Ah Joo Durian @ Sungai Batu

It’s durian season again from May till August. Thanks to Steven for the ride to this wonderful durian trip!

Over here at Ah Joo’s durian stall, the durians and some other local fruits are supplied from Gertak Sanggul whereas the rambutans are from Balik Pulau.

He has been operating for ~17 yrs on durian business. You can easily detect his stall which has no fancy NUMBER nor funny NICK, just right after the mosque at Sungai Batu.

If you are coming from airport -> Teluk Kumbar direction, right after this mosque on your left, take note on the Forever Star electrical and plumber trading house. Ah Joo's stall is right beside it.

The taukeh aka Ah Joo.

Ang Hae / Udang Merah / Otak Udang 红虾 (RM10-30) (明星風範! 一站出來, 的確艷光四色!　兼具實力＋偶像的魅力，讓人讚嘆不已!)　(She is a born artist, standing amidst the other candidates she outshines the rest, equipped with both strength & idol features, very impressive!)

I could understand how it can be related to "Ang Hae" as it's orange in colour. Smooth and fine, sweetness could be said ~ 90% and exhibit only a slight bitter taste. The flesh is thick as it consists of small seed.

This one that we ate is RM16.

Hor Lor 葫芦 (below RM15) (有波有蘿，又真的難怪您會對她起痰的。本姑娘可不是傻甜姐兒唷，好歹也是出身名門家族，有學問（＂苦＂學）又有超佳的身材與外貌。) (She got nice figure, no wonder it's soooo irresistable to all of you. "I" am no dumb but inherited prestigious family background and highly 'educated', somemore with nice body shape! )

Fine and gummy. It tasted sweet in the beginning (at the outer part) and getting more and more bitter when you reach towards the seed.

Kim Poh ( below RM15, less than Hor Lor) ( 二奶的風範。為何？因她軟綿綿的，嬌柔百態，引您入局，一旦上釣，呵呵，您就苦了！) She is sort of a concubine. Why? She is sentimental and tender, treat you mild and please you well. Once you are hooked, hoho! You'll suffer!)

Fine and creamy. Its texture is like ice cream when you first pull it up but it tasted rather bitter!

Ooi Kiau Ong / Kunyit Kuning 黄姜 (below RM10)(像大老婆, 照顧您的感受兼具實在的內涵,

與您共患難! ) Like the official wife, always care about your feeling and somemore she's equipped with beauty plus connotation, faithful to be together!)

Fade yellowish flesh with bitter and creamy taste.





Chae Pui 青皮(RM8 -RM20) ( 吃得苦中苦，方為人上人。先苦後甜非這款莫屬。當然，能吃得上這款的，也就證明您起碼還不賴的，是個重感情的傢伙！) (If you can endure, you'll harvest later. "Bitter first, sweet later" must be her. If you can consume her, then you are undoubtedly a guy with sense and sensibility!)

Bitter. The outer skin alone is very sweet, inside is gradually getting bitter. The seed is very small! We were told that if the flesh inside appears as green-based, then it's normally bitter. Ah! No wonder lah!

This one that we ate is RM8.

Tatt Kar Chui 塞屁股 (below RM10) (味道恰似甘榜小家碧玉, 甜滋滋的酒窩姑娘, 但是卻被取了一個如此不堪的稱號, ＂塞屁股＂. 從這角度望過去, 確實還蠻飽滿的. 這老闆可夠鬼馬了呵!) (Taste like 'kampung' girl, with sweet dimples, but it is soooo sorry to be nicked so. Looking from this angle, the 'buttock' actually looks rather meaty as if it's stuffed though! What a funny boss uh?!)

Super sweet petite darling.

I was very happy whenever seeing small lovely pieces like this!

Other durian species available are Kor Teh, Kucing Tidur, Capri, Susu, D15, D2, COB, Ganja, Qi Xian Nyu and etc.

Other local fruits available are :

Cempedak (red meat) 1kg/RM3
Langsat 1kg/RM2
Rambutan 3kg/RM5, 1kg/RM2
Mangosteen 2kg/RM5, 1kg/RM3

Business Hours : 10am -12 pm (open daily)

Tel : Ah Joo 017-4222248. For delivery, call Kelly 012-4531812.

Another branch at Sg Nibong 4pm-10pm (nearby the kopitiam selling bak kut teh).

Buffet available @RM25 per adult, RM15 per child. Unlike normal durian stalls that limit you on the numbers of branded durians, over here all durians for buffet will be strictly branded (including Hor Lor and Ang Hae). Do call for booking if you can gather at least 5-10 persons.

Delivery service is also provided within Penang Island with minimum of 10x durians . Call for delivery is available for weekends whereas weekday is preferably after 5p.m.

Winter Warmer Set Meal

Finally I claimed the complimentary set meal before it's due! Now whenever refrehsing that memory still I found myself was really ngong kui. This is by far the most boh tatt member card that I have applied, ha! :p

Unlike my last visit with 'warm' experience , this time round we were served by this young waitress who is really 'standing' at customer side. *tou mai for her boss?! :p*

Y showed her the card we have before ordering, then she quickly flipped the menu o the set meal portion and pointed to the last one, "This one is the most expensive one loh, the most worthy one."

Y said, " but I wanna order chicken spaghetti woh...". I said"OK, up to you!"


I pointed to that last one," The last one seems nice woh. I order one also lah".


Even before Y realized what has actually happened by saying,"Hey, then me how??"

She quickly followed up," You order this one (pointing to the last set, most expensive one) using card loh, then you order the chicken spaghetti using ala carte menu lah".

