Midnight durian feast

Durian season is in and what time do Malaysians usually have their durians? Late at night!

Durian is actually 30% fat and it's either a love or hate affair depending on individual. I can take durian but I loath the after effect which is the burping, heatiness and putting on weight!

For those who love durian, the taste wins all.

One of the popular spot for durian in Penang is at Macalister Road. This little white truck has been parking on the side of the road in evening time since I can remember. We ordered only 2 durians - the award winning 猫山王 and 胡卢. Plus mangosteen to balance the heatiness of the durian. Yin and Yang theory. Notice who are the lovers of durian once the king of fruits is being served?



Durian stall
Jalan Macalister
11400 Georgetown, Penang
Open: 6.00pm till late

Dinner at Ocean Green

Since bro ashes was scattered into the sea along northern beach, OG became the default place to meet and have a meal with friends to reminiscent our beloved. Tonight we have the 4 visiting ladies from Singapore whom bro met in secondary school and had since kept the friendship going till now.

First up was entree - nestum fried prawns. Lovely lovely lovely dish. It's not oily although deep fried, the ginger and salt combination was perfect to enhance the flavours from fresh prawns.

Satay chicken kajang style. Meaning the peanut sauce is coated on the meat without having to dip separately. This is especially hygienic for crowds that brought visitors to share a meal in a typical chinese restaurant setting. The satay is grilled just nice for the meat to be tender and juicy.

Thai style tofu salad. Not quite authentic Thai taste but passable for a dish if someone on the table prefer vegetarian dish. Note: to skip the dried shrimps if this dish is vegetarian.

Oyster omelet. I have no idea who suggested this dish but somehow Kate was googoo gaga over it. I have tasted better but then again, it's an elegant dish to offer to visitors.

Steamed grouper, the meat is thick and sweet, very fresh fish indeed. The soy sauce used was pretty standard but the freshness made up for the overall taste of this dish.

Vegetable broth with scallops - Delicious!

Black pepper crab. Eversince my verneer chipped on me thrice, I have to be discipline to turn down my favourite seafood - CRAB!

And since mom ordered duo flavour crab, my discipline has to be double up! There was none left on the dish at the end of the course so I can only presumed the crab are fresh and nice.

For dessert, we have fruit platter of tropical fruits watermelon, honeydew, mango and jackfruit.

The ladies beat us to pick up the bill, score 1 for the ladies and 0 for us :(



Ocean Green Restaurant & Seafood
Paramount Hotel, 48F, Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah
10050 Georgetown, Penang
Tel: 04-227 4530
Opens: 12.00pm - 11.00pm

Postscript: A group of guys came to visit us and pay respect to bro at OG. The boys reminded mom and dad of bro and the trip assured them that they have brought up a good kid. Thanks to Andreas, CW, Eric and Won.

Gathering at Yeng Keng

Four ladies paid us a visit and pay last respect to bro. Two of them arrived a day earlier to explore Penang heritage sites, the other two arrived today and we all gathered at Yeng Keng for late lunch.

The cafe offers Nyonya cuisine cum western food. Shirley ordered Nyonya Fried Chicken with mixed vegetable sauce. Sort of a fusion if you ask me. This is the 2nd time I come across fushion of a fried chicken dish. The first was at Delicious for their attempt to fuse Hainanese aka Chicken Merryland. It's just weird!

For me, I ordered the traditional Hor Fun since this was the last dish that bro ordered back in April. Taste good as we walked down memory lane with the 4 ladies.

The famous Hainanese Spring Rolls - served with special chili sauce. Somehow the taste doesn't strut a cord with me. Others find it tasty but I just don't like it. It's kind of woody taste for me in fact.

Ichi Kambin - another popular Nyonya dish. At first everyone was hesitate to take a bit as it's afterall FRIED chicken. After the first bite, everyone went for the 2nd piece automatically. Kate fell in love with it and promised to come back for more.

The ladies surprised us with a Tiramisu cake from China House Cafe. It weighs over 3kg which Yumin and SinTing took turn to carry it back to the hotel. For their laborious effort and sweet thoughts, the cake taste EXTRA GOOD!

Inside of the cake, very generous spread of almond on top, the bottom layer sponge cake is soaked with liquor and the cheese filling is whipped smooth to perfection. Everything is just perfect with a cup of hot tea and us ladies just chat and chat away....

Finally the group photo - From left: Shirley, Priscilla, mom, Yumin & SinTing. I love you all ladies!!!



Yeng Keng Cafe & Bar
362 Lebuh Chulia
10200 Georgetown
Tel: 04- 2633177
Opens: 12.00pm - 10.00pm

Tutti Frutti - soy bean flavour

Tutti Frutti has been my little escape from time to time. The self service allow me to release as much as I want or as little, the false sense of being in control. Ha!

Today special release flavour is Soy Bean. Complete ripped off as it taste like Drink Ho soybean but frozen. However... the TF tart made up for the soybean disappointment and the chocolate fudge, peanuts and almond topping are oh just so heavenly.


