Food reviews – Page 30 – sixthseal.com

Racks Bar and Baby Backs, Changkat Bukit Bintang

October 28, 2011 by HB

racks bar baby backs

I recently went to the newly launched Racks Bar and Baby Backs in Changkat Bukit Bintang for dinner. This place specializes in pork ribs and also has a menu with a plethora of all things porcine.

Racks

I’ve written about this place for Lifestyle Asia – the Nice Racks in Changkat Bukit Bintang article is a piece I did for them as a freelance writer.

The starters

special pigs special blankets

Special pigs in special blankets (RM 24)
The suggestive presentation is intentional. Heh. These are spiced oxfords wrapped in parma ham. Parma ham is a slow dry cured ham from Italy – it takes 12 months to complete and is served uncooked. The result is a sweet slice of heaven with a heavy pork fat aftertaste.

asparagus

Asparagus under prosciutto (RM 22)
The steamed and buttered asparagus gives a little balance to the food pyramid. It’s quite refreshing after all the pork dishes and asparagus is one of the few vegetables I actually like.

angels in parma

Angels in parma (RM 32)
I love oysters and I love Prosciutto di Parma (Parma ham). What could go wrong with a combination of the both? It’s delicious and the spicy sambal on top provides a fusion twist! I’m a bit of a traditionalist when it comes to oysters – I still prefer it au naturale but this is horizon expanding stuff.

peaches n parma

Peaches ‘n’ parma (RM 22)
This is a brilliant implementation that wraps parma ham around fresh peaches before grilling it. The sweet peach juices provides a nice contrast to the savory parma ham. It’s my personal favorite from the appetizers menu.

Racks of Ruin

These shooters comes in a rack of 12 for RM 200 and is also the part of the namesake of the restaurant (in addition to racks of pork).

the molotov

The Molotov
This Shock and Awe shooter is made with vodka, tequila, Jack Daniels and…Tabasco sauce. The last ingredient will leave mere mortals gasping for breath. It’s one of the stronger shooters and it makes sense to put in Tabasco sauce as it masks the copious amounts of alcohol well.

test tube babies

Test Tube Babies
Vodka, peach schnapps and a dash of cranberry. This is to extinguish the fire caused by The Molotov. It’s sweet and a more traditional shooter.

Racks of Ruin

Illusion
The mix of Midori melon, pineapple juice, vodka and run is positively delicious. I think of it as a holiday drink, something to sip while lounging by the beaches.

Mains

cold cut platter

Cut, pickles, jams, mustard and bread (RM 54)
This is a selection of cold cuts with jams and breads (all made in-house). I like the freshly baked bread – it goes very well with their apple-chilli jam and the slivers of cheese and cold cuts provides the savory twist to the sweet jam slathered bread.

Pork Burger

Racks pork burger (RM 28)
Nestled among the buns is a 7 oz juicy home-made patty. The pork patty is juicy and tender, one of the best pork burgers I’ve ever had. Don’t be fooled by the deceptively simple presentation – this is great stuff. The burger has the works, the only beef ( smirk ) I have with it is crispy bacon. I’m a soggy bacon kinda guy but I’m sure they’ll switch it if you ask.

big bad sandwich

Racks big BAD sandwich (RM 26)
The BAD stands for bacon, avocado and dried tomatoes. The fascinating thing about Racks is that they use their own oven to dry the tomatoes – it’s not something you get off-the-shelf and it shows in the taste. I found the bread a bit too much though but that may be coz I’ve been eating a lot of it in the previous dishes.

Hot And Spicy Pork Ribs

Hot & Spicy Pork Ribs (RM 52 full rack, RM 32 half rack)
The piece de resistance. It reminds me of this pizza place near my campus when I was studying in Melbourne. They make the best hot and spicy pork ribs ever and I’ve struggled to find an equally good one since. This fits the bill. It’s really something you can get your hands into – a sticky, messy but delicious eating experience.

