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Prosperity Begins with a POP!: Carlsberg CNY dinner at HXC Grand Ballroom @ ICC Pudu

January 10, 2019 by HB

“Why so early CNY stuff come out dy?”. I hear this refrain every year without fail on my Facebook. Let me share a recent finding by Google I was privy to at work – search interest in Chinese New Year picks up 3 weeks before the actual date e.g. now. Thus, the decision by marketers to do CNY early is based on solid data. As someone who loves Chinese New Year and listens to CNY songs starting Christmas, I’m one of those who definitely gets into the mood early.

I love Chinese New Year. I adore everything about it – the lou sang, the reunion dinner, the gettogethers with family and friends, the yearly display of fireworks, the sojourn back to our hometown. I’m going back to Sibu and Kuching this year so I’m extra in-the-mood. I was talking to my housemate Mandy about how much I like CNY. She doesn’t feel the same excitement, and I realized that my passion for the Lunar New Year has remained relatively unchanged since I was a kid. What can I say? I’m a romantic when it comes to CNY.

I went to Carlsberg’s “Prosperity Begins with a POP” Chinese New Year dinner/launch event last night. I’ve seen these bottles with the brightly colored caps around. Lots of brands do CNY-specific SKU refreshes and it’s nice to see what’s coming every year at the grocery aisles. I also enjoy these dinners with lou sang so I jumped at the chance to go.

This was held at Hao Xiang Chi Seafood in ICC Pudu. It’s a huge event with a grand stage and lots of tables. I hear they invited 500 trade partners and media guests to the dinner. There were pop-up bars serving the entire Carlsberg range as well as food stands serving siu yoke, chicken wings and other finger food before the banquet dinner started. I was honestly impressed by the entire thing.

Oh! I also saw Crystal Ong of the CNY group M-Girls. This is the second M-Girls member I’ve met this year!

We also got the chance to play a replica version of “Probably The Best CNY Shopping Experience – You Shop, Carlsberg Pays!”. There was a huge Carlsberg Smooth Draught can that we popped to get a chance at the top prize of RM 800 worth of groceries and beers paid for by Carlsberg.

I managed to win the second prize of a 6-pack of Carlsberg Smooth Draught!

This activation will be held at participating supermarkets and hypermarkets on 12, 13, 19, 20, 21, 24, 26 and 27 January 2019. There have been 65 lucky winners who’ve won the grand prize of RM 800 worth of groceries paid for by Carlsberg thus far. You just need to buy RM 200 worth of Carlsberg products to get a chance to pop the can!

Somersby Oriental Yee Sang.

We ended up spilling more yee sang on the table than eating it but it was fun! This is my first lou sang of the year.

Kronenbourg 1664 Blanc Lobster Salad. I really enjoyed this dish! It’s a mixture of lobster meat and various fruits. One of the guys at our table had a shellfish allergy so I ended up eating his plate too. Best.

Asahi Superior Soup with Scallop. A beautiful bowl of chicken, huge Shitake mushroom, scallops, and an abalone. Luxurious.

Carlsberg Smooth Draught Braised Abalone. I love braised abalone! Nothing says CNY more than abalone.

Carlsberg Steamed Estuary Grouper. I’m a huge fan of grouper too. I think all Chinese will have a fish dish during the CNY reunion dinner coz it sounds fortuitous.

Connor’s Pork Ribs Stew. I was quite full at this point but I like how they provided a glove for you to eat this. Very thoughtful.

Carlsberg Superior Chicken Rice. I honestly can’t remember how this tasted like. I had indulged in quite a few drinks and I was too stuffed to be able to appreciate more food.

You’ll get a chance to win frantastic grand prizes like electronic mahjong table sets that auto shuffles and sorts the game tiles for you! There are also limited edition mahjong sets, RM 100 ang paus and playing cards! All you need to do is check the winning icon under the bottle caps when you enjoy Carlsberg or Carlsberg Smooth Draught big bottles at coffee shops and food courts.

You’ll also get a mahjong set by topping up RM 88 when you buy two cartons of Carlsberg or Carlbserg Smooth Draught AND one carton of Somersby (any variant) OR one carton of Kronenbourg 1664 Blanc. Tesco is giving these mahjong sets away FREE when you spend RM 600 on Carlsberg Malaysia products.

“Prosperity Begins with a POP” also has a bistro, restaurant and pub activation – enjoy Carlsberg or Carlsberg Smooth Draught at these places to get a deck of playing cards and stand a chance to win a RM 100 beer voucher! Check out www.facebook.com/CarlsbergMY or visit www.probablythebest.com.my for more information.

The promoter girl asked my Chinese zodiac when I registered. It turns out they had a personalized gift pack of 8 cans of Carlsberg and Carlsberg Smooth Draught featuring the four festive colors with my name written in calligraphy and zodiac on it. Pretty cool!

