TWT Cafe, Bandar Baru Medan Ipoh, Ipoh, Perak, Malaysia

Address:
30, Jalan Medan Ipoh 1D, Bandar Baru Medan Ipoh, 31400 Ipoh, Perak, Malaysia

Opening Hours:
Closed on Tuesdays
Other Days 12pm - 10pm

Time Visited:
12:30pm, on a Public Holiday Wednesday

Attire worn:
Casual

Item(s) Ordered (Photos taken as inconspicuous as possible with my phone):
Chocolate Lava with Vanilla Gelato and Peppermint Tea

Straight off the bat from a hefty meal at Petit Mary Pattisserie, I don't think I would be able to eat another round so soon. Should've planned for some other things to do in between meals. LOL. But anyway, I headed to TWT Cafe straightaway. Although there were others I was planning on going in the beginning, seeing that it's a public holiday and most of it were closed, this was my next of choice after seeing the others closed.

TWT Cafe is just very near to Petit Mary Pattisserie, just 5 minutes drive away. Hell, in fact all the things that I ate at Ipoh on that day were so near to one another with just 5 minutes drive away. TWT stands for Tea Warmer Treats apparently. I decided upon dessert instead of another main course meal since the breakfast of Petit Mary Pattisserie was quite filling. So I ordered the Chocolate Lava with Vanilla Gelato. I was warned that it will take about 10-15 minutes to prepare so I would had to wait. I chuckled and gave them an okay sign. When I was there, there's not a customer in sight. I was the only customer there. Later on, there were trickles of customers that went in with the first one after me also just going for dessert while the rest were there to have their lunch on this fine public holiday.

True to their word, it did take about 10-15 minutes when I was shown this nicely plated dessert that looks very dark in it's color. Beside it was the contrasting yellow tinge of vanilla gelato. A poke on the lava cake revealed a spillage of chocolate sauce that didn't stop flowing and harden as it cooled till a very much later period. The gelato sits atop cornflakes while the plating shows more chocolate sauces upon it. This dessert to me is awfully sweet. Way too sweet for my taste. For those who have a sweet tooth, they may enjoy it. The chocolate part with the pastry part was sweet beyond means and the gelato didn't help much as it's also sweet on it's own though at a much milder level compared to the chocolate sauce. It was so sweet that it permeates upon the cornflakes as well and the only way that I manage to lower down the sweetness meter is to drink some tea with it. It accompanies fine with the tea. Taste-wise is okay. It's just that it's so darn sweet and not enough balance in the whole dish. I guess you're suppose to eat it and take a sip of your tea. LOL.

After the dessert here, I went to walkaround the area. The area here is filled with so many eateries. Whatever tickles your fancy, you'll sure find it around here. Kopitiam? There's some here. Fancy some posh foreign food? There's some Japanese restaurant and it looks like they tried to open some Korean restaurants here too but look like it's out of business. Cafe food aplenty as well. All in all, every type of food that covers I believe all of the general population. LOL.

Total Wallet Damage:
Strange. I think I lost the receipt. But dessert stands at RM15.50 according to the menu while the peppermint tea costs RM7.50.

Final Verdict:
6/10. Well, for a place that calls itself Tea Warmer Treats, I expected the dessert to be more appealing but generally, it's not bad lah.

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BreadFruits, Desa Sri Hartamas, Kuala Lumpur (KL), Malaysia

Address:
No. 17, Jalan 26/70A, Desa Sri Hartamas, Wilayah Persekutuan, 50480 Kuala Lumpur (KL), Malaysia

Opening Hours:
Daily, 8:30am until 9pm

Time Visited:
Sunday, 12:30pm

Attire worn:
Casual

Item(s) Ordered (Photos taken as inconspicuous as possible with my phone):
Yellow Mellow Cheese Omelette & Wild Honey Latte

After spending my time preparing for my upcoming Korea trip with my family, I head on over to BreadFruits in Sri Hartamas to try their food there. I have to say, at times like this if even such non-simple things that would literally delight anybody who has such things to look forward to is something I find kind of apathetic to and am just bored to my bones and still thinks that life is not worth living, why do I even bother continuing on? Why the stupid stipulated time I have set for myself?

Anyway, this place looks packed on the inside though I have to say, this place seems quite small. But there's still some places to sit and dine at. They have some fruits and stuff on display for purchase and can be made into juices for you there as well. However, I chose to sit outside instead of with the cool air-cond breeze on the inside. When I was there, I approached the counter and one of the staff said,"Yes?" I asked for the menu and she pointed to me where it is so I helped myself to it and start glancing through it. Mind you, this place is a full service restaurant so you can actually just sit yourself down or have them show you an available table and they will bring the menu to you. But with the amount of people there and how busy the staff looked like, I decided to not wait for service and helped myself to the menu instead. After deciding, I told one of the waiters my order and he pointed me to a vacant place inside but I told him I wanted to sit outside.

Surprisingly, outside was a lot more quieter than the inside. I guess the small place had the diners chatter bounced and echo off the walls. Over on the outside, it wasn't really that hot but there are construction nearby which you can hear low humming sounds of machinery and what they're doing and also the traffic from this busy area from a distance, but it was definitely much more quieter than the inside that day. This area here has always been known for it's lack of parking and so I parked a little further having seen a shady place at the main road.

It didn't really take long till my omelette arrives in all it's vibrant colors as I await for my latte to come along. About few minutes later it started to come and it's time to chow down. The Yellow Mellow Cheese Omelette has bacon in it and mushrooms and of course cheese while at the side there, they put some rocket leaves and a toasted bread with some butter on top. To start off, the bread was good even by eating by itself and slathering the butter over it increases it's viability. Rocket leaves though weren't looking so great and a bit shabby yet tasted pleasing enough and on to the main star. The perfectly cooked omelette contains mostly the mushrooms being the most prominent among all the ingredients and the cheese provide some gooey gummy feeling. The bits of bacon were a clever and ingenious addition into the omelette as it provided some salty bits and as a person who loves bacon, it certainly went well with the omelette and cheese, The wild honey latte is exactly what you think the taste would be with the honey providing a peculiar sweetness to an already quite mild coffee. Nevertheless, it was enough to satisfy me and I left for my next course of action after enjoying the cup of coffee.

