlooking the KLCC fountain & KLCC park, CPK in KLCC provides diners a scenic view while they feast. I reckon the scene is even more beautiful come night time.

The media representatives for the session.

Many thanks to Integrated Public Relations for inviting me on behalf of CPK, GPH! I'm holding my breath in anticipation for their next to be-launched creations in April 2010!

California Pizza Kitchen
Lot #140, Level 1, Suria KLCC
50088 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: (+603) 2382 0512

Business Hours: 11:30a.m. - 11:00p.m. daily

Kitchen Creatures, Centrepoint - INVADED by bloggers!!

noreply@blogger.com (thenomadGourmand) — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 05:22:00 +0000

I like this place.

And so does the other 20+odd bloggers, judging by the happy grins & noise we made that night.

Honesty, direct, peppered with bits of wit, the Kitchen Creatures menu tells you as it is. You get what you pay for, you know exactly how much you gonna have to fork out for it & you will be served FRESHLy prepared & MSG-free food. What a marvelous concept!

Try as I might, I couldn't resist ordering the burger. Described on the menu as Monstrosity, yet priced at RM11, it was an excellent value for money choice considering the layers of cheese, full sized ham & bacon, EGG, fresh vegetables, pickles, tomatoes & THICK patty of chicken or beef snuggled between a lightly toasted quality bun.

Favola it is not, but their repertoire of pasta is still a pleasure to eat. Fresh paste, bountiful bouncy seafood with a good balance of flavours (not too creamy nor too salty or sweet) had all of us agreeing that Kitchen Creatures' claim of "all our food is carefully prepared to meet the highest standards set by George Creatures (the chef)...only fresh ingredients with no MSG" is no hoax.

Marinara, RM13. Spicy Aglio Olio with Shrimp, RM12. Seafood garlic cream sauce, RM13.

Other than the food, there is good eye-candy for us gals. Or gays.
Fresh off their gym workouts, muscles stretching against their shirts, crew cut hunks congregate here for the Sizzling ribeye steak, RM19; a chunky portion of red meat, done to your preference & arrives at your table smoking. My my, I can see the gym doctor nodding approvingly.

We had more of course.

Monster Platter, RM15 - Fried shrimp, calamari rings, mushrooms, mini wings & nachos.
Grilled Chicken, RM13 - Charbroiled boneless chop with sauteed onions, baked beans & fries.
Chicken ala King, RM11 - Sauteed with mushrooms in light sour cream gravy, served with buttered rice.
Sirloin Steak, with a choice of 2 sides at RM16.

I can't sing much praises for the Monster Platter, but I find the grilled chicken & sirloin steak decent for its price.

The pies @RM2.80 each were CUTE & although small in size, was bursting at the crust with its delicious stuffing, be it tuna or chicken & egg.
A bit dry on its own, yes, but a good order for those who prefers something savoury yet light in size.
Btw, it came with a side of mash too. We ordered a set of TWO pies for RM7.

Their pizza crust tasted generic but I reminded myself that this is after all, RM12 per pizza.
The pizza dough is made specially for them by their supplier. All the sauces & gravy however, is made in house & fresh upon order, assured Chef JJ, one half of the brothers duo who runs this place.
Each pizza is 10 inches in diameter & we stapled the Seafood pizza with Thousand Island - RM12, The Magherita, which is mozzarealla, cheddar with spinach, special pizza sauce & the Pizza Carbonara which consisted of mozzarella, cheddar, parmesan with chicken & beef bacon, also RM12.

The much raved about stuffed mushrooms (RM7.30 for 6) was a few sizes shrunken but made up for it in taste.

Meanwhile, the Garlic bread are as crisp & buttery as it should be.

Some of the drinks we ordered; Ice Cream Soda float RM7, Ice Lemon Tea RM6, Limey George (Ribenna, Sprite & Lemon) RM7.

There is a lot more on the menu than what we tried that night & we were really spoilt for choices, both for food & for drinks.

Parking is FREE after 630pm & there is WIFI.
Food is affordable & FRESHLY prepared, portions are big, there is a medley of choices available, bill is tax free, environment is clean & comfortable...WOW.. Kitchen Creatures is probably the next BEST thing to happen for the BU area!

El Meson, Bangsar - mid week Lunch with the bloggers!!

noreply@blogger.com (thenomadGourmand) — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 16:00:00 +0000

The unbearable heat of the mid- day sun blazed down relentlessly & I hasten my pace towards El Meson on Jalan Telawi 3, Bangsar.

Well, I thought wryly, if I can't siesta like the Spanish, at least I will dine like one.
And the latter fact holds true if one dines at the warm, welcoming alcove of El Meson.

With Chef Fernando helming the kitchen, a Spanish import to boot, my meals at El Meson (one of which I have blogged about; you can read about my indulgent dinner here ) had been pricey but never entirely disappointing, & had therefore, deservingly amassed more hits than misses in my book.

Their Ultimate Pork Burger - with mushrooms, bacon, cheese & caramelized onions, RM26 was my goal this time round, since it is part of their lunch menu which I haven't had past opportunity to sample.

To just describe it as delicious probably wouldn't do it enough justice, as it was undisputedly one of the top 5 pork burgers in town, with the most delightful fried potatoes cuts that is worthy to be claimed "orgasmic", unlike a certain pork burger joint that I know.

I'm sure discerning diners appreciate efforts by F&B outlets in attention to details, & I for one, would always have praises for a chef who doesn't take shortcuts in the preparation of the sides that comes with a main course.
The freshly fried potatoes were fluffy & lightly seasoned; & thus was the perfect accompaniment to the burger.

Out of the series of Tapas we had, the terrine is a clear winner; an ingenious mish-mash of bacon, pork, apricot, pistachio and balsamic reduction.
The Calamares Rellenos stuffed with squid, Serrano ham, tomato (RM16) & Stuffed Tomatoes with prawns & squids topped with cheese and breadcrumbs (RM16) were divine & I was glad the mains followed quickly after, for all that actually made me hungry for more.

Iberico Cheeks with carrots & potatoes on Pumpkin puree,RM62.
Pork Chop - pan roasted and served wth Sauerkraut and roast potatoes, RM42
Pan fried chicken breast stuffed with Serrano & cheese served with potato wedges and vegetables, RM38
Pork Belly and Pork ribs Stew with Chorizo, Morcilla Blood Sausages and Beans,
RM38

The THICK pork chop was juicy though I did feedback to Ek that it the sauce could have been a bit more flavourful. The tender gamey Iberico Cheeks had me pinching my own cheeks. My, I marveled as I cut the big round balls into half, Ibericos pigs does have meaty cheeks! The stuffed chicken looked dry at first & worried murmurs went round the table. Luckily, it was illusory & the stuffing of Serrano ham & cheese turned out to be delicious!

The pork belly & rib stew was certainly moreish, even more so as it is an uncommon preparation. There was a lot of different beans in the dish and we polished off every single one of them.

All of the sides of vegetables & beans on each dish were wonderfully addictive, tasty even on its own. Kudos to the Chef!

El Meson has upped their desserts offerings & we were given complimentary ones to share. (Thanks Ek! ;p )
My favourite was the Trifle, and here (though it may look un-photogenic) they scope it out from a big bowl and this is actually one portion. The custard layer was lovely, the jello addictive & the copious amount of fruits deceivingly assured us that this is a waist-friendly dessert ;)

Then the molten choc cake stole the show. It was heavenly. The flow of chocolate lava doesn't seem to stop oozing out! The outer layer was lightly crisp, and it's warm & moist chocolate sponge was absolutely to die for!
Last was the flourless, sugarless chocolate cake; which though out-shined by it's mate The Molten Lava, was still a worthy- to- order dessert.

The Spanish creme catalana (picture not here since I forgot to take any) came in small cazuela molds, just like how they made it in Spain. Aesthetically, it was easy to pass it off as Creme Brulee but according to Ek, i'ts preparation is different. Anyhow, think creme brulee but flavoured with cinnamon & lime zest instead.

I like El Meson for its innovative preparations & uncommon ingredients used in its dishes.
My advice for those who wants to try this place is to get a min group of 5, since the dishes ain't exactly your typical dinners prices, & there is so much worth stapling here!

The bill came up to RM45 per pax & there were 8 of us that day. For the amount of food we had, I thought it was a steal!

Farni's Nasi Kukus, Bukit Damansara - memang BEST!!

noreply@blogger.com (thenomadGourmand) — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 09:15:00 +0000

I've been blogging a post too many of pork.
To the extent that a fellow blogger (Malay) asked me at a recent event; "Eh, can blog about something that I can eat ah? Don't you eat Malay food?".

"Oh yes, I love Malay food! I eat Nasi Lemak almost every other day." I replied.

"Err.. NL is Malay food right?", I stammered when I saw him pause.

"Yes yes, but do recommend something not so common." he said.

