B & N, Subang Jaya

... store front of the cafe.

... Kuma's mango juice.

... I ordered a cappuccino.

... sugar water cup which looks like a golf ball.

... ALGJ ordered a chicken chop.

... a basket of fried chicken wings.

... I ordered a Seafood Aglio Olio Spaghetti.

... Kuma's Carbonara Spaghetti.

Rating: 6.5/10

I was told that the spaghetti here was nice, especially aglio olio. This time I finally remember to come here to give it a try. Brought a long Kuma, ALGJ and TSL. The pasta variety was quite different from other place. Firstly, choose your type of flavour, such as bolognaise, carbonara, aglio olio and etc. Then choose the fillings, such as vegetarian, beef, seafood, salmon and etc.

I wasn’t quite interested on the salmon, cause it’s the most expensive. Kuma ordered the beef carbonara hence I picked the seafood aglio olio. It tasted like most aglio olio, with dried chilis in it. Though the seafood was quite fresh. It cost around RM23 per plate, which was quite reasonable. Though I still prefer the aglio olio taste of Italiannies’. Kuma had a little complain though, as she preferred the carbonara spaghetti from Asia Cafe instead.

ALGJ ordered chicken chop, though that was like the n-th plate of chicken chop she had for the week. The taste was not bad, a lot better than most chicken chops in town. Our basket of chicken wings was mediocre though. And my cappuccino came with a cup of sugar which looks like a golf ball.

Pizza Uno, Taipan Triangle

... raspberry & cranberry sparkling fruit juice.

... aglio olio spaghetti with grilled prawns.

... organic chicken which cost RM78 and it wasn't even a turkey!

... the stuffing made with potato, shredded, which tasted like rice.

... pizza with hams and smoked chicken slices.

Rating: 6/10

EL invited me over for the final dinner in 2009. I suggested Bumbu Bali at first then he said he would rather have Uno Pizza instead. Hence we met in Uno Pizza for dinner immediately. The menu was streamlined because the ala carte menu was not available for festive seasons.

The sparkling juice I had cost RM9. I saw there was passion fruit juice, which is not sparkling. Unfortunately, they don’t have the sparkling one like Esprit. The aglio olio spaghetti was acceptable with mild spiciness. But it was a tad too oily to my liking. The grilled prawns was nice though, though the prawn could’ve been fresher. There were 3 huge prawns just right for the 3 of us. It cost RM30 and I guess each prawn cost close to RM10 each? lol

The organic chicken was overrated. Though it was nice, least of fat but it cost RM78, which is rather too much. It comes with a sauce. The sauce was so nice that it made the chicken nice too. If not for the sauce, I guess the chicken would just be rather normal. The stuffing were rather special though as it tasted like rice.

Finally we had a pizza as EL was saying the more he ate, the hungrier he got. We ordered the Tropicana pizza which has pineapples cutlets which were rather sweet, ham and smoked chicken. The pizza was ok, but not that nice though.

Location: N3 03.009 E101 35.046 (est)

Pasta Zanmai, Sunway Pyramid New Wing

... utensils.

... green tea, but where's the third cup?

... soft shell crab temaki, wrapped in tortilla instead of seaweed.

... squids on a stick.

... Ebi to Ika no Spicy Pasta, yes, read it in English and you'll understand. From Ebi to Ika, there's no spicy in the pasta.

Rating: 5.5/10

The soft shell crab temaki got my jaw sored. Probably due to the tortilla being used instead of the usual crispy seaweed. The temakis were served in 3 different types of sauces. I could only make out 2 of them, which were curry sauce and mayonnaise. I’ve got no idea what the third sourish and little spicy sauce was. The grilled squids on a stick was nice. Despite it it was cold, the taste was good, probably glazed with salt water. Though I expected it to have better fragrance like most grilled squids. Finally, my not spicy was only mediocre. Not that I have a good impression on this place on my previous visit.

The service for the day was terrible. We had to wait for more than 30 minutes for our main course to be served. Not that the preparations for pasta would take that long. And despite all the time taken, our ingredients weren’t exactly better than usual. The squid rings on my pasta was rather hard, and the taste of the whole thing wasn’t that good either.

New York New York Deli, 1 Utama New Wing

... I guess they are ketchup and chili sauce.

... complimentary plain water.

... the boxed fruit juice there cost too much, hence I settled for New York Peach Cool. Which was even cheaper and more aesthetic looking.

... PG's drink, the name is called Bloody Eyeballs. Daring you to order that.

... pepperoni pizza.

... aglio olio spaghetti with lamb shank.