Total Wallet Damage:
RM38.15. RM13 for the latte and RM23 for the omelette. 6% GST is charged here.

Final Verdict:
7/10. Well, it has it's upside on it's dishes and some good enough beverages, but the ambient just left a little claustrophobic inside and that's where I preferred the outdoors.

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2Ox, The Row, Chow Kit, Kuala Lumpur (KL), Malaysia

Address:
54-56, The Row, Jalan Doraisamy, Chow Kit, 50300 Kuala Lumpur (KL), Malaysia

Opening Hours:
Daily, 11:30am - 12am

Time Visited:
Saturday, 6:45pm

Attire worn:
Casual

Item(s) Ordered (Photos taken as inconspicuous as possible with my phone):
Duck Leg Confit & Sangria (with White Wine)

After a long day working, I decided to unwind at 2Ox located at the Row which was famously known as Asian Heritage Row and is known for their notorious nightlife. By the way, 2Ox is not twenty x but rather 2 ox. LOL. I really thought the O was an 0 at first.

So I arrived there fairly early but of course parking over there was a breeze right in front of the restaurant, the catch is....you have to pay RM10 for the parking. Pfft. These scalpers. Anyway, since it's right in front of the restaurant, it's okay. Sitting outside, the menu was already on the table so I just need to pick it up and browse through it. It looks like they're just readied for dinner not too long ago since most of the staff were merely lingering around inside and I can't see anyone that's manning the outside of the restaurant. But there's 1 that comes in and out serving a tourist at a table where the guy seems to be busy with his Apple laptop. I soon made up my mind on what to ordered and signaled to a gentleman to take my orders.

Along came the bread as an appetizer with some greenish oil condiments to go with the bread. The complimentary appetizer was great with the bread being good just by eating on it's own and that dip that comes with it goes very well with the bread. I was asked if I liked more bread once I finished but of course I declined since I wanna save some space for my Duck Leg Confit and my Sangria.

The Duck Leg Confit was beautifully cooked and glisten along with the ambiance light and that it's carefully placed on top of some beans and the Dauphinois potato gratin. The beans and potatoes provided quite a crunch to the dish while the orange sauce that accompanies the Duck Leg Confit went very well with the meat. The end product of the duck is simply delicious and it may seemed like just a lovely looking dish but the taste did exceed what it looked like. It was delicious through and through and as I peel the layer of skin away to expose the inside meat of the duck, I was greeted with a steaming hot delicious, moist meat. Throughout my meal, the duck stayed hot and warmed throughout and so there was never a moment where it dropped in it's tastefulness. I was truly satisfied with it and so I would say the RM80 price on it is what it is truly worth. As for the Sangria, there was a many mixture of orange and apples in it thus giving it a refreshing taste. The white wine that was in the mixture was nice and all in all, a good Sangria nonetheless.

After I slowly enjoyed off my drink, I headed back home with satisfaction.

Total Wallet Damage:
RM108. RM80 for the duck, RM28 for the Sangria. There's 10% service charge involved and 6% GST.

Final Verdict:
7/10. Food was excellent and drinks were not bad. Service was okay.

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Hutton Mansion Wine Haus, Georgetown, Penang Island (Pulau Pinang), Malaysia

Address:
149, Jalan Hutton, 10050 George Town, Pulau Pinang, Malaysia

Opening Hours:
6 pm to 12 am. Closed on Sundays.

Time Visited:
Saturday, 7pm

Attire worn:
Casual

Item(s) Ordered (Photos taken as inconspicuous as possible with my phone):
Their Set Dinner, I chose the Amber Chin's Signature Aglio-olio with Pork Belly and to drink, White Wine. Tomato Soup.

"So what are you doing in Penang?" That seems to be the theme of my visit there. Many seemed to ask me this question and each time I'm at the receiving end of this question during that day, I pause for a moment and my mind will just be slated blank. To tell you the truth, I don't even know why I drove all the way to Penang at such a late time of the day just to have a bite and depart back to PJ on the same day. I guess all I wanted to do is distract my mind by keeping myself busy.

Let me start earlier. The day started off with me working from morning till after lunch time where I can't really recall whether I did eat my lunch or breakfast or not but one thing's for sure, I started heading for Penang when the clock surpass 3pm. I stopped by at Sungkai to refuel my car and after that, it was all the way straight to Penang non-stop. When I reached Penang, it had already turned 7 o'clock. Just the perfect time for dinner. And so I headed to Hutton Mansion Wine Haus. It started to rain heavy when I arrive but that didn't deter me.

Hutton Mansion Wine Haus is actually the restaurant that's associated with the Hutton Mansion boarding hostel. I guess that's the main business as oppose to this F&B side. When I was there, I was the only person to enter for food. I was hospitably welcomed and been shown the menu. The sofa area of the place looks congenial, cozy and tones you down a notch. The lighting gives me a sleepy feel and puts me at ease. They allowed me time to look at the menu and I went for their Dinner Set which consists of many main course choices....just different pricing. LOL. As I await for my pasta, I gazed out of the window and get lost in the rain. Over on the opposite side, there's a wine shop and there wasn't much of anyone walking by the road except for a few tourists.

Pretty soon, I was served my wine. The wine was easy on the throat and wasn't heavy on the alcohol level. It provides a certain sweetness syncing with some soft touch of sourness. It certainly was a very pleasant to the mouth feel. I was soon served the appetizer which they name it "Duck Salad with Orange Sauce". Okay, so it's more of a descriptive name rather than an intriguing one but at least you know what you're getting. LOL. Though there's merely 2 peels of mandarin orange on top, the citrus taste permeates throughout the whole of the salad due to it being splashed with the orange sauce and the strong taste only is rivaled by the duck's salty taste. The duck is thick in it's slices and was tender. A nice combination in all even though the greens merely provided a crunch rather than it's refreshing leafy taste.

