This blog is often criticized by many of my Muslim colleagues and friends for its lack of halal/pork free food content, well, here’s an entry that will perhaps right things a little. (wait, I do have a little less than 30% of my posts in this category, oh well..)
A couple weeks ago I was invited to a classy Malay restaurant hidden in the midst of the city for a food review - Songket restaurant.
Songket restaurant at Jalan Yap Kwan Seng
Songket is actually a type of traditional Malay and Indonesian fabric that is hand woven in silk or cotton, and often with intricate gold or silver threads in them. In short, the restaurant, like the fabric, is one of class and quality.
Anyway, lets get on with the dishes!
satey & cucur udang, otak-otak, begedil
We started out with appetizers, naturally.
There were satey ayam & daging (beef and chicken satey, RM 18) that is served with peanut sauce and some raw onion, cucumber, and ketupat, just like how they’re supposed to be. The meat were marinated properly, succulent and void of impurities like hard tendon or chicken skin, tasty.
Then there’s cucur udang (prawn fritters, RM 10) in light batter and home made chili sauce with a kick. I was happy that they also serve Northern style otak-otak (steamed fish cake, RM 12) with generous amount of seafood in it.
My favorite appetizer of the night though, has gotta be the begedil (deep fried potato cutlet RM 10) – it is basically deep fried mashed up potato with chicken (or meat). A little sweet, a little savory, and positively brilliant!
kerabu mangga, ayam sambal petai, ayam lemak asam gelugur
Kerabu mangga (raw mango salad, RM 12) is another Northern dish that is very similar to those found in Thailand, certainly appetizing.
I like the way they prepare the petai by splitting them into half and taking away the centre stem for the ayam sambal petai (chicken with bitter beans, RM 28) dish. Personally though, I still think that petai goes better with seafood instead of chicken, but this dish was actually not bad.
Ayam lemak asam gelugur (chicken with tumeric, coconut milk, curry gravy, RM 23) is a light curry dish that I thought could use a little more kick, I suppose this has to do with catering tourists, you should be able to ask for hotter version if only you ask.
nasi minyak, pandan nasi lemak, nasi kerabu
We sampled 3 types of rice at Songket, the nasi minyak (oily rice, RM 6) goes well with curry dishes, pandan nasi lemak (RM 6) is aromatic with a light pandan taste, and nasi kerabu (rice with herbs and vegetables, RM 8 ) can almost be eaten just by its own. I would recommend any of these over the normal steamed rice.
ikan siakap masak manis, pucuk paku goreng, kari udang raja
Ikan siakap masak manis (sweet style barramundi, RM 60) definitely tastes like a traditional Malay dish, the fish was fresh, and tomato, chili, onion, and other ingredients complimented the seafood perfectly, I like it.
My favorite dish of the day though, has gotta be pucuk paku goreng (stir fry wild fern, RM 12), the texture of fern and its taste are something that can’t be substituted by another vegetable. Chili, garlic, shallots, and a few shrimps made up the rest of this fabulous dish. This is a must-order.
For those who wants the ultra luxurious dish, there’s the kari udang raja (king prawn in curry, RM 75). The prawns were definitely huge, and there were some eggplants to go with in the rich, thick, curry.
rusuk panggang (chargrilled marinated short ribs)
Rusuk Panggang (chargrilled marinated short ribs, RM 60) is dish not to be missed by any meat lovers. The marinate as well as the grilling were perfect. As a result, the ribs were really tender to the point where you can cut it just by using the spoon. The flavor too were absolutely marvelous. Best of all, this is served with the same begedil that I really like.
durian tiramisu, sago gula melaka, pandan pudding
Then it was time for desserts.
For the durian lovers, you must not miss the durian tiramisu (RM 15), rich, creamy, and full with that unmistakable durian aroma that will probably prevent you from taking this to your hotel room.
The sago gula melaka (RM 10) is a classic, with plenty of sago swimming in coconut milk and palm sugar beneath it, another rich dessert. Pandan pudding (RM 10) is well, a pandan infused pudding with palm sugar. After the other two desserts, this one came across without much excitement for me.
traditional dance, KY & Haze at Songket restaurant
Songket is not just about food, if you stay a little longer on Mon-Sat, by 9pm there are traditional dance performances of Chinese, Malay, Indian, and native origins. A pretty cool show especially if you happen to have foreigner friends.
The prices at Songket is definitely a little on the high side, but the food quality, ambiance, and all the extras that were thrown in definitely make this a place worthy of a visit especially if you’re looking for fine Malay cuisine.
Address:
Songket Restaurant & Bar
29 Jalan Yap Kwan Seng,
50450 Kuala Lumpur
GPS: 3.162557, 101.714998
Tel: 03 2161 3331
If you enjoy queuing up for lunch at KLCC during the 12:30-2pm rush-lunch hour, there are two places you can absolutely count on – Little Penang Cafe and Madam Kwan. Both serves pretty decent local dishes at a clean and comfortable environment, with Little Penang Cafe being the slightly cheaper option.
