TGI Friday’s, The Curve

... bottomless iced lemon tea.

... a rather costly Parmesan-Crusted Chicken Quesadillas as appetizer.

... close up on Parmesan-Crusted Chicken Quesadillas.

... grilled beef ribs.

... it falls off from the bone easily. Nicely done.

... close up on the beef ribs meat.

... the Brownie Obsession was something new. Decided to give it a scoop.

Rating: 6.5/10

PG was enjoying the view of The Curve Boulevard yesterday when we were at Italiannies. He wanted to experience the same thing again today, hence we went next door of Italiannies, the brother company, TGI Friday’s. PG ordered the ribs while I picked the appetizer.

The appetizer was quite good, though the price was not cheap. While the ribs was interesting, but it was a bit charred/dried. Anyway, I’ve never had beef ribs for eons, I guess once a while makes no harm to my strict diet. The dessert was very sweet though. I thought I could substitute Chili’s molten chocolate cake with this brownies, but I guess I was wrong. Both of use could barely finish it.

Lok Khuan, Hong Kong

... found this shop on the net before I came for dinner.

... 3 items, cost me HKD51.

... Coke with lemon slices, as recommended by ALGJ.

... I've got no idea why I went for the peanut butter toast instead of the polo bun.

... HK is famous for its 干炒牛河 (stir fried flat noodle). See if it's as good as the one I usually have.

... this soup was complimentary.

... the soup was excellent despite being free. The best item during my meal. Ditch the rest!

Rating: 6/10

I found this shop online while pondering what to have for dinner. It was just nearby where I stay hence I decided to just walk over. It was about 500 metres away from my hostel. Unfortunately, the menu was in Chinese, and only Chinese. I was having hard time identifying the items. Fortunately, my shallow knowledge still manages to identify the fried flat noodle. Fried flat noodle was like a superstar in HK dramas and movies, because it’s a common food for the locals here. Hence I always have the impression that it must be very nice, definitely nicer than my country’s local version of fried flat noodle.

When it was served, the aroma was really good. Despite the lacked of taste (healthier HK lifestyle perhaps?), it was still considered good. Though I preferred the one from DoReMi more, which is far more sweeter and saltier. The aroma was comparable too. The toast was nothing to shout about. As for the Coke with lemon, which was highly recommended by ALGJ, it was seriously no difference from those I get in Malaysia. Big boohoo to ALGJ for bluffing.

Despite the mediocre food, fortunate enough the soup was superb. It’s the best stuff served to me on this very evening. The best part was, it’s FREE! The taste was just right, mildly sweetened too. Seeing that most food seems healthier in HK, I believe the flavours from the soup was genuinely boiled from the meat, instead of the magic of Ajinomoto.

4 thumbs up for the soup. If only I have the 5th thumb.

Burger King, Hong Kong

... BBQ Bacon Burger which wasn't available in Malaysia. Unfortunately, the bacon was beef, not pork. Which made this place a halal fast-food restaurant.

... the inside of the burger, which has overflown BBQ sauce. Only 3 thin strips of bacon given.

Rating: 6.5/10

After our trip to Lantau Island, we went on straight to hill top via tram. There we visited Madame Tussauds’ wax museum. After that, we went to BK for dinner. Seeing that it’s in HK, we were so sure that the menu would be different from ours. The only thing was, we were all hoping there was at least 1 pork item on the menu. Unfortunately, it turns out to be pork free.

Anyway, I had the BBQ Bacon Burger, to deceived myself that I was actually having pork bacon. The BBQ sauce were too much, while the bacon were only few strips. I could barely taste the bacon in it. The meat patty tasted pretty much the same as usual BK’s burger. I order just an ala carte burger and it wasn’t cheap.

Yoshinoya, Hong Kong

... beef rice.

Rating: 5.5/10

DC said the Yoshinoya’s beef noodle was excellent here. Unfortunately, we ended up with only beef rice because it was already late and rice was all that’s left for us to eat. Anyway, it wasn’t all that bad. At least the bowl of rice was steaming hot. The beef was nicely cooked with little hint of beef smell and they are definitely not sinewy. Although the looks of it seem unappetizing.

I ended up with a very full stomach and it was already late. But we have plan of going for drinks. So I guess better go full stomached rather than empty and get drunk easily. Hope the alcohol wouldn’t affect much on my preservations of strict diet (though I’ve forgotten that I should practise this already, long ago.)

Chinese Muslim, USJ9

... while waiting for food to be served. These classic China you won't see at the food court outlets.

... Qing Hai style noodle with chicken.

... stir fried mutton, which was quite spicy.

