Undoubtedly many of you has noticed that there is a renaissance in the fast food business in Malaysia. In the last few years, we have the introduction (or reintroduction) of chains like Carl’s Jr and Subway. I think this due to consumer’s acceptance to higher priced fast food, higher price in hawker offerings, and the general deterioration of hawker food standards in Klang Valley.
The latest that came on board would be Wendy’s at Sunway Pyramid, the restaurant opened on the 5th of April and I just came back from my 3rd visit this afternoon. 
Wendy’s at Sunway Pyramid
During my stay at the States, Wendy’s was one of the few fast food restaurants I used to go on a regular basis. I would put it second on my list after Chick-fil-A, but above A&W, Arby’s, McDonald’s, Burger King, and Subway. The reason was simple, it was relatively cheap and the food tastes good.
juicy burgers with beef, chicken, and shrimp, fried chicken too
I was overjoyed when Wendy’s opened here, and the first thing I tasted was of course, the 1/2 Pounder Burger. Two patties of 1/4 pound beef (a big Mac has slightly less than 1/4 pound beef in total) with a cheese in between sandwiched by soft but firm bun. The quality was just as good as I remembered, very juicy and flavorful. In the subsequent visits I tried their Shrimp Burger and Spicy Chicken Sandwich, both the items were equally good and I do attribute it to the quality of ingredient used. The shrimp burger nullified my complain of McDonald’s not serving their shrimp burger in Malaysia (they do have it in Bangkok and Tokyo).
Wendy’s is in between Carl’s Jr. and McDonald’s when it comes to pricing. A small set goes for 7.99 (nuggets) to 17.99 (3/4 pounder), add RM 1 for medium and RM 2 for large, and additional RM 1 if you want Ribena instead of soft drinks. Not a bad deal considering the quality, give it a try!
check out my hand drawn wendy’s logo!
Wendy’s have plans for outlets in IOI Mall, Jaya One, and Berjaya Times Square.
Address:
Wendy’s Pyramid
(opposite McDonald’s)
GPS: 3.073297, 101.607576
Tel: 03-5637 1059
One of my favorite shopping mall parking lot is at Sunway Pyramid. They have installed this nifty little light with a sensor on top of every parking spot. If the spot is occupied, the light is red, if free, it is green. A quick glance down the isle will tell you if there’s an available spot so you don’t have to navigate the whole parking lot aimlessly to find an empty space.
So I went there for lunch the other day. The parking lot was almost filled, but I spotted 2 green lights very close to the entrance, must be my lucky day I thought. I quickly drove there just to find this idiot.
A Toyota Vios parked right in between 2 handicap parking spots. The sensor missed the car.
WPK 6393 the idiot.
I don’t know if this guy is genuinely handicap, the vehicle did not display a handicap sticker or anything. However, there is no excuse for parking right in between two spots even if you are disabled. Patients with that kind of spatial disability shouldn’t be driving anyway.
I took the opportunity and snapped the driver’s name card that was hanging on the rear view mirror inside the car. The N82 did a decent job getting the face, but unfortunately the gentleman’s name is obscured by the furry crap right next to it.
Mr. Lim with Sense Health Solutions
Apparently the guy (Mr. Lim) is a member of Sense Health Solutions. I tried to check more on this particular “club” online to no avail, anyone knows about this?
I want Peter Tan to beat this guy up with a stick.
I have wanted to try Carl’s Jr. ever since it was reopened in Malaysia last year, but for one reason or another, I didn’t manage to try it until just a couple of days ago when my colleagues suggested that we should have lunch at the joint at Sunway Pyramid. When I saw the tag line on one of it’s posters saying “Screw the Diet“, I started to like the place already.
Think of Carl’s Jr. sitting in between Chilis/TGI and Burger King/McD. While it is set up as a fast food joint, the quality is far above BK & McD, and priced accordingly too.
unlimited refill of drinks (including ice lemon tea, coffee) and pickles/onion
Being my first time there, I didn’t really know what to order. I had wanted to get the Portebello Mushroom Burger but they ran out of stock, so I naively followed my colleague and ordered myself a medium size SuperStar double combination, or something like that.
I got my cup and filled it up with some coke while waiting for the burger to be served. The one thing I like about Carl’s Jr. is the fact that other than soft drinks, they have unlimited free refill for coffee, ice lemon tea, pickles, onions, and even slices of lemon.
it was a big meal
When the burger came, the size of it makes the Whopper look like a White Castle sandwich. The taste was actually rather good as well, the two charbroiled beef patties were juicy and tasty. While I prefer the real bacon, this halal version did not disappoint either. I actually had to waste more than half of the fries as my stomach was totally stuffed up after finishing the awesome burger.
