KAMPUNGBOYCITYGAL A MALAYSIAN FOOD & TRAVEL BLOG

To celebrate a friend’s birthday, we decided to splurge on some hearty Chinese food. The choice is rather obvious because we chose to meet at Mid Valley, which house the two of the outlets from Crystal Jade Restaurant chain in Malaysia – Amuleto & Crystal Jade Restaurant. Crystal Jade has been expanding. Other than the existing outlets – Crystal Jade Lai Mian at Lot 10 and C-Jade Express in Mid Valley Megamall, we now have Crystal Jade Kitchen & C Jade Meal 3 at Pavilion too.

Each restaurant carries different concept and serves different kind of food. Crystal Jade Restaurant at the Gardens is beautiful and swanky where one will be immediately be struck by the impressive interior upon entry – fitted with wood paneled walls, red velvet chairs, and rows of red terracotta warriors displayed low-key music in the background.

Since the restaurant is fully seated by the time we arrived, the seven of us were led into one of their private dining room with magnificent view overlooking mid valley city.

Feeling rather famished and greedy, we ordered two dinner sets for four. The serving portion is just nice for us to taste a little bit of everything.

Special Four Person Set Meal (RM 208.00)

Roasted Pi Pa Duck in Hot Plate – It is called Pipa Duck because of the resemblance of the butterfly cut to a pipa (Chinese music instrument). The skin is crispy and the meat is very tender and juicy, only to be spoiled by the overly salty gravy.

Double Boiled Watercress Soup – Slow cooked for hours, the hearty watercress soup makes a great tummy warmer.

Three Cup Chicken – Served in a piping hot stone bowl, it is very aromatic, with abundant amount of Thai basil and ginger. The gravy (made of soy sauce, rice wine and sesame oil, 1 cup each) is great to be eaten with rice.

Deep Fried Prawn with Butter and Cereal – The shells of the prawn can be eaten as it’s fried to crisp! The prawns were fresh, firm to the bite and sweet, which was well-complemented by slight sweetness of the cereal.

Steamed Egg Plant with Shrimp – A simple dish as such as done perfectly. The delicate and silky egg plant has soaked up the delicious gravy, and the flavor permeate the dish.

Fried Rice in Assorted Grain in Hot Stone – The fried rice is lack of a hint of wok hei to make it tasty. The guys, who were skeptical towards anything organic, do not enjoy the assorted grain.

Almond Cream – The Chinese almond dessert is smooth and milky, giving a perfect ending to our meal.  

Premium Four Person Set Meal (RM 318.00)

Crystal Jade Roasted Duck – The roasted duck is nothing to shout about with its not so crispy skin and lean meat.

Braised Sharkfin with Seafood and Bamboo Pith – it was flavourful and rich, with spot on taste. Bamboo pith provided the crunch in this sweetish-savoury soup.

Pan Fried Stuffed Vegetables in Hot Stone – Most of the stuffing were very generous and it was quite a delight eating the fresh and bouncy fish paste by itself.

Steamed Soon Hock in Preserved Vegetables – Fresh from the tank, the meat is lean and moist with a mild flavor. The topping of preserved vegetable make it promisingly delicious.

Braised Seasonal Vegetables with Assorted Mushroom and Shrimp Roe – The vegetables are cooked just nice with a nice crunch, while the assorted mushroom and shrimp roe make the dish “glam”.

Birthday Noodles – A symbol of longevity in Chinese culture, it is a must for us to order the birthday noodles for the birthday boy. The noodles are awful though, mushy in texture and bland in taste.

Chinese Herbal Jelly with Mango & Pamelo – The jelly has a mild herbal taste but thank god that the mango puree and pamelo are added to make it palatable.

The Auditors

Happy Birthday to Jeff! Wishing you all the best on your future undertakings!

The total bill comes close to RM 600++. With most of the food is tasty (but not earth-shattering) and excellent services, this is a great place to take guests, visitors or a date, or just a fine restaurant to choose when you have a craving for Chinese food. Just be ready to spend a fortune!

