Sunday 25 December 2011

Kim Lian Kee Hokkien Mee @ HuTong, Lot 10

As mentioned in the first post on HuTong, the Hokkien Mee at Kim Lian Kee was so good that we went back again to snap some better pictures of the dish.
   
Hokkien Mee (RM 8.50)
   
See the Hokkien Mee in all its glorious, glistening black sauce? Very yummy with lots of crispy pork lard, pork slices and prawns.
   
Hokkien Kuey Teow (RM 8.50)
    
The Hokkien Kuey Teow is equally good with the slippery noodles being a hallmark of excellent frying technique. I wonder why the sauce isn't as dark as the Hokkien Mee though..
  
Kim Lian Kee is as good as everyone says it is. It's definitely a must order whenever you visit HuTong =D
  
PawPoints: 5 Paws 
Pawket: Dough
  
HuTong
Lower Ground Floor, Lot 10 Shopping Mall
Tel: 03 2141 0500
Daily: 12pm -  3pm, 6pm - 11pm

Wednesday 21 December 2011

Kin Kin Chilli Pan Mee @ KL

Kin Kin, home to the original Chilli Pan Mee, is notorious for the rude owner and rather expensive food. However customers including myself and JS keep returning because their signature Chilli Pan Mee is just too awesome!
   
Secret recipe
   
On each table sits a big, clear plastic tub filled with Kin Kin's secret blend of chilli flakes. I usually take just 1.5 teaspoons - any more and my nose will run...
   
Dry Version (RM 5.80)
   
No point asking the owner(s) for small, medium, big. There is only one noodle portion served at Kin Kin and that is what you'll get. It is slightly insufficient for me but this portion is good for small eaters whereas guys usually take 1.5 bowls.
  
The dry version of the noodles comes with minced meat, fried anchovies, fried shallots and topped with a perfectly poached egg. The noodles are unlike the usual hawker stall noodles and have a good bite to it. The way I like to eat it is to sprinkle over the chilli flakes, "break" the poached egg so the runny yolk spills over the noodles and mix everything up. It tastes fantastic with the chilli flakes providing that extra kick and flavour to the minced meat and plain noodles.
 
Each order of dry noodles comes with a small bowl of sweet potato leaf soup with stirred-in egg whites. It is a little bland compared to the soupy noodles version but still acceptable.
  
Soup Version (RM 5.80)
   
The soup version is slightly more worth the price as it comes with additional leafy green vege and sliced pork in addition to the usual minced meat, fried anchovies and poached egg. The picture above doesn't look like there's much but rest assured, all the goodies are hidden at the bottom of the bowl =) The soup is sweet and flavourful from the sliced pork and is as good as the dry version. Imagine slurping noodles from a hot and spicy (from the chilli flakes) bowl of soup!
  
Apart from Chilli Pan Mee, they also have soup with a choice of pork balls and fish balls. Both the pork balls and fish balls taste bouncy and fresh.
  
There is another Chilli Pan Mee shop opposite Kin Kin but we always return to Kin Kin despite the higher price and smaller portion as there's just something extra in that secret chilli flake recipe of theirs.
  
PawPoints: 5 Paws
Pawket: Dough
  
Kin Kin Chilli Pan Mee
40 Jalan Dewan Sultan Sulaiman 1
Off Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman
Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 016 372 8069
Weekdays: 7.30am - 9pm
Weekends: 7.30am - 4.30pm (Closed on last Sunday of the month)

Wednesday 14 December 2011

Hokkien Mee @ Restoran Tong Fong, Sea Park PJ

Finally, here's the post on my favourite Hokkien Mee stall =D Beats the infamous Ah Wah at Jln 222 with its much diluted Hokkien Mee anytime in my opinion <thumbs-up>
     
    
This coffee shop is located just behind KFC and opposite Shell which is fairly easy to spot. The Hokkien Mee stall is located towards the back of the shop and is easily noticeable.
     
Hokkien Kuey Teow
    
The Hokkien Kuey Teow here has lots of wok hei. The flat noodles are slippery and glistening with a good coat of dark soya sauce and pork-infused oil. The portion is generous with lots of ingredients such as leafy vege and cabbage (instead of cabbage only or even worse, bean sprouts only), prawns, pork liver, pork slices and crispy pork lard. Extremely good and sinful. I like that this stall still cared to layer a banana leaf base on the plate so that the aroma permeates the noodles.
    
Hokkien Mee
    
The Hokkien Mee is equally good with the same generous serving of pork liver, pork slices, pork lard, prawns, leafy vege and cabbage. The sauce here is neither as thick nor as dark as Kim Lian Kee but the noodles have sufficient taste and is equally good.
    
Cantonese Fried Kuey Teow
     
The Cantonese Fried Kuey Teow is full of eggy, soupy goodness. The sweetness of the pork and prawns infuse the thick gravy and gives much flavour to the kuey teow. Perfect for a cold, rainy day =D
  
All portions shown in the above pictures are for 1 person which costs RM 6. A 2-person serving costs RM 11 whereas a 3-person serving costs RM 16. Very reasonable price for the portion served. Apart from these, they also serve Loh Mee, Hokkien Bihun and Fried Rice. The other stalls at this coffee shop are not open at night - only one tai chow stall and one satay stall is available. Most people frequent this shop primarily for the delicious Hokkien Mee.
  
