"They have now started paying attention to their flavours..."
One thing great about FriedChillies is that we are lucky enough to be able to afford expense budgets for dining out. That means that we could write without feeling obliged to anyone because we pay our bills. I wouldn't say that it's huge, but it's more than enough to go back to our old favourites, revisit past reviews or try back restaurants that did not make it in our review list. Shook was one of the restaurants that didn't make it in last time but whaddaya know? Last time we dined there.. looks like they have pulled a couple of notches up.
Firstly, the setting at Starhill is absolutely fantastic. You have great high ceiling views and a great relaxing cosy atmosphere. According to their website, the open transparent concept and design was from Super Potato in Japan, apparently world famous. First time round, we didn't try a lot of stuff since we were happy to just soak in the place. Shook! claims that they "flirt with seasonal trends and boasts an adventurous fusion of east and west with Japanese, Chinese Wok, Italian and Western Grill show kitchens", so we decided to flirt with their Lamb Shank, California Rolls and Tempura.
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"Fed on Grain and Love. Yeehaw!"
I moved back here from the States about two years ago and from the moment my plane touched down I began the search for the perfect burger in KL. I craved a large juicy burger so tasty on it’s own that a sauce accompanying it would have been blasphemy. A fresh ground patty filled with meaty goodness grilled to medium-well perfection; the ultimate burger. Unfortunately this search was not an easy one. I endured many occasions of rubbery, dry, tasteless patties until one day I happened across Fogal Meat Market at Plaza Damas.
Fogal is an acronym for Fed on Grain and Love and this can accurately describe the meat available here. The cattle are shipped in from Australia live, fed on grains for a few months and are then sent off to a slaughterhouse. This way they are able to monitor the quality and freshness of the meat.
Owner, Cathy Appleby’s initial motive for opening up Fogal was the fact that she was having trouble finding western cuts of meat. Most supermarkets here offer pre-cut and packaged meat which makes it hard to find the specific cuts needed for certain dishes. At Fogal you can request for any type of cut; from a thick tenderloin steak for a barbecue to a butterflied leg of lamb for a roast. The butcher knows his meat and not only can he give you the cut you want, he can also tell you the best method for preparation. Need meat for stewing, sautéing, roasting, stir frying, broiling? You’ll find just what you are looking for. In addition to the butcher counter, Fogal also has a small restaurant area where you can enjoy a simple meal grilled to perfection.
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"Cuppacakes! They're small and twee and fills you with glee"
Sneer all you want at roadside burger stands. Every time I see one, my heart warms to see the usually young proprietors at good honest work instead of illegal racing, mugging and bumming out at shopping malls or Starbucks. Similarly uplifting are stories about young 'uns fresh out of college who are bucking trends in novel, out-of-the-box ways.
That was the one thing about +wondermilk that first struck me. The staff was barely-weaned babes who look like they just tossed off their graduation robes and mortars - and yet are exhibiting signs of eccentric, creative and flighty genius. Nothing about the exterior gives any hint of what lays inside.
Fairy-tale whimsy abounds in what looks like a refurbished living room. Bare brickwork. Tables with water-pipe legs. In a corner stands a glass-panelled cabinet with a selection that can be classified as boho grunge. No ornate faux-baroque inspirations ala Casa Impian. These kids are channelling Gauguin and Gaudi into a high-end final year art and design project along the edges of Damansara Uptown.
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"Bizzarely Porky's ice cream tastes like alcoholic cendol"
It’s time for us to pay homage to that cunning place of ribs, grilled goods and arguably the best jerk chicken in town. We are regulars as most of the clientele here and have never been disappointed by a meal here yet.
Checkers is a place where merry friends gather to gorge on all things grilled usually of the porcine persuasion. However we can never really get past Porky's Best so all the other piggy stuff will have to be another review. The menu changes on the whim of the cook or when interesting ingredients are available. Hence on any day you might have a mixed bag on the blackboard like Harry Trotter, Lord of the Ribs (which are baby back) and Roasted Pork Knuckles.
However, Checkers also do pastas, the infamous jerk chicken and lip smacking steak with a side of stinking rose. Stinking rose being the romantic name for garlic roasted in olive oil until the cloves faint off the stalk and dissolves in your mouth. Start off with the homemade limeade. This is served in jam jars and coffee jars and it’s very, very good to cut through all that luscious, cholesterol dripping fat.