Crystal Jade Restaurant
Lot T 210
3rd Floor
The Gardens
Mid Valley City
Kuala Lumpur
Tel No: 03 – 2283 3129
(Non Halal)

To celebrate a friend’s birthday, a group of us make our move to NZX @ Ara Damansara. Tucked in at a rather obscure place (to me, who has never been to Ara Damansara), most fine it quite a hassle to get here. Calls from friends asking for directions keep coming in and it was until one hour later that everyone was here. Instead of being grumpy and angry, our friends who arrived late were pretty amused by the first sight that greeted them – an apartment like restaurant.

Each section of the restaurant is decorated to resemble the different spaces like bedroom, bathroom, courtyard, etc. Most of the décor pieces are available for sales. One can choose from the closets full of clothes, portrait frames, key chains, to the potted plants, the canopy bed drape and the hanging crystal chandelier.

Full House is particularly the most crowded place in NZX, one reason for that is almost certainly its relaxed atmosphere and wallet friendly meals. Did I tell you that the menu with comic strips was exceptionally cute too? Unlike the extensive drinks list, main courses are limited where we were left with only 5 to 6 items each on the Asian Menu and Western Menu.

Location Map (Credits to SaiMatKong)

I tend to think that most themed restaurants would rely on hype and glitz rather than good food. It comes to my surprise when the food was by no means a dreadful meal, but much of it was mediocre and acceptable, with more rooms for improvement. Full House is exceptionally relaxed and convivial. It creates the perfect atmosphere for any individual to sit, read a book, meet new people, have some coffee or simply hang out.

1. Everyone sing the birthday song and have the birthday child sing along.
2. The birthday is deep in thought, hmmm I wish for more toys, more candies, (more chicks)……
3. Awwww so cute!
4. The portrait of a happy family.

We adjourn to Heritage Bay Club at Pulau Duyong for High Tea buffet after that. The RM300 million a year yacht race called the Monsoon Cup (some say the F1 of yachting) has left us behind Heritage Bay Club (Kelab Teluk Warisan Terengganu). Other than accommodation, Heritage Bay Club offers sailing facilities as well.

Idris Yusof, the ex chief minister of Terengganu.

The restaurant that we are heading to is Ulek Mayang Restaurant, located at the club house of Heritage Bay Club, overlooking the South China Sea.

At RM 25++, the buffet spread revolves around Malay delicacies such as mee soto, rojak, ayam kunyit, roti canai, ais kacang and a niche selection of western starters and desserts.

The food was surreally bad, not all of them, but most of them. Quite simply, there is no excuse for unattentive service in such a prestigious club but it happened. Our finished plates are never cleared and we have to squeeze for table room. Nevertheless, we would love to thank KampungBoy’s sister in law for buying us the meal.

Bar Area

Sleekly Designed Indoor Dining Room

Alfresco Dining at the Patio

With KampungBoy’s Parents

After the meal, we walked around the deck for some cam whoring session and to catch a glimpse of the prize-winning boats from the Monsoon Cup competition. Such a stunning place isn’t it? It better be, so much of money was spent on it!

The Heritage Bay Club Marina & Resort,
Pulau Duyong,
21300 Kuala Terengganu,
Terengganu.
Tel: 09-627 7888
Fax: 09-622 9903
E-mail: info@heritagebayclub.com.
Website: www.heritagebayclub.com

To the greatest boyfriend in the whole wide world, Wishing you a day as special as you are, Happy Birthday! Love,Citygal

Goodies Bag for Guests

Fried Popiah

Nasi Minyak

Kari Ayam

Ayam Masak Merah

Acar Sayur

Dragon Fruit & Coffee Agar-Agar

Cuties in Beach Wear

Happy Birthday to KampungBoy’s Dad!

Longetivity Noodles

Whole Roasted Chicken

Sweet Sour Garoupa Fish

Sweet Sour Pork Ribs

Sweet Sour Crabs

Two Way Kai Lan

Iron Man Wannabes

“It’s good to come home every now and then, as time goes in a different pace here”, says KampungBoy. I couldn’t agree more. The relaxed pace of life in Terengganu is apparent in the quaint town but one will be easily impressed with its gastronomic delight that exudes an enviable charm.

