"I've been converted from a tenggiri hater to lover"
A relative of mine mentioned that another distant relative had opened up a banana leaf restaurant. Well it made sense that since I work in the food line I just had to go give it a try. I went with an open mind trying not to be biased. I even looked up some reviews online to get a good feel of the place before setting off for lunch. Every single review recommended the fried tenggiri (which didn’t matter to me as I don’t even like fried tenggiri).
Moorthy Mathai’s sits right on the busy Tun Sambanthan stretch of Brickfields. As you drive past you’ll notice that it is one of the newer spots along the row of makan joints and fabric stores. It is both clean and air-conditioned, which is lovely in our hot and humid weather.
We immediately place our orders to appease our ravenous rumbling tummies. Along with the usual vegetarian set, my friends each ordered the fried tenggiri (none for me, thanks!), and we got a fried chicken, and two fish cutlets to share.
Now I suppose I should explain my aversion to fried tenggiri. I have never had an enjoyable experience with it; it’s either very fishy tasting, overcooked and stringy, or it has soaked up so much grease that you’re basically chomping on a fishy grease sponge. When the fish arrived at our table however, I decided to give it a nibble just to be able to write about it. I was not prepared to like it or even enjoy it, and I sure as heck was not expecting to be frantically waving down a waiter to place one more order for it. The fried tenggiri here is extremely fresh, the flesh is soft and flaky with a hint of sweetness, and the spice coating is packed with flavour. To ensure that it is freshly-cooked, the tenggiri is prepared in small batches throughout the day. Moorthy's Mathai has completely changed my view of the humble tenggiri.
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by
Honey, on Tue, August 31, 2010
"It's like food Russian roulette..."
Brad Farmerie, the Executive Chef of Double Crown was in a good mood. They were opened in the morning because of the world cup and both US and England just won their matches. That day when we there talking about his last trip to South East Asia he fed us soft, starchy pau's filled with shredded duck, a refreshing watermelon rind pickle and Shishito peppers. These are addictive, just seared on a flame until they blister and pucker up releasing their natural sugars, then salted. This is the ultimate bar snack. "I love them, in every ten you get one that's super hot, it's like food Russian roulette," Brad grins.
Double Crown is one of those places that has a little of that ambience of a time when people had a g&t before tea, wore bush hats and took their rifles to the local watering hole. High ceilings, exposed brick wall, deco collected from all over South East Asia and a menu inspired from former colonies. I suppose the closest term is Anglo-Asian. Ever so often Brad and Chef de Cuisine Christopher Rendell travels down our way, trawling through markets and street-side eateries bringing back copious new ideas and ingredients for their menu.
And what a menu. Incredibly interesting to read and almost tactile in the ideas of flavours it evokes in your mind. Dishes like Miso-glazed bone marrow with orange-olive marmalade, Chinese five spice foie gras, halibut jungle curry and a Singapore style lobster, baked in the shell with chillies. Fusion in the finest way.
So don't expect authentic dishes here folks, instead you can sip a delicate Coconut Laksa from porcelain cups. Not hardly hot enough for me (I ordered a side of chilli paste) but subtle and fragrant. On Sundays he lays out a Nyonya Dinner borrowing liberally from the Strait States.
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"The Sarawak Laksa is worth the journey"
One day, after a long while of not having a bowl of Sarawak Laksa, I travelled with a group of friends to the outer reaches of the city. Alas, the stall was missing! What follows now is a tale of perseverance, adventure, and some pretty darn good laksa.
The restaurant staff gave us a name, the stall moved to a place called Diamond Square in Gombak. “Gombak?!” I internally screech. Nevermind. 'Di mana ada kemahuan, di situ ada jalan'. And I really wanted that bowl of Sarawak laksa. We pile back into the car and head towards Gombak, frantically googling directions on our smartphones. “No, not Gombak! Diamond Square is in Jalan Gombak!” someone announces from the backseat, pointing at their phone. “Just tell me how to get there already,” the driver barks. We go around the proverbial mulberry bush of Jalan Pahang and Jalan Genting Kelang for a good hour. Tempers are running high, stomachs are grumbling, the sun is setting. Finally, we see it. Dapur Sarawak. Collective sighs are heard as we park the car and scramble out in hunger.
