Kang San Ea

C5 Jalan Ampang Utama 1/1

Taman Ampang Utama

68000 Ampang

+60342512598

Coordinates: 3.155275, 101.751506

In keeping with my desire to lose weight but not deprive myself of the simpler pleasures in life I caved in and took the family for a night out at our all-time favourite Korean restaurant.

B.B.Q. heaven

in the heart of Korea town, Ampang

As always we ordered the customary ¹Samgyeopsal and ²Dwaeji Galbi; and not night out here would be complete if did not Brendan order his favourite ³Kimchi Jjigae.

¹a popular Korean dish commonly served as an evening meal, it consists of thick, fatty slices of pork belly meat similar to uncured bacon

²pork ribs seasoned with a typical ganjang-based sauce or gochujang-based sauce (chilli pepper condiment)

³a variety of jjigae, or stew-like Korean dish, made with kimchi and other ingredients, such as scallions, onions, diced tofu, pork, and seafood

While waiting for our order to be served we sat glued to the television set while a musical show was airing. The proprietress had installed an android box that streamed Korean channels direct from South Korea, and despite the absence of English subtitles we enjoyed the show, catching a few words that we were familiar with here and there.

refreshments

we put our phones away

The generous cuts of meat and pork arrived, and the stove was fired up. After that there was nothing much else to do but wait till the grilling was done.

the customary side dishes

grilled pork bellies 

ever helpful

then it was the turn for the pork ribs

feasting on the side dishes

Brendan's kimchi stew

devilishly

fermented

delightful

kimchi

salad to wrap it all up in

Suffice to say tonight’s dinner is beyond the realms of the everyday food for the everyday person but we find ourselves coming here time and again on every special occasion and every chance/excuse we get. That’s how much we love Kang San Ea, sa-rang-he-yo-kang-san-ae!

D'Border Delights

26 Jalan 3/69

Seksyen 3 Bandar Baru Bangi

43650 Bangi

Coordinates: 2.937587, 101.773942

Brendan is in his final year of secondary (high) school and faces a daunting final exam at the end of the year. Called the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM for short) it is the equivalent of the GCE O-Level exams.

His school had arranged for an overnight study camp at an institution of higher learning in Bangi for the next two days and being the ‘helicopter’ parents that we are we found ourselves having dinner nearby.

Driving around Bangi town for a bit we finally settled on a restaurant with a very East Coast vibe.

big bright red signboard

hard to miss

Quickly scanning the menu we settled on the signature dish, a plate of sizzling Roasted Beef, a large bowl of ¹Sup Ekor and a plate of large omelet. Since this restaurant hails from her home state of Kelantan she fancied a chance with their ²Nasi Kerabu.

¹Oxtail soup in English, rich, savoury and flavourful soup made with oxtail and various other herbs and spices; stock that contributes to the soup filled with gamey goodness, with minty herbs and spices overtones, meticulously boiled to fused all flavours together

²blue-coloured rice (a result of cooking with butterfly-pea flowers) usually eaten with fish crackers, pickles and other salads

roasted beef

sup ekor

large omelet

nasi kerabu

freshly squeezed green apples

bon appetit!

What can we say? This restaurant serves Thai delights with fresh flavours and we had no complaints whatsoever. The roasted beef was juicy and tender, the Sup Ekor divinely infused with flavours both sweet, sour and spicy all at the same time, the omelet light and fluffy and Cat especially enamoured with her Nasi Kerabu.

With dinner costing us under RM30 D'Border Delights definitely sets the bar for the everyday food for the everyday person.

New Year’s Resolution

I am 170 centimetres in height and 97 kilograms in weight. My Body Mass Index reads 33.56 which plain and simple means I am OBESE. Losing 11 kilograms will mean I will have progressed from OBESE to OVERWEIGHT; losing another 14 means I will have a NORMAL Body Mass Index reading.

That’s a whopping 24 kilograms to lose, and if I embark on a modest plan to lose one kilogram per month I will only be able to achieve my ideal weight of 72 kilograms in about two years’ time.

I have a waistline of 38 inches, and simple tasks like bending over to tie my shoelaces now leaves me breathless.

I however take comfort in the fact that muscle is a denser tissue than fat, and an abundance of lean mass raises weight on the scale -- which means I’m bound to have a high BMI. However, because my excess weight comes from muscle, not excess fat, theoretically I won't have the related health risks associated with carrying too much body fat.

I have a mini gym at home and carry weights when time permits; I have accumulated both fat and muscle (for the moment its more fat, less muscle). BMI Mistakes Muscle for Fat. BMI uses your weight in the formula but doesn't distinguish if that weight comes from an abundance of fat or from lean tissue. Gym enthusiasts who carry a great deal of muscle may seem heavy for their height or overall size, but that's because muscle is denser than fat

That being said, I have set a more realistic goal of weighing in less than 90 kilograms and a waistline of between 35-36 inches. To achieve this, besides engaging in usual and strenuous cardiovascular activities I will need to be very mindful of what, how much and when I eat. A direct impact of this would be the drastic reduction of posting on our blog.