Nuromen Café Uptown PJ – Sarawak beef noodles from Kuching

January 7, 2019 by HB

I went to check out Nuromen Cafe with my housemate Mandy last night. I saw a video on Facebook and told her about it. To my surprise, she said she’s been there many times! I was puzzled coz she just arrived in KL 3 weeks ago and I’ve been out with her almost every time. I know I haven’t been here. It turns out that Nuromen Café in Uptown PJ is the official branch of Nuromen in Kuching. It serves Sarawak style beef noodles and Mandy’s a regular at the Kuching outlet.

As an illustration of how small the Sarawakian community is, a friend tagged the artist who drew this mural (also from Kuching) when I posted it on Facebook yesterday. Both Mandy and I are from Sarawak too. I guess Sarawakians just have an incestuous tendency to stick together.

I miss Kuching style beef noodles. I believe Open Air Central Market in Kuching serves one of the more definitive versions. That was my first experience back when I was living in Kuching as a kid. My sister was actually born in Kuching and our family lived there for the first 7 years of my life. I was born in Sibu due to an accident – my mom went into labor when they came to Sibu for Ching Ming. That’s also why my birthday is in Ching Ming. Haha.

Nuromen Café also serves a few Sarawak classic drinks like Teh C Special (RM 4.50) and Teh C Pandan Special (RM 4.50). This drink was created by a coffee shop in 7^th Mile, Kuching. We got both to try. It was diluted, not the best representation of Teh C Special.

The interesting thing about Nuromen is the way they do hot pot style beef noodles. You’re given a simmering bowl of beef soup a la hot pot and you cook your own beef slices inside. It’s a cross between hot pot and beef noodles. Mandy told me she usually orders this to eat with rice. You can also pair it with noodles.

We ordered their signature Premium Sirloin Beef Platter Special (RM 42) – it’s a set for 2 pax with 160 gram premium sirloin beef slices, stewed beef, assorted vegetables and beef stock. Nuromen claims all their beef is sourced from Australia and NZ. It’s not local beef or Indian buffalo. This set comes with the more premium marbled sirloin cut. The beef slices are ultra thin so it cooks in just a few seconds.

There’s a separate bowl of cooked stewed beef. We didn’t quite like this. I think my buffalo stew is way better.

I also made a separate a la carte order for 100 grams beef slices (RM 11.50). This is a leaner cut of beef. I wanted to see the difference between the sirloin and regular beef. We preferred the sirloin.

Of course, it’s not beef noodles unless you have noodles. You can order their garlic tossed kolo noodles for RM 3. This is the classic beef noodle pairing. I love the strong scent of garlic and the familiar smells and aromas. This is my kind of comfort food. The noodles are the proper kind we use in Sarawak too.

The staff gave us free ice cream when they saw we’re finished with our meal. This happens in Kuching too according to Mandy. It’s a nice touch.

The food at Nuromen Cafe is pretty good – some misses on the drinks and stewed beef but their signature noodles and beef slices are legit. The bill came up to RM 68.50 for two with drinks. It’s an authentic Sarawakian taste that we’ve both missed. We’ll be back for sure.

Restoran Kar Heong SS14 – best chicken rice in Subang!

January 3, 2019 by HB

I am a huge fan of chicken rice. I had a dark (?) period in my life where I ate poached chicken rice every single day for lunch for almost a year. And I enjoyed it! Haha. There was a really good chicken rice place at Pusat Bandar Damansara back then. I’ve also eaten Michelin Bib Gourmand award winners in Singapore like Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice and Tiong Bahru Boneless Chicken Rice. I consider myself a bit of a chicken rice connoisseur.

Restaurant Kar Heong in SS14 is one of my favorite chicken rice places around my condo (the other being Kong Sai). It has a stellar reputation among Subang-ites and their white chicken is very tender and juicy! The best benchmark for great poached chicken lies in the breast – it should be soft and succulent instead of dry and stringy. Kar Heong does perfect white chicken with moist meat and slippery skin. We shared ½ chicken between the two of us.

The chicken rice here is also extremely flavorful. There’s so much taste packed into every grain that it’s almost like an umami bomb. This is the 1% of chicken rice – rich, superior and piquant. A lot of people drizzle black sauce or their chicken gravy on top. I prefer the latter – I adore the combination of soy sauce, sugar and coriander stalks that makes up the sauce you see at the bottom of poached chicken. It’s perfect with rice. Kar Heong has good garlicky chilli sauce too.

Mandy also ordered a side of roasted pork. The roast pork here is decent but not the best I’ve had. I feel like the fat to meat ratio is a bit off. I don’t enjoy overly fatty pieces of pork belly. It’s not the worst, but doesn’t rank among the best siu yuk I’ve had in Klang Valley.

Kar Heong is my favorite place to have chicken rice in Subang. I can’t vouch for their roasted chicken though coz I only like poached chicken so that’s what I always order. I also enjoy Restoran Kong Sai in Puchong (their original shop is in PJ). This place has the edge in the chicken rice while Kong Sai’s dipping sauce is better. I haven’t found a better place, but if you know of one, please leave a comment below.

