Soph's Birthday @ Pavillion & Paradize Poolside Coffee House

It was Sophia's 23rd birthday, and the gang had something in store for her. First of all, Happy 23rd Birthday to you again Soph :)

Most of you are already aware of the variety of food available at Pavilion KL's Food Republic. You see visit my previous visit here. After luring Soph to the western corner of Food Republic, we delved into their wide array of dishes immediately as we were all starving as hell. Sorry Soph, I didn't get to take a picture of your "maggi mee" tom yam soup :p

From the western corner (clockwise); we ordered fettucine carbonara, lemon dill fish, pizza (forgot which flavor), and beef & mushroom fettucine. The western and Italian-themed dishes here are relatively cheap but tasty at the same time. This is one food court you must not underestimate. Perhaps because this chain is from Singapore ;p 

After satisfying our stomachs, we took a short drive over the corner to Paradize Poolside Coffee House, located in the compound of the KL Lodge Hotel. Paradize is nicely set up with a small pool outside surrounded with wooden chairs and tables, and a fair amount of greenery.

Venture inside and its time to shake your body with some latin music! Every Fridays at Paradize is Latin Night! Dance Bachata, Merengue, and Salsa to their latin beats on a very nice and open dancing space. Expect a lot of good and seasonal dancers here. Do not be overwhelmed by your inexperience as there are also beginners around including myself :p

Entry is charged based on your choice of beverage; RM10 for a mineral water, RM15 for a Tiger, or RM20 for a Corona. Ironically Paradize Coffee House is known for their Teo Chew Porridge, but perhaps another time when we're not dancing :)

Overall it was a good night; good dancing and good sweating.. The most fun way to loose weight.. Dancing..

Paradize Poolside Coffee House

KL Lodge Hotel

2 Jalan Tengah
Corner Jalan Raja Chulan & Sultan Ismail
50250 Kuala Lumpur

Hoi Tong Steamboat Restaurant @ Seri Kembangan

With steamboat buffets being the "in" thing these past few months, restaurants such as Yuen of Sunway and Hoi Tong of Seri Kembangan come to mind. The former is known for their famous and succulent barbecued chicken wings.

Being probably one of the last people to try this kind of buffet, I joined SS' family to first locate Hoi Tong which is located in the older side of Seri Kembangan. No matter what day it is; Mother's Day, Father's Day, a public holiday, weekend, or even just another weekday, please make a reservation before coming here as they are the hottest destination in the steamboat buffet scene.

Hoi Tong beats out other steamboat buffet scenes with just one word; variety. Their seafood alone comprises of crabs, prawns, squids, mantis prawns, and an assortment of clams and mussels. The pictures below show the rest of Hoi Tong's buffet spread.

As far as freshness goes, it would be best to smell them and judge for yourself as freshness levels might change from day to day, but those sensitive to allergy from non-fresh seafood are advised to stay away from the crabs. The freshness of their fish, squids, clams, and prawns shouldn't be a problem as they are consumed in big amounts on a daily basis. Calms and mussels will also require you to clean them before eating.

After a few hours, whats left are sweaty people and a very messy table..

To cool down after heaps of hot tom yam soup, you can choose between fresh fruits, iced Chinese tea, jelly, or ice cream.

Hoi Tong Steamboat

Lot 12, Sri Kembangan Tambahan

43300 Sri Kembangan, Selangor

03-8943 6580

019-258 2509

012-228 3954

GPS Coordinates: N 03°01.534′ E101°41.972′

Mother's Day @ Piccadilly & Bangkok Masala, Milennium Square

Located just under the condominium that Millennium Square sits are two kitchens that serves the same dining space; Piccadilly and Bangkok Masala. Most in PJ know this place as just Piccadilly and its easy to see why; sounds cooler? Anyhow, the two restaurants are worlds apart. Piccadilly serves mainly western dishes including chops, pastas, burgers, and anything that would go with football by the look of its menu. Bangkok Masala on the other hand serves a wide variety of Asian-themed cuisines.

The dining area is well spaced with nice wooden furniture and ambient lighting. As you can see, loads of television sets occupy the space and sporting telecasts is the main draw here. I'm reckoning this place is a full house during the entire course of the ongoing 2010 World Cup. The place also offers beers at relatively cheap prices.

From Piccadilly, we ordered a couple of Lamb Shoulder Chops (RM14.90); two medium-sized lamb shoulders served with fries and long beans. Yes, you heard me right; long beans. The only reason they would have resorted to this is if long beans is actually cheaper than corn and peas; a terrible side. The lamp meat was slightly thin and also slightly salty. Otherwise, it was only an average dish considering its cheaper price. The health-conscious might want to give this dish a skip; a lot of oil.

From Bangkok Masala; Plain Naan (RM2.50) which was quite nice. The naans here are thinner than usual, but this made it easier to eat, and not make you fill your tummy too fast.

The naans paired excellently with the next two dishes from Bangkok Masala; Tandoori Chicken (RM5) and Butter Chicken (RM12.50). The mint sauce served with the tandoori compliments the chicken and the naan well. Perhaps saving the best for last, the butter chicken saved the day. Although I would have guessed that the dish turn out yellow in color, this butter incarnation has Northern Indian influence written all over it. Packed with chili but also having that thick butter cream texture, this is the absolute best dip for our naans: highly recommended.

Of the two, Bangkok Masala gets my vote over Piccadilly. Piccadilly could likely satisfy most of the sport-lovers who throng the place as they wouldn't give a d*** much on how the food taste like. Anything fried in oil, and you have a winner :p Bangkok Masala's dishes on the other hand feels more refined and the different Asian cooking influences gives you more variety to choose from. Dining here also includes a 10% service charge.