"Well, fret not," I assured him, thinking of my back logs and folders of pictures; "I'm sure I can dig out something, watch out for my next post".

So yeah, pushing aside all my drafts, I present to you one of the best nasi kukus to be discovered, with many thanks to skinny Leonard for the heads-up on this place. *muaks*.

I am assuming that Farni = Farid + Nani, since the bunting says
" Call for catering:
Farid 012 - 710 2206
Nani 012 - 223 2206".

Leonard gave a few warnings, one of which is to come early or risk watching them pack up.

To get here, look out for Pondok Polis Bukit Damansara near Plaza Damansara which is opposite CIMB Bank (there is a mosque nearby too), Farni's Nasi Kukus stall is located directly behind it under a make shift tent. There is also a malay economy rice stall beside it & another coffeeshop-like outlet nearby.

Within close vicinity of this police "station", the aromatic scent of fried spiced chicken suffuses the air, and reassuringly tells me I am at the right place.

Being there early (yes, I'm very kiasu when it comes to food), I got to watch how the rice was prepared.
Each individual steel bowls of rice was rinsed, the correct level of water added & steamed in these 'Chinese' tiers steamer.

Their ayam goreng rempah hit all the right notes for the prerequisites of a good fried chicken; moist, juicy with a lovely, deliciously marinated crisp skin.

The rice was just as good; firm & loosely separated. Since it is plain on its own because this is not coconut milk infused, this is where you should be liberal with the superb daging masak hitam (beef in soy sauce?) & tasty fish curry.

Be sure to ask for more of the red chili sauce too, it's knock-your-socks off spicy & a chili lover's dream.

My RM5 nasi kukus. 1 chicken drumstick, 1 piece of beef, liberal amount of curry, cucumbers & ladyfingers. Very filling & absolutely gratifying.

So the next time you happened to be in Damansara Heights at noon & budget happens to be a bit tight for the eateries in this area, look for the police station. This pondok has got a hidden gem ;)

Nasi Kukus Farni, Bukit Damansara
Call for catering:
Farid 012 - 710 2206
Nani 012 - 223 2206

Weekdays - 12pm to finish.

Bored of the ordinary? Try some beggars' food!

noreply@blogger.com (thenomadGourmand) — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 15:04:00 +0000

Now RM212 isn't exactly a beggar's budget. But get together 9 fellow wacko beggars and it might just be 2 day's begging work.
Plus you'll get a Saturday night out of boring civilization, good food & (depending on who you invite), an absolutely glorious MAD time out.

The FAMOUS New Beggar's Delicious Restaurant @IJOK.
Where some say it is in some twilight zone. . .

but fear not though, for with the advancement of technology, no 'ulu' area is too 'ulu' for accessibility.
Here are the GPS coordinates; & it does gets you to the front steps of this place.
N: 101 25' 8.7"
E: 3 18' 24.0"

If all fails, just head towards Sg Buloh towards Kuala Selangor on the highway, (we took NKVE) and lookout for Ijok. Once you are in the town of Kuala Selangor (which is not as backward as you think, for we were actually caught in a traffic jam at 530pm on a Sat!), it is a mere 30 mins straight drive till you see a signboard that says "New Beggars Delicious Restaurant" on your left.
Seriously, it is that simple & the GPS might not even be necessary.

above bottom right: Unisex lavatory on the outer grounds, with a working flush & THICK toilet paper. Put some of our shopping malls' sheer wipes to shame really.

Kitchen is a typical tai-chow kind of layout; for this place does dish out your typical vegetables, seafood & steamed fish preparations.

A large enclosed area, the perimeters of the restaurant is used for, among other things, rearing of fresh water fishes (we are not sure if those poor fishies ended up on the diners plates every night) and the the foliage of greens all round soothes the city weary souls in us.

Seated at the open air dining area with a thatched roof over our heads, the place is quiet at 630pm, the air is fresh & the cooling breeze eased off any heavy thoughts that we may have carried with us from civilization.

Below: Well mannered hunks who got all the little details covered without the hostess having to ask.
The pre-ordered food were called for, the tea steeped & served, the ice ordered, the cutlery & plates distributed & chillies, garlic etc all laid out. Definitely on my invitees list for more food adventures ;) .

Famed for its beggar chicken @RM41, I ordered one, though pictures & text from blogs I've have read had warned of its mediocrity & predictably, it turned exactly as such.

the chic was stuffed within with some herbs & tasted exactly like the common herbal chicken

The duck @RM45 was a stellar diversion of our initial disappointment. Flavourful, yet retained a hint of its signature gamey taste, we loved this. The stuffing of abalone mushrooms was much appreciated & we slurped up the gravy too.

I remembered requesting for a less fatty Pork dish & since I don't speak Cantonese, I asked a fellow blogger to order all the dishes a day before. She definitely told the lady boss "not so much fat" but we still ended up with a VERY fatty Pork Knuckle @RM41.

But it was freaking awesome... awesomely good!
Glorious melt in the mouth fat.... all soft gelatinous fat!!!... (with some meat la) sent us all the way to high heaven.
The cubes of yam at the sides left us in bafflement as to what was it exactly for, but they definitely did a good job soaking up all the 'juices' of the pork & its marinate, & we fought for the yams & mushrooms as hard we did for a piece of the knuckle.

I hesitated in ordering the Glutinous Rice @RM30 at first. But when more confirmed their attendance for the trip, I gave a quick call to add 2 more dishes (while we were on the way!) and was thankful that the restaurant obliged.

This huge orb of very fragrant, glutinous rice is actually a delicious "bak chang" ( glutinous rice dumpling) in a bigger form.

The amount of salted egg yolks in it is not for the cholesterol conscious. However, for the bunch of us, we barely acknowledge the existence of cholesterol.
As it becomes drier as it cools, do please lap it up while it's hot. I personally liked it though, for it wasn't too oily & every grain of rice was soft.

The Stuffed Fish @RM33 is worth ordering even if it is just for the sake of marveling at how the heck did they manage to stuff all that paste into the fish skin and yet it still look exactly like a fish?? The fins, skin, tail & head are all still intact!

Look ma, no bones!!

Squeeze the lime over the fish & eat each slice dipped generously into the sweet spicy chili. It's Yong Tau Fu wrapped in a fish, though we had to admit it's appearance supersede its taste ;)

The aftermath. *BURP*.

To placate the guilt in SOME of us (I didn't feel any guilt at all) for the onslaught of fat & protein, we added an order of vegetables @RM8 AFTER we finished all the above.

And they were really fresh & glorious greens which tasted as if it was just plucked out of the soil moments before it hit the wok.

Below:
We ventured into the beggar's den.

which is at the back of the whole area...

The firewood used is supplier by their contact, so no, they do not go chopping down trees in the wild.

See the below; The "oven", where the firewood goes underneath & heats up the clay & soil , etc.
The poultry & pork packages are placed on the top & covered in more clay/mud?.

Our chicken, duck & pork knuckle came from the "oven" via a wheelbarrow. The boss will personally crack the outer mud layer, revealing another few layers of brown papers and unwrapping it like a gift to reveal the last layer of foil encasing our chicken/duck/pork knuckle.

The fish, chicken & pork were pre-ordered a day before. I added a duck & glutinous rice just 30mins (while we were on the way) before we arrived so that shows last minute orders is possible. Seafood & vegetables are the other dishes that can be ordered on the spot.
Number to call is 03 - 3279 1936 or 019 317 3687.

By the way, do note that they do call you back to 'scold' you if you ordered and didn't turn up!
It happened to me, cos they thought I didn't come. Once I was there, I was too busy running around taking pictures & delegated the task of getting the food served to one of the guys. Reservations were remembered by mobile numbers, & we were served the exact food we ordered so I don't see how the misunderstanding came about.

conclusion:
Another FUN outing organised by thenomadGourmand - CHECK. ;p
Value for money - at RM24/pax - CHECK.

note:
This place is recommended for those who had never eaten beggar's chicken/duck etc before & is game for a short ride out of town, especially if you have a group of friends/family joining you.
It wasn't super great, (especially the chicken itself) but at least it is authentic (baked in clay/mud and all).

Our free-flow tea was RM5, plus RM1 for the ice.
They asked if we would like to have some fruits, & the food intoxicated bunch of us agreed.
For RM6, we got like 6-7 cubes of pineapples & watermelons, so yeah, you might want to skip the fruits.

Sticky, 1 Utama Shopping Centre, Old wing

noreply@blogger.com (thenomadGourmand) — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 22:55:00 +0000

This shop never fails to pull in the crowd even on weekdays. And that reminded me of those J Co hey-days ;)

However, I doubt these people actually make any purchases. They were all much more fascinated watching the making of these yummy candies.
Likewise for myself, I joined the crowd & went click-happy.

The still soft & pliable candy were stretched manually by hand from its original huge shapeless mass. Then they were rolled & left for a while to cool. After it has harden enough, it is cut into little pop- into - the -mouth chunks.