... Xin Jiang style noodle, which seemed more appetizing than the one I had last time @ Carrefour.

Rating: 5.5/10

Finally, today I managed to try the more “genuine” Xin Jiang style noodle. As opposed to the one I had in Carrefour, which turns out to be overly soupy. The gravy in this Xin Jiang style noodle was more toward sourish, nothing like padprik at all. I like this one better as the noodle was better too, not oily feel as I had from Carrefour outlet.

The stir fried mutton was quite disappointing. Aside from not tasting like mutton, it was damn sinewy as well. After a few chew, it tasted like there was bloody stink in it. I don’t like it.

As for the Qing Hai style noodle, the gravy used was different, though the colour was quite similar.

Location: N3 02.811 E101 35.227

Siu Chao @ DoReMi, Ara Damansara

Went to DoReMi for dinner with AC. This time he finally has the chance to try the fried flat noodle at the siu chao stall.

... honey sweet potato and normal sweet potato.

... both has yellowish inside with the honey one more yellowish.

Rating: 6/10

Coincidently, the fried chestnut and sweet potato little lorry was stopping right in front of DoReMi. I decided to try the sweet potatoes as I usually don’t eat these snacks. Since there’s an extra mouth to help eat them, I went ahead and bought a normal sweet potato and a honey sweet potato.

AC seems to like them as the sweet potato wasn’t dry, as he mentioned. As for me, I haven’t had them for ages. Pretty nice as the skin wasn’t too difficult to peel. Though most of the meat was sticking to the skin. The honey one was easier to peel. But it was no as moisture as the normal one. Though this was a little more sweet than the normal sweet potato. At the same time, I find it too sweet. So I’d rather go with the sweet potato next time.

... fried flat noodle with beef.

Rating: 7.5/10

The first time I had this, it was amazing. The steam was billowing up to my face and it has very good aroma. The fried flat noodle wasn’t too dry as well. Despite being dry fried, it was very moisture and rather oily. But it was nice. Nicer than the too dry fried flat noodle from Taman Paramount. Together with the jalapeno, it reminds me of the fried flat noodle from my hometown, which I missed very much.

This is probably the best fried flat noodle in town. Will keep my options opened for something better if I ever encounter any, while AC said, “just enjoy the best that you’ve found and don’t bother about hunting…”

Chinese Muslim @ Cili Padi Food Court, Carrefour Subang Jaya

The first time I tried this food was at the shop itself in USJ9. It was (highly) recommended by EL and AT. Instead of having beef noodle, I had the mutton soup noodle instead. EL recommend me to try the Xin Jiang’s style noodle, but it was cost RM10. I was reluctant at first. Later I found out that there were outlets in many other places, one of them being in Carrefour Subang Jaya.

Hence I recommended this to Kuma tonight, after our little shopping spree in Carrefour.

... Xin Jiang's style beef noodle. Soaked in gravy.

... Kuma's beef noodle soup.

Rating: 4.5/10

The gravy has a layer of oil on it, which sorta killed my appetite. I was reluctant on the taste of the gravy at first. Somehow, I find that it tasted like paprik’s gravy, except for the colour of it. The noodle was handmade, it has no hint of alkaline in it. Though I preferred the noodle from the shop, which was not as soft as the one here. The beef cutlets were very sinewy. I expected them to be much better. Along the way of eating, Kuma was complaining that her soup was very oily.

Perhaps I’ll give Xin Jiang’s style noodle another try at the shop. It might have been done much better.

PS: The whole food court was smelling rather foul. It was 1 of the reasons my appetite was killed.

Kobe Gyu Taku Yakiniku & Steak, SS15

... store front with rather plain fascia.

... metal grill with fire stove below.

... dancing fire under the grill.

... Kuma's hamburg set.

... my salmon set.

... salmon wrapped in aluminium foil.

... aluminium foil expanded and about to explodes.

... cut up the aluminium foil and revealed the salmon baked in cheese.

... watermelon as dessert.

Rating: 5/10

Today we went to a new Japanese BBQ restaurant in SS15. Though it has been there for quite some time but we’ve never had the thoughts of stopping by there due to the difficulty in finding a parking. Unlike most Japanese restaurant in the vicinity, this was BBQ style, somewhat like Korean BBQ meals. It was a place that serves mainly beef, beef to be grilled. Despite the shop’s name having the word “Kobe”, but I don’t think they serve genuine Kobe beef as the price doesn’t seem to indicate so.

