CRIZ BON APPETITE

Recently, a Singaporean food blogger (flogger) has posted up on his blog, ranting his views on “There is no such thing as a free meal. This is the cost of food blogging”. Well, he got most of his points right. However, some points stated might not necessary apply to all the Malaysian bloggers due to the different standard on the cost of living.

Most people would just assume that floggers are enjoying their lives just because they have endless eatery requests for reviews. Some high profiles ones might even get free meals daily the whole year through. Is it fun? Yes, it is fun to try out different cuisine. No, as no one really knows the amount of time a blogger spent to get a well written post out. Towards the end of the day, the “I feed you free and you write a review for me” deal might end up costing you more than the meal itself.

Leaving all the nitty-gritty part of your investment out (E.g. camera, flash light, batteries, computer, editing software, photography workshop tuition fees, domain purchase, website hosting fees and so on), what the merchants did not realize is that there are still many hidden cost to a blogger. Here are some of the main factors:

TIME FACTOR: Most merchants would think that floggers are so free that time is not a factor. If they can attend their food review, it meant that they have lots of free time in hand. Are they serious? If a flogger can earn easily through blogging, then they do not need to have a full time job. Other than personal expenses from family commitments, most bloggers would still need to find ways to earn something to pay for all their miscellaneous bills. If time is free, who started having this phrase “TIME IS MONEY”?

LABOR INTENSIVE FACTOR: How many hours do you think a blogger need to be present in a food review? It’s at least 2-3 hours. Most of the time, it’s even longer than that. What about brainstorming to write a proper post? It’s at least 2-3 hours, though some seasoned bloggers can do it within an hour or more. How about the time spent in editing photos and uploading to the necessary photo archive before embedding into the post? Another 2-3 hours? For a review posting, it would safely take up to 6-9 hours of their time.

TRAVELING FACTOR: Do not forget that traveling to a designated venue would involve time, petrol/taxi/bus/LRT fee, toll fee and parking fee as well. Is that “our problem” since “I feed you free of charge? How you come is not my concern.” mentality has always been present in the minds of these merchants?

TECHNICAL CALCULATION:

Estimation:
Average time spent on a review: Estimated 7 hours x RM10/hour (cheap labor cost) = RM70
Traveling cost: RM15 (petrol/taxi/bus/LRT fee) + RM7 (toll) + RM5 (parking fee) = RM27
Estimated cost to review an eatery: RM97 (round up to RM100 for easy calculation)

SYPNOSIS:

Now come the interesting part on how smart a merchant would think in order to squeeze the best from floggers for the sake of cheaper publicity. Media advertising would cost them up to thousands.

Example:
Cost of food for review: RM800
Number of media/bloggers engaged: 10 pax
Average cost per media/blogger: RM80 each

From the example shown above, you can see that floggers are sponsoring merchants RM20 at their own expenses instead. Some merchants would argue that they are providing floggers with food to fill their tummies as well as contents to build up their website traffic. Well, that’s not all wrong too. However, most merchants are taking floggers for a ride in the sense that there are normally some “hidden clauses” to the free food deal. “Can you all help in spreading the promotion, etc via FaceBook, Twitter, Instagram or even TripAdvisor?” Moreover, some merchants have the cheek to request for free photos just to save on professional photography charges. I’m sure they are not aware that each camera has a shutter life expectancy of certain quantity of photos and it would cost thousands to replace a camera. Reviewing an eatery does not mean that the floggers’ photographs are the property of the eatery owner. Unless stated in black & white prior to the review, each photo given is chargeable between RM20-RM200 depending on the quality required. Are they expecting floggers to provide free service as well?

WORST FOOD REVIEWS ENCOUNTERED:

Case 1: Official opening of a restaurant – 13 media/floggers sharing less than RM200 of food from their ala carte menu.
Case 2: Burger review – 7 floggers sharing less than RM60 of mediocre burgers.
Case 3: Event – Dozens of media/bloggers begging to be served with just a drink.
Case 4: Restaurant review – canceling of review 10 minutes before review time. No rescheduling thereafter. Most of the floggers were already 3 quarter way to the venue.
Case 5: Hotel restaurant review – One session of food review and endless emails requesting to promote their monthly offer throughout the year.

REMUNERATION:

Bloggers are not beggars to insist on being rewarded. However, they should also not be taken for granted to provide all the publicity needs to a money earning entity. I want to compliment some PR personnel as well as PR Agencies here for handling the bloggers professionally. They are well aware of the bloggers’ efforts in writing a review and would reward/subsidize them at least something by mode of cash, vouchers and kinds. After all, blogging is one of the alternative ways to bring up the profitability of a business. It’s should be a WIN-WIN relationship for both parties

SUMMARY:

By the end of the day, you would realize that “free food” reviews are not really for free. In fact, the floggers are actually paying for their own food indirectly as stated above. On top of that, most of the time, the floggers are subsidizing these eateries instead. It’s always a WIN-LOSE relationship between eatery and floggers. The only advantage is that floggers get to try out new dishes, which are not necessary the best to their likings. At times, some of the inexperienced floggers with no culinary background will fall prey to writing positive reviews on lousy food, just because it’s an invited review.

CASE STUDIES:

Do you think merchants/brands/PR Agencies are treating bloggers fairly? Would you still accept such an invitation based on the different scenario stated below?

Scenario #1:
Mode: Via PR Agency
Review: One top market women accessories company requires 10 female lifestyle/beauty bloggers to blog about their new products releases. Press release is provided.
Requirement: ONE post with at least 5 photos
Compensation: None
Added Bonus: Each blogger will get RM200 worth of product samples.

Scenario #2:
Mode: Direct Engagement
Review: One top confectionery company requires 50 food bloggers nationwide to blog about their new range products. RM30 worth of sample products would be sent to each blogger. Guidelines are provided to the bloggers.
Requirement: ONE post with at least 5 photos
Compensation: None
Added Bonus: None

Scenario #3:
Mode: Direct Engagement
Review: A Multi National Corporation (MNC) requires 100 bloggers nationwide to blog about their new product launch. Press release and photos are provided to the bloggers to come out with a proper post.
Requirement: ONE post with at least 5 photos
Compensation: RM15 blogging fees per post
Added Bonus: 3 lucky draw of products worth more than RM1000 each.

Scenario #4:
Mode: Direct Engagement
Review: A 5-Star Hotel requires 10 food bloggers to blog about their monthly buffet promotion. The new items will be served ala carte. However, bloggers can access to their buffet spread of the day for additional dishes. A normal buffet will cost about RM60/pax. Press release is provided.
Requirement: ONE post with at least 5 photos
Compensation: None
Added Bonus: Goody bags worth more than RM25 each

Scenario #5:
Mode: Via PR Agency
Review: A fine dining restaurant in town requires 5 bloggers to blog about their new promotion. Bloggers get to try out all the dishes in a fine dining style. Each set will cost between RM100-RM150. No press release given.
Requirement: TWO posts with at least 5 photos each
Compensation: RM30 blogging fees per post
Added Bonus: None

Scenario #6:
Mode: Direct Engagement
Review: A top mobile company requires 10 lifestyle/tech bloggers to blog about their next generation of mobile phone. Bloggers get to try out the new release for 2 weeks. Thereafter, the mobile phone would be sent back to the company. Return shipping will be paid by the company. No press release is given.
Requirement: ONE post with at least 5 photos
Compensation: None
Added Bonus: An opportunity to purchase the unit at cost price (30% off from the RRP)

Scenario #7:
Mode: Via PR Agency
Review: A top alcohol brand requires 10 lifestyle/entertainment bloggers to blog about their upcoming biggest party (RM300-RM400 per ticket) with smaller pre-parties held near your vicinity. Access ticket worth RM120-150 for the pre-party will be given to each blogger. Free flow of alcohol will be provided. Press release is given.
Requirement: ONE post with at least 5 photos
Compensation: None
Added Bonus: Door gifts worth more than RM50

Scenario #8:
Mode: Direct Engagement
Review: A restaurant requires 10 food bloggers to blog about their new menu. 20% of dishes in the menu (worth RM600) are presented to the bloggers to share out. No press release is given.
Requirement: ONE post with at least 5 photos and to share the photos in various social media.
Compensation: None
Added Bonus: None

Scenario #9:
Mode: Direct Engagement
Review: An airline company requires 5 lifestyle/travel bloggers to blog about their new flight to a destination somewhere out of Malaysia. Each return air ticket will cost about RM4000. Bloggers will have to bear their own accommodation, food expenses and traveling cost within the country. The next flight out from the country will be in 5 days’ time. Thus, the bloggers would have to stay in the country for at least 4D3N at their own expenses. No press release is given.
Requirement: ONE post with at least 5 photos
Compensation: None
Added Bonus: None

Scenario #10:
Mode: Direct Engagement
Review: A 3-Star hotel requires 5 lifestyle/travel bloggers to blog about their experiences staying in their hotel somewhere out of their state. A 3D2N accommodation package (RM400/day) will be given to each blogger. Each blogger is allowed to bring along a +1. Bloggers will have to bear their own transportation cost to the hotel. No press release is given.
Requirement: ONE post with at least 5 photos
Compensation: None
Added Bonus: Breakfast, lunch and dinner will be provided for two.