It is then packaged into these little transparent jars & sold between RM13 - 19 each, depending on the flavours.
They have these huge ones packaged in plastic too, though I do wonder who would buy these!

STICKY is apparently a very popular hand made candy brand in Australia; specializing in hand-made, quality rock candy and sugar art.

Each of these rock candies comes with their own colourful design and even have words inside them. Again, I wonder how they "shape" the designs. A colour for the outer layer, inner another colour plus different wordings & shapes within. Yet, the candy is one huge lump of coloured sugar before it was rolled into long sticks.

Taste-wise, they were a 'lil sourish & not too sweet. Although I am not a candy person, I actually liked them & won't mind a bottle as the sweets tasted very 'fresh' & "non artificial".

This shop was officially launched on the 7th of November '09 and the crowd on that day was a huge one as they were giving out free samples. So yeah, free samples + Malaysians = ruckus ;)

A thing to note; STICKY takes order for customisation of sweets too. I asked for orange & blue colours, 2 layers & the initials "TNG" inside and was quoted RM730 for 6kg.
I didn't order it of course ;p, but it is a good option to keep in mind for special occasions like corporate launches, weddings, gift packs & so forth.

Sticky Malaysia
LG 213 Lower Ground Floor,
1 Utama Shopping Centre,
1,Lebuh Bandar Utama ,
Bandar Utama , 47800 Petaling Jaya
Tel :603-77277688
Fax : 603-77257688

Meng Kee Char Siew - Jalan Alor

noreply@blogger.com (thenomadGourmand) — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 08:01:00 +0000

Venue: Meng Kee Char Siew - Jalan Alor.

Date: Jan 9th 2010, Sat.
Time: Lunch.

Order: Single portion Char Siew Rice.
Price: RM6.50

Taste: Diabetically, teeth- jarringly sweet, due to its outer glaze.
Texture: Meat was soft & tender, which was it's only saving grace.
Fat : Solid, most certainly isn't the melt- in- the- mouth kind that I prefer.

Rice: Clumpy & wet.

Verdict: Seriously below expectations, given its reputation. (TNG's personal opinion ok)
My first visit was somewhere in April 2008 with a couple of friends. It was still located at Tong Shin back then.
It wasn't until I started blogging that I realized that this Meng Kee was supposedly one of the mighty Kings of Char Siew in KL.
I was surprised, for that visit didn't leave any lasting impressions on me so I thought a re-visit was warranted given that I had just finished a FSF vs SFS char siew thesis ;)

If only it was as good as it looks.

Delicious Roast Pork Noodles & Robert Char Kuey Teow, Taman Megah

noreply@blogger.com (thenomadGourmand) — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 06:46:00 +0000

Often, simplicity is best.
The chinese condiments of soy sauce never failed to work wonders for a dish. A bit of this, and a dash of that, then a flurry of shallots over the top & there have you a tasty noodles dish.

This particular stall in Restaurant Megah Good Luck, Taman Megah gussies up their simple noodles with soft, crackly - top siew yoke (roast pork) & at your request, a ladleful of watery but aromatic curry.

The blanched noodles & bean sprouts (taugeh), drizzled with of their own mix of soy sauce & some spring onions made the base for this dish of RM4.50. The result is a simple, delicious & economic lunch item that never fails to satisfy.

Unka loves his with curry, & the mix of soy sauce & curry certainly adds a new dimension of taste to the dish.

Another reason to drop by was to check out Robert's Char Kuey Teow after my mid - week lunch tryst at Say Huat Restaurant in Section 17, PJ.
Apparently Robert has branches all over PJ, & I couldn't resist a comparison.

Here, his protege dishes out quite a mean plate of char kuey teow; which although is good, can't hold a candle to Robert's at Say Huat's.
hmm... How should I put it? It tasted almost the same but it ain't the same? ;)

But of course, if you are in Taman Megah, this version is almost as good as it gets.

Unable to resist economy rice, I heaped myself a plateful of my favourite items; stir fry vegetables, sting ray in sour assam curry (not very fresh), sweet & sour pork ribs (more batter than actual pork) & chinese cabbage with fermented beans.

And, yes, there IS rice underneath all that ;p

For foodies wanting to try something out of ordinary, this stall promises some twists to decades old creation of Sarawakian favourites.

Needless to say, I ordered something to try, and my RM4.50 Tomato Mee was a pure disaster; or to me at least it was.

It reeked heavily of MSG, & was way saltier than necessary. I thought that it is such a shame really, for tomato mee isn't something commonly available in KL/PJ & it would have been a wonderful addition to the hawker fare we are accustomed to.

This restaurant is also the PJ branch for Imbi's Soo Kee Sang Har Meen at night.
For lunch, the roast pork noodles is highly recommended. The chicken rice stall does brisk business too & would probably be my lunch on my next visit ;)

Restaurant Megah Good Luck
Address: Jalan SS24/11, Taman Megah, Petaling Jaya, Selangor
(It is right behind Fatty Crab and is on the same row as RHB Bank)
Operating Hours: Daily (7am-2pm)

Duck Teriyaki anyone?

noreply@blogger.com (thenomadGourmand) — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 06:05:00 +0000

I think duck teriyaki is a VERY good idea.
We have chicken, beef, lamb (*YAWNS*) & so yeah, why not duck? Of course anything porky is welcomed but still, duck teriyaki sounded like a very cool dish.

Hence my barely contained glee when I stumbled upon a blog post that highlighted Yokozuna' s Kamo (duck) Teriyaki.

Never mind that I barely heard of this place.
Never mind the fact that no other trusted foodies had breathed a word of the food here.
I threw caution to the wind, cos I was just thrilled to bits at the very novel idea of duck teriyaki.

I left the office, with the particular blog post still showing on the PC screen, & zoomed over to Damansara Uptown.
The blardy maze of Uptown took me a while, but I finally found it & double parked directly across.

Stepping in & without looking at the menu, I placed an order for Duck Teriyaki & drummed my fingers impatiently for it to be served.

Kamo Teriyaki. RM16.80, 10% service charge applies.

The set came with sides of chawanmushi, sushi, some pickles, miso soup, fruits & rice.

But of course, the highlight was supposed to be this.

Now, I'm not trying to sound like an expert, but I am somehow able to, (to a certain extent) more or less guess the taste of the food just by looking at it.

And this portion of duck got all warning bells clanging & screamed adjectives of 'overcooked', salty & tough.

And the first bite confirmed my suspicions.

After futile attempts of dainty biting to tear apart a slice, I gave up & yanked the piece of meat between my teeth & fingers before it finally gave way & split into 2.
My short-lived relief came to a halt once the meat hit my tongue, for it sent all my salty taste buds into a frenzy. No prize for guessing why.

And as if that wasn't torturous enough, I had to chew for a full 3 mins before that offending piece was finally disintegrated enough to be swallowed.

Horrified, I pounced on the miso soup & took a sip in hope of washing away the taste. The miso soup turned out to be as sodium-laden.

Sigh. The chawanmushi was the only agreeable item on the platter, other than the papayas. I attempted another slice since I was very hungry, but the saltiness got the better of me & I gave up.

So I ta-paued it back, (hey, it cost me RM18.50 in total after tax, didn't want to waste my hard earned cash) & ate oats to fill the remaining void in my stomach.

Yokozuna has about 8 different lunch sets daily for RM12.90 or thereabouts. I only had the duck teriyaki, so I can't pass judgment on their other offerings.

I certainly HOPE the other ala carte items and set lunches fares better.

Yokozuna Japanese Restaurant
24G Jalan SS21/58,
Damansara Utama,
47400 Petaling Jaya
Tel: 03 77299679

Pork Free
1130am – 3pm
530pm – 10pm

below: Dining area, teppanyaki grill, sushi bar.

SFS vs FSF, at The Char Siew Street of Aman Suria

noreply@blogger.com (thenomadGourmand) — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 06:54:00 +0000

I remembered my first visit to SFS in Aug09, & the 50mins wait that followed our order, even though it was only 1130am.

We appeased part of our hunger with this; dry pan mee which was not the least memorable.

I almost changed my mind about the pan mee when my wan tan mee finally arrived.
It looked even less appealing and made the long wait seemed fruitless. Besides, I thought the portion was rather measly.

Though one is always preached not to judge a book by its cover, this one proved to be a spot on.

1st thing I must mention about is the mee. Perhaps to some, it is considered 'Q', a term used to describe the elusive consistency where the noodles are both elastic yet tender.
To me, it just was dry & hard to the bite.
The sauce that it was bathed in neither excites nor spurred the jaded tongue.

The famed char siew can be merited a 'good', DEFINITELY better than most, yes I agree, but certainly would not be my PERSONAL chosen choice should I have any char siew cravings.

The wan tan (pork dumplings) were nothing to shout about either. Well, at least the soup fared better than Famous Seremban Favourite's.