Tonight’s Menu: Two types of fried fish 🐠 with Thai chilli sauce 🌶, Broccoli 🥦 with oyster sauce, Crispy duck egg 🦆

December 31, 2018 by HB

I sometimes (not often) get the motivation to cook something other than my usual chicken rice – buffalo stew meal prep. Yesterday was such a day. I was driving my housemate Mandy to her workplace when we saw a morning market. I seldom wake up early enough for these things and she wanted to eat fish so I went to check out their offerings.

I got ikan bulus – a tubular type of white fish which is delicious when fried and a small broccoli. She wanted the small, flat kind of white pompfret but all the stalls there didn’t sell it. I managed to get some from the Jaya Grocer under my condo though.

I remember why I don’t cook fish often – it’s troublesome to remove the guts and descale the fish. I also don’t like how the scales fly everywhere and get my cat all excited. She’ll pounce and pat the scales and distribute them to the furthest corners of the kitchen, necessitating a good mop after.

I didn’t do much to the ikan bulus and small pompfret – just salted them liberally and fried them in hot oil. I bought a small bottle of maize oil cooking oil for this occasion. I don’t use oil in my regular cooking. I even skim off the buffalo fat the next day!

I also scalded the broccoli and pan-fried it with oyster sauce. If you’re wondering where the stem of the broccoli went, I blended it with cold water and drank it. I consume a lot of raw vegetables each night as a source of fiber and nutrients.

The fish kemek (lost structural integrity) during the frying process. I’m not sure what went wrong. It just started disintegrating. Maybe I should have battered it with tapioca starch so it’ll maintain its form. It still tastes good though. Half of the fish is ikan bulus and half is small white pomfret, served with Thai chilli sauce.

I also fried two duck eggs with a crispy bottom a la Chinese style. I’ve been buying duck eggs instead of chicken eggs lately coz I prefer the creamier yolk. It’s about 50% more expensive than chicken eggs but worth it.

This is the broccoli pan-fried with oyster sauce as a source of greens. I cooked fresh basmati rice to go with dinner and I also served my tom yam buffalo stew with beer.

It was almost 10 pm when I finished cooking. It tasted pretty good despite the simple execution. The fish was really fresh!

Pulau Ketam Trip Day 2: Exploring the island, electric bicycles, oyster omelet, haunted house, and a remarkable coincidence

December 27, 2018 by HB

Pulau Ketam isn’t very big but it might take you a while to walk around the island. Most people get by on electric bikes or regular bicycles. Electric bicycles usually go for RM 20/hour but our homestay rented them to us at RM 15/hour, so off we went to explore the habitated areas. There are 2 primary schools and a secondary school on the island so there’s a good amount of younger folks still here.

The main commercial area by the jetty is sleepy on the weekends though. It has a very familiar small town vibe. Both Mandy and I are from Sarawak so we felt very comfortable here. You can hear snippets of Teochow and Heng Hua, old ladies with curly hair smoking cigarettes, and men with Buddhist tattoos undergoing traditional Chinese cupping while seated on low stools. This can be any rural town in Sarawak – Serian, Lundu, Batang Ai.

Most of the shops serve some kind of noodle dish in the mornings so we went to a random one. Interestingly, all the coffee shops had their shutters half closed and lights off to save electricity but they’re actually open.

Mandy ordered a kueh tiaw soup dish with several different types of fishballs. This tasted peppery and mild. She didn’t like it and ended up eating my noodles.

I went for a dry tossed noodle with pork, shrimp, and boiled eggs. This tasted good but unfortunately I didn’t get to eat much of it. Mandy swapped her noodles with mine after tasting my superior order. I don’t really enjoy soup noodles but I’m a nice guy so I exchanged with her.

We also ordered 3 coffees from the next coffee shop. This one only had canned drinks and they asked us to order from their neighboring shop if we wanted brewed drinks. You can only do this in small towns where the competition is less and the spirit of cooperation is higher.

Thus satiated and fueled with caffeine, we went to Lover’s Bridge. This was marked as a tourist attraction on official Pulau Ketam maps but in reality, it’s just a rickety arch bridge. It’s good for photos though.

Mandy is pointing at the richest person in Pulau Ketam. Haha. This house is so different from the wooden structures surrounding it. Modern, sleek and tall, it’s the highest point on the island.

There’s also an old cinema beside the Lover’s Bridge. It’s amazing to think that at one point, the population of Pulau Ketam was large and vibrant enough to support a theatre as big as this one. 👏

Mandy randomly asked me what my IC number was and we found out that our last 4 digits were in sequence! What a coincidence! These checksum numbers are always odd if you’re male and even if you’re female so we can’t be the same but having ours in order is serendipitous.

It was an extremely hot day so we went to get some ABC (shaved ice dessert) to cool down. Our homestay told us about this stall, which he says has the best ABC on the island.

