Deepavali at Little Penang Street Market

The monthly Little Penang Street Market is this weekend and in conjunction with the Festival of Lights coming up this Monday, it is themed 'Deepavali' naturally.

So, there's going to be some Deepavali cultural shows from a talk on the origins of the festival to some performances.

The Little Penang Street Market is a pretty cool bazaar full of artsy stuff and handicrafts. If you are looking for some great souvenirs, gifts, decorative items or pretty knick knacks, it's one of the best places you can check out.

However, prices are fixed so there's no bargaining here. Some of the prices here are pretty steep too but there are quite a few charity stalls so I usually buy from these knowing that the money goes to charity.

Now that they have a food section there too so you can even eat lunch there. Worth checking it out.

Where: Upper Penang Road

When: Sunday, 11am - 6pm (Every last Sunday of the month)

What: Handicrafts, art works, food, cultural events

Durians are a luxury item in Penang

I recently went searching for the pungent king of fruits and find that there is no such thing as cheap durians nowadays.

At least, good ones lar. You know, the types that is edible, rich, creamy and makes you go 'ahh....that hits the spot' and rub your stomach in satisfaction. Not the type that you eat and don't feel anything, barely any 'flesh', hardly any aroma and definitely all of blandness.

Nope, for durians, I go for the full bodied, thick, and pungent ones. you know, those with strange names and numbers. The likes of 604, 11, 14 or ang her, hor loh and bak eu.

And these are the ones that are so hard to find for a bargain. Most costs RM20 (if you are damn lucky) and above. A month ago, I bought it for RM15 each and was already grumbling about it.

Then a few weeks ago, it was RM20 each.

Then a few days ago, it was RM28 each.

Shiissshh....I could have eaten four square meals with that kind of money. Sigh, the things I do to feed this durian addiction.

Any cure, anyone?

p/s: I found a stall selling reasonably priced durians (of around RM15) along Mount Erskine road near the Hokkien Cemetery. The quality also not bad.
If you hanker for really good durian, go for the stall along Anson Road. The prices are RM20 each and above but the quality is numero uno.

Don't eat at the fake Chang Kee Restaurant in Nibong Tebal

If you have heard of the famous Teochew food especially crab porridge by Cheang Kee Restaurant in Nibong Tebal, make sure you do not go to the wrong one!

We went there recently and had a rude shock when we realised the real Cheang Kee Restaurant had moved to another location while another owner has taken over its old shoplot.

We did not even bother to take pictures of the place (the old shoplot where Cheang Kee used to be) after eating the very first dish, boiled baby octopus. I did not even want to bother with taking pictures of the food either. I do not want to waste camera battery and memory on this lousy restaurant.

The new restaurant, Law Chang Kee Restoran, was a far cry from the old Cheang Kee Restaurant. We ordered boiled baby octopus, butter prawns, fried fish, crab porridge, siau pai chye (green veg) and mantis prawn fried with dried chili.

The baby octopus, even though a simple dish which required literally little cooking skills to prepare as it is just boiled and served with chili sauce, were overcooked and stringy.

The butter prawns were oily, soggy and tasteless. They put some soya sauce over it to give it some taste which makes it worse.

Crab porridge- they obviously had it in with the crab because they smashed it to smithereens so we had to spend a whole hour picking out tiny, minute pieces of crab shell from the porridge. Oh, and the porridge was bland. Bleagghhh.

The green veg - nothing remarkable. I could have cooked better one at home.

Mantis prawn fried with dried chili - extremely soggy and too much of ketchup. It tasted like they fried the mantis prawn and pour in a whole bottle of ketchup and then add the dried chili for decoration. Ugghh.

Fried fish - well, again nothing remarkable. It is just the normal fried fish you can find at any economy rice stall.

Rating: 2/10

Now, if I had not eaten the real Cheang Kee Restaurant’s food, the rating for this faker restaurant would have been a tad higher, perhaps 4/ 10 but it definitely would not have me going back there ever again.

Price: $$$ (for that kind of food!!!)

Luckily, we found the real Cheang Kee Restaurant which had moved to a more prominent location right on the main road just after the toll plaza and with ample parking space too! After the toll plaza, turn left at the traffic lights and go straight. It is on your left at the first traffic light. You won’t be able to miss it since it is a corner lot with a huger signboard.

