Khunthai Restaurant @ Petaling Garden

One of my friend highly recommended this Thai restaurant to me last weekend. We were actually looking for a place to bring our other friend back from over sea for dinner. Initial plan was to the one over at Chan Sow Lin but decided to go to some where nearer.My friend told me this has got to be his No.1 Thai restaurant. And some of our friends even agreed with him. So the rest again was history. Off we go to Petaling Garden which is off Jalan Gasing. It's nearby Hucks actually. It's a weekend and dinner time, so my friend advice us to go early as it will be packed after 8pm. And it really was. 

Waited for my friend to arrived since he's more familiar with what's good and what's not. I think he is that familiar with their menu that he can just order off hand in Thai. Cool~! Since they served local Thai authentic cuisine, he had ordered this appetizer for us to try. It's some sort like wrapping all the above ingredients (i.e chili padi, lemon bits, garlic, nuts, onions, dried shrimps and another type of seed thingy. 

This is the Thai leaves that come with the Miaeng Kum dish. In the middle is the honey to go with the ingredients after wrapping with the Thai leave. 

This is typically how it would look like after putting all the ingredients into the leave. Trust me, put more chili padi. You won't regret it. This appetizer seemed to be quite interesting where you have a bit of spiciness and sour in it. Not bad. Something to excite the taste bud before the main dishes I believe.  

Another appetizer before the main dish would be their Pandan Chicken. Actually I wanted to try this out and ordered it. What is Thai cuisine without Pandan Chicken.  Well nothing spectacular here but your ordinary pandan chicken. But it's good to start something light. There's 5 pieces so each has one. Fair~! 

Wanted an extra dish so we ordered this fried omelette with spring onion. A bit oily but I am alright with it. Really nice. Heck! I like anything fried together with eggs. 

Not sure if this dish was in the menu or not. It's their Pak Liang Thai vegetable. This vegetable isn't available locally according to my friend. It's only available over at Thailand. The vege is the same as the appetizer, Miaeng Kum. A bit oily but we all love this dish.  

My friend again recommended this fried chicken tendon. This is not a common dish locally I guess. It's chicken tendon covered with lots of sesame and deep frying it. Not bad, but I don't really see the unique in it except that it's rare. Is it my first time eating chicken tendon? I don't think so. But again I like anything fried.  At least this dish isn't as oily as the first two. 

The main dish would be this hot and sour deep fried siakap. My friend highly recommended this dish to us. Babe actually was wishing for their steam lemon fish. haha! My friend warned us numerous time of the level of spiciness of this dish. Most of them agreed except me. Really, it's not that spicy. But maybe there's something wrong with my taste bud. 

The siakap was quite large and sufficient for all of us. Sadly the fish was deep fried so we couldn't taste the freshness of it.  But again, I am cool with deep fried. The fish is topped with a lot of vegetable. You can see cabbages and kangkung and lettuces every where. Damn this fish is filling.

They even prepared an extra bowl of soup for the fish if it does goes dry since the charcoal is burning hot underneath it. You have lots of vegetables in it too. We finished the whole bowl off at the end.

Yes, I was sweating but not from the spiciness of the dish but rather the hotness from the stove burning hot underneath the fish. Looks so old school. I like it. You can't blow off the candles or fire with this baby underneath it. 

Most of the patrons ordered their umpera with sour plum. I know some of my friends are a big fan of this juice. But I am not really that into it. Actually this is my first 'attempt' with this juice. OK, it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Since the sour plum helps a lot. I think I just have less than 3 glasses of this. We ordered two big jug of this juices. But it's very cooling and refreshing after some hot and spicy dishes we just had. 

The place was pack right after we arrived and it was raining at that time. So my friend isn't kidding when he said better be early and get a table quickly. They occupied two shop lot with one of them being air condition. But we wasn't permitted to sit in that room since they only reserve those with bigger crowds. But since it's raining that time, the weather was bearable. This is actually their second brand being the one up Butterworth their first. There is another one too over at Desa Aman Puri, Kepong. The dinner was really filling for sure but I didn't really agree with my friend saying that this is the best. I think what I had over at My Elephant is better and babe agrees with me on this. But well, food is very subjective I guess. Maybe someone can go over and try this out and let me know what you think. 