There are still endless scenarios to mention here but I’ll just keep it simple at 10 cases. Let me hear your feedback via the comment box below on the following scenarios with reasons why you think otherwise.

On the other hand, let’s understand a bit more on bloggers too. Most bloggers, not necessary only Malaysians, have the hope to be just like entrepreneurs, always on lookouts on how to monetize their blog/business. In order to become a professional blogger, do get your own domain name and host. Unless blogging is just for your leisure writing and not as a career, it’s strongly discouraged to rely solely on free blogging platforms. Not only are you restricted to place well any sponsored advertisements, you would give the impressions to any potential merchants that you are always on the lookout for “freebies”. Being frugal here won’t get you far in your financial dreams. Success won’t come free either.

REALITY:

The reality is that only a small percentage of bloggers are successful. These are the people who have the influence to determine how much they can earn through blogging. Have you asked yourself why you are not in that loop of successful bloggers? Firstly, how many years have you been blogging? Successful bloggers don’t just fall from the sky as it takes years of hard work, determination and patience to be where they are today. Secondly, do you think that by blogging alone will make one grow rich? Unless a blogger is super rich enough to sustain his/her living, the answer is “No”. If you research carefully, you might have missed out that most successful bloggers have backup businesses behind their blogs. Those can be by mode of cross selling their products and services or even having those “connections” that not any Tom, Dick or Harry would get access to. Thirdly, it’s sheer luck as you are extremely lucky to be at the right place and right time to strike gold by meeting the right person. However, even luck will run dry one day if you do not take the golden opportunity to maintain your blog quality as per high expectations from your readers.

COMMON BLOGGING SCENES:

How many bloggers are really following the Bloggers’ Code of Ethics other than hoping that monetary gain would make them excel in their style of blogging? As I have always mentioned this message to many bloggers, “Do not make money as your primary driving force! Do take it with a bit of salt that any monetary gains would just be some extras for your ‘festive shopping’.” There are some bloggers out there who owned a camera, a valid blog plus some knowledge on how to write a bit better and they think they can rule the world as a professional blogger. Some even boasted that they have the best gadgets in town, thus their blog will sure rule the blogging scenes. I did tell many of my blogger friends, “You do not need to have the best gadgets in town to get a winning entry.” If you have the eye to capture the best composition, any model of camera will do. After all, you don’t really need super high megapixels photos, thus slowing down the downloading speed of your blog post. For knowledge sake, even a large wallpaper printing or a super large banner on high rise building would require only 1dpi for printing. Why do you need such a super expensive high megapixel camera just for blogging? The least is to get at least a better quality compact camera to do the job.

I won’t deny that some bloggers managed to pull through the hardship but from my study, most of them eventually turned inactive after awhile due to the lack of commitment, determination and time to maintain a quality blog. Blogging is surely not for those people without much willpower to strive for the best. It’s a tough “job” that most people could not endure for a long period of time due to not seeing any profitability from all the hard work they have put in.

I have also encountered many good bloggers surrendering to the wants of their readers to have shorter posts, thus ending up with just photos and descriptions with hardly any views from their parts. Without much detail, it’s as good as posting up on any of the social networks with limitation of words. It’s no longer a blog as I can see it. Potential merchants would surely avoid such blogs.

There are even some bloggers who would use their so-called credentials to “beg” for freebies and reviews. Yes, you read it correctly. Begging! There’re no differences between the blogger and that of a beggar. If your blog is at par with quality posts, merchants would eventually hunt for you instead of you pitching for any reviews like there’s no tomorrow. The most disappointing part is that some of these bloggers are not even having high blog traffic to demand for reviews.

BLOGGERS’ CODE OF ETHICS:

GOOD JOURNALISM: You should not plagiarize other people’s hard work. Even if you need to quote something or use any photo belonging to others, do give proper credits to your source. Moreover, you need to make sure you have all the necessary up-to-date details and not just assuming that it’s accurate just because you read it from somewhere ages ago. Get your facts right before even publishing your post. Most importantly, write in a language that you are comfortable with. You have the Google, Wikipedia and many other sites to help you in this matter. Stop giving excuses that you don’t know anything without putting in some effort in researching more.

ACCOUNTABILITY: What we post might affect the reputation or profitability of a business. There are certain people who think that I’m bias in certain invited reviews without using my lion mouth to criticize them. Is it? I won’t even bother wasting my time writing a bad product or a service. If you don’t like it, just leave it. We have to be conscious on the livelihood of a business. You have a family to feed, so do they. Even the best product or even a restaurant might not please everyone. Negative feedback may come in many ways. You just don’t give a business a brutal slap just because you don’t like what you get at first impression. Moreover, I realized that many bloggers are doing so without truly exploring more on anything. Even a patient would seek other medical help for a second opinion. So, what about having multiple visits or try outs to get a better verdict? Do not keep it to yourself or voice it out to other parties on your displeasure. Constructive feedback should be directed to the business owner in order for them to improve further.

CIVIL MINDEDNESS: As a blogger, you have the right to stress on your views. However, it’s unethical to run down anyone with personal attacks. We have to be mindful on how we write with the right choice of words. “The item sucks” versus “The item is not up to my expectations” would have totally different meaning. Do remember that personal preference can be real subjective. If a business had gone astray, do try to throw in some continuous reminders and feedbacks to get it back on the right track. Do have the interest to help build up the businesses within your community so that you can be proud of them in years to come.

TRANSPARENCY: No blogger has the budget to review everything under the sky. If you are given any sample, discount or anything for that matter for reviewing, just disclose your privileges in your post. There’s no point bragging on how much you had spent while in actual fact, you are doing reviews based on other people’s expenses or even based on your online deal purchases. What your reader wants would be your truthfulness in your reviews and not on the false richness you try to conceal.

PROFESSIONALISM: Just because you are a blogger with some influences, it does not mean that you could insist on special treatments such as offers, discounts, freebies, free food, free drinks and so on. Not only would you tarnish your image, you would also bring shame to the whole blogging community. Moreover, I did hear of certain groups in the blogging community, within and outside of Malaysia, even target PR companies/departments seeking exclusive reviews. What a shame to the blogging community! I have also seen some bloggers force selling their personal products or services during a proper review. There’s nothing wrong in promoting your business but do it on another day on your personal accord rather than jeopardizing the whole review process. You won’t want the bloggers to be termed as scavengers striking at potential victims.

Disclaimer: This is a post for awareness and sharing purposes. I have no intentions in defaming any parties, either bloggers, merchants or whomever while writing this post. The entire post is based on my observations on what had happened in the world of blogging today.

I’m sure I need not have to mention much about Starbucks® in Malaysia as most of you would have known the brand throughout their 15 years of operations in Malaysia. It’s operated by Berjaya Starbucks® Coffee Company Sdn. Bhd., a joint-venture between Starbucks® Coffee International and Berjaya Group Berhad. With over 150 outlets and ‘drive-thru’s throughout Malaysia since their first store opening in Kuala Lumpur on 17 December 1998, Starbucks® promised to bring in more great deals during this Christmas 2013 (Promotion period: 6 November 2013 – 6 January 2014) based on the theme “Create Wonder and Share Joy with Favorite Seasonal Traditions”. We had a fun-filled briefing on the seasonal promotion at Starbucks® Drive-Thru, Tanjung Tokong, Penang recently.

“Starbucks® Drive-Thru Tanjung Tokong is the most profitable drive-thru outlets amongst all six throughout Malaysia. It’s also the outlet with the most completed merchandises in Penang,” stated Sdyney Quays, Managing Director of Berjaya Starbucks® Coffee Company.