Anyway, to make things simple, we ordered the lunch set each cost RM28. My salmon was rather special which needed to be grilled for 5 minutes. The salmon doesn’t have the usual fishy stink from salmon served in other Japanese restaurant. Probably because of the cheese and mushroom to negates the smell. Kuma’s hamburg beef was rather nice and the portion was big too. Perhaps something I’d try on next visit, or maybe I’ll just order the beef for grilling. SL’s chicken was mediocre. After the lunch, we were served with watermelon slices as dessert. I find that the watermelon has some weird taste in it, but I can’t point out what it was like.

Location: N3 04.515 E101 35.287 (est)

Wet Market, Seremban

Rushed to Seremban early this morning for some breakfast in the wet market. According to AT’s eating magazine, there were some nice food stalls there worth trying.

... gotta have a black coffee to boost my day, starting so early in the morning.

... this was 1 of the items introduced in the eating magazine, vermicelli with squids.

Rating: 6.5/10

This vermicelli was quite different from what I usually have. Instead of clear soup, I was served with a brownish soup, which was quite salty in its nature. Then there were some cuttlefish strips and best of all, those sliced porks. The vermicelli itself was not very well prepared. It has the smell of raw vermicelli, which I don’t like. The sliced porks were very nice marinated. I guess I could just eat that all day long. Should have been called the marinated pork vermicelli instead.

... the specialty of the stall was dried beef noodle, instead of the soup one though.

Rating: 0/10

AT went to order a bowl of beef noodle. She mistakenly ordered the soup noodle, instead of the dried one, which was recommended by the magazine. I had a few sips of the soup, which was very plain and watery, unlike any beef noodle’s soup I’ve had. I heard the noodle was home made too. I supposed that was to attracts more people to try it out with the notion that it was healthier? Anyway, I give it a zero because a bowl of beef noodle from Teppanyaki would’ve tasted much better. Perhaps it was her trick of leaving something behind, so we could have something to yearn for on our next visit.

... it contains pork in it and special concoction of gravy.

Rating: 7/10

I was quite tempted by the rojak’s photos in the magazine. AT said it was just a few stalls away from the stall selling vermicelli. Despite feeling a little full already, I went ahead to try it out. How often would I be visiting the wet market so early in the morning, let alone the one in Seremban’s? I was glad I did went ahead and be a glutton. This rojak (pasembur) was unlike any of those that I find in KV. It was served with pork (not the meat) in it and has five-spice powder in it, which made the gravy so special. Though it was quite spicy by comparison. Something worth a second try or takeaway.

... after those, we went around the stalls to go for Tow Kee's Hakka Mee.

Rating: 4/10

I’m not a big fan of Hakka Mee, but since it was highly recommended, we went ahead and gave it a try. Initial impression was, it was very salty. I felt a slight tingling on my tongue. I was guessing it was due to the used of alkaline in the preparation of the noodle or it has way too much salty. Somehow EL and AT can’t feel that, but they loved the soup on the beef noodle though. My comment for this noodle? It was nothing extraordinary as I could get similar stuff in Glenmarie.

That’s about wrap it up for our breakfast in Seremban. A day which I woke up so early and I still can’t believe it myself.

PS: will update the stall numbers when I got them from EL or AT.

Location: N2 43.840 E101 56.200

Ajisen Ramen, Sunway Pyramid

Went to Ajisen Ramen in Sunway Pyramid with the ladies. AT told me that Ajisen is having a promotion on 2nd bowl of ramen for RM1 with T&C applies. The ladies were ok with the idea despite it’s in Sunway Pyramid. Despite the lacked of available parking space, I managed to slot into a makeshift parking space.

... cold green tea.

... my fish fillet ramen.

... ALGJ's spicy beef ramen.

... LGFL's Peking duck ramen.

... KUMA's spicy duck ramen.

Rating: 5/10

Most of my fish fillet went to the ladies. There was nothing to shout about on the ramen. The soup was normal. Still, the tom yam or the volcano ramen has better soup base. I wanted to order the hot plate ramen. Unfortunately, I was told that those aren’t ramen, it’s hot plate. To me, it’s still served with ramen. But the waiter insisted that it’s hot plate. Gosh, who are gonna eat hot plate, literally? So, we were left with soup based ramen.

Then, the RM1 for 2nd bowl of ramen is for the cheaper priced ramen amongst the 2 bowls. Since we were having 2 duck ramen, which cost RM20 and RM21, only the cheaper ones like my fish fillet ramen and spicy beef ramen get the RM1 price tag. I was thinking that I’d want to split the bill, but the guy insisted that we can’t do that, despite we were occupying 2 separate tables. How lame was that? Even Nando’s allowed me to split bill.

Anyway, our bill came up to RM60 inclusive of all the taxes, which kinda surprised me even with the almost 50% off the bill kind of promotion.

Location: N3 04.363 E101 36.431