I beh tahan smiling at her, "Haha! OK OK!" *Whispering inside my heard,"Good lah you! Babe!"*

If every restaurant that I go can be served by this kind of waitresses then surely I gonna live longer. :)


This is the salad which came with the set.

Chicken spaghetti. *Argh! SOoooooo beh khi*

The most expensive one loh - Cheese baked spaghetti. The cheese was kinda thick thus made me feeling like chewing 'plastic' at times. Anyhow, it tasted much better than the chicken spaghetti loh.

Rose Tea, included in the set too. Neither of us liked it though.

I guess I gonna continue using this card for its Afternoon Tea only lah. *sigh*

Pin Seong Seafood @ Pekaka

Pin Seong Seafood @ Pekaka

I have been wondering where Pin Seong disappeared to for months until I read from FoOd PaRaDiSe and confirmed that this Pin Seong is actually belongs to the ex-Pin Seong which was located at the kopitiam next door.

It's directly opposite the Wang Chao @ Pekaka Square.

We used to order their signature curry seafood dish which has never failed to please us but then this time we decided NOT TO, take risk uh?!

Pat Poh Keh (八寶雞) RM12. Recommended as their special dish of that day. Hmm...not too bad. Since it's 'pat poh', one got the chance to eat lots of ingredients and also a lot of gravy to go with the rice.


Char Eng Chai (Kangkung) RM6- this one fried with tao joo version, hmm......too sweet though.

豬肚湯 (Tu Tor Thng) RM8. Oh no...only tasted pepper. I cook one definitely 100% better. :p

炒菜膽 (Char Hai Tar) RM7 - Fair.

p/s : No order curry dish also sweating till wet after finishing this meal.........Adui!

27-Jun-09

Miraku G-Hotel Set Dinner

Miraku @ G-Hotel : Set Dinner Part

Waraku Gozen RM68+ . I personally felt that this one definitely 'fight toh' Kampachi one. Scroll down for proofs.

For those who would like to have Eel only (w/o Sashimi & Tempura), there is Unagi Kabayaki Zen @ RM60+.

Salmon Teriyaki Zen RM38+


Waraku Gozen : Main dishes are Eel + Sashimi +Tempura.

Grilled Eel. Medium size. (So you can imagine the Unagi Kabayaki Zen -ONLY EEL- set will be XL size loh)



6 slices of sashimi. Tempura. Salad. Vege. Chawan Mushi. Miso Soup. Rice. Jelly (we had this on that day instead of fruit).



Salmon Teriyaki Zen RM38+ (Main dish : Salmon). Take note of that jelly on top left corner, it's a NONO.



Grilled Salmon. Large & Thick. If you are not a grilled salmon kaki, you would surrender when halfway eating oh, like me loh.



Boiled vege. Very cheng cheng tei one. Got pumpkin, bamboo shoot, green pea, carrot. That round shape one looks like fishball but not OK?! It tasted like yam or 'shan yao' paste sort of?! What is that uh?! Don't really like it though.

THUMBS UP to this Chawan Mushi! See the presentation sooo lovely oh! Two little green peas nuts in there! Super licin , bouncing 'Toi Toi' and it's served hot!

See? No bluff you one right?! 'Toi Toi' right?!

Miso Soup tasted moderate and not that salty type. I was impressed with the seaweed though, served in large and super long stripes oi!

The jelly - Beh khi loh. Kinda disappointed loh. It's jelly with mango cubes inside. The jelly texture was too lembik and then suddenly biting into a sour kinda thingy, oh.....mango lai de! Aiks! I'll rather let them serve me fruits loh! :)

At last, ice cream. NORMAL, 'sweet' kinda green tea. A little bit disappointed too.

Miraku G-Hotel Sashimi

Miraku @ G-Hotel : SASHIMI PART

Alas, no chance to catch the train for Miraku set lunch @ 30% off for June. We somehow did it on Sashimi @ 30% off for dinner on last Sunday!

The pickles (for the dinner set). I like the jelly fish and that XL-size bean.

I really regret when looking at this photo! What a waste! Guess what? I was in a hurry to shoot ASAP from the backside of this dish as I could feel the 'pressure' from that hungry ghost who was craving for sashimi! :p

OMG! The sashimi were ALLLLLLLLLL so damn fresh! There is NO SINGLE PIECE or TYPE which I won't relate it to freshness! It's cut in thick size exactly like my RYOMA standard . *Ahem, of coz right now you can throw me this question, "Hey, this gotto depend on how much you pay mah!"* OK OK....... I zip my mouth OK?! :P

Precious one. Only two pieces available oi.

The green tea. I think it's the cup inner wall colour that made me having the illusion that it's actually VERY THICK green tea.

Stay tuned for the set dinner ......

Seafood Buffet @ Islander, Trader's Hotel

Last Friday we had a farewell dinner for Mr. R @ Islander Cafe, Trader's Hotel.

In June, there is a 50% off promotion for the Seafood Buffet on Friday Night (original price@ RM89 nett).

Grilled Lobster.



See the eggs?! :)


Oysters, sushis.



Sashimi (salmon and white tuna) - I guess for sashimi kaki, each one at least has taken three plates loh.

Some other dishes which we were not that interested in. Only went for one round.

Lasagna, same. One time is more than enough.

Desserts. Many rounds. Here showing only a few types of them.

This tiny round cream puff is cute.

And....our red wines of that night.

Claim back but.......

It's June and last thursday we decided to claim back our ice creams.

