With the blessing of the great lady luck, I had the chance to go to the Emperor Chinese Restaurant at Sheraton Subang Hotel for the second time. The first was an appreciation dinner from a vendor (which I didn’t manage to capture any photos), and this time it was an invitation arranged by foodstreets for a food review. Excellent (and free) Chinese food within the span of a couple months, what more could I ask for?

the friendly Chef Michael Wong and his creations

I arrived at Sheraton during dinner time and was greeted by the friendly PR person Bel, who introduced me to the Executive Chinese Chef Michael Wong. Chef Michael has been with the hotel from 97 to 2000 and recently joined back to lead the kitchen team. For this “exercise”, the good chef prepared a total of six dishes and a dessert to satisfy our taste buds.

double boiled soup, assorted vegetable, and cold chicken roll

First on the table was the double boiled fish maw with dried scallop and vegetable soup, it was seriously the best soup I’ve had so far. Scallop, mussel, and fish maw together with Silkie (black skinned) chicken really gave the soup a very distinct sweetness that is so delicious. I was still thinking about it for days after the session.

Then it was the cold dish, cold chicken roll with jelly fish. This dish is traditionally made with pork, but as the Emperor Chinese Restaurant serves halal food, chicken is used instead. Chef Michael explained to me the tedious process of preparing the chicken (slicing, steaming, rolling up) to create a texture consistent with the traditional ingredient. I must say he did a very good job and the substitute meat did not disappoint.

baked cod fish, butter prawn, and dancing fried rice

As for the cod fish, instead of the more orthodox steaming or deep frying cooking method, the good chef baked the generous slice of cod steak in an oven with garlic sauce. It was done just nice and not over cooked, a relatively simple dish that came out just right.

Butter prawn and assorted vegetable were both good as well. However, the other interesting dish would be the “dancing fried rice”, the fried rice is topped with tobiko (flying fish roe) and decorated with katsuobushi (the topping for takoyaki) on the side that seems to ‘dance’. A very visually captivating dish that tastes as good as it looks.

avocado apple juice and lemon grass pudding with mint ice cream

To round it off, we had the lemon grass pudding with mint ice cream as dessert. A nice way to cool down and refresh after the rather heavy meal. Bel also ordered us an the unique apple and avocado juice, a thick concoction that combines the sweetness of the two fruits that tasted surprisingly good!

Sheraton Subang Hotel is right next to SJMC at SS12

It was a very good meal and needless to say I was very satisfied. If you’re looking for a high class Chinese restaurant (serving halal food), you should definitely consider this place.

Address:
Jalan SS12/1
47500 Subang Jaya
Selangor
Tel: 03-5031 6060

Tags:  chicken,  chinese,  cuisine,  dining,  eats,  food,  halal,  hotel,  rice,  sheraton

Posted by KY | 17 Comments »

I actually tried this halal bak kua (BBQ meat) a couple months ago but kept forgetting to post it until a reader emailed me the other day, the content goes:

MK wrote:
do u have any idea where to get halal bak kua in KL?

and then I replied:

No halal bak kut teh as far as I know, but there’s vegetarian bak kut teh that has similar tasting soup you can find at Taman Mayang, near the old Lim Kok Wing building. It’s a stall by the roadside that’s very near to William’s mamak stall, operates during lunch time.

Regards,
KY

Which was a wrong answer because MK was asking about bak kua, not my favorite Chinese Malaysian food, bak kut teh. So I had to sent another email to the friendly reader who politely pointed out my mistake…

my ex-colleague Abby likes the beef bak kua

Anyway, this particular stall selling halal bak kua called Grilled to Perfection is situated at the basement food court of Pavilion KL. Just a stone’s throw away from it’s non-halal counterpart Kiew Brothers that sells bacon bak kua I posted about a couple months ago.

The stall offers three types of BBQ meat: sliced beef, sliced chicken, and sambal chicken. You can also have them in rounded coin shapes instead of sheets as well. They are priced at RM 72-75 per KG, very similar to the market price of the non-halal versions

the three types of bak kua, sliced beef, sambal chicken, and sliced chicken

As for the taste, I find that the beef bak kua (the only one I tried) was a little dryer than what I am used to, possibly due to the relatively leaner meat as compared to pork. However, it does taste like bak kua, and to my ex-colleague who has never tasted something like this, it was a revelation.

So far this is the only place I’m aware of that sells Halal bak kua, so if you don’t eat pork and want to try out this Chinese delicacy, Pavilion KL is the place!

Address: (Corporate, stall at basement of Pavilion KL)
No. 73, Jalan Cemerlang,
Taman Perindustrian Cemerlang,
81800 Ulu Tiram, Johor
Tel: 03-5891 0934

Tags:  bak kua,  bbq meat,  Bukit Bintang,  food-court,  halal,  KL,  pavilion

Posted by KY | 19 Comments »

After browsing a bit at Pertama Kompleks one afternoon, SK suggested that we go to this “awesome nasi kandar place” down the road. The dude actually didn’t even know where the restaurant was located, but after a few phone calls and walking under the sun for 10 minutes, we finally reached Nasi Kandar Pulau Pinang Haji Ibramsha, situated just a stone’s throw away from the old Coliseum cinema.