My family absolutely love the Hokkien Mee here as there are not many stalls nowadays which serve pork liver in the noodles as per tradition. Furthermore the chef has really good technique as some stalls just do not come up to par with regards to the dish's wok hei. The Damansara Hokkien Mee at Uptown is acceptable but falls short in taste and texture compared to this. Kim Lian Kee is comparable but I think I favour this abiiiit more ^_^
  
PawPoints: 5 Paws
Pawket: Dough
   
Restoran Tong Fong
Corner shoplot, Jalan 21/17
Sea Park
Petaling Jaya
Tue - Sun: 6.30pm - 11pm

Monday 12 December 2011

Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. @ Sunway Pyramid

Taking inspiration from the Forrest Gump movie, Bubba Gump specialises in shrimp meals and its decor references many scenes from the movie. I'm not going to elaborate more on the ordering method as I'm sure most of you would have been there before. Just wanted to share the awesome shrimps I had here <drools>
   
Eat me! ^_^
   
Mama Gump's Garlic Bread Basket (RM 5.90)
    
The garlic bread here is toasted to a crisp with the wonderful aroma of melted garlic butter and cheese. It tastes buttery and crusty and cheesy - both my brother and JS love it to bits.
  
Mama Blue's Southern Charmed Fried Shrimp (RM 38.90)
   
Are you salivating just looking at the numerous golden lumps of deep-fried shrimp? Imagine dipping each into the tartare sauce or salsa provided and eating the entire de-shelled prawn coated with crispy panko batter whole <ascends into prawn heaven> It feels so good not having to peel the shells off the prawns and being able to plop each crispy yet juicy and bouncy prawn directly into your mouth...absolutely heavenly. The tail bits are also deep fried to a crispy texture that you can chew into bits if you wish.
  
The shoestring fries are deep fried to perfection - no soggy, stringy, straggly bits. Very addictive with the tartare sauce (I even had a refill of the tartare sauce). The salsa on the other hand tasted a bit weird...there was this funny taste I couldn't quite place. It was slightly bitter and sourish with a tiny bit of unpleasant new wardrobe smell =.=
  
The coleslaw was average but I wished they provided a bigger portion to offset the heaty-ness of the deep fried platter.
  
Close-up of the golden shrimps
     
Lt. Dan's Drunken Shrimp (RM 39.90)
   
This platter consists of chargrilled shrimp and spicy sausage against a bed of mashed potatoes and sitting in a sea of non-alcoholic Bourbon sauce.
    
  • Shrimp is fresh and juicy and has sufficient flavour when eaten on its own. 
  • Spicy sausage is also good with a wonderful chicken taste.
  • Mashed potatoes was average. Very smooth though.
  • Bourbon sauce was a little too cheesy for my liking but my brother mopped up every single drop of sauce =P
  • Skinny golden strips propped upright in the blob of mashed potatoes tasted like deep fried flour? Not too sure what it is but it's great with the sauce.
    
Apart from shrimp, they also serve chicken, beef and other seafood. The dishes served at Bubba Gump are very yummy but prices are a bit steep. But then what would you expect when you're paying others to deshell a whole load of prawns for you? =D
   
PawPoints: 4 Paws
Pawket: Cheese
  
Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. Restaurant & Market
Oasis Boulevard, Sunway Pyramid
Tel: 03 5638 4559
Daily: 11am - 10pm

Sunday 4 December 2011

Vietnam Kitchen @ 1 Utama, PJ

This is the first Vietnamese restaurant I dined at and will always be my favourite because of its big portions and cheap price tag. My friends and I somehow always meet up at Vietnam Kitchen to catch up :D
   
Vietnam Kitchen
   
Menu
   
Sliced Chicken and Spring Roll Vermicelli (RM 11.90)
    
Remember I mentioned this awesome dry version of Vietnamese noodles in this post? Well here it is on our very own Malaysian shores <yay!>
  
This dish is like a big bowl of noodle salad which I guess it is but it satisfies my meat cravings with juicy pieces of well marinated chicken and crispy deep-fried Vietnamese spring roll. You just douse the vermicelli together with slices of carrots, cucumbers, iceberg lettuce and bean sprouts with the sweet and spicy fish sauce dressing given and mix 'em all up! Eaten together with the sprinkled chopped nuts, this dish is extremely refreshing and light on the taste buds.
  
There is a downside to this dish though which is the spring roll tends to get a little soggy from the sauce pooled at the bottom of the bowl. Solution? Rest it on the bed of mint leaves =D
 
My favourite dish ^_^
   
Tossed vermicelli
   
Stir Fried Lemongrass Beef Vermicelli (RM 11.90)

JS had the Stir Fried Lemongrass Beef Vermicelli which was also very good. The beef slices were very tender and well marinated. The side vegetables and noodle dressing given are the same for all dry noodles.
  
Tossed vermicelli
   
All in all, this is one cheap and yummy restaurant. I have not eaten the signature Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup (RM 13.90) in a long time but last I tried, it was quite good. I have also tried the Beef Stew with Tomato Sauce and Rice (RM 10.90), XO Sauce Fried Vermicelli (RM 11.90) Saigon Seafood Fried Noodles (RM 13.90) and Sliced Beef Fried Noodles (RM 12.90) and all were good. The Hue Style Beef Noodle Soup (RM 13.90) is a little odd to my finicky taste buds but my mum prefers this version over the original.
  
Another reason why I like going there is because there is a 10% discount for Citibank card holders. It expires end of 2011 I think but it seems as though the promo has always been there so hopefully next year, it will still be valid.
  
PawPoints: 4 Paws
Pawket: Onion
  

Vietnam Kitchen
S312 2nd Floor
Highstreet
One Utama Shopping Centre
Tel: 03 7724 1366
Daily: 10.30am - 10pm