It was pretty good! There’s peanuts, nata de coco, jellies, cendol and all the trimmings underneath a mound of shaved ice and gula Melaka.

We sat with the owner, who told us many tales about the history and origin of the people who’re now at Pulau Ketam. He had a stroke a few years ago so his daughters run the stall, which is actually a shaved ice machine in front of their home.

We also went to the temple opposite which has very old tortoises and a huge, long python. Their toilets are very interesting too – little more than a carved rectangle on the floor. There’s no sewage system in Pulau Ketam. All human waste goes into the sea and it’s washed out by the tides.

We decided to cycle to the furthest end of the island until we couldn’t go any further. All the paths here are made of wooden boards on top of stilts. Only the main jetty and commercial area has concrete roads. It’s very exciting.

The view on the bridges that connects the island is nice towards the further regions of Pulau Ketam. You can see fishing boats moored to the individual jetties connected to houses. This is a less commercialized area of the island.

There was a very friendly woman running a drinks and snacks stand near the end of the island. We stopped there for a couple of beers. She told us she’s from Klang and come down during weekends to stay with her mom and run the stand. It’s a good place to refuel. She’s one of those people with natural PR skills.

We found an abandoned wooden house with creaking, rickety floorboards that would make a perfect photo op. The floorboards were so rotten we nearly fell through into the sea a few times.

I did a cool pose (or so I thought) and I ended up looking like such a sissy we couldn’t stop laughing for a good 3 minutes. In my defense, this looked manly and casual when conceived in my mind. The execution and angle could have been better though. 😄

Here’s a proper one so you can get rid of the previous mental image.

This is my favorite photo of us. I love the emo vibe. I told her to do a sad pose. #emoforever

We went back to Remember Me Restaurant to have o chien (oyster omelet) and a beer. This isn’t as good as the ones you’ll get in Penang or Kuching but edible. Especially on vacation since everything tastes better when you’re having fun.

The ones here are gooey and soggy instead of the crispy variant we get in Kuching but they’re both equally good.

It was a good overnight trip! Pulau Ketam is a chill and relaxing place that’s perfect for a weekend getaway. It’s not too far from KL or PJ either – just a 40 min drive and a 30 min boat trip away. I can see why people like it here. I’ll definitely be back someday.

Goodbye Pulau Ketam! We made great memories here and we’ll miss you. 🦀

Pulau Ketam Trip Day 1: Remember Me Restaurant, cycling under the full moon, what people do in small towns

December 24, 2018 by HB

HB-Mandy

My housemate Mandy and I decided to make an impromptu trip to Pulau Ketam over the weekend. She’ll be moving out this week so it’ll be a fun thing to do together. I’ve never been here but I’ve heard a lot about the idyllic small town vibe and I really enjoy places like these. I come from a smaller town myself and I like visiting even more rural places like Kapit or Sarikei.

Pulau-Ketam-Crab

Pulau Ketam is only accessible by boat. It’s a 20-30 minute trip from Port Klang and the ferries and boats usually charge around RM 9-10 per pax. I saw a few souvenir Pulau Ketam tee shirts at the jetty and assumed they’ll be more at the island itself but surprisingly, no one sells them at the island. Haha. I actually wanted to get one.

Pulau-Ketam-Ferry

The boats are the same express boats that we have in Sarawak. A lot of our rural towns are only reachable via the river so boats are a major mode of transportation there.

HB-Mandy-Ferry

These boats are air-conditioned and leaves every 45 minutes. There’s another type that’s open to the elements but much faster for RM 1 more. We took the other kind back.

Pulau-Ketam-Jetty

This is the view from the Pulau Ketam jetty. It’s not a very big island and most of the commercial areas are concentrated in the middle.

Pulau-Ketam-Us

It was an exceedingly hot day and I have gotten more sun in the past weekend than the previous 10 years of my life. I’m sunburnt and peeling right now despite applying liberal amounts of SPF 50+ sunscreen.

Mandy

We stayed at a homestay called Little Happiness Family. Little Happiness and Happiness Family is owned by the same people who runs Pulau Ketam Mini Market. They’re a friendly mother and son duo who gave me a RM 50 discount when they heard about the price I’m paying via Agoda. Agoda charged me RM 174 per night and they said it was more than they charge if you book direct so they refunded me RM 50. I thought that was nice of them.

Little-Happiness

The room we booked had a large double bed and two singles in a double decker bed format. I think it’s meant for families. All the units have their own shower/toilet as well as air-conditioning. Ours had a window with a view of the back too!

Remember-Me-Restaurant

Our hosts recommended a place called Jia Jia for seafood but it was closed for Winter Solstice Festival. We went to the most famous one in Pulau Ketam instead – Remember Me Restaurant.

Kam-Heong-Crab

Crabs are a must! This is Kam Heong Crabs. It’s RM 68 per kg. This is slightly more than 1 kg for RM 78. It’s not bad but I’m actually not a huge fan of crabs, mostly coz I don’t enjoy deshelling them. I like huge crabs like Alaskan King Crab though. To clarify, I love the taste of crab, I just don’t like picking at them and getting bits of shell in my mouth.