Rating: 

Food: 3.8 out of 5.0

Ambiance: 3.8 out of 5.0 (will go to 4 maybe if we were allowed in the air cond room)

Service: 4.0 out of 5.0 (fast and efficient)

Address: Khuntai Restaurant

6, Jalan 5/44, Petaling Garden,

Off Jalan Gasing, 46000 Petaling Jaya, 

Selangor Darul Ehsan 

Contact: 03-7781 7523

The Pagoda Restaurant & Bar @ Bukit Tinggi

Babe had always wanted me to try this place out for some time but I always think that Thai cuisine are always meant to be enjoy with a bunch of friend cause you can order more and try. So the occasion came few weeks back when a some friends decided to have their birthday over there. The place is located opposite AEON Bukit Tinggi over at Klang. It's behind the main row facing the road. It's a corner lot, so you won't have a tough time finding it.

The owner was really friendly as some of us had patronized the place a few times already. But we had 10 people for that night's dinner and decided to asked for the owner for recommendation. So he had recommended us the followings for our dinner. Since the birthday boy had sore throat that day so we decided to go with something light. But then again it's Thai cuisine, so it's really weird not to order their specialties. So we decided to order two different soups.

The twin tom yum soup which  are the favorite over there. We can't choose so we decided to ordered both. Problem solved.

Clear Tom Yam Chicken Soup - RM22

This is the tom yum soup with chicken which as you can see is not spicy. But the taste is still very appetizing and a bit of spicy. I am not a big fan of tom yum soup actually so this isn't my bowl of soup for that night.

Spicy Tom Yam Seafood - RM25

Look at those mad red color of the soup and you know this is one hell of a spicy tom yum soup. This is rather better compared to the first as we ordered seafood tom yum. Definitely a must order for tom yum soup lover.

 

Thai Curry & Egg with Squid - RM20

This is really good. It's actually cooked squids with eggs mixed together.OK, it might look disgusting at this point but trust me it's good. Worth ordering.
  

Seafood beancurd on Hot Plate - RM16

This is the only bean curd of the night. It's actually a mixture of seafood with Japanese bean curd on a hot plate. There's plenty of prawns, squids, fish balls, green peas, carrots and if I am not mistaken cubes of luncheon meat. Nothing really special here but it's recommended and not half bad but nothing to brag about either. 

Thai Style Planta Squid - RM20

This is another must order dish. Who doesn't like fried planta with squid. I think most Malaysian like their food fried. High in cholesterol maybe but heck it's good. The first dish that we clean up that night. 

Pandan Leaf Chicken Wrap - RM30/6pcs

We ordered two set of these pandan chicken. This is really good. The taste and scent of pandan leaves really do sips into the chicken. Totally love this dish. A must order over at this restaurant.

 Deep Fried Fish with Chili - RM35

OK, the outlook of the fish isn't the best I had. But the sauce on top wasn't that half bad. Fish is served fresh from the cooking pan and it's best served with tom yum sauce on top. The meat is so tender and soft. A bit waste for the fish to be fried but this is one of their specialty anyway. Isn't the best I had but worth a try.

Baby Kailan wit Salted Fish - RM15

Nothing much to talk a bout here. It's fresh or it's not and in this case it's alright. At least it's not too starchy.

Kangkung with Belacan - RM9.50

I love this vegetable dish every time. It's kangkung with belacan. The vegetables are fresh but sadly belacan isn't as good or spicy as I thought it would be. A bit of disappointed. But still a good dish to order if you're there.

Overall the dinner was alright with plenty of food for all of us. Expensive? Well, OK I guess. There are hits and misses but I can accept that. I mean, you can have a perfect dinner with all the dishes being 100% and all, or could you? I mean for the price I am paying, I am quite satisfied with it. Not the best Thai cuisine I had but still worth a try if you are looking for some Thai cuisine around that neighborhood.

Food Rating: 3.8 out of 5

Service Rating: 3.5 out of 5

Ambiance Rating: 3.5 out of 5

Overall Rating: Average with nothing too fancy. 

Address: The Pagoda Restaurant & Cafe 

42, Jalan Mahogani 1, 

Bandar Botanic

Tel: 03-3325 8020

myElephant (2nd Visit) @ Seksyen 17

My last visit to this place was around 1 year plus ago. It was my first visit for lunch with some companies at that time. This time around, it was for dinner. I heard that their dinner is something special compared to their lunch. Don't get me wrong, the lunch was good but doesn't really blow me away. So I returned back with babe and her friends all the way from Klang. We drove all the way down here and if it's not as good as said, someone is gonna get kill. Our reservation was 9pm, we came early and waited for a while outside. The place was packed when we arrived. The staff was really nice and gave us some menu to order before our seats are ready. We ordered our fish first as he told us that the fish would take some time. 