Here’s the new address for the famous Cheang Kee Restaurant (which I would have rated 8/10):

Restoran N.T.Cheang Kee

No. 60 & 62, Jalan Besar, Air Lintas, Taman Merbah, 14300 Nibong Tebal

Tel: 04-5943728

So, remember. The Restoran Law Chang Kee has lousy food so go only at your own risk! I will do a review of the Restoran N.T.Cheang Kee when we go there next and with loads of pictures too.

Koay Teow Th'ng

When people talk about Penang hawker food, they often refer to the ones on the island while many really good food places on the mainland part of the state were forgotten or given a miss. So, I am introducing another great place for a local, common hawker fare, Koay Teow Th'ng at the mainland.

Restoran Lin is infamous for its wonderfully tasty Koay Teow Th'ng. So much so that the old-style coffee shop it is based at is now renovated into an air-conditioned, modern restaurant setting! Previously, it was more of a Koay Teow Th'ng stall but now it is a brand-new concept type restaurant.

People in Butterworth often talk about this place when it comes to Koay Teow Th'ng.

So, what is so good about the Koay Teow Th'ng here?

For one thing, the soup is really tasty and not so oily like most Koay Teow Th'ng usually are.

The flat rice noodles or koay teow used are smooth, soft and almost silky that it deliciously slides down your throat.

The fish balls are juicy, springy at the right consistency and does not taste like stale fish.

For someone who is not into soup-based food, I really do like the Koay Teow Th'ng here. Just so you know, I don't eat or order Koay Teow Th'ng much unless it is really, really good and fits my taste. In my experience, most Koay Teow Th'ng I tasted were either too bland or too oily. The one sold at this restaurant may not be a perfect 10 but it is good enough to warrant my nod of approval.

This restaurant also offers a variety of side dishes like steamed chicken (pak cham kai / pek cham kay), fishball soup, blanched vegetables (yau choi) and other types of noodles in place of the Koay Teow.

Prices are from RM2.50 each bowl/ RM5 per plate, they have a complete menu listing out the items they offer and the prices unlike most hawker stall-based coffee shops where you have to guess at the prices.

Rating: 7 /10

The venue:

Restoran Lin

8 & 10, Lorong Ceri 6,

Taman Aman Jaya

12300 Raja Uda

Tel: 04-3330216

Operating hours: Open daily - 7.30am - 5pm & 7.30pm - 1am.

Cook your own Koay Teow Th'ng

If you do not like to eat out, you can also make your own Koay Teow Th'ng as it isn't all that difficult.

Here is a simple Koay Teow Th'ng recipe:

Ingredients

1 whole chicken

500g pork ribs (optional)

salt to taste

packaged koay teow (flat noodles) which can be bought from supermarkets

garlic oil

fish balls

fish cake

spring onion, chopped

chili padi

chicken gizzards (optional)

Instructions

1. Boil water in a stock pot and place the chicken and the pork ribs in. Let it simmer over low fire for about 40 minutes or so.

2. Take out the chicken and pork ribs. Remove the meat from the bones and set aside. Place the bones back into the pot and let it simmer for another 30 minutes or so.

3. Dish out the bones and discard. Put in the gizzards, fishballs and fishcake. Remove it when cooked and set aside.

4. Remove pot from heat and sieve the soup with a muslin cloth (or cheese cloth) if you want a clear soup.

5. Rinse the pot and pour the soup back into it. Add salt according to taste (usually 1 tsp is good enough) and you can also add a dash of pepper and 1 tsp fish sauce. Keep it hot over low fire.

6. Shred the chicken meat and pork you had removed earlier. Slice the fish cake and chicken gizzards too.

7. Scald the flat noodles in a boiling pan of hot water and place it in a bowl. Add the meat, fish cake, fish balls and gizzards. Pour in the soup.

8. Garnish with spring onions, cut chili padi and add some of the garlic oil.

So there you are, your very own home cooked Koay Teow Th'ng. Alternatively, instead of pork ribs, you could use duck. Enjoy!

Eating fish in a jungle

We took a trip to the depths of an oil palm estate somewhere near the Kulim Hi-Tech Park and enjoyed some really great freshwater fishes!