Tutti Frutti
Autocity, Jalan Perusahaan
13600 Simpang Ampat
Penang
Open: 12.00pm - 10.00pm

Breakfast at 39 Alma

The original shou mein started here at Taman Alma. The elder sister wanted to take the business further by doing franchising, but the deal turned sour in less than a year, resulting in the split of multiple branches in Bukit Mertajam and Prai area. The elder sister's son is now taking up the business, going back to its root which is business in the house - 39 Alma. The famous dish in da house is of course Shou Mien, which is longevity noodle when translated directly. The soup is heavily pork based, the noodles and other ingredients are very common items found in other noodle soups. What made it special is the chili sauce or "sambal" in Malay. Some says it taste like "Lam Mee", I think it has its own special flavour to stand out on its own. 

 Besides shou mein, the shop also sells nice yam cake as side dish. I love yam and love anything with peanuts, so this dish is a thumb up for me.

 

Another good dish is the loh mai kai or steamed glutinous rice. Comes standard with quarter of an egg and chicken bits. This item is purely consignment from another vendor but still, it's a good alternative for time when one doesn't feel like eating a piping hot bowl of noodle soup in the morning and sweat a bucket before even starting work at the office.


39 Alma Shou Mein
39 Lorong Damai 1, Taman Alma
14000 Bukit Mertajam
Penang
Tel: 012-478 2133
Open: 8.00am - 4.00pm
Close: Monday

Black Canyon

Black Canyon is no stranger to those who travel to Thailand frequently. This franchise restaurant has been in the old airport as well as the new Suvarnabhumi Airport. However when across the border in Malaysia, somehow its popularity didn't pick up as well. Nonetheless, it's still one of my all time favorite place to eat.

I will always first order the Som Tam or papaya salad. They uses real raw papaya instead of carrot and the sauce is very authentic as all ingredients come in from Thailand direct. Oh, and the peanut servings is sooo generous!

Mom will always order the seafood hor fun. Upon special request, they will serve you the 4 condiments that is supposed to be eaten with Thai hor fun - sugar, chili flake, vinegar chili and pepper. I tried it before but don't quite like it.

My other staple dish is the Spicy Tuna Salad. Again the serving of tuna is by the chuck,  and the sauce is very authentic Thai.

To end my meal, I will usually have the Thai Hot Tea (Char Ron), served with cute little alphabet biscuit and evaporated milk. Once the milk is mixed in and as you take a few sip, a special sentence will appear on the rim of the cup
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"A drink from Paradise... available on Earth"

Ahhh.... all is worth it.





Black Canyon Coffee
AEON Seberang Prai City Shopping Centre
Ground Floor
Jalan Perda Timur
14000 Bukit Mertajam
Penang

Hi Tea at ION

Turns out the Indonesian food didn't last after few hours of window shopping. So we decided to cross over to ION for hi-tea. It was more so for necessity then the ladies can chat while the men settle to do their own stuff or just chilling with coffee.

The barrister suggested Max a Lychee Pineapple mocktail. Cost a bomb compare to other adults who are sharing hi-tea drinks. I don't know why sis doesn't do anything to stop him.

 The spread of hi-tea - duo flavour macaroons, chocolate brownie, a scon, 3 cupcakes, a chocolate chip cookie and a plain doughnut, served with strawberry jam and whipped cream.

The macaroons are purplish color and attracts the most attention. One tasted sweet, and the other tasted sweet too. Oh, same same? Yeah, coz it's all sugar!

Starbucks Hojicha

Starbucks lauched two new drinks this summer to stay competitive with Taiwan pearl tea business - Greentea with Red Bean and Hojicha with Earl Grey Jelly. Although Starbucks defends fiercely that it is not trying to imitate bubble milk tea, but one taste of it and customers couldn't agree more that it IS pearl milk tea!

At S$8.00 a serving for grande size, it is 3 times more than the Taiwanese version. Tastewise it has nothing special, except carrying the Starbucks logo.

What starbucks can compete is the environment, but still doesn't justify to pay 3 times more to drink bubble milk tea like beverage at Starbucks. Unless you absolutely need a place to chill and read a book.

Resto Surabaya Far East Plaza

First of all, I have to take a rain cheque on the food photo for this vist. Either the food was so delicious that I forgot to take photos or I was too engrossed with talking to sis, or i was irritated with the human jam that I have to go through before getting into this restaurant.

 Resto offers a wide variety of Indonesian food. Ayam Peyek is what brought me here.

The taste is authentic, price is light on the pocket (for Singaporean standards). I will come back again to take photos! Promised.

Juchheim Singapore

Baumkuchen is actually a German confectionary cake but I first saw it in Tokyo, Japan. The cake is baked in a long log shape and then put in a grill to be coated with icing sugar or chocolate. On the display shelf, the cake appears extremely enticing which I credit heavily to the whole package of presentation behind the glass wall.