Rating: 5/10

I wouldn’t go into detail on the food. The drink was very similar to calpis soda I’ve had last time in Senjyu, with soda on top and syrup at the bottom. Stir, not shaken. Do it just like James Bond’s style. The pepperoni was quite nice, tasted like roasted beef bacon. I guess it’s probably the best tasting pepperoni pizza I’ve tasted. Somehow, the meat was a tad too salty though. Then the aglio olio spaghetti, which tasted very salty too. The lamb shank was tender, though it was pretty tasteless too. I could class it as 1 of the no-so-tasty lamb shanks I’ve tasted.

I guess for the price I’m paying, I can’t complain much. Seeing that I was paying the same figure back when I had it in Singapore, and I haven’t sum in the currency conversion yet.

Secret Recipe, Glenmarie

... a place I rarely frequent for meals due to its overrated food.

... the ala carte diluted iced lemon tea cost RM5 each.

... it was so many years ago since I last had the tom yum spaghetti.

... wanted the Vienna Brownie but they ran out of stock. So ended up with Chocolate Walnut Brownie instead.

Rating: 2.5/10

Today’s food sucked. The Tom Yum Spaghetti wasn’t much like what I used to had, the first time. The spaghetti was overly soaked and the surface was coarse, unlike the usual smooth feeling spaghetti. Then the tom yum paste was not as tasty as it should it. I felt like vomitting trying to finish it. Then the iced lemon tea was very diluted. Though it only cost RM1.50 when I had it as a set. The set cost RM15. The Tom Yum Spaghetti ala carte was RM13.50 already.

I had a serving of the Chocolate Walnut Brownie too because they ran out of the Vienna Brownie. The top of the brownie seemed scraped off. Were they trying to recycle excessive chocolate? Anyway, it doesn’t really taste that good either. Fortunately, the brownie doesn’t cost too much, around RM4.50 each. Cheaper than the drink itself.

Location: N3 05.692 E101 35.231

Full House Lifestyle & Cafe, NZX

I told PCL about the new menu in Full House last week and she wanted to come. Unfortunately, I can’t make it for another round of Full House. This week, she was available for lunch, so we make a stop at Full House.

... HK yinyong which wasn't hot enough.

... I ordered a fish & wedges.

... PCL's aglio olio spaghetti.

Rating: 3.5/10

The fish & wedges I had was quite bad. Though my strict diet insisted that I should only have a small piece the most. The rest of them went into PCL’s plate. The fish, the common Dory fish, it stinks, as usual. The aglio olio spaghetti, which was very nice the last time I had it, was a little less salted today. But it was still good, better than Michelangelo’s aglio olio.

Location: N3.11497 E101.58974

Michelangelo’s, Solaris Mont Kiara

PG was in town and he asked for dinner yesterday. Unfortunately, I had to join my colleagues for dinner because we just came off from OH’s office. So today I bring the lady out for lunch instead. He said he wanted something nice, premium perhaps. Definitely not something roadside or non-air conditioned place. I can’t think of anything for lunch, I asked him to ring DL up to see if he has any idea.

DL was too KO’ed from the early morning hike in FRIM, he said he can’t think of anything because his brain was sucked dry by those leeches. Anyway, I suggested that we go to Solaris since PG never been there. And perhaps we could try out Ole-Ole Bali. Yes, it’s my day off on strict diet this weekends.

Unfortunately, when we were there, DL said he heard of few not so pleasant comments on Ole-Ole Bali. Then I suggested to go for Michelangelo’s instead, since someone recommended the vongole pasta there. Well, the price tag definitely fits what PG wanted, though there were rarely any air cond because we were seated on the outside. All for the sake of nicer photos.

If I didn’t see any aglio olio on the menu, I would’ve definitely go for the vongole pasta. Seeing that I’m a sucker for aglio olio, I can’t help it but to order it. Instead of spaghetti, I asked for linguine. On the other hand, DL was tempting PG with his cup of Guinness Stout while PG can barely hold it.

... apparently, I was allowed to order a cup of fruit mix. Apple and watermelon juice mix. Not the 3rd type though.

... yup, RM9 cup of fruit juice and all I got was a cup of diluted fruit juice.

... aglio olio linguine. Doesn't look appetizing at all.

... PG's spaghetti marinara sizzle. The pan was seriously sizzling hot.

... this pepperoni calzone pizza smell damn good.