We ate FOUR whole fishes! Each fish costs between RM20 and RM38. Not bad considering the size and how fresh it is.



I don't know what fish these are except that it is freshwater and darn fresh and very delicious, deep fried, covered in sweet and sour sauce and steamed.


The shack that passed as a restaurant where the delectable fishes are cooked and served.


There's a wooden rickety bridge from the shack over a bubbling river heading to large ponds where they rear the freshwater fishes.


A closer look at the wooden shack...

The fishes are really good and I would recommend this place if you have a hankering for fish. Also, the fishes are all very sweet without any muddy taste at all.

Rating: 8/10

Price: RM20 and above for each fish

Menu choices: Only fish, rice and one or two vegetables

Location: Sungai Kob, Kulim. Accessible through a small dirt road marked with only a small signboard with Restoran Kolam Ikan on it. Just take the turning to Kulim Hi Tech Park Phase 2, drive all the way to Sungai Kob and once you reach the tiny town, you will see Petronas on your left and right after that a row of shophouses. The small dirt road is on the right and right next to the Klinik Kesihatan. Otherwise, call the number in the picture above for more accurate directions!

Illegal stuff and hawker food

I have always been a Pasar Malam stalker...way back when we were dating also, we will go to pasar malam as a dating place, to jalan-jalan, to cari makan, to buy illegal stuffs like pirated things (we all know what things!!), etc...


So, recently, we went up to the Batu Ferringhi Night Market which is famous for all the illegal chio'ng ciplak things. We need to restock our...errr...movie collections...You know la, Heroes season two is already in, House season four already in and seems like Supernatural season three is on the way. These are my favourite series la and I don't have time to wait for stupid Astro.

Also, we have missed so many movies such The Water Horse, Alvin and The Chipmunks and even Transformers. Ever since having my toddler, it is difficult to find time to go pakthor and watch movies....so we go for cheaper, easier option of home theatre la.

Of course, the Batu Ferringhi Night Market offers a lot of other things and not only the...errr..entertainment stuff. They have trinkets, decor items, chio'ng branded handbags, chio'ng branded clothes and more decor items.


It was not easy trying to take pictures of the stalls there because the stall operators are mostly very hostile. Perhaps they are worried about being caught 'red-handed' with pictures of them selling chio'ng things...


As you can see, we stick to taking pictures of things that are not chio'ng at all....Just no-brand things, some local, some made in Thailand and some Made in China.

Now, along that stretch, there is Long Beach Cafe which offers local hawker fare. It is also quite near my favourite..err..chio'ng entertainment stall. Eh, the stall sell very cheap you know! Only RM4 each and the quality, VERY GOOD. Always no problem with the err...things.

Choices: 8/10

Quality: 8/10

Price: 9/10


Here's Long Beach Cafe along the Batu Feringghi Night Market. See the Spring Roll stall? That's my favourite! Their spring roll is very good.

Review of Spring Roll: Crunchy on the outside, soft and moist on the inside. The vegetables inside are nicely cooked and tasty. It goes very well with the sauce consisting of cut chillies and Lea & Perrins sauce.

Price: A bit pricey for a single spring roll, RM3 each.

Rating: 7/10


There are a lot of other stalls there selling a variety of hawker fare. Some are good, some are not. I have not tried all so can't give any ratings on that. The prices are quite reasonable considering it being a tourist spot. A plate of food could be priced from between RM3 and RM5 depending on what you order.

Oh, there is also a stall selling presumably Haagen Daaz ice cream at RM7 a scoop. Well, trust me, it is ice cream but it is definitely NOT Haagen Daaz! It taste nothing like Haagen Daaz! It is either they use some other higher quality ice cream to pass it off as Haagen Daaz or it old stock taken at a cheaper price from Haagen Daaz, thus the taste a bit out.

Looking for study options or looking for food?

Well, there's a 'My Career and Education Fair 2008' at Pisa this weekend so if you are thinking of furthering your studies or wondering what you want to be other than being a blogger, head on over to the fair.