Nestum-Prawns

We also had Nestum Prawns (RM 38). These are pretty good and they’re fried to a crisp so you can eat the whole prawn without peeling, even the head!

Mandy-Peeling-Prawns

I had someone to peel the prawns for me though. Hehe.

Eating-Prawn

Best!

Kung-Pow-Mantis-Prawn

I also added on Kung Pow Mantis Prawn (RM 26). This are not fresh ones, obviously. It’s the frozen and pre-battered type that’s mass produced and sold everywhere from Langkawi to KL. Not my favorite.

Obligatory-Veggie

There’s also an obligatory vegetables dish – cabbage stir fried with belacan for RM 16.

HB-Mandy-Seafood

The bill came up to RM 180 for 2 pax including drinks and beer, which is around the price you’ll expect to pay in PJ too. Not bad, but I’m keen to try Jia Jia next time since it was not only recommended by our homestay, a random aunty selling snacks in the furthest habituated edges of Pulau Ketam also told us about it.

Bicycle-Ride

The nightlife at Pulau Ketam is pretty sparse, although we spotted an 80’s style karaoke pub and an uncle told us about a feng tau joint. Most people seem to congregate at the jetty to hang out and relax and that’s what we did too.

Pulau-Ketam-Jetty-Night

The jetty had a psychedelic strobing light which was a little out of place but kinda nice.

Bicycle-Selfie

Our homestay provided bicycles but there was a huge family staying there who was about to take the last two. Mandy convinced them to let us have one of the bicycles. I should add that these are two little kids of around 6 years old or so. Hahahaha. I think their grandpa gave Mandy a look of mild disapproval. I didn’t dare to ask even though I wanted a bicycle coz they’re so small, so I’m glad she did. 😌

Mandy-Jetty

There was a cool breeze coming in from the sea and the night was bright courtesy of the full new moon. I put on some tunes on Spotify and we ended up talking and singing and riding bicycles till midnight. Good clean fun.

Drunken-Chess

I brought along a bottle of JW Black Label and we ended up playing drunken Chinese chess in the room. We had to Google the rules and made up many of our own so it wasn’t much of a structured game but still a lot of fun. I really enjoyed myself despite being a man who prefers my own company most of the time.

Day 2 coming soon!

Ayam Gepuk Pak Gembus, USJ 21 – the viral spicy chicken!

December 19, 2018 by HB

Ayam-Gepuk

I was pleased to see this new F&B outlet opposite my condo. Ayam Gepuk Pak Gembus is the famous Indonesian chain of fiery chicken where they use up to 100 cili padi to make their spicy chicken coating. Their main Malaysian branch in Gombak went viral recently and in a testament to scalability, they’ve rapidly opened smaller outlets around Klang Valley. This is an official branch, not a copycat. I love spicy food and I’ve always wanted to try this infernal creation.

Ayam-Gepuk-Pak-Gembus-USJ21

The menu is very streamlined – there’s only one item on offer here but 4 sets from RM 7.90 to RM 10.90. The cheapest one just has ¼ chicken + rice + RO water while the most expensive one throws in tofu, tempeh, chicken liver, chicken stomach, and fried cabbage. Their fried cabbage is insane so I highly recommend the RM 10.90 set. You can get free refills of rice, RO water and unlimited chillis.

Ayam-Pak-Gembus

Their ayam gepuk is the main draw and I had mine with 35 bird eye chillis. The chillis are pounded and mixed with oil and other aromatics before being spread on the ¼ chicken. They don’t use very spicy chillis – these are more flavorful than spicy. It’s a salty and umami rub that goes very well with rice. It burned my lips for an hour after though. I enjoyed the chicken and their delicious fried cabbage. The latter had crispy edges and a distinct taste of char that I love!

However, be warned that they do not have the capacity to deal with large crowds. Each dish is prepared individually and they only have one prep station so it takes ages for food to come out. There was a long queue to order and pay at the cashier too. The chickens are also tiny, but Malay poultry tend to be on the smaller side for some reason. It’s worth a try though!

My new housemate

December 17, 2018 by HB

Mandy

I have a new housemate. She’s 24 and staying here for 3 weeks. I have lived most of my adult life alone, so I was a bit hesitant to have someone stay over. I’m the kind of guy who doesn’t mind paying a bit more for the entire unit instead of having to share rooms. That’s not to say that I’ve never had roommates. In various stages of my life, I’ve had female companions (I hesitate to use the word girlfriend) stay over at my place long term.

Mandy-KL

The most memorable (though not for the reasons you think) was this wild girl who stayed in my room when I was 17. She was 19 and hung out with this lesbian crew of motorcyclists. No need to fantasize coz they’re all very dismal looking. Hideous, rough and stocky. Except her though, she was slim, feminine and quite good looking! A friend of mine who joined the 3rd Mile gang in Kuching introduced her to me. “Eh tang chiau eh,” he whispered conspiratorially. You can play with this one. God knows where he found/met her.

