Viva La France!

Bonjour! Missing my posts? (hehe) Nope, they haven't gone missing. It's just that moi is holidaying in France at the moment. To be exact, a lovely seaside town named Pornichet (near La Baule / Nantes) and later on to beautiful Paris. When I come back, you will be able to feast your eyes on the beautiful photos of the lovely sceneries and lips-smacking food. But till then, excusez-moi let me get back to my croissants and espressos.

Au revoir!

"Oink-oink! Feast" at The Vintry

I understand that this outlet has been around for a while but my recent visit there was my first, thanks to recommendations from bloggers and friends. We went on a Friday evening without reservations and were lucky enough to get a table (after a short wait) for the place was packed! And I can see why, food was good particularly if you like "Madam Porky" (I don't usually crave for pork but I have to admit I enjoyed what we had) and wine selection was plentiful and reasonably priced.


Beringer Zinfandel
Very easy and pleasant to drink. As in all Zinfandels, it is sweet and sligtly fruity. Ladies would like this very much. First sip reminds me of an alcoholic Ribena.


Deep Fried Pork Strips
If the description turns you off, then don't even taste it because once started, you simply can't stop! It's that addictive!


Fried Korean Noodles with Caramelized Roast Pork
I was craving for some carbo so we ordered this. Really looks like Mamak Mee Goreng right? But it really did fully satisfy my carbo craving. Very good albeit a very expensive mee goreng.


Spicy Caramelized Roast Pork
Those few pieces of caramelized roast pork that came with the noodles had us craving for more so we ordered another plate of this. Again, very good!

Time for desserts:

Tiramisu - Rich and creamy. Not bad but not among the best that I have tasted though.


I prefer this, their House Special Creme Brulee. Smooth and creamy. You will probably not want to share this with anyone else.

Update: I should probably mention that their service is definitely a hit-and-miss. Can be anything from enthusiastic to downright sulky, depending on who's serving you (here's a game for you if you visit this place: try to guess who is the lady with invisible and unremovable weights attached to both corners of her mouth) and how busy they happened to be that night (which is probably, most of the time). During our most recent time there, my friends and I (a big group of 10 or more) nearly "au huet" (vomit blood) from the service that we got that night (don't get me started, you might just see blood...) to the point that some of my friends who were first timers there vowed never to return again.....*sigh* 'Allo, if you dislike serving people so much, change job lah!
Note to the Management: Service DOES Matter!

Other reviews:
Masak-masak
Memoirs of a Chocoholic

The Vintry Cellar
Medan Damansara (same row as The Rib Shop, behind Victoria Station and Jake's Charbroiled)
Kuala Lumpur
Tel No: 03 - 2094 8262

More Pan Mee, Please! (Lian Heng Pan Mee, SS19)

Talking about my favourite pan mee stall located in a corner kopitiam in SS19, Subang Jaya in one of my previous posts sets me craving for it. So when my friend who happens to be an even more of a pan mee afficionado than me dropped by in SJ during one Saturday, I suggested that we go much to her delight since she has been hearing my raves over this pan mee for ages.

Now, why didn't I visit this stall more often since I like it so much? 2 reasons, the wait and the fact that I can only have them on days that I am not working (since they usually close by 3pm and on Sundays). The wait can be anything from 30 mins to 1 hour or so. What you do have to do is take a number (token) from the stall and wait for your turn. Hold it for dear life for once you lose it, you will have to restart again. (hehe) You can order their fresh coconut juice while you wait though.


The stall is manned by a mother & son team. The mother shreds and cooks the dough and soup while the son prepares and assembles the final dish. Why do I like their version of pan mee so much?

First, the soup. Tasty with superior anchovies stock and so far, it fares pretty well in my "post-consumption thirst test". It is pretty clear too. If you do not stir in the deep-fried anchovies and minced meat, you will see that the soup is in fact, rather oil-free. Very "cheng". The dough is good too. Hand-shredded (my favourite!), chewy with a good bite and yet, not too thick. The accompaniments are very well-balanced too. The deep-fried anchovies and minced meat each provided a crunchy texture and added some flavour to the dish, while the green vegetables are cooked just nice. One vital ingredient to a truly outstanding pan mee is the accompanying chilli sauce. Here, it is made with minced chilli padi with a touch of lime. I always ask for 2-4 sauce plates of this. On the other hand, you can have their "dry" version too (which is my mom's favourite). I have tried it and it is very good too. But I still prefer my pan mee in soup base.

My friend gave her thumbs up but at the same time, commented that she recently had one in Desa Petaling which is even better than this. Now, I will definitely have to try that place.

Shop name: Lian Heng (I think)
SS19, Subang Jaya.
(Corner shoplot, the other end from Parkway Kopitiam)
Opens from 10:30am (?) until sold out (usually before 3pm. Closed on Sundays.

Oreos Yogurt Cupcakes

Oreos Yogurt Cupcakes
This recipe is actually for a healthier version (aka lesser fat) classic butter cake. However, it is pretty versatile and you can play with it to make it into variations according to ones liking. For this cake, I used the recipe here since it comes with much rave from the baker/blogger. And rightly so for this cupcake turns out to be so soft and fluffy with bits and pieces of oreos throughout. If you want to have more bite, just chop the oreos into chunks but if you want a finer texture, then just crush it into fine crumbs. I combined both. You might want to up the sugar level particularly if you are serving to kids.


The lady dons a hat
Looks like the cupcake is wearing a hat. So fashionable!

Late Lunch & Afternoon Snacks @ Rojak-Rojak, The Curve

Recently, after a marathon of gym classes, my friends and I stopped over at Rojak Rojak at The Curve for the much needed "fuel replenishment".


Fruits Rojak with "kangkung".
I like this, the sauce was piquant and rather spicy. To my friend who could not tolerate spiciness as much as me, it could get pretty overwhelming. My only complaint(s)? Not enough crushed peanuts and serving size is rather small for its price (between RM6-7).


Stuffed Tofu "Bakar"
For once, the serving size was rather generous. About 8 pieces or so. Fresh and crunchy, I like the fact that it was not soggy (from being overly drenched in sauce) was already a "plus" point for me. Again, I like the sauce used here.


Spicy Noodles
My friend had scooped out 1/3 of it before I remember to take a picture of this. I only took a couple of small spoonfuls of this so couldn't really comment much. But I remember that the gravy/soup base was pretty delicious.


Roti Jala with Curry Chicken
I stole a bite from my friend. Haven't had Roti Jala in a LONG, LONG TIME so to me, it was another thumbs up!


Black Glutinous Rice tongshui
Erm...., this was "ok-lar...." Not a fan of this type of tongshui though.

Rojak Rojak
The Curve

Other review:
Da Wheel of Life & Happiness

I "heart" Popiahs!

Popiahs.....! One of my all-time favourite food. Constantly on the hunt for good popiahs, but I am pretty satisfied with this particular one that my colleague buys for me every Thursday from the morning market along Old Klang Road (corrections! see below for details). Apparently, the seller travels around numerous spots in Klang Valley but you will find it at the OKR morning market every Thursday (days off not consistent).

What's so special about this? Stuffed to the brim with ingredients, it's one helluva popiah. They also lightly flavoured the wrapper with pandan, hence the light green tinge to it. One special ingredient they added is the deep-fried egg flakes (or at least that's what I think they are), The sweet sauce and chilli sauce are nicely balanced too. RM1.50 per roll, it definitely surpasses those Sister Popiah stalls found in shopping malls selling for about RM2.40 (?) per roll.

My other favourite is the one sold outside a shopping mall in Melaka (roadside). Absolutely yummilicious....! It reminds me of a "char siu bao" in a popiah. Strange??? Well, you have to taste it to know what I mean. Unfortunately, it's in Melaka so that means I only get to have it once in a blue moon. If only it's located nearer...*sigh*

Last but not least, and on the "honour roll" is of course the home-made popiahs made by my sister-in-law. Occassionally, we have a "popiah party" at home for dinner. I can easily whack 3 jumbo size popiahs at one go. That shows how good it is. :-)

Now, don't forget to let me know if you know of other places to get fantastic popiahs! Deal?

Corrections!
My colleague had just informed that she got it not from the OKR morning market, but from the morning market in Happy Garden (apparently this is only 1 street long). The popiah stall is manned by a husband and wife (although sometimes, it's sold by their kids). The stall is located next to an Indian stall selling vegies. It is called Sakura and apparently there is a similar stall by the seller's sister operating in SS2 (which I think I have tried too). All I can say is it matters on who makes/wraps the popiah (i.e., quality may varies).

Sweets for My Sweet Tooth (Paddington Pancakes, Suanson Cakes, Hayn's Pizza, Alberto's)

My sweet tooth has been acting up again. Was craving for sweets so off I went, desserts-hunting over the weekend.

First stop. Paddington House of Pancakes at The Curve on Friday night.

Ok, I had to admit that I wasn't that keen then. I just had a very filling dinner and didn't think I could eat anything else. So my friends ordered 2 desserts to share. Of course, when they arrived, I could not resist taking a bite (ok, make that several bites) of the desserts. I like the classic American stacks. Served with a drizzle of maple syrup, some berries on the side, a scoop of vanilla ice-cream and what looked like butter with caramelized nuts (see right hand corner of the bananas)- they were good!

The 2nd dessert was a bit too heavy and complex in a sense that it was laddened with too many goodies. An ice-cream filled crepe topped with mountains of whipped cream with berries and raisins on the side, and also 2 apple fritters with coconut flakes. But I actually like the latter, the apple fritters were yummy. Crispy, crunchy and slightly tart - it was good.

Next - Suanson's Cakes (Jalan Bangkung, Bangsar) on Saturday.
A friend read that this place was good. Apparently their Carrot Walnut cakes and Chocolate Fudge cakes are very good so we tried these 2.

I like the Carrot Walnut cake. Wholesomely good, they didn't try to pack a mountain of ingredients into the cake. It's more like a light butter cake types loaded with shreded carrots and walnuts. No complicated flavours.

I wasn't too taken with the Chocolate Fudge Cake though. Not to say it wasn't good but it just wasn't erm...., outstanding. Cakes here aren't expensive though. Abour RM3-4 per slice (slices are rather small). Not a recommended place for hanging out though, it's a self-service place with just 2 tables outside. Plastic cutleries and styrofoam plates. Coffee (machine-brewed premium Nescafe aka Alta Rica) was served in a paper cup.

3rd Stop - Hayn's Pizza in Desa Sri Hartamas on Sunday
After an appointment at a nearby beauty salon, my friend and I were pretty famished and that's how we ended up at this place. We ordered their Banana Pizza to share (I recalled reading somewhere that this was recommended).

More like a savoury dessert, the pizza was slightly unusual. A tomato-based pizza topped with bananas and cheese with drizzles of chocolate sauce, it was a combination of both sweet and savoury. Different, but tasty. I like their pizza base very much, thin and slightly crispy, they felt pretty light in the stomach too. But they could be more generous with the banana chunks and chocolate sauce though.

My last craving was for some gelato. I was debating between Lecka-lecka's which was also sold in this outlet or Alberto's (further down the road). But since I have not tried the later, we opted for it. RM7 for a small cup (2 scoops/flavours) - not a bad deal, eh?

We chose Mixed Berries and Tiramisu. The Mixed Berries was really good! Tart and creamy and very refreshing. As for the Tiramisu, I like the flavour (tasted a tinge of rum there, which is good) but not the texture. Somehow this is of different texture as compared to the Mixed Berries. I could taste the "ice" in it, it wasn't creamy enough. Almost like the texture of a sorbet.

That's all, folks. Coming up - Part II.

When One Thing Becomes Another...(Marshmallow Chocolate Rice Crispies)

I wanted to make some crunchy rice crispies bar. A real simple & easy recipe. Just melt some butter with some marshmallow, dunk in some plain rice crispies, stir together then pour and flatter out in a pan. When cooled, just slice into bars and serve - a sure delight to the kids.

But, the marshmallow refused to co-operate. Granted this time, I took the easy way out and used the microwave to melt the butter and marshmallow. The butter obediently melted but the marshmallow gave one hell of a fight. Instead of melting together with the butter into a smooth and creamy sugary and snowy goodness, it turned into a brownish and rubbery slush sitting in a pool of melted butter. Yuck! And no matter how long I zapped it in the microwave, it remained in that erm, 'slushy' form.

I finally accepted the fact that I failed in melting the marshmallow but rather than wasting the butter, I scooped out the marshmallow slush, melted a fistful of dark chocolate chips into the still-hot melted butter, added a squirt or two of honey followed by the rice crispies. Stir to coat everything evenly. In mini paper cups, add a 1/4t of the prepared rice crispies. Then add some choc chips and 2 mini marshmallow. Top with more prepared rice crispies and more choc chips if you wish. Bake for about 7 minutes in a preheated oven (160c). Remove from oven, cool for about 15 minutes and top with another mini marshmallow. Cool completely before storing in air-tight container.

Not exactly what I set out to make, but the end result was just as good if not better than the original plan. :o)