A banner with actor Mahmud Ali Basha's face hangs in the restaurant, asking us to “jom berambeh makan”, which translates to “come over and eat”. Owned by said actor, the restaurant is decorated like a typical Malay nasi campur shop, and the smell of laksa wafts out of the window between the kitchen and the dining area. We place our orders. Silence has taken over the table, save for impatient tapping on the table and bouncing of feet. We discovered they also sell mixed rice during the day (I hear there's umai!) and one can also order kuih lapis Sarawak from them.
The bowls arrive. Sarawak laksa – thin laksa noodles in an earthy, almost nutty broth topped with omelette slices. Mee kolok – noodles with sliced beef and chicken, clear broth on the side. And something extra this time for me to take away, nasi aruk dabai – fried rice, but with a bluish tint.
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"A Pasar Ramadhan worth visiting"
This year’s bazaars have been more than disappointing. My usual favourites of Taman Tun and Bangsar have garnered poor reviews. I haven’t yet been to the ones in Section 14 and Section 17 of Petaling Jaya because I’m scared they’ll let me down, messing up yet another cherished childhood memory.
Then we hear whispers, whispers of good bazaar. The good stalls have moved back to Kampung Sungai Penchala! A decent bazaar less than ten minutes away from the office? We leave at 4pm to check it out; we are so excited. Parking is still relatively decent here, but now that the word is out, we might have to walk there in the future.
But what of the offerings? I go through my usual MO and circle the bazaar like a hawk. The first stall already looks promising. Gulai kawah, ikan masin & nenas masak lemak, tempoyak ikan patin. I move along and spot not one, but two putu piring stalls (be still, my heart). A stall towards the end of the lot catches my eye: glass bottles full of sodas carted from Kelantan. “Orange Crush” and “American Ice Cream Soda” are among the choices; the collector in me grabs one of each.
I turn the corner. Several roti john stalls, but none that look sprightly enough. Fried breaded hot dog rolls here, chicken chop there – served with potato salad, no less. A fruit stall, where I grab some langsat for my dad. And right back where we started, a beriyani stall claiming to be from Batu Pahat, Johor (they were actually from Yong Peng).
“Good haul,” I think to myself as I make my way back home. Now I just have to wait 2 hours before I can eat anything. Nap? I think so.
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"I dare you not to overeat..."
That tender fall-off-the-bone lamb. Mounds of golden fragrant rice with spice-massaged chicken buried like succulent treasures. Hummus- creamy ambrosia on warm pita. Eggplant done the most insanely delicious ways, baked tender in a moussaka, grilled with parsley or sultrily smoked then mixed with yogurt into a baba ganoush. Now this, is a buffet worth braving Bukit Bintang traffic for.
Not especially a buffet fan, my three criteria for a worthwhile queue is 1. It's quality not quantity. This means it's about 10-15 starters and about 10 mains. So you can have a little nibble of everything and then come back for your favourites. 2. Do not skimp on the good stuff. If lamb is what I want, then don't run out. Nothing worse than Scrooge portions. 3. The price. At RM49nett, Sahara Tent still has one of the most affordable buffets in town.
Originally, the buffet was housed in-doors in a little cul-de-sac. Now, it's outside which is probably a better idea so the food doesn't get cold and there's more space to move around.
Warm up that aching belly first with a great Moroccan vegetable soup full with bits of skinny pasta and lentils. On the sides you can munch on falafel, some fried fish fillets and sambosa lamb. This is the love child of a samosa and a spring roll- pastry rolled around minced lamb then fried. Gosh it's good.
Dips are my beeline. I reckon Sahara Tent has one of the best hummus in town, thick and creamy. The creatively titled Chef Special is special indeed, eggplant braised in tomatoes until it wilts and infuses its rich, earthy flavour to the sourness of the tomato. It's got the intense flavour of sundried tomatoes coupled with the lushness of eggplants. I had four helpings.