I won't know if it's any good because I haven't been to any of these things for ages! I am way beyond help when it comes to education...heheheh

Also, for those hungry ghosts out there, there's a charity food fair coming up this Sunday. It is a two-in-one event. You get to eat and you get to help cancer patients! What a deal. Seriously. Okay, okay, so the eats aren't free but hey, it is to help poor cancer patients and you have to eat right?

So, don't forget to go to:

Ho Chiak Charity Food and Fun Fair 2008

Venue: Mount Miriam Hospital

Date: Sunday, April 27

Time: 10am - 3pm

As a bonus, all of you who wants to meet the Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng may get to see him there! I heard he is officiating the fair at 10am.

If you don't know how to go there, just call 04-8907044 for directions. Or check out their website at: www.mountmiriam.com.

Tasty Spiced Fried Chicken

Spiced Fried Chicken

All the previous political posts had made me hungry so I binged on these succulent fried chicken! Although I used to be a fan of KFC, I now only eat hawker-style fried chicken or I-fry-it-myself-style fried chicken. Heck, the fried chicken pieces in KFC are shrinking so much I think the next time I go, the fried chicken will be no bigger than my thumb!

So, I went around trying quite a few roadside stalls and hawker stalls at hawker centres selling fried chicken till I find a few that I really like. Which is not many. Somehow, finding the perfect fried chicken is akin to the excuse people use for masturbation - it is better to do it yourself! Heh.



Anyway, I was very, very lazy to de-frost the chicken, season it, heat up the oil, fry it and clean up the whole oily kitchen after that so I had to rely on hawkers to get my fried chicken fix.

Again, TH, my number one foodie partner, recommended this fried chicken stall tucked away at the Hillside Astaka / food court. The guy's open only at night, from around 7pm onwards and sorry, I didn't know what day he tutup since TH is the one who went down to get the chicken for me while I...er...jaga kereta. And being a non-blogger, he didn't bother to ask the guy details, like operation time, days, address, etc...



Anyway, these spiced fried chicken should not be mistaken as the ciplak version of KFC's hot and spicy chicken. When I say spiced, it is in the context of spices, not chili. The fried chicken is crunchy on the outside although it don't look it and the flesh inside is just tender, soft, juicy and oh-so-tasty! Yummmm....

Prices aren't that cheap but it is quite reasonable, RM2 for each piece of chicken breast or wing, RM2.50 for the drumstick and if you are into chicken butt, it is five for RM2.

Rating: 8/10

Taste: Hint of spices, crunchy outside, juicy and soft inside, just salty enough to tingle the tastebuds

Definitely recommended as a side dish to whatever you are having, or just as a snack.

A Word of Warning: Contains fat and probably cholesterol too but for this saliva-inducing taste, I don't care!

Cheap mouthwatering tea-time treats

Mmmmm.....Apple Pie

Chicken Pie and Apple Pie

I have this thing for pastries and nothing hits the spot more than a wonderfully baked, crumbly and perfect chicken pie or apple pie!

TH found this stall and bought some of it for me to try and since then, I was hooked! These pies may be tiny but it sure do pack a punch in taste, flavour and most importantly, it is cheap too!

This is where you get the yummy Apple and Chicken Pies

The pies are stored in airtight containers

The little stall is just outside a coffee shop along Jalan Sungai Kelian in Hillside, Tanjung Bungah. He also sells mini cream puffs with real cream, not custard. These little bite-size delights are all homemade by the stall owner's relative, thus the great taste!

Just look at these tempting pies!

My review for the Apple Pie
- pastry is crumbly, buttery and melts in your mouth
- fillings are generous, just sweet enough and tasty

The nice friendly stall owner packing the pies for me

My review for the Chicken Pie:
- pastry is the same as the apple pie, it is crumbly, buttery and melts in your mouth
- fillings contain a few tiny pieces of chicken, peas and carrots, just the right amount for such a tiny bite-size pie

My review for the Cream Puff:
- pastry is soft and just the right consistency
- filling is real cream, not too sweet and when you bite into it, if fills your mouth with its creamy taste.

Snack rating: 7/10 - definitely recommended for teatime or just for the heck of it!

Price: 6 for RM3 (cream puff) / 5 for RM3 (pies)

Venue: Outside Chew City Cafe, Jalan Sungai Kelian, Hillside

Open: 8.30am - 11pm daily, close on Tues

Yummy local treats!

