La Bodega @ BSC

This is my first visit to La Bodega at Bangsar. My last visit was 5 years ago at Changkat Bkt. Bintang. What I remembered from my last visit was their Paella or Spanish rice. It was a Saturday afternoon and we were supposed to have our dim sum at The Ming Room but it was fully booked and so is the new Grand Imperial. So we ended up here.

Ordered Earl Grey for myself and black coffee for my friend.

I can't find myself pasta with Cabonara sauce so settled in with Linguini Alfredo. I think it's close enough to try out their pasta for me. It's served with turkey ham & mushroom. A bit too sweet for me, strangely. Creamy and just alright. Nothing much to brag about. Small portion for RM18 where as RM24 for a large.

This is the Paella Valenciana Mixta or Spanish rice cooked with prawns, chicken, mussels and clams in a paella with saffron, peppers and peas. Basically it's like seafood mix with Spanish rice. The dish is minimum for two person per serving. And it takes 30mins to be serve. So don't order this if you're really hungry or in a hurry. It's a bit too watery for me and taste wise it's something fresh and new for the taste bud. RM30/person

The whole session wasn't that bad and it's a nice place to laid back and relax with friends. Food is moderate but justifiable I guess. Service is prompt and nice. One thing I don't really comfortable with was their utensils. It's a bit old and there were stains here and there. A bit disgusted when I saw the spade for the rice. I think it's better if someone tell them this as not just the quality of the food is important but the medium which they served it in too is important. (Rating: 3.5 out of 5.0)

Restaurant Jin Xuang Hong Kong - 2nd Visit

This is not my second or third visit but much more. This time around, it was a Thursday morning with my friend who got back from Taiwan. Wanted to bring him around town and feasting on some of the nice food he saw in my blog.

This is a new dish which they just made not too long ago. It wasn't in the menu before. Shanghai Siew Loong Bao. The outer layer just a bit thick but still alright. The most important was the soup inside, which was just normal. Can have a try if you're eating over there.

This is the Cheese Baked Scallop with Prawns. Not a bad dish at all. But make sure that it's freshly steamed from the kitchen before you eat. As cold cheese with scallop doesn't really taste good at all.

This is the steamed prawns with mixed green. Outer layer is a bit too hard and thick. Too dry and sticky. Only means one thing, not fresh.

This is also a new dish which is the boneless chicken & mushroom wrapped in bean curd. Well just imagine the boneless chicken you eat with Loh Mai Kai and now it's just with bean curd. Not bad at all.

Some fried prawn dish which we normally eat with mayo. Nothing special but just wanna share it with my readers.

It was morning and the place was already packed but luckily I secured a table while walking over. So I do not need to queue up and take a number waiting for a table like the rest of the people. Lucky~! MBPJ came over half way and issued some summon on the premises (but I think it's settled later, if you know what I mean). This place is getting popular by the day due to the fresh food and variety of the dim sums. Price isn't that expensive too.

Restaurant Ong Kee

So this is my first try over this place at Ipoh town during my CNY escapade. There were actually another famous restaurant (Lou Wong) which is just next to this but it was full so we just try our luck on this one. The place is called Ong Kee Restaurant. As usual, they sell bean sprout with steamed chicken served in both kuet teow soup or rice.

The bean sprout was crunchy and juicy but the size is smaller than it used to be. I remembered the size of the bean sprout if way bigger than this. The size here is around the same as the one in KL for me. But other than that, I have no comment on it.

We had waited so long for this main dish to come. We practically chased the lady boss for our chicken that day. And when finally the dish arrived, I just took one shot of it and dig in. Fresh and soft. That is what I think. I think all Ipoh's chicken or bean sprout are added with pepper on top. I like the touch of the simple pepper as it add a bit of spice to it.

The restaurant was really packed and we're actually really pissed with the service at that point. As we had finished off our bean sprout and still waiting for the chicken. Other than that it was a alright. How much does it cost? I'm not if we really did paid. Since we called for the lady boss so long and no one layan us. I think one of my babe's aunt paid. Or I hope they did. As I was running towards my car as they are setting up the night market at the place I was parking. (Rating: 3.8 out of 5.0)

Restaurant Dynasty Dragon Seafood

Saw this new restaurant while I'm making my way down after gym at Summit and decided to have a peek at their pre-CNY dinner promo. They are having a promo now for RM398++ per table. So suggested to the gang and here we are last night celebrating MD's birthday cum pre-CNY dinner Loh Sang.