Evening time was really different from noon over here. Lights are dimmed and the atmospheres are nice and comfy. There are a lot of customers around busy with their birthday dinner, family event and casual dates. We had a long table as we are celebrating a friend's birthday. Since there's 11 of us, the waitress recommended some extra dishes as she was worried that the dishes we ordered wasn't enough. One of our friend is a Thai national and she too recommended some dishes from the menu which she is familiar with. Babe and me was quite nervous cause we recommended the place which is a Thai/Balinese style cuisine and hopefully it served up to it's name.

myElephant's Platter - RM22

I had took the liberty of ordering a platter for all of us to share and try out since we can't decide which appetizer to start with. The platter consists of Tod Man Pah, Popiah Tod, Golden Parcel, Prawn Wanton & Fresh Popiah. There are 3 of each appetizers. All are freshly prepared and fried before serving. Nice. 

Jasmine Rice (Hom Malee) + Brown Rice - RM3/pax

This is the only rice which they served in here. It's actually brown rice and it's high in fiber. They gave you a big bowl and you can ask for refills no matter how many times. So dig in cause brown rice not cheap hor~!

Som Tam Malakor - RM10

My Thai friend had recommended this and so does the menu. It's hand pounded green papaya with dried prawns & peanuts. The portion are sufficient for 3 -4 pax. It's cold and refreshing. Not my favorite salad, but still alright. 

Fried Paku - RM15

This had got to be one of the best Paku I had ever had. I don't even know they can get this good. I mean it's just Paku vege. This is one of their Jungle Vegetable of The Day. It varies from Paku (fern tips), eggplant and four-angled bean. Trust me, this is really good. Not too spicy not too plain. Simple & nice. 

Phad Pak Ruam - RM13

We worried that we don't have enough green so we ordered another plate which was recommended by the waitress. This is pan fried mixed vegetables. You have all types of green all mixed together. If you can't decide what vegetables to eat, then order this. Don't worry that the taste will be strange and all, this is just simple and nice. 

Tom Som with Seafood - RM28 (L) 

What is Thai cuisine without their Tom Yum soup right? There are a few variety to choose from and babe tried this before and recommended this. It's clear Galangal, lemongrass and lime soup with a tint of aromatic Thai herbs. You can go with Chicken, Fish or Seafood and we choose the latter. Some of them said it's too spicy but babe and me didn't even felt anything. So it's very subjective. But she had better in her first visit. The lemon grass scent is really strong and some might not able to take it. There are fresh prawns, pineapples, mushrooms, tomatoes and other vege all thrown into the big bowl of soup. A bowl would be able to served around 7-8 pax so we ordered two. 

Plah Meuk Yaeng - RM18

This is their pan-seared squid marinated with Thai soya sauce. This is a simple dish and turn out to be a good one. Soya sauce isn't that salty or spicy but just to compliment the main dish. 

Tauhu Nung Si Yu - RM15

We wanted tofu and the waitress recommended this steamed tofu for us. It's steamed tofu with Thai soya sauce, lotus root, mushroom and ginger on top. It's a simple dish again. RM15 for a steamed tofu? I am not sure. Again, it's sufficient for 3-4 pax. You decide. 

'Snow Fish' -RM45

This has got to be the 'star' of the night. It's their super best seller. Snow Fish. Why called Snow Fish? Well, as you can see from the picture, there are white stuff on top of the fish. Those are salt. It's salt baked fish with their special blend green chilly sauce. OMG~! This is really good. You add some salt on a piece of that soft warm steamed fish and it's heaven. Highly recommended. Remember to finish it before it gets cold. 

Gai Phad Grapow - RM15

Can't guess what is this right? It's actually pan-fired minced chicken with Thai holy basil. I am not sure why they called it holy basil. Is it different from the basil we ate here? Anyway, this is another good dish. I didn't even know what the heck is this till half way through. I thought it's the omelette which we ordered. 

Khai Jiao Ho Mok - RM13

Last but not least on the menu would be their omelette. But this is not a simple omelette of course. This is their so-called special egg omelette with otak-otak fish. This is alright. I think I preferred our own Pulau Ketam oyster egg to this. But again, it's two different type of dish maybe. Nevertheless, this is fresh and simple. 