It is not served like this. It's me who put the two scoops of ice creams together. Why I got to do it like that leh? Here's the history and down here is the story of this episode.

When we placed the booking, we reminded the supervisor about the 10-ice-creams. She was 'Oh ya, I remember! sure!"

When we were near to to ending our meals, we requested for the ice creams to be served. She got it and said "Ya!".

We waited for about 10 mins then it's served. ONE scoop each in one plate.

The rest already started kecoh-kecoh, "Ei, why not two scoops leh?"

We hentam habis and waited, at last couldn't wait anymore and we asked the waitress A to check. She did not know anything and said she would check with 'somebody'.

We waited for another 5-7 mins, she did not turn up. We asked waitress B about the progress, she said "uh? "

Adui....end up I got to go and search that waitress A,"Hey,did you get the answer?"

She macam teringat,"Oh, ya, yes, we are going to serve you ppl."

AND....we gotto wait for another 5-7 mins or so, then another 10 scoops placed in 10 individual plates were served. Amboi!

What a waste of time and 10 extra more plates to wash!

Nah..............it's very obvious. Habis cerita.

Sin Kim Han Seafood Restaurant

Sin Kim Han Seafood Restaurant @ Lintang Batu Maung 4, Batu Maung (Behind OCBC bank, the 5-storey flat).

I believe one would not come all the way to Batu Maung for zhu char, somemore it's a remote location like this. I was impressed with the food quality and also the clean cooking style /presentation of the dishes at this place.



Stingray Gulai - Almost every table is ordering one gulai/curry dish. It's good and flavourful! The stingray is sooooooo fresh, 'kutt kutt '(licin) one! Hey, this is Batu Maung mah of course the seafood is fresh lah!



Can you see how 'clean' & 'swui' (beautiful) the dish is cooked?


Another proof for the 'clean' cooking style! Tofu cut in big big pieces one oi.


Choy Kon Tong (菜乾湯)- This one is fair. Of course it cannot be compared with the choy kon tong @ Yee Heong . Yee Heong that one is 'Lou For Tong' (老火湯) leh.

Total RM41.80 for the above + 6x rice, excluding drinks.

The kopitiam selling longan drinks with sum see one leh, inside got agar-agar one! :) A surprise loh for me. Am IMPRESSED!

I'll be back!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Canton-i 香港粥麵家

Canton-i 香港粥麵家 @　Queensbay


Canton-i really attract streams of customers non-stop one hor eventhough it's weekdays. I was curious to know how come so many customers keen to go back again and again eventhough the price is 'HK standard' leh? :)

Soya Bean 豆漿 (RM3.50) & HK-style Ice Lemon Tea 凍檸檬紅茶(RM5.50). The lemon tea is a real typical HK style, tasted like our Nestea, pao puk puk one (diluted type). The soyabean tasted exactly like typical Vitasoy too. :p

At this moment I suspected there was a durian smell kinda dish being served on the tables behind. I pusing pusing 180% left and right but couldn't find where that smell came from? Canton-i got durian dishes kah?! Anyone has tried it before?

We wanted to order the conch soup but then that weekday they only got 1 type of soup, lotus root. Har??? why leh?????

Honey-glazed Roast Pork 招牌叉燒皇 (RM16.00). This one was good but not as GOOD as I thought loh. The caramelized part was mou tak teng but not enough for tam chiak kaki like us :) *. Since their cutting was slightly thicker therefore one got to put more effort in chewing when comes to those non-fatty or 'siap siap' part.



Pork Intestine Congee 狀元及第粥 (RM9.80). Very well-brewed congee, soooo fine and smooth. All the ingredients were cleaned properly (no *shit* leftover) and also 'chewable'. That's why I heard people keep recommending their congee dishes huh?!

Sui Kow Dumpling Wonton Noodles 鳳城水餃麵 (RM11.80 - Soup), (RM12.80 -Dry). This dish as usual like signature HongKong Wanton mee, having the lye water taste. The soup and noodles were both OK except the dumplings were rather salty.

The Sui Kao is very SOLID one oi, stuffed with prawn, waterchestnut, black fungus and minced meat BUT I really beh tahan with its saltiness loh!

Sweetened Ground Peanut Puree 香滑花生糊 (RM6.00). Smooth thick paste rich in ground peanut fragance. If got one or two little tiny buns or man tou(?) to go along then would be verrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrry good lah!

The dishes served in Canton-i are indeed very HONG KONG style. The whole interior decoration is also elegant, brightly lighted, neat and clean. The menu covers sooooooo many types of dishes, no wonder people can keep on pong chan lah. The waiters are wearing smartly but I don't quite like their costume for the waitresses loh. :)

Add : GF-12 & GF-13, Queensbay Mall, 100, Persiaran Bayan Indah, 11900 Bayan Lepas, Penang.

Tel : 04-6456688

Fax : 04-6457788
http://www.canton-i.com.my/

Momiji-tei Japanese Garden Restaurant

Momiji-tei @ Tanjung Bungah

Since I first read it @ Alan's post about Momiji-Tei, I've already marked it down on my 'food-hunting' list. Jap food kaki mah! :) At last I made it last week, a weekday.

This is the main entrance. Too bad that we couldn't park at entrance here since it's facing the main road.

We got to park behind the restaurant, near the food court. This is the back entrance.

Every dining table has this lovely tulip.

Shiro Maguro / White Tuna (also called Butter Fish) (RM23.00+). I personally think that this Butter Fish is not that good if compared to Cuisine Bou . It's less succulent and less creamy. That white line (look at the pic) is the part that made you chewing more. The one I had in Cuisine Bou can 'melt' in my mouth.