I thought perhaps it was a bad idea to come on a weekend or maybe I've got a bad cut of char siew. Hence a re-visit is required. Or so I had vowed.

Anyhow, the dismal memory lingered on, & I never made it back.

But then again, when one is on the topic of char siew, the research is never complete if a comparison to the "other famed one" is not done.

So in Dec 09, I made it to THE Famous Seremban Favourites, with fellow foodie bangsar-babe.
This visit reminded me again that 747 or SFS, still awaits my 2nd visit.

The opportunity presented itself soon enough, when a friend told me of a decades old establishment in Loke Yew, named Hang Kee that serves the best char siew he had tasted. I immediately whisked him to Aman Suria and told him that these 2 char siew establishments has been supposedly the creme de la creme of KL char siew.

I then told him of my plan, to hop- eat on the "Char Siew Kai" (street of char siew) of Aman Suria, since there are 3 char siew outlets (another being the Char Siew Zhai) all within walking vicinity.

All in agreement, we started at 1030am at SFS. A tummy filler was ordered, & we braced ourselves for the notorious long wait.

So here I am back again in SFS/747 Char Siew shop.

Our tummy filler: A totally forgettable set of toast & eggs.

My friends was amazed at the crowd & I could feel their anticipation growing.

Anyhow, after a 35min wait, I find myself staring at almost the same sad looking plate of wan tan mee as I had in Aug09.

Well, I consoled myself, at least I can pass proper judgment now.

All of us dug in, and while they was pleased, some said they had tasted better.
Myself?
Same verdict. The mee was stringy & the sauce was nothing near of a worthy-praise.

I think the problem lies in the cut. Certain pieces were almost all fat, and the others were too lean. Perhaps if I have gotten well-balanced tiers of fat & lean cuts I might have enjoyed it better?
Anyhow, marinate & texture- wise, it was still good char siew.

So, tummy still rumbling, we ambled over to Famous Seremban Favourites, and repeated the same order.

Before that, let me rewind back to my 1st visit to Famous Seremban Favourites, where I had one of my mid-week lunch with bangsar-babe & Shum.

So here goes FSF, ROUND 1, in Dec09.

Bangsar-babe, Shum & I polished off bowls of Hakka mee, which to me was absolutely good to the bite & doused in the mixture of concoction of sauce that wafted of lard yet wasn't as oily as the famous Pudu one.

We ordered a plate of char siew to share. It came with a small saucer of char siew sauce, which was a nice extra.

SOFT, GLORIOUS meltingly creamy fat with lean parts that didn't require much chewing.

Heck, who are we kidding? One plate was like an appetiser. Hence the second plate.
This second portion was even better, simply cos it has well separated tiers of fat & lean meat.

Just for comparison, I took a picture of a single portion plate goes for RM4.50. Doesn't look like much right? (this was someone else's order by the way).
Do yourself a favour, just place an order of 2 straight up & save yourself the wait.

We added orders of Sui Kow, which wasn't fabulous but edible.

The well-balance marinate, that was neither too sweet yet salty enough, gave the sticky shiny glaze that had many char siew connoisseurs drooling & moaning.
Parts of the caramelized crust at the edges of the char siew provided a pleasant smoky flavour.

The soya bean that you should NEVER order. Trust me.

There you have it, my 1st visit to FSF. The 2nd visit (below) is with my hop-eat friends, in continuation from where I left off after 747 (my 2nd visit above).

Our orders of wan tan mee took less than 15mins, and while it was packed with customers, I noticed that FSF maintains pretty good crowd control; ie orders were taken not long after you are seated (no frantic waving of hands needed), the food arrived in reasonably good time, & even payment was efficient.

The wan tan mee tasted so much better here. The smooth & SOFT yet springy noodles went great with the accompanying tasty mix of sauce, albeit a bit oily.

The char siew here won favours from my friends, and they declared it much much better than 747.

Bill recognised me from my first visit & came over to chat with us. He admitted that the noodles might not be consistent since it is cooked on the spot & their foreign workers are not that dependable. Which is why he is always in the shop overseeing the operations personally.
The char siew however, are under strict quality control since it is prepared beforehand.

He then added a separate plate of char siew for us.

Wonderful..

Luscious char siew with exquisite layers of fat.

Even the vinegared chilies & red chilli sauce is much better than SFS/747's, although unnecessary. The fish ball soup is cooked with "ham choy" & hence tasted different from the wan tan soup base. The fish ball was bouncy enough, but lacked the fishy taste that bear testament of high ratio of fish meat used. The wan tan is not worth describing.

I bought packets of chicken rice here for lunch before. My advice is, stick to the char siew.

Random thoughts: I stared at this kid in amazement, and wondered if that would be what I might look like if I eat like this everyday ;p
I think he is the boss's kid. Cute right???

Here a map for those who haven't been here.
Bill, as you can see, is a highly educated fella, with all the BBA, B, M & whatnots on his cards.
But like he said, the best one that describes him is the 3 words below those titles. LOL!

I don't think I'm qualified to say that FSF is the best in KL, since I have not tried as many char siew places as some bloggers I know.
I do opine that the char siew I had by Ah Khai; shop inside Simon’s Delight, opposite Sea View Coffee Shop in Paramount Garden bought by Ciki & alilfatmonkey for Potluck at Nigel's is very good, though some find it a bit too soft.

Anyhow, if the final verdict is to be only between SFS vs FSF, then for me I would prefer FSF.

Favola, Le Meridien - Antipasti Buffet at RM35++!!

noreply@blogger.com (thenomadGourmand) — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 06:12:00 +0000

My previous visit to Favola for dinner was barely a week ago.

And I'm back this week for their antipasti lunch buffet, which says a lot about what I feel in regards to the quality, portioning, taste & value of the food here.

The assortment of antipasti was richly varied, and a main might not even be necessary if you are opting for a light lunch.

But for a heavy LUNCH eater like me, I thought an additional pasta or pizza might have to do ...

till I saw this...

Oh baby!! All that for me???

LOL. No, of course it's not only for me. But it could have been; for there were only a number of tables occupied throughout the lunch hours of 12 to 2pm, & most diners opted for ala-carte.

So I had serious fun at the buffet, literally polishing some serving bowls clean; like for example the WONDERFUL seafood salad below, with its springy prawns, bouncy squids & meaty scallops (that's coming from someone who doesn't like prawns under normal circumstances) .

The mushrooms tossed in olive oil topped with parmesan shavings & rocket were superb! So marvelously juicy & sweet! Even the grilled vegetables; (zuchini, capsicums, chilli & carrots) were nicely charred & drizzled with gourmet olive oil.

And I learned that these little cut (triangular or rectangular) sandwiches are called tramezzini in Italy. For lack of a better description, they are crustless tea sandwiches. Except, Italians do not have them with tea, but with wine.

Lastly, in the collage below, is the stuffed loaf. It looked wonderful, packed full of ingredients but was actually just tomatoes, capsicums & a load of other vegetables which was nice, but do skip if you are hard up for precious stomach space.

My favourites are of course, the BREADS. If you are a bread lover like me, it is a futile attempt to try stopping at one slice.
Each loaf is remarkably fragrant with its crusty outer layer & soft chewy centres. There is an assortment of dips & spreads for you to flavour your breads if you so wish.

The Carpaccio of angus beef, marinated with pistachio (that was what Chef Amir said), frozen & sliced just prior to serving was nicely presented on the buffet spread with pine nuts, pesto & figs. I enjoyed it very much & the same goes for Bresaola, the shaved dried beef.

Then there was this intriguing jelly-like thing. The first thing that crossed my mind was it could be a terrine of some sort. Upon tasting its frutti essences (& being the pleb that I am), I couldn't place nor identify what it was till Chef Amir explained that it was FIG JELLY! And why is the jelly presented with the raw meats?

Done with the cold cuts, I moved on to these little cute fellas, where the one on the left below is self explanatory, followed by the interesting crab mousse with tomato & pesto and then the colourful (both visually & tastewise) red, yellow & green capsicum puree.
Seriously, isn't this buffet such an interesting feast for both the eyes & tummy???

Italians are so healthy. I mean, other than the cheese, cheese & more cheese and yeah, wines, they do eat a lot of vegetables. (Anyone been to Italy? Do they eat like this everyday??)

I do not know where Favola got their supplies of tomatoes, which is so freaking JUICY it makes me almost comtemplating asking the Chef for the supplier's name.
The feta cheese stuffed tomatoes (I thought it was blue cheese at first) was very pungent, so be warned.
Melanzane alla Parmigiana; baked layered eggplant, zucchini & parmesan cheese with tomato sauce & basil is worth at least a bite for taste.

I love quiches & this was one of the first few appetisers I grabbed off the spread.
Turned out it is an Yorkshire-pudding inspired creation, stuffed with potatoes, eggplant, onions, grapes & GREEN APPLES.
Some onions inside lends a hint of pungency while the sweet tartness of the apple makes this an interesting mouthful. I truly like this.

