If Your Plan A Failed, There's Always Plan B

There was one time colleague A asked another colleague B during lunch time, where to go for lunch? So, colleague B replied,"We are going for Plan B.". Colleague A then asked,"So where are we going for plan B? I didn't know we have a plan A". Hahaha. Colleague A didn't know Plan B is the name of the place that he's going to eat in.

Joke aside. Last week, thanks to Nuffnang's interest group #NNTasteBuddies, I got to taste a variety of food from Plan B that I haven't tried before. There are just so many choices in the menu. We went to have a food review session in Plan B, Bangsar Village. Henry, Mai Sarah, Saimatkong and Jun Zheng were there too.

Now let's starts with the coffee. Plan B has their own blend of roasted coffee, which I found is quite nice. I had Flat White and later an Australian Iced Coffee.

A scoop of vanila ice-cream in the iced coffee. Nice. I don't even have to put in the syrup.

Now let's eat!

Avo Quino is kind of of dish that one will order for breakfast and it's vegetarian food.

Avocado and poached eggs? My kind of thing.

We were told that one of their more popular pasta dish is the Asian-Style Soft-shell crab spaghettini. This a kind of a fusion dish. Rich butter sauce covered the spaghettini and a tinge of curry leaves. Yums. Recommended to be shared if not it will be too jelak.

Looking for pasta with more greens? Look no further. We tried the Arugula Pesto Spaghettini with seafood (please not the seafood is optional). Aroma of pine nuts from the pesto sauce is nice. Pasta is cooked al dente.

In between the heavy stuffs, we added something refreshing like the Som Tam Crab salad, which is green papaya salad. BIG Group's marketing people love it.

Nasi Lemak Goreng is a combination of two of our all time favourite mamak food, nasi lemak and nasi goreng kampung. I like the sourish sambal, it's so appetizing.

Going for some tea time snack? One can opt for Spicy Fish Tacos. To me not very spicy at all. Fish is cooked just right. Sweet potato fries as side is something not normally found but it's the norm for Plan B.

Not a fan of fish? Why not go for the Char-Grilled Kimchi Chicken Burger? Burger is tender but I will like the kimchi to be a little bit more sourish.

Oh, Plan B just revamped their menu, some of the food we tried are new in the menu. They took out my favourite Ox Tongue Sandwich :(

Now the mother of all comfort food must be the Buttermilk Fried Chicken. Crispy skin and the meat still juicy and tender. It's so sinfully good.

Now even though we are quite full already, we still make rooms for dessert. The Coconut Cake is nice.

But the Apple Sugee Cake is awesome! Warm apple sugee cake eaten with the cold vanilla ice-cream is da bomb. I think it will paired very well with coffee.

Plan B is really a good place to look for comfort food and a cuppa. Plan B has outlets in Bangsar Village, Mid Valley, Publika, One Utama, Paradigm Mall and Ipoh. Click here for the address and business hour.

Authentic Kelantanese Cuisine at Kelantan Delights, Sooka Sentral

I was selected to be one of the founding members of Nuffnang's Tastebuddies Group. Last Sunday, we met up for the first time to have a taste of authentic Kelantan cuisine at Kelantan Delights in Sooka Sentral.

I was an hour late to the tasting session because I was doing Qing Ming duty for my late grandfather and grandmother. So, I missed tasting the starters of Sirih Daun Kaduk and Tomyam Kelapa Muda. Straight, I go for the main. I wanted to order Nasi Kerabu Ayam Percik because there's ulam as side but I absentmindedly ordered Nasi Dagang Gulai Ikan instead. Nasi Dagang is cooked with a mixture of half rice and half glutinous rice hence there will be a soft and slightly hard texture. The gulai is cook right with a slight sweet taste. The fish is not overcooked. Extra gulai was given so I can eat it with the rice.

Nasi Dagang Gulai Ikan

Nasi Kerabu Ayam Percik

Just as we thought we were done with the mains, we were asked which second main to choose in between Nasi Tumpang and Laksam. I asked for Nasi Tumpang. A bit of history about Nasi Tumpang. It was actually rice with different layer of dishes wrapped in a cone shape with banana leaf. It was staple food for farmers in Kelantan to bring to work. The top later which consists of egg and rice is the breakfast, the middle part is lunch made of prawn sambal and gulai ikan tongkol and last but not least the bottom is tea time with rice and chicken floss.

