Sweets For My Sweet

... and Chocolate For The Chocoholic!

My baby spoils me (mebbe a bit too much but don't let him hear that....)
He was very sweet to have remembered some fleeting comment I made about the LG Chocolate being really cool - especially the name (seeing as it suits me so well) - and he got it for my birthday!

Isn't it pretty?:






Sorry if this post seems a little self-indulgent - I'm just happy, that's all.
:)


Hugs,
J

TAGS: Blog, Weblog, Malaysia, KL, LG Chocolate, Kuala Lumpur, Personal

Just The Two Of Us

Thank you God for not killing off my faith in the Malaysian Arts Scene completely as it was already wavering so precariously...

On Sunday, we went to watch the new Faridah Merican + Joe Hasham play, The Two Of Us at the Actors Studio, Bangsar Shopping Center (BSC)...
Poster of The Two Of Us
The production is a light-hearted one - set in 2 totally distinct parts - with the only similarity being that it is always a couple (husband & wife) in a humourous scenario.

The first part, entitled Black & White, is set in Italy where a young married couple returns to their honeymoon hotel in Venice with their newly born baby with them for a holiday. It's cute to see the young couple try to be romantic in the wee hours of the morning while trying to keep their baby at peace.
(Ooh, I am almost afraid to have babies - I dunno how I will adjust to waking up at 3am everyday....)
(And I must say: The first part of the play was extremely short! - only about half an hour)
A Peek at the first part - Black&White
The second part, entitled Chinamen (listen up for the racist comment that is linked to the name), a married couple, Stephen and Jo have arranged to have friends over for dinner but find out too late that they've accidentally invited both Barney and Bee, who've recently separated AND Bee's new boyfriend Alex...
(*lol* Watch the chaos ensue as they try to keep everyone conveniently away from bumping into each other)
A peek at the second part - Chinamen
The entire (almost) 2 hour production has only 4 actors - Ari Ratos & Mary George for the first part and Joanna Bessey & Rashid Salleh for the second part. Although Ari & Mary did a commendable job as the bickering-snuggling-bickering couple, Joanna & Rashid really shone in their multiple roles as the husband+wife+toyboy+drunkard ex-husband+needy ex-wife...

Overall, it wasn't FANTASTIC but definately worth a watch on a lazy Sunday afternoon....
(There are a few good laughs in there)

Interested?
There's still time! - It's running till the 20th of August....

Details:
Name - Two Of Us
Venue - Actor's Studio, BSC
Dates - Wed 9 – Sun 20 Aug 2006 (Tue - Sat @ 8.30pm; Sun @ 3pm; No shows on Mon)
Price - RM40 (Adult)/ RM25 (Students, Sr. Citizens & the disabled)
Promotion - RM25 for all tickets from Tue - Thu & Sun matinee
Bookings - Call 03-2094 1400/ 0400

(And once again: NO, I am not getting paid to advertise this play. NO, I do not know or have been asked a favour to post this up by Joe Hasham/ Faridah Merican/ Joanna Bessey or anyone else linked to the play. I'm just sharing my personal opinion, nothing more and nothing less)

:)

TAGS: Blog, Weblog, Malaysia, BSC, Bangsar Shopping Center, Play, Bangsar, Play, Review, Actors Studio, Two Of Us, KL, Kuala Lumpur, Arts, Personal

Pretty, Pretty Lights....

The Dinner

This time we ventured to a new restaurant called Gobo Chit Chat at the Traders Hotel near the KLCC Convention Center. I love the ambience there: Its high ceiling gives it an airy feel and it's modern finishings are trendy and sleek yet lush:
A peek at Gobo Chit Chat
The one thing that stands out particularly would be the Gobo light show on the ceiling - absolutely entrancing!
(... or maybe I'm just easily amused by pretty lights...)

The menu here is a strange conumdrum which can be summed up as: Varied but limited. Basically, they have a varied range of different cuisine - Japanese, Italian and Asian - but somehow, the selection of each range felt rather limited.

Anyway, we were given a free welcome bite and some warm bread with dip:
Left to right: The teeny welcome bite and the Bread and Dip
Nothing much to say - it was free and it tasted ok (something like a mini shish kebab). The bread and dip was interesting though - nothing spectacular about the bread but the spicy red pepper dip (which I initially thought was some sort of sambal) is something different from the usual butter served at restaurants....

We then started off with the Caeser Salad:
The Ceaser Salad
More bacon would have been good but otherwise, the salad was really nice - crispy croutons and fresh leaves (very important) coated with just enough creamy dressing.

Then, we choose the Seared Yellow Fin Tuna Steak and Porcini Mushroom Risotto for our mains:

Clockwise from top: The Porcini Mushroom Risotto, Close Up of Seared Yellow Fin Tuna Steak and the Seared Yellow Fin Tuna Steak
I really liked the Risotto. It was bursting with flavour and had a healthy amount of yummy Porcini mushrooms in it - definately one of the better risottos in KL and something I wouldn't mind having again.