Amongst the once-a-year favorites would be their freshly brewed Starbucks® Seasonal Favorite Coffees (RM40 for 250g coffee beans pack or RM33 for 12 sachets of ready brew packs), the perfect salute for each season. These are the Starbucks® Christmas Blend (Whole Beans or VIA Ready Brew Christmas Blend), a dark roasted coffee with a blend of lively Latin American coffees and smooth Asia Pacific coffees, including rare, aged Indonesian beans; full bodied, medium acidity with soothing sweet, spicy plus herbal aromas and Starbucks® Christmas Blend Espresso Roast, a darker espresso roast with sweeter and dense flavors to the mellow smoothness of the Asia Pacific beans.

There are also 3 new flavors of delicious cakes introduced this year. All cakes would be priced at RM10.90/slice. The most notably one would be their Trio Forest, a rich moist chocolate cake, stuffed with juicy caramelized dark cherries, topped with a layer of chocolate ganache and beautifully presented with a generous amount of shaved chocolate flakes. The Mango Tango which had mango slices stuffed between layers of light sponge cake would be ideal to go with the Starbucks® Christmas Blend. The Midori on the other hand was also unique by itself. The trio layered sponge cake had a topping of cream cheese with slathered pistachio dressing.

Christmas is a time to create wonder and share joy with family and friends over stories, memories and delicious Starbucks® food and beverages. Again this year, Starbucks® is bringing back their Christmas beverages with a bit of twist from last year’s. You can now enjoy their enhanced versions of Toffee Nut Latte, Toffee Nut Frappuccino® blended beverage, Peppermint Mocha Frappuccino® blended beverage and Cranberry White Chocolate Mocha Frappuccino® blended beverage.

Toffee Nut Latte Frappuccino® is a flavorful holiday beverage. It has the rich, buttery flavor of sweet toffee combined with toasted nuts, blended with their smooth espresso and velvety steamed milk. Topped with whipped cream and toffee-flavored sprinkles, it’s no surprise that this warm, heavenly beverage is sure to put you in the mood for Christmas.

The Peppermint Mocha Frappuccino® is another great beverage for peppermint lovers. It has a combination of espresso, steamed milk, bittersweet chocolate and peppermint flavor in this seasonal favorite. Topped with classic whipped cream and a light sprinkles of Christmas cane candies, the Peppermint Mocha is brimming with Christmas cheer that is sure to please.

Back by popular demand, the Cranberry White Chocolate Mocha Frappuccino® is the perfect sweet treat to sip during this season. Starbucks® signature espresso is combined with freshly steamed milk and luscious white chocolate, then topped with whipped cream, a tart cranberry drizzle and crystallized cranberry sugar.

Another gifting option or even as collectible items would definitely be the Starbucks® Card. This year, Starbucks® had added another new card design named “Merry Christmas”. You would have the options to choose from the 3 distinctive designs, namely “Merry Christmas”, “Snowman” and “Christmas Tree”. Do grab either one of the limited edition designs or maybe all if you are into collecting them. Each card required a minimum activation fee of RM30.

Also available this year would be their limited edition Starbucks® Planner 2014 which has a special compartment to store your iPad. Priced at RM159 each, this planner could also be redeemed FOC via certain termed purchases by mode of your Starbucks® Card. The requirement of purchases would be any 3 purchases of the Christmas beverages plus 15 purchases of “Grande sized” beverages. Terms & conditions apply.

Planning to set the Christmas moods with more giving and sharing? There are more than 60 items at each Starbucks® outlet, ranging from Starbucks® Seasonal Favorite coffees, Starbucks® Card, Starbucks® Planner 2014, Starbucks® soft toys, Starbucks® mugs, Starbucks® tumblers, Starbucks® Christmas ornaments and more for you to choose.

The most notable one would be the Swarovski crystal studded Starbucks® Christmas ornament priced at RM185.

Thanks to Starbucks® for the invitation as well as the lovely bring home gifts~ 🙂

Name: STARBUCKS® DRIVE-THRU @ TANJUNG TOKONG, PENANG
Address: 4-G, Jalan Pantai Molek, Tanjung Tokong, 10470 Penang, Malaysia.
Contact: 604-890 6008
Business Hours: 6.30am-1.00am (Sun-Thurs), 24 hours (Fri & Sat)
Website: http://www.starbucks.com.my/
GPS: 5.446571, 100.305556

 

Herbs and spices (either freshly grown or dried ones) have been around for centuries and they are the main ingredients to pep up the flavors and aromas in our daily cuisine. For the month of November 2013 (1-30 November 2013), the Swez Brasserie @ Eastin Hotel, Penang, would be having its Herbs & Spices Promotion to send your taste bud tingling back to the days of the Maharajah. This promotion would be under the skillful hands of Chef Khalil bin Khazali, Chef de Partie (Malay Kitchen) and Chef Buvanessuaran a/l Muniandy, Commis 1 (Pastry Kitchen), supervised by Chef Mohamad Bakri, head of Malay Kitchen.

We started off the meal with a soup called Chicken Mulligatawny Soup (印度香料雞湯). Mulligatawny is a traditional curry soup of Indian origin but it has many variations depending of which region it came from. The soup basically has the ingredients of your common Potato & Carrot Soup (ABC Soup as some locals may call it) but slightly spiced up with some curry powder, plus added green apple slices for some extra crunch and sweetness. This soup would normally be thickened up with some rice grains but there would also be the option to apply in some heavy cream. The mild spiciness of this soup would suit Westerners more. However, being a spicy lover, I personally find the soup to be a bit too mild and watery to my liking. On top of that, being towards a more Indian theme, it lacked the common garnishing of herbs such as cilantro and/or red chilies to bring out more depth in the dish, taste and flavor wise.

Next we had a dish known as Achari Paneer (鮮辣芝士沙拉). Paneer is a kind of non-melting Indian style cottage cheese, processed by separating the curd from the whey by adding some food acid into hot boiling milk. The drained curd would then be soaked in chilled water for a period of time to get the almost bean curd hard like texture. This “either you like it or not” type of non-melting paneer is extremely versatile for any form of cooking, even as a pakora. The kitchen did it in a spicy way by stir frying those cubed paneer with a long list of herbs and spices. The aromatic accompaniment was nicely prepared with the right balance of flavors. However, I noticed that the paneer was not properly drained as there were still some traces of moisture oozing out from cooked cheese. The kitchen might pull through by preparing the dish this way but it would be a bit risky if they planned to deep fry those cubed cheese.

Since I’m quite fond on Indian finger food such as the vadai, masala vadai, samosa and more, I find the next item to be simple and yet fulfilling. We had Deep Fried Pakoras (香酥炸蔬菜). Each pakora had some finely cut onions, chilies and spices mixed in gram flour prior to being mold into bite size for deep frying. These lovely crispy snacks went well with their Madras Curry Mayo dipping sauce.

The Chicken Tikka Masala (馬薩拉香濃雞) was lovely. The meat was well marinated and tender with a high presence of garam masala usages. If you can get hold of a slice of lime, a little squeeze would pep up the flavors even more. Thumbs up!

The Goan Fish Curry (印度傳統咖哩魚) was served next. The Goa style curry fish was normal. You practically get this style of cooking anywhere in Malaysia, whether they are from a Malay, Indian, Indian Muslim or even a Chinese economy rice stall.

On the other hand, the Sindhi Kadhi (咖哩蔬菜鍋) was also another common dish served. This nutritious dish with a predominant use of various vegetables, complement each other beautifully in terms of color, taste and texture.

We were also served with the Masala Aloo (香濃馬鈴薯咖哩). I was wondering if the kitchen named this dish wrongly as there were no “murgh” aka chicken in the dish. Thus, I had renamed it as Masala Aloo rather than Murgh Aloo Masala. The dish practically tasted almost like the Indian style Dhal Curry. However, instead of using lentils, these were replaced with chickpeas. This dish would go well with rice or any of the Indian bread, especially roti pratha and chapati.

Lastly, there was also the Lamb Briyani (羊肉燜飯). I kind of like the tender and well marinated lamb pieces here. However, the rice somehow lacked the fragrance and texture I was expecting. Though Basmati rice grains were used, the amount of water used was not enough to ascertain the ideal al dente of the rice. The rice was rather dry and lacked of flavors to my liking.