This innovation fat bag of a ravioli was sitting pretty in its little pool of tangy bleeding-with - absolute-flavour sauce.
I slashed open the bag, to find a TOO THICK skin encasing some delicious innards. Needless to say, I didn't quite fancy the skin but I did suck the insides dry ;)

And then we have these jars & jars of pickles.
Clockwise from top left; we've got sun dried tomatoes, pearl barley (big shallot), mixed olives,
gherkins, garlic, & shallots.
No comment on these since pickles ain't my thing & I didn't try them.

All of the above is a lot for RM40.25 right?

BUT there's more below!

The octopus, crunchy to the bite & chewy for the finish. Very nice!
Feta in oil.
Mozzarella buffalo cheese balls bathed in olive oil & capsicums. It was bland, milky, & provided a very firm meaty bite.
Capsicum & olive oil Salad.
Fresh vegetables with dressing.
Light potato salad.
Chestnut & Artichoke salad. Oh my! All that artichokes!

Ok, this is just a picture I accidentally left out from the collage ;)

So there you have it, what I ate for my Favola Antipasti noon buffet.

And below is the Favola DESSERT noon buffet.

Not as much choices but I have heard good reviews about Favola's desserts so maybe I will give it a try one day.

ps: They got this huge jar of parmesan cheese!

Note:
Favola's Antipasti buffet @RM35++ is only available NOON, 12-2pm SUN to FRI.
On Saturdays, Favola is open for dinner only.
Dessert buffet : Likewise as above.

Based on the selections available, this is value for money! Food is fresh, ingredients are of top quality & each dish is skillfully prepared.

I was there from 1230pm to 2, & noted that there were no refills of the antipasti if it was finished. I'm inclined to think that was because there wasn't much diners for the buffet spread & hence there wasn't a need for a refill.

The array of antipasti was supposed to be both Hot & Cold (according to one of the waitress) but even at 1230pm, every dish was cold.
However, they all tasted fine to me.

Favola, Le Meridien (8th floor)

2 Jalan Stesen Sentral, Kuala Lumpur Sentral, 50470 Malaysia

Contact: + 603 - 2263 7888

http://www.lemeridiendining.com.my/

Midweek Lunchies with the Babes - Robert's Char Kuey Teow, Say Huat, Sect 17, PJ

noreply@blogger.com (thenomadGourmand) — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 09:05:00 +0000

This is actually Part 2, since Part One is the FSF char siew we had a few weeks ago. I'm still in the process of unearthing the pics..which may be in my C,D, E, camera, or external HDD ;p

Anyhow, for this round of mid-week lunchies, we've got the memoir- babe with us.
We are out to sooth her poor soul after reading about her disappointing experience with the Jalan Batai's Seng Lee Char Kuey Teow.

bangsar-babe came to the rescue with her recommendation of Robert's Char Kuey Teow, in Say Huat Restaurant, Section 17, right in front of the make-shift morning market, which then becomes a parking lot at noon & further transforms into a food haven at night, with one of my favourite tong shui stall among all the hawker fare.

Now, I must say I love this area. I remember the short stint I had staying in Section 17, & it was the only place that I know to find food.

But this is Robert's Char Kuey Teow is the first for me. As I trust bangsar-babe's recommendations, I wasn't too worried of getting disappointed.

And true enough, it wasn't let down.

The chilli is the winning oomph!, and the all the necessary charred wok- fire aroma (wok -hei) was present.

Robert is an affable fellow who handles all orders patiently (no gruff, grumpy demeanor; a common trait in those hawkers whose business is too brisk for their own good). He speaks Hokkien too!
Man, I feel right at home ;)

Below: All the necessary ingredients for a good char kuey teow laid out. Cockles, chinese sausages, chives (kuchai), fresh bean sprouts (taugeh), springy prawns & loads of garlic fried with his own secret soy sauce brew.

Though sorely tempted to order a plate after helping myself to batch-fuls of bangsar-babe & memoirs-babe's CKT, I stuck to my initial plan of trying the economy rice here.

Seriously I love my "chap fun" for lunch, and moreover when rif says the sweet & sour pork here is good.

Well..it was good. Which is why the picture is missing. Cos I finished it without realizing I forgot to take a pic! ;p

No worries, more visits to this outlet for lunch from now on. So I'll save that for another post ;)

Here's another picture for you to drool over ;)
So reasonably priced right? RM4.50 for a plate of this!

I was craving something sweet & cold too & was half-appeased with the ais kacang (ABC), RM2.50. Definitely not as good as the one in SS2 Wai Sik Kai - stall #41 as the sago wasn't fresh & chewy.

I'm certainly having fun with our mid-week lunch trysts ;) & this week's chosen venue is Anuar's Fish Head Curry in Bangsar! I can't wait!

Members of the Mid-week Lunchies with the Babes - bangsar-babe, Shum-babe, thenomadG & occasional we have rif joining us too!

Another Christmas party ..with a WHOLE roast lamb!

noreply@blogger.com (thenomadGourmand) — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 14:47:00 +0000

Please Santa, all I want for Christmas... is another party like this!

You know you are at the right party when you walked to the house & got greeted by this...
A whole LAMB, grilling over charcoals, right at the FRONT GATE.

This is one lamb worth dying for. Juicy, tender & thoroughly marinated with its meat imbued with flavour, it was absolutely AWESOME!

At RM700, yups.. RM700, for one of that splendid creature, grilled 2 hours before the start of your party, sliced, served & then all utensils cleaned up after the lamb is finished. It's pretty worth it, IMHO.
So, anyone to sponsor one for Unka's house warming??? ;p

I liked the fact that the hosts were strict on the quality and choices of food. They kept it firmly to the theme of an English Christmas and that means fried rice, roti canai and etc is strictly prohibited!

Hence, this had to be the closest I will ever get in experiencing a proper Christmas dinner. Darn, the only thing missing is EGG NOG!!! Anyone with a do-able Egg nog recipe to share?

The turkey was roasted in-house, & this is the crazy host shoving the stuffing into the cavity of the bird.
The charming lady who prepared & craved the lamb graciously cut up our turkey for us too ;o)

It was a pot luck, and everyone came with their BEST dishes! Lucky me ;)

Baked potatoes, cold platter of ham, toasted baguette with creamy homemade salmon mousse, sausages, pear, egg & apple salad.

Lamb, chicken wings, Chicken & vegetables Quiche, Bacon & mushroom fettuccine & the lovely lovely smooth pumpkin soup!

These beef ribs totally rocks! Utterly delicious & tender, I didn't mind eating beef for once.
The angel hair marinara, thick mushroom gravy, creamy avocado, prawns & green apples salad were no less appetizing.

The sweet endings..fruity egg tarts, DARK chocolate cake, Blackforest & home-baked Panettone.

Wine, ice cream & cheese.

BURPPP...

Merry Christmas everybody!! ;p

Another Crazy X Mas Party at KY's !

noreply@blogger.com (thenomadGourmand) — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 06:45:00 +0000

Many thanks to KY for having me again at his yearly X' Mas party!

I had an awesome time last year, (read about it HERE!!!) and this year was no exception.
Do hop over to read KY's full account of this year's party (HERE)! ;)

The Venue: KY's humble abode.
That amazing wall mural was painted by the VERY talented Haze Long of blushberry.blogspot.com.
She does REALLY GREAT blog skins too so if you are bored of your current template & want a customised- truly one of a kind design, drop her an email!

The people: ..that made the event FUN.

The FOOD. (& free flow beers all nite sponsored by Heineken).
Tender lamb (yum yum yum), mango and coconut flakes spring rolls (i kid u not!), chicken in some cream sauce, rich brownies with dates, and HUNDREDS of sticks of satay.

The things we do to keep ourselves amused throughout the night....
..like drinking Absinthe + beer from this contraption courtesy of Terence, the GOD.

The highlight of the party - The gift exchange session, which has always been a merry affair.
Expect some great gifts; like for this year -a set of Banana Republic Cocktail Shaker & Glass, a REALLY cool black, asymmetrical Rubic cube that totally spells 'Haze Long' (she's a pro at it!!), 2 'Tulen' WarCraft sets, bak kua from Bee Cheng Hiang & some silly laughable ones (a milk box shaped clock that Horng was trying to offload all night..hahaha) and even cheeky ones (adult diapers!). All in the name of fun of course.

The rule of the game is very simple; each person picks a number from the box, and starting from the person with the number 1, he/she chooses a gift from the pile and opens it for all to see.
Whoever that is next is given the alternative of taking another gift from the pile or to "steal" from anyone that was before him/her that has already taken a gift.
The person whose gift is hijacked can then either steal from another, or pick a new gift from the pile.

The popular gifts: 2 boxes of 'TULEN' WarCraft, which I 'hijacked' off Terence.

The Rubic Cube which exchanged ownership like 10 times that night. It eventually deservingly went to Haze, who is probably the only person that could play it anyway. It was damn difficult!