Sweet And Sticky Pork Ribs

Sweet & Sticky Pork Ribs (RM 52 full rack, RM 32 half rack)
This is my favorite dish of the night. It’s the marmalade glaze and scallions that sold it for me. The pork ribs at Racks are slow braised and glazed on the spit for six hours and it shows – the meat literally falls of the bone and melts in your mouth. This comes highly recommended from me – the sweet marmalade sauce complements the pork ribs nicely.

full rack size

Racks Bar and Baby Backs will be coming up with more varieties of pork ribs in the future. I can’t wait to try it – the Sweet & Sticky pork ribs had me craving for more. Thanks for the invite Winnie, Shu Min and Paul! They also have an an all-you-can-drink apple martini breakfast on weekends – just add on RM 48 for free flow drinks. I like how Racks makes their dishes to order and most of the ingredients are made in-house too.

full pork ribs rack

Racks is located beside Finnegan’s on Changkat Bukit Bintang.

Curry Fish Head at Sin Kim San Cafe

October 26, 2011 by HB

meng curry fish head

I was in Penang a couple of days ago and met up with Cheryl and Kah Wheng for dinner. They brought me to Sin Kim San at Macalister Road for a really good curry fish head meal.

sin kim san

Sin Kim San Cafe is this sprawling coffee shop with a wide range of stalls offering everything from monitor lizard soup to peh pah duck. There’s another coffee shop beside it which you can order from too.

curry fish head penang

The curry fish head stall is rather well known among the locals. You can opt for fish slices instead of a fish head and there several other seafood items like squid, prawns and catfish on offer. It’s cooked Chinese style with a really spicy kick ass gravy.

bbq chicken wings sin kim san

We also had an order of the BBQ chicken wings. Cheryl mentioned that this stall used to be manned by a dude with Goku hair but that night, an elderly man took his place. No idea whether it’s the same owner – I put forth the theory that it could be the dad but then again I’m not from Penang so I wouldn’t know for sure. Heh.

bbq chicken wings

The BBQ chicken wings is pretty good too – it’s glazed with honey and the BBQ process doesn’t toughen the meat. In fact, it’s quite tender and juicy.

curry fish head

However, the curry fish head is the highlight of the meal. The prawns we added on came partially de-shelled and there’s also tomatoes and pieces of okra inside. It’s topped with mint leaves and what I really like about it is the fact that it doesn’t have tofu products or other nonsense like that. smirk

sin kim san curry fish head

It’s served in a plastic bowl and our combination costs RM 33 for two. I would prefer using a claypot so it retains the heat but other than that I have no complains. The gravy is superb – thick, sweet and flavorful to the point that you can eat an entire plate of rice with just that.

sin kim san dinner

Penang is wonderful – it’s really a place where good food can be found in every corner. I’ve been there a lot of times and I still haven’t eaten all it has to offer. Hell, I’m half tempted to move there. 🙂

Kechara Oasis New Age Vegetarian Cuisine

October 21, 2011 by HB

curry

Well, most of you know that I love my meat. I don’t really like vegetarian food…or so I thought. I went to Kechara Oasis New Age Vegetarian Cuisine in Jaya One recently to meet up with Jamie (more on that later) and check out their vegetarian offerings.

kechara oasis

Kechara Oasis is one of the high end vegetarian eating establishments in town – they take great pride in serving fresh and different styles of the usual vegetarian fare.

kechara oasis jaya one

It was pretty packed when I arrived there for lunch. I was pleasantly surprised to see their menu – they offer vegetarian fare from all around the world.

tibeten butter tea

I started with Tibetan Butter Tea. This comes in a flask and is slightly salty. However, I really loved the creamy mouth-feel and strong brewed tea that this concoction presents – the salty accent just highlights and complements the buttery goodness.

tingmo

Tingmo is the Tibetan version of the Chinese man tau (steamed bun). It comes with a side of curry that goes very well with the neutral taste of the man tau. The Tingmos are also good for mopping up the gravies of the main dishes.

momos

The deep fried Momos is a must-order item when you go to Kechara Oasis – it’s a unique Tibetan twist of the Japanese Gyoza dumplings and comes filled with potatoes, vegetables, herbs and cheese. It tastes lovely when dipped into chilli oil. I didn’t even realize there wasn’t any meat inside.

