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Archive for July, 2008

CONTEST FOR BLOGGERS

Posted by Criz Lai On July - 30 - 2008

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Popularity: 4% [?]

SIN HONG KEE SEAFOOD

Posted by Criz Lai On July - 29 - 2008

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If you like to have lots of seafood dishes at an affordable price, you should make a visit to this small restaurant along Weld Quay area. The food served here are quite nice as they are neither too oily nor over flavored as most of the restaurant along that area. I visited that place not long ago with a friend of mine.

We ordered a bowl of Seaweed Soup (RM4) with lots of fish balls and meat in it. Not bad for the taste except that I find it a bit oily on the surface.

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Next on the list was my personal request to the chef – Fried Bean Sprouts (Taugeh) and Pea Sprouts (Dou Miao) with Salted Fish (RM5). The chef did even better than I expected as he added some juicy mushroom slices in the dish. The dish was just nice with the correct amount of crunchy salted fish added.

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The Iron Plate Tofu with Minced Pork (RM6) followed. This restaurant presented it in a different way as they laid the base of the hot plate with eggs before putting in the tofu and minced meat on top. Most restaurants would just knock an egg on top of the hot steaming dish before serving.

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The best of the rest came last. We were served seven juicy and big Spicy Buttered Egg Prawns (RM19) and that got our appetite to boost up further. What I like about this dish is that the prawns were real fresh and the slightly sweet buttered egg was real crunchy. Most of all, the dish was not too oily and the amount of curry leaves and butter used in the dish were combined well.

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Overall we spent RM40.20 on the food which was inclusive of rice (RM2.40) and drinks (RM3.80). If you are driving from the ferry terminal towards the Jelutong Expressway, the restaurant is just before the Shell petrol kiosk on your left. Do watch out carefully as they have yet to replace their signboard after it was spoiled by a heavy and windy rainfall.

SINHONGKEEMAP

Name: SIN HONG KEE SEAFOOD
Address: 8 Weld Quay, 10300 Penang, Malaysia.
Contact: 604-263 5231
Opening Hours: 5.30pm – 11.30pm (Closed Tuesday)
GPS: 5.413372, 100.340570

RATING:
Ambience: 7/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 classy)
Food Choices: 8/10 (1-4 limited, 5-7 average, 8-10 many choices)
Taste: 8/10 (1-4 tasteless, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)
Pricing: 7/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 expensive)
Service: 8/10 (1-4 bad, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)

Popularity: 11% [?]

KIM MAOU CAFE

Posted by Criz Lai On July - 28 - 2008

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I just read about What2See’s review on the all the nice places to eat along Lebuh Cintra but he missed out one nice hawker shop along the way. He was not the first one too as the shop which sells Fried Hor Fun looked just like any other hawker stalls in Penang. Unless the person resides within the town area, he or she would have overlooked the small stall hidden at the corner of the old coffee shop.

My friend and I paid a visit to the shop not long ago, although I had frequent the stall for takeaways all the time. We ordered a large Fried Hor Fun (RM6) with lots of freshly fried grouper meat and also a normal sized Fried Ee Foo Mee (RM4) with big fresh succulent prawns. Although the portions served were quite small, the tastes were wonderful. What mattered most was the freshness of the seafood used at the stall. In fact, majority of the patrons there would order their Snakehead Fish Rice Vermicelli Soup (Lay Hoo Bee Hoon Th’ng). If you happen to be around that area, do drop by to try them out. Here are the two dishes which we had ordered.


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You won’t miss the shop as it is at the junction of Lorong Kampung Malabar and Lebuh Cintra. In fact the stall is the row as the famous Rice Dumpling (Bak Chang) shop. Although the shop is located at the heavy traffic area, you can easily find ample parking space along Lorong Kampung Malabar.

