Saturday, February 26, 2011

The Apartment, PJ (The Curve)

I finally decided to give The Apartment despite all the bad reviews I've read about it. SO, I walked in there with low expectations and an open mind.

duck & mango -
shredded duck, mango, lemon grass, spring onions, ginger & lime leaves with thai dressing.

The dressing was a bit too sweet for my liking! But the tiny crispy ginger
definitely lifted the salad and gave it a little kick.

apartment salad-
avocado, spring onions, green chilli & coriander drizzled with whole grain mustard dressing & sprinkled with toasted spiced almond flakes.

This salad was surprisingly light and refreshing! The dressing wasn't overpowering
the other flavours and the almond flakes gave a nice crunch to the salad!

cod fish with aioli-
oven-baked fillet of cod with marinade of chilli, oregano & coriander, served with dill mash, snow peas & aioli.

This dish was forgettable. The aioli didn't taste right and the mash had
no hint of dill! (the fish was alright though)

chicken & mushroom pasta-
spaghetti with sautéed chicken & mushrooms with white wine garlic, chilli, cherry tomatoes & rocket.

I love rockets! The sauce wasn't too heavy which gave a summery feeling
to the pasta! Rocket & pasta = yum.

Rating: 7/10

Lot 72, 73 & 74
Ground Floor, Western Courtyard
(next to TGI Fridays)
The Curve Shopping Centre
Mutiara Damansara

http://www.atheapartment.com/

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Petaling Street (Chinatown, KL)

Petaling Street is definitely a big part of my childhood. Early Sunday breakfasts, Saturday brunchs, late night supper & after school treats. I've been eating in the same stores, ordering the same food for as long as I could remember! Even the store owners have passed their store on to the next generation!!

Kong Har Siu Hou Jou (Snacks store)
I've practically tried everything they sell! Their Siew Hou Zou, Yau Char Kwai & Ma Lai Kou
are the best I've ever eaten. Never found a store that is even close to beating them!

Hon Kee - since 1959 (Porridge store)
Back to basics. Porridge is my ultimate comfort food.

Yau char kwai from Kong Har Siu Hou Jou & Hon Kee's century egg porridge

Warm porridge with freshly deep-fried yau char kwai! The porridge is just the right consistent and isn't too watery. Nothing to complain about :)

Koon Kee Wan Tan Mee

Koon Kee's wan tan mee is one of the first few food that I actually remember eating and it's been here for generations!
In primary school, I didn't care if I had lots of homework, as long as I had a packet of their wan tan mee to eat :)

Perfect everytime.
Ask any "KL folk" for the best wan tan mee and they'll bring you to Koon Kee.
(The uncle was marinating the char siu meat when we were there!)

I've been to Petaling Street countless number of times just to drink "air mata kucing" from this store!

It's basically longan and other yummy ingredients! They've opened a branch in MidValley but it never tastes as good as the original's.

"Cha Wong" - King of Tea

Call me bias but the uncle here makes THE BEST coffee (kopi) in the whole of KL.
It's not part of any store so it isn't hard to find it! It's just a store by itself on the side of the road.

Plain and simple.

In this lane alone, they sell the best chee cheong funn (sweet sauce style), yong tau foo
and curry mee you can find in KL.

Their yong tau foo is generously filled with smooth and silky fish paste. People who buy from here don't just buy 5 pieces, they buy 20. Seriously, it's that good.


The sweet sauce chee cheong funn from this auntie's store is mouthwatering! The chee cheong funn is amazingly soft and silky and both the sweet and spicy sauce have just the right flavours!

Best deep-fried sweet potato balls!

Best roasted duck (according to my mum!)
Especially popular during Chinese New Year. We used to get the whole duck for our reunion dinner!!

When I think of comfort food, I think of Petaling Street. I literally grew up eating food from this humble area and this definitely shows that you don't need to go to a fancy place to get good food.
Ps. No pics for some of the food.. they were gone so quickly!

Rating: 10/10 (yes, I'm bias)

Petaling Street,
Kuala Lumpur.

Saturday, February 12, 2011

Delicious, Petaling Jaya (1 Utama)

Delicious is one of the restaurants which I constantly go back without giving a second thought! There are a wide variety of Western AND Asian style cuisine as well as a large range of mouth-watering desserts to choose from.

I always like to start my meal with a warm and soothing honey lemon!


Balsamic mushroom salad with baby spinach leaves, pine nuts and feta cheese.

I've tried their mushroom sandwich once and I loved it! So this time, I gave the salad a chance! Turns out.. it's even better than the mushroom sandwich!! The mushrooms had a light balsamic flavour which wasn't too over-powering as I expected. The crumbly feta added a great texture to the salad and the drizzle of olive oil added the extra "kick" for this dish. My only complain was.. not enough pine nuts as they completely drowned in the pile of leaves.


Spicy zucchini pasta with pine nuts and feta cheese

Sounds familiar? Pine nuts and feta cheese is an amazing combination! But I wouldn't be silly enough to order two dishes for myself with the same ingredients combination :) My mum orders this dish every time we have our lunch/dinner at Delicious!
CAUTION : This pasta is addictive!

Nasi Kerabu (a traditional Kelantanese dish)
Rice with raw vegetables, salted egg, budu(this sauce in the tiny dish), ayam percik, grated coconut and keropok ikan.

My family LOVES Nasi Kerabu! It's the first thing we eat whenever we visit my mum's hometown, Kelantan!! Our first complaint was.. where's the tumi (like a sambal but not sambal!)?? hmm.. a main component of the traditional dish is missing! Our second complaint was the rice was to moist!
Well.. overall it was "passable" but definitely not the best.


Chicken Carbonara


Smoked salmon with angel hair pasta
(Didn't try the two pasta but it looked pretty decent!)

Rating: 8.5/10

One Utama,
F315, First Floor,
Phase 2 Shopping Centre,
Bandar Utama
47400, Petaling Jaya.

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Hiap Joo Bakery and Biscuit Factory, Johor Bahru

To locate this humble bakery isn't very hard! Just follow the tantalizing smell of freshly baked bread and you will stumble upon a crowd of people packed into a small shop!

Charcoal-baked buns filled with sweet peanut

Charcoal-baked buns filled with coconut & brown sugar

Both were equally amazing! The sweetness of the fillings were just right and went really well with the soft buns. YUM.

Rating: 8/10

13 Jalan Tan Hiok Nee,
Johor Bahru, Johor
80000 Malaysia.