Grab a plate of grilled squid while you are waiting. It’s good here, soft and thrown on the grill in between meats. If it’s not hot enough for you, they have a rather suspicious fiery red homemade chilli sauce called ‘After Death Sauce’. Yes, its hot enough to singe your nose hairs. However, in my humble opinion there’s no need for extra condiments as the marinades and sauces here are good to slurp on its own. Porky’s Best is still the ultimate house favourite. It’s two chunks of meaty ribs, rolled in the house marinade and grilled until blackened. It comes heaped on your plate with a side of mash and corn.
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"The lamb rack came, succulent with bits of fat still sizzling on it"
The Yogi Tree. The first thing that might pop up in your mind would be a Yogi meditating up in a tree. However, this perhaps is what The Yogi Tree aims to achieve, a serene blend of health food and at the same time pulling away from most local health food cliches. Hand in hand with their theme
'naturally good food' is the fact that most of the things on the menu are organic. From their vegetables to eggs, and even their meats are organic.
The atmosphere in The Yogi Tree is very relaxing as they have bright white based walls and tall windows that just puts you in a mood for food. The cosy chairs also adds to the chilled out ambience. What did strike our fancy was their 'Wall of Phrases' right at the back corner, next to the window. It was full of many inspiring health influenced words. The menu too have simple yet effective words, most of them spelling out the beautiful culinary delights on offer. Starting from the lighter dishes and then gradually moving up to the heavier stuff, we ordered accordingly from their
scribbly menu! Yes, they do have arrows and scribbles all over the menu highlighting certain ingredients or benefits of each item.
The Healing Teas seem to be a hit here, especially their American Ginseng, Red Dates, Longan and Wolfberry tea. Although we ordered it out of curiosity, the real reason for ordering this drink is that it can reduce stress, lowers cholesterol and helps curb illnesses. Most of their drinks have healing properties. For those who prefer juices their Ginger Spice comprising of ginger, honey, yogurt, lemon juice and mint is very refreshing. You can also choose any variety or pick on the concoctions that meet your physical or epicurean needs.
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"First bite: crunchy, second bite: melty and third bite: glazzy"
J.Co; 3 simple letters that have the potential to change your views on donuts entirely. Here the donuts are made fresh as can be seen through the glass walled kitchen, as many donut shops now boast their freshly baked production line. The chill that you feel once you step into the Pavillion is enveloping, but as you walk around the classy domain there’s this sudden radiating warmth that entices you to follow it. Before reaching its source, you can’t help but feel a flutter of happiness as a deliciously warm smell catches your attention.
Then the queue crashes you back into reality. Although the length of the queue at first seems ridiculously unreal, once you realise what they are there for everything makes sense. J.Co; 3 simple words that the have potential to change your views on donuts entirely. Here the donuts are made fresh as can be seen through the glass walled kitchen, as many donut shops now boast their freshly baked production line. But there is just that extra something that makes J.Co pop out from the rest, and that extra something is apparent to most of those who line up for J.Co. No exaggerations needed, the first time you have a J.Co, just think about how they describe it in those TV ads, it really will send tingles through every pore as it slides down your throttle.
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"The rib eye is a mighty mouthful of fat, tender meat"
You have to let it linger... The trademark of a great meal is how it lingers in your head long after dinner napkins are scrunched and tables are cleared. Days after the memorable lunch at Prime, I am still thinking about those steaks, charred and caramelised on the outside, tender and red on the inside like a maiden’s kiss. You can cut the meat with a fork. There is something primal when faced with a good slab of beef whether hugged by glistening fat or riddled with veins like Grecian marble or; completely alone and proud on the plate for filet mignon lovers.
In recent years more and more people have become aware of steaks. Not just the kind steakhouses dollop on your plate swimming in gravy but the kind where quality of the meat transcends any need for liquid reinforcements. I confess I like my steak bloody. Rare on the inside, sunburnt on the outside although I hardly dare to order it that way in fear of suspect meat. I also like my steak 'as it is' with no gravies just the inside quietly sizzling in its own juices. Perhaps with a side of mash and greens. I like the intimate taste of meat squeaking between my teeth without gravy getting in between us. Which brings me to the point that in Malaysia, there are two camps of steak eaters. Those who like their meat like me (au natural), and those who like it with gravy. This is not a bad thing. Our food culture thrives on gravy to add spices and depth to our rice and noodles. But folks if you came to Prime, try having it the cowboy way because the cuts and quality of beef here is fantastic...