KIMMAOUMAP

Name: KIM MAOU CAFE
Address: Lebuh Cintra, 10200 Penang, Malaysia.
Opening Hours: 5.30pm – 10.30pm
GPS: 5.418497, 100.333672

RATING:
Ambience: 6/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 classy)
Food Choices: 7/10 (1-4 limited, 5-7 average, 8-10 many choices)
Taste: 8/10 (1-4 tasteless, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)
Pricing: 7/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 expensive)
Service: 7/10 (1-4 bad, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)

Popularity: 8% [?]

KEDAI KOPI KONG HENG

Posted by Criz Lai On July - 25 - 2008

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With barely few hours left in Ipoh, I had a quick breakfast in one of the coffee shop along Jalan Bandar Timah upon the suggestion of my non-food blogging friend. How unfortunate… haha. Where was J2KFM when I needed him around most? LOL! Anyway the shop we went to was called Kong Heng. It used to house one of the good Ipoh Nga Choi Kai (Chicken with Beansprouts) but they original stall had moved somewhere else.

I ordered the Beef Noodles (RM6) which was supposed to be one of the best around but it did not suit my taste bud as I personally felt that there was no sweetness at all in the soup. All I get was the taste from the lots of ginger-filled meat ball and pepper taste. I would think those from Penang such as the stalls at New Lane/Macalister junction, Chulia Street/Beach Street junction, Lorong Kampung Malabar or the one at GoodAll Café, Gottlieb Road tasted even better.


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Next on my list was their famous Poh Piah (RM1.70 each). I ordered the wet one as well as the fried one each to try out. Not bad as the filling was full of fried dried flounder (Phnee Hoo). I can taste the crunchiness of the flounder in every single bite. The wet Poh Piah looked somewhat like our Penang Mamak Poh Piah as the sauce is spread on top. The fried one looked like the Penang Choon Phneah but the filling was not with any crab meat or any sauce to accompany. Although the Poh Piah tasted great, I somehow still love the one in Penang along Jalan Anson (Padang Brown opposite Convent Datuk Kramat) as the Poh Piah is filled with lots of crab meat at only RM2 each.

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We also ordered the Ee Mee Soup (RM3) and Shui Kow Noodle (RM3.30) but those are just normal and nothing to brag about.

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To get to the shop, just drive along Jalan Bandar Timah and you will see the shop on your left between Jalan Market and Jalan Panglima.

KONGHENGMAP

Name: KEDAI KOPI KONG HENG
Address: Jalan Bandar Timah, 30000 Ipoh, Perak, Malaysia.
Opening Hours: 8.00am – 3.00pm
GPS: 4.596498, 101.077845

RATING:
Ambience: 6/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 classy)
Food Choices: 6/10 (1-4 limited, 5-7 average, 8-10 many choices)
Taste: 6/10 (1-4 tasteless, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)
Pricing: 6/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 expensive)
Service: 7/10 (1-4 bad, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)

Popularity: 6% [?]

SIN ENG HEONG FOODSTUFF MANUFACTURES

Posted by Criz Lai On July - 21 - 2008

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I always love to bring back something nice and unique for my parents to try when I am somewhere out from my hometown Penang. Last week’s half day trip to Ipoh was a worthwhile one as I managed to get the famous salted chicken as well as some yummy biscuits for my family. Thanks to J2KFM for introducing me to this wonderful biscuit manufacturer’s shop down in Ipoh.

One step into Kedai Biskut Sin Eng Heong, you can practically smell the aroma of freshly baked biscuits everywhere. There were many types of biscuits laid on the tables as well as the shelves. Most of those biscuit would be sold out even before the owners have the time to pack them into individual boxes. Now you know how fresh those biscuits are. The most popular biscuit sold in the shop is their Fluffy Kaya Puff. I have not tasted any that are as delicious as those sold there. Now I am regretting not buying more back home. Here are the photos of the yummy Fluffy Kaya Puff at 50sen each and you can get them to pack for you in a box of 5’s or 10’s.