vegetarian

We also had two different types of curries. I particularly enjoyed the Vietnamese Curry Chicken – it has Seitan drumsticks with a cornucopia of vegetables and potatoes. The Seitan drumsticks tastes remarkably similar to meat – the texture is spot on.

kung po

The Kung Po Hedgehog Mushroom comes with a smattering of cashew nuts on top and comes highly recommended from me. It’s a very spicy dish of mushrooms, green peppers and carrots stir fried in Kung Po sauce. I’m a big fan of spicy dishes and this one did not disappoint – it finished my bowl of brown rice with the sauce alone.

mushrooms

If you prefer something less spicy, the Thai Butter Hedgehog Mushroom is one of Kechara Oasis’s more popular offerings. The way they cook the hedgehog mushrooms makes it taste like battered pieces of meat. The sprinkling of sesame seeds adds to the flavor and I loved the buttery taste of the dish.

pasta

However, the most remarkable dish is a fusion vegetarian pasta dish that tastes like nothing I’ve ever had. It’s made with spaghetti with thick green curry gravy and it’s the subtle touches like the sunflower seeds on top that adds a lot of texture and dimension to the pasta. I’ll definitely come back to this again. Delicious and creamy, it’s one of the best fusion dishes I’ve ever had – and it’s vegetarian to boot!

jamie

Anyway, I was at Kechara Oasis to meet Jamie, who is rather active in Kechara. She has published a book about her life as a rather spoiled kid and I’ve always been curious about how someone like her would end up as one of Rinpoche’s liaisons in Malaysia.

david

I met her though David (who has also written an autobiography) and what drew me to these people is that they’re people like me who somehow managed to give up their previous life of hedonism and become who they are today. It all comes down to Rinpoche’s teachings and although I haven’t had a chance to meet him, he’s this cool dude from the US who’s spreading the word of Buddhism through good deeds.

Rimpoche

I’m sure you’ve heard of Kechara, especially their efforts in Kechara Soup Kitchen (KSK). I’m going to volunteer and help out – it’s a good cause to spend a few Saturdays on. However, it’s David and Jamie that got me reading Rinpoche’s blog – especially the bits about Animals & Vegetarianism.

kechara jamie

I’m sure a lot of you know how badly animals are treated, but since you get your chicken from the supermarket, it’s not a very visceral reminder of the industry. It’s not easy being a vegetarian – I’ve heard personal anecdotes from David and Jamie on how they each achieved it.

call me paris

I think Jamie puts it best when she said that it’s a struggle at the beginning but after a while you just get used to it when you think about the mistreatment of animals that happens in the industry. I’m not sure I can do it but it does give you food for thought (pun intended).

rice

Rinpoche’s blog explains it very well in Animals & Vegetarianism. He’s the only blogger I know who’s been ordained by the Dalai Lama and writes about a lot of different things that you wouldn’t expect – everything from Food & Recipes to Current Affairs & News.

Che Jai Meen in Hong Kong

October 14, 2011 by HB

che jai meen noodles

Che Jai Meen is one of the great hawker delights of Hong Kong. It’s literally translated as “small cart noodles” but commonly called peddler noodles.

small cart noodles

These wonderful push carts carries a mind boggling array everything from pork, eggs, veggies, beef, offal and of course, the all important fishball.

che jai meen

You choose the ingredients you want and it’s served up in a huge bowl with noodles and hearty beef-flavored broth.

che jai meen hong kong

This is one of the local delights that you just have to try out. I first saw it in a Stephen Chow movie. Heh. The shop that we went to has very limited seating but that’s part of the deal – it adds to the ambiance.

che jai meen hk

This is Jeanie’s bowl – it has a fish slices, meatballs, sausages, stomach and some vegetables. Each ingredient you choose adds to the total price of the dish.

che jai meen bowl

My very own che jai meen is much more opulent. I think I ticked half of the options that were available and would have gone for more if the cook had not stopped me and said it won’t fit into the bowl. You can barely see the noodles as it is. smirk

peddler noodles

It makes for a very hearty breakfast – the piping hot broth is flavored with a stock that tastes as if it’s been boiling for a long time. However, the beef balls is hands down the highlight of the che jai meen. The huge beef balls practically squirts its juices when you bite into it and it’s springy and chewy. Superb!