There would always be some sweet desserts for last to complete the contentment. Well, it’s almost always true but not as sweet as the Indian desserts. Though the kitchen had cut down on the sugar usage, I still find the Gulab Jamun (玫瑰黃金球) to be over excessive in sweetness. The deep fried dough basically consisted of flour, milk powder and baking soda and soaked in a pool of rose infused syrup. Somehow, the syrup lacked some significant flavors such as those from rose and notably cardamoms.

There was also the Payasam (香料西米露) which was made up of super sweetened milk with a high usage of cardamoms with a light garnishing of fried cashew nuts. I could not ascertain the starch used as it could be either semiya, a type of vermicelli or even poha, a flattened rice, as the dessert was to0 sweet for my consumption.

Last but not least, we had my favorite of the day – Mango Lassi (芒果拉西). This barely 100 calories yoghurt and milk based refreshing beverage was well chilled with added chunks of fresh Indian mangoes. It was great to slurp down the lassi after a heavy meal of herbs and spices infused cuisine.

Overall, I find that the theme for this month was rather confusing as all the dishes served here were of Indian cuisine. It was not wrong altogether as the Indians do use the most herbs and spices in their daily cooking. However, I personally feel that diners would want more options of other origins such as Thai, Malay, Vietnamese, Nyonya and so on. I was really expecting some Nasi Ulam which is a dish that’s rather unique in this region as most countries won’t be able to acquire most of the herbs and spices from Malaysia. Even some local Nyonya dishes such as the Perut Ikan and Otak Otak would have impressed most of the foreign diners. On top of that, what about some simple herbs and spices usage Western cuisine? I do hope the kitchen would have a wider range of options for this promotion by coming out with more authentic flavored dishes rather than sticking to solely Indian cuisine. Moreover, there are the Northern and Southern Indian cuisine too with different flavors.

Here’s the summary of the Herbs & Spices Promotion.

HERBS & SPICES PROMOTION (1-30 NOVEMBER 2013)
Lunch (12.00 noon – 2.30pm): Monday – Friday
RM48++ (adult), RM24++ (child)
Hi-Tea (12.00 noon – 3.00pm): Saturday, Sunday & Public Holidays
Normal weekend: RM55++ (adult), RM28++ (child)
Festive Occasion: RM68++ (adult), RM34++ (child)
Semi Buffet Dinner (6.30pm – 10.00pm): Sunday – Thursday
RM48++ per pax

For MAYBANKARD, Standard Chartered Bank, OCBC Bank, CIMB Bank and CITIBANK card members, you can enjoy 15% discount for the Herbs & Spices Semi Buffet Dinner (Monday to Thursday) and Weekend Buffet Dinner (Friday to Sunday) from 6.30pm – 10.00pm.

The Swez Brasserie is located at the right wing of Eastin Hotel, Penang (next to Queensbay Mall). If you are coming from Georgetown towards Bayan Lepas Free Trade Zone via Bayan Lepas Expressway, do watch out for the Pulau Jerejak signboard (leading to Pulau Jerejak jetty). Ignore the turning and drive on to the next left junction. Turn left into Jalan Aziz Ibrahim and drive on until you a roundabout. Turn 3 o’ clock and drive on until you see a big Eastin Hotel signboard at the first right junction. Turn right and drive on. Park your car at the basement car park. Take a lift to the first floor lobby and you would see the restaurant there.

Name: SWEZ BRASSERIE @ EASTIN HOTEL
Address: 1 Solok Bayan Indah, Queens Bay, 11900 Bayan Lepas, Penang, Malaysia.
Contact: 604-612 1128, 604-612 1138
Business Hours: 12.00pm-2.30pm (Lunch), 6.30pm-10.00pm (Dinner)
GPS: 5.33643, 100.306345

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

 

HungryGoWhere (HGW), Singapore’s most popular food website and mobile app, with the support of SingTel Digital Media Pte. Ltd. (Singapore), which had made their grand entry into Malaysia by setting a new record of “The Longest Line of Nasi Lemak Bungkus” in the Guinness Book of World Records on 24 August 2013, had organized their first ever food trail in Penang yesterday. A group of HungryGoWhere Malaysia mobile application users and bloggers were privileged enough to be invited to join in the fully sponsored eating trip to discover some of the best eateries in Penang. Moreover, everyone was also blessed to have the best weather throughout the whole week for the excursion during this wet season.

The event started with the invited participants gathering at the lobby of Traders Hotel Penang as early as 8.30am. Thereafter, everyone was briefed on the social media sharing procedures by the two beautiful HGW community managers, Shing and Hanis.

We were then directed into two comfortable 12-14 seaters chattered vans to start out our new adventure.

The first eatery we visited for some delicious snacks was the Tan Jetty Fried Fritters, hidden within the vicinity of the Tan Jetty along the historic stretch of Pengkalan Weld (Weld Quay). You can check out the video on the history of the clan jetties here. Basically, the little shed along a small lane into the Tan Jetty here served 3 types of delicious fritters namely Loh Bak (Pork Roll), Prawn Fritters and Bean Curd Fritters. Their homemade chili sauce which consisted of blended red chilies, lime juice, sugar and salt was the perfect condiment to enhance more flavors.

The next stop was for breakfast. Hidden below a government flat was a small eatery named I Mum Mum, managed by a husband & wife team. Their pan mee noodles have the al dente that excels above others of the same trade. Notably, their Crispy Pork Pan Mee, Spicy Pan Mee and dumplings are the most sought after dishes by the locals. We had our options of Dry Pan Mee, Pan Mee Soup, Crispy Pork Pan Mee and Spicy Pan Mee here.

After some basic starters, the real adventure began. We continued our journey for lunch over to Mainland Penang towards Pulau Aman, a 288 acres island, 25 nautical miles away from the mainland, to savor more goodies. At the Batu Musang Jetty prior to embarking onto a sampan ride to the island, the participants had an awesome panoramic view of Pulau Aman as well as the some nice views of the two Penang bridges. The sampan ride to the island was the first experience for many of the participants. Upon arrival on the island, we were directed to the Pulau Aman Floating Restaurant, a much sought after restaurant on the island, notably for its fresh seafood. We had Mee Udang Goreng, Mee Udang Kuah and Nasi Goreng Udang with a number of succulent fresh white prawns. After lunch, we had a nice stroll around the island to experience the lifestyle of the fishing villagers. Some of us managed to savor some deep fried breadfruit fritters (Buah Sukun Goreng) as the plant is quite in abundance on the island. The fruit has the texture of tapioca with a hint of jack fruit flavor.

After some rest on Pulau Aman, we adjourned back to Penang Island for tea time. This time, we went over to savor the much acclaimed Assam Laksa at the Farlim Shell Station Laksa Café, in the heart of Farlim, Penang. Each bowl of the Assam Laksa would come with a whole boneless Ikan Kembong (Indian Mackerel), so fresh that you could still see the glitters on its body. On top of that, we also did try out their famous Spring Rolls, Fish Crackers, Steamed Buns with BBQ Meat, Ice Kacang, Cendul and a mix & match dessert called See Koh Th’ng.

Well, it’s always the best for last when we ended up at Zi Zai Restaurant for our dinner. Their signature dish would be their Poon Choi aka Basin Feast, a basin filled with 14 ingredients such as meat (Nam Joo Pork Belly, Hainan Chicken, Roasted Duck) seafood (Abalone, Prawns, Hock Chew Fish Balls, Fish Maw, Sea Cucumber, Fish Fillet) and vegetables (Cabbages, Yam, Jicama, Broccoli, Chinese Mushroom) on a stove to be shared amongst 10-12 pax. What we had was a small sized Poon Choi with additional add ons which cost about RM328nett. All the participants were eagerly digging into the Poon Choi for more hidden treasures. LOL! It was also the first time experience for most of the participants to try out this “basin” of scrumptious delicacy. On top of that, we were also served with old days’ favorite dishes where they were at their simplest best. The dishes included Assam Prawns, Stir Fry Sambal Lala, Deep Fried Belacan Chicken, Stir Fry Bean Sprouts with Salted Fish and Stir Fry Yao Mak (Baby Romaine Lettuce). It was so far the best experience the participants had to rekindle old memories.

The fun and joyful moments of the whole Penang Food Trail did not stop there. Everyone went home with some souvenirs, namely a notepad and a multi-usage pen courtesy of HungryGoWhere Malaysia.

In fact, two lucky winners went home with a unit of imported 12000mah Powerbank each, another surprise lucky draw session held by HGW Malaysia. Both the prizes were presented by the two HGW Community Managers, Shing and Hanis respectively.