The Yellow Fin Tuna Steak, served on artichokes, was ok.
I chose for it to be served medium cooked, so it was still a little pink inside.
I found it a little dry but I suppose that is the nature of tuna - flakey and dry. I thought that the artichoke mash thingy went really well with the fish.

The waitress was so cute though. Darling P complained that it tasted too fishy and she retorted happily: "Well Sir,... it's fish!".
*lol*

For dessert we had the Dessert Sampler. With that, you get a nice serving of fruits and a choice of 4 out of 6 different desserts (which is supposed to vary from night to night). That night, I chose the Lavender Creme Brulee, the Chocolate Pie, the Chocolate Walnut Cake and the Green Tea Tiramisu:


Left to right, top to bottom: The Green Tea Tiramisu, The Chocolate Walnut Cake, The Whole Dessert Sampler, The Chocolate Pie and the Lavender Creme Brulee

The Lavender Creme Brulee was really interesting - it literally hits you like an accidental gulp of bath wash in your mouth. The funny thing is that after the initial recoil of horror, it actually kinda grew on me.....

Sadly, the 2 chocolate desserts I chose (being the chocoholic glutton that I am) were total non-events: the Chocolate Pie was a bit too mushy and strangely, not very chocolatey whereelse the Chocolate Walnut Cake was ok but had an overpowering taste of Maraschino cherries which I found to be a bit sickly sweet.

My favourite was the Green Tea Tiramisu - the texture was light and smooth, with a hint of the bitter green tea flavour instead of the usual coffee, which made it refreshing and interesting.

So it's: Decent prices and wine selection, wonderful airy ambience, captivating light show and friendly staff BUT hits and misses on the menu and expensive parking.

(Psssst... The hotel parking is shared with the KLCC Convention Center - basically you enter through the Convention Center parking entrance and can either park there and walk to the Hotel Lift Area or drive through another barrier gate to the designated Hotel Parking Area. Mind you, parking is a pretty pricey in the hotel area - came up to RM11 the night I was there - but I don't know whether it'll be any cheaper in the normal Convention Center Parking Area and walking a few extra metres)

Restaurant Review
Summary Sheet:

Gobo Chit Chat @ Traders Hotel, KL

Taste: 6.5
Ambience : 8
Service : 8
Price** : RM65++ per person
Parking: Expensive but Ok

** Approximation - 3 course meal, excluding drinks
Telephone No.: 03-2332 9888
Opening Hours: 11am - late

NO PORK SERVED

TAGS: Food, Blog, Weblog, Malaysia, Restaurant Review, Restaurant Reviews, Gobo, Gobo Chit Chat, Fusion, Japanese, Italian, Traders Inn, KL, Kuala Lumpur

One Step Away From Freedom

Aaaah, finally - it's Friday again.
It's been a long week.

I will not gripe too much about it but here's just one comment for prosterity:
I think it is just plain rude to villianise a person because of their job function during a presentation where there are so many people around and there is no channel for 2 way communication.
(Grrrrr...)

Anyway, I hope that you will all have a good weekend ahead.
:)

Hugs,
J


TAGS: Blog, Weblog, Malaysia, KL, Kuala Lumpur, Personal

Berry Nice

A delicious place to visit in Cameron Highlands....

A picture speaks a thousand words so this time, I will start by letting the photos communicate to you by themselves... First up, the Strawberry Ice Cream:
The Strawberry Ice Cream
Next, the Strawberry Milkshake:
The Strawberry Milkshake
They both look so yummy, don't they?
*droooool*
:)

Well, just so you know:
The Strawberry Ice Cream is lovely - priced very decently (RM6), the combination of the juicy but slightly sour strawberries goes very well with the sweet taste of the strawberry sauce and the creamy vanilla ice cream and whipped cream.
Ahhh - perfection!

The Strawberry Milk Shake is also worth a try - smooth and refreshing with lots of yummy blended strawberries that gives this cool drink some texture (it is also priced very decently at RM7).
A list of some of the desserts
So, if you want to try a bite of these desserts - drop by Raju's Hill Strawberry Farm near the peak area in Cameron Highlands (walking distance from the Equatorial Hotel).... They only have a small range (such as Strawberries with Honey and Belgium Waffles with Strawberries) but it's definately worth a try if you're in the area.

A Peek at Raju's Hill Straberry Farm
There is a nice open air area that you can sit down, relax and indulge in these desserts while looking at the trees.... Otherwise, there's nothing much to see at Raju's Hill - the strawberry farm itself looks rather pathetic.

Misc shots of the strawberry farm
See?