meen

Hong Kong does beef balls really well – it seems to be a cultural thing and a pride of the nation…but don’t quote me on that as I gleaned the information from Stephen Chow’s God of Cookery film. 😉 However, it is one of the most delicious bowls of noodles I’ve ever tasted in my life – it ranks up there with the best!

che jai meen us

Don’t forget to order the beef balls when you’re eating from a humble che jai meen stall in Hong Kong – it’s delicious and probably one of the best you’ll taste in the world.

toothpick

…and if you’re up to it, you can do like the locals do and stick a toothpick in your mouth after the delicious che jai meen meal to clear any pesky debris sticking to your molars. I’ve never seen Jeanie use it before but she seems to have gone native during our trip there. smirk

Tim Ho Wan Dim Sum Specialists in Hong Kong

October 10, 2011 by HB

Tim Ho Wan is reportedly the best dim sum restaurant in Hong Kong. I’ve heard a lot of good things about it and even the concierge at our hotel recommended the place when we asked where we can eat dim sum.

I was already dead set on eating here before I even got to HK. I finally convinced the ex to head down to Mongkok to check out Tim Hou Wan Dim Sum on our very last day there. This is the outlet which received One Michelin Star!

You see, the problem was that the concierge told us that it’s the best dim sum in Hong Kong but you might have to wait up to 3 hours. I have heard about the legendary waiting time but also about the equally impressive food so I really wanted to go.

Tim Ho Wan has a lot of branches now but the original is in Mongkok. It is run by an ex Lung King Heen (a prestigious 3 Michelin star restaurant in Four Seasons Hotel) chef and the reason why it’s so popular with the locals is coz it’s cheap and delicious.

We waited for over an hour before we managed to get in – the menu is very limited and you choose what you want before you enter the restaurant. There’s a perpetual long queue in front of the dim sum shop. I think Tim Hou Wan has had some altercations with its neighbors coz everyone was told to keep within the confines and not stand in front of the shops beside it.

Anyway, we were finally seated in the extremely small and cramped dim sum restaurant. I love the ambiance though – it’s just people enjoying dim sum and you don’t feel pressured to leave (which I half expected).

Har Kow (Steamed Fresh Shrimp Dumplings) – HKD 22
I loved it! I always like har kow, it’s an order I judge each dim sum place by and Tim Ho Wan did not disappoint. The prawns are huge and juicy and the wrap is delicate and thin. It’s perfection!

Steamed Chicken Feet With Black Bean Sauce – HKD 14
I like how the chicken feet came out just right. Dim sum is cooked fresh in Tim Ho Wan and the black bean sauce complements the chicken feet nicely. It has a spicy note from the chillies too! Delicious.

Braised Pig Knuckle in Sauce – HKD 15
Hmm…this was a major letdown. There’s more bone than meat or skin/fat and I’ve had much better braised pig knuckle in Malaysia. I would avoid this. It’s very meh.

Vermicelli Roll Stuffed with Pig’s Liver – HKD 16
OMG! This is like an orgasm in your mouth! It’s chee cheong fun, except it’s stuffed with pig liver.

Here’s what it looks like. Don’t be fooled by the simple presentation – the vermicelli roll wrapping is translucently thin and the pig liver is extremely creamy with a very rich mouth-feel. Highly recommended!

Steamed Rice with Beef and Pan-fried Egg – HKD 17
This was a mistake. I wanted to have the lou mai kai but my ex accidentally ticked this one instead coz she thought it was lou mai kai in Cantonese.

It was alright, but we didn’t come here to eat a rice dish.

The actual lou mai kai (sticky glutenous rice) looks like this – unfortunately it’s our neighbors and we didn’t know them well enough to ask for a bite. 😉

Baked Bun with BBQ Pork – HKD 14
This is what Tim Hou Wan is famous for. It’s their signature dish – almost everyone I saw ordered at least one basket of this. There are three buns in a basket and it’s not enough!

The bun is has a layer of crispy goodness and the rest is exquisitely soft and fluffy. I don’t know how they managed to achieve that texture complexity but it works very well. It’s basically a baked char siew pau but it’s so delicious that I was tempted to order more. The BBQ pork filling is sweet and savory, tender, done to perfection. I could eat this all year! You *have* to order this.