Elaine (fireangelism.com) was totally ecstatic with her gift of 6 packets of Penang Laksa, kept chilled in a coleman, & was transported back to KL that very day from Penang by Yee Hou. Poor girl was deprived of Laksa for a year because she was in Singapore.

I lost the WarCraft games (can't remember who stole it off me ;p) & in turn went for the cool Banana Republic Cocktail Shaker & Glass set.

Naturally, I lost that too, since it was a much much sought after gift that night, so I grabbed the GODIVA hazelnut spread off Tim Tiah!
While I was happily dreaming of Christmas morning brekkie of THICK toast with equally thick GODIVA hazelnut spread, KY kindly burst the bubble & saved me the calories. *wails!!*

I finally managed to hang on to this - & its something I really needed - a laptop sleeve! Woot!!

As per tradition, the party went on till the wee hours of the morning, with the obligatory police visits, with this year surpassing last's, since this time I think they came around more than they did last year!
At one point, the police actually came down to speak to KY! And all of us actually cheered when that happened! LOL.

It was great fun meeting with all the bloggers, some who are old friends, some reacquainted ones & some new. I certainly enjoyed the company & here's to welcoming 2010 in a week's time!!

Merry Xmas everybody!!

ps: some of the pics credited to KY as I got them off his FB album. Thks KY! ;p

Pork Chee Cheong Fun at Hon Kee Restaurant

noreply@blogger.com (thenomadGourmand) — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 08:27:00 +0000

Yeah, I know this place is famous for their fish porridge, but being the rebel that I am, I ordered the Pork Chee Cheong Fun instead. I believe in being different you see (*roll eyes* ;p).

It turned out to be a good choice, not exceptional, mind you, but good nonetheless for the sheer fact that it is PORK curry.
For RM4.90 I thought the dish could do with a bit more pieces of meat but they do give a substantial portion of chee cheong fun.

Anyhow, the rest of the food bloggers that were there; Feeq, Kelvin,and WP ordered the fish porridge and a combo of chinese fried crullers from the stall at the entrance of the shop.

Initially I didn't want to order any since it was all pre-fried and cold, put on display on the counter for god- knows how long. But it turned out alright, and my favourite is the Chinese Donut, eaten with a sprinkle of icing sugar on top.

Yau Cha Kwai/ You Tiao (Chinese crullers ) @ RM1.00
Ham Chim Peng (plain and with red bean) @ RM1.00
Ham Chim Peng (the one with glutinous rice) @ RM1.00
Mah Kiok (the one with sesame seeds) @ RM1.00
Siew Hou Jou @ RM1.80 (this was my least favourite, it was hard and crumbly & a bit bland)
Sa Yung (The Chinese Donut) @RM1.50 (My fav! Soft and spongy, it was like a denser version of donut).

The famed Fish Porridge @ RM5.50 did not disappoint. A nice big bowl of smooth tasty gruel, served piping hot and fresh.

The ikan haruan (snakehead) is delivered fresh from their trusted supplier every morning and the stringent quality control has ensured Hon Kee of its reputation throughout the years.

The Hon Kee name spans three generations starting from their late grandfather Wong Yu Wah, who got the congee stall going 60 years ago in Petaling Street, Kuala Lumpur.

Since 1949, don't play play!

Hon Kee's outlet at Lot10's Hutong food hall & Damansara Uptown is managed by Eric and Herbet while Petaling St outlet is managed by their sister.
I am pleased to say that their fish porridge is as good as the one I had in Petaling St. so kudos for the quality control!

The others tried the Chicken & Century Egg porridge as well but I had to rush off for err..another food pig-out with Unka ;)

Anyhow, the soya bean here deserves a mention. It was thick, aromatic & made fresh daily.

From top right... Iced Milo (RM2.50), White Coffee (RM2.50), Chinese Tea (RM0.80) & Soya Bean (RM2.50).

Thanks again, Mr Eric Wong for the invite! I will definitely be back to try out your new menu!

Address:
No 71, Jalan SS21/1A,
Damansara Utama, 47400 Petaling Jaya.
Contact
Telephone number: 012-2380362

Website: http://www.honkeeporridge.com/

Same row as the TM Point Uptown, WonderMilk and behind Starbucks.

Ceviche and Mole - authentic Mexican at Frontera, Jaya One

noreply@blogger.com (thenomadGourmand) — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 02:15:00 +0000

Foodies must be adventurous.

And adventurous foodies must try the Mexican Mole.

Take for instance; myself.
I first heard of this intriguing chocolate chilli sauce during this makan - makan gathering we had in Frontera. On the same night, Kevin, a very fussy fellow foodie, fueled the discussion by gushing non-stop of their ceviche.

And so that's it. A re-visit was immediately planned.
Everyone's excited. Everyone asked to be included.

But it took months before the re-visit materialized. Ah well, as expected it was difficult to get everyone together, yaydaydda...

Anyways, months months months later, we finally made it.
It was one balmy evening, & we sat in Frontera at Jaya One, and waited impatiently for our ceviche to be served.

AND THIS WAS DARN WORTH THE SUBSEQUENT VISIT!

According to Wikipedia; Ceviche (also spelled as cebiche or seviche) is a citrus-marinated seafood (fish, clams, octopus, shrimps, squids are commonly used) dish originating from the coast of Peru.

Here in Frontera, our Ceviche used raw FRESH prawns which were cubed and left to sit in citrus juices all day. In addition to adding flavor, the citric acid causes the proteins in the seafood to become denatured, which is like the effect of "cooking" the seafood without heat.
At the serving hour, it was tossed with fresh cubes of tomatoes, onions and cilantro leaves.

(pretty much as per what I read - source: Wikipedia)
"In Mexico and other parts of Central America, it is served in cocktail cups with crackers, or as a tostada topping and taco filling. Shrimp, octopus, squid, tuna, and mackerel are popular bases for Mexican ceviche. The marinade ingredients include salt, lime, onion, chile, avocado, and coriander (known as cilantro in the Americas). Tomatoes are often added to the preparation".

Our shrimps were cooked just to the right degree ( nice & springy), while maintaining some form of rawness within (its flesh still streaked with some blui-sh tinge).
This was a wondrously delightful perk-me up appetizer, with each cubed shrimp imbued with the sour refreshing tang of lime & absolutely addictive eaten with the crunchy nachos.
Sweet, sour and spicy at the same time, it was such a pleasant juxtapose of flavours!

Making mole is not for the timid. It requires a commitment to authentic ingredients as well as a commitment to following each step precisely and without taking any shortcuts.
With such a robust-multilayered flavoured sauce, the chicken breast was kept plain and simple. Each bite allows you to savour the complexities of the sauce and I gave up trying to pinpoint exactly the words to use to describe it after while!

Apparently, there are many versions of mole, and the one we sampled that night was one of the popular kinds from the Mexican states of Puebla, called mole Poblano.

Now, like I said, it is really hard for me to describe this choco - chilli sauce. The slight bitterness from the chocolate, which is discernible more as an aftertaste rather than a main flavour in this paste-like sauce, compliments & adds character to the dish.
I find it salty, & not as spicy as one would have assumed although mole is a made from a variety of chilies, onions, garlic, cumin, coriander, cinnamon, cloves, sesame seeds, several types of nuts.

This last dish was an expected addition.
Tender Mesquite Grilled Chicken Breast with San Antorio - style Cilantro Cream. RM26.95.

This dish was actually complimentary of Frontera's gracious owner, Larry.
I had to admit, the mole really got to me.
The complex juxtaposition of tastes and flavours was really weird & I was scraping the mole paste sauce off my chicken breast so I could eat it plain!
Larry noticed, shook his head and said "I know what you Asians would like. Our cilantro sauce would fit the bill nicely. Would you like to switch?"

I hastily agreed. Why not, I thought. I get to try another sauce. And seriously the mole didn't catch my fancy.
So my mole was sent back into the kitchen & I expected the staff to just add another ladleful of cilantro sauce to the dish. After all, I have eaten half of it.
But no, Larry graciously swapped my mole, with a full dish of his San Antorio - style Cilantro Cream chicken. That was certainly unexpected!

Anyhow, the San Antorio - style Cilantro fared slightly better for me, though again I find the sauce a bit strong, and salty.

But hey, it was one helluva experience that all foodies should attempt and Larry did let out that Frontera is revamping its menu so expect new dishes & more authentic Mexican offerings.
Now, anyone for a trip to Frontera again?

Frontera requires an advanced booking of min 3 days ahead (barring unforeseen circumstances & availability of ingredients) so give Larry a call if you are game to sample the mole (RM35) & Ceviche (RM38).

Frontera Bar & Grill
18-8-2, Block L, Palm Square, Jaya One
72A, Jalan Universiti, PJ.
03-7958 8515.