TAGS: Blog, Weblog, Malaysia, Dessert, Desserts, Strawberry, KL, Kuala Lumpur, Strawberry Farm, Raju's Hill, Pahang, Cameron Highlands, Personal

Encounters With The Idiotic Kind

aka. Wildlife of Malaysia - Thugarious Stupidicus ....

Car park bullies - The underbelly of society.

We looked around for almost 40 minutes for that parking spot...just to lose it to some moron who decides that he's the reigning King of One Utama.
I hate to admit it, but we had to concede to the idiots in the end.
*sigh*

It would have been stupid not to anyway - you can't guard the car forever.
Meaning: You could very well win the battle but lose the damned war. Can you imagine how you would feel when come back to your car later and find that it's been vandalised?
(Look, if a person is idiotic enough to steal parking spots, he will definately be idiotic enough to "take revenge" too)

You know, it would have been almost acceptable if they said something like "Oh, we're so sorry - we're desperate because we are late for a movie"....
... but no. All they did was glower at my friend L and ask "What's your problem, harr?" (before yattering on in Mandarin) when she went to talk to them.

If only the government would extend neutering to selected humans to stop the tarnishing of the genetic pool....

Now, THAT's a cause I'd happily donate to every month.


TAGS: Blog, Weblog, Malaysia, KL, Kuala Lumpur, Personal

There's Nothing Like Mum's Cooking

Not Halal lah.... sowe kawan-kawan.

Mama's Kitchen is a simple Chinese restaurant in Taman Tun Dr Ismail (TTDI) area near 18-21 and Devi's Corner - I had never noticed it before but it came recommended by a good friend of mine so I decided to try it out:
A peek into Mama's Kitchen
Ambience?
Well, it is a typical Chinese Coffeeshop/ Restaurant, with its basic finishing and garish red tablecloths but I noted that it seems pretty clean, so that's a plus to me.

The signature dish here is the claypot "low shu-ee fun" (literal translation: "rats tail noodles"):
Rat's Tails in a Claypot - Yummy!
It was surprisingly good... not FANTASTIC mind you, but definately something I wouldn't mind trying again. The noodles were "springy" and thankfully not starchy, cooked very simply with egg, minced meat and black sauce. I liked that it wasn't too salty or too oily.

We also tried a variety of other dishes: Potato Leaves In Superior Stock, Butter Fried Prawns and Kum Heong Lala....
Clockwise from top left: The Butter Fried Prawns, Kum Heong Lala and Potato Leaves In Superior Stock
The soupy vegetables, cooked with ikan bilis and century egg, was very "ching" and still a little crispy as it was only lightly cooked. The soup base was also not very salty. Overall, OK but it definately didn't impress me.
(My problem is that I always peg the quality of this dish to the one I ate at Overseas Restaurant, which is the best I've tasted so far)

The Butter Fried Prawns were ok... tasty but not quite crispy enough. The Kum Heong Lala was also not that great - fragrant but a bit too salty (.. and so little meat in the lala - it was more shell than anything else)

It doesn't stop there though! We were very greedy that night and ordered 2 types of pork, the Pork in Marmite Sauce and the Deep Fried Belly Pork with Honey Sauce:
Double the sin (left to right): The Deep Fried Belly Pork with Honey Sauce and the Pork in Marmite Sauce
I quite liked the Pork in Marmite Sauce and the Deep Fried Belly Pork with Honey Sauce (as unhealthy as I know they are). It was, arguably, a bit too salty (the Pork in Marmite Sauce)/ too sweet (the Deep Fried Belly Pork) but it tasted excellent with rice.
Texture-wise, the Pork in Marmite Sauce was not very tender... but oh man, the Belly Pork was so sinful - once you bite through the crispy light batter, you can feel the delicious juices (half melted fat!) run into your mouth in a burst of cholestor-ific flavour....
(Caution!: It's probably not a good idea to eat this too often)

They also serve the coffeeshop style big bottles of beer here.... glamourously placed in a chiller a la champange (upon request):
Carlberg in a chiller - Classy
Prices are pretty decent: dinner for the 3 of us came up to about RM80 (although I'm pretty convinced that our meal could have fed 4 people - we were so greedy that night...)

So it's: Casual, low key Chinese restaurant, decent food for decent prices but blur waiters and well, nothing else really, I wouldn't mind going back again for convenient and simple food.

Restaurant Review
Summary Sheet:

Mama's Kitchen @ Taman Tun Dr Ismail, KL

Taste: 6
Ambience : 5
Service : 6
Price** : RM20/++ per person
Parking: A pain in the afternoon - Ok at night.