While the price is a little high at RM 10+ to RM 20+, I think the size and taste factor do make up for it. I’m going to get the Portebello Mushroom Burger next time!
You can find Carl’s Jr. in Sunway Pyramid (new wing), Mid Valley, 1-Utama (old wing), and Pavilion KL. I’ve heard that they’re going to open 40 outlets between Singapore and Malaysia, can’t wait!
GPS: 3.150050, 101.615939 (1 Utama)
GPS: 3.073297, 101.607576 (Sunway Pyramid)
For some of you who follow this humble blog, you might know that I vouched not to ever spend a dime at Sushi King and Genki Sushi. Although both the restaurants serve inferior sushi on conveyor belt, it doesn’t mean that all conveyor belt sushi restaurants are bad, as my latest experiment at Sushi Zanmai (Sunway Pyramid) assured me.
conveyor belt sushi, with a lot of other items on the menu
I stumbled upon this place a couple of months ago when I visited Zen Sushi at their Pyramid branch. The menu enticed me (particularly the ikura chawamushi) to actually go there a few weeks ago when I had an appointment at Pyramid.
proper portion of fish over rice, nice
For the quick dinner, I picked 4 dishes of sushi (sake, maguro, amaebi, tofu skin) from the conveyor, and ordered a cup of the irresistible ikura chawamushi (salmon roe on top of steamed egg) and a plate of hotate sashimi (raw scallop).
The sushi dishes were actually very good, the portion of fish is generous, and if you look at the amaebi sushi (sweet shrimp), it is actually one big shrimp instead of the usual two tiny ones. They are plenty fresh and tasted very good too. I am one of those people who cannot say no to ikura, and the ikura chawamushi, albeit a bit small in portion, was actually very nice. It is a bit different from the usual roe over sushi rice though. Lastly, the succulent hotate sashimi (5 pieces of fresh scallop) was perfect to round up my dinner.
ikura chawamushi (salmon roe) and hotate sashimi (scallop)
The dinner cost Rm 35.42, with ikura chawamushi being the most expensive at RM 9.80, the sashimi was only RM 8, and sushi plates were between RM 1.60 (tofu skin) to RM 4.80 (shrimp). 10% service charge and the 5% tax is added. Still a pretty good value, and I am going there again.
Address:
Lt 0B2-F1, Sunway Pyramid Shopping Centre
Bandar Sunway, Selangor
GPS: 3.073297, 101.607576
Tel: 03-7492 3080
It’s been a while since the last time I had pho in KL, and it’s been even longer since I went to Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam. As we were looking for dinner before movie, I happened to chance upon O’ Viet and decided to remind myself why I had come to love this traditional Vietnamese dish.
look mighty appetizing, no?
Since it was basically a quick dinner, I only ordered a bowl of mixed pho, and the hot chick got herself the seafood noodle. Nothing else, no spring role or any of those fancy Vietnamese appetizers (it turned out to be a wise choice, main dish came in big portion.)
we’re loving it
The dishes came after a short wait, served by someone who spoke with a Vietnamese accent, it was a good sign. The pho smelled pretty good, and the soup noodle come complete with a side dish of basil leave, mint, lemon, bean sprouts, and chili sauce. I wish they would only have some hot jalopeno peppers.
I put the fresh leaves and bean sprouts to the soup and started attacking the dish right away. Out of my expectation, this bowl of pho was actually one of the bests I’ve tried in Malaysia. The soup tasted right, and the meat (brisket, flank, tripe, meat ball) cooked to a very soft and tender texture. The type of noodle too, was pretty close to what I had in HCMC, though I still long for the proper flat rice type. If only they serve beef tendon, it’ll be perfect.
The seafood noodle came in a slightly spicier broth, and had plenty of squid, cuttle fish, fish meat, and prawn. It was pretty good, too.
pho.. *drools*
The meal came to a bit over RM 35 for two, including 5% government tax and 10% service charge. The plain water wasn’t free either. This place certainly wasn’t cheap, but I do feel that the quality of food justified the price, and I will gladly go there again when my pho craving strikes.
Address:
G1.45 Sunway Pyramid (near ice skating rink)
46150 Bandar Sunway
Selangor
GPS: 3.073297, 101.607576
