Tag / oysters
The pasar malam at Taman Megah operates every Sunday evening from about 6pm to almost midnight and conveniently located only about one kilometer away from where I stay, hence eliminating the pesky problem of having to find a parking spot when one goes to pasar malam.
Even then, it is not a pasar malam I often go due to the relatively lack of good food.. or so I thought.
Evidently, things have changed for the better, and here are the three stalls we found from the visit last Sunday that I thought worth a try for any foodie.
char kuih kak at Taman Megah Pasar Malam – legit!
First and foremost, there’s char kuih kak!
Char Kuih Kak is one of the Penang dishes that aren’t easily found in Klang Valley. There isn’t many stalls out there, and prior to this, my only go-to char kuih kak stall would be the one at Jalan Sayur in Pudu. So when I saw the stall here, I had to give it a try.
finally I found a good version of char kuih kak outside Penang
The RM 3.50 worth of char kuih kak turned out to be rather good, perhaps the best version I’ve tried in Klang Valley. The radish cake is chopped to tiny pieces with the two metal spatulas so that it’s well coated with oil and dark soya sauce. There’s also plenty of “choi pou” and chili, I love it.
The fact that the operator spoke perfect Penang Hokkien definitely help too, I think. 😀
BBQ oysters and seahum? yeap!
I almost couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw there’s oysters at pasar malam, so obviously we had to give it a try.
A set of 3 oysters go for RM 10 here, and you can choose from any combination of three flavors – spicy, cheese, and garlic. The oysters took some 10-15 minutes before they were ready, and tasted more than decent.
RM 10 for three oysters, RM 6 for those juicy cockles
Of the three, I prefer the garlic version, and will probably avoid the cheese next time around unless I bring my own cheese.
The BBQ cockles go for RM 6 per portion. They were rather juicy and certainly went well with the accompanying homemade chilli sauce.
steamed chicken with chrysanthemum, pretty satisfying
Last but not least, there’s the steamed chicken with chrysanthemum. Since it was something I’ve never even heard about before, we gave it a try.
The steamed quarter chicken (RM 8) came with plenty of mashed garlic, ginger, and chrysanthemum flower. The skin smooth and chicken meat was well salted. The flower certainly gave it a unique taste but not something that is overpowering, worth a try, and certainly fills the stomach.
Address:
Taman Megah Pasar Malam
Jalan SS 24/8
Taman Megah, Petaling Jaya
GPS: 3.113745, 101.611061
Hours: 6-11pm every Sunday
Mexican cuisine isn’t one of the most popular foreign foods in Malaysia, but if you want Western style food with a dose of hotness, this is where you go. Las Carretas is probably one of the earlier establishments serving Mexican cuisine in the country, and with three branches in town, the brand is proved to be pretty popular among locals and expats as well.
Las Carretas at Ampang
This is the second post on Las Carretas on the blog, the first being a 2006 version when (I believe) they only had one branch at USJ. The chain has grown since and I thought it’ll be appropriate to pen another review since we went to the Ampang branch just a while back.
fresh oysters in different flavors
There are quite a selection of starters in the menu, but for oyster lovers, one must not miss their offerings. Have it fresh, with cheese and herbs, or salsa on top (RM 29.90 for half dozen). The shellfish were big, fresh, juicy, and absolutely mouth watering. Very decent value for what you get.
chips and salsa, squid rings, oxtail soup
Chips and salsa is always served while you wait for food to arrived. While they’re very tasty, try not to over indulge in them to avoid stuffing your stomach too early before your main arrives.
Calamares a la Romana is the Mexican way of saying deep fried squid rings (RM 21.90), and they are served with garlic mayo dip and tartar sauce. Tastes pretty good but not exactly something you can’t get from just about anywhere.
I tried Sopa De Rabo (boneless oxtail soup, RM 11.90) and well, if there’s anything better than oxtail soup, it is making it boneless. Easy to consume, delicious and with zero hassle. I love it.
rib-eye steak with foie gras, boneless chicken chop, NZ lamb loin
For my main dish I chose Bife Ancho, or rib-eye steak with an addition of seared foie gras (RM 92, or RM 68 without). The 45-day aged Australian grain fed beef were excellent, but the preparation of foie gras was lacking, I felt that they overcooked it a bit.