Bar Italia, Jalan Berangan - A total rip - off?

noreply@blogger.com (thenomadGourmand) — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 02:55:00 +0000

Ok, maybe "rip-off" is a strong word. But how does one justify the below for RM38 (not including 10% tax) ?

1 coffee, albeit a very good one (or so Unka said), 1 fruit juice and 1 (3.5 inch/4 inch at most) sandwich, with an egg, a slice of ham carelessly "folded" into the bread and some cheese.

It was supposed to be a "New York bagel".
Now I do not know how New Yorkers make their bagels, but this is definitely not the chewy, dense textured bagels that I know.
Seriously?
It tasted like toasted bread.

Bar Italia,
Jalan Berangan,
Bukit Bintang.

ps: I understand that some dining establishments are more expensive to dine in, etc, & I was aware of the price when I placed the order. However, I believe in getting what I paid for, meaning I expected a proper bagel (as per printed in the menu), with ingredients to match, both in terms of quality and quantity.
Same goes if it is a main course. I take into consideration the effort, time & skills required to prepare the dish. Hence the prices we pay for a degustation or molecular gastronomy menu.

Holiday on Us by Alamanda, Putrajaya

noreply@blogger.com (thenomadGourmand) — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 04:00:00 +0000

God must have had enough of my whines. Either that; or those laws of attractions as advocated by Rhonda Byrne finally worked.

After a full year of misfortunes, I felt that I deserve a break. I need a holiday. I kept telling me myself I will get my holiday. I got them shortlisted, Bali, then shopping in Bangkok and perhaps Dubai or Tokyo, Japan.

Back then it was June. And till November 09, that holiday remained elusive. I downgraded, being the practical sod that I am. Ok, I will settle for just ONE, just gimme Bangkok, I got to shop! I need to shop! And of course, some cheap tasty food is fine as well. Nothing beats BKK for all of the above.

Now it is December and I almost gave up on holidays. Sigh, Penang also can laa..I thought to myself.

But hey, suddenly I am now booking tickets to Phuket in March, Bali in September and Perhentian Islands in May 2010.

Yup, if all goes well, 2010 looks like it's gonna be one BIG holiday!

What brings such good fortune you ask?

It is THIS!

Yes, a FREE holiday, with accommodation for 2, all thanks to Alamanda Shopping Center in Putrajaya, which currently runs a terrific campaign that truly embodies the spirit of Christmas.

Their “Holiday on us” campaign runs from 28 November to 27 December 2009, providing shopaholics with 30 days of “retail therapy”, great dining experience and entertainment.
Just spend RM800.00 in Alamanda Shopping Centre and you will be entitled to a Free 8-day Holiday. Accumulated receipts which totals up to RM 800 are fine as well!
Bear in mind, this is not a contest hence no slogans is needed (I hate those!).

Accommodation is for 2 and does not include air fare. Well, I guess the next part is to hope that Air Asia is having their FREE ticket promo again! ;p

It's not that difficult to hike up a bill of RM800. Especially since they have Cold Storage here. I bought a month of groceries for RM200, including oats, imported cereals (think Post & those along the same aisle), boxes of soya milk, some organic flour for baking and another RM200 for Manuka Honey.

Of course, we ate and the food bill helped adding up to the total amount of RM800.

More details as follows:

This 8-day voucher is validated online and you have a choice to choose between Bali or Phuket for 5 days 4 nights OR be like me, take 3 days 2 nights for each destination and go to BOTH Bali AND Phuket!
Follow up with a 3 days 2 nights Cuti Cuti Malaysia holiday choosing from Kuantan, Langkawi, Penang, Port Dickson or Perhentian Island.

Alamanda Shopping Centre has over 180 retail outlets and 3,000 parking bays with international shopping brands like Nike, Guess & Esprit which is a factory outlet.

More international brand names; Levis, Billabong, Quiksilver, Lesportsac, ALDO. The misconception that Alamanda Shopping Centre is boring is so so misleading.

Alamanda Shopping Centre's anchor tenants includes Cold Storage, Parkson & Carrefour Hypermarket.

F&B (food and beverages) outlets are aplenty; namely Manhattan Fish Market, Old town Kopitiam, Big Apple Donuts, Penang Village, Johnny's Steamboat, Sri Ayutthaya Thai Restaurant and the ubiquitous fast food chains like MacDonalds, Burger King, KFC, Pizza Hut, & A&W.

Their MPH store is the biggest in the country and there is also the Golden Screen Cinemas Cineplex (GSC) for movies buffs, a fun filled arcade for the family, an amazing 26-lane bowling alley and also a karaoke with per room going at the rate of only RM35 an hour.

Business Hours: 10am to 10pm

Alamanda Shopping Centre
Jalan Alamanda, Precint 1
62000 Putrajaya
Wilayah Persekutuan
Telephone: +6 03 8888 8882

Apart from the free holiday voucher given in the 'Holiday On Us' offer, there are other on-going promotions with the individual retailers as below;

* For purchases throughout the shopping mall with a minimum RM300 accumulated receipts in a day, you will get a specially designed tote bag from Alamanda.
* Habib Jewels is offering up to 70% Discount on diamonds and jeweleries except for branded items. Grab the Gold Promotion for 916 Gold where you get less RM6.00 per gram. Additionally, there is also a RM50 Habib Jewel Voucher for purchases above RM1,000 valid until 31st January 2010.
* LeSports AC is having an End Of Season Sale with discounts of up to 50% storewide.
* Nichii is also having a storewide discount of up to 70% till the 3rd of January 2010.
* Envee will run a promotion where purchases of RM400 and above in a single receipt will enjoy a 20% discount off the next item.
* Bagzbar is giving a free Paris Hilton Note Book with purchases of RM500 and above.
* Paris Hilton Special Promotion for Handbag and Wallet Set at only RM599.
* Bonia has Men's Shoe Offer where any purchases of men's shoes, customers are entitled to purchase a shoe bag at RM49 (Retail Price RM149)
* Valentino Rudy has an interesting offer - if you buy 2 or more items, the highest price item gets a 20% discount while each additional item will have an additional 10% discount.
* Nando's offer is worth a meal there - Buy a Nando's Peri Hearty Meal at RM17.80 and stand a chance to win a Club Med Cherating package for 2. I am aiming for this!!
* Cold Storage Supermarket is giving a RM10 Cold Storage Voucher for purchases of RM100 and above in a single receipt.

So with the Christmas Season around the corner, go spend a day in Alamanda Putrajaya, buy everything that you need, accumulate the receipts and redeem that Holiday on Us vacation voucher while you are at it!

Tender, melt-in-your-mouth lamb chops at Purnama Cahaya, Section 17, PJ

noreply@blogger.com (thenomadGourmand) — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 05:55:00 +0000

It was one Sunday morning; one of my favourite kinds really, with breezy weather plus the Sun paper AND American b reakfast, when I got distracted by this article in Sun Metro.

Since my pancakes were burnt & left a bitter taste in my mouth, I shoved the article under someone 's nose & demanded to be appeased by tender, melt-in-your-mouth lamb chops.

He sighed; "Where is it?", waved for the bill while I called Lingam for directions and we were on our way in 5mins flat!
Whee!!
(now if only he is so accommodating most of the time; heck, who goes to Woolley foodcourt for food when you are in Ipoh??? pliithhhh...)

It wasn't hard to find, for him at least, but for me; I was at a complete lost. Ah well, that's what GPS are for right?

Restoran Purnama Cahaya,
Jalan 17/10, Petaling Jaya.
Tel: Lingam 012-6769310.
Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

GPS Coordinates:
N 03 7.335'
E 101 38.11o'

The restaurant is large and really clean! Unlike most mamak outlets, this one doesn't reek of grease and errrr... sweat ;p

Tucked away in a nice quiet area of PJ, we enjoyed our meal fanned by the cooling breeze from its surroundings.
Their staff are most charming and helpful, always smiling and working briskly to serve their patrons. And most of their patrons here are regulars, judging by the manner they place their orders and their demeanor while moving around the restaurant.

The rave-worthy lamb chops were indeed deserving of its title. Really tasty & with its curry thick and aromatic; both of us agreed that this ain't No Powdered Mix crap.

Our Banana leaf sets below at RM4.50 each. The chicken curry was as good as advertised - tender bite-sized pieces infused to the bone with flavour. Marvelous!

I had no problem with the vegetables served with our BLR sets, though I personally preferred the yogurt cucumber thingy at Kavitha's.

Best part is - the food is cheap!
Our meal of 2 sets of banana leaf rice, 1 BIG chunk of lamb that had to be shared by both of us & a plate of chicken curry only came up to RM17.00
So the break down is RM9 for BLR, RM8 for the lamb and chicken curry.

This place is a good choice for its Banana Leaf, and I would say even worth a trip just for its rice & curry dishes.
Affable Lingam was seen chatting with his customers & overseeing the cooking of the dishes while we were there that day. Indeed, he is still very much hands-on in the daily operations of his restaurant, & thus ensuring the quality and consistency of the food.