Unagi Kabayaki & Sashimi Set (RM50.00+) . The most expensive one out of all the set dinners which range from RM20-RM39. Got Unagi leh! Got Sashimi woh! Worth lah come on! Where got expensive?! Remember the OMG at Kampachi ?! :)

When everything comes in affordable and reasonble price, I won't pick much.

Grilled unagi in dark soya sauce. I just love it! NO, I have no complain at all.

The sashimi : salmon, tuna, white tuna, octopus. You can see that the tuna is being served burnt on its surface, a rather different way (but I heard from a source saying that the reason for doing so is actually related to freshness?! Anyone knows about it please share with me).

The wasabi is squeezed from the leaf mould, see?

The octopus slices were placed inside a pandan leaf boat.

Chawan Mushi - This one was not hot enough during serving and tasted so so. The only minus mark for this set.

You can see this at almost every set. A 3D carrot craft. I actually took it out and turned it 360% to study how it was cut. :)

Momiji Tei Bento (RM39.00+)

Got Unagi also. However this slice of unagi in this bento set was not as good as the one above as it has more bones to take note of , not that minute in actual, which I couldn't just ignore and simply swallow them.

Sashimi : got salmon, tuna and white tuna. Salmon is the best out of all in terms of freshness.

5 pieces of sushi somemore! More sashimi to savour! *Does that mean I gonna have more worms in my brain later?! I still remember that stupid newspaper cutting ! Argh! So dismotivative!* :p

Salad with vinegar & mayo dressing.

Tempura : got prawn, ladyfinger, brinjal and potato.

Here's the menu for set dinner.

I was satisfied with the food in overall. I am keen to try out their lunch set soon!

Add : 1A, Jalan Tanjung Bungah, 11200 Tanjung Bungah, Pulau Pinang.

(opposite Copthorn Hotel/ Toy Museum. The first unit on your left after passing the traffic light. Therefore one must drive and park at the back entrance, anywhere nearby hte food court)

Tel : 04-8998415

Gasoline Menu

Rice

Noodle

Spaghetti

Toast / Sandwich

Cheese baked / Japanese


Western

Salad

Appetizer

Photos blurrrrr.....sorry har.

Gasoline Cafe

Gasoline Cafe @ Penang Times Square

This is a place for quick meal or chit-chat gathering , definitely not for fine-dining. The price is reasonable with average food quality, targets more on young generation. I believe if this cafe is opened at FIZ, sure full house everyday during lunch loh!

Hey folks, if possible don't sit inside that 'cave' area , a lot of mosquitoes one leh + very hot too. There were a bunch of ppl also 'tam tak yee' chose to sit inside there but then they moved to the long table outside after sitting in the cave less than 10 min. :)

Iced Lychee Milk (RM6.50) - Wahlau ei, it's served in SUPER JUMBO size one! Enough for two. This one tasted sweet-lychee with very slight milk taste. Ngam me!

French Toast 法蘭西多士(RM4.50) - Wah..super KAO and oily one loh, I personally favour this one MORE than the Roti Bakar Kopitiam (炭烤麵包) @ behind.

Marmite Wings 媽蜜雞翼(RM5.90) - mai hiam beh pai lah.

Kam Heong Seafood Rice 金香海鮮飯 (RM7.90) . This one was rather spicy. No allergy after eating. :) If got complimentary soup leh lagi best!

Sacha Lamp Chop 沙茶羊扒(RM13.90). Wah...this one came in two pieces oi, super worthy! The salad serving is almost triple size of other restaurants. Lamb chop wise, it tasted above expectation, really not bad lah considering the price RM13.90 only woh!

Menu - in separate post fyi.

P/s: Keep receipt up to RM300 within 30days to exchange Gasoline Member Card to enjoy 10% discount @ all outlets.

Add : 77-G-20&21, Ground Floor, Penang Times Square, 10150, Penang.

Tel : 04-2271339

Service Charge 5% + Gov Tax 5% apply.

Ko-Fu-Loft (口福樓): Invited Review (Part II)

Ko-Fu-Loft (口福樓): Invited Review (Part II)


Crystal Spring Roll Skin Stuff with Vege and Chicken Meat (RM 6.90) My rating : 5/10
Inside wrapping with glass noodle, chicken breast meat, carrot, cucumber, lettuce. I appreciate eating this with the sauce otherwise it would be rather bland. If the cutting could be finer for each vege type and if the skin could be made to hold the vege more firmly, then it would have added marks on this dish.



Ko Fu Sesame Seed Ball (RM 10.90) My rating 5/10
I believe this is the dish where one could get good shot no matter where you place your camera angle at. :) I would vote this one as the best-presentation dish of the day!

The sesame- fried skin was VERY 'firm' and the meat was OK a bit spicy in taste. BUT I personally couldn’t accept the combination of these two materials. Er…….it’s an appetizer? Not sour nor sweet in particular, but it served rather like a main course type of meat balls to me?

Deep Fried Homemade Bean Curd (RM 12.90) My rating : 6/10

Not as oily as I thought. This is another dish that needs a dip of sauce and also the addition of side ingredients to enhance flavour.

Szechuan Aromatic Duck (RM 18.90) – My rating 4/10

Duck meat wrapped with egg crepe. The duck meat was rather dry, its skin was batter-fried and tasted a bit powdery. I prefer the crunchy skin type. Egg crepe wise, I hardly smell 'egg'?!

Deep Fried Five Spices Calamari (RM 13.90) My rating : 6/10

This one was a bit oily. Texture wise, the squid was very ‘bouncy’ – “toi toi “ though.