The place is calling for final call around 9.30pm as the kitchen closes at that time. The restaurant closes around 10.30pm. We were the last to leave that night. Food was good and all of us are really satisfied. Even our Thai friend was satisfied and gave a thumbs up. But she did hinted that she can dish out a better Tom Yum soup than this. I think she is joking anyway. Dinner time as mentioned earlier are quite pack so better make reservation before you think of dropping by if there are more than 2 of you. The dishes are simple but yet delicious. Bring more friends as you can try out more dishes like we did. The whole dinner cost us around RM350 for eleven pax inclusive of drinks and tax. So it's around RM30+ per head which I think is quite resoable for the food we are having. Have a try and let me know what you think. (Rating: 4.3 out of 5.0)

Lerk Thai @ Jusco Tebrau City

First thing came to mind when you say Thai food would be Tom Yum soup? Some would say Tom Yum fried rice or Phad Tai. So in my expedition looking for good (most of the time) food, I found this place which has a few branches across Peninsular. Not many but only 3 if I am not mistaken. The place is called Lerk Thai and from the name you would know by now that the place serve Thai cuisine. Walked in and there wasn't much people around and decided to get myself comfy before going through their menu. Standard appetizers and also soups like the one you would find in any Thai restaurants.

Iced Pandan Leaf - RM8/glass

There's a lot of drinks to choose from but I decided to go simple and ordered their Iced Pandan Leaf. It's sweet but not too much. Portion is sufficient for me and not too much ice.

Crispy Torpedo Prawns - RM12

The sizes of each prawns isn't as large as I thought it would be, but it's suffice. Price could be a bit steep but it's nice to have something crispy to bite on before the main. Not bad, but remember to get plenty of Thai sauce to go with the dish.

Boneless Chicken Wing - RM12

I asked the waiter if it was large, and he said it's small but when I saw the pair of rings, damn it's large. This is because the wings are de-boned and stuffed with lots of crab meats and lots of other ingredients. Very filling.

This is how the inside of the chicken wing looks like. I think the wings looks more like a drumstick after being stuffed with all the ingredients to me. Make sure to eat it while it's still warm.

Phad Thai - RM15/plate

Finally my main which I had been contemplating whether to go with fried rice or their noodle. At the end I had ordered their fried kway teow with prawns, Thai style of course. I had tried their Phad Thai previously in Bangkok and this doesn't really justify the real deal. The noodle is wet and the usual side ingredients such as chili flakes, crushed peanuts and dried small anchovies. Mixed all that with their own bland of Asam sauce and a small squeeze of lemon, and you got yourself an acceptable plate of Phad Thai.

I think I would be more happier if I had ordered their Thai fried rice or any other fried rice but at the end I had to settled with the noodle. Maybe you can try it out and let me know how it is. They also serve authentic asam fish and array of appetizers too. Isn't the best I had but quite pricey on the dishes though. (Rating: 3.8 out of 5.0)

Ruenmai-Thai Restaurant - Krabi Town

This is one of the best seafood place in town, or so I heard. I was amazed with the entrance and the whole ambiance of the whole restaurant when I first set eye on it. It's located nearby the Krabi town. I think most of the taxis or tut tut know bout this place when you tell them the restaurant's name.

We arrived around 7pm and the place was already half full. You can opt to sit under the hut or outdoor. We had choose to sit under the hut as we know that we're gonna be very noisy and don't wanna disturb the other visitors.

This is their local fruit punch. It's filled with watermelon and sodas.

This is one of their curry fish is very famous over there. Actually they mix up our order but this dish wasn't that bad.

This is quick fried morning glory vegetable with oyster sauce. Although it's a normal dish but it's really like home cook meal.

This is one of the 'must' order for this place. This is their Fried Pork with garlic. This dish was so damn nice and delicious. Trust me, this is a MUST order.

This is another must order from the restaurant, which is their crab meat curry. It's not spicy don't worry but just nice.

This is a dish which we order last minute as we wanted some chicken in our menu. So here's the chicken cooked with onion and cashewnut.

Last but not least, we had ordered Seafood Fried Rice to go with all the other dishes. This is the 2nd time we ordered the same dish from two separate restaurant. Both was really good. I think for them this dish is like salted fish fried rice for us over here.

So how much did we paid for the whole meal for 7 pax? Total bill was around 1460Bhat. So it's around RM20/head. Yes it was really that cheap. We have fish, crab meat, chicken and pork and a whole big load of fried rice. If we do not include the water, actually it's just around RM15/head. The food tastes good and the price is affordable. Definitely a must go. (Rating: 4.0 out of 5.0)