KAMPUNGBOYCITYGAL A MALAYSIAN FOOD & TRAVEL BLOG

Nasi Lemak Antarabangsa, an established name in Kampung Baru since 1973. The brand name is so strong that they have ventured into franchising now, with 12 branches available in Klang Valley and Malacca.

Despite having a bad prior experience that we have decided not to blog about it, we will always give a restaurant a second chance unless it’s a horrible transgression. So we said yes to the invitation from Nazli that represents NLA and we met at the Kota Damansara outlet. The outlet offers a clean, air conditioned and comfortable atmosphere to enjoy your lunch or dinner.

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Gourmet Burger or Street Burger? Sorry, but I’d take a messy, sloppy burger with overflowing juice that leaves my shirt stained, especially on days when cash runs low.

KampungBoy’s friend, Sehli introduced us to Brother John’s burger some time ago and there is no turning back. It has remained as one of our favourite burger stall. The secret lies in the generous squeeze of various sauces that make the burger so juicy. If you are game for something HUGE, go for the Master Burger that comes with double patties, double cheese and an egg.

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Char Siew Zai is one place that we discovered by chance and has been going back ever since. The reasons being?

1. High tossing wantan mee
The noodles are boiled and go through a cold bath to ensure the ’springyness”. The breath taking moment come when the cook throw it up high and catch it with a sieve. This is repeated for a few times to ensure that the excessive moisture is well drained. The noodles were really good – springy, flavorful and firm!

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Sorry for the hiatus. I just came back from a short holiday in Bangkok & Pattaya. Should I blog about Bangkok?

We have always been passing by Betty’s Midwest Kitchen and it is alway seen with a good crowd. “Famous ar?”, asked KampungBoy.  ”I really have no idea.” I answered with a shrug. However, reviews on Betty’s Midwest Kitchen from Food4Thot and The Normad Gourmand have further ignited our interest  so we decided to pop in for early lunch.

We were there really early to we had the whole restaurant to ourselves. However, it is advisable to book for lunch and dinner as capacity in the restaurant is limited.

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I have a confession to make – I’m not a morning person. Being able to sleep till noon is a comforting reminder that I occasionally get time off work and I really appreciate that. So whenever KampungBoy tries to wake me up for breakfast, I would protest, “Sunday’s the only morning I can sleep. Can’t we eat later?” and turn my back against him. But there’s always an exception, there is one favourite breakfast place that I’m willing to wake up early for – SFS (aka 747) Kopitiam.

And in SFS Kopitiam, I found the love of my life - beautifully caramelized char siu that literally melt in your mouth. Another perennial favourite is Famous Seremban Favourites.

Other than char siu, the vietnamese style curry noodles is something not to be missed too.

However, the wait is excruciating here. Be prepared to wait for at least half an hour or more as everyone else seated inside the coffee shop will be waiting for the same plate of porcine goodness! I noticed that the man who is manning the stall keeps thrusting tray after tray of char sius into the oven for reheat. The secret behind the awesome char sius?

The waiting finally paid off when our curry noodles (RM4) came in its full glory cockles. The ingredients given were pretty generous; we had cockles, taufu-pok, long beans and char siew. Thumbs up for the curry broth, it was thick and rich, with a mild peppery heat and intensely flavorful spices.

Fatter strands of wantan noodles were used for the curry broth, we were told.

We also had the dry version, tossed well in a light brown sauce. The piece de resistance is the char siu; caramelised blackish layer with slightly charred bits and tender layers of fat and meat. We asked for half fat half lean and regretted as it was too greasy for our liking. We’ll stick to lean + siu siu fat next time.

747 Kopitiam (SFS Kopitiam)

Jalan PJU 1/3C,

Sunway Mas Commercial Centre.

Many thanks Dragon-I and Kong Wai Keong, the Public Relations(PR) consultant for Dragon-I restaurants for inviting us over for a food review session on their Hairy Crab Set Menu. Priced at RM128 nett / person (min 3 pax), the set consists of Steamed Hairy Crab, Steamed Shanghainese Dumpling with Crab Meat, Double-Boiled Superior Chicken Soup, Fresh Vegetable Cooked with Crab Meat, Yong Chow Fried Rice and Sesame Dumpling in Ginger Soup. The deal is not too bad at all, considering the fact that we paid about RM70 to RM90 just for the crab.

Dragon-I’s interior is modern but not too intimidating and details abound, from the display of the grand statues of Qin terra cotta warriors to the beautiful tea cups.