Rating: 4.5/10

My cup of fresh fruit juice was rather exceptional. Yes, it was exceptionally bad. Look at how badly diluted it was. 90% water and 10% fruit stuffs. It was RM9 a cup, I bet they use Evian mineral water on this. My aglio olio linguine was really bad. Aside from the rather non-existent aglio olio scent, the linguine was rather hard, almost uncooked. The taste, it was bland and I can’t feel any garlic taste at all. DL was complaining north, east, south and west on that spoonful of linguine that he had. RM18.90 for a plate of nothingness. Very good!

PG gave me a clam and mussel. They were both juicy, though the clam was rather tasteless. It was mildly cook, so it was tender. I guess that’s why the vongole pasta was good. The mussel was sweet though. DL complained that the seafood was not fresh on PG’s pasta. That’s what PG said, the prawns were not fresh. And my comment? The sauce tasted like kerosene.

Somehow, the pizza was nice though. The fragrance was good and the taste was above average. Better than most of the pizzas out there. DL whom was lactose intolerant was liking it. He said he took the piece without those cheese on the topping. Yeah right, he totally sucking on the molten cheese the middle layer. Though the pepperoni was rather lacking but the nice fragrance and taste made up for the sparing ingredients.

With such pricey tag, I guess I won’t be seeing the lights of Michelangelo’s anytime soon. Though we found out that, on 3rd June (or onward?), Michelangelo’s is having 50% off promotion on their main course, provided payment is made with Public Bank’s credit cards. Perhaps I might stop by for… a vongole spaghetti.

Location: N3 10.540 E101 39.599

Pan Bakery, SS15

I’ve extended my invitation to PCL to go try out this place somewhere last week. But due to her tight schedule, we have to postponed it. I finally got hold of her this week and fortunate for me, I still remembered that this was the place that I said I wanted to go. Hence we get to go today. When I looked at the menu, they have dishes like those in restaurant where you order your dishes to go with your rice. Anyhow, with just the 2 of us, we were better off just go with those personal sized portions.

... by the constitution of the strict diet rule, I hereby ordered a cup of iced lime upon myself.

... doesn't look aglio olio at all to me. What were those vege doing there? I get peas, long beans and worst, cabbages.

... PCL ordered a Pan Club sandwich, which she had only 1 piece. Beef was removed under special request.

Rating: 4/10

My cup of iced lime was overly sweeeeeet. I guess sugar was cheaper in Pan Bakery. As for my aglio olio spaghetti. The looks of it was rather disappointing. It doesn’t seemed like aglio olio to me, cause there were way too many shredded chili on it. It was like having Hakka noodle with chili flakes. The only thing aglio olio about it was probably the abundance amount of chopped garlic. Taste was nothing aglio olio too. I ordered a seafood one, though I was surprised that I even found peas, long beans and funny, shredded cabbages. Well, I had to eat all the vegetables because I’ve abandoned the rest of the meat to PCL.

PCL orderd the Pan Club sandwich where the bread was toasted till crisp. It was rather crunchy. She said it was quite nice. To me, it was acceptable but somehow it lacked something. Perhaps it was the beef bacon that was removed from it. What’s a club sandwich if it lacks the bacon, right?

Overall, the lunch wasn’t exactly fine. The good sandwich doesn’t make it up to the bad pasta I had. But I might go there again to try something else next time.

Location: N3 04.696 E101 35.341

Pasta de Gohan, Sunway Pyramid

Today, the ladies said gotta go somewhere nice to celebrate NAP’s farewell. At first I suggested either Dragon-i or Canton-i, but NAP (no, he has got nothing to do with slumber) just had them like a couple of days ago straight. When we were on the way there, TSL suddenly thought of the Pasta de Gohan’s clam soup pasta she saw in a food magazine in my car. Then we decided to give Pasts de Gohan a try.

... Pasta de Gohan, if I'm not mistaken, it means pasta and rice.

... this scallop & prawn pizza was my idea. Abundance of cheese.

... this complimentary soup was for TSL's clam soup pasta.

... delicious looking clam soup pasta.

... NAP's Prawn Pilaf.

... NAP's Wafu Chicken & Mushroom. Very oily stuff, another lip gloss incident.

... KUMA's Potato Salad Toast.

... KUMA's Potato & Bacon Cream fettucine.

... a good thirst quencher?

... decided to give the curry chicken rice a try.

... my Wafu Al Aglio Olio. I still can't figure out what does "wafu" means, even after the meal.

... my aglio olio with extra ingredients.

... someone left this Neapolitan spaghetti on my side of the table.