That alone got me hankering to return again, this time for its fish head & perhaps his famous roti canai? Imagine that drenched in his great prepared- from- scratch curries!

I'm SO glad tomorrow is a holiday!!
Time to go EAT EAT EAT!!

Head to Jarrod & Rawlins - for its mushy green peas!

noreply@blogger.com (thenomadGourmand) — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 01:42:00 +0000

Yes, an entire new menu sampling session with more than 10 dishes & I came away vowing to go back for its mushy green peas!
This creamy, absolutely moreish concoction got me totally addicted. Marvelous even on its own, I do hope these mushy green peas will be a regular side dish to their mains here.

That is not to say there was no mains that got me salivating for more, for the Hickory Baby-Back Ribs (RM12/100g) certainly did!
And finally, a version of ribs NOT done smothered in thick, sweet BBQ, caramelised sauce that grace every menu of almost every dining outlet.
Here at Jarrod & Rawlins, the ribs were tasty & tender; wiping off initial doubts that it might be dry since it did looked the part. Well, we were more than happy to be proven wrong.
This was a most marvelously done rungs of ribs I must say. Good good good.

I enjoyed the Alaskan Seabass, (RM16/100g) as well. Thick cuts of absolutely fresh seabass; pan fried to a crisp for the skin and with its flesh sweet, succulent and flaky, there was certainly nothing to complain about.

Out of the 2 salads we had that evening, the Calamari Salad, RM18, had me munching the greens happily. Soft bouncy cuts of squids tossed with the piquant sauce works wonders perking up the tastebuds.

The smoked duck salad was equally delightful actually, other than being slightly salty. But when eaten with forkfuls of salad, it balanced out pretty well.
Pinkish raw and with the skin slightly crisp topping a slim juicy layer of fat, this makes for a very good reasons to hit your daily greens quota of 5 servings.

Salami, Serrano Ham, lettuce & tomato Ciabatta.
After my 1st experience with Serrano hams in El Meson I got re-acquitted with it again barely a week after, this time in a sandwich.
(Hey, I'm suddenly seeing Serrano ham everywhere lately; I saw a whole leg of it in O Gourmet & now Jarrod & Rawlins. Either I'm dining more in higher end places or it has just become the next best cured meat to eat!)

Here at Jarrod & Rawlins, their freshly assembled sandwich came jam packed with numerous layers of quality cured Serrano, with its signature speckle of fats intact.

Likewise for the Smoked Salmon & Avocado (RM24). We got thick and numerous layers of salmon & avocado in our panini.
Jarrod & Rawlins recently launched this great concept that I' m in total support of, giving customers the freedom to customize their own sandwich & salads.
Just ask your server for the Make-Your-Own-Salad and Sandwich menus, tick at the options available & your sandwich/salad will be prepared accordingly. No need to be limited by menu options & with the multitude of cold cuts, sausages, sauces, seafood & greens available, your meal is restricted only by your creativity (& for some of us, the wallet)!

Chicken Liver Paté. (RM19.50). This got the thumbs up by fine food connoisseur FBB so it must be good. I, however, have yet to learn to appreciate this "fine food".

Siew Yuk aka Roast Pork (Price by weight). Supposedly their signature. Well, I didn't have any major problem with this.

Pork Cumberland & Dynamite Sausage served with mashed potato & gravy. (Price by weight).

While everyone at the table seemed to have heard or ate Cumberland sausages back in those days when they were in Uni, while holidaying in UK etc, I was totally at lost.
Anyhow, the coil shaped sausage certainly looked interesting & a chunk of it was in my mouth the moment the last photograph was taken.

Dense & meaty, it was yummy but the Dynamite sausage was the one that blew me off, literally. It was ass-kicking spicy, with cili padi (bird eyes chilles) embedded between every grain of grinded meat. Indeed a most original Jarrod & Rawlins creation.

Platter of Assorted Cheese. I remembered there were smoked cheese, blue cheese & goat cheese but I just couldn't recall the last variety. Anyhow, we were stuffed by then and I sampled each for taste.

Serrano Ham & Bacon Pasta with Dried Chili & Olive Oil. RM32.
This would have been perfect if it was less sourish.

Jarrod & Rawlins, truly the purveyors of fine food & wine, with outlets at Damansara Heights, Desa Sri Hartamas, Ampwalk & CapSquare.
Email: damansara@jarrod-rawlins.com.
You can view their menu here: Jarrod & Rawlins Website and be their fan on FACEBOOK for immediate notifications of their promos & specials.

Last but not least, many thanks to foodie Elaine of G2 PR for including me in this makan session!

Restaurant Hing Kee - China Street, Penang

noreply@blogger.com (thenomadGourmand) — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 01:14:00 +0000

A firm favourite of mine, this unassuming (& thank god, still a non-commercialised & pretty well kept secret in Penang) restaurant is as ole school as one can get.

Located next to the Magnum 4D shop along China Street, just off Pitt Street/Jalan Masjid Kapitan Keling, one does have to be familiar in Penang to know of its existence.
(China Street is just opposite the famous Goddess of Mercy Temple (Kuan Yin Teng)).

The cooks & wait staff are the aunties, who's been around for probably since the time the shop started. I don't know about you, but it is always reassuring to see my meals prepared by the old & experienced.

Our typical lunch here would rarely, if ever, vary from the dishes below. Taste-wise, most of the dishes are 'lighter' on the palate, and I would forewarn those with a heavier tastebuds to visit at their own risk, since they might find it bland.

The Braised Fish with Bean Curd is a firm favourite of mine.
To be honest, it is more bean curd than fish but that is the standard here. Do let them know if you would like more fish fillets, and prices will be adjusted accordingly of course.

A close contender is this Pak Poh Chicken Drumstick. The gravy is the best, infused with all the herbs and good even if you were to drink it on its own.
I normally doused my rice liberally with it and pick at the meat since it is quite bland (not surprisingly, since its probably braised for hours). It is however, great eaten paired with chilli padi (birds eye chillies) .

I was accustomed to these cuts of siew yuk before I was introduced to KL's prime cuts of crackly skin & soft gelatinous fatty - layered pork.
This was good enough for me then, and still is now. Look at the silver plate it is served in, there's such a nostalgic feel to it no?

Even the boiled chinese herbs drinks here (barley, chrysanthemum, etc) is strong in taste & fresh.

Another customary order is this blanched kangkung topped with some sort of paste with salted fish and deep fried garlic .
It is oily yes, but acceptable once it coats each stalk of veg, for the topping is the one that lends the flavour to the dish.

Tummy space permitting, we would add an order of scrambled eggs with big onions, carrots & spring onions; again, another simple good old dish of yesteryears..

The old lamps, the ceiling mounted fan, chinese painting/pictures, the cane chairs, round tables & the mosaic flooring.. such charm don't you think?

I can't remember the exact amount but it was approximately RM50+- for all the above.
Very reasonable & I have always left feeling satisfied and happy.

Sometimes, simplicity is best.

Restaurant Hing Kee
Lebuh China
Business Hour: 10am-3pm & 6-10pm

Note: They do sell smooth tasty congee, but only on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.

Satay at Bangkok Lane, Penang

noreply@blogger.com (thenomadGourmand) — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 04:32:00 +0000

I hope when I reach Penang on Saturday, I would be on time to catch Aun's satay at Bangkok Lane.
This elusive fella, Uncle Aun only operates on Tues, Thurs and Saturdays. It is more of killing time & also as a request to his loyal clientele that kept him going. He does takes off as he please though, hence sometimes even on those aforementioned days he is nowhere to be seen!

Alternating layers of tender marinated lean pork & fat, grilled over charcoal, and eaten dipped in a special mix of potato and some secret spices sauce, this was worth the thrice weekly stalking I had to do back then when I was in Pg.

While grilling, these skewers of meat were constantly brushed with oil to enhance the flavor. The same 'oil' were dabbed on the bread as well.

Both meat & bread goes really well with the special creamy sauce concocted out from potato, chili and sour plum.
Starchy from the blended potatoes, and sweetish sour with a very very slight chilli kick, I normally mop my plate clean with the bread.

For RM0.50 a stick, just do yourself a favour & get 10.
The corner coffeeshop, Seng Lee Cafe (where the famous Bangkok Lane Mee Goreng is), is opposite his stall & allows the satay to be served inside. Just order a drink & enjoy your satay there. Or do what other foodies would, add an order of Mee Goreng or Hokkien mee, both of which is famous here.

Address:
Seng Lee Cafe,
Bangkok Lane, Jalan Burma,
Penang.

So far I have only found 2 stalls selling this type of satay in Penang, the other one is at Chulia Street, & operates daily except Sunday.
Address:
Sai Lam Coffee Shop
Junction of Chulia & Carnavon Street, Penang
Business Hour : 12pm - 9pm
GPS Coordinates : N 05' 2506.2 E 100' 2011.5