The next dish is the Tomato Soup. It's served together with a garlic bread which proved to be an odd combination. Without the garlic bread, the Tomato Soup taste way better so I much prefer separating the 2 to eat. The tomato soup was rich though not too thick. Enough for a satisfying slurp that I lapped up the whole dish.

Next came the main course. Garnishing includes some olives that provided some taste of sweetness and I can see sprinkles of cheese but my tongue fail to detect any of it when I put it in my mouth. The pork belly was delightful and some has a crispy texture outside and provides a somewhat chewy taste. It can also sit there for awhile and the pork belly is still warm when I ate it even to the last bit. It was a little too spicy for me since they spruce it up with cili padi but nothing a little water can't combat.

The staff of the place was very hospitable but also gave me ample space I need and only approach when necessary and occasionally just to get my feedback. Not bad even though I was the only one there, they still made sure that everything's alright with me. With a little wine, low lighting and the rain outside, it made me feel rather sleepy and so after that, I decided to go grab some coffee at The Safe Room down the road instead before heading off home. Thanks for the hospitality, Hutton Mansion Wine House.

Total Wallet Damage:
Just RM48 all in. Pretty sweet! No mention of GST nor service charge anywhere so I guess they don't charge.

Final Verdict:
7/10. The food was good and the selection of wine was nice. The only thing is the Tomato Soup does not go with Garlic Bread though you can just eat it separately. Although all the food is good, I just felt as if somethings missing. It's like it could've been perfect if something is added to it. Or maybe there could be dessert? LOL. Or maybe it's just because I had one of the most awesome set lunch ever at Sage Restaurant & Bar, The Gardens not too long before this and I just can't stop comparing that to this. That's not a fair comparison. Haha.

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The Fat Fish, Shoplex Mont Kiara, Mont Kiara, Kuala Lumpur (KL)

Address:
15-0-5, Shoplex Mont' Kiara,, Mont Kiara, 50480 Kuala Lumpur (KL), Malaysia

Opening Hours:
Close on Mondays. 
The rest of the week 11:30am - 10pm (According to Google)

Time Visited:
2pm. Tuesday afternoon

Attire worn:
Casual

Item(s) Ordered (Photos taken as inconspicuous as possible with my phone):
Smoked Salmon Salad and a Tapping Tapir Pineapple Calamansi soda

Long time I didn't post anything. Of late, I've been working non-stop even throughout weekends and public holiday and so I'm a bit lazy updating this blog. I'm thinking of revamping one of my old ones to put in encounters of the people I met with many quirky experiences or lessons for me to remind me one day should I decide to read back but I'm just too busy to do it. Besides, when I do get the free time, I'd rather laze around and do nothing before plonking myself to bed. In addition to that, I have also lost all of my photos from before in my phone along with whatever data that's inside. I've also lost all but 30 of my newest contacts which seems to have been saved somewhere else for some reason. I didn't bother getting contacts back from people except for my immediate boss' because why bother. People won't be looking for me nor expecting a reply from me anyway. LOL.

So this was at a day where my company was on holiday while KL is still working. I still worked a fair bit but it was a slow day so I didn't do much and so I decided to take my lunch here. When I was there at 2pm, already all the seats outside were taken and only left with seats inside. Why mainly people prefer to sit outside instead of under the air conditioned area indoors is because people are afraid of the fishy smell inside. But when I was there, there were not much of such odor inside since the air condition units were all on and the ventilation fan towards the back were all on to carry all the smell away. Displays of seafood on ice were all prominently placed up front for you to pick and choose to have and to be cooked too if you want to. Oh yeah. Besides serving as a restaurant there, it's also partly a fish/seafood mart where some people go there to just buy the meat to cook at home. The meat all looks oh so good and fresh but the price too packs a punch even in their raw form. I decided to go for something simple and healthy and so I ended up with the Smoked Salmon Salad. As for my drink, I just pick a Tapping Tapir soda.

Initially, when I entered, there's still the lunch crowd there preoccupying the tables outside and so the staff were all busy and such to attend to me. This led me to picking the menu myself and returning to my table to glance at it. When I was ready to order, I had to signal someone's attention to come. Anyway, wasn't much of a big deal.

Even though it's just Smoked Salmon Salad, it took a while before it finally came to my table. I can see why as they took care in the presentation of the salad. But that was all there is to it, a pretty presentation. The greens were bitter to the max with only some olives as saving grace. But the real savior came in the form of the smoked salmon. That truly was delicious and was really fresh and if it weren't for it, I wouldn't have finished off the salad. They do live up to their reputation of supplying fresh produce and just wish that I had the salmon as a sashimi to eat up. However, I must say that the greens were awful max. Bitter like no business. Must be store bought at the supermarket nearby, all packed in a box and they just put it in a dish. Yuck. I resumed a little bit more with my work before finally calling it quits at 5pm and had a tea break at Uptown.

Total Wallet Damage:
RM29.70. Salad costs RM18.50, the soda costs RM9.50. No service charge but there's 6% GST.

Final Verdict:
6/10. Never go for the greens here. Their seafood and fish are the freshest around town and that's what to go for. There's also a new outlet in Desa Parkcity which is opened 7 days a week!

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The Nightingale Bar, Spitalfield's Gastropub, Atria Shopping Gallery, Atria Damansara, SS22, Damansara Jaya (DJ), Petaling Jaya (PJ), Selangor

Address:
Spitalfield's Gastropub, C37, Concourse Floor, Atria Shopping Gallery, Atria Damansara, Jalan SS22/23, Damansara Jaya, 47400 Petaling Jaya, Malaysia

Opening Hours:
Mon-Thu:
4:00 pm - 2:00 am
Fri-Sat:
3:00 pm - 3:00 am

Time Visited:
Saturday night, 9:30pm

Attire worn:
Casual

Item(s) Ordered (Photos taken as inconspicuous as possible with my phone):
Tropical Depression

DISCLAIMER: This was not a lone dining experience.