We have been eating like there’s no tomorrow, mainly because of the two birthday celebrations of KampungBoy’s dad and nephew in merely three days. For his dad’s birthday, we had a lunch gathering ala kenduri style.

The caterers have adequately done a very good job; the food was served piping hot and everything is relatively fresh. An essential for kenduri/wedding function, nasi minyak, or better known as Festive Rice is a perfect accompaniment to the spicy dishes, and it fares quite well as a standalone meal. Cooked with butter, ginger, coconut milk, ginger and various spices; it is highly flavorful and aromatic.

To start with, nibble on some crunchy acar sayur (pickled vegetables) drenched in sweet and sour vinegar sauce. Continue feasting on ayam masak merah (spicy tomato sauce), its distinctively spicy sweet and sour flavour has lured us over again and again. Prepared using free range chicken and various spices, gulai ayam is another variant from the usual curry chicken. Coconut milk makes it creamy with a hint of sweetness and the use of spices takes it to another level of taste. Beef rendang was pretty popular as well, judging from the little leftover for our breakfast the next day.

The dinner was held at Uncle Ng’s Restaurant, one of the better Chinese restaurants in Kuala Terengganu. The food is mediocre, can’t complain much because our taste buds were spoiled by all sort of good Chinese food around Ipoh and KL. However, the roasted chicken deserves a mention here. It’s crackly crispy skin is absolutely delicious; where KampungBoy insist it’s the best part of the bird while I love the tender and juicy part of the meat.

Stay tune for Part II, the ending of our short escapade back home (to some of yours relieve! :p)

Uncle Ng Restaurant
50E, Jalan Tok Lam
20100 Kuala Terengganu
Terengganu.
Tel: 09-6312863

Pictures Says It All

Turning 23, it is time for me to take on more responsibilities. I am so proud of myself because I cast my vote and it does make a difference because the oppositions will form a new government in Perak after securing majority of the state seats. I am glad that I can finally stand on my own feet (welcome to the rat race!) but at the same time I can’t help but to simultaneously echoing the glory days of my pre 20’s.

So, on my birthday, I was given a dinner treat to stave off the ravages of time at Trader’s Hotel. We were torn between Gobo Upstairs and Gobo Chit Chat. Gobo Chit Chat has entrancing light animation displayed on the ceiling but it has a more casual ambience while Gobo Upstairs, with tall glass windows where you can take in a great view of KL city is simply elegant. Casual or Elegant? Fancy Ceiling or KL view? We settled for Gobo Upstairs eventually.

We were brought to a quaint little corner facing the Exxon Mobil building. At another side of the restaurant is the lounge, where you can have a drink or two while overlooking the magnificent view of KLCC.

MENU

Complimentary bread was served warm. The crusty bread was nice to be eaten on its own but it tastes even better with the truffle butter. How often do you see a restaurant serving you with FREE truffle butter nowadays?

Our order of brandy flamed lobster bisque with chocolate oil arrived shortly (RM 26++ each). It was rich and sweet and flavourful but too salty that I have to dunk thick wodges of bread in it to balance the saltiness.

Being the coward eater, we go for the recommended dishes. My order of lamb shank (RM 38++) is wonderfully flavourful and tender, the meat falls off the bone with some evil little fatty shards.

KampungBoy loves his beef short ribs (RM 38++) to every bit; the meat was cooked to perfection while the merlot based concoctions  were remarkably rich and complex.

Good Food Make A Happy Girl

The meal finishes on a sweet note where KampungBoy has earlier aligned a little surprise for me at the lounge area. The initial plan was to proceed to Sky Bar for desserts and drinks but I got suspicious when the waiter urged us to the lounge area.

Suddenly behind the bar area, I saw the waiter carrying a candle lit cake and walking towards us. It was chocolate fondant with raspberry and filo pastry with minted scrattiatella ice cream (RM 18++). Pheew what a long name!

