Crazy Potato @ The Gardens, KL

Crazy Potato is a snack outlet at Midvalley selling...you guessed it...potatoes. They've got lots of varieties of chips to choose from to satisfy your carb cravings as well as signature London bites such as fish and chips, wedges and cheese and hash browns. 

      

Sour Cremio Crazy Potato Fries (RM 6.90)

         
The fries are served straight from the fryer and are smoking hot. The sour cream topping comes with a sprinkling of parsley flakes. It was good but nothing too special about it. I'm looking forward to trying other flavours such as pickle mayo, crazy meaty or crazy spicy.

             

Tempura Chicken Nuggets (RM 7.90)

         
I'm a huge fan of chicken nuggets and these do not disappoint. No doubt it'll probably taste like frozen nuggets but I like them all the same =D

                

Crazy Curl (RM 5.90)

         
Yet another favourite of mine - curly fries! These were good but not as curly as McD's or A&W's.
         
Crazy Potato is probably nothing special and rather gimmicky but if you're in the mood for grease and carbs, head here immediately. Writing this post makes me want to eat it again =P
         
           
PawPoints: 3 Paws
Pawket: Dough
             
              
Crazy Potato

LG-211 Lower Ground Floor
The Gardens
Tel: 03 2282 2241
Daily: 11am - 10pm

Sanbanto @ SS2, PJ

We first tried Sanbanto SS2 a few years ago when porky restaurants were scarce and thought it a very good concept with good food to boot. We recently made another visit to its Bangsar outlet which is located in the row of shophouses behind TMC.

       

*squeal*

   

Shop Front

        

Interior

      

Menu

       

Anatomy of the pig

         

Tonkatsu (RM 21)

     
I had the deep fried bread pork cutlet which came with tonkatsu sauce, side salad and potato salad. It was actually not too bad as the meat was quite flavourful. The only downside is the panko coating is not super crispy and a wee tiny bit dry. The potato salad was creamy and crunchy with lots of cucumber and carrot strips.

      

Tonkatsu cross section

        

Classic Carbonara (RM 23)

         
The Classic Carbonara was good too with al-dente spaghetti coated in thick creamy carbonara. The plus point is that this is a non-halal place with real bacon topping the noodles.
               
Quite a nice cosy place for an average priced meal. However since the Bangsar outlet has shut down (yes, we are quite backed up on posts =.=), I'll provide the address of the SS2 branch.
         
         
PawPoints: 3 Paws
Pawket: Tomato
                     
       
Sanbanto

32 Jalan SS2/63

Petaling Jaya
Tel: 03 7876 1728
Tue - Sun: 11.30am - 3pm, 6pm - 10pm

Hanare @ The Intermark, Kuala Lumpur

Happy New Year!!! I wanted to start the new year with a yummy review but unfortunately, the ones I currently have drafted are all disappointing. Since all posts are disappointing, I might as well start the new year with a review of my favourite cuisine which is Japanese ^_^ <yoshi!>

This review is on Hanare, one of the fine dining restaurants at Intermark. Having heard good reviews about this place, especially the weekend buffet (not always available), my friends and I decided to come here after work.

Elegant grey decor

Love the chopstick cover

L-R: Grilled salmon and ikura sushi (RM 35), California maki (RM 30)

Price is no doubt steep considering it is a fine dining restaurant but the makis were just average. The ingredients were fresh but the seaweed was a tad soggy.

Tendon (RM 30)

Being on a tight budget, I had the Tendon which was the cheapest don on the menu if you exclude the Ochazuke and plain udon. The assorted seafood were extremely crispy but being the scrooge that I am, I did not find it exceptionally out of this world compared to Tendons in other Japanese restaurants.

Anyway the point is come to Hanare only if you have extra cash to spare. Perhaps the sashimi and other higher end items will taste super duper amazing for the price you're paying.


PawPoints: 3 Paws
Pawket: Cheese


Hanare

Ground Floor, The Intermark
Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 03 2164 2133
Daily: 12pm - 2.30pm, 6pm - 10.30pm

Italiano's @ SS2, PJ

Italiano's is somewhat like Pizza Uno, a family Italian restaurant with quality food and affordable pricing. Lots of families dine here at night and while there are some hits and misses in the menu (definitely more hits than misses), I highly recommend you to come and try it out.