The whole event ended after more than 11 hours of fun-filled eating. 😛 This food trail was organized by HungryGoWhere Malaysia – Discover, Eat, Share today!

About HungryGoWhere Malaysia: You can download the HungryGoWhere Malaysia mobile app through IOS (version 5+) or Android (version 4.0+) or pay a visit to their website at www.hungrygowhere.my. Being a nation with rich and diverse food culture, HGW Malaysia users would get to gain new experiences in searching, discovering and locating the best dishes and eateries within a 10-30km radius. It would even be greater if you were to register yourself as one of the many users, a smart move to leave your tracks behind to recommend more new eateries to other users. After all, HGW Malaysia is a platform by users, for users, to archive pure and unbiased recommendations.

Here’s a short video of the 11 hours plus excursion in 110s~ 🙂

 

LATEST MUSICAL SOIREE AT 1885: 15 MARCH 2014

It was a unique dining experience when we were treated with a robust Musical Soiree by three excellent performers which consisted of Zhang Chi (pianist), Teresa Ong (soprano) and Sean Ooi (tenor), during a recent visit to 1885@ E&O Hotel recently. The first segment of an ongoing project, to be held for 5 consecutive months, was the brainchild of loyal hotel residents, Mr. & Mrs. Martin Rutherford, and the Resident Manager of E&O Hotel, Mr. Harold Rainfroy. The performance would be held on the first Thursday of each month. Please check the E&O Hotel Facebook for more information on the coming events. Price is at RM200++ per pax.

Their performances were in 3 sessionss. The first one included Etude Op.15″ (Zhang Chi), “O Holy Night” (Sean Ooi), “Xue Hua” (Teresa Ong), “If You Loved Me” (Sean Ooi) and “Il Ba Cio” (Teresa Ong). The second session included “Liu Yang River” (Chang Zhi), “Nella Fantasia” (Sean Ooi), “E Pur Cosi/ Piangero La Sorte” (Teresa Ong), “Non Ti Scordar Di Me” (Sean Ooi) and “Laughing Song” (Teresa Ong). The finale session had Zhang Chi rendering the “Waltz Op. 64 No.2 & Op. 34 No. 5”, followed by “All I Ask of You” and “The Prayer” (Duet by Sean Ooi & Teresa Ong). The numerous awards winning song “The Prayer” written by the famous songwriter, David Foster, made famous by Canadian singer, Celine Dion and blind Italian tenor, Andrea Bocelli, has always remained as my personal favorite.

At 1885 @ E&O Hotel, meals would always start with some lovely dinner rolls, served with their creamy butter. The aroma emitted from the freshly bakes combined with the fine soft yet fluffy textures from the in-house made dinner rolls would always be the best starter for any meal.

Our actual fine dining experience kicked off with a palate dinner of awesomely presented Trio Appetizers which consisted of Hokkaido Scallop Tataki served with Citrus Mango Salsa, Foie Gras Terrine with Cinnamon Brioche and Vichyssoise with Norwegian Salmon Tartare. This appetizers came paired with the Hole In The Water Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc.

The Hokkaido Scallop Tataki served with Citrus Mango Salsa was actually a briefly seared fresh scallop which had firm and creamy texture in each bite. It was served on a fruity yet mildly spiced up citrus mango salsa with bursting omega-3 fatty acid filled salmon roes as garnishing. It was a perfect combination.

Next on the plate was the Foie Gras Terrine with Cinnamon Brioche. The foie gras terrine was one of the best I had tasted as it had added roasted shitake mushroom slices added in to tame the richness in the fatty duck liver. Combined with the light yet fluffy mildly cinnamon pepped up toasted brioche, it was another perfect dish. The appetizer also came with a slice of ripen fig to sweeten up the savory flavors.

Finally the last of the appetizers was the Vichyssoise with Norwegian Salmon Tartare. The cold soup which had a combination of pureed potatoes, leeks, onions, stock and cream was smooth flowing with the complemented Norwegian salmon tartare, topped with some sauteed tomato and a drizzle of spiced olive oil.

After another session of great performances by the trio, we were served with the main course – Pan Seared Chilean Cod Fish & Poached Jumbo Prawn with Chickpea Puree, served with some semi dried tomatoes and some fresh basil sauce. The remarkable light and creamy textures of the thick slab of white fish, pan seared to perfection and the firm texture of the poached jumbo prawn, went well with the mildly butter spiced chickpea puree. With a magical drizzle of some freshly made basil sauce, the whole concoction had unique flavors of the next level. This dish came paired with the Matua Valley Marlborough Pinot Noir. Thumbs up!

The much awaited desserts were presented to us after another session of the performances. Again, these desserts were served in trio such as the Valrhona & Almond Chocolate Cannoli, Chantilly Cinnamon Mango and Bavarois Berry Lava Cake.

It always has been my priority to savor those with a sweeter note first before ending with something with fruitiness with light touch of sourness. I started off with the Bavarois Berry Lava Cake. I would say this dessert was a lava cake made too perfect as it ended up as a brownie without the much expected chocolate oozing out. No doubt it was still a great dessert with a generous amount of ganache topping with some mildly sweetened berry compote.

The Valrhona & Almond Chocolate Cannoli on the other hand would suit chocolate lovers well. You can imagine the contentment of having luxurious French chocolate filled ricotta like cream and topped with some toasted chopped almonds. It was heavenly but I personally feel that it was a bit too much of chocolate items for the day.

I made a wise choice leaving the Chantilly Cinnamon Mango as the last option. The almost light cheesecake texture cake blended in real nice with a fresh piece of mango. It was indeed a refreshing and most palatable dessert of the evening.

The night ended with an astounding finale performance by the trio with diners being served with either a cup of freshly brewed coffee or a selection from their gourmet tea choices.

Overall, it was a great evening of different genre with great food, wine and musical performances. Finally, I would like to thank Eileen Chong, Communications & Public Relations Manager of E&O Hotel, for a great evening.

Eastern & Oriental Hotel, Penang (next to Penang Bowl) is located along Lebuh Farquhar. If you are coming from Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah towards Weld Quay, keep to your left immediately after passing by CitiBank. When you see the Penang Bowl building on your left (UMW Toyota opposite), please slow down. Turn left immediately after the Penang Bowl entrance. The E&O Hotel car park is situated just inside the building. Parking charges would be a maximum of RM6 (weekdays: Monday-Thursday) and RM12 (weekends: Friday- Sunday)

Name: 1885 @ EASTERN & ORIENTAL HOTEL Address: 10 Lebuh Farquhar, 10200 Penang, Malaysia. Contact: 604-222 2000 GPS: 5.423624, 100.334988 RATING: Ambience: 8.5/10 (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: 8/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 expensive) Service: 9/10 (1-4 bad, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)

The Golden Phoenix @ Hotel Equatorial, Penang has launched its “All You Can Eat Dim Sum Semi Buffet Lunch” promotion recently. For dim sum fans, it’s the time of the year for you to dine in the comfort of the restaurant while snacking your way through the 28 options of dim sum delicacies from Golden Phoenix. The promotion will be available for lunch (12.00noon – 2.30pm) on weekdays only (except weekends & public holidays) from 1 October 2013 until 30 November 2013. Price is at RM42++ (adult) and RM23++ (child).

Let’s have a look at the semi buffet spread first before going into the dim sum selections. On the main spread, there would be some savory dishes for you to start off your appetite while waiting for your dim sum orders to be served. Savory dishes served would be on a rotation basis and you might get items such as Sichuan Hot & Sour Soup, Pei Tan Chok, Fried Singapore Bee Hoon, Yong Chow Fried Rice and Stir Fry Yau Mak with Garlic.

On the other hand, there would be a dessert corner with items such as Sweet Potatoes in Syrup, Chilled Honeydew Sago, Assorted Cakes and Fresh Fruit Cuts.

Some of the dim sum items in the ala carte menu would be worth mentioning as they excelled above the rest on the market, whether these are from hawkers or restaurants.

The first recommended dish on the list would be the XO Sauce Siew Mai (#1 in the menu). Amazingly, the kitchen could still come out with its own “halal” XO sauce as this sauce normally contains chopped bacon, ham and Chinese sausages. I guessed they have their ways to replace pork items with chicken items instead. XO sauce is a rich sauce filled with flavors from some dried seafood and meat and this combination of minced prawns, chicken and sauce indeed pepped up the unique flavors in this dim sum.