Wish me luck!

Cat’s 40th Birthday!

Tengkera Hotel

56 Jalan Tengkera

Kampung Empat

75200 Melaka

Coordinates: 2.198619, 102.242566

In case you didn’t know we always put up here at Tengkera Hotel each time we come to Melaka. But for an occasion when we were swayed by the offer of a cheap room on an online booking site Tengkera Hotel is our default (budget) hotel.

After finding out that today was Cat’s birthday Suukee (the proprietor), Amy (day innkeeper) and Uncle Teo (night innkeeper) ran around frantically trying to arrange for a birthday party. Our best efforts to dissuade them from troubling themselves were to no avail.

We gave in but on condition that they were only allowed to get Cat a cake; I will foot the bill for everything else.

the most convenient thing on such short notice

pork satay (what else?) for Cat's birthday

the pineapple-laced pork satay

simple  and practical yet inviting

Being in close proximity I decided to spring for a hundred sticks of Pork Satay from Xiang Ji while Suukee hunted down a delightful raspberry cream cake.

thanks Suukee

elegant cake

What started out as day celebrating Cat’s birthday by ourselves soon turned into a right proper party, thanks to the kind and generous people at Tengkera Hotel.

making a wish

having her cake and eating it

Be it as it may Cat still miss our son during the celebrations, however the gaiety and merriness provided by Suukee, Amy and Uncle Teo more than made up for it. Bless their souls!

thank you Uncle Teo!

 

thank you Amy!

thank you Suukee!

(the Original) Baba Low

486 Jalan Siantan Sek 2

Off Jalan Tengkera

75200 Melaka

Coordinates: 2.204684, 102.231670

We’ve read about the branch of this restaurant online before and noted its rave reviews. Located in an upscale area of Kuala Lumpur (Bangsar) we did not manage to pay it a visit. Perhaps the fact that it was situated in an ‘expensive’ neighbourhood was in itself a deterrence, mentally ?

So for lunch I thought I'd give the birthday gal a taste of authentic Nyonya cuisine.

This is where Baba Low started out all those years ago at this small unassuming roadside stall. In fact its premises in Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur got its name (Baba Low 486) from the lot number that this stall is located on. Situated under a large mango tree the open-air environment with old-school stools and tables lent to its cosy ambiance.

where it all began

smartly dressed 'Captain'

serving the best of local cuisine

old school

plain and simple

in the shade of large trees, coziness personified

The birthday gal ordered a bowl of their signature ¹Curry Laksa (Malacca Nyonya Laksa) and ²Pai Tee; troubled by the progression of my waistline I opted for a humble packet of Fried Rice Vermicelli while the both of us each had a bowl of ³Cendol.

¹a soup-like curry of sauted spice paste (pulse shallots, turmeric, galangal, lemongrass, dried chillies, candlenuts, and shrimp paste) boiled in coconut milk, tofu puffs, and salt served with sambal (finely grind fresh red chillies, dried chillies, and shrimp paste)

²a thin and crispy pastry tart shell kuih filled with a spicy, sweet mixture of thinly sliced vegetables and prawns

³shaved ice served droplets of worm-like green rice flour jelly, red bean, coconut milk and palm sugar syrup

nyonya laksa

pai tee

fried rice vermicelli

cendol

let's eat!

Maybe it was because we were in an open air environment keeping cool under the shade of large overhanging trees but the food tasted amazing. And since the entire cost of the meal will not break the bank we will not hesitate to declare Baba Low to be serving the everyday food for the everyday person.

Odeon Western Food

Jalan Melaka Raya 10

Taman Melaka Raya

75000 Melaka

Coordinates: 2.186058, 102.256779

It’s the last day of the year, our last day in Melaka and it was Cat’s birthday as well. Despite yesterday’s exertions Cat was up bright and early and was in the mood for some local ‘Western’ or ‘Continental’ breakfast.

With nothing planned and with remembering the excellent breakfast we had a few months ago we headed to Odeon Western Food.

hidden gem

easy to miss

clean and efficient

cosy

If you remember this restaurant limits its breakfast set to either Set A which consisted of two eggs, a sausage and two buttered toast; or Set B which consisted of two eggs, a slice of ham sausage and two buttered toast.

Cat had the Set A while I had the Set B.

B

A

beverages

digging in 

This poster made us chuckle:

In not too many words, it alluded to (or praised?) the government of the day's penchant for bribery.

Again we’d like to remind you to rely on your GPS device (or Waze, the mobile app) since this coffee shop is kind of hidden from plain sight.