Minestrone Soup (RM 6)

The hearty Minestrone Soup comes boiling hot and is chockful of ingredients typical of minestrone. The tomato base is warm and well-seasoned. The slice of baguette accompanying the soup is warmed but not toasted. It is extremely affordable and very yummy on cold rainy days.

We also tried the Mushroom Soup which is creamy and overloaded with chunky mushroom bits. A must order!

Mufaletta Delight Pizza (RM 19)

As can be seen in the above picture, the pizza is laden with lots of ingredients. The crust is thick yet crispy and  fully supports the meaty toppings.

King's Special Pizza (RM 25)

This pizza tasted a bit odd, probably due to the extremely gamey lamb sausages and red chillies. Not really recommended in my opinion.

Italiano's Special Pasta (RM 18)

This pasta is coated in a thick tomato based gravy (I wouldn't call that sauce as I feel the tomato paste was thickened with cornflour rather than loading on the paste). I am not a fan of the lamb sausages as they were quite gamey (and since I do like lamb, this means that it really is gamey!). Think the other pastas would be more recommended as the portions are big and absolutely worth the price.

Braised Lamb Shank (RM 30)

We also had the Braised Lamb Shank as it was so affordable and it came in a really big portion. See the huge lamb shoulder? Admittedly, the meat is somewhat lacking, but what meat there is is very tender and has absorbed the tomato gravy fully. The mashed potatoes, side salad and steamed vegetables were a very good accompaniment to the lamb. Definitely not for small eaters =P

PawPoints: 3 Paws
Pawket: Onion

Italiano's
61G, Jalan SS2/75
Petaling Jaya
Tel: 03 7873 9695
Daily: 11.30am - 3pm, 6pm - 10.30pm

Calanthe Art Cafe @ Jalan Hang Kasturi, Melaka

     

A very nice signboard above the cashier counter

     
During one of our trips to Melaka with a few friends, we stopped by this very nicely decorated cafe to chill till our next meal time. The guys being coffee lovers needed some caffeine after having a very filling lunch with cendol right after. Calanthe Art Cafe source their coffee beans from all over the country and offer customers a wide range of coffee.

      

Coffee from all 13 states of Malaysia available here

        

The inside of the shop is decorated with a wide variety of curios, art pieces & quirky quotes

   
One can spend hours sipping coffee while snapping pictures of the many interesting curios and art pieces at the cafe.

     

The Menu

        

Coffee from all 13 States

            

Ice blended coffee from the 13 states is also available

        

A peachy drink with jelly

As I'm not a coffee lover, I had a peach flavoured drink with jelly which was quite refreshing after half a day of food hunting around Jonker Street.

Johor iced coffee

   
A friend of ours, JT had the Johor iced coffee. The coffee is blended using Liberica beans and has a rich aroma and taste.

     

Melaka ice blended coffee

   
JS had the Melaka Ice Blended Coffee which is bitter sweet. The drink comes with a bit of whipped cream and sweet coffee flavoured jelly similar to those you get at certain bubble tea shops. 

        

The cute cat calendar by the cashier

    

While making payment at the counter, this cute cat calendar caught my eye. 

   

    

PawPoints: 3 Paws
Pawket: Dough
        
Calanthe Art Cafe

11, Jalan Hang Kasturi
Melaka 75250

Hainanese Chicken Rice Balls @ Kedai Kopi Chung Wah, Melaka

I was debating between eating at Chung Wah Hainanese Chicken Rice and Hoe Kee Chicken Rice but during our last visit, we had the latter so this time we decided to go with Chung Wah as the waiting line is usually extremely long and we thought it indicated better food =P

Relatively short line on a working day

Although the shop entrance where the queue is is quite large, for some unknown reason the owner decided to barricade more than half of the entrance with miscellaneous boxes, chairs and stuff. There was only a small space about a person's width for entering and exiting the shop and with the queue starting immediately at the shop entrance, it was really a hassle to make way for exiting guests and more often than not, everyone was just left feeling squashed. They probably blocked half of the entrance to control the crowd but I wonder if they thought about their customers' convenience. Not a very good first impression indeed > . >

Interior

The interior of the shop is quite small comparatively even though it spans two shop lots and coupled with the inefficiency of the staff, hence you see the long queue outside. When it came to our turn, no one told us where to go so we waited around for a bit (we had expected the staff to show us to a table like in Hoe Kee) and suddenly the people behind us started walking towards the empty tables! So we rushed off to nab an empty table...