Fried Seafood Emperor Noodle (RM 12.90) – My rating 3/10
No taste basically, let alone the ‘emperor’ expectation. Just plain noodle fried with some squids, prawns, eggs and crabmeats. I believe one would be more willing to spend RM12.90 for a dish of fried noodle with wok hei and more SEAfood.

Jingdo Pork Rib (RM14.90) My rating : 6/10
This one was too pepper-ish, I don’t like this. It won't be enticing enough for me to eat more than two pieces. Texture wise, the piece that I ate was rather hard.

All in 1 Roasted Meat with Vegetables (RM 19.90) My rating : 4/10
This mini Poon Choi set comes with rice, kailan with oyster sauce and pickles. Inside the pot you can find conch slices, roasted meat, prawns, pak choy and broccoli.

I found that the prawns were not fresh. The soup base/ gravy tasted differently (in wide scale) too in different claypots. I couldn’t accept ours having the taste of one kind, which I didn't know how to describe precisely. It's like a weird strong pak choy vege taste?! and the other pot was like having too strong of meat taste?! Of course what could I have expected from a RM19.90 Poon Choi leh right?! OK, I will request for just one simple thing – the soup base could be sweet or sour but definitely not to taste ‘weird’.

Sago+water chestnut in coconut milk (RM3.50) My rating: 3/10
It’s served like this, frothy -look. Oops! First scoop tasted very weird, getting used to it from second scoop onwards till the last drop. In fact, most of them stopped after trying their first scoop. Frankly speaking, I yearned to have a good dessert to end my meal but it seemed like this round I got to let go. One could be very creative and innovative in recipe but please make sure we customers buy it ok?! :)

In overall for the food here, it's more towards ‘healthy’ taste, meaning lack of excessive usage of salt, sugar or spices. The ala carte dishes definitely need more room for improvement.

Ko-Fu-Loft (口福樓)
Add : 170-04-59, Level 4, Plaza Gurney, Persiaran Gurney, 10250 Penang.
Tel: 604-2295011
Fax : 604-2294011

Ko-Fu-Loft (口福樓): Invited Review (Part I)

Ko-Fu-Loft (口福樓) : Invited Review (Part I)

Thanks Jian & & Criz for the food review invitation on Last Sunday. This is by far the biggest group we had since we started to have food review in group. Thanks Ko-Fu-Loft management too for being so generous in accomodating 21 pax of us in one go!

By alphabetical order:
http://alliefoodtalk.com/ - Allie
http://buzzingbee.blogsome.com/ - Bee
http://cariso-food.blogspot.com/ - Cariso
http://crizfood.com/ - Criz Lai
http://cokeworldcitizen.blogspot.com/ - Jian
http://food-4tots.com/ - LK Low
http://nuttyeve9.blogspot.com/ - Cheryl Wee
http://reginatravel-foodparadise.blogspot.com/ - Mary
http://www.foodpromotions.com.my/ - Eunice, Siew Ying & Iris
http://www.gourmetgarden.com.my/ - Gill & Jason
http://www.noweating.com/ - CW Chan
http://penangtuapui.com/ - Huat Koay & Albert
http://www.stevengoh.com/ - Steven Goh
http://www.what2seeonline.com/ - CK Lam
http://yummy-station.com/ - Allen
http://yumyumbites.blogspot.com/ - Christy
site pending - Chef Khoon

A wall of Dim Sum steaming baskets arrayed behind the cashier.

Some private dining corners.

Basically Ko-Fu-Loft inherited everything from the ex-Food Loft with minor renovation. What else could be done on the layout since it's been like that right? The only thing they could do is the interior decoration.

Lovely bird cages. This walkway is located between the two kitchens. This is the area where we were seated for our food review. Great uh?!

In overall, I favour the dim sum of Ko-Fu-Loft more compared to its other ala carte dishes. Let's scroll down to see why.

Har Kau (Fresh Prawn Dumpling) RM 5.50 My rating : 8/10.

The prawns were very springy, even though the dish has been left there for some time, the springiness still remained. This further proved the freshness of the ingredients used in this dim sum dish.


Siew Mai (Pork Dumpling) RM5.50 My rating : 7/10

Most of the customers come to Ko-Fu-Loft for the dim sum. This Siew Mai was not bad, pretty standard too. It is comparable to those dim sum houses outside.

Minced Squid with Crab Claw (RM 6.90) My rating : 7/10

This dish is photogenic! The presentation of this dish got my vote as the Second Best Dish Presentation of The Day. The texture for our serving was smooth. Cheng cheng tei.

Deep Fried Yam Paste with Minced Pork / Wu Kok (RM 4.50) My rating : 8/10

The Wu Kok’s filling tasted exactly like char siew pao, very lembik and watery type. The crust is crunchy and thin. Not ‘that’ oily, tasted good. I like this one.

Signature Steamed Custard Creamy Bun (RM 5.50) My rating : 7/10

I’ve tried two buns. First one was rather good and the custard cream was smooth. The second one, texture of custard cream seemed to be rather coarse at some parts. Perhaps the egg yolk mixture uh?! In general I praised for its bouncing soft bun's skin.

Deep Fried Pandan Lotus Paste Dumpling (RM 4.50) My rating : 7/10

Pandan flavoured filling was not too sweet, good for everyone. The sesame crust was a bit hard if to be eaten alone though.

Part II - Ko-Fu-Loft has room to improve for its ala carte dishes though. Stay tuned.......

Segafredo New Menu - Oops!