Nasi Tumpang

Traditionally I think won't be fried chicken going with the Nasi Tumpang. I love the fact of how ingenious people in the olden days packed their food to go for work. Unlike nowadays what we do is eat outside or take away. When we take away we were given Styrofoam container that is not friendly to mother earth.

Nasi Tumpang for me is like eating ketupat with side dishes. Start with a light egg floss and rice, then heavier taste of prawn sambal and gulai ikan tongkol and end it with a slightly sweet chicken floss. If you haven't tried before, please do so. Early reservation might be required because Nasi Tumpang takes 3 hours to prepare and only 50 are served daily.

Nasi Tumpang unwrapped

My neighbour was kind enough to let me have a taste of his Laksam. Blended fish meat santan gravy with a spread of ulam consists of bean sprouts, cucumbers and daun selom is what it's need to go with round rice noodle. The rice noodle is a bit like a thicker version of chee cheong fun. For those that can take hot and spicy food be sure to put in the sambal belacan it will take the taste to another level.

Laksam

According to the owner, they have an eel version of the Laksam which has a richer gravy. I'll be sure to come back again to have a go for it.

Sambal Belacan

I'm amazed of how after all the food I had I would still have room for dessert. The dessert we had is consists of Lompat Tikam which is Pandan rice cake and Pulut Merah (Red Glutinous Rice) and Ketupat Sotong.

The Lompat Tikam is eaten with the santan and gula Melaka because on its own the Pandan rice cake and Pulut Merah is not sweet. I love the Pandan rice cake which has to nice aroma from the pandan leave and I can control how much gula Melaka to eat it with.

At first I thought it's weird to see a sotong (squid) as dessert. The grilled sotong was stuffed with glutinous rice cooked with ginger and pandan, slightly sweeten with gula melaka and santan. It may look weird but it taste quite nice. I love the texture of the grilled sotong with the glutinous rice. For me, this is more like a snack rather than a dessert. You'll need to eat it to know how it feels.

Lompat Tikam and Ketupat Sotong

To get authentic Kelantanese Cuisine in Klang Valley, I would say that Kelantan Delights will be one of the restaurant that can do it. So, you don't have to go all the way to Kelantan to have a taste of authentic Kelantanese Cuisine.

Kelantan Delights has two branches, one in Subang Jaya and another in Sooka Sentral. On weekends only the Subang Jaya branch is open.

Address:
Kelantan Delights

Website: www.kelantandelights.com
Facebook: facebook.com/kelantandelights
Twitter: twitter.com/@keldelights
Instagram: #KelantanDelights


SOOKA SENTRAL BRANCH:
1-5, Level 1
Sooka Sentral
Jalan Stesen Sentral
50470 Kuala Lumpur

GENERAL LINE
+ 603 2785 1945

OPENING HOURS
Monday - Friday 11am - 10pm
Closed on Saturdays and Sundays


SUBANG JAYA BRANCH:
Ground Floor East Wing
Wisma Consplant 1
No 2 Jalan SS16/4
47500 Subang Jaya


GENERAL LINE
+ 603 5611 7845

OPENING HOURS
Monday to Friday
12pm - 3pm
6pm - 11pm (last order at 1030pm)

Saturday, Sunday and Public Holidays
12pm - 11pm (last order at 1030pm)

Mikan Japanese Cuisine & Bistro Re-vishifted

Wow. It's been a year plus now since I ate at Mikan Japanese Cuisine & Bistro. You can read about my last visit here. I saw Groupon Malaysia was selling Mikan cash voucher at 50% discount. Every RM 50 voucher will be sold at RM 25 a piece. So, I paid RM50 and got a total of RM 100 worth of Mikan cash voucher. It's time to revisit Mikan again.

Before I could utilize my vouchers, I got email from Groupon that Mikan has been shifted to Damansara Perdana. Time extension was given. Phew. I left only 5 days before the vouchers expired. So, two weeks ago I asked my cousins Joyce and Jas to tag along with me.