The restaurant is located at closer to the Fitness First or office block side. If you know Black Canyon or Subway then you should know where it's located. It's formerly San Fransisco steakhouse. Interior was new and clean. Most of the big table were fully book that night so we couldn't get a bigger table.

We started the night with Yee Sang with Abalone. Yes, those white color strips you saw on top was abalone strips. Weird as they don't gave us those crispy crackers thingy. One thing for sure, it's made fresh and not those which came in packets. Anyway, we managed to clean the plate as we're all very hungry at that time.

Second dish was the Braised Shark Fin with Crab Meat. It's not that starchy but too salty for us. Some of us added a lot of vinegar to the soup and it was so salty. Even before adding anything it's already quite salty. Maybe they accidentally added soya sauce rather then vinegar to the dish before serving?

This is the Roasted Suckling Pig with Salted Soft Shell Crab. Suckling pig was not that fresh as it's a bit cold but still alright. The soft shell crab was really nice. Crunchy and fresh. The dish come with some buns at the side to go with the suckling pig.

This is the Steamed double Promfret with Soya Sauce. The lady was so nice to cut it for us and even de-bone the fish. Not that salty and meat was just nice to eat. But still can improve on the sauce though.

This is the Baked Sea Prawns in Coconut. I think I preferred it's served in butter cream or oat. Anyway, as long as it's crispy and fresh. And this dish really are fresh. We can peel off the shell with ease and the crispy shell does add some point to the dish.

Braised H.K Seasonal Vegetable with Dried Scallop. Well it's actually baby siew pak choy with small minced scallop. For me, I don't really like this dish that much. But someone's poison could be someone else honey. Portion was quite generous on this dish.

This is the Fried Rice with preserved Meat in H.K style. Someone said Loh Mai Kai. And the waitress straight away said it's not. We all had a burst after that. Surprisingly it's really nice. Not that hard and dry. Come with the lap cheong and meat which added some taste to the whole rice. Finished the whole plate up within two round.

Last but not least the dessert which is the Sweet Aloe Vera with Sea Coconut. Sorry no picture as we're all sipping in the drink and before I know it, it's already finished. Yes, it's what you will expect from a big restaurant. Service was good as they kept changing our plates most of the time or after each dish. No extra charges for outside drinks as we bought two bottle of red wine.

Now a bad place for a small family dinner or company dinner. But not that sure of the price of their ala-carte dishes. Maybe someone can try it out and let me know. They are now running promo on their dim sum which is 20% or 30% less. Nothing special I guess, rather go Ah Yat with 50% less on their dim sum anytime. Paid the bill with the additional price for the Chinese tea and also tit bits.

Soo Kee Mee Stall

Was deciding between Soo Kee Beef Hor Fun or Mr.Sin's Hokkien Mee at Weng Hing. Since both of them are nearby to each other. Finally decided to go try out Soo Kee as I never been to the place and I managed to get a parking right opposite the restaurant.

From what I know, the place has a history over 60 years and is already a house hold name in the local (Sorry, but I never heard before this). It's not only famous to locals but also celebrities from overseas ranging from Jackie Chan, Maggie Cheung, Jay Chou, Alan Tam to name a few. The secret ingredients in their dish was passed down from one generation to the next. And the place is famous for their River Prawn Noodle, Beef Hor Fun and Paper wrapped chicken.