Rating: 6/10

I start off with the clam and prawn pizza. It was pretty nice actually with super thin crust with good fragrance from the cheese. The prawns was fresh and crunchy while the scallops were big. I could eat it plainly with only cheese on top of it. But this piece of UFO cost RM28.80.

I had a sipped of TSL’s clam soup pasta, it was quite nice, a little bit of sweetness of the clams. It’s kinda special too, one of its kind. The last time I tried vongole spaghetti was more than 6 months ago. That vongole spaghetti was very different from this 1 though. This also came with a complimentary soup, which tasted a little like miso soup with plenty of seaweed in it. But for RM24.80 for plain spaghetti and clams, that’s very expensive.

Then I had a bite on NAP’s Wafu Chicken & Mushroom. It was pretty ok, just a tad too oily. I wondered whether those was from the olive oil or some other stuff. It sorta made me feel a bit full though. Never had a chance to try his prawn pilaf though, cause it was like chaos there, for 7 people to sit in a long table having plates flying here and there where hygiene was placed at lowest priority.

Then there’s KUMA’s potato salad toast, which looked really nice and her Potato & Bacon cream. Unfortunately, those bacons weren’t pork, they were beef. So I didn’t bother to give it a try. Suddenly, I missed my Popai the Potato so much.

Finally, on the stuff that I ordered. The RM4.80 canned ginger ale was very costly. The lunch set chicken curry rice with wafu al aglio olio cost me RM18.80. It sounded a lot cheaper than TSL’s clam soup spaghetti. I guess reason being this is the kind of items that rarely interest the patrons, so they decided to put them up for promotion. Fortunately, despite being a plain spaghetti, the taste was still acceptable. But it tasted much better after I put in extra chili powder and grind the pepper in. The curry was sweet as expected, nothing to shout about. The rice used was genuine Japanese rice that I had from ordering curry chicken rice from Japanese restaurant. So, no lacking of ingredients here.

The rest of the stuff I didn’t bother to snap because our table has no more space to sort stuff around. But I was given a plate of Neopolitan to try. It was… not that good. That’s why I never like ordering spaghetti in tomato sauce.

The bill for the lunch cost us RM230.10 for 7 pax. Averaging at around RM33 per pax. Overall, lunch was pretty nice, but the pricing was crazy. The food weren’t exactly Japanese except for a few items as pasta is western while most of the stuff on their menu was consists of pasta. There were many other stuff on the menu as well, such as parfait. It’s another place which is common like PHOP, where you’d need months to try out everything on the menu.

The place was not exactly comfortable and the lighting was pretty bad too. The shop was quite small and the air conditioning was bad. TSL was practically sweating throughout the time, for a person that rarely sweat even if we eat under hot roof. Go figure…

Location: N3 04.318 E101 36.367

Penang Asam House, NZX

Today’s lunch with my PCL was originally at Hao Wei Dao. Unfortunately, the place was closed when we reached there. Being indecisive on what to eat, we walked around in NZX and we saw this place. I’ve always wanted to try Penang Asam House since the first time I saw it, because they had their menu printed in large poster and placed it outside the store front, which kinda caught my attention.

The last time I went, they were still not opened for business because I was too early. So I went to ask them, what time they opened. The staff told me 12pm. But I remembered very well that it was already 12pm+, closer to 1pm, because I was there during lunch time. I asked the lady, it was already 12pm+, why aren’t you opened for business? She was just smiling away like a shy girl. So I gave it a pass that time and went for other stuff instead.

... hot chinese tea.

... PCL ordered a plate of fried spaghetti. Chinese style with Italian noodle.

... the fried butter chicken rice caught my eyes.

Rating: 4/10

There were many varieties on the menu, which is a good thing. While PCL decided on the fried pasta, I wanted to have something with rice, so I ended up with the butter chicken rice. I noticed there was a chinese sausage rice on the menu and showed it to PCL. She was amazed by it. As I recall, there aren’t many place that serves such dish, except for cafes like Wong Kok or Kim Gary. When the waiter came, I asked her if they serve pork. She said they don’t serve pork. Then I pointed to her on the chinese sausage rice, she told they no longer serve that particular item on the menu. Yet they didn’t take the initiative to cross out the item on the menu.

Trying to attract some muslim customers? I’d suggest they try to get the place Halal certified instead. Besides, NZX don’t really attracts that many malays or muslims patrons.

PCL’s fried spaghetti was mediocre while my fried butter chicken was quite acceptable. Most restaurant can’t go wrong with fried butter chicken, unless they charred the meat. PCL can’t stop picking on my butter chicken after finishing her spaghetti, which she claimed she was very full. Not too full for another chicken, maybe? lol