Tonic Medlar and Petal Cake – HKD 10
I don’t know what this is. The translation doesn’t even make sense but Jeanie told me that it’ll be delicious…and damn was she right!

It’s made with goji berries and Osmanthus flowers. Those are the only two things I could identify, but there’s a host of herbal goodies inside the jelly. You can taste the flowers and berries when you bite into the jelly – they’re whole and intact! It’s like drinking (eating?) tong shui that has been solidified into Jello. This chilled jelly is wonderful – a perfect ending to a near perfect meal.

Tim Hou Wan Dim Sum Specialists might be a tad overrated but it’s still great dim sum at unbeatable prices. It only cost us HKD 112 (about RM 46) for two, inclusive of tea. The baked char siew bun is absolutely fabulous!

However, be prepared to wait to get into Tim Hou Wan in Mongkok – it’s usually about an hour, so it’s not too bad. Also, the tables are really small so if you order a lot of non-stackable items, you’ll have to eat them really fast, lest you invade another table’s space. 🙂

Portuguese Egg Tarts in Macau

October 8, 2011 by HB

choi heong yuen bakery

Portuguese egg tarts are just one of those things you have to eat when you’re in Macau. It’s practically the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Macau and food.

portuguese egg tarts

There are a lot of places selling this delightful snack but one of the best I’ve had when I was there last week was surprisingly in the touristy area below the Ruins of St Paul’s.

portuguese egg tarts macau

Choi Heong Yuen Bakery (established in 1935) makes amazing Portuguese egg tarts – it’s piping hot and comes with a buttery flaky crust encapsulating a creamy, melt-in-your-mouth egg custard.

macau portuguese egg tarts

The confection is incredibly light and paradoxically rich at the same time. It is usually priced at around MOP 7 (about RM 3) for a pastel de nata. There are many outlets selling these and you can’t go wrong with most bakeries.

pastel de nata

Portuguese egg tarts are the pride of Macau, so you can be sure of getting a mouthful of epicurean heaven no matter which one you go to.

Wanton mee in Hong Kong

October 5, 2011 by HB

wonton mee hong kong

I guess if you’re pressed to name a dish that is representative of Hong Kong street food, the answer would be wanton mee (wonton noodles). I’ve had it several times during my recent trip to Hong Kong – it’s a very light meal with subtle notes – there are no overpowering flavors here.

wonton mee

The best wanton mee I had came piping hot with al dente noodles and a couple of wontons in a savory broth garnished with a healthy sprinkling of scallions (spring onions). Simple, but delicious.

wonton

It is interesting to note that the wontons in Hong Kong are made with prawns, with just a little bit of pork. It usually is made of pure pork over here and I much prefer the prawn wontons in HK.

wonton noodles

You’ll be very surprised at just how such a simple dish can taste fabulous. I was told that it’ll be difficult to find a place that serves bad wonton mee in Hong Kong and they were right! Just walk into any establishment in HK and you’ll find great wonton mee. 🙂

No, I don’t know why there’s a shirtless man behind me either.

Hui Lau Shan Healthy Dessert

October 3, 2011 by HB

hui lau shan hong kong

Hui Lai Shan is one of the extremely popular dessert chains around Hong Kong.

There is basically no seating – it’s like the bubble tea establishments on the street, except this offers a new twist by having “healthy drinks”. You get a number when you order and you wait for your drink to be prepared at a side counter.

hui lau shan counter

The drinks are in the HKD 20+ range and there are heaps of options you can choose from, all with a local twist.

hui lau shan hk

I notice the trend is to have a local base with various fruits on top, such as the tongue twisting Glutinous Rice Balls in Mango Cubes & Coconut Juice with Red Bean.

hui lau shan healthy drink

I ordered from the Bird’s Nest and Honey Jelly Series – this is the popular E4 – Bird’s Nest & Honey Jelly in Mango & Coconut Juice for HKD 25 (about RM 10). I added HKD 3 for a larger 16 oz drink.