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Other than the kaya puff, you can even try out their Lou Poh Peng, Salted Egg Biscuit, Spicy Biscuit, Tambun Biscuit (plain, orange, pandan flavored), mini mooncake (baked and snow skin) and many other confectionaries. There were just too many to name here.

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On top of all these yummy freshly baked goodies, the shop does sell other products by other biscuit companies such as the thick and thin Chicken Biscuits (Kai Zai Peng) from Long Kee. Surprisingly, they do not have these goodies from Pun Chun which I felt tasted better. Upon checking and having a headache on what to choose from tens of different types of biscuits, I spotted a plastic canister filled with thin crispy Chicken Biscuits (RM12 for about 30pcs). The biscuit was extremely crispy thin and tasted even better than those I had mentioned above. Do watch out for the label under the name Genuine Taste Trading from Kampar (605-466 4803). I have not noticed this label before but they sure did produce the best Chicken Biscuit that I had tasted before. My advice is to buy more than one canister as I am still regretting now for not buying more. :P

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Getting to the shop would not be hard as Sin Eng Heong is just diagonally opposite the famous Foh San Restaurant along Jalan Mustapha Al-Bakri (formerly Jalan Clare). One thing to take note is that please place your orders for the foodstuff, especially the Fluffy Kaya Puff during weekends as they are sold off very early.

SINENGHEONGMAP

Name: SIN ENG HEONG FOODSTUFF MANUFACTURES
Address:
64, Jalan Mustapha Al-Bakri (Jalan Clare), 30300 Ipoh, Perak, Malaysia.
Tel: 605-243 9659
Opening Hours: 9.00am – 9.00pm (Mon – Sat), 9.00am – 6.00pm (Sun)
GPS: 4.594873, 101.084776

RATING:
Ambience: 7/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 classy)
Food Choices: 9/10 (1-4 limited, 5-7 average, 8-10 many choices)
Taste: 8/10 (1-4 tasteless, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)
Pricing: 7/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 expensive)
Service: 8/10 (1-4 bad, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)

Popularity: 14% [?]

CHINESE CHIVES FLOWER ROASTED PORK FRIED HOR FUN

Posted by Criz Lai On July - 20 - 2008

I got up real early this morning just to prepare a meal for my family today although it is a Sunday. Have you ever encountered trying to think of what to buy back for lunch on a Sunday? If it is not Fried Rice then it would be the usual noodle dishes that I got rather bored with. With a little of creativity, I came out with something you cannot buy from any stalls around, which I would like to share with you all. Here is the recipe to my CHINESE CHIVES FLOWER ROASTED PORK FRIED HOR FUN.

CHIVESFLOWERHORFUN

INGREDIENTS
1.5 kg hor fun (open up and cut into 1.5” strips)
600gms roasted pork (chopped)
300gms Chinese chives flower (cut into 1” length)
1 piece thick fish cake (halves and cut into strips)
2 pieces artificial crabsticks (cut into 4mm thickness)
5 eggs (beat with 1 Tspn sesame oil, 2 Tspn soy sauce and pepper)
10 porcelain spoons vegetable oil
3 cloves garlic (chopped)
6 Tspn soy sauce
1 Tspn dark soy sauce
3 Tspn sesame oil
3 Tspn oyster sauce
Pepper
Salt
Sugar

