vkeong loves good food, travel and photography!
Kuala Lumpur
Suzi’s Corner Steak Hut @ Off Jalan Ampang, KL
Apr 30th
Suzi’s Corner is a hawker food court made up by several stalls under one roof. You can find satay, roti canai, otak-otak, BBQ chicken wings and even steaks here. The steak hut has to be the most popular one around and judging by the number of expats dining here, I would say they are the main target customer group. According to the many good reviews posted online, apparently this place is a gem where you would find the ‘cheapest and best steak’ in KL. Well, lets see about that shall we.
For steaks, there are seven types to choose from with Sizzling Tenderloin Steak being the most expensive one @ RM32. If you look at the pricing, yes it is very cheap, so cheap that it is almost half the the price of a normal steakhouse. And the portion is not small either, comes with decent amount of fries and greens too.
Sek Yuen Restaurant (Revisit) @ Jalan Pudu, KL
Apr 27th
Was back at Sek Yuen not long ago for dinner with a big group of friends. This time we had some new dishes that are really good with typified taste, what we call “ko cha bee” (古早味) in Hokkien. In other words, these dishes’ recipes have been the way they were for the past decades with minimal modifications so you could taste the flavors of the past here. This old school restaurant that has existed even before Merdeka is simply an institution!
The Pei Pa Duck that night was slightly off for being overroast so the meat tasted hard and dry, you could actually see it was darker than usual. But the skin is still crispy with the peculiar flavor. I poked around and noticed other tables’ duck looked perfect. I guess we were just unlucky.
Chinese Long Beans with Roast Pork – a simple but ingenious combination.
The Loaf Bakery & Cafe @ Bangsar Village 2
Apr 21st
You don’t need me to tell you that The Loaf, the gourmet bakery and pastry restaurant owned by Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad is expensive. There are a few outlets that serve full a la carte lunch and dinner menu so you could enjoy the breads and pastries in-restaurant if you wish. I was at the Bangsar Village 2 branch not long ago and found the food to be generally good and prepared with quality ingredients. And since this is a bakery cum cafe themed restaurant, expect a lot of bread to appear in the dishes.
For example, the Creamy Mushroom Soup @ RM18 is served in a big hollow bun. It is noteworthy that Truffle oil is added into the soup for a slightly earthy aroma, which also explains the expensive price tag.
I really liked the Smoked Salmon Croissant (RM16.80) It is light, flaky but not overly flaky to the extent of not being able to hold itself together. The moist and nutty Norwegian smoked salmon slices are the perfect filling while the shaved parmesan cheese topping is ingenious to bring out the former’s flavor.
Ishin Japanese Dining Restaurant @ Old Klang Road, KL
Apr 13th
Ishin is a Japanese restaurant that buzzed the blogosphere recently. It doesn’t take anything more than a simple Google search to know how many invited reviews have been posted on it. Usually I am very cautious towards restaurants with this kind of reputation.
So when Ishin was suggested as a venue to celebrate a friend’s (a Japanese food lover) birthday, it was only natural that I had reservations. Anyway, let me just say, despite my skeptisism the meal turned out to be a good one that all of us enjoyed.
Previously a bungalow turned doby, Ishin is now a classy restaurant after clever and tasteful renovations. iPad is used as the restaurant menu but when it comes to ordering food, still pen and paper are used. Such is the irony.
But the hi-def dishes shown in the iPad are so beautiful and tempting that they make you feel like trying each and every one of them. And I actually flipped through the entire menu just to admire the food photography. I guess all the money and efforts investmented into the menu are really worthwhile.
I am also glad that the actual food does look like those shown in the menu. The Salmon Sashimi @ RM25 is sliced into thick pieces, just the way it should be. Presentation is top notch as well.