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Lets Do it (x3)

And live it up

I gotta feeling that tonight’s gonna be a OINK night

That tonight’s gonna be a OINK night

That tonight’s gonna be a OINK OINK night (x2)

(Black Eyed Peas – I Gotta Feeling)

Yay TGIF! What better way than celebrating the joy than to indulge in our favourite meal?

I love meat. The smell of it cooking can fill me with desire, and I find its juicy, rich flavor uniquely satisfying. So does my man – KampungBoy and Dad who loves meat. There isn’t any other better way than to celebrate their big day with a porky lardy splendor dinner. Just forgo the prim and proper and go straight for the tried and true – Dave’s it is.

(note: pictures taken at different occasions, and hence different quality standards)

Chef Darren Chin – the man in charge of kitchen operations at Dave’s.

Dave’s has a standard bar atmosphere, with simple setting, dim light and TVs all tuned into Sports Channel. For those looking to imbibe, the bar at the al fresco dining area holding rows after rows of alcohols is good enough.

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So I had Tian Tian’s Chicken Rice @ Maxwell Food Court last weekend. Three years back, it was so good it brought tears to my eyes but now the standard has dropped considerably. Feel so sorry for Christine and Huai Bin that I dragged over to the long queue.

What about our very own champion Chicken Rice?  Crowned as the Malaysian Hainan Chicken Rice Open Competition champion in 2007, Tasty Chicken Rice is located within Dataran Sunway, Kota Damansara.

So did the rice pass the test?

Each grain stood out as a fluffy and warm individual, unlike Tian Tian’s version which is slightly sticky and lumpy. However, Tian Tian’s chicken rice was very flavorful and aromatic when compared to Tasty’s chicken rice. Wouldn’t it be nice if we can have the best of both worlds?

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Very often we find ourselves driving around the vicinity of Dataran Sunway Kota Damansara, deciding on a new place to dine. Last Sunday, I spotted the bright neon light signboard of Steam King (what a catchy name!) as me and my friends drove along. So we turned back and parked our car before heading to the restaurant.

Apparently, Steam King is made famous by their steamed fishes. We ordered the steamed fish with soy sauce, scallion and ginger. Steamed just right, the fish was pearly right with a moderately firm texture. The chef had done a very good job but the fish itself had a somewhat muddy taste.

The curry version fares better. Perhaps we got a better fish or the strong curry works in hindering the unpleasant muddy taste?

The piece de resistance is the steamed frog legs with ginger. The delicate meat was sweet with a firm texture. With a little rice wine or ’shao xing’, ginger juice and shredded ginger, the sauce was lip smackingly good!

We were equally satisfied with the oh so sweet and fresh steamed lala with lots of garlic.

All in all, Steam King is a pretty decent place for a guilt free Chinese dinner. Maybe luck is not on our side with the fishes with muddy taste. We reflected this to the lady owner and she assured us that it will not happen again.

Steam King
7 Jalan PJU 5/10 Dataran Sunway
Kota Damansara,
47810 Selangor
012-9079177‎
03-6140-7460‎ – Fax

When I first met you five years ago,I could not stand this arrogant man that stood before me and you dislike me for my intimidating stares.

For some strange reason, chemistry sparks between us and I knew you were the one and only one for me.

Thanks for changing my life for the better, thanks for tolerating my tantrums and my emotional moments, and many thanks for the years of happiness and joy that you have brought to me. To be able to spend the rest of my life with you gives me something to look forward to day after day.

Happy 5th Anniversary to Us!

On this special occasion, we went to Kura Japanese Restaurant at One World Hotel for a simple meal. Look at our previous anniversary dinner here (2nd, 3rd, 4th)

The interior is elegant but not overdone, making the restaurant stylish but providing a vague hint of coziness at the same time.

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There is no need to leave your conscience at home as you give in to that sinful pleasure of a delicious sweet treat at Dessert’s Bar. Here, they have thought about what constitutes a healthy dessert while retaining the yummy factor in it.

I’m glad that Debbie and Lynndy, the marketing executive of Dessert’s Bar invited me over. It was a fun girls’ night out where we oooh and ahhh over almost everything and we also learnt that desserts is no longer a sinful indulgence at Dessert’s Bar.
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Just a few doors away from Vintry, Ribs by Vintry has a similar menu but most people come here for their R-I-B-S. Bad business strategy I would say, thou shall never put all your eggs into a basket. But apparently it works another way for Vintry because most of the tables in both premises were seated on the Friday night when we dined in.

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