Mandy-Milk

I had to go back to Sibu for Chinese New Year and she convinced me to let her stay on while I was away. Bad decision. She ran up a RM 200+ phone bill, threw parties with her lesbian biker friends, got into a fight with the neighbor who told her to keep the noise down, police were called, my landlord was called, they were all kicked out. She even wanted my landlord’s address so she can go kick her ass! I was almost evicted for letting an unauthorized person stay over.

Mandy-Office

Needless to say, that experience did not endear me to housemates. The sex wasn’t great either, mostly coz she had a serious BO problem. Her armpits were very funky! I’ve had other roommates since but none I remember as vividly as that first one. She gave me PTSD about people staying over. Hahaha.

Housemate-Shopping

Thus, when my friend asked if his girlfriend can stay over, I was exceedingly reluctant. My roommate from hell 20 years ago was still fresh in my mind. Also, I’ve seen her photos and she’s very attractive. I thought it best to not expose myself to such enticement. Flee from temptation, the bible extorts us. Flee! I grudgingly said okay.

Mi-Sedaap

She came on Saturday and we’ve had a chance to hang out and talk. She’s grown on me. This one is a college psychology graduate – a nice, soft spoken girl miles apart from my first ever roommate. I was secretly pleased when she asked if I’ve eaten when she arrived at KL Sentral – she wanted to tapao for me. Gam sek zou! She also likes Mi Sedaap so bonus points for that. Haha.

New-Housemate

I found myself enjoying her company. It’s nice to have people around. Like a cat, but more interactive. 😄

Mandy-Housemate

There’s really no point to this post. I just remembered my terrible housemate from 20 years ago and wanted to share the story. Here comes the abrupt ending.

Kuching-Housemate

I know my first housemate was a rare outlier and she’s on one extreme of the negative-experience-with-roommates scale. This one is on the other end – the positive-experience-with-housemates end. Both are rare and most people fall somewhere in the middle. I don’t mind nice housemates. Sekian, terima kasih.

Waku Ghin (2 Michelin star) 5-course Executive Set Lunch – premium private teppanyaki experience

December 12, 2018 by HB

Waku Ghin is hands down the best restaurant I’ve been to in Singapore. They’re also incredibly expensive. Dinner is a SGD 450++ affair which puts it close to Gaggan’s price tag. I contemplated long and hard before deciding to check out their relatively tamer SGD 180++ executive 5-course lunch. They recently started lunch service on Fridays that offers the same sit-down private teppanyaki experience with less courses. It’s a good way to get a preview of what they’re all about. It’s also a lot easier on the wallet at approximately half the dinner cost.

Waku Ghin has 2 Michelin stars and they’re rated 23rd on Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants. The service here is impeccable. Waiters and waitresses are friendly and accommodating. I was given a selection of magazines to browse through when they saw I was a solo diner. I thought that was a nice touch, even though people tend to prefer their smartphones nowadays. Doors are swung open for you as soon as you approach and your chair is pulled back for you when you need to go to the toilet.

You’re seated at The Bar at Waku Ghin until the teppanyaki rooms are ready. Each room sits 4-5 customers and you have your own private chef to cook your meal. All the proteins like lobster and wagyu steak is cooked to order by your teppanyaki chef so it comes to you freshly made. Our chef is Japanese but he has a reasonable command of the English language from working in the main Tetsuya’s Restaurant in Sydney.

Lunch started with Salad of the Sea. This is a take on their famous botan shrimp, Ossetra caviar and uni dish in the form of sushi. There are two possible variations on this for lunch – either sushi or cold pasta. Ossetra caviar is the most prized and expensive type of caviar from the sturgeon – real caviar! The chef told me he also put ume plum they pickled in-house into the sushi to cut through the rich flavors. It works so well! Beautiful and balanced. The sweet botan shrimp combines with the salty caviar and creamy uni for a flavor explosion in your mouth. It’s perfection!

There’s also sashimi of Tasmanian ocean trout, Japanese snapper, squid and wakame (underneath the radish) as a palate cleanser. The squid is insanely creamy and has great texture. It’s marinated in sweet, acidic sauce. That’s my favorite after the shrimp + caviar + uni bite.

Next up is Grilled Anago with Foie Gras, Confit of Zucchini and Sansho. The chef freshly grated wasabi from a wasabi rhizome to put inside. This is a very intense dish. Anago cooked Japanese style is already very rich and it’s paired with foie gras and a confit (cooked in fat) vegetable. Very nicely done but not for the faint of heart. So fatty. So yums. An excellent heavy dish to contrast with the previous lighter flavors.

The chef started warming a concoction in a small sauce pot on the teppan grill. He said this was the famous Ghin Bouillabaisse made from 22 different types of fish (!!!).