Little Penang Cafe at KLCC
Having based at KLCC for the better part of my working life, it is no surprise that I have been to Little Penang Cafe on numerous occasions. While the purists might argue that there is no substitute for actual Penang hawker foods, I often am willing to compromise and pay a little bit more to have something not far from the original, and as a bonus, it’s located just right downstairs from where I work.
The menu at this place is quite small, but essentially covers all the bases when it comes to Penang foods. There’s char kueh teow, curry mee, prawn mee, loh bak, nasi lemak, mee goreng, chendol, otak-otak, fish ball soup, and so on.
curry mee and Penang style steamed otak-otak
I almost always order the curry mee and otak-otak whenever I pay a visit. The curry mee is almost as Penang as one can get (sans the coagulated pork’s blood though), with traditional ingredients like prawns, cuttle fish, tau pok (deep fried tofu), cockles, and mint leaves. The coconut milk based soup with unlimited sambal on the side is pretty fragrant too, I actually enjoy it quite a bit.
The otak-otak served at Little Penang Cafe is of the Penang style, steamed, and slightly bigger in portion. I find that the steamed otak-otak here is better than those from Otak-otak Place.
nasi lemak with fish, and chicken; curry mee
My colleagues ordered the nasi lemak, one asked for fish, and the other chicken, or was it a curry fish rice? Anyway, both were happy with their food and they certainly looked pretty appetizing. The sambal with the fish packs a kick too, and the drumstick from nasi lemak was reported to be very flavorful.
KY, Was, and Chew at Little Penang Cafe, KLCC
Main dishes are priced from RM 8.90 onwards, with drinks a few ringgit each, just slightly above the asking price for similar items at the food court. Not a bad place to get my Penang fix.
Oh, I wouldn’t order their loh bak if I were you though.
Address:
Little Penang Cafe
4th Floor, KLCC
50088, Kuala Lumpur
GPS: 3.157581, 101.712102
I first heard about the Otak-Otak Place from suanie who said “the food is good loh”.
It would not be so significant if the statement was from anyone else, but suanie is from Batu Pahat, which is very close to Muar where they sells the best otak-otak. So when Mell and I found ourselves in Tropicana City Mall a couple days ago, I decided to pay a visit to this restaurant.
otak-otak place, quirky but old school design
Otak-otak place is decorated in a very quirky but old school way, there are old black bicycles, furniture designs from a couple generations ago, and even Ding Dang and Tora snacks for sale.
The selection on their menu is actually quite wide. There are half a dozen types of otak-otak to choose from (steamed, bbq, “cucur”, dumpling, roll, etc), with fish, squid, or prawn fillings. Local favorites like nasi lemak, ayam perchik, pulut, roti jala, mee rebus, asam laksa, curry laksa, soto, fish head noodles, bakso, and more are available too.
steamed otak-otak, roti jala, mee bandung muar, bbq otak-otak
We ordered steamed otak-otak (squid), 5 sticks of BBQ otak-otak (fish), mee bandung Muar, and roti jala for dinner. While waiting for food to be served, we amused ourselves with the Happy Families card game on the table, anyone still remembers the rules?
We managed a few games before the steamed otak-otak (RM 3) arrived, and it was actually very delicious, I’d rate it better than the one at Kopitiam, 1-Utama. The BBQ stick otak-otak too tasted very close to those suanie brought from Muar, though at RM 5.50 for 5 sticks they are quite a bit more pricey than the Southern counterparts, but someone has to pay for air conditioning and mall rental.
KY and Mell
Mee bandung Muar (RM 7.90) comes in a clay pot with prawns, meat, egg, vegetable, and half a lime. I asked for mee with meehun. While I don’t really know how the “authentic” mee bandung Muar tastes like, this one cuts the cake for me. The soup was flavorful and ingredients aplenty, but those who can’t handle spicy food should take caution though.
Mell liked the roti jala (RM 5.90) she ordered too. I took a bite, and while the roti jala was good, I thought the chicken curry could be a bit thicker.
Tropicana City Mall is located between LDP & Sprint
The meal came to around RM 25 for two of us, including drinks. There is a 5% service charge but no government tax imposed. You can find Otak-otak place at lower ground floor, new wing of 1-Utama shopping complex.
As a bonus, there’s yogurt ice cream at Tropicana City Mall too, and now that GSC is opening there, it has become my all time favorite hang-out place especially when the weather is too hot.
Address:
Otak-Otak Place
Lot L1-58, 1st Floor
Tropicana City Mall
3, Jalan SS20/27
47400 Petaling Jaya
GPS: 3.130757,101.626421
Tel:03-7728 0403
When I first got the invitation from foodstreet for a food review session from Peony Garden at Kota Damansara, I did some searches on the internet and but was not able to find any blog entries. So I went to the restaurant with Eiling (who is going to give me some golden tickets) having little to expect.
note: tragically, this place is no longer in operation, it was one of my favorites! (20/9/2010)
seven dishes to sample, with original ingredients
As it turns out, Peony Garden serves Northern Nyonya food, which means they are actually from Penang, my hometown. The relatively new restaurant is run by a pair of siblings, Karen and Eugene Chew, whom despite knowing little about blogs and the way of cyber world, were very friendly (especially when we arrived at our common mother tongue, Penang Hokkien).