SK enjoying his nasi kandar

It was still during the holy month of Ramadhan, and business was a little slow. We queue up for to pick the sides to go with the rice relatively fast. I was told that their Ayam Kicap (chicken with dark sauce) is not to be missed.

The one interesting side that accompanies every meal here is the fresh cucumber (like nasi lemak style) with pretty strong sambal (chili paste). I think that compliments the rice very well and give it an extra kick and freshness to renew your taste buds. The ayam kicap was really as good as advertised, very strong tasting with the chicken cooked to a very tender texture. Very delicious.

this nasi kandar place is not far from SOGO shopping complex

A plate of rice with a piece of chicken, egg, and some vegetable runs at around RM 6+, pretty standard for nasi kandar these days. Try it if you are around the area.

Address:
68, Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman
50100 Kuala Lumpur

Tags:  ayam-kicap,  coliseum,  Haji-Ibramsha,  halal,  nasi-kandar,  pertama-komplex,  sogo

Posted by KY | 8 Comments »

Ramli burger, Malaysia’s very own version of this “western” food is unique in it’s choices of ingredient and method of preparation. This distinctly Malaysian food has been well received by the locals and tourists alike ever since it was first introduced in 1979.

Mizi Burger has been operating for about 10 years.

I had the experience of working at a McD kitchen in my younger years (which resulted me not eating French fries for a good 10 years), and I can tell you that the way they cook a burger is completely different from the Ramly style.

Although the burger might be prepared slightly varied from one stall to the other, the basics remain the same, and the unique techniques not usually found in western worlds are:

• slicing the burger patty into two (while keeping them intact ala clam shell style) and add seasonings in the middle
• pan frying the buns with butter on the same cooking surface
• wrapping the egg around the meat patty, with more seasoning, for the special option

The other ingredients include raw or fried onion, cucumber, lettuce, plenty of chili sauce, and even more mayonnaise. All the good stuff that your personal doctor advice against. You can also add cheese, or double up the meat patties, basically limitless customization.

this is how we like our burgers prepared

Mizi Burger is one of such burger places. Located just next to the SS2 Fire Station, this particular stall has been in business for some 10 years. After badminton the other night, I bought myself a beef special (beef patty + egg) burger for a measly RM 2.50, a steal!

The burger was very juicy and flavorful, with no less than 3-4 different types of seasonings on the beef and egg. Topped with mayonnaise, butter, and the sweetish chili sauce, this burger was as tasty as it was messy.

This burger stall is situated right next to the SS2 Fire Station

Mizi Burger opens from 8-12pm daily and closes on Sundays.

Address:
SS2/2 Petaling Jaya
Phone: 013-347 0570

Tags:  burger,  fire-station,  food,  halal,  hawker,  malaysian,  mizi-burger,  ramly,  SS2 SS3 SS4

Posted by KY | 14 Comments »

The mat salleh suggested that we go to De Chiengmai Thai Seafood restaurant at Sungai Buloh after reading the Malay tomyam place I posted on monsterblog a few weeks ago. Together with Kelvin, we promptly did that the following weekend.

very nice ambience

Getting to there is no trivial stuff, the restaurant is located deep in a kampung at Sungai Buloh. However, with the senior’s memory and a little luck, we finally reached there after only one wrong turn. For the readers here, you guys are lucky, there’s now, of course, a map (see below)

The architecture of the restaurant reminded me of cultural centers and museums more than a place to cure hunger. Nicely decorated and quiet, De Chiengmai offers a good ambience for dining. There are also ample parking space.

tomyam, otak-otak, steamed fish, pandan chicken

We ordered 4 dishes for the 3 of us. A must-order steamed siakap fish (bass), seafood tomyam, otak-otak, and pandan chicken. It didn’t take long before the dishes were served, with the more aromatic Thai rice to go with them.

real charcoal, and super fresh vegetable

The steamed fish turned out to be the best dish of the day. With plenty of garlic and ginger, the fish simmers in a sourish and spicey soup base and being kept warm with slow burning charcoal. Don’t miss out on this dish if you go there. The tomyam was pretty good as well, not overly spicy, but with plenty of squid, prawns, and other seafood items.

The otak-otak, well, is not anything we would call otak-otak in a Malaysian sense. This dish is a mixture of seafood in the otak-otak “sauce”. With plenty of fish meat, prawn, and squid. It was very rich and satisfying though. The pandan chicken tasted as how they should be, and provided a good alternative to all the seafood dishes we ordered.

location map of de’ Chiengmai Thai Seafood Restaurant

The restaurant definately offers one of the best Thai food anywhere, and with the great atmosphere and reasonable pricing (RM 112.88 for all those). It is really hard to beat. Especially now that you know how to get there, there is no excuse not to give it a try.

Do order some vege dishes too (we probably should have), De Chiengmai grow their own vegetables so that all the vegetables are super fresh and of top quality.

Address:
De Chiengmai Thai Seafood
No 34, Kg. Sentosa, Bt. 13 Sg Buloh 47000
Sungai Buluh Selangor
Tel: 03-6206 3225

Tags:  de-chiengmai,  halal,  pandan,  siakap,  sungai-buloh,  thai-food,  tomyam

Posted by KY | 18 Comments »