Segafredo @ Gurney Plaza


Segafredo introduces new menu since mid June.


I am not a Sega kaki lah. I was 'asked' to go and try it out and see if it's 'NICE'. I totally have no idea if you were to ask me which part of the menu is new? which part is old? I can only confirm that it's a NEW MENU loh from the shining hardcover. :p



Specialita
Appetizer/ Snacks


Dolce (Sweet)


Minestra (Soup), Insalata (Salad)






Panini



Sandwiches

Pasta

Espresso

Espresso Freddo (Iced Coffee)


Sega Signatures, Milkshake, Hot Chocolate, Tea & Juices.

Health Boosting Juices

Guess what I ordered?

Smoke Salmon Boursin (Croissant) RM12.00 ++ - Smoke Norwegian salmon served with boursin cheese.

The dish presentation looked like a hermit crab (寄蟹蟲), cool man!!! The croissant is not very cheesy, semi- crunchy and tasted OK in overall. Salmon + tomato + vege = healthy loh. I like this dish. IF compared to the dish below, this one definitely deserves high marks already!

Aglio Olio (RM15.00++) . Authentic aglio-olio angel hair with free range tiger prawns.

OK, look carefully on this dish. This dish deserves more F# points.

F#1 : Is this fried noodles for kid?! They use scissors to cut the angel hair spaghetti till short short botak botak for kid to eat hor?!

F#2 : Why so dry? Mana my olive oil? No sign of oil?

F#3 : Look at this prawn. This is the immediate shot after removing the flesh from the shell. NOT FRESH! The head and tail also dark colour one.

One dish OK, one dish not OK. Can I pay 50% nia leh?!

Hot Wok Nyonya & Local Cuisine - Invited Review

Invited Review @ Hot Wok, Burmah Road.

Last Friday a group of us, 14x pax in total, were invited by CK for a food review, extended by Mr. Kelvyn Yeoh, the owner of Hot Wok.

Downstair is divided into 3 portions - the front, the middle and the back. You can see that this pre war house is now tranformed into a beautiful house decorated with fine arts and antiques, close to become a nyoya gallery.

We were seated at the middle hall, alongside the staircase. Very 'peranakan' homey feel heh?!

Leading to upstair. The deco at upstair is lit up more brightly and more spacious BUT I personally feel that it is less 'nyonya' or 'peranakan' feel if compared to downstair.

Upstair dining tables.

This is not an art piece but a menu lah!

The owner with HK leng lui artist, 官恩那 and Tou Tou!

Loh Bak (My rating 8/10)
Very neat & nice presentation of this Loh Bak dish. The Loh Bak is not that 'oily' and I could taste the juiciness of the minced pork.



Kiam Chai Ark (My rating 9/10)
When scoop into small bowls, I won't see the oiliness anymore. :) The soup is full of duck meat, salted vege (kiam chai) and tomatoes. The taste is just nice, not too salty and not too peppery. One bowl is definitely not enough for me!! This is the dish that made me begging for rice!


Choon Pheah (My rating 7/10)
This Choon Pheah (spring rolls) is best eaten when dipped with the special vinegar sauce.

Wrapping underneath the crispy skin is the shredded bang kuang and carrot.

Tau Eu Bak (My rating 8/10)
The Tau Eu Bak is actually hidden underneath the hardboiled eggs. It's very 'black', you won't be able to 'see' it. :) Just pick a slice and taste it then you'll know how well it's marinated and how tender the meat is.

Or Kuih (My rating 7/10)
Topped with chilli, spring onions & green onions, this Or Kuih is soft but not too lembik until sticking to your teeth.

Curry Kapitan Chicken (My rating 7/10)
The Kapitan Curry is red and rich in aroma but not that spicy. Potatoes accompanied with the chickens are also soft.

Curry Tumis Fish (My rating 8/10)
This is the second dish that made me begging for more rice. I believe cooking stingray in this curry tumis way is the most appetizing one as the gravy is full of lemongrass, blended with a tad sweet and more sour in taste.

Pork Cincalok (My rating 6/10)
I found this dish a bit too salty. I would prefer it to be sweeter in taste.

Assam Prawn (My rating 7/10)
This dish is basically 'ALL black' when it's presented. *Headache* as how are we going to capture this dish then?! The prawns are marinated with dark soya sauce. Assam taste was a bit shadowed by the sauce though.

This is the look of the naked prawns when i't not sun-tanned. :)


Jiu Hoo Char (My rating 6/10)
This Jiu Hoo Char is less moist. The cutting of ingredients are also a bit 'rough' in size.

Hokkien Mee (My rating 7/10)

Those who like sio bak one will definitely like this bowl of Hot Wok's Hokkien Mee! Its soup base has very thick prawn taste.

Dessert (My rating 7/10)

Ice Kacang, Sago Honeydew , Sago Nangka, Sago Gula Melaka, Cendol , Mango Cendol.

I like the Ice Kacang and Sago Honeydew the most!

The one I marked with 'X' is the only dessert that I dislike as it tasted sourish and weird. Why? coz it's Mango in Cendol.

Hot Wok Nyonya & Local Cuisine124-E & F Burma Road10050 Penang
Add : 124-E&F, Burmah Road, 10050 Penang.

Tel : 04 2273368, Fax : 04-2298268
Business Hour : 11.00am - 3.00pm & 6.00pm - 11.00pm
Website : http://www.hotwok.com.my/

Email : reservations@hotwok.com.my
Closed on Tuesdays

Sok Tei Thng (熟地湯) @ Teik Seng (德成飯店)

Teik Seng (德成飯店) @ Lebuh Carnavon / Carnavon Street

This is the stall that I used to makan during my childhood as frequent as once per week.