It was the last day that I get to hangout with a friend of mine before she flies off to further her education and I just wanted do so one last time before the time comes. She indicated that she's free on that Saturday night and that's where I organized to make it possible. Unfortunately, as my usual self, I'm unable to get anyone else to join in so it was just me and her for dinner. It doesn't matter. She's just gonna be away for a year only and then she'll be back again to make more memories with us again. LOL. So we headed to a restaurant that she suggested called Li and that's where we had our dinner. After much talking, we decided to proceed further with a drink and so we walked around Atria in search of a bar/pub to quench our alcohol cravings. It was late that time and the Shopping Mall was closing and so were all of the restaurant and shops in it. We were about to give up hope when we reached one of the entrance end of the Shopping Mall and we saw Spitalfield's Gastropub. Upon glancing on their opening hours, we saw that it opens till late and so we headed on in. Since we already had our dinner, we were just there to have a drink and that's when we were told to go into their bar area.

The Nightingale Bar area from it's non-opening times will have a bookcase door to hide behind of from the world and will not be seen from the restaurant side of the place. But since that time it's opened, you see it's dark lit area from within and the DJ spinning tunes of a very easy listening way with the bar and their mandatory display of alcohol upon the shelves behind to indicate the amount of alcohol that they're able to churn out for you. The Nightingale Bar do have another entrance that's straight from the Shopping Mall area and that's the Telephone Booth facade picture above. The door just sits snugly at the left side to open to enter and that facade hides the entrance somewhat. When we were there, they indicated to us that Saturday nights are Ladies Night and ladies get free cocktails which was such perfect timing for my friend to pop in here. So that's what she had to drink, the free cocktail. As for a male like me, I glance through the menu to select my choice of poison and I just picked the first thing on their menu which aptly suits me too because it's called Tropical Depression. LOL. Well, also because I'm lazy to skim through the long list of alcohol available at the place and so just went with the cocktail.

The place had very few people around and so it was quite a quiet enough joint to chat with friends even with the DJ blasting some tunes but it wasn't loud till you can't speak. But over at the restaurant section, there's more people over there celebrating certain occasions with their family and/or loved ones. The free cocktail came in a jiffy while my Tropical Depression took some time to come. As we were talking, the bar suddenly caught my attention because I saw a very unique looking mug that's being placed on the counter with a golden skull like ornament beside it. On top of that, the bartender started to place something brown that look like a small cigar on it and started to light it up and it started smoking like an incense. The waiter pretty soon, collected the things and started his merry way. To my surprise....that was my drink! I didn't expect it to be this fancy and they took me by a very big surprise on their presentation. As he laid the cocktail drink in front of me, he also laid that gold skull ornament beside it and told me that this drink comes with Edamame beans. So that's what they were and they were taken out of it's pod and squirted with some tomato sauce on it. I'm impressed.

The big stone head mug was barely enough to be on top of the coaster. The lit up item that looks like an incense of some sort turned out to be cinnamon. The strong taste of alcohol was within the concoction but it also brings out a breezy minty feeling and taste once you drink it down which keeps with the tropical theme. It also contains citrus fruits in em to further on the tropical theme. The list of things that are inside as indicated in the menu are:
Sailor's Jerry Spice Rum, Martell VSOP, Bombay Sapphire, Falernum Syrup, Fresh squeezed lime Juice, Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice, Pineapple Juice & touch of Homemade Pineapple Honey Syrup. I'm impressed. Not by the list of ingredients but how they actually made Sailor's Jerry Spice Rum to work. LOL. As I recall, I hated that taste when they were one of the sponsors for MTV World Stage and I just took one cup and decided to go for other alcoholic beverages when I tasted it. Haha. My friend didn't even finished his cup that time. But as for this mixture into this cocktail, it all blended well together and created a very refreshing and easy to drink cocktail. I could take long sips of it without the feel of alcohol in it. The only thing that kept me from continuing my long sips was actually the very cold feeling. Once it hit me, I can't sip on it anymore. First time it wasn't because of the alcohol sensation that stopped me.

I enjoyed the drink and the edamame beans for snack very much. Not to mention the ambiance is lovely too. The tunes were not too over the top. This is really a splendid place to chill with friends for a drink. Too bad I usually don't have people to bring along. Else I would definitely bring them here for a drink if they're ladies on Saturday because it's ladies night. LOL. Else, the TAPS beer bar has always been on my mind to frequent due to the vast amount of Craft Beers they carry. It's also the place I tasted the best beer I've ever had which probably is why I fell in love with that place as a watering hole aside from it's also very nicely done meals. So yeah. The Nightingale Bar on a Saturday night for the ladies over here would probably be my first choice now.

Total Wallet Damage:
Get this, the Tropical Depression is supposed to cost RM38, but I was charged RM31! I don't know the reason but they gave me a 30% discount and I don't know what's that for. There's 10% service charge and 6% GST too though.

Final Verdict:
9.5/10. Okay. I know this is extreme and over the top to give it a 9.5. But c'mon, free cocktail for ladies on a Saturday night, a nice mysterious hidden environment that's lovely for a chat with your friends, a most excellent presentation with my cocktail that comes with a snack that surprises me a lot? The cocktail was a tasty nice drink too. They passed me a feedback form and here's what I put in there that I'm putting here, of course I would definitely be back again for a drink. It's an almost perfect, ideal place for me to chill if I were to bring a lady friend to drink. Hence the high score. Oh, the service was not bad too so it's worth the 10% charge.

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Antipodean Cafe, Bangsar Baru, Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur (KL), Malaysia

Address:
20, Jalan Telawi 2, Bangsar Baru, 59100 Kuala Lumpur, Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Opening Hours:
 Sun - Thurs: 8am - 10pm
Fri - Sat: 8am - 11pm

Time Visited:
I think 2pm? Sunday afternoon for sure.

Attire worn:
Casual

Item(s) Ordered (Photos taken as inconspicuous as possible with my phone):
Tolaga Bay Sunrise (A type of Mixed Fruit drink) and Blueberry Bagel with Berry Mascarpone + Strawberry

Just another boring Sunday where I felt so tired. Didn't really wanted to move out of my house but I figured ah, what the heck. Let's get to work and while I'm at it go get some food to eat.

