vkeong loves good food, travel and photography!
Selangor
Kashmir Cafes – Nice Banana Leaf Rice @ SS3, PJ
May 16th
Kashmir Cafes is a neighborhood restaurant in SS3 that is making a comeback after they closed down many years ago. The current location of Kashmir Cafes is only a few shops away from their previous one, hence the apt slogan of “old taste, new place”. But first, I just want to cut to the chase by saying Kashmir Cafes serves really good banana leaf rice, even better than the big boys in PJ like Raju, Sri Paandi and Kanna Curry House.
The main reason I feel the banana leaf rice (RM5.50 for vegetarian set) at Kashmir Cafes is better because the side dishes are not mass produced like others, which aims to cater to the large customer base. So what you get here is more quality tasting food.
To be honest, I never really fancied the assortment of vegetables so I usually have to order extras like curries or fried stuff to complete the meal. But so far, Kashmir Cafes is the only exception for me. Their vegetarian sides not only look decent, but are also tasty enough (this coming from a meat lover) that I could actually finish a banana leaf rice without any meat.
Restoran LYJ (李雄记酒家) @ Kampung Baru, Sungai Buloh
May 14th
With its fair share of celebrities customers local and oversea alike, Restoran LYJ can be considered as the most successful restaurant in Sungai Buloh. The head chef of LYJ has numerous culinary awards under his belt and he is proud to showcase them by plastering them all over the restaurant.
Pun Choy, a traditional village dish originating from Hong Kong can be found here too. But this post is not about the somewhat overrated and expensive Pun Choy. Instead, lets take a look at the other dishes they have that are more appealing especially in terms of price.
Standing Roast Chicken (Dong Duk Gai) @ RM38. This chicken is meant for you to rip it into pieces using your hands like a barbarian then eat it without using any utensils. Good thing is they provide plastic gloves so your hands would still be clean and oil free later.
But for those who still insist on being polite and eat it using chopsticks or fork and spoon, you are really missing a lot of fun and satisfaction here. As for the chicken, don’t expect too much because it is nothing spectacular and tastes quite dry actually. The main selling point is just because it comes standing, that’s all.
Banana Leaf Rice @ Restoran Sri Paandi (PJ), Section 11
Apr 24th
There are quite many Banana Leaf restaurants in PJ and the famous are Sri Paandi, Raju and Kanna Curry House. Recently, Sri Paandi has become my favorite one for being reasonably priced unlike the other two, which could get quite cut throat just for a simple meal. Even though Raju is the most expensive of all I like still like their airy environment and efficient table service. Sri Paandi on the other hand, is lacking on these two.
Here, it cost RM4.50 for a traditional banana leaf rice set (vegetarian) with free refills of rice, vegetable curries, papadum and chutney. This should be the chepest banana leaf rice in the vicinty. Others would cost at least RM5 to RM5.50 for the same and free sweets are also given if you ask for it.
Toast & Roast Hakka Mee & Char Siew @ SS2
Apr 17th
I know Toast & Roast has been blogged to death. But surprisingly there are still quite a number of people (even PJ-ians) who are not aware of this small eatery located in the quiet neighborhood behind Tropicana City Mall. It is easy to drive past this row of shops and pass them as normal houses because they are quite hidden from view. And those whom I have brought here have been hooked on the Hakka Mee and Char Siew since.
The good thing about Toast & Roast is the affordable price. They are basically charging the same price as any hawkers out there and the environment is better too being cleaner and not stuffy. A small bowl of Hakka Mee here is RM4.50 may it be topped with minced meat or char siew. Although they are generous with the toppings (minced meat/char siew/lard) the noodles’ portion is still quite small. So I usually order the large one at RM5.50 as shown here. For the extra portion of noodles given, the RM1 is worth spending.
