Cristang @ 8 Avenue Petaling Jaya

Burgers to some fall under the category of junk food, crap food, unhealthy and the list goes on.

For some, it is like soul food, comfort food and almost like a sin that you can't give up on.

So when i overheard two foodies talk (yes, unfortunately we foodies do talk about food quite abit) that there was this pork burger place, i mean PORK BURGER place, we had to go.

Cristang comes with a list of pork burgers from P1 to P6. With each level up, there are more ingredients and the prices goes up. A distinct ingredient towards the top is petai.

It is almost a known trade secret that there is a P7 available for orders and is known to be the ultimate of pork burgers.

Unfortunately for the sake of photography and the unwillingness of my girlfriend to come within 5 feet from petai, we ordered the P4 (without the petai) and a Nasi Lemak Goreng with Lap Cheong and Bacon.

One bite into the burger and you are shot right up to heaven. The juicy patty is full of flavour and complimented by bacon and their chilli con carne. The cajun potatoes are on the salty side but i seriously cant find any complaints (from the two miniscule bites i had). The girlfriend commented that the gherkin cut through the heavy flavours of the meat and that an extra slice of cheese should be put on top of it. There did mentioned that the patty is 250gm, but looking at the thickness of the burger, i have doubts (unless pork weigh more for some reason). (RM20++ to RM30++)

Definitely a winner and warrant a second round back.

The Nasi Lemak Goreng with Lap Cheong with an Omelette sounded like a winner. The concept results in the most sinful way one can consume carbs. Unfortunately having tasted the burger, i felt this may be more novelty than genuinely being a good dish. You get hints of the "lemak" rice, the sweetness from the lap cheong and spicyness in the sambal they use to fry it with. I had problems scavenging through the pile for the bacon though. Maybe a protein would have made this dish more complete. (RM12.80 i think)

At this point after finishing the mains, we realised we were here for a light dinner and were stuffed to the brim. There are alot more items to try on their menu including their portugese fare and a particular bak kut teh noodles and some sinful desserts i spotted.

Parking was plenty when we went on a Saturday night and do remember go visit theQguides.com to make your reservation where you get to collect points and redeem some cash vouchers. Don't be like me, forgetting about my account until i was halfway through the burger.

Address and contact details:

B-G-19, 8 Avenue, Jalan Sungei Jernih (8/1),
46050 Petaling Jaya.
Tel: 03-7956 7877

This is opposite PJ Hilton. The traffic light infront of PJ Hilton, take a right, go straight down to the T junction, take a right and its on the right!

Opening hours: Tues to Sun 11am-3pm, 5.30pm-11pm.

Closed on Mondays.

Rating: The burger deserves a 4 out of 5 stars! Can't wait to go try the P7 burger.

Toh Yuen Part 2 @ PJ Hilton

After catching my breath, lets continue with Part 2.

Whether Toh Yuen was generous or we were just plain gluttons, the food continued to come out from the kitchen.

Remember the Peking Duck? Give it to a peon like me and i will gladly tear up the duck and chew on whatever meat is left.

Give it to Toh Yuen and you will get this..

A minced duck wrapped with cabbage.

A signature dish; The Baked Black Canadian Cod with Honey (200gms) looks like a complete meal by itself sitting on a bed of vegetables. The smooth creamy texture is still unlike the cod i had in UK but for malaysian standards, it is not too bad.

Pan Fried Tenderloin with Chinese BBQ Sauce. True to the cut of meat, this was tender with a capital T. However being chinese cooking, i suspect that the meat was tenderised before cooking it resulting in the almost melt in your mouth texture. The sauce was the familiar chinese BBQ sauce that you get with your deep fried chicken with onion rings ("yeung chong kai").

One of our dining guest is a big fan for chicken and so we left it up to him when it came to chicken. Lemon chicken you say, so it was. Beautifully presented, a slice of lemon in between every tender piece on a bed of lemon sauce. Can't fault such a simple dish.

Just when we were about to burst, Lisa pops in and ask whether we ordered their Sang Har Noodles and commented it was damn awesome. Oh well, it wouldn't be too harmful ordering a single portion right? She was quite right because even when we could barely move i.e. non-existent taste buds, we could all nod in unison and put a thumbs up. The prawn was fresh and the heat of the wok had imparted to the noodles well.

Someone commented that the cod fish was barely enough, so the conclusion was to order another fish. Steam red garoupa with its firm flesh and good soya sauce would have been delightful with some white rice.

How could one do a review without desserts?

The Black Sesame Tong Yuen was a brilliant ending to the meal. The fragant coating and filling was a joy to bite into.

The bird nest was to soothe our stomachs that had been working overtime from the very first dish.