How often could you find one zhu char stall that serve Sok Tei Thng (熟地湯) as their soup of the day uh?

If you are craving for Sok Tei Thng (熟地湯), you must come here loh. Of course they also serve Sai Yong Chai Thng (西洋菜湯) and Lao Ti Mum Thng (老黃瓜湯).


Same like the Shing Kheang Aun (新瓊安), this is another place that you got to take note of their standard serving size too. No matter you come in small or big group, the serving size is standard. You got to pandai-pandai add more dishes if you come in bigger group OK?!

See the ppl standing there....JOM table from those who are about to leave?! This place accomodates up until ~20 tables and yet it's always full house every night.

Sok Teh Thng (熟地湯) (RM8)

Ham Yu Far Nam Pou (鹹魚花 月南 煲)(RM12) - Delicately braised far nam with minced salted fish.

6 pcs. Don't order this dish if you don't want to eat this delicious fatty part. If not, you are wasting food nia lah. :)

Yao Mak (RM6)

The serving size at Teik Seng is pretty small.

Taste wise, very 'trademark' type of taste. Once you taste it, you'll remember that this taste belongs to Teik Seng ONLY!

Business Hours : Lunch ~12-2.30p.m, Dinner ~6.30pm-9p.m .

日本新街豬什粥 (Chee Chap Cheok ) - Good ah!

豬什粥 (Chee Chap Cheok )@ Ho Ping Kopitiam, Kampong Malabar, 10100 Penang. (日本新街）
Why they 'spelled' it as chee chap cheok one leh? I would prefer it to be "Chyuu Chap Chuk" instead.

The price is clearly stated there as :
RM5.50 (big)
RM 4.70 (small)
RM4.20 (only meat, 淨肉)
豬什湯，豬什粥, 粗米粉，幼米粉。

See the crowd queuing up @ 6p.m.

For those of you who is anti-internal organ one, you may order the 'meat only' version.

Mee sua with full ingredients. I can accept all except the brain + intestine.


Pig kidney. This is the one I like the most out of all the internal organs ! Why? coz it's easily chewed , crunchy(?) and not soooo bloody.

Pig brain. Due to H1N1 disease of late, they will ask whether if you want the pig brain. For my serving, I saw some parts got a bit sticky one like mucous, I surrendered after eating half. *kao maeng ah!!!!* :)

Pig intestine. - This is the only ingredient that is really unacceptable by me. Why this has to be soooo chewy one leh? No matter how many times I chew also kar beh tui one woh!

Pig liver. The cook has managed to lessen the bloody scene from here. Luckily!

Minced pork. The safest of all!

Tong chye. The appetizing ingredient!

Pig lung. Small pieces but not much taste?!

The soup was not pure clear type but rather milky-coloured. It's tasty. One could easily finish up the whole bowl of soup!

Add : Ho Ping Kopitiam, Kampong Malabar, 10100 Penang. (日本新街).

Business Hours : 5p.m. onwards till late.

加料特長油條王 (Te Chang You Tiao Wang) Invited Review

A bunch of crazy people? Yes, we all are. :p

We were at this stall last Saturday, thanks to Criz .


Let's look at each step on how to produce the Te Chang You Tiao.

Deep frying the Black & White Sesame Twins.

Clockwise :

Sausage + Mayonnaise (RM3.00)

Tuna+ Mayonnaise (RM2.50)

Peanut+Butter (RM2.00)

Kaya+Butter (RM2.00)

Chicken Floss+Mayonnaise (RM2.50)

Honey+Butter (RM2.00)

Cut into pieces before serving. Plain (RM1.00)

Black & White Sesame Twins / Ma Keok (RM2.00 for 3 pcs)

Black Soya Bean (RM1.00) - I like this one very much!

Business Hours : 1.00pm - 8.30pm (Close Every Alternate Tuesday)

Add : 1250-A, Jalan Paya Terubong, 11060 Penang. (If you are coming from Bayan Lepas to Ayer Itam using the Paya Terubong road, after passing by the Bomba on your right, go further until you pass by the traffic light. Pay attention to your left immediately. This stall is next to 老夫子Lao Fu Zi Bak Kut Teh, opposite the 東海岸East Coast Food Court) .

Tel : 016-4337301 (陳德興)

Yipin Restaurant Set Meal

一品小食館 (Yipin Restaurant) @ Taman Sungai Nibong


Putting aside the economic rice into consideration, if you are looking for a reasonably-priced lunch or dinner @ as low as RM5.50 nett (with complimentary drink and soup) at a comfortable air-cond environment, I believe this is one of the ideal places for da gong zai @ FIZ area.


Rice : Available at RM5.50 nett & RM 8.00 nett respectively.



Noodles : Available at RM5.50 nett & RM 8.00 nett respectively.

Add-on items.

Drink + Soup of the day came with the set. Don't expect 'lou for tong' (老火湯) at all lah.

姜蔥飯 (雞球/肉片)(Onion and Ginger Rice Set (chicken balls / pork))

雙菇時蔬 燴飯 (Braised Mushroom Rice Set)

The rice sets are served like lam pui (淋飯). One meat or vege serving with rice. Taste wise, just like ordinary economy rice dishes but slightly more towards 'restaurant' flavour.

Ala carte : Braised Tofu (RM6.00) . This one was pretty good.

Add on : Seaweed rolls (RM2).

In short, mai hiam beh pai lah.