Other friends who had Pollo Loco (boneless chicken chop with black peppercorn sauce, RM 19.90) and Crusted N.Z. Lamb Rack (RM 64.90) were very happy with their choices. The lamb, served with freshly made rosemary sauce and cooked to perfection, was especially praised.
prawn spaghetti, grain fed t-bone steak, beef fajitas
Prawn Spaghetti (RM 38.90) was served with pretty good size prawns and drenched in garlic, chili, and fajita sauce. Positively Mexican and yet something that’s easy to adapt to if you’re not used to the taste.
If you have a big appetite, Chuleton De Bistek (T-bone steak, RM 65.90) and all it’s 450 gram glory can be yours, complete with salad, ranch dressing, and steak fries. One of our team members’ go-to meal here.
Interestingly, we only really ordered one “classic” Mexican dish among the 10 of us. The beef Fajitas (RM 33.90) was served in a sizzling hot plate with plenty of warm tortilla to go around. I love their Guacamole sauce that comes with this dish.
awesome lunch with the team
It seems to me that after some 6-7 years between the last visit and this one, Las Carretas hasn’t missed a beat. Food is still generally very good (except for the foie gras), prices are reasonable for what you get, and service isn’t anything to complain about either. I should go there again, this time maybe sooner.
Address:
Las Carretas Mexican Restaurant
22 Persian Ampang
55000 Kuala Lumpur
GPS: 3.159156, 101.746702
Tel: 03-4257 1668
Web: lascarretas.com
The last time I went to Changkat Bukit Bintang for a meal was over half a year ago at Bermuda and Onions for a very satisfying lunch. I had actually never been to that part of town at night, so it was actually pretty surprising for me when I went to Gypsy Wine and Bar to discover that the street is filled with quite a number of restaurants and pubs bustling with foreigners and locals alike.
Gypsy Bar & Wine at Changkat Bukit Bintang
The reason I picked Gypsy Wine and Bar, of course, was mainly due to the Guinness-infused Christmas main course promotion they are running. If you didn’t catch my previous posts on Ronnie Q at Bangsar and Cafe Chulo at Jaya One , lets just recap on how this works:
- order a Guinness-infused Christmas main course
- fill up a voucher with your details
- tear it in half and give the side with your details to the restaurant to redeem a small pint of Guinness Draught
- keep the other half of the voucher to get RM12 off 3 pint of Guinness Draught on next visit
Guinness Draught, the season of smoothness!
Amanda and I ordered entrees from the promotional menu, Guinness-infused lamb skewer, and seafood spaghetti. We also asked for half a dozen oysters (as it was still during happy hour) and mussels as appetizer to get the evening started.
half dozen raw oysters, mussels “kam heong” style
The oysters (RM 17.99) were very fresh and delicious (they somehow gave us 7 instead of half dozen). I like to have mine with just a little bit of lemon while Amanda loves to add a tad of Tabasco sauce with hers. We of course, washed it down with the smoothness of Guinness Draughts.
Curiously, the mussels (RM12) served was prepared in “kam heong” style that is usually associated with roadside stalls preparing lala, such as the stall at SS4. They actually tasted pretty good though.
lamb skewer and seafood spaghetti
The lamb skewer ( RM 23) was a proper Guinness-infused dish. Four pretty big chunk of marinated lamb skewered to perfection and sits on a bed of sauteed pea, mushroom, and tomato; served with brown sauce. The lamb was very juicy and you can actually taste the distinct Guinness influenced in it, which complements the bold taste of the lamb very well. A bit of lamb, a spoonful of sauteed peas & mushroom, and a gulp of Guinness Draught, perfect.
The seafood spaghetti (RM 22) came with a generous portion of mussels, squid rings, and prawns in tomato-based sauce. I like the fact that plenty of garlic is used in this dish and the taste did not disappoint at all.
Amanda & a couple of 1/2 pint Guinness Draughts
The dinner came to just over RM 80 for two of us. Four dishes including fresh oysters, a couple 1/2 pint Guinness Daught, very good music (80s during dinner time, you know Gorge Michael, Boy George etc), and excellent ambiance. I think I shall visit that part of KL more often.
Gypsy is located along Changkat Bukit Bintang
Address:
No. 33 Jalan Changkat Bukit Bintang,
55100 Kuala Lumpur
GPS: 3.147749, 101.707209
Tel: 016-365 6113