PREPARATION

1. Heat up wok with 6 porcelain spoons of oil and saute some chopped garlic. When the garlic becomes slightly brown, lower fire, pour in the hor fun. Add in 1 Tspn of dark soy sauce, 3 Tspn of soy sauce, 1 Tspn oyster sauce, 1 Tspn sesame oil and some pepper. Higher fire and stir until it looked slightly dried up. Scoop and leave aside.
2. Put in some oil and chopped garlic. Stir fry the fish cake for two minutes. Scoop and leave aside together with the diced crabsticks.
3. Put in 3 porcelain spoons of oil and sauté some garlic until brown. Pour in the roasted pork, 1 Tspn soy sauce, 1 Tspn sesame oil, 2 Tspn oyster sauce, pinch of sugar, and some pepper and stir fry for about two minutes. Add in the Chinese chives flower and stir until cook. Scoop and leave aside.
4. Add in the balance oil, sauté some garlic on high fire. When slightly brown, pour in the beaten eggs and scrambled it until loose.
5. Lower the fire. Pour in the fried hor fun and stir thoroughly. Next, pour in the rest of the ingredients and stir thoroughly.
6. Sprinkle some salt and pepper to taste (if not enough)
7. Scoop into dishes and serve while it is hot. You can garnish with fried shallots and serve with shrimp paste chili (sambal belacan).

(Serves: 4-6)

YOU CAN CHECK HERE FOR MORE RECIPES.

Popularity: 8% [?]

AUN KHENG LIM SALTED CHICKEN

Posted by Criz Lai On July - 18 - 2008

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My friends always described me as a nut when it comes to getting gifts for them. They always get food rather than something that they can keep and appreciate. Well, they were right and errr… isn’t a nut food too? :P I was down in Ipoh for just a few hours and I ended filling up my car with nothing but delicious food from Ipoh. What a typical me… haha! This time, it was Ipoh’s famous salted chicken. I have tried so many different shops in Ipoh as well as a few from Penang but I still like this shop the best.

The herbs (Dong Quai or Chinese Angelica of Female Ginseng) stuffed inside the chicken and under the wings made the chicken just nice for my taste bud. Moreover the salt used to bake the wrapped chicken does not make the meat over salty. The meat still remained juicy and yummy. I always have the problem not having enough of the delicious chicken as it’s rather small and not as meaty as some chicken meat. Maybe that’s the ideal size to get the best taste out of it.


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Do you know what is so great about getting this salted chicken? It’s not only good to be served as one of the delicious dishes on your dining table, it can also be made into a delicious sandwich. Without fail, I would make some each time I get hold of a bird. The herb and slightly salted fragrance of the meat, together with some fresh lettuce, tomatoes and mushrooms always make great sandwiches. This is what I had for my lunch today. You should try that too! :)

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The price per bird (not really that meaty but nice) is RM16 nett. You can ask them to pack for you individually in a box with a beautifully designed red plastic bag if you intend to make it a gift for someone. Finding the way to the shop is rather easy if you know the way well. Just move around the main road along Jalan Raja Musa Aziz until you see a corner shop with red, white and blue stripes on your right. That’s the shop.

AUNKHENGLIMMAP

Name: AUN KHENG LIM SALTED CHICKEN
Address: 24, Jalan Theatre, 30300 Ipoh, Perak, Malaysia.
Tel: 605-254 2998
Opening Hours: 10.00pm – finish
GPS: 4.594680, 101.083274

RATING:
Ambience: 6/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 classy)
Food Choices: 5/10 (1-4 limited, 5-7 average, 8-10 many choices)
Taste: 8/10 (1-4 tasteless, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)
Pricing: 7/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 expensive)
Service: 8/10 (1-4 bad, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)

Popularity: 13% [?]

BREEZE CAFE

Posted by Criz Lai On July - 16 - 2008

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Other than Northam Beach Café, there is another place called Breeze Café right up by the coastal area of Tanjung Tokong. The concept here is totally different compared to NBC as all the food and beverages are managed by only a restaurant there. They do serve Western food, noodles & rice dishes, finger food up to ice creams, coffee and hard liquors. Not a bad place to laze about on the easily available deck chairs while enjoying the cool breeze from the sea. This is quite an ideal place for love birds as well as for small groups of friends.