Yipin Restaurant

Add : No 7, Lorong Bukit Kecil , Sungai Nibong, 11900 Penang. (This is located at the back of kopitiam that sells Koay Theow Thng during day time, same row with the bak kut teh kopitiam that sells at night, middle unit of that row.)

Tel : 04-6466480

Business Hours: 11.00 am - 2.30 pm, 6.00 pm - 9.30 pm.

Closed on Every Monday.

Roti Bakar Kopitiam (炭烤麵包)

Roti Bakar Kopitiam @ Penang Times Square

Each RM5 you spent entitles for one stamp. Free one drink after 12 stamps.

Clockwise :
Kopitiam French Toast RM3.20 (I like this. It's really good when served hot).
Fish Porridge RM5.90 + 5% service charge = RM6.20 nett . This one was very plain, really really cheng cheng tei one. (Mr Pot one @ RM6.60 nett is bigger in portion and 'tastier', fyi).

Roti Bakar Cheese RM3.90 (Don't know why. It seemed to be not consistent in its saltiness between the two days we visited)

Sugar Butter Roti Bakar (single) RM1.20 (It's way too plain with thinly spread butter and sugar. Recommend you to try other types of roti bakar than this one. Perhaps we were already 'poisoned' by the the Old Town Kopitiam one?!)


Set Meal.

The Roti Bakar series.

The appetizer & sandwitches.

Noodles.

Taste of Old Days.

Rice.

Drinks.

Roti Bakar Kopitiam (near the fountain stage)

77-G-41 & 42, Penang Times Square,
Jalan Dato Keramat 10150 Penang.
Tel : 04-2296989

1-1-5, Plaza Ivory, Halaman Bukit Gambir
11700 Gelugor, Penang.
Tel : 04-6552989

Azuma - too happy getting the card until.....

Initially it's 6 pax -> later became 7 pax -> at the end became 10 pax. We a total of 10 pax reached there late therefore we actually need to eat fast cabut fast. Their serving speed was considered OK as we came in a big group and they managed to serve us in about ~20 mins time after we placed our order.

This round I managed to get the VIP card already, all thanks to T for his reminder.
"Wah....got promotion on sushi leh 30% woh if got VIP card!"
"Don't have leh." I showed him the 'sad smiley' face. 那壺不開提那壺!
"How much is entitled to apply the card leh?"
"RM200 in a single receipt."
"Ei, like that can woh, we today got 10 pax leh.......green tea is charged separately RM1 each. Enough leh! Apply lah."
"Ya woh! Kam sia for reminding!"
OK, I F-I-N-A-L-L-Y managed to get the card. :p

As usual I would try out the Set of the Month. The rest of them mostly ordered the Chiken Teriyaki Set (RM18). (not in pic)


Left (1) : Niku Pirikara Itame - Pan-fried chicken and fresh vegetables in spicy sauce. (RM12) (usual price RM22) - this one was rather spicy. Mr K told me he lao sai 3x after he ate. He could't stand the spiciness apparently. Haha!

Left (2) : Hotate Iri Chahan - Scallops fried rice (RM10) - this one was more fragant than the garlic fried rice.

Left (3) : Tori Niku Teriyaki Jyu (RM18). Rice topped with chicken in teriyaki style. - She regretted when she realized the Chicken Teriyaki Set got more side dishes, with exact same price tim! Ha!


Right : This June set of the month is Watana Ebi Maki To Kashira Nambam Zuke. Reverse prawn maki rolled in egg, vinegar marinated salmon head, tender lamb teppan served with rice and miso soup. (RM18) (usual price RM35) - I personally felt that the vinegar marinated salmond head was appetizing but the lamb teppan was just so so. Maki wise, just fair, not as good as previous months one.

Partial of the group left immediately after finishing their chicken teriyaki set. We have short lunch break, fyi.

When another half gang of us stepping down the escalator, someone suddenly blurted,
"Hey, they forgot to serve us the free green tea ice cream woh!"
"Aiyoh! Ya hor? Too rushing already lah we all eating ! Aiyoh.....wasted loh, 10 scoops oi!"
"Aiks....why they never realize uh?"
"Haha...may be we stormed in and stormed out kua like locusts (蝗蟲過境), too fast."

After 3 hours, we called up, "Harlo, just now you ppl forgot to serve us ice cream leh. We sit inside, 10 pax one."
"Oh....which table ah? Got two woh? ......Hmm.....Got booking one? "
"Ya, got booking one."
"Well, blah blah blah........but we cannot let you ta pao one woh."
"Of course lah " We were actually thinking if they can key in into the system to track it using the card.
"Well, like that loh, next visit we serve you 'back' each one double scoops."
"OK, we bring 10 pax back next round and each of us get 2 scoops ya. But then how if you absent leh?"
"Oh...I will inform my assistant too lah. They will know lah, no problem."
"Ok ok......thank you har!"


We LOL like siao after we hung up the phone.
We teased at each other, "Ei, you ppl mensiasuikan lah."
"Penang kia behaved like that malu loh, for the sake of free ice cream nia."

Actually we not necessarily wanted to 'claim' back the ice cream lah, just wanted to find out if they care about customer satisfaction.

Stay tuned.....see if we are able to claim back the 10x ice creams during our next visit ?! :)

Azuma Japanese Restaurant (next to Harvey Norman, above Borders)
2F-87 (South Zone), Queensbay Mall, 100, Persiaran Bayan Indah,
11900, Bayan Lepas.
Tel: 04-641 3118
Operating Hrs : 11.30 am to 10.15 pm.