Antipodean Cafe isn't exactly a new name and has etched it's mark into the cafe scene with many outlets around. The only one that I've ever been to was the one at Mid Valley Megamall and that too was quite nice in my books. But this day, I decided to try the one in Bangsar. I know, it's kind of silly to put myself in such a pickle in this very much jammed up area especially when it's already on a late afternoon. Blame it on my tiredness and laziness, the deadly combination which resulted in me moving out of my house late. LOL. But I've pushed myself and there I was at the very predicted awful jam at Bangsar Baru. After awhile, when I'm not stationary, I managed to find a parking spot right outside of Subway which is a public parking so there's no need to go inside Bangsar Village 2 to pay for parking anymore. XD

Walked towards Antipodean and by the time I got to it, it was already 2pm. It was very vibrant and the staffs were very nice, friendly and welcoming. It made me feel as if they're very happy to serve me and see me there. Hence, their warm and genuine looking greeting really made me felt happy to be there. Never in my life had I felt so welcomed in my life despite a party of 1. LOL. The place was full of people but they still have a few empty spots left and so they seated me at a table. The arrangement of the furnitures were well optimized with the middle portion being filled neatly with a small table and 2 chairs while both sides of it is the walkway and over at each end were rows of bigger tables to accommodate at least a party of 4 and should there be more, a little arrangement with the tables will do the trick. Very smart indeed. Like how it is at the Mid Valley branch, the "writings" on the wall. LOL. They don't really print their menus and so whatever is available is written on the wall. I went for what's called a Tolaga Bay Sunrise which is a mixture of Orange, Banana and Strawberry and their Blueberry Bagel with Berry Mascarpone and Strawberry.

With this being their peak hour and you can see 90% of their tables occupied, my orders took a little longer than expected. Most people though will just go with their Big Breakfast and I can see why. It's the first thing you see on the food menu and it occupies quite a lot of space. Most people will just not spend so much time looking at the menu and so they will more often and not go for the Big Breakfast. But the good side of this is I saw this item being served quite fast. I guess their kitchen really did expect the Big Breakfast to be a lot and so they're able to churn that out to their customer quick. But as for my Blueberry Bagel, it took quite a while.

The Tolaga Bay Sunrise's predominant taste goes to the banana but with a taste of celery like taste in it though there's none in the mixture. Anyway, it concocted a sort of unique taste that's great and I quite like it. Though this place serves quite a lot of coffee types, today wasn't a day that I went for it. Haha. The Blueberry Bagel has a pretty presentation and is nicely done to appeal to the eyes. The swirl of the cream on top was aplenty and is really more than enough. It may look like a very sweet delicacy but in actuality, it's not. It's nice but a little too rich for my taste and I actually would like it to be a little more sweet because the strawberries were sour. Nonetheless, it's okay and good enough for consumption.

Although it's quite a crowded place, they're really efficient and do have adequate staffing. I also like the human touch of going over to the tables and asking is everything good? This is what I call a good service. They really genuinely do make sure that you got it good and there's no complains. All their staffs are also well trained to explain the menu should anybody require some assistance. Everybody was also very well efficient and will quickly clear your plate once you're done. They will also serve you a bottle of water with a glass as soon as you sit down. No wonder people like this place. Definitely a very good place for brunch.

Total Wallet Damage:
RM39.60. There's 10% service charge and also 6% GST. But in this case, with a service like that, I don't mind paying for it.

Final Verdict:
8/10. This cafe at Bangsar is really an inspiration. Efficient layout of the furnitures, very attentive staffs and very well trained, very warm and friendly welcome which makes you feel good to be there even though I'm just a person on my own dining which they made me feel that they're happy to see me there. With such a great atmosphere, it doesn't matter if the food and drinks are secondary and I can say their food and drinks are above average to me.

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Breizh Up, Pantai Cenang, Langkawi, Kedah

Address:
Lot 1, Jalan Pentai Cenang, Pantai Cenang, 07000 Langkawi, Kedah, Malaysia

Opening Hours:
Mon-Wed:
9:00 am - 11:30 pm
Fri-Sun:
9:00 am - 11:30 pm

Time Visited:
Saturday, 12:30pm

Attire worn:
Casual

Item(s) Ordered (Photos taken as inconspicuous as possible with my phone):
Sugar Crepe and Hot Chocolate

It was the first day that I was in Langkawi and I've just checked into my hotel. Eager to embark on this solo adventure for the first time in my life, I started to make my way to my first food destination. At first, I wanted to try My French Factory Cafe as my first destination but I was too early and it shows in my phone that they were not open yet. Anyway, for some reason they weren't opened that day. And so I decided to head to Sun Cafe but along the way there, I stumbled upon this cafe called Breizh Up that caught my eye. Though it resides on the 1st floor, the bright red canopy that shades the pathway to the stairs were new and looks so eye catching to me. Due to this fact, I stopped my car and started to head my way over there to have a look at it.

I soon decided to go upstairs and try whatever they have at their cafe. The place was cleanly and as neat as can be with a clear indication that it's quite a brand new cafe. Mind you, I tried searching on TripAdvisor and to my surprise it wasn't listed so I figured it may be quite new. The place is run by a Frenchman and his partner where the Frenchman prepare the crepes while the partner prepare mostly drinks and some help in preparation of food. The menu consists of a French name and an English name but the description is in English. I thought I would just order a simple Sugar Crepe and that's what I went with with the hot chocolate.

The cafe being on the first floor has it's advantage as from the balcony area where they've converted it to an al-fresco dining area, you can actually see the sea at a distance since the shoplots opposite does not have a 1st floor. It took a moderate waiting time until my orders arrived. The Frenchman and his partner were very friendly (actually, culturally in Langkawi, most people are very nice and friendly as oppose to the harshness of the KL City) and chatted up with me a bit despite their still struggling on mastering the English language. I thought that was a very nice gesture from them.