We were served the unique “green leaves drink” that is made of seven different types of grass and leaves. It tasted pretty refreshing though slightly on the sweeter side. The owners explained to us that many of the ingredients used are sourced from Penang and other states, and Karen cooks everything from scratch, the traditional way, even the sambal is made by pounding fresh chili and shrimp paste by hand.
Penang otak-otak, asam prawn, curry black pomphret, salted vegetable duck soup
We were then served seven dishes, and I recognized what they were instantly without having to be explained! Tau eu bak (soya sauce pork), asam prawn, curry bawal hitam (black pomphret), salted vegetable duck soup, Penang otak-otak, jui hu char (fried sengkuang with dried cuttle fish), and fried spring roll. These are the dishes I grew up with, the memory of mom working in her kitchen flashes back like a tsunami wave, the familiar smell, the sound of sengkuang sizzling in the wok, and how she always peel the asam shrimps for us. I wish mom was here to have this session with me.
In the taste department, the food actually measured up very well. The asam prawn, cooked with asam and dark soya sauce carries a strong and fragrant asam taste that is slightly salty and sourish, complementing the sweetness of the shrimp perfectly. The fish curry is done the traditional way as well, with black pomphret and a generous portion of laksa flower that adds to the taste. There is no substitute with another type of fish as “lemak” (fatty) taste of the black pomphret suits the asam curry best.
soya sauce pork, jui hu char, spring roll
I personally always prefer the Penang style otak-otak, and the version at Peony, though not the best I’ve had, was not bad either. As for salted vegetable duck soup, it might take a little used to if you are not accustomed to it, sourish and slightly spicy, I liked it.
Jui hu char is a dish that is cooked by many Penang family whenever they worship ancestors (don’t ask me why). It is best eaten with some sambal and wrapped with fresh lettuce, much like the way you’d have Korean BBQ meat. The deep fried spring rolls actually shares the main ingredient (sengkuang) with jiu hu char, but served with a unique blend of dark soya source and chili that gives it a pretty interesting taste, in a good way.
If you’ve followed this blog for some time, you know that I am a pork lover. The tau eu bak here was absolutely fantastic, cooked for hours to the very soft and tender texture, the soya sauce is imported from Nothern state to get the taste just right. Coupled with the original sambal, I had to fight with Eiling till the last piece, it was as good as it is sinful.
green leaf drinks, and eiling with the Peony plate
Dishes are priced from RM 8 to RM 20+, pretty decent even though the portions aren’t big. Authentic foods are hard to come by these days, and I don’t think you can get them any more authentic than here. A family run restaurant that prepares everything painstakingly the traditional way. I am sure I will return.
Poeny Garden is just 5 minutes away from IKEA/Ikano/Curve
The restaurant also host private events and birthday parties. If you like it the old school way with nasi kunyit, curry chicken, and hard boiled egg for your baby’s full moon, they do it too.
Lunch: Tue to Fri 11am – 2pm
Dinner: Tue to Sun 6 – 10pm
Address:
16-1, Jalan PJU 5/10,
Dataran Sunway, Kota Damansara,
47810 Petaling Jaya, Selangor
GPS: 3.150886, 101.593237
Tel: 03-6141 8323
After spending way too much energy and sweat on our futsal last night, we decided to head to the famous Jalan 223 nasi lemak place for some well deserved recuperation session. Even though it was already past 11pm on a weekday, the Selera Jaya 223 food court is bustling with activity, there are so many hungry ghosts packed in the area you would think there’s a sideshow going on.
futsal buddies: Dree, Jeff, Shiang, and Terence
The main attraction at this place is the nasi lemak. There are two types, the nasi lemak with blue print a little sweeter and wetter, while the red print version is slightly drier but more spicy. They come with half a hard boiled egg and some fried anchovies. Since there are so many customers dining at the area, the nasi lemak is always still hot for consumption, a nasi lemak panas is always better than the nasi lemak at room temperature.
I’ve tried both versions and they are really tasty, with no fuss and no frill. You can’t beat the value at RM 1 per packet either.
2 types of nasi lemak, otak-otak, and a set of half boil egg
Half boiled egg is another item that they do very well here. Just look at the picture above, perfect boiling, and you don’t even need to crack the eggs yourself. My buddy Shiang insisted that using the half boil eggs as gravy for the nasi lemak is the way to go. I didn’t try that myself, sinful, sinful.
the most “Kao” milo ice ever
As for drinks, the milo ice is definitely the most “kao” you can get anywhere. I thought filling 1/3 of my glass with milo powder is pretty “kao” already, over here they do it at almost 1/2 glass. It is a bit crazy if you ask me.
The otak-otak, while fresh and served hot, is really not up to par as compared to those I had in some other places (most notably those Suanie brought from Johor). However, I do eat it once in a while just to refresh my taste bud. They do taste a little too sweet.
the food court is situated just across Amway building at Jalan 223
If you’re looking for a midnight indulgence with an original local theme, this is definitely the place to be.
Address:
Medan Selera 223,
Jalan 223, Petaling Jaya
Selangor
GPS: 3.100482, 101.633223