Next on the list would be the Hak Chiew Kwei Mei Gai (#2 in the menu). Normally this dish would come with small pieces of pork ribs. The kitchen did a great job in tenderizing the chicken pieces with some ginger juice and pepped up with enough coarsely crushed black pepper and salt, prior to steaming, indeed made this dish my favorite of the day.

Next on the list would be the Tian Suan Yuan Yang Xia (#15 in the menu). This is practically just two deveined prawns steamed with 2-flavor sauce but the freshness of the prawns was remarkably appetizing.

Next on the list would be the Hoi Tong Gor (#17 in the menu). These dumplings were quite identical to the taste of the usual Har Mai (prawn dumplings) but with the added dried scallops did emit extra rich seafood flavors in the concoction.

Next on the list would be the Fried Lor Mai Fan (#18 in the menu). Steaming glutinous rice would be quite an easy task but to boost up the fragrance of the rice grains to get the extra aromatic flavors would require more effort. The kitchen did a good job in stir toasting the grains with just the right amount of seasoning prior to steaming them.

Next on the list would be the Char Wu Kok (#21 in the menu). This is indeed another of my favorite item while having dim sum. Delicious char siew BBQ sauce marinated minced chicken wrapped in mashed yam paste and deep fried to perfection. The flakiness of the outer crust combined with the ooziness of the sauce within would make this item a great snack for any occasion.

The last recommended dish on the list would be the Lor Pak Gou (#28 in the menu). The firmness and texture of this delicacy were just right. On top of the grated radish, the little pieces of added dried shrimps and Chinese sausages (chicken) flavored up the whole combination real well. By pan frying the cake slices, the fragrance from the slightly crispy crust combined with the soft interior made this dish delicious.

Overall, there are still rooms for improvements as the taste and flavors of some of dished were rather localized. However, being a halal restaurant with the limitation of ingredient usages, that would be the best you can get without the use of pork for the dim sum. Here’s a look at the items available in the menu. Click on the photo to enlarge for a better view.

If you are coming from Bayan Baru area towards Jalan Tun Dr Awang, make a right turn into Persiaran Bukit Jambul at the second traffic lights. Drive all the way up the sloppy road until you see INTI International College on your left. Drive about another 150m onwards and turn right into Jalan Bukit Jambul at the first junction you see. You will see the hotel on your left. The easiest way to get there would be by parking your car on the left side of the building (office block area) as your enter the hotel’s car park. Take the nearest stairway up a level and you will see the restaurant on your left. The Golden Phoenix is located at the same level as the Grand Ballroom overseeing the golf courses of Bukit Jambul Country Club.

Name: GOLDEN PHOENIX @ HOTEL EQUATORIAL
Address: Jalan Bukit Jambul, 11900 Bayan Lepas, Penang, Malaysia.
Contact: 604-632 7166
Business Hours (Promotion Period): 12.00pm-2.30pm (excluding weekends & public holidays)
GPS: 5.337122, 100.285308345

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: 7/10 (1-4 tasteless, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)
Pricing: 8/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 expensive)
Service: 8/10 (1-4 bad, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)

 

If you ask any of the Malaysians what would be their most frequently consumed dish throughout any time of the day, it would always be the Nasi Lemak Bungkus, a packing of coconut milk steamed rice, with egg and nicely spiced up chili gravy.

HungryGoWhere (HGW), Singapore’s most popular food website and mobile app, with the support of SingTel Digital Media Pte. Ltd. (Singapore), made a grand entry into Malaysia by using Nasi Lemak Bungkus in an attempt to set a record in the Guinness Book of World Records at Sunway Pyramid Ice (Skating Rink) yesterday.

HungryGoWhere Malaysia managed to seal the record by arranging 11,315 packets of Nasi Lemak Bungkus in their attempt to set “The Longest Line of Nasi Lemak Bungkus”, verified by Guinness World Records adjudicator, Ms. Carim Valerio.

The official certificate was handed by Guinness World Records adjudicator, Ms. Carim Valerio to Singtel’s CEO, Mr. Allen Lew, who represented HungryGoWhere Malaysia, witnessed by local celebrity actress, Ms. Nora Danish.

Here’s a peep on the certificate.

You can download the HungryGoWhere Malaysia mobile app through IOS (version 5+) or Android (version 4.0+) or pay a visit to their website at www.hungrygowhere.my. Being a nation with rich and diverse food culture, HGW Malaysia users would get to gain new experiences in searching, discovering and locating the best dishes and eateries within a 10-30km radius. It would even be greater if you were to register yourself as one of the many users, a smart move to leave your tracks behind to recommend more new eateries to other users. After all, HGW Malaysia is a platform by users, for users, to archive pure and unbiased recommendations.

It’s time for us to paint the whole town red with HGW recommendations. Why not your finger nails too with the HGW Malaysia logo? LOL~

The record breaking packs of Nasi Lemak Bungkus did not go to waste after achieving the feat. Two thirds of the delicious all-time favorite packets were distributed to various surrounding charitable homes while the balance packets were handed out to the mall’s shoppers. It was a great event having to witness the record breaking feat and at the same time taking home some of the delicious Nasi Lemak Bungkus.

 

Ever since Penang had been honored with the UNESCO World Heritage Site status, more and more heritage houses had been refurbished and turned into little eateries, some with lodging facilities as well. One of the new ones that had mushroomed not long ago on 18 February 2013 is the Pavilion Coffee, which is also in the midst of equipping its rooms for homestay with the adequate furniture and fittings. Located within the heart of George Town, this small and yet long architectural constructed entity, would surely give the Penang state an extra boost in hospitality tourism. The brainchild project of business partners, Jason Ng and Johnny Wu, Pavilion Coffee would be the next best destination for boarding, relaxation, art, coffee and dining for years to come.

Pavilion Coffee is not just a place for relaxation over a cup of coffee or meals ranging from light snacks until main meals, it has the ambience of the heydays as far back as the era of our ancestors with a light touch of some state-of-the-art memorabilia. Thanks to Johnny Wu, a Taiwanese jewelry designer, who has a nice collection of unique items for the shutterbugs. In fact, Pavilion Coffee would be quite an interesting place for Peranakan style and bridal photography in contrast to those beautiful colored tiles and wooden structures settings as well as an ideal venue for some small gatherings.

One of the main attractions that caught my attention was the division of the yellow and blue lightings. It was fun playing with the effects of the lighting as if the “human form” is from another “ghostly” dimension. Cool!

As the name mentioned, Pavilion Coffee is a relaxing place for a cup of coffee, may it be hot or cold. Though the quality of the coffee beans were not from the top range which might cost any coffee lover tens of ringgit per cup, the reasonable pricing itself would drive you back there for more frequent visits. There are quite many options of beverages available from coffee to tea. One of their main attractions would be their Cold Drip Coffee (RM12.90/glass), more often known as Dutch Ice Coffee. No doubt you would need to have all the patience to wait for the fluid to flow through drip by drip as it may take as long as an hour plus for the whole dripping process. In any case that you might not have so much time in hand, it’s recommended to pre-order this drink at least 2 days in advance. Being chilled for 2 days would result in a stronger full bodied acidic brew most coffee lovers would love to have.

Two of their signature beverages that you should not miss out would be their Rose Latte Ice (RM8.90) and Classic Fruit Tea (RM6.90). Somehow, the rose syrup that the café utilized was a far better quality one in terms of fragrance and flavor. The overall combination was superb. On the other hand, the Classic Fruit Tea had some mild fruity flavors, tough I would prefer mine to be a bit stronger.

Another reasonable good latte would be their Hot Hazelnut Latte (RM6.90), though they really need to brush up their coffee art skills. LOL!

As for food wise, you’ll be surprised how some of the dishes faired so well in my “food to eat” directory. Basically, the dishes served here have a mixed selection of Taiwanese, Japanese and Chinese cuisines with a light tweak towards Taiwanese flavors.

The first dish I had was the Fried Four Season French Beans (乾扁四季豆- RM7.90) served with mantou. You can also opt for rice. The sauce which was somewhat like the kanro shoyu (甘露醬油) or “sweet shoyu” was amazingly flavorful for dipping with just anything. The sweet sauce flavored French beans came topped with some fragrantly stir fried minced meat and prawns, followed by some garnishing of chopped red chilies, spring onions and wood ear fungus. Thumbs up!