Birds Nest Honey Jelly Mango Coconut Juice

These drinks are surprisingly addictive. It tastes really good. The bird’s nest and honey jelly breaks apart into soft and slurp-able pieces when you stir it with the huge straw. The coconut milk (not juice as stated on the menu) goes very well with the mango pieces (that’s your daily dose of fruit right there) and jelly.

hui lau shan drink

It’s the perfect drink while walking around Hong Kong on a hot day. 🙂

Eating stinky tofu in Hong Kong

October 1, 2011 by HB

eating stinky tofu

Stinky tofu is one of the great gastronomical items that Hong Kong does very well. It’s available from most street vendors and you just have to follow your nose to find this wicked delight.

hong kong street vendor

The smelly tofu in Hong Kong is astonishingly odoriferous. It smells really, really bad. It made me wince the first time I had it. The pungent stench is quite intense.

smelly tofu

This is what the innocent stinky tofu (called chao dau foo) looks like before it’s deep fried. Smelly tofu is basically marinated and fermented tofu, which produces the signature smell. I remember an old HK movie where a Caucasian complains about the smell, tries it and then becomes an ambassador of sorts, loudly proclaiming “This smells really bad but it tastes wonderful”.

stinky tofu hong kong

That was exactly how I felt. I’m not a big fan of tofu but I was eager to try stinky tofu in Hong Kong. I had it twice at two different street vendors. It’s usually eaten with long wood skewers straight from a paper bag. The smelly tofu costs around HKD 9 (RM 4) for two pieces and you can opt to have spicy hoisin sauce on it.

stinky tofu

Stinky tofu has a crumbly crust that smells strongly of ammonia. The odor is palpable – it smells like a public toilet that has not been cleaned for months! The intense aroma is matched by the equally breathtaking taste. Smelly tofu tastes like someone dusted the tofu pieces with dried urine.

It also makes for very messy eating as the entire thing is so greasy it dripped everywhere. However, the experience is very rewarding. Stinky tofu tastes like nothing else in the world. You can smell/taste the ammonia as you chew it and the crust is quite salty. It’s crunchy on the outside, soft on the inside and best eaten piping hot on the street.

eating smelly tofu

You’ll have really bad breath for the rest of the day but it’s worth it! smirk

Cha Chang Teng in Hong Kong

September 26, 2011 by HB

char chang teng

Cha Chang Teng (literally tea houses) is the equivalent of mamaks in Hong Kong. They’re everywhere and they cook up a fusion of East-meets-West cuisine. The waiters are loud, the place is packed and the locals all wind up eating there at some point or another.

chinese tea

You’ll be served with Chinese tea (complimentary) as soon as you sit down and since I can’t read Chinese, my ex patiently narrated the daily specials for me.

tea counter

I later found out that they have an English menu. It is a significantly abridged version of the Chinese menu, but it’s available.

char siew noodles

I went for a HKD 24 (RM 10) noodle dish which contains slices of char siew (barbecued meat), bak choy and pickled vegetables. It came in a thin broth but was surprisingly good. You can choose the noodles you want – I went for the ramen-like instant noodles.

pork macaroni

My ex had the bizarre macaroni meets pork slices in soup. It costs HKD 36 (RM 15) and comes with a side order of…

buttered toast

…buttered toast and a deep fried chicken wing.

people-eating-hk

I didn’t quite like her dish though. The macaroni fusion idea wasn’t executed very well. It sounds like an intriguing dish but it tasted rather bland.

tea house

However, I highly recommend their milk teas (nai cha). It’s brewed strong and tastes a little like our teh tarik minus the bubbles.

hong hong tea

There is a very popular evaporated milk brand called Black & White which they use liberally in their tea. The cup and saucer even comes with the brand of the above mentioned milk embossed on it.

hong kong food

I highly recommend going to a char chang teng when you’re in Hong Kong. The food can be hit and miss but you’ll have plenty of options – both inane and out-of-the-ballpark weird. There’s also something very appealing about the ambiance – the loud conversations, the shouted orders, the waiters jesting with you.

eating hong kong

It’s the definitive Hong Kong epicurean experience. You can’t get more local than this. 🙂

Posted: 9:12 PM Hong Kong time.