Moving down the line are rice fluffed with spices and tomato gravies with vegetables like stewed stuffed peppers, ladies fingers and cabbage leaves rolled around rice and minced meat. There's also a rather bizarre Arabic spaghetti bolognaise, a little spicier than the Italian counterpart but it totally works.
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"Portions are huge and generous"
This is my Dad’s perennial favourite every time he visits KL. First, the service is impeccable. Never mind that we were served by a mainly Nepali staff, but they are really efficient and helpful. Second, the portions are huge and generous. Even if you order only one dish, you still enjoy the whole array of complimentary free flow banchan dishes. Third, it’s just a 10 minute drive from my pad. Last but not least, it is consistently delicious and we never fail to clean out our plates each and every time.
So let’s get down to the details. This time, I decided to steer away from the usual bulgogi and bibimbap (it’s delicious by the way) and opted for something new. The only familiar dish I ordered was Sundubu Jigae because I had a craving for something hot and spicy. It came piping hot with an egg cracked in the middle, plus soft tofu, meat pieces and clams boiled with the fiery soup. Just the way I like it.
The banchan dishes arrived with speed. I counted 8 dishes in total, my favourite being the kimchi, pickled anchovy, mashed potato and pickled vege with octopus. So good, we topped it up 3 times! We were also served their complimentary soup of the day which was a miso-like soup with beef pieces and Chinese cabbage. It was really good and my mom added some rice to it. Pure genius, it was comfort food at its best. I loved the rice soaking up the flavor of the soup.
Next was 2 items to be grilled on the barbeque (they only open the grill if you order minimum 2 BBQ items) - Ox tongue and beef rib eye. The waiters do the grilling, all we did was watch and patiently wait drool-faced for the grilled goodies to be served. There is also a metal container of garlic slices soaked in oil which is left to cook on the grill. There were condiments like lettuce leaves, sesame oil with salt, gochujang (Korean chilli) paste, garlic and a spring onion-chive salad (pajori) to compliment the meats. Simply add the meat and vege on to the lettuce leaf and wrap it popia-style. I like adding kimchi into the wrap for an extra twist. Yums, the ox tongue has a springy texture… something like ham. The beef is sliced thin so you get it nicely grilled and a fine layer of fat with each slice. Sinful, but really good especially with generous lashings of gochujang chilli paste and cooked garlic. Sometimes, I like just munching on the meat, with some chilli paste dipping. My mom being the most health-conscious amongst us gluttons, requests for lettuce leaf and spring onion-chive salad refills. The Nepali waiters are obliging and comply with warm smiles.
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"I love, love, love their ikan kering! "
If you like Kelantanese and Terengganu food, this is a place that you should visit. Prices are upmarket but reasonable and located quite centrally in Solaris Dutamas. From your first step in, you will be greeted with traditional Malay decor done in a modern twist with wooden wall panels, hundred year old antique furniture and family pictures from the past thrown in to flavour the restaurant a bit more.
You'd expect a place like this to stay true to authentic east coast fare. Familiar dishes such as nasi kerabu, nasi dagang, nasi tumpang and laksam should be "on page one". Yes, it's all there but imagine our surprise when we stumbled on dagang sushi which is nasi dagang served in bite sized sushi style and served with tongkol fish curry. Now how about satay croissant? wau burger? and wau penyu club sandwich? WTF? These guys are creative.
Lets just talk about fundamentals for now. I'd come back for their Nasi Kerabu and Nasi Dagang. A famous north/east coast dish, Wau Penyu's Nasi Kerabu version (RM15.90) comes with grilled ayam percik, a slice of daging salai, ulams, kerabu rice (salad), local crackers, Malay curry and to top it all off budu and sambal in a small serving plate. A complete meal in one dish. I love, love, love their ikan kering (dried fish) which is the spiral kind. Not a lot of places serve this particular version which I suspect is made from stingray and has crunchy but slightly chewy texture. A great fit with the rice which is not blue by the way. Also, the sweet coconut gravied grilled percik chicken is delicious with some curry and rice.