This delicious broth is the base for a dish of lobster from Canada and scallops from Japan. The claw of the Canadian lobster was lovingly grilled and the chubby rotund scallops were given a quick sear before being plated with the bouillabaisse.

This dish is out of control! Premium seafood ingredients paired with a broth simmered for 3 days with 22 kinds of fish. It’s mental! Ghin Bouillabaisse tastes like an umami bomb on your palate. The Canadian lobster is naturally sweet and the incredibly plump scallops are tender and yummy. I hardly ever see scallops of these size and they’re Japanese scallops, which are the highest quality and sweetest in the world. The complex soup goes so well with the crusty bread they provided. I used it to soak up every single drop from my bowl.

Japanese A5 Ohmi Wagyu from Shiga Prefecture with Wasabi and Citrus Soy. Ohmi wagyu is one of the Japan top 3 wagyu together with Kobe and Matsuzaka. This is very premium stuff! It has certification which states the provenance of the cow and their ancestor details. The chef showed us the beautifully marbled piece of Japanese wagyu before he cooked it.

This is a very generous portion bigger and thicker than a deck of playing cards! It’s seared on the teppanyaki Japanese style in the form of thick cubes. This is not fake Australian wagyu bred from Japanese cows. It’s not only real A5 grade Japanese wagyu from Japan, it’s from an exclusive branded breed.

I really enjoyed wagyu steak. It’s incredibly fatty and delicious. Truly melt-in-your-mouth. But here’s an unpopular view – I don’t fancy eating large quantities of heavily marbled wagyu. This is a personal preference. I can’t eat lots of fatty pork belly as well, while some people can happily destroy a whole pork trotter. I liked it, but this portion size is too much of a good thing.

The Ohmi A5 wagyu was served with maitake mushroom rice and a soy based dipping sauce. There was also a plate of palate cleansing greens to help with the rich flavors. The mushroom rice was excellent – savory and umami. I asked what maitake mushrooms were and the chef brought a whole colony out from the kitchen!

They import this entire thing from Nagano in Japan! That’s why it costs so much to eat here.

We were guided to a lounge area after the savory courses so we can have dessert overlooking the marina. This is Apricot Seed Panna Cotta with Apricot Jam and Honey Ice Cream. It’s the fucking bomb! I love the honey ice cream. This is a more delicate and acidic dessert that goes well with the heavy meal. I prefer fruit based desserts to chocolate ones.

There’s also complimentary green tea to go with your dessert. It’s exceedingly fragrant and high quality.

I may have erroneously stated that it was my birthday when I made the reservation. The waitress came up with a nice birthday plate featuring Chocolate Mousse with Vanilla and Macadamia. I think the cake is from Patisserie Platine by Waku Ghin downstairs. It has a crispy gianduja (chocolate-hazelnut) base. I’ve only eaten this texture once before in an expensive gianduja cake my ex bought me. Delicious!

Waku Ghin’s Executive 5-course Lunch ended with a selection of petit fours. The yuzu jelly was shockingly sour. It made not just my lips, but my whole face pucker! Intense. Hazelnut meringue was very good. I liked that. Chocolate truffle with champagne was the best – a nice alcoholic truffle made with reduced and condensed champagne. Luxurious! They’re all made in-house.

I was presented with the menu at the end. The front cover even had a birthday wish and the date inscripted.

I truly enjoyed my meal at Waku Ghin. This is the best Michelin starred restaurant I’ve eaten at in Singapore. The service is faultless. The food is delicious and uses superior ingredients and lengthy cooking techniques. It’s a bit expensive for lunch but I thought the SGD 212 (RM 645) bill was a fair price. I highly recommend Waku Ghin. It whetted my appetite for the longer dinner course. I’ll definitely be back but at that price, I’ll have to find a special occasion to splurge on. Maybe it’ll even be my real birthday. Haha.

Burnt Ends (1 Michelin star) – a pleasant gastronomic experience with newfound friends

December 10, 2018 by HB

Burnt Ends was the first Michelin star restaurant I went to during my last trip to Singapore. I flew in at 3 pm and took a quick shower before turning up for my reservation at 6 pm. It’s one of the new Michelin star winners in 2018 and #12 on the S.Pellegrino Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants list (#61 on World’s 50 Best Restaurants). I’ve heard a lot of good things about Chef Dave Pynt and the Australian style BBQ they serve here. They go back to basics and cook with real fire. This restaurant has a 4-ton brick oven as the centerpiece and diners are seated in a row flanking the kitchen.

I was stationed next to an older couple and they struck up a conversation with me. They ended up sharing their food so I did the same. That’s one of the best things about community style dining – sometimes you meet like-minded foodies and experience a wider range of dishes. They ordered expensive items like Leek, Hazelnut and White Truffle (SGD 75) while my orders were a magnitude more pedestrian (Salt and Pepper Pork Ribs – SGD 22) so it was nice of them to share.