We had also added on the Kung Poh Century Eggs (宮保皮蛋 – RM9.90). Boy! I fell in love with this dish at first sight. The deep fried century egg slices depicted the feel of biting into springy fish slices. Combined with the flavors from some ginger slices, spring onion bulbs, garlic, small crispy pork bits, cabbages, dried red chilies, and dark sauce with a light touch of vinegar, it was a perfect dish to go with hot steaming rice.

As for some additional rice item to go with my dishes, I tried out their special for the day – Cherry Blossom Fried Rice (櫻花炒飯 – RM7.90). It was basically a common plate of fried rice with some bits of pork and prawns. However, it had the required “wok hei” with the adequate seasonings on every grain of rice. This dish was also pepped up in taste with some deep fried dried shelled shrimps and chopped spring onions as garnishes.

Another rice dish that you can go for would be their Tainan Braised Pork Rice (台南肉燥飯 – Bowl: RM4.50, Set: RM7.90). We opted for the bowl version as it was getting to be rather filling. The bowl of rice came with some nicely braised pork chunks, some crunchy pickled vegetables, half a hard-boiled egg and some pork floss. Surprisingly, the whole mouthful of rice was not as oily as what I had expected compared to the Taiwanese Braised Pork Rice (臺灣滷肉飯). Based on the chef’s explanation, they had chosen a less fatty pork portion with a little tweak in flavors to suit the local taste. To me, it had a high hint of spices used, almost similar to the authentic style of Nyonya Tau Ewe Bak.

Ah! Rubber Duck! My hand got rather itchy and decided to get the adult version of Rubber Duck Curry Rice (大黃鴨咖哩飯 – RM7.90, Child Version: RM6.90). Just in case you are not aware of the Rubber Duck craze recently, you can check out here. The rice was nothing more than some steamed rice stirred with some turmeric powder, shaped into a duck and served with a rather mild version of curry with a combination of potatoes, carrot, apples and little bits of meat. I found the curry to be lacked in texture. It was not as creamy and flavorful as the Kare Raisu (Japanese Curry Rice). I guessed the kitchen would have to puree the apples as well as the onions with a heavier touch of flour and butter for a better texture.

As for light snack, we tried out their signature Deep Fried Prawn Cakes (太陽餅 – RM3.90/pc). I immediately fell into love with this light bite as I loved crispy stuff with juicy fillings. This snack is actually quite common in Taiwan though you don’t find many restaurants serving them this way. Basically, the crispy skin is the same as the skin for the Chinese Jiaozi (dumplings) and the filling was nothing more than just a combination of minced pork, prawn, Chinese celery with a light touch of sesame oil. The end product was simply irresistibly delicious.

Overall, Pavilion Coffee fairs better than most of the newly opened café in town in terms of ambience and taste of food. As for coffee, their pricing can be considered quite reasonable compared to those outlets with the same quality. What I found really nice was the friendliness of the bosses there to listen to the opinions of their customers for personal advancement. Though they still need a bit of time for certain adjustments and improvements, interior and food quality wise, I can be sure that they would be more successful with the opening of their homestay in full swing soon.

Pavilion Coffee is located just opposite Kwong Wah Yit Poh main office along Lebuh Presgrave. If you are driving along Lebuh Pantai towards Jalan CY Choy, watch out for a right junction (Lebuh Presgrave) before the Lebuh Macallum traffic lights. Turn right into Lebuh Presgrave and immediately find a parking space as parking space can be quite limited during peak hours. Alternatively, you can find some parking spaces at Gat Lebuh Presgrave, which is on your left. Walk further up Lebuh Presgrave and you would see a small round light box with the word “Pavilion Coffee”, just opposite Kwong Wah Yit Poh multi-level private car park.

Name: PAVILION COFFEE
Address: 26, Lebuh Presgrave, 10300 Penang, Malaysia.
Contact: 604-261 9366
Business Hours: 11.00am-6.00pm (Monday), 11.30am-10.00pm (Tuesday-Sunday)
GPS: 5.410577,1 00.331431
FB: http://www.facebook.com/pavilioncoffee26

RATING:
Ambience: 9/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 classy)
Food Choices: 7/10 (1-4 limited, 5-7 average, 8-10 many choices)
Taste: 7.5/10 (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)

 

Swez Brasserie @ Eastin Hotel, Penang, for the month of May 2013 (1-31 May 2013) will be having its Italian Flair Promotion to serve you the delectable spread of Italian cuisine from the Land of Michelangelo. This promotion would be under the skillful hands of the Jr. Sous Chef, Chef Kelvin Cheong and Chef de Partie, Chef Rizal bin Hashim.

To start off the meal, there would be a few selections of appetizers for you to savor. One of them would be the Panzanella Salad (新鮮番茄乳酪沙拉), a fresh tomato salad with crusty bread and cheese. This Florentine salad which basically would consist of tomatoes and bread is also quite popular during summer in Italy. The version here had added mozarella cheese and sweet basils in some olive oil and vinegrette. It was simply refreshing.

The next appetizer was the Assorted Bruschetta (意大利式烤麵包). Simple as it was, the bruschettas came in 3 variants such as mushroom, chicken and seafood. Taste wise, they were not bad except I personally felt the baguette slices were a bit too thick for such a small bite size. Luckily, we had some soup to moisten them up.

The Cream of Tomato & Basil Soup (番茄香菜奶油濃湯) was awesome. You can practically taste the freshness and sweetness of the tomatoes used. With the some added dashes of basil oil and cream, it was a great bowl of soup. I won’t mind having more croutons in it too.

There would be some main dishes presented during the promotion too. One of the notable ones would be the Chicken Milanese (米蘭式燴雞) which you can have with other starch dishes such as Tomato Rice or with other green salads. The chicken was basically a lightly breaded piece of nicely marinated boneless chicken which would suit just any diner. There would be some gravy served with it as well.

Another of the main dishes would be the Verze alla Capuccina (意大利式燜洋菜), a Capuchin Savoy Cabbage dish which basically had some boiled purple cabbage, carrots and tomatoes tossed in parsley, butter, Parmesan cheese, anchovies, salt, pepper with some toasted almond flakes. Though creamy, this dish was not to my liking as it was overpowered with saltiness. I would prefer to have some fresh greens salad instead.

There would also be 3 options of main dishes available during their semi buffet dinners. One of them would be Lasagna al Spinaci (菠菜芝士千層面). This main course dish would be quite ideal for those who love to have something not so heavy. The lasagna sheets had some stuffed boiled spinach in creamy cheesy sauce. Though it was a nice combination, I found the spinach to be rather fibrous for a smooth bite. Either the kitchen should find a younger spinach sprout or the vegetables should be chopped finer to avoid choking any diner.

Another option would be the Braised Osso Bucco or you can just call it Italian Braised Lamb (燜燉小羊頬), a Milanese specialty of braised cross-cut veal shanks. Though the meat was braised to the perfect texture and tenderness with just the right usage of herbs, it somehow lacked a specific sweetness – white wine. How I wished the restaurant were to be “non-halal” to be able to apply the usage of alcohol in their dishes.

The last option would be the Beef Meat Balls with Cheese (芝士牛肉丸) served with pasta. The meat balls were rather flavorful with just the right amount of herbs and Parmesan cheese used. However, they have to tweak well on the usage of cheese as I personally found the meat balls to be rather salty. Moreover, I prefer my meat balls not to be so tough with the addition of some chopped onions.

As for dessert, there would be quite a number of delicious treats. One of the dessert to aim for would be the Tiramisu (提拉米蘇). The non-alcohol version of the cake was still fine but with a rather heavily boosted coffee flavor. I somehow quite like the bitter sweet taste of the whole combination.

Another dessert we had was the Banana Pudding (香蕉布丁) served with vanilla sauce. It was not bad with some nice chunks of banana inside.

Overall, the taste and flavors of the dishes were still within the acceptable level. The only little thing they would need to monitor is on the usage of salt as some of the dishes were rather heavily salt infused for this round. I do also hope to see more dishes during this coming promotion such as the many kinds of bread, pizza, pasta, rice, seafood as well as cured meat available too.

Here’s the summary on the promotion.