KampungBoy sang a cool rendition of the common birthday song with tweaked lyrics. It was hilarious. The night did not end here, we proceeded to SkyBar……

A quaint restaurant plopped amidst the busy KLCC area, Gobo Upstairs has the best food and excellent services for the most reasonable price; the total bill came less than RM 200 for a 3 course meal. 2 hours of parking is free upon validation for total bill above RM 250. However, for those who pay less than RM 250, you can park your car at Suria KLCC (RM 7 flat after 5 pm) and take a slow walk  instead of going into the hotel’s parking which charge a higher rate.

GOBO UPSTAIRS LOUNGE AND GRILL
Traders Hotel
Kuala Lumpur City Centre
50088 Kuala Lumpur
Reservations: +603–2332 9888

Kampungboy proudly presents…

Click to enlarge

HAPPY BIRTHDAY – Citygal

On the 30th of December 2005, tiny slices of Keropok Lekor has ignited our intention to star a food blog and this is why KampungboyCitygal was borned. It is a typical real life example of how little things can make a big difference.

Food Blogging has gave us a lot of surprises and changed our perception towards food. We used to think that food is just some lifeless combination of carbo, protein, fats, vitamins and minerals that releases energy through the process of digestion. Well, something like that lar, I read it somewhere.

All in all, we were grateful that we have manage to go this far (2 years / 24 months/ 730 days) because I have not always been a persistent person. From today onwards, we’ll be here (http://kampungboycitygal.com). So update your link people!!

Happy New Year and Happy Feasting People!!

That night, when the clock strikes 12, I knocked on his door with his favourite marbel cheese cake. The cake was a last minute thing, because he was with me all day long and I can’t even sneaked out to get him a cake. My housemate did me a favour by getting me two slices of cheese cake from Secret Recipe.

The candles were lit, he was told to close his eyes, he made a wish and he blew out the candles. The birthday boy resorted back to his B-O-O-K-S after that, it was a stressful exam week after all.

The next day, I made him an ugly looking brunch, a distorted smiley face, please don’t tell me that it’s not a smiley face! He named it Cheeky Breakie with his all time favourite egg mayo, chicken nuggets, cheese (the eye balls, you saw it?), baked beans and toasts. Of course, desserts would be the leftover cheese cakes.

Dinner was at Dapur Nyonya @ Bandar Puteri Puchong. The area is beginning to flourish with many of the commercial lots being filled up, the amount of food places are also blooming like mushrooms after the rain. We found korean bbq, shabu shabu, porridge steamboat, steak house, lamien, thai food, pizza uno, emperor noodles, etc other than the well known bumbu bali and bibi wok.

The honey lemon sea coconut (RM 3.2) was refreshing. We opted for the Set for Two (RM 28), inclusive of thai styled chicken, tom yam soup, mango fish fillet and salted fish vegetables. Famished and inordinately greedy, we ordered dried shrimps buttered soft shell crab (RM 16) too.

Mango Fish Fillet

Dried Shrimps Buttered Soft Shell Crab

Tom Yam Soup

Salted Fish Vegetables

Thai Styled Chicken

Birthday Boy with Gluttony Face

Overall the food was not too bad, how can you get wrong with zest and flavor of sweet, sourish and spicy food ? Everyone loves it. Dapur Nyonya is not an authentic Nyonya place with Nyonya dishes like pongteh and perut ikan missing from the menu. The menu is more like the mixture of thai and chinese for me. Anyway, nowadays good food has no boundaries with fusion of taste that transcends and excites right? Total bill comes about RM 60 which is very reasonable and service is great too.

I told him that it has been ages since we went to a live unplugged music place. Without hesitate, we headed to Wings Cafe Equine Park right after dinner. Actually, his friends were having a little surprise birthday celebration for him over there.

Jasmine Tea for Him

Bubble Milk Tea for Me

The surprise was a sweet one indeed, with the sugary sweet vocal of Wings Cafe singer and such a great ambience, unlike the disaster that he faced last year. Haha.

Memorable birthday celebration last year where his friends slam-bang the cake hard on his face.

The Accounting Gang (Jackson, your favourite is in the picture!! Hehe)

A happy and blissful birthday to you, may this year and all the coming years of you life is glorious and filled with success.