So when I arrived, I straight away ordered their Paper wrapped chicken for appetizer. Each of us had one and straight away unwrapped the paper and sink out teeth into those juicy meat. It was a bit hard but I am alright with it. Taste was just nice. But my babe told me Seri Kembangan's version was more better. Sorry for the bad picture quality as the lighting was a bit bad at that time. (RM4.50/piece)

Second dish was their famous Beef Hor Fun. As you can see it's really starchy and you can still see the eggs on the side. What a sight. Taste was alright but not much to brag about. It's above average but to me as I am not so into Cantonese style. I am not sure what is the hype about other than their generosity on the beef portion. It's really too much to the extend that there is still a lot when I finished the hor fun. (RM9/pax)

The last dish was their Pai Kut Yee Mee. I didn't ordered their River Prawn Noodle (RM16/pax) as the portion was really large for the two of us. The Pai Kut was tender and I love Yee Mee so I like this dish. But one set back on this dish was it's too salty. Other then that, it's just one normal Yee Mee with Pai Kut. (RM10/pax)

Other then noodle, they do served lala, vegetables, bean curd and other dishes to go with rice. But from what I saw, most of the table had either ordered their River Prawn Noodle or Beef Hor Fun. There is also a satey stall inside if you wanted something light to bite.

I think business was good that the son decided to open a new stall just across the street from the dad. And they even name the place Soo Kee's Son (Meng Chuan) Prawn & Beef Noodle. What a good publicity stunt. But for me, Hokkien noodle is still No.1 in my ranking compared to any other noodle. (Rating: 3.8 out of 5.0)

Restaurant Spring Golden

Well since we're (OK, it's just me) in the Char Siew mood this week, just want to share another place for you all. Actually I was wondering where did I place this post as I can't find it in my post lists and even my pictures folder. Finally found out that it's actually from my previous blog. Well here it is, Restaurant Spring Golden in Sri Muda, Shah Alam.

I was reminded of this place by PreciousPea while chatting with her bout our Char Siew experience. I remembered that I had been to this place numerous times as I was working nearby previously. There is another branch at Glenmarie behind Meng Kee.

The place served the usual, chicken, duck and also the main attraction, pork or Char Siew. They occasionally do served goose on certain day of the week. Chicken wise, there's nothing much to brag about as it's just normal but not too bad. Siew Yuk was freshly made as the top layer skin was still crunchy when I sink my teeth into it. Just nice.

As for the Char Siew, well maybe they heard me wrong and given me too much lean portion. So it's a bit dry and hard. As you can see in the picture above it's not too say that juicy if compared with Meng Kee, Tian Hong or Soo Kee. From what I heard, Sri Muda is better than their Glenmarie branch. Maybe I like my pork to be more juicier and sweet.

Different people do have different taste. Someones pork might be someone else's chicken? Anyway, my verdict for this place is that it's not your average pork shop and do try out their goose if you have the chance. The duck wasn't that crispy too when I went over and try it out on my next trip. And they do serve complimentary fruits platter on my visit. Additional points for that. Their soup was also very nice which I need to mention in here. I am quite happy to say that I had tried most of the best served Char Siew in town from KL to PJ to Semenyih. Mission well accomplished. (Rating: 3.8 out of 5.0)

Restaurant Soo Kee

This place was recommended by one of my friend. And she had just happened to just post a blog on this place last week. So when I saw the place served good Char Siew and from her recommendation, I wouldn't miss this for the world (OK, a bit too dramatic). The place is located along Jalan Ampang. It's opposite Kerrys for those whose familiar with the area. But it's being block by the flyover bridge coming down from Cheras side. You can park your car at the back of the restaurant or at the end but some people park outside the restaurant which I felt was a bit dangerous.

Let's get into the main dish which was the Siew Yuk. I had ordered half lean half fat and end portion of the pork. That's where the juicy sweet portion is. The pork really melts in your mouth. I am not kidding you. When I read bout this I was quite sceptical but it's true. Something different from what I had before. But I like my pork with a bit of texture where I can really sink my teeth into it and chew on it. Taste was a just nice but I prefer mine more sweeter.

This is the Siew Yuk which I ordered together with the Char Siew. It's also half lean half fat and tasted quite nice. Although the top layer is not to the extend of crunchy level, but it's still juicy and nice. It's felt a bit like something from my hometown. Something different from what I had in the city.

Other than both the above dishes, they also served chicken and duck. But since I was alone, it's quite odd for me to order all four. So what's my verdict? Well this is definitely something above average Char Siew on par with Meng Kei but I still preferred my Tian Hong anytime of the day. The restaurant closes every Monday. So what's the damage? Well similar to the above mentioned places, it's RM8.30 inclusive of one herbal tea. If you're some where around Ampang, do drop by and have a try. (Rating: 4.0 out of 5.0)