ITALIAN FLAIR PROMOTION (1-31 MAY 2013)
Lunch (12.00 noon – 2.30pm): Monday – Friday
RM48++ (adult), RM24++ (child)
Hi-Tea (12.00 noon – 3.00pm): Saturday, Sunday & Public Holidays
Normal weekend: RM55++ (adult), RM28++ (child)
Festive Occasion: RM68++ (adult), RM34++ (child)
Semi Buffet Dinner (6.30pm – 10.00pm): Monday – Thursday
RM48++ per pax

For MAYBANKARD, Standard Chartered Bank, OCBC Bank, CIMB Bank and CITIBANK card members, you can enjoy 15% discount for the Italian Flair Semi Buffet Dinner (Monday to Thursday) and Weekend Buffet Dinner (Friday to Sunday) from 6.30pm – 10.00pm.

The Swez Brasserie is located at the ring wing of Eastin Hotel, Penang (next to Queensbay Mall). If you are coming from Georgetown towards Bayan Lepas Free Trade Zone via Bayan Lepas Expressway, do watch out for the Pulau Jerejak signboard (leading to Pulau Jerejak jetty). Ignore the turning and drive on to the next left junction. Turn left into Jalan Aziz Ibrahim and drive on until you a roundabout. Turn 3 o’ clock and drive on until you see a big Eastin Hotel signboard at the first right junction. Turn right and drive on. Park your car at the basement car park. Take a lift to the first floor lobby and you would see the restaurant there.

Name: SWEZ BRASSERIE @ EASTIN HOTEL
Address: 1 Solok Bayan Indah, Queens Bay, 11900 Bayan Lepas, Penang, Malaysia.
Contact: 604-612 1128, 604-612 1138
Business Hours: 12.00pm-2.30pm (Lunch), 6.30pm-10.00pm (Dinner)
GPS: 5.33643, 100.306345

RATING:
Ambience: 8/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 classy)
Food Choices: 8/10 (1-4 limited, 5-7 average, 8-10 many choices)
Taste: 6.5/10 (1-4 tasteless, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)
Pricing: 8/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 expensive)
Service: 8/10 (1-4 bad, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)

 

For your information, Kürtős Kalács is a traditional Hungarian pastry (with or without addon ingredients) which is hollow and eaten by unwinding the twirl like pastry, torn in between and taken plain or with selected dips. The pastry is baked on wooden dowels, rolled slowly on an open fire or a customized oven until golden brown. Kürtős Kalács is the oldest Hungarian pastry which stems from the Hungarian words kürtő that refers to “chimney” and kalács meaning “milk loaf or cake”, thus getting its nickname as “chimney cake” or “stove cake”. Kürtős Kalács was first made in Covasna County (Transylvania region) by Hungarian settlers and the recipe is one of the best kept secrets of Eastern Europe. For maximum taste and aroma, the dough has gone through 16 hours of yeast-raised process. The next step would be to ribbon roll onto the dowel and to leave aside for further yeast raising. Prior to being baked in a customized oven, the dough has been brushed with some sunflower oil and heavily sprinkled with castor sugar. Thus, the baked pastry would have a crispy caramelized surface while maintaining its soft and smooth interior. Now you can try the delicious pastry at Kürtős Spiroll, located at Queens Street, Level 3 (North Zone) of Queensbay Mall, Penang.

So what are the topping flavors available at Kürtős Spiroll? You can start with the Original Kürtős Kalács (RM3.70 each), followed by Favorites Kürtős Kalács (RM4.50 each) such as Sesame Seeds, Chocolate Rice, Sunflower Seeds, Hawaiian Coconut and Cinnamon Sugar or the Premium Kürtős Kalács (RM5.90 each) such as Premium Chicken Floss, Nutella Walnut and Peanut Butter n Chocolate Chips.

Somehow one of the favorites (4 types as shown at the front row on the above photo) amongst the rest was the Original. You can simply taste the milky and buttery flavors from the soft pastry and at the same time savor the sweet caramelized exterior.

The next topping would be Sesame Seeds. I somehow found that the sesame seeds were not thoroughly toasted well enough to emit that fragrant flavor as you would have expected from sesame seeds products. It would be great if they could mix some black sesame seeds as well since the black ones are more flavorful than the white ones.

No doubt Chocolate Rice are widely used in pastries, I do find them to be normal to my preference. I would say this topping would suit children more than adults.

For those whole love the earthly flavors of Sunflower Seeds. The next option would suit you real well. The portions given were very generous.

There was also the imported Hawaiian Coconut as one of the toppings. It tasted like having some sort of dehydrated fiber without the distinctive flavor of coconut. I would think that the grated local coconut has more flavors but then keeping them fresh daily might be an issue for an outlet which might go franchised in the future. Somehow, I don’t find this topping an ideal one for long term usage.

The Cinnamon Sugar was a hit as it was just the perfect evening snack to go with a cup of coffee or tea. The flavor of the grounded spice merged perfectly with the milky and buttery pastry. It would be great if some raisins or even thin apple slices were to be added into the dough with just a light sprinkle of grounded cinnamon. It would be even perfect just like the Cinnamon Bun.

Premium Chicken Floss may be the in-trend of most bakeries in Malaysia but I found the ones served here to be quite normal without the distinctive toasted flavors. Maybe they should consider a spicier version by replacing it with Spicy Prawn Floss (Sambal Hae Bee) instead? Moreover, I found that the thin spread of mayonnaise was not sufficient enough to give that moist to the chicken floss.

Nutella has always been the favorite chocolate spread for any pastry and it has proven that the Nutella Walnut was also a hit here. The Kürtős Kalács with a thin spread of Nutella and added slightly salted toasted walnut was my favorite. At least the light usage of salt here did neutralize some sweetness on the product which suited me well.

Lastly, there was the childhood favorite of Peanut Butter n Chocolate Chips. This was not a bad salty sweet combination but still a bit too sweet to my liking. The culprit might be the generous usage of sweetened chocolate chips rather than dark chocolate chips. Ideally, I would prefer to have some nicely toasted crushed peanuts on mine than any chocolate chips for that extra nutty experience.

There were also some homemade dips such as Butterscotch, Garlic Cheese and Chocolate (RM1.50 each or RM0.90 each for a combo of 3 flavors) available for extra boost on your Kürtős Kalács. I found the Butterscotch Dip to be a bit too sweet and lack of creaminess and buttery flavor to my liking. The Garlic Cheese Dip on the other hand was a hit amongst us as the savory flavors blended in well with the pastry, especially on the original one. The Chocolate Dip on the other hand was a bit too much for me as there were already a few products with chocolate base. Alternatively, I would recommend jam instead such as passion fruit butter jam or even a bitter sweet marmalade ginger jam. Who knows maybe our coconut jam (kaya) might go well with the pastries?

Here’s the menu on the 9 topping flavors available at Kürtős Spiroll:

Overall, Kürtős Kalács would be best taken when they are fresh and hot from the oven or you won’t get the best in texture and taste. I personally find that the products here would suit those more feminine consumers as they are the ones with higher urges for sweetness. Personally, I do find that the outlet lacked choices as those toppings tend to be quite normal on the market. They should consider having more fusion savory options such as cheese spread with garlic flakes, tomato puree with diced mushroom plus gherkins or even tomyam paste with kani sticks. As for nuts, there might be quite a large group of nuts lovers around and they could consider adding more options such as crushed peanuts, hazelnuts, pistachio nuts or toasted almond flakes. There are still more rooms for improvement here to think of some combinations that would be more localized to suit the general taste buds.

If you are coming from Georgetown towards Bayan Lepas Free Trade Zone via Bayan Lepas Expressway, do watch out for the Pulau Jerejak signboard (leading to Pulau Jerejak jetty). Ignore the turning and drive on to the next left junction. Turn left into Jalan Aziz Ibrahim and drive on until you a roundabout. Turn 3 o’ clock and drive on until you see a big Eastin Hotel signboard. Queensbay Mall is just after the block of shop houses. Find your parking space either at the open space car park or drive further up after the roundabout and turn around towards the mall to find more parking spaces. As you walk into the mall, move towards the North Zone of the mall and you will see Kürtős Spiroll just after the Habanero Mexican Restaurant.

Name: KÜRTŐS SPIROLL @ QUEENSBAY MALL, PENANG
Address:
3F-01B, Queens Street, Level 3, North Zone, Queensbay Mall, 11900 Bayan Lepas, Penang, Malaysia.
Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/kurtosspiroll
Contact: 012-5020 331 (Ernie Goh)
Business Hours: 10.00am-10.00pm
GPS: 5.335073, 100.306268

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: 7/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 expensive)
Service: 8/10 (1-4 bad, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)