** Approximation - typical Chinese meal, excluding drinks
Telephone No.: 03-7729 3030
Opening Hours: 11am - late

NOT HALAL

TAGS: Food, Blog, Weblog, Malaysia, Restaurant Review, Restaurant Reviews, Taman Tun Dr Ismail, Kuala Lumpur, KL, TTDI, Mama Kitchen, Mama's Kitchen, Chinese, Claypot Noodles

25 Candles....

Another year, another candle,
Another 365 worries to handle.
Wanna help me make my day?
Go on - Send some presents my way.
(Look! It rhymes)
;)

I am not old.
Really I'm not.
25 in still very, very young.

Yes.
That's right.
*conveniently ignores wrinkles and other worry lines on face*
:)

Aiyoh.
I feel like I'm sailing precariously quickly away from that thing called "Youth".
Funny how it passes by so quickly!
Well,.. now is a time for celebration and happiness.
I shall leave the mopey, depressive stuff for later.

Hope you all have a great day too.


Hugs,
J

Ps/
To my darling bunch of ex-colleagues who sent me SMSes a bit too early because they thought my birthday was on Friday: "Thanks anyway! It's the thought that counts *hugs*",
... and to everyone who emailed/ called/ SMSed me today: "Thanks! *hugs* Love you too!"

TAGS: Blog, Weblog, Malaysia, KL, Birthday, Kuala Lumpur, Personal

A Tale Of Tuak

... because it's Friday, I shall post about alcohol!

I finally got down to sampling some of the Tuak that I was so generously given as a going away present from Kuching...
(I got that, and a bottle of black pepper sauce *lol*)

I was a bit sceptical at first, seeing the murky colour and all the sediment of this traditional fermented rice wine from Sarawak,...
... but Wow: It's really good!


The Tuak!
It tasted wonderfully smooth yet sweet, with no strong alcoholic aftertaste at all - definately very easy to drink.
(I can see why it is labelled somewhat of a "ladies drink")
I had been warned by friends that it is terribly easy to get taken by surprise by this innocent tasting drink as the alcohol will usually hit you very suddenly after 3 glasses....
(So, I limited myself to 2)
(Apparently the alcohol content can very anywhere from 10% to 50%!!)

On a totally separate note:
*sigh*
I feel like going for the Zouk member's party tonight...
Apparently, they are gonna give out goodie bags with mystery gifts and chocolates inside, so it can't be all that bad, right?
:)


TAGS: Blog, Weblog, Malaysia, Tuak, Sarawak, KL, Kuala Lumpur, Personal

Feed Me, Seymour!

Dear everyone,

Just a small announcement:
You can now subscribe to my RSS feed in a click of a button!
(Look for the big orange button on the sidebar)

Thanks.
(I've tested it and it seems to work but if something goes wrong, give me a shout - ok?)
:)

Cheers,
J

TAGS: Blog, Weblog, Malaysia, RSS, Feed, KL, Kuala Lumpur, Personal

Coffee, Tea Or Me?

An interesting coffee place I stumbled upon while walking around the Kuching city area....

A cosy little cafe opened by a sweet husband and wife team, Borneo Cafe (aka. Black Bean Coffee & Tea Company) is located at one end of Carpenter Road, near the Chinese temple at the main road:
The Main Signboard and Cafe Interior
That day, we strolled in and tried the Iced Mocha and the Iced Latte:

The Iced Mocha and Iced Latte
I never have and will probably never declare to be an expert in the subject of coffee. So, I can't preach in great length on the exact qualities and characteristics of this coffee as compared to others. However, in general: It has a fragrant and very fresh flavour - an almost "green" taste to it with a complex aroma that lingers on the palate.... something very different to the normal coffees that I've tasted:

The Freshly Roasted Liberica Coffee Beans
The cheerful owner explained to us that this is the distinctive flavour of the Liberica beans which he gets fresh from the local farmers (pesticide free!) and lovingly roasts himself every morning. He also blends in some Robusta beans to give it that extra aroma.
(Apparently Liberica beans are full flavoured but do not emit a strong fragrance)

Tea!
They also serve tea there, ranging from the normal jasmines to the more expensive "pu-er" from China.
(Didn't try any tho)

Most of the coffees/ teas here are a steal at only (approx) RM4.00 a cup.
(Absolute pittens as compared to the Beans and the Bucks)
The only downside is that the place is just a tad too warm as the aircond is not powerful enough. Otherwise, it's an interesting place to try out.

They even allow purchases of their coffee beans through email but I've lost the address....
(If anyone has it, can they please share it?)
:)

[ BEGIN EDIT ]
Contact details for Black Bean Coffee & Tea Company, as follows, has been kindly provided by HungryOx:
Owner's Name : Mr. Chang Jong Yiaw
Mobile Phone : (6) 019-879 9747

Do call it (at decent hours of the day) for any enquiries.
(Thanks, Mr. HungryOx!)
[ END EDIT ]


TAGS: Food, Blog, Weblog, Liberica, Malaysia, Black Bean Coffee and Tea Company, Carpenter Street, Coffee, Kuching, Borneo Coffee