When I started tasting the crepe after my photo taking session, I got the shocked of my life. Though it was merely a simple sugar crepe, it's the best damn crepe I've ever had in my entire life. This tops my list as the best crepe I've ever tasted. Though I've yet to taste My French Factory's crepe which is just down the road and rated number 1 in TripAdvisor and also verified by my friend, I knew I've stumbled on to something really very good. The crepe was soft and has a fluffy texture. Though the fillings were just sugar, they purposed on it perfectly adequate to make it not too sweet and just right. The perfect amount to make the simple crepe pop and delicious. Over at the side of it lies 3 squirts of whip cream which also is the perfect portion to eat with that size of crepe. The day after this, I did try out My French Factory and my decision still stands for this to still be the best crepe I've ever tasted. This should deserve the no. 1 spot on TripAdvisor.

It's profile is actually almost the same as My French Factory. Both are run by a Frenchman and his partner, both specializes in crepe, both crepes are done by the Frenchman himself and both use their own home made batter. The only difference I would say besides Breizh Up tasting slightly better would be Breizh Up selling cheaper and their place is bigger with a view of the ocean from the balcony. So I would say Breizh Up takes the cake (or in this case the crepe) for me. :)

Total Wallet Damage:
RM22. Sugar Crepe costs RM8, Hot Chocolate RM12 and there's a 10% service charge imposed.

Final Verdict:
9/10. Just lovely. The best damn crepe I've ever tasted in my life. Next time when I visit France again, I must try out a crepe there to see if it can beat the ones in Langkawi.

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My French Factory Cafe, Langgura Baron Walk, Cenang, Langkawi, Kedah

Address:
Langgura Baron Walk, Jalan Pantai Cenang, Cenang, Langkawi, 07000 Kedah.

Opening Hours:
Saturday - Thursday, 1pm - 11pm.

Time Visited:
Around 1:15pm in the afternoon on a Sunday

Attire worn:
Casual

Item(s) Ordered (Photos taken as inconspicuous as possible with my phone):
Chicken slices with cheese + homemade tomato sauce and fresh pineapples and a Latte (hot)

My French Factory Cafe has been ranked as the number 1 restaurant in Langkawi by TripAdvisor and so I made my way there to have a try at it.
Though the day before I had tried to head on over but seems that they were closed that day for some unknown reason but I'm glad that happened because it led me to discover a really really good cafe. That cafe was an unexpected gem that I found that wasn't even listed in TripAdvisor.

Anyway, so this was the Sunday that I had planned for my Island Hopping tour and so after that, I took the opportunity to grab my bags and head on to try My French Factory. This time I was in luck. They were open.

My French Factory is located at the busy tourist street of Jalan Pantai Cenang. Right next to the Cenang Mall, there's a Pizza Place during my visit. My French Factory is just right next to it. This place is run by a Frenchman and his partner just like another crepe cafe I visited the day before. The guy is all serious business when it comes to creating his crepe with his specialized tools for creating his crepes. And like the cafe I visited the day before, this place uses their own homemade batter for creating their crepes. The place is quite small. In fact, I saw indoors may seem a little cram and stuffy to be in there and so I decided to sit al fresco style. Every table has a menu in a holder and so I panned through it to see what should I order. Their menu was quite thick with their laminated pages and every item has a picture for you to know what you're ordering.

Since I tasted a sweet crepe the previous cafe, I decided to go for the savory one in this cafe. So chicken slices with cheese and tomato sauce and pineapples it is then. They have a local to help work for them and so talking to this lady wasn't that difficult. But as for the owners, they seemed to not be fluent in English but surprisingly friendly just like the other Crepe Cafe I went to the day before called Breizh Up. Gosh. Everything is just so darn similar between the two cafe's repertoire. The guy was full of concentration while preparing my crepe but spotted me observing him and decides to flash a friendly smile my way. LOL.

Pretty soon, I have my latte in front of me. Their coffee seemed to mimic the way of the Europeans do and had this bitter undertone to it but not as strong as those European ones. Still, it's stronger than a lot of the coffees that I've tried. The latte was served in a typical drinking water cup with it filling halfway of the cup just so that the ratio of espresso and milk is good. It was rather foamy and even more so than cappuccinos I've tasted before and seemed to be in a category of it's own if I were to put it. Pretty soon, the much anticipated crepe arrived at my table to enjoy. Spotting that I was to take pictures of the crepe, the waitress asked me to wait and hurriedly back with an Eiffel Tower prop and said that's for taking pictures with. LOL. Hence you can see that prop in my pictures.

And so, I started to dig in. The crepe itself was really delicious. It's well cooked and crispy all the way. There's never a moment you find it not crispy at all! It just maintain it's texture even though it has been left for awhile. As for the combination of chicken slices, cheese, tomato and pineapple, it works very well altogether to form a nice savory crepe. I can safely say Langkawi has the best crepes if compared with the ones we have in the Klang Valley. 2 out of 2 crepe cafes and they're leaps and bound above the closest best I've tried in the Klang Valley. I particularly love how it's cheese taste was so strong and robust and feels a little like eating a pizza on this savory crepe. I lapped up the whole dish with whatever scraps of crepe I can get once finished and was deeply satisfied of the satiating taste of it.

Though I still prefer Breizh Up's crepes, this is still miles apart from our finest crepes in Klang Valley. The al fresco atmosphere along the busy streets of Jalan Pantai Cenang wasn't much of a sight but who cares. It's the crepe that deserves the attention than the surroundings.

Total Wallet Damage:
Well, I can't seem to find the receipt. Or was I given one? I think I wasn't given one. Anyway, I think in total it's RM35? It's cheap in it's price for crepe and didn't seem to have any extra charge. RM20 is for the crepe, RM13 is for the latte and RM2 is because I ordered a bottle of water to go.

Final Verdict:
9/10. A highly recommended place to try should you be in Langkawi. Crepe done by an authentic Frenchman and is one of the finest that I've tried in Malaysia so far.