The staff did not take the order from customers who arrived first (God knows what their logic is) and were extremely unorganised, grouchy and forgetful hmmpf. There was no menu and they did not ask what we wanted, just asked how many persons we had in our group and slouched off.

Chef incessantly chopping chicken

Homemade chilli sauce

Their homemade chilli sauce is quite unique with an unusual colour of creamy orange and red, and it definitely packs a punch.

Chicken rice balls

It seems that the standard order would be 5 rice balls per person but you can ask for extra. The rice balls are smaller than Hoe Kee's but are more moist and hence holds its shape much better. It is also more flavourful (you can taste chicken stock) and did not break apart when I cut it in half so it remained essentially a rice ball and not chicken rice, if you know what I mean.

Steamed chicken

This is the standard portion for 2 pax (not sure if you can order extra as no one seemed to do so - they just ate whatever was given by the staff). The steamed chicken is extremely smooth and firm and has more bite to it (the kind which presumably had lots of exercise when it was still clucking around). However I was not impressed with the three measly pieces of cucumber > . >

There was no soup even on weekdays and the shop did not seem too hygienic to me. No doubt the chicken rice is sufficiently good but I have since concluded that the long line outside the shop is not because of its fame but rather because the staff are inadequate and slow. One visit is more than enough for me and the next time I return to Melaka, I will definitely head to Hoe Kee.

PawPoints: 3 Paws
Pawket: Dough


Kedai Kopi Chung Wah

18 Jalan Hang Jebat
Melaka

J Tean Kitchen @ SStwo Mall, PJ

J Tean Kitchen serves some unique Chinese fusion dishes and its signature dish is its fusion Dry Bak-Kut-Teh and Porky Pie. It's located in the totally deserted SStwo Mall although its plus point would be ample parking.

The J-Ribs (RM 38.90)

The ribs are quite huge and really quite good. The well marinated meat is super tender and falls off the bones so effortlessly. This is apparently due to pre-stewing the meat prior to baking it. It is served with a small portion of coleslaw and potato wedges as well as char siu sauce. Both the coleslaw and potato wedges were really good and comparable to Western restaurants. The char siu sauce tasted good too but the meat itself has plenty of flavour so I left most of the sauce in its container.

Complimentary dessert

Complimentary desserts are always welcome and the one served at J Tean that day happened to be a refreshing chrysanthemum tea jelly. Definitely no complaints there =D

Nice meal but quite pricey for a dish even though it's ribs. I love the chairs and tables there but it really is a shame about its location. I'm sure there would be more patrons if only it was located somewhere more popular.



PawPoints: 3 Paws
Pawket: Olive


J Tean Kitchen

Lot G-58, Ground Floor
SStwo Mall
Tel: 03 7954 0819
Daily: 10am - 10pm

En Ginza Cafe @ Pavilion, Kuala Lumpur

En Ginza Cafe is a bakery cum cafe on Pavilion's Tokyo Street. Their breads and pastries look super yummy but we've always had other yummier stuff to eat when we visit Pavilion. We did manage to snack there one afternoon so here's a short review on En Ginza Cafe =)

        

          

Green Tea Latte

   
Love the design and it was pretty milky too!

      

Pumpkin Soup

   
The pumpkin soup was really thick, creamy and comforting. The bread was thick and yummy with the soup but there was just too much bread. I didn't like how the insides of the bread bowl got all soggy with the soup but I guess that's to be expected. Also, there was not enough soup to really savour the bread with but I wouldn't mind ordering it again =)

       

Overall not a bad first visit...would love to try out their other stuff.

     

    

    

PawPoints: 3 Paws

Pawket: Dough

 
   
En Ginza Cafe

P6.24.1A Tokyo Street
Level 6 Pavilion
Tel: 03 2148 0369
Daily: 10am - 10pm

Coffee Chemistry @ First Subang Mall, Subang Jaya

Coffee Chemistry is located in First Subang Mall, a relatively dead shopping mall from what I remember...not sure if much has changed since then. The cafe, on the other hand, is quite a cosy little place with a pleasant owner and modern looking decor. 

       

          

Cappuccino

        

Warm and Iced Water

   
Nothing special about this but why the difference in size? 