We took a trip to Nibong Tebal recently and of course stopped by to get one of my favourite local treats at one of the famous local..err...'manufacturers'.



The shop isn't easy to find as it is located along a narrow lorong off the sleepy town of Jawi and about 5 mins drive from the well-known Cheang Kee Restaurant of crab porridge fame. We did stop by at Cheang Kee for lunch, though and needless to say the food were still just as good and still affordable!

The crab porridge still lived up to its reputation and the other dishes we ordered, such as mantis prawn fried with dried chilli, boiled octopus, tang hoon char poey leng (vegetable with glass noodle), prawns and steamed fish were all very good. Sorry lar no pictures, we were so eager to dig in that by the time I remembered, it was too late.

Anyway back to the local treats I was talking about...it is Teochew snacks, Ak Am and Kacang Tumbuk and an array of local 'cookies' including Tau Sar Pneah, Tambun Pneah, Beh Teh Soh and Heong Pneah.

I have always loved Ak Am but not the generic, lousy kind found in supermarkets. I like it fresh, crunchy and importantly fragrant. And this shop makes one of the best Ak Am I have ever tasted! Ak Am is actually just loads of sugar, sesame and grounded peanuts but hey, aren't all sweet treats? I love the texture of Ak Am as it is both soft and crunchy due to the layer of caramel-like sugar outside and the crunchy kacang tumbuk in its core.

We did not buy the Tau Sar Pneah or Tambun Pneah but the Beh Teh Soh and Heong Pneah are absolutely heavenly! The Beh Teh Soh are biscuits with white sugar inside and theirs are so good because the skin is crunchy and the sugar inside, soft and non-sticky. Heong Pneah are almost the same except that brown sugar was used.

Now, I normally don't eat Heong Pneah due to its tendency to stick to your teeth and gums...but theirs are really good because it isn't in the least sticky at all!

Rows of Ak Am before it was packed

The first step of the whole process: family members sorting out peanuts

A packet of Ak Am is only RM8.50

So, the next time you happen to go to Nibong Tebal for whatever reason, I will strongly recommend dropping by at this shop to get their yummy treats. I am sure their Tau Sar Pneah and Tambun Pneah are just as good!

Here are the information on the shop:

Chop Cheng Guan
80 & 81 Jalan Pengkalan Rawa
04-5931391

Eating out of a toilet bowl...

Picture blurry because used camera phone to take, forgot to bring camera la

Makes me sick and nauseous because the food was extremely lousy!

Blearghh..gack...choke...uwekk....*chokes and throw up*

If you think this concept restaurant with toilets as chairs, glass-covered sinks as tables complete with bathroom accessories as decorations looks like fun, well, be prepared to get exactly what it offered, toilet food!

The restaurant looks interesting enough, which is what attracted me to go give it a try. We looked at the menu and thought, hey, they offer food something like Kim Gary's and the prices are almost the same so might as well give it a try.

We ordered the 'Japanese Chicken Flaming Pot', 'Chicken Chop Rice' and 'Chicken Ramen Soup' and green tea to wash it all down. The verdict?

The flaming pot thingy is served on the mini toilet bowl (as in picture) and the rice is just, well rice with some slices of chicken and a piece of broccoli. The ramen soup is some soggy noodles in salty water...err...soup.

The taste: bland, salty and full of Ajinomoto. Otherwise, no other taste.

The portion: luckily is very small or else it would be a waste to leave most of it uneaten.

The price: RM45.90 in total for the three dishes and the drinks which is not worth it at all.

The only thing that is passable are the drinks, which incidentally is just Boh packet green tea.

In summary, DON'T EVEN think of going to T-Bowl Concept Restaurant to eat! They do keep to their concept to the T! Toilet-flavoured food in a toilet concept restaurant.

Now, excuse me, I need to throw up some more to get rid of the horrible taste of the shit they served which they insisted is food.... serves me right for eating in the toilet!

UWEKK!

A cool hang out place at New World Park

Picture courtesy of Adpix Studio

It's been awhile since I took a leisurely early dinner with plenty of time to walk around and browse so over the weekends we decided to have dinner at New World Park in Swatow Lane/ Hutton Lane/ Burmah Road.