Asparagus and Burnt Cream (SGD 14). I ordered a selection of different starters, mains and desserts to get a feel of their cooking. This was my first appetizer. The asparagus was cooked perfectly – moist and still slightly firm. There’s a buttery sauce to go with it and the crispy panko crumbs sprinkled on top adds a nice texture. If you haven’t noticed, all the dishes here are BBQ-ed in their huge fire pit.

Salt and Pepper Pork Ribs (SGD 22) came in a huge portion for an entrée. The boneless pork ribs were topped with pickled cilantro, which adds a nice vinegary taste to the smoky pork ribs. They go very well together! Eaten on its own, the pork ribs wasn’t spectacular but the addition of the pickled aromatic herbs elevates it to another level. Good stuff.

Leek, Hazelnut and White Truffle (SGD 75). This was ordered by the couple beside me. The offered me a portion complete with white truffle. I liked the combination of the soft leek, earthy truffle and toothsome hazelnuts. I was very surprised my favorite dishes turned out to be their vegetable dishes. It’s done very well!

I like the casual environment in Burnt Ends. The chefs cook and plate in front of you and Chef Dave often introduce the dishes personally. The food is sometimes placed in front of you from right opposite the counter where the cooking happens, though shorter limbed chefs require the help of waiters to do that. It’s a different ambiance than fine dining restaurants so don’t come expecting that.

I couldn’t resist ordering their famous Burnt Ends Sanger (SGD 20). This is pulled pork shoulder, coleslaw, and chipotle aioli on a brioche bun. The flavor combination is decent but I didn’t feel this was anything special. It tasted very average to me. I gave half to the couple beside me coz there’s no way I could finish this entire thing and still eat the rest of dinner. I wouldn’t order this again.

Octopus, Hummus and Harissa (SGD 24). This was from the couple. I love the slightly charred octopus! It’s tender too, not chewy like how octopus can be if not cooked properly. I’ll definitely get this next time I’m in Burnt Ends. Very good.

Bone Marrow Bun (SGD 12). Hooooly shit! Hands down the best thing I’ve eaten that night. So sinful! So delicious! This is a brioche bun *slathered* with bone marrow before going into their fire pit. It’s so rich I tasted durian notes inside, which is impossible. Fucking good stuff! I’m salivating just thinking of it right now. I highly recommend this to go with your steak. Excellent.

Tenderloin, Burnt Onion and Bone Marrow (SGD 28 per 100 gram). This is a 95 gram portion for SGD 26.60. They show it too you before it’s cooked.

It was served super rare – just the way I like it. Check out the inviting color!

I also enjoyed the bone marrow sauce and pickled herbs served on the side. It helps cut down the richness of the steak. This one went swimmingly with the Bone Marrow Bun.

The couple gave me a slice of their Top Sirloin. This is an off-menu item, so I don’t know how much it costs. I suspect this cut of meat is pricey. They’ve been here before and asked for it. It’s really good! Too bad I was so full at this point I couldn’t eat more. They couldn’t finish their order too and asked me to help but I couldn’t stuff more than a slice down my throat coz I was at capacity.

It turns out it’s the lady’s birthday! She’s in her 50s! Very well preserved!

Chocolate Fondant and Smoked Ice Cream (SGD 12). Beautiful! The chocolate fondant is perfectly done with an oozing rich, chocolately center. The smoked ice cream is so intensely flavored they must have used smoke extract to make the ice cream. I refuse to believe such strong flavors can be infused naturally! It’s delicious. I love the flavors in the smoked ice cream and how well they go with the chocolate fondant. I’m a fan of peaty Islay single malts whisky though, which has a similar taste profile. I know some people don’t like peaty malts. If that’s the case, you probably wouldn’t enjoy this.

Oreo (SGD 3) and Chocolate (SGD 5). The chef gave me these desserts for free. Oreo is Burnt End’s take on the Oreo cookie. I found it quite meh at first but as I chewed the super crispy biscuit, it released more flavors and tasted better and better! Nice. The chocolate is cold and had a butterscotch filling. It’s very creamy and rich. Yums.

Marshmallow (SGD 2) arrived as another complimentary bite when I paid my bill. I like how they serve this hot, toasted marshmallow on a warm plate. There’s a nice crusty and crispy exterior and a melty interior. It’s not just one dimensionally sweet too – there’s citrus notes in the marshmallow!

Here’s a copy of the menu! I was searching for it before I was scheduled to come and couldn’t find it. Do note that the menu items changes every day though.

I enjoyed my Australian BBQ dinner at Burnt Ends. The proteins are mostly good but the vegetable dishes were the real star of the night! I didn’t have space for their King Crab and Garlic Brown Butter (SGD 95) but I’ve heard great things about it. I’ll just go for that and their Bone Marrow Bun next time. It sounds like a sinfully delicious pairing! I also enjoyed talking Michelin starred restaurants with the couple beside me, who’re also into fine dining. It was a very pleasant dinner. My bill came up to SGD 118.35 (RM 359) which is reasonable. I will be back.