      

Classic Roasted Lamb Shoulder (RM 26.90)

   
The roasted lamb shoulder with mashed potatoes and steamed vegetables drenched in black pepper sauce sure looks good but JS thought the lamb a bit chewy and would have preferred more vegetables instead.

       

Grilled Salmon Steak (RM 26.90)

   
Did not try the grilled salmon so no comment. It does look appetizing though with lots of freshly steamed vegetables and aromatic butter lemon sauce.

       

Seafood Pasta (RM 21.90)

   
I'm so predictable huh? Of course the Seafood Pasta is mine =P I didn't expect the dish to come with so much seafood considering the price but it did with double of everything - mussel, squid and prawns. Seafood was quite fresh and the cream sauce was not cloying at all. I liked it so much that I polished off everything even though I was actually really full even before I started eating.

      

Brownies & Ice-Cream (RM 9.50)

     
The brownie was really good and chocolatey and yet surprisingly cheap. A generous scoop of vanilla ice-cream was provided as well including a drizzle of chocolate sauce. Really the perfect dessert to end a meal d^_^b
   
I came to Coffee Chemistry not expecting much but it certainly surpassed my expectations with its good food and cheap price. I'd definitely return if only it weren't located at First Subang Mall cause there's nothing else to do there...
   
   
PawPoints: 3 Paws
Pawket: Tomato
          
Coffee Chemistry
G22 - G23, Ground Floor
First Subang Mall
Tel: 03 5612 2299
Daily: 10am - 10.30pm

DIB Coffees of Hawaii @ Damansara Perdana

DIB aka Deaf in Business Coffees of Hawaii is a cafe run by the deaf and mute. It really is so kind of the owner to open such a shop to assist the deaf and mute waiters and waitresses in making a living. The staff are always so polite, always smiling, always cheerful. It is a delight to visit this shop for a nice cup of coffee and to chill when you are stressed.

       

Aloha!

     
The shop signboard clearly reflects the Hawaiian theme employed for the cafe.

   

Menu

   
On the back of the menu are various pictograms depicting the sign language for various expressions. This is to help you communicate with the staff and also for your own general knowledge.

       

Lovely ceramics

   
Hot tea is served in a lovely ceramic pot with an exquisite print in a soothing teal colour. The pot lid knob is thoughtfully made from wood as I can't remember the countless times I've been unable to hold ceramic pot lid knobs because they were the same temperature as the hot tea! A tea leaf strainer is encased in the pot to allow the leaves to steep without being released into the cup as the tea is being poured. Now I must go find myself a treasure like this =)
     
The small cups are very cheerful with contemporary prints. I have seen the design of the cup on the left somewhere but now I just can't remember where.

      

What a good idea!

       

Passion Fruit Iced Tea (RM 9.80)

   
I had this which came with numerous edible passion fruit seeds. The seeds, being rather tiny, were a delight to munch on although it got tiring after a while to munch on ice-cold seeds >.< But I will still order this on my next visit as I like the sweet taste of passion fruit =)

       

How about a cup of coffee?

      

Chemistry lab equipment

   
They've got a really cool-looking coffee-brewing machine which looks like they are part of a distillation process which is probably what was going on. There were equipment such as the Bunsen burner, stand and its clamp, round-bottom flask and glass rods for stirring.

      

See the contraption?

       

100% Maui Mokha

   
The taste of the coffee was really unique as the grinded coffee beans were dissolved into water in the flask before allowing it to slowly drip into a second flask under it. This resulted in the release of a really pleasant coffee aroma and strong caffeine undertones.

      

Passion Fruit Cheesecake

The cheesecake was really creamy and sweet with the passion fruit jam on top. My favourite out of all the cakes. JS thought it was so-so only.

Lemon Cheesecake

The Lemon Cheesecake was quite tart and sourish. 

Pineapple Cheesecake

The Pineapple Cheesecake was all right.

Overall, DIB Coffees is quite a nice and novel place to chill and have a nice cuppa. Downside is it is quite out of the way for most PJ folk though. We would give 4 Paws for the drinks especially the coffee and 2 Paws for the cakes and so we've adjusted the rating to 3 Paws.


PawPoints: 3 Paws 
Pawket: Onion

DIB Coffees of Hawaii
11-A-1, Jln PJU 8/5A,
Bandar Damansara Perdana
Tel: 016 480 1040
Daily: 9.30am - 10.30pm