I've heard that there's a Ladies Street sort of bazaar going on over the weekends there so I thought, maybe I could pick up some really nice stuff or browse around for birthday present ideas.

Pictures courtesy of Adpix Studio

So, what I found there was pretty disappointing although it was pleasant walking around the beautiful hang-out place. There's no other name to call it since it is so very conducive for friends to simply hang around there at any of its 'coffee' shops and chat for hours...

Picture courtesy of Adpix Studio

The Ladies Street is just an array of about 20 stalls selling pasar malam stuffs like handbags, earrings, dresses and knick-knacks. There are a few arts and crafts stalls, a charity stall and more stalls selling accessories. The things sold there are not in any way exceptionally different. Just plain normal accessories and clothes you can get at any pasar malam anytime, anywhere. Even the pricing aren't something to shout about, certain dresses for RM45 each, tops for RM25 each and RM10 for three pairs of colourful, plastic earrings.

Pictures courtesy of Adpix Studio

Incidentally, there are several similarly themed shops around the park, namely, a few knick-knacks / souvenirs type of shops and a few clothing and accessories shops. These are nothing to shout about either but if you have some time to waste, it is a good choice to have lunch or tea there.

Now, the good thing about New World Park is of course the variety of food there! It is a great place to search for any type of food you are hankering for. You want to dine in a restaurant? Sure, they have an Indian banana leaf restaurant, a nyonya restaurant, a Taiwanese restaurant, a Japanese restaurant and several western food restaurants like the Manhattan Fish Market.

Not to your taste? Well, head on over to the hawker side fronting Swatow Lane and Hutton Lane or at the back of the 'expensive' side which fronts Burmah Road. The hawker food is also relatively good with Cucur Udang, Mee Sultan, Curry Mee, Hokkien Mee, Dumplings, Chee Cheong Fun, Fish Ball Soup and many more. And to wash it all down, there's the famous New World Park ABC ice kacang!

As a hang-out place, the two popular tea time places there would be the western-style Starbucks or our local Old Town Cafe. Coincidentally (or carefully planned), these two outlets are opposite each other so you can stand there and make your decision between western or local!

Well, in conclusion, though it is not exactly a great shopping place, it is great for meeting up with friends, great place to spend a lazy weekend afternoon (did I mention free wifi internet thanks to Starbucks?) and most of all, it is pleasingly landscaped and decorated. Very comfy to window shop around what little shops there are and ultra comfy to spend hours chatting (online or real-life).

Don't boycott nasi kandar!

Since last week, SMSes have been circulated asking Penangites to boycott nasi kandar claiming that nasi kandar operators were the ones involved in the street protest in Komtar about two weeks ago.

Well, if you have half a mind to do so. DON'T! This is ridiculous. EVERYONE knows the street demonstration was by the Umno sore losers. It has nothing to do whatsoever with the nasi kandar operators!

Just read this article in The Star which came out on March 22, pasted below here:

Don’t boycott nasi kandar, Hindraf tells Penangites

BUTTERWORTH: A Hindu Rights Action Force leader has called on people to stop boycotting nasi kandar shops here.

Hindraf coordinator R.S. Thanenthiran said the organisation was not behind any SMS calling for a boycott.

The boycott apparently began after an SMS alleging that nasi kandar operators were involved in last Friday’s street protest at Komtar began circulating. The SMS ended with the Hindraf slogan Makkal Sakthi (People’s Power).

“This is an act by some irresponsible parties,” Thanenthiran told a press conference here yesterday.

Thanenthiran said nasi kandar operators were busy with their business and would not have had the time to be involved in political protests or rallies.

“We appeal to the people of all races to support the nasi kandar operators as the cuisine is the pride of Penang,” Thanenthiran said.

Malaysian Muslim Restaurant Operators Association president K.K. Sihabutheen said some of his members complained about the drop in business since the SMS began circulating.

Unlimited ice cream!

Ice cream lovers, this is the time to enjoy as much Haagen Daaz as you can eat! The ice cream buffet is only until April 30 so make it fast.

Talking about fast, I better fast for the next few days so that I have the 'space' and appetite to indulge! ;-)