Over here at Takashimaya shopping mall, I spotted Juchheim yet again, in the exact same display like the one I spotted in Tokyo. Except the baumkuchen is without the layer circles. Of the works, a lady has to be present behind the glass wall to work on the cake, giving customers a perceived idea that the "King of cakes" are made fresh daily.

Kate and I fell victim of Juchheim back in Tokyo and paid hefty lot for a piece of cake that taste like kuih lepis minus the fat. There was absolutely nothing special, maybe we didn't know how to appreciate the "fine ingredients" used in the making. Still, no harm trying it for the experience, at S$16.50 a pop, the smallest piece that is.



Juchheim
Takashimaya Singapore
391 Orchard Road
B2-205 3-1, 238873 Singapore
Tel: +65-6733-1556
Open: 10am - 10pm daily

Thai Hainan Chicken Rice at Penang Road

Today it's try again with Max and mom for the Thai Hainan chicken rice before brainwave stimulation program at LGL hospital. Traffic was heavy on Penang Road at lunch time but we managed to park our car and found a table all to ourself at the shop.

After placing our order with the vendor, all the side vendors swamped to our table pleading us to try their dishes. Mom gave in and ordered the otar-otar which is surprisingly good. At RM2.00 each, it's packed with powerful punch of Thai basil and herbs. Make sure to order fast as this item runs out in record time.

We ordered a plate of blanched bean sprout to go with chicken rice. The sprouts are fresh and crispy and definitely worth a try.

We ordered the lor-bak tofu too. The portion is very small and not much taste except salty. The old lady who is selling it will throw her pity card to customers to buy from her. So if you want to help her for survival, do support her but taste wise it's not recommended.

Fish ball soup is a con job. The fish ball is flat, soup is bland and oily. The stall is just next to the chicken rice stall so one might easily mistaken the fish ball stall is part of the chicken rice set.

Finally came the main star of the afternoon. Thai Hainan Chicken! We ordered the white chicken by default coz of mom. Friends who have eaten here swear by the roasted variety. The chicken is tender and tasty, being marinated for hours before cooking. The dark sauce is the key ingredient that made this particular chicken rice stall famous. So make sure don't waste it at the bottom of the plate!

For chicken rice lover, the accompanying chili plays an important role. This stall serves Thai style chili sauce which is greenish instead of the typical reddish sauce in Malaysia. It is spicy, yet sour and salty. It is not recommended for those with weak stomach as the chili is fermented and top up with fresh batch as it goes along.

The next key ingredient in chicken rice is of course the rice. In this stall, the rice is not piping hot but the fragrance is strong as they used chicken stock to cook the rice.

While we were having the chicken rice, mom kept insisting it was the wrong stall coz the "real deal" was a few shop-houses away. To prove her point, we walked further down Penang Road to shop Kek Seng. True enough there was another stall selling chicken rice but Malaysian style. Since we were all too full to eat, we opted to have Kek Seng famous durian ice cream ice kacang. Mom reminiscence about days of her back in school, when the same ice kacang cost only 5 cents.

On the way back to the car park, we walked passed Central Hotel Night Club. The place is dimly lit and smelled of stale cigarette, spilled alcohol, vomit and pee. By night fall, this place will come alive with women clad in skimpy cloths singing, men drinking and smoking while womanizing the old fashion way. The deco is so 70s that this club should promote themselves being the real deal in heritage entertainment. Check out the turtle shell lamp shades and the signboard for "Health Club". 

Lam Hong
Thai Chicken Rice
Penang Road

Closed on Sunday

Business Hour : Lunch till early evening

Lunch at Loh Guan Lye Hospital

Ever since bro was gone, there is a empty time gap in my daily schedule. So when Max is back for holiday AND having academic issue, he was sent to see a child psychiatrist and subsequently having to attend 8 sessions of brainwave stimulation program. I was naturally appointed as his god-ma to chauffeur him daily and of course to make sure he has had a good lunch before he starts his brainwave session. Was supposed to bring him to Penang Road chicken rice but the shop was closed, so we ended up having to settle lunch last minute at the hospital cafe. The internal deco is clean and white, the chairs and table are vintage in accordance to the heritage theme of the cafe.

Max ordered spaghetti Bolognese. Fast and simple dish adored by kids. 

I opted for Char Hor Fun, recommended by mom, but I like mine with eggs and wet. The hor fun was fried at high enough temperature to bring out the flavour, which is good. The sauce however is mediocre for hospital grade food.

The house green salad is nothing to shout about. Served with Thousand Island sauce separately with very freshly cut vegetables. I ordered the salad to add some fibre to our otherwise pure carbo-loading lunch.

Max has developed a keen liking of coffee this holiday stay. Since he is too young to have the real thing, he ordered a decaf Mocha. He enjoyed the drink like an adult and savor the taste in every sip.


I order a Latte but was too full to gulp down the tall drink after the hor fun so I put it in a cup to go and rushed up to Level 7 for the brainwave stimulation session at 2pm.


KSB Heritage Cafe
Loh Guan Lye Hospital
Ground Floor
238 Jalan Macalister
14000 Georgetown
Opens: 7am - 6pm daily