The shop was only 80% complete according to the co-owner, Casey. There's still a little bit of touch up needs to be done. I left the ordering to Casey, which is somewhat like an Omakase. I didn't even see the menu.

Coincidentally Nicole was there too. It's been a while I didn't camwhore with her. So, a #selca is a must, especially she just got her long hair cut short that day itself.

Back to the food. For starter, Casey recommended Kinoko（木野子） Salada (Mushrooms Salad). Using cooked Enoki and Shitake sprinkled with Ebiko tossed with cherry tomatoes, Japanese cucumbers and lettuce dressed with special sesame salad dressing. There's a mix of warmness from the mushrooms and coolness from the vegetables. The dressing is nice for a Japanese style salad. Nice playing of different texture. Substitution of meat with mushrooms made this salad healthier to be eaten.

Kinoko Salada (RM16++)

Moving on is Shake Sashimi (Salmon Sashimi), which according to Casey he just collected it fresh that afternoon. If, it's that fresh, I will want taste of it. True enough, the salmon sashimi is so fresh that just a dab of soya sauce is enough to make it taste good. What I like is that Mikan is not stingy at all with their sashimi, the cut is thicker that some of the Japanese restaurant I've been too where I only get very thinly sliced sashimi. Ah, it's salmon orgasm in my mouth.

Shake Sashimi (RM16++)

The current trend of Japanese cuisine in Malaysia is the use of mentaiko sauce in the dishes. We had two mentaiko dishes that night. Mentai Tamagoyaki (Grilled Eggs with Mentai Sauce) and Hotate Mentai (Scallops with Mentai Sauce).

The Mentai Tamagoyaki looks simple but it's quite hard to make it taste good especially the right texture for the eggs which is not over or undercooked. The chef in Mikan did it just right. Top with the flavourful mentai sauce. Yums.

Mentai Tamagoyaki RM12++

The most expensive dish that night is the Hotate Mentai. Why? The scallops are air flown from Hokkaido and it's the biggest scallop I've ever eaten in my life. My mouth can only fit in half of the scallop. The Hotate Mentai here beats all the other versions that I've eaten in so many other Japanese restaurant chains.

Hotate Mentai (RM45++)

Last but not least, something that I rarely see in any Japanese restaurant here in Malaysia. Behold, le Braised Pork. Although it's not some expensive pork like the Black Fur Pork from Japan is used the chef was able to make the Braised Pork so juicy and tender that it will just melts in my mouth. The broth is the best. Tasted just nice, not too salty nor too greasy. A few pieces of pork lards were put in there to just bring out the aroma. It's a must order for pork lover. Although I've ate quite a lot of the braised pork but I don't feel 'jelak' at all.

Braised Pork (RM32++)

We also had Mushroom Skewers (RM4.50++ per stick) but I didn't take any photo because Casey told us to eat it quick while it's warm. Not much flavouring was used but the natural sweetness of the mushrooms made up for it.

It's such a wonderful dinner. High quality ingredients are used and the price is quite reasonable. Also, there's pork served now after shifted to Damansara Perdana. I will surely come here quite often from now on.




Address:

Mikan Japanese Cuisine & Bistro
LG 03, Plaza Emerald North
PJU 8/3A, Damansara Perdana
Petaling Jaya

Tel: 03-7713 5288
Lunch: 11.30 a.m. - 3.00 p.m.
Dinner: 6.00 p.m. - 10.00 p.m.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mikanjapanesecuisine

View Damansara Perdana in a larger map

Tickling My Tastebuds

Kolo mee, the famous noodle from Kuching, Sarawak. One can get it almost in any eatery is Kuching, it's not too far fetch if I say that it is a staple food in Kuching. The name Kolo mee is actually the style of cooking and not the type of noodle used in it. The noodle used is usually "Q-mee" which is the thin noodle. One can choose to have a wider version called "mee bok".