Oh yea, before I forget.. Happy Mother's Day mum :) Or is that super belated by now? :p

Piccadilly & Bangkok Masala

Millennium Square, Dataran Millennium PJ
98, Jalan 14/1, 46100 Petaling Jaya

03-7955 3655

Nasi Bojari @ Madam Kwan's

Madam Kwan's is now a common sight at most malls across the country. Serving mostly Malaysian delights across the cultures of Malay, Chinese, and Indian mix and a douse of oriental and western dishes, it is an ideal destination for foreigners who are not comfortable with the hot and humid outdoors of our street shops. Although the best food might still come from the streets, Madam Kwan's quality of dining has been high and has remained there for quite some time. And one of Madam Kwan's signature dish has to be Nasi Bojari (~RM21).

I'm not too well informed on the history of this dish, but I believe it has its roots from Indonesia. Lightly colored and flavored rice served with sambal prawns, beef rendang, and pieces of crispy outside tender inside fried chicken makes up this dish ideal for 2 moderate eaters. The rice smells so aromatic, you could actually skip on eating it. The sambal and rendang sides are a delightful affair and surprisingly low in oil. The fried chicken achieves the balance of taste, juiciness, and crispiness that KFC should be envious of.

I also highly recommend their Sago Gula Melaka (RM5.50) for those who would like to end with a sweet touch. Sago in a bowl of coconut milk served with a generous portion of thick brown Malaccan syrup; delightful :)

Evening by the Beach & Kensington Revisited

Its a day we've been deprived of a very long time.. A quiet time by the beach with the sound of waves crashing the rocks, the salty sea breeze, the orange radiance of the sun lightning up the seas and trees, and the company of each other..

Darn.. Those clouds had to put a dampen on things..Depending on which time of the year you visit these shores, the position of the sun can change quite dramatically.

This stretch of stony ground complete with benches, a small playground, public restroom, and a bridge spanning a small bay is excellent for soaking in the sight of the setting sun. Even noticed a number of people fishing. There's also a long stretch of sandy beach next to this area and for Port Dickson standards, it is quite clean.

Picked up some small delights on the way; this 'apparently' is chocolate fudge. I recommend not going to this bakery located opposite the Port Dickson Hospital :)

Standing on the bridge which is said to connect the land to Pulau Burung (Bird Island). I'm assuming those marshes in the background is the island or what remains of it during high tide.

The sun looks sad behind those cloud covers.. Hopefully it would be more cheerful on our next visit :)

The colors of the evening sky never seize to amaze me.. The variety of colors blends together to perfection and exudes the feeling of calm and content.. But for us, content is never without food! :) On the way back from PD, there's only one place we'd stop at.. The special place..

Kensington has remained largely the same since our last visit here.. The heavy rain upon arrival, the white cloths covering the tables and chairs, the warm water in clear glasses, and the indecisive looks on our faces as we want to try every item on the menu :)

Looking not to over-stuff our tummies, we ordered two to share; the first was Carbonara Pasta (RM14). The funny part came when I asked the waiter ever it was spaghetti or fettuccine, he said spaghetti. I like my carbonara with fettuccine and asked ever the chef could replace the pasta, and he said there's only spaghetti. So anyhow, when the dish came, it was fettuccine! Sweat! Why did I even waste my energy talking.. Haha.. Besides that, it was a creamy, yummy, and chicken sausage-filled delight :)

Next up was BBQ Lamb Rib (RM19.50). Typical to Kensington, the meat was very tender and fall off the bone. Easy for most to eat, but sometimes I like fighting with my meat. I must have been a carnivorous animal in my past life :p Anyhow, for a BBQ themed dish, the sauce was a bit more on the sweet and sour side.

Overall it was still a satisfying dinner at a very affordable price. The only thing that has changed is that prices on the highly rated dishes have gone up a bit. I'll give them a benefit of doubt on that. What isn't going up these days right? Oh wait, our salaries! :p At a lot of modern dining places, we pay more for the place than the actual food we eat. I could never eat peacefully in a restaurant with chandeliers hanging from the ceilings and lined with silver and gold in every corner. I'd feel out of place. Give me great food on a stool and I'm all yours! ;) Bottomline, Kensington offers you good food with a honest setup at a price that does justice to both.

Beach view

6th Mile, Beach Road

Port Dickson

Kensington

34, Jalan Era Square 3

70200 Seremban

06-7687288

Swensen's Revisited @ SS2, PJ

I know its been ages since my last post. Am I really flogger material? Am I just too lazy? Haha.. Anyway, this post dates back to end of March.. The revisit of Swensen's..

Whenever I and SS are in this part of town, its hard to resist the temptation that is Swensen's. What to do.. SS is kinda hooked on their mint ice cream.. Like seriously hooked on it :p

Anyhow, Swensen's lunch offer is still quite an attractive, affordable, and satisfying one. This time I opted for something that resembled chicken chop and SS delved into her macaroni with cheese. This post has been delayed so long that I have forgotten the original name of the dishes :p Sadly I was unlucky this time around to have gotten my chicken undercooked. And when they took it away, I knew they were going to fry the same piece again, ruining my day :) And so I patiently ate my piece of rubber meat and stole some of SS' average macaroni.

Luckily what Swensen's is really good for, they remain really good for; ICE CREAM :)

With a small add-on, we both had to ourselves a pair of sundaes. Mine was butterscotch and SS' was mint flavored, but both excellent to the last slurp! Swensen's is still an excellent destination for those with a sweet tooth, but they have to do better with their entrees and main courses if they are to do attract more of them. 

Swensen's
22 Jalan SS2/67, Petaling Jaya
47300 Selangor