Prices are not cheap; exotic items and well cooked items demand premium prices and i would not be surprised if you splurge RM100-RM150 per pax for dinner. Brilliant service comes from the experienced waitresses and cooking staff. As it is halal, a near perfect place to entertain everyone and anyone especially our Muslim colleagues and friends.

Address and contact details:

Toh Yuen,

PJ Hilton KL

03-79559122

Also available for booking at theQguides

Updates available on ZestPJ

Toh Yuen Part 1 @ PJ Hilton, Kuala Lumpur

Having lunched once at Toh Yuen, quality was assured, trial and tested. The slight (and i really mean slight) disappointment arises from the fact they do not serve pork.

However, we know we were bound to be in for a treat.

For the sake of photography and for quenching thirst, the flower tea was ordered. Unfortunately these were rather lazy flowers and didn't exactly blossomed the way we wanted them to. Other than looking good, the three kinds of flower tea on offer can help with indigestion, relieving the body from toxins, etc.

The Starters

Wherever I go, lots of bonus marks are given where the captains or the waitresses show their capabilities in choosing the best dishes for their guests.

So it was not so much of looking at the menu but really to allow the suggestions to come through.

As starters, the Mango Dragon (prawns) and the Norwegian Salmon Roll was recommended.

Fried in batter, the highlight was the mango dip which was intense with the fruit.

The salmon roll tasted the same which i suspect is due to the same batter as the prawns and wasn't exactly inspiring.

Now before everyone shoots me down with their snipers, machine guns and whatever gun you can think of, yes, i admit guilty as charge for ordering the Toh Yuen Superior Shark Fin in Brown Sauce. Again yes, i truly realise that the almost non-existent flavours of the strands of fin is not worth the inhumane way sharks are treated. The saviour comes from the stock and the crunchy bean sprouts. Now i wonder if they can come up with a non-shark fin version because i really like the rich "brown sauce" so to speak. Yes for the third time, history have treated shark fins as a sign of luxury but it is just not worth it.

On the other hand, abalone are not extinct just yet so we happily digged into some with century egg. There is the option that the abalone be served in cubes or slices. Go with the cubes, i tell you for you will not regret the chunk of shellfish that allows you to chew about. The century eggs while not as good as the ones you get in Hong Kong with the pickled ginger was a nice touch to perk up the appetites.

To round off the appetisers, we had the famous Peking Duck. The first whiff of the roasted bird and you catch the familiar sniff of KFC. Perhaps a common ingredient?

The crispy shiny skin exposed in all her glory

With quick knife action, the slices of crispy skin and meat were served with pancakes or just on its own.

Caught in the middle of the action of filling up the pancake

The first of the second course: Duck Skin and Meat pancakes with an awesome sweet sauce.

With already so many dishes gone through, what can the chef possible serve next?

Stay tune for Part 2, if not go ahead and make a dash to PJ Hilton straight away!

Address and contact details:

Toh Yuen,

PJ Hilton KL

03-79559122

Also available for booking at theQguides

Toh Yuen Mooncake Selection @ PJ Hilton

When free food come knocking on your door, you can do one of two things:

Listen to your heart and refuse, just like the days when mom would lecture to always never take sweets from a stranger.

OR

Use your hand to close your heart and take it with many thanks.

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"Come look at my biceps, came from eating all those char siew"

In any case, the invite wasn't exactly from a stranger as he has already featured somewhere in my blog as Frat Mustard aka Jek from theQguides.com. Having got to know him for the very first time when he was intoxicated by 8pm, i am quite sure that my mom wouldn't mind, would she?

Some lucky bloggers like me were invited to witness the revamped PJ Hilton. Judging from them being very tech savvy with their own website Zest PJ, no one would know their restaurants were already in business when i was a toddler.

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You must be thinking now, so where is the food?

Well that is another post because we were served some pre-meal goodies that will take the limelight for the time being.

As we get close to the Mooncake festival, Toh Yuen will be launching their range of mooncakes on September 1.

It was as if they had heard about me wonder why people are selling their mooncakes so early. Infact i ponder whether it is to cater for the wondering souls from the other world (Hungry Ghost Festival started on Thursday).

Toh Yuen thought it was not much of a point selling it too early, however we being VIPs ("Very Important Pigs") they had to obliged by baking us a preview of their range of snow skin and baked mooncakes.

The colours are meant to represent the four seasons of the year, starting from the green spring to the white winter.

Aren't they so pretty?

Green - Lotus Spring - White lotus paste with sunflower seeds
Red - Fiery Summer - Pepper flower, chicken floss, mixed nuts and a dash of dried chilli
Yellow - Autumn Fragrance - a very aromatic osmanthus flavourd custard
White - Frosty Winter - Pure vanilla beans, enough said

RM 9 per piece and it comes with a box for every 8 ordered (RM72).