Trusted a Kuching local friend to bring me to Sin Lian Shin, one of the oldest restaurant specializing in serving kolo mee. He told me it's been two generations and the 3rd generation will be taking over. There's two version of kolo mee. One white and the other is red. The only different is that the red is mixed with char siew sauce (BBQ pork). The noodle "Q-mee" got it's name because the thin noodle is very springy. True enough when I bit into the Q-mee it is indeed very springy. The savoury sauce that is mixed with the Q-mee goes very well. As for the red version, the char siew sauce has a subtle sweetness to it. Personally I prefer the white and my local Kuching friend likes the red. Both are equally good, it's just taste of personally preferences. Although, the serving is simple with only minced pork and char siew but once you've tasted it you won't get enough of it. If you ever go to Kuching, kolo mee is a must. Although, people from Sibu might not agree with me. ;)

Vault Wine Bistro, Menara Glomac, Damansara

Tuck away in this new building named Menara Glomac in between TTDI and Tropicana City Mall is Vault Wine Bistro. A place with simple and cozy design.

Because the building is still quite new so there was ample parking space and also the parking is currently free of charge. So, it's good to come by here for lunch or dinner because it's not too crowded yet.

It's two days before Chinese New Year when we were gathered here for a food tasting session. So, we decided to toast for CNY with
Prosecco Col Solivo Champagne - RM 100.

While enjoying our bubblish drink, we started with some starters.

Crispy Calamari - RM 15

I like that it's crispy and not to salty the batter. It will be perfect if the squid ring is bigger.




Roasted Pork Belly - RM 16

Yums. Roasted Pork Belly stir-fried with camerelized dark soy sauce. It goes quite well with champagne but beer will be perfect.




Fried Chicken Wing - RM 16

Fried chicken that taste better than KFC. Crispy outside soft and tender inside. Careful not to bite too eagerly when it's first served because it's still very hot.

After such a meaty starters, let us refresh out palate with Arugula Salad - RM 16. Fresh arugula tossed with olive oil with balsamic vinegar. Add in a bit of diced oranges. Some might not like the unique taste we arugula but I love it. It will goes very well with cube feta cheese.

The Seafood Marinara - RM 28, the pasta is cooked al dente. Fresh ingredients makes it taste good and the sauce is not too overpowering the seafood.

Prawn & Scallop Aioli - RM 38 is great with the fresh prawns and scallops seasoned just right. What we didn't expect is the mashed potato stole the spotlight. It was smooth and creamy with rich butter taste. It was so good that we ordered mashed extra mashed potato - RM 6. Too bad not all the batch of mashed potatoes are created equal.

The Trio Mushroom Soup - RM 12 was not in the tasting menu but a few of us are soup person, so we side ordered this. It didn't disappoint us, the soup is smooth and rich with the taste of mushrooms.

Succulent Spanish pork is used to make the Marinated Pork Rib - RM 48. The fat and meat ratio is just right on this piece of rib. Juicy and tender. Too bad due to the bad weather in Europe, the signature dish of Iberico Pork Steak was missing from the tasting menu. I'll sure will come back again for that.

Aglio Olio - RM 18 is the simplest way to enjoy pasta.

Mix Sausage Platter - RM 38 consists of Italian Sausage, Spicy Nungarian Sausage, Nuernberger Sausage, Chorizo Sausage and German Pepper Sausage. A savory dish that best goes with beer.

Simple and minimum items in the menu to control the quality of the food.

On the eve and on Valentine's Day 13th & 14th Feb 2013. Vault Wine Bistro will have a special Valentine's Day set dinner. For RM 98++ per pax, one would get Asparagus Soup with Truffle Oil, Pan Seared Scallop with Caviar Sauce, Spaghetti Aglio Olio with Prawn, Smoked Duck Breast with Grilled Asparagus and Orange Reduction, Marinated Iberico Pork Steak with Cheesie Mashed Potato and Red Wine Sauce, and end it with Tiramisu Hazel Crust.

Oh my, such an exquisite menu. I'm salivating while writing this. If you have no place to celebrate your Valentine's Day yet, then Vault Wine Bistro will be a good place. A nice place to dine with your family, friends and lover.

Address

Vault Wine Bistro
A-G-7, Block A, Glomac Damansara,
No. 699, Jalan Damansara,
60000 Kuala Lumpur,
Malaysia

Tel: 03-7725 7266

Mon - Fri: 10:30 am - 12:00 am
Sat: 5:00 pm - 12:00 am
Rest every Sunday

For more information about and details of Restaurant:
Vault FB Page: http://www.facebook.com/vault.wineandbistro/