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"Nice but the ribs are not superior to the ones from other franchises"
The first time we heard that Tony Roma's(TR) is coming to town was through our kopitiam food forum. Some kind soul out there posted this good news for all to savour. You know, news like this, you can't keep to yourselves. You just can't. Sooner or later... you will burst out and tell someone.
The Foodster HQ was engulfed with joy. Some even reported that they saw a ring of rainbow somewhere in the office. Happy hallucinations. And then it came.... the news that no fan of TR would want to hear. No baby back ribs (the white meat kind ... no.. not fish.. the other white meat). There was confusion. A lot of confusion. It's like someone telling you that you've won a brand new Ferrari (we are not equating TR for a Ferarri here. Just to prove a point) but they are giving you a specially tuned engine that can only go up to 60 km per hour. But the engine is still made by Ferrari though. Huh? How does that work? Is that even possible?
Six months after TR's opening, we opened our minds a little and plugged a team of foodsters' that consists of kaki's who have been to their overseas joints such as Bangkok, Singapore and Los Angeles (Lets call them TEAM EXPERT) and kaki's who has not been to TR but are well versed with the Malaysian steak and ribs scene (Lets call them TEAM VIRGIN). We shoved them to TR's at Cineleasure to 'incognito' the onion loaf, beef ribs and the Tony Roma Burger. The mission was to find out whether can the beef ribs live up to the high expectations of baby back lovers and whether it was even worth going to a TR joint? No point in waiting further, here's the lowdown. To be fair, we'll show comments from both TEAM EXPERT and TEAM VIRGIN.
TR's onion loaf are huge spanish onion rings, breaded, fried and served with TR's BBQ sauce. You can get them in half (RM12.90) and full loaf portions. Errr... we didn't even finish the half a loaf! Sigh! And this comes from both teams. TEAM EXPERT reported that the onion loaf was a lot crunchier in the Singapore TR and the batter was finer which gives it a delicious crunch. The Cineleasure version has a courser batter. TEAM VIRGIN reported their loaf was a bit oily but the main thing is that they just can't figure out why this is one of their signature dishes. It was pretty standard. Then again, if you can't make up your mind, you can always try the Tony Roma's sampler which are taste portions of buffalo wings, potato skins and onion rings.
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"Tea and scones and the ambiance to match"
T-Cafe was started by a group of friends way back in 2002. This is a cool place to stop by for a hot cuppa and warm scones. When we went there, we found out that they have other delicious food on the menu too. Fun Fun! Read on..
High up among the highlands, T-Cafe is located at Tanah Rata, Cameron Highlands (Just above Marry Browns). You'll be pleased to know that T-Cafe also caters for vegetarians, with vegetarian lasagna, claypot rice and a special curry topping the list of recommended vegetarian dishes to try. Fresh from their very own kitchen comes apple pies, scones, cheesecakes and pancakes for dessert. But there's more.... T-Cafe has a great atmosphere, good for unwinding all your tangled thoughts.
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"Who doesn't like hot chocolate on a rainy night?"
The proprietor's love for Italian cooking strangely enough comes from Australia (from what I've been told). Apparently this is not odd. It's similar to another pasta house recently moved to Sri Hartamas. Anyway, people were recommending this place for it's hot chocolate and pasta (in that order) so that's what I tried.
I must say that they have a wonderful ambience at this place especially of you dine in at night. The decor is simplistic but when surrounded by the quiet neighbourhood, ideal for a small get together and a private chit chat.
As the name suggested, the Hot Chocolate was wonderful. They have several varieties here. The Ultimate Hot Chocolate is a steal at RM6.90! With a generous helping of imported dark chocolate, this one comes half full in a big cup. The insides of the cup is coated with chocolate. In addition, chocolate powder is sprinkled on top of the drink too. If you prefer your 'choc' cold, try their cold banana hot chocolate. Packs quite a whallop...
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