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Flicker's Diner, Citta Mall, Pusat Perdagangan Dana 1, Petaling Jaya (PJ), Selangor

Address:
Lot No. 07, 1st floor, Citta Mall, no. 1, Jalan PJU 1a/48, Pusat Perdagangan Dana 1, 47301 Petaling Jaya, Malaysia

Opening Hours:
Daily, 10am - 10pm. Just like Citta Mall

Time Visited:
6pm (approximate time). Tuesday evening. When rain falls and I'm in the Mall for some food.

Attire worn:
Business.

Item(s) Ordered (Photos taken as inconspicuous as possible with my phone):
Cafe Latte (Hot) and a Braised Lamb Shank (since it's the chef recommendation item)

I wanted to go have some food at Nando's but for some reason they're closed that day and so I took the opportunity to venture around the mall to search for something I've yet to try. I first thought of Waroeng Penyet which is located on the 1st floor and so I moved on to upstairs and headed for Waroeng Penyet. As I near the place, Flicker's Diner caught my eye and so I walked closer and have a better look at it. I first hesitated to enter seeing the lack of human habitation inside the diner but due to the welcoming nature of the staff in front, I decided to give it a try.

After choosing my choice seat, I browse through the thick menu and take my time to choose my selection. I finally decided with my cliche latte and since there's the words "Chef Recommendation" beside the Braised Lamb Shank, that's what I went for to see if their signature is what it turns out to be.

The place didn't have any romantic feel nor does it resembles a diner. It actually looks the part of a cafe instead. When I walked in, they started to play songs on a computer nearby where the songs were sourced on an Internet playlist on Youtube. Their WiFi was moderate and occasionally it's just jerky hence even the playing of the songs on Youtube will sometimes had some time lag. Over at where I was, I can peer inside the kitchen having a very big open serving window that's between the dining area and the kitchen. The lone kitchen staff starts preparing my order.

The food and drinks didn't take long till it came to me. It was a bit of a surprised since it was after all, lamb shank that I was ordering. But there it was. Right in front of me with a waiting period of probably within 10-15 minutes which is fast for a lamb shank. The lamb was brittle but soft, kinda like those old lambs that they gave me but it did tasted fine. The tomato puree that is served up with the lamb shank was delicious and does add points of flavor to the lamb. It didn't have a gamy taste to it and the vegetables that served with the puree were okay. The mashed potato was okay, a bit starchy but also grainy at certain points. But the taste was not bad. As for the side salad that's served alongside this main dish, that's the least impressive item of all on the plate. It looks like store bought salad with pathetic looking lettuce that I usually see at Giant, all packed up for consumption. Don't get me wrong. Sometimes those store bought packaged salads do look nice and probably tasty too but I've seen too few of those at the Giant near my place. They also didn't serve the salad with any dressing at all.

As for the coffee, it may look dull and adulterated but one sip of it finds me liking the taste. It has a milky creamy taste which I like in coffee and a mild caffeine taste. A surprising wake up call.

Throughout my entire time being there, I was the only patron there. The double glass doors occasionally creaks open a little by itself over time and seems to be a little damaged with it being unable to close properly. Kinda creepy like there's some ghost there that pushed it. LOL. Though I judged this place as nothing much to expect in the beginning, I find that it's actually an okay place. The location may make them a little hard to be noticed though. Okay. A lot harder to be noticed. Hell, I didn't even know it existed if I weren't looking for Waroeng Penyet.

Total Wallet Damage:
RM51.30. RM11 for latte, RM33 for the lamb shank and there's a 10% service charge with 6% GST.

Final Verdict:
6/10. I thought it's not gonna be that good and didn't expect much from it but it turned out to be pretty okay.

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S.Wine, Ben's Independent Grocer, Publika, Solaris Dutamas, Kuala Lumpur (KL)

Address:
Lot No. 1a, 83-95, Level UG1, Publika, No. 1, Jalan Dutamas 1, Solaris Dutamas 50480 Kuala Lumpur (KL)

Opening Hours:
Daily, 11am - 10pm

Time Visited:
6:30pm, Valentine's Day - Sunday evening

Attire worn:
Casual

Item(s) Ordered (Photos taken as inconspicuous as possible with my phone):
Pan-Roasted Pork Chop with Spinach and Elderflower with Soda Water

Valentine's Day - forgot all about it until I came here for dinner.

I was out the whole day and were visiting around the whole of town for places to eat and when dinnertime arrive, I decided to come to S.Wine for dinner. It was still early, around 6:30pm but the place was already packed with people and that's when I'm reminded that it's Valentine's Day. Having lined up uniformly were rows and columns of 2 seater table and chairs where ample spaces in between to walk in between rows of the arrangement whereas for the tables side by side, that left off wanting a little more space to be desired. Oftentimes, I see people wanting the corner seat next to the wall instead of having people beside you left and right. I guess it's because it offers more privacy that way. So there I was although quite early for dinner yet there's already a place full of couples occupying the restaurant. Good thing for me is that they still manage a place for me.

Staffs of the place were very friendly and very attentive to customers needs and even though I'm just a party of one on Valentine's Day yet they still serve me without any biasness. I decided upon the pork chop along with Elerflower with soda water for drinks. As the name gives it away, S.Wine is a place where they sell pork and is much known for mostly it's pork dishes. That's why it's strategically located in the pork meat produce section of the supermarket. A full fledged open kitchen can be seen cooking away the various meat dishes to satisfy the hungry diners.

Judging from the crowd and my observation, this place is quite a romantic place to dine in with it's mood-setting lighting and it's incandescent bulbs. The only problem with the atmosphere is the many people packed in there. But then again, there's no way to solve this issue because the place don't leave much to arrange the tables and chairs. To me, I felt that they've already maximized it as best as they can. Other than that, that's the gist of the romantic settings, that and along with the fancy dinner.