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"Light and not overly sweet"
It’s not everyday that I can go for a decadent brunch, especially one with a free pour of lovely bubbly champagne. I had heard a lot of good things about the delicious offerings at Prego and was eager to sample them. I found though that it’s impossible to choose at a buffet like this where every dish beckons. The stations are buzzing with activity and the chefs are busily preparing fresh dishes behind the counters.
I started off with the fresh oysters flown in from Ireland. These creamy smooth textured oysters slide down nicely with a squeeze of lemon and a splash of Tabasco. Sluuurp! I then moved on to the salmon station, which has salmon prepared in 4 different ways, including a whole smoked one. The tastiest of the lot would have to be the thin sliced salmon with citrus juices and whole capers, a great mix of oily fish with a zesty finish.
What I quite enjoy about the brunch experience here is that waiters come around with fresh platters of pasta, specialty dishes, and meats to serve. This means you can just relax and not worry about getting up each time you’d like to sample something new. Let me just say that the two dishes of the day were the Wagyu beef cheek and the figs with Gorgonzola. The beef cheek is orgasmically succulent falling apart without so much as a chew. The thick braising liquid is reduced to a flavour packed glaze. Oh and the figs! I believe that figs and Gorgonzola are a match made in heaven. The subtle sweetness of the fruit offsets the pungent creamy cheese resulting in a delicious bite.
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"Loaded with lap cheong, seafood, and lard!"
Dining at The Wok is like eating at your nyonya aunty’s place. Marble-topped tables, antiques everywhere, the smell of belacan permeating the air. Everyone I know who has eaten here left the restaurant raving. I know it is a terrible onus to place on a restaurant I have never been to. However one cannot help but have that feeling when you step into The Wok: that you have been given the promise of a great meal. Ordering just a few dishes would be blasphemy.
The dishes start arriving. Pretty soon there is barely any space for our plates of rice. I peer around the table and reach for the most familiar dish first, the gulai tumis stingray. Full of stingray chunks and ladyfingers, the gravy is thick and earthy in its spiciness. It reminds me of my own grandmother’s asam pedas – a high compliment in my books. If I were at home, I would be dunking toast into the gravy so as to not waste the precious liquid. Kangkung belacan is next. As grago season is here, little pieces of krill was sprinkled on top the stir-fried kangkung. This delights my dinner party to no end as we pretend we are whales feasting on krill.
Next up: the cincaluk omelette. It is a revolutionary concept to me, and upon tasting it, I immediately think “why haven’t I done this before?” The saltiness of the cincaluk matches the sharp onions and creaminess of the eggs perfectly; by far the most balanced dish on the table. The garlic pork is not as garlicky as I would like (and a touch too oily) but the crunchiness of the lard makes up for it. The lor bak is crunchy too, and the juicy pork filling goes well with the black sweet sauce.
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"Fresh every single time"
After recently learning how to cook capati and tortilla breads at the FC kitchen, I’ll never understand why a place would choose to precook and then reheat their capatis resulting in a dry and stale flatbread. It’s an extremely simple mix of atta flour, water, and salt, a small amount of kneading, a short resting period and you can roll out the capatis and cook them within minutes.
This is why I enjoy the capati at K.R. Mani; they cook it fresh every single time. The dough is already mixed and upon ordering they roll it out and toss it on the pan till it browns and crisps up on both sides. This small effort results in warm soft pliable bread that soaks up delicious curries without being too dry or chalky. This is a “healthy” meal that I could indulge in all day, especially with the tasty fish curry to dip the bread in.
The capati is not the only thing worth making a trip here for though. If you prefer rice as your carb of choice pair it with the fried bitter gourd or chicken. It’s all done fresh before a rush comes in. The bitter gourd crisps are crunchy and full of flavour, not an oily chewy piece in sight. I also quite enjoyed their fried chicken that isn’t greasy or heavily battered. It makes for a light but flavourful chicken that is crisp on the outside and juicy on the inside. I’m sure the fish is done well here too, but I didn’t get a chance to try it out this time around.
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