Coming from a very competitive market of mooncakes, Chef Lee has come up with some rather interesting flavours that may garner alot of interest. Tastewise, summer and autumn may be harder to sell with their unique flavours. However, Spring and Winter will surely be a hit.

Classic lotus paste

Pandan Paste

We also sampled the classic baked lotus paste with single yolk (RM19) and the baked pandan paste with single yolk (RM19). I wonder is it their technique of cutting or just me when each piece has an equal bit of yolk?

Both were not overly sweet to cater to the current trend of having everything "not too sweet or in BM (kurang manis)". But hello aren't desserts meant to be sweet?

I suppose all in all, a very safe selection of mooncakes compared to the wild fashionable sibling in KL Hilton.

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Next up, the meal at Toh Yuen.

What can one buy with 30 cents in Penang?

Apong Guan! 30 cents for a nice fluffy piece of flour that has a hint of coconut, corn and banana. A healthy snack that is available from the early morning and hopefully till tea time.

Freshly prepared from the time you shout through the car window "uncle, 5 pieces"

Such a simple item but yet so satisfying for only 30 cents.

Bangsar Seafood Garden Restaurant (Part II) @ One Bangsar

It is that time of the year again; empty gyms, busier roads and long queues at restaurants during the evening. A quieter office, may i add after 5pm.

This weekend starts the Ramadhan month where the majority of our fellow Malaysians perform their fasting ritual.

Which can only mean one thing, a reason for the whole working team to go out and eat!

Alas, every year appears to be the same old thing; hotel buffet.

This year with the recession and etc, everyone is coming up with ideas and Bangsar Seafood Garden has come up with a variety of set dinners to celebrate the ocassion with chinese halal food.

So with good timing that we were invited by the infamous FBB and Jade from BSG to sample some of their signature dishes available in their Ramadhan menu.

Their Mango Chicken is the sweet rendition of Lemon Chicken. Crispy succulent pieces of chicken (with the skin) sits on fruit puree sauce.

The fish reminded me of what mom cooks at home, assorted bean sauce on fried snapper. What makes mom's version better is the addition of minced pork, the miniscule pieces of minced chicken i spotted probably explains the difference.

Prawn Curry reminded me of our secret rendevous with Nibong Tebal prawns. This was in a lighter shade and thickness with smaller but nonetheless fresh prawns. Perhaps some Bengali bread to dip in?

Braised beancurd with some waterchestnut, carrots and yam pieces is an example of a typical dish that we would order to cater to the kids, plenty of tasty sauce and smooth silk beancurd.
Stew
Stew cabbage with (dried scallops that i could not see) and mushrooms. The cabbage absorbed all the flavours in the stock and gives you another dimension to your usual crunchy vegetable. A perfect detox dish if you are to be on vegetables (doubt the stock is vegetarian though).

The omelette came plated in a stack like pancakes. Tastewise, how else can eggs taste like? Duh.

Someone was complaining that there were no carbs being served on the menu. This was swiftly solved with a heap of fried rice with prawns, egg floss (the kind you get in butter prawns) and generic crab claws. The crab claws really didn't do the dish any good and should not be there. The generous amount of prawns in the rice was gorgeous to bite into and the intense flavours of the egg floss lend it more taste to the rice.

I think it must be the lack of carbs i have been taking during dinner time.

Now Bangsar Seafood Garden will not be Bangsar Seafood Garden without some signature Crabs.


Salted Egg Yolk Crab, took a claw and it literally clogged my arteries with the salted egg yolk.

The Wet Butter Crabs calls for any carbs that can soak sauces well, bread, rice, even pasta!


To end dessert with a Mango Sago, Frat Mustard loving it!

The current promotion runs all month long before the catch ends, they are giving away 1 kg of crabs of your favourite style for free with the order of any of the below set menu:

RM 498+: Appetizer, Shark’s Fin Soup, Chicken with Ginger, Spicy Fried Fish, Lychee Prawns, Signature Beancurd, ‘Kampung’ fried rice, Custard Buns, Dessert

RM 598+: Appetizer, Sharks Fin Soup, Chicken with Plum Sauce, Pomfret with Bean Sauce, Prawns with Sweet Corn Sauce, Steamed “Sang Gan”, Tom Yam Noodles, Banana with “Gula Melaka”, Dessert

RM 698+: Appetizer, Double boiled soup, Roast chicken, Red snapper, Otak Otak Fried Prawns, Braised Sea Cucumber, Oyster Fried Rice, Chinese Pastries, Dessert

RM 898+: Homemade appetizers, Sharks Fin Soup with Pumpkin, Boneless Duck, Curried Garoupa, Braised Seafood, Mango Prawns, Garlic Fried Rice, Banana & ‘Gula Melaka’, Dessert

Address and contact details:

63, One Bangsar
Jalan Ara
Bangsar Baru
59100 Kuala Lumpur

Tel: 03-2282 2555

Lafite @ Shangri La Kuala Lumpur

Everything seems to be acting up recently.