The Elderflower with Soda Water took a moderate waiting period until it arrived. It tasted Indian-ish in taste due to the Elderflower but other than that, it's mostly sweetness and bubbliness from the soda water which didn't make this drink any more unique. The Pork Chop took it's time to arrive to me but having it cooked to order, it's understandable. The Pork Chop was well cooked but proved to be a little tough to me. They purposely left some layer of fat at the side so that it gives off a melting buttery taste to the side. The taste was well produced and it goes well with the cream sauce that's generously spread below the pork chop. It's mentioned in the menu that the cream sauce contains white wine and seeded mustard which probably contributed a little to elevate the flavors. Aside from that, the pork chop hides a slab of spinach and sauerkraut which interestingly is to my pleasure. I normally don't like sauerkraut due to it's very sourish taste like kimchi but this sauerkraut was not that way. It gave off a bit of a sourish taste but not very overpowering. In fact, I can taste the spinach as much taste as the rest in that mixture. The sauerkraut in fact tasted more like cabbage than sauerkraut due to the mild taste of sourness instead of the strong type. There's also hints of bacon in the mash mixture which I failed to detect if I didn't look at the menu.

All in all, a satisfying meal, an excellent service rendered from the staff despite running at full capacity of the restaurant, nice ambiance, the only thing that could be better is space-wise. But then again, they've already maximized the space of the restaurant and so I couldn't think of how they could further improve on that.

Total Wallet Damage:
RM48. RM38 for the pork chop and RM10 for the drink. 6% GST taxable.

Final Verdict:
7/10.

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Porcupine Place, Setiawalk, Pusat Bandar Puchong, Puchong, Selangor

Address:
B-3A-G, Setiawalk, Persiaran Wawasan, Pusat Bandar Puchong, 47160 Puchong, Selangor, Malaysia

Opening Hours:
Tue-Thu:
9:30 am - 10:00 pm
Fri-Sun:
9:30 am - 11:00 pm

Time Visited:
Lunch time Sunday. 12:30pm (maybe(?))

Attire worn:
Casual

Item(s) Ordered (Photos taken as inconspicuous as possible with my phone):
Roasted Fowl Roulade and Americano

Been wanting to try this place out when I saw it on Christmas Day when I was there with my friend for a movie but my friend didn't seem keen and decided to go for the safe choice of Wong Kok Char Chan Teng instead.

Imagine to my surprise when I chance upon the name in my book of "to try" places that I write down occasionally for ideas on where to eat and quickly took upon the opportunity to head on down there to savor what awaits me there. Puchong is not exactly a pleasant place for me to venture to since I have to pass through a toll where the fee has risen and the jam is normally a killer if it's on a weekday peak hour. Although this was on a Sunday that I ventured to, there's still the 50 percent chance of a jam occurring even though it's a weekend.

Anyway, the good thing about Setiawalk is always the ample parking place that they have. There's never a time where I'm unable to find a parking and since it's a Sunday afternoon, it's very easy to locate one near to an elevator to go up upon as well! I headed straight on to the place since I already knew where it is when I was there to try TiPsy Brew O'Coffee and pick up movie tickets.

For the many times that I saw Porcupine having a lot of customers, today's the day that I don't see it as that crowded and was pleased that there's ample space for me to select from. I entered in and was immediately greeted by someone behind the counter. I chose to sit somewhere closest to the door because that's where you get the most sunlight. I look at their detailed menu that goes the typical clipboard approach and saw that they sell alcohol as well with the sophistication of wine and imported beers. As tempting as that may be, I refrain from the alcohols and proceeded with an Americano instead. For their food, in addition to salads and pastas, they're also in the complication of fancy dishes as well such as the steaks and the one that I ordered, roulade. I was wondering how good they will be in producing fine dining restaurant quality since they've got the guts to put such items in their menu.

The Americano arrived at a moderate wait pace and it came with a very small cookie. Despite being an Americano, it was very strong in it's bitterness and the aftertaste lingers on exceptionally long. No wonder the guy asked me on whether I'd like it with sugar syrup. Usually, I would take my coffee black but this calls for some sugar syrup to be added together. I couldn't withstand the wrath of the coffee's bitterness.

The Roasted Fowl Roulade took quite a wait before it was brought over to me. At first sight, the plating don't look bad. In fact, it surprised me that the roulade does seemed like a main as they wanted it to be. There were loads of ingredients on the plate where the mushrooms covered most of the roulade and a mold of pilaf rice. The pilaf rice was fragrant and aromatic with a pleasing sensation to mouth it even by itself. The puree like tomato stuff at the side didn't do much on the improvement of taste but does provide aesthetic value to the dish. The Chicken Roulade wrapped with smoked bacon but didn't had the smoky taste that I so desire out of the Pork Bacon. It tasted mostly of the freshness of pork and it's as if it's just cured bacon instead of smoked, a tad overwhelming in that taste for me. I'd prefer a little simmer on my bacon with some crispiness coupled with the chewiness on the inner side. The chicken that makes up the roulade when it's wrapped with the bacon is moist and tender and very nice in it's taste. Full of the creamy sauce that coats it and pleasing to my palate. I never thought I'd say this but this is the one time where I favor the chicken meat over the pork bacon.

The owners of the place were there emitting some joy pumped into the cafe with their bundles of joy (read: children) and while the restaurant manager (of which that guy seemed to be to me) were busy preparing for the Chinese New Year cookies. The place feels a tad bit cramp to me because there seems to be a lot of things and clutter in it but the lighting was good and bright enough no matter where you sit. The staffs were well trained and can easily answer any questions you have about the food and were very attentive and courteous. 2 of them seems to be local Malaysians while the rest looks foreign. The place ran liked a well oiled machinery with no hiccups as far as I can see. The kitchen staff that I can see peering through the serving window seemed to enjoy their work very much in there and knows exactly what to do with everything under control and smooth.

Total Wallet Damage:
In total it costs RM41.80. There's a 10% service charge imposed but no 6% GST mentioned. RM9 for my coffee and RM29 for the roulade.

Final Verdict:
7/10. Great job on training their staff where the owners do not need to do anything at all. The staffs' knowledge on their food were excellent and can easily and confidently answer any questions posed in addition to being helpful and attentive too.

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Am Sande Cafe, Evolve Concept Mall, Ara Damansara, Petaling Jaya (PJ), Selangