Merry Christmas!

As the song proclaims: “it’s the most wonderful time of the year!”, and we couldn’t agree more. By the time you read this we will be on our way to my hometown, and Brendan’s place of birth... Kuala Terengganu. My father and his father before him came from the ‘Turtle’ state, and it does feel like Christmas this year knowing that we’ll be spending it at our hometown (Cat’s from Kota Bharu, Kelantan which is just a state away).

I'm grooving to Bobby Sherman's 'Jingle Bell Rock' as I type this, and while my body is in Kuala Lumpur my soul is already in Kuala Terengganu where I grew up. Life was simpler and sweeter then; I am harking back to the time when I would ride my red racing bicycle absolutely everywhere with my best buds; tennis practice every evening with Vinodh, Krishen and Deva at our school courts; attending Mass and Catechism classes every Friday morning (the weekend here) at our quaint little chapel at St. Teresa's; 'visiting' (read: raiding) an orchard and enjoying our pick of durians, rambutans and purple mangosteens, and then getting attacked by humongous kerenggas (weaver ants, I shall not trespass again); snug at home having fried fish fritters with Kopi O (regular black coffee with sugar) while watching the rain through our window; football on the beach at Batu Buruk (running on a sandy beach saps your energy in no time, believe you me); riding pillion on Francis’ cub motorcycle going just about everywhere; my first puppy love in Form One with a cute girl (I still remember her name, sorry Cat) from Chendering who gave me an ashtray for my birthday!

A bittersweet longing for things or situations of the past, nostalgia is interestingly enough made up of words that bring the meaning homecoming (nóstos) and pain/ache (álgos), and it sums up what I’m feeling at the moment... sigh.

 

batu buruk beach beckons

 

something new...

 

.. and something old

 

Kuala Terengganu at night, a sight to behold

Memories of going around with our church carollers are still fresh in my mind, and made even more memorable by the erratic weather during this time of year. And speaking of weather, we hope that the worst is behind us (flood-wise) though we would welcome the occasional ‘showers of blessing’ since it (the rain) is etched in my psyche as being part and parcel of Christmas in Kuala Terengganu.

The photos below will serve as a sneak peek into what we'll be featuring on our photo-blog in the days to come:


 

kueh (cakes) found only in KT

 

deep fried delicacies

 

our routine lunchtime destination every Friday

 

still the best Minang/Padang shop anywhere to be found

 

Chinese cuisine east coast style!

I hope I don’t gain too much weight while we’re in Kuala Terengganu, since our itinerary will be filled with visits to our old favourite ‘Makan’ places! We will try to cram as much Terengganu cuisine as we can during our short stay (3-4 nights) and hope that we are able to do my hometown justice where the everyday food for the everyday person is concerned.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year!

Texas Chicken

Texas Chicken

Lot 44-4 Jalan Sultan Ismail

50250 Kuala Lumpur

+60321411566

(Coordinates: E101° 42' 40.7" N3° 8' 50.4")

 It was a dark and stormy night last night, and after having been caught in the rain waking up this morning my throat felt like it got rubbed with sandpaper. Since I did not feel like driving we took a RapidKL U24 bus and headed to Bukit Bintang for the only other 24 hour clinic we know (Poliklinik Bandar).

Knowing that I’d be in for a round of antibiotics and other medications that require that my stomach be filled beforehand, we popped into this fried chicken joint located right beside the clinic. Brendan and Cat have been here before (it’s my first time) so they were pretty familiar with the layout and menu.

 

you won't miss it

 

all my exes live in Texas?

 

Brendan had the chicken combo

 

while Cat and I had the wrap

Brendan promptly ordered the 2 piece chicken combo with Cat and I tried (in our minds) the healthier Tex Wrap (similar to McD’s foldover and KFC’s twister).

 

Brendan's chicken combo

 

our chicken wrap

 

succulent fries

 

our sodas

 

let's dig in!

 

standard fast food damage

The verdict? Brendan had mixed feelings about his fried chicken but Cat and I firmly believed the Tex Wrap slayed both McD’s and KFC’s variants hands down! And the damage? As with most fast food joints the total will be reasonable, and in this case it was RM32.15, within the domain of the everyday food for the everyday person. Would we come here again? We do believe Texas Chicken can give its more established competitors a run for their money, so yes, we would come here again.

Restoran Nasi Ayam Chee Meng Hailam

Restoran Nasi Ayam Chee Meng Hailam 

50 Jalan Bukit Bintang

55100 Kuala Lumpur

(Coordinates: E101° 42' 33.2" N3° 8' 43.1")

We were in Lowyat Plaza this evening as my smart phone was on the blitz. After a couple hours the technician declared that my smart phone was beyond repair and Ninetology graciously extended me a brand new phone as a replacement (good thing it was still within the warranty period).

 It was a dark and stormy night, and with little protection from the rain we hopped into this restaurant conveniently located in front. Apparently Chee Meng has been garnering quite some attention for serving kosher Hailam Chicken Rice.

along Jalan Bukit Bintang

why does it say spice of punjab?

Hailam style roasted chicken?

we think not

Perusing the menu, we were aghast to find that a plate of chicken rice here will cost us RM9! Oh well, rather than brave the rain to go look for another restaurant we decided to put up with the ridiculous price and promptly ordered a set each.

nothing hainanese at all

she does not look pleased

and he was not amused

oh well, since it was a dark and stormy night...

The verdict? Sadly the chicken rice here did not reciprocate the preposterous price tag. In fact, we feel that Chee Meng should stop proclaiming itself a Hailam Chicken Rice shop, since its taste bears no resemblance to the original article. Truth be told, it's nothing more than another run-of-the-mill mediocre chicken rice restaurant but at exorbitant prices.

The damage? Together with a round of Iced Barley it all came to RM33 which in hindsight is still within the realms of the everyday food for the everyday person, but paying RM9 for a plate of Chicken Rice left an awful taste in my mouth. Would we come back again? I think it’s pretty obvious we’ll be giving this shop a pass in the future. Hailam Chicken Rice my foot!

Mee Tarik Warisan Asli (Closed)

(closed as of December 2015?)
No. 14-20G Jalan Dang Wangi
50100 Kuala Lumpur
+60326021978
(Coordinates: 3.155893, 101.700268)

Brendan has been raving about this restaurant so I thought we’d give it a try today. Situated along Jalan Dang Wangi just a hop, skip and jump away from our apartment, we’ve seen eateries come and go in this area.

 

almost mural-like signboard

 

ambitiously occupying 4 shop lots

 

our Lamian experience begins

We’re not sure if this restaurant is related to the one in Sungei Besi, since both carry the same theme and almost identical name. Perusing the menu we opted for their signature ¹Lamian dishes. Brendan ordered the Mee Soup with Braised Beef; Cat tried the Sliced Mee Soup with Beef while I sampled the Lamen (Lamian) Soup with Sliced Beef.

¹a type of Chinese noodle, made by stretching and folding the dough into strands. Depending on the number of times the dough gets folded, the strands can be made in various lengths and thicknesses.

what to eat?

 

the expansive menu

 

Cat's sliced mee soup with beef 

 

looking very pleased

 

Brendan's mee soup with braised beef

 

his new favourite noodle shop?

 

My lamen (lamian) soup with sliced beef

 

bon appetit

We parked our prejudices at the door when we walked into this restaurant and we don’t normally gush about a noodle shop but we can honestly say this has got to be some of the best noodles we’ve had by a country mile. So good that we dare say it puts a lot of proper Chinese noodle shops to shame. The springy chewy texture was just divine and the soup/broths that came with it were sublime. Safe to say we utterly enjoyed our Lamian experience here.

 

the beverages

 

the damage

The damage? With an assortment of drinks the total came to a pretty respectable total of RM28.70, well within the dominion of the everyday food for the everyday person. Would we come here again? Heck yeah! Our only hope is that this restaurant survives this area where others have failed. The only grouse (if you could call it that) is the fact that (according to Brendan) the restaurant is more generous with their portions of noodles during the weekends.

TDDP Food Court

TDDP Food Court
Jalan 3/109 F
Taman Danau Desa, Seputeh
58100 Kuala Lumpur
(Coordinates: E101° 41' 7.00" N3° 6' 3.00")

Earlier in the day we spoke of Tropicana City Mall being our new favourite mall, and it looks like TDDP is now also our new favourite food court as well! Like Tropicana City Mall there’s something about this food court that makes us feel at ease and not as hustly-bustly and like Tropicana City Mall we were soon smitten with its overall unhurried and 'unharried' environment.

As with most other food courts in the Klang Valley this food court is manned by an army of foreign workers. But what sets it apart from other food courts is the fact that its workers actually say please and thank you!

our new favourite food court

 

high ceilinged, spacious... just the way we like it

Brendan as always will make a beeline for the ¹Char Kueh Teow (CKT) stall; Cat felt a little adventurous and tried the Special Fried Rice from a Siamese-styled food stall while I had a hankering for ²Nasi Lemak. I know, I’m supposed to be observing a low-carb diet but a cheat meal now and then won’t hurt, will it? And since its turning out to be a cheat-weekend I went all the way and had me a small bottle of Guinness Stout (my old favourite poison) to boot, so there!

¹flat rice noodles stir-fried over very high heat with light and dark soy sauce, chilli, a small quantity of belachan, whole prawns, de-shelled cockles, bean sprouts, chopped Chinese chives and egg 

²fragrant rice dish cooked in coconut milk and screwpine leaves

 

Brendan ordered from this stall

 

and was pleased with his CKT

 

Cat was in the mood for some Siamese

 

she thought the 'special' fried rice was just so-so

 

I gave this stall a go

 

and finished off this plate of nasi lemak post haste

 

a little something to wash it down?

 

he enjoyed his CKT

 

she can hardly wait

 

bon appetit!

 

but hold up, hold up...

 

yup, it's my SECOND helping

 

the CKT man was impressed!

The verdict? Brendan had not one but TWO plates of CKT, so we guess we don’t need to ask him what he thought of his meal. Cat thought nothing special of her ‘Special’ Fried Rice but I absolutely enjoyed my Nasi Lemak (or maybe it’s due to the fact that I’ve been deprived of it for a while now). And the verdict? Even with Brendan binging on his two plates of CKT and his dad binging on Guinness Stout the total remarkably came to a pretty decent RM36.80, well within the realms of the everyday food for the everyday person. We guess there’s no prizes for guessing that we’ll be back for more.