The management can even arrange for BBQ by the beach for a minimum of 4 persons (RM25+ each), a group of 25 persons (RM25+ each plus a free bungalow stay) and themed buffet dinner for a minimum of 20 persons (RM25+ each) by the beach. You can check out more information on the promotion through any of their other restaurants, Nyonya Café (i-Avenue) in Bayan Lepas, Penang or Nyonya Café (New World Park), Penang.

My friend and I paid a visit recently and found the place quite relaxing except that you might find some stray mosquitoes biting since the place is dimly lighted and with a lots of decorative plants around. Both of us ordered a Shirley Temple (RM8) and a Kickapoo (RM4) as our drinks.

As for starter, I ordered a bowl of Mushroom Soup (RM4.50). It came in a big soup bowl with a few largely cut crouton. Not bad for the pricing but the soup tasted ordinary.

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As for the main, I ordered the Chicken Cordon Bleu (RM10). The dish was presented in a simple way with the usual fries, salad, white plain bread (a quarter and non-toasted?) and the stuffed breaded chicken drumstick garnished with some mushroom sauce. Maybe it was my luck as the chicken was quite burn and dry and the stuffing has no taste of cheese at all. The mushroom sauce was rather bland too.

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My friend ordered a Black Pepper Chicken (RM9). The garnishing was the same except that he got a larger piece of battered chicken drumstick with thigh. As for the black pepper sauce, I felt that it was rather diluted with not much of pepper taste in it. I still love the one at Yaw’s Roast & Grill.

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My friend and I then ordered Love Boat (RM8) to share out as dessert. We were allowed to choose 3 flavors from the list of 6 flavors such as Vanilla, Coffee, Chocolate, Strawberry, Rum & Raisins and Mint Chocolate Chips. You can even order a scoop at RM3.50.

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The total price came up to RM47.85 which included a 10% service charge. Overall, the place is not bad for drinkers. As for food, I would hope that the management would spice up the quality in order to gain more diners. I have not tried their other stir-fried dishes with rice or fried noodles yet. Maybe I might have other opinions of the taste and quality.

Most people, even the locals would miss this place as it is situated right inside the coastal area of Tanjung Tokong. If you are driving up from town area towards Tanjung Tokong / Tanjung Bungah / Batu Ferringhi, you will see the Penang Chinese Swimming Club on your right. Drive forward until you see a traffic light (Tanjung Bungah Hotel on your right). Make a U-Turn and drive towards the swimming club. Turn left into the road after the swimming club until you see Naza Hotel. The café is just next to the hotel. They do also provide budget motel here under the name Sea Wind Beach Motel. You can park right inside or just along the road. Parking spaces are rather limited within the compound.

BREEZECAFEMAP

Name: BREEZE CAFÉ (BAYU SEAFOOD VILLAGE)
Address: 515, C.M. Hashim, Tanjung Tokong, 11200 Penang, Malaysia.
Tel: 604-899 7099
Website: www.seawind.where2go.com.my
Opening Hours:
6.30pm – 1.00am (Mon-Thur), 6.30pm – 2.00am (Fri-Sun)
Note: Kitchen will close an hour earlier.
GPS: 5.463835, 100.305777

RATING:
Ambience: 8/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 classy)
Food Choices: 7/10 (1-4 limited, 5-7 average, 8-10 many choices)
Taste: 6/10 (1-4 tasteless, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)
Pricing: 7/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 expensive)
Service: 8/10 (1-4 bad, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)

Popularity: 6% [?]

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About Me

Howdy from the Isle of delicious Asian food and the UNESCO Heritage City of Georgetown, Penang, Malaysia. Just call me Criz Lai and I am here to share with you on what’s the best food you can get in town as well as from many other parts of Malaysia.

By the way, you might not notice it but CRIZ BON APPETITE is iPhone/Mobile Compatible. Please do feel free to hop over to http://ip.crizfood.com to get the latest updates! If you want to contact me for any questions, don’t hesitate to email me at crizlai [at] hotmail [dot] com. Spamming would not be tolerated – you are being tracked here!

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