My laptop starting to show signs of old age, the days of re-installing of the whole system, irritating pop ups asking you to install drivers (even if you don't need them) and overheating.

My internet needless to say has put me off from blogging since the yesteryears.

Even my body seem to be acting up too, the rainy skys and the hot sun finally got the better of me.

Enough about me.


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Going through my recent but growing gallery of photos that i have snapped with my phone, a hidden gem reveals itself among them all.

Now close to being a Shangri La Prestige member for a whole year, i have yet to step inside LaFite till the following lunch.

Lunch being the most affordable meal is only available during weekdays, a day where normal human beings work and not take 2 hour lunches. To those who do take 2 hour lunches, good for you.

Dinner on the other hand can be an exorbitant affair with the reduced 20% discount off the bill.

So when we all got all miserable bonuses, we decided sod it, we will splurge recession style.

To dine in La Fite during lunch time!

The cheapest lunch menu at RM82++ entitles you to a main (pick from a choice of mains), a dessert and a variety of starters on the buffet tree. Throw in the Prestige Card (well we had 3 in the group) and our lunch ended at RM60 plus per pax, RM40 plus if you dine with one other.

The Buffet Tree serves a variety of appetisers that are not exactly impressive. Firstly, as cooked dishes, these are left out with no warmers, so it cools down. Secondly, some were basic items that didn't shout La Fite (the grandest poshiest grand daddy of all fine dining places).

However there was an item that intrigued us; the lemon tea that was served in a shot glass. The tea was served in a ball like sitting on sugar syrup. Bite into the ball to release the tea and voila, lemon tea in the mouth!

Despite that, the up and downs, you can still take plates and plates of scallops, seared tuna with watermelon and lime, smoked salmon and prawns. It does scream value for money.

They also serve a white roll and a wholemeal roll with what tasted like a tomato butter but had the texture of mayonnaise (mild but i still prefer butter)together with your starter.

Halfway through the starters, a small cup of cauliflower or was it potato soup was served (i presume an amuse bouche too late?)

The main which was a striploin served the way i wanted it; medium rare was a joy to bite into. Smooth mash, sauce that consisted of the steak juice and some mustard and good beef are all you going to need for a perfect lunch.

The dessert was a string of bite sized pieces to be eaten from a sour raspberry ice cream tart to a sweet lavender marshmallow.

The raspberry ice-cream tart (top left) was absolutely brilliant but after that the remainder werent great but palatable nonetheless.

All in all a good place for a tai tai lunch and those who either don't need to work or can afford long lunch hours. Did i mention they serve free water and theres absolutely no pressure for you to order a drink or coffee/tea?

Address and contact details:

Shangri La Hotel Kuala Lumpur

Tel: 03 - 20322388

Rating: 4 stars out of 5 stars. What really mattered i.e. the steak came perfectly done. I can only imagine when i decide to splurge on the 12 course meal courtesy to the voucher which works out to be around RM250++ per pax, what kind of heaven i would be at.

Nippy Noodles @ Kuchai Lama

I never knew Kuchai Lama was that NEAR my house.

We are talking about less than 5 minutes of driving to a mini food haven. Littered with restaurants and stalls all over the different streets within Kuchai Entrepreneurs Park.

So when (as usual) during the daily dose of online reading and drooling session, i came across the review for some hand made noodles, well you couldn't say no (especially well within budget).

Especially when the name sounds so familiar to my most creative nick name my friends gave me.

The chef making the noodles must have been having a no-show, well can't blame him because we were having an early dinner at 5pm with not much of a crowd to provide applause.

What was a trio of pork platter became a duo when the sausage went missing in action (out of stock). The char siew and siew yuk was pretty good for a place that doesn't hang their meat out like a roast meat stall. (RM9)

Their wanton soup was rather bland; both wanton and soup. Won't give this a try again. (RM5)

The star of the place is their Bamboo noodles. Apparently the grandfather of wanton noodles that we are accustomed to but the first difference you will see is that it is way more anorexic. It is crunchier too compared to the wanton noodles and this was served with a starchy-like gravy with chicken and mushrooms, something similar to what my mom would cook on a busy day. (RM7 or RM9 for a big bowl, i think).

Definitely worth another visit for their delish noodles and i so want that siu cheong but i would be rather cautious with some of the sides they have on offer.

Address and contact details:

No.25, Jalan Kuchai Maju 7

Kuchai Entrepeneurs Park
Off Jalan Kuchai Lama
Kuala Lumpur

Tel: 03 - 7982 1781

Verdict: 3 stars out of 5 stars. Without the disappointing wantons, i might have given it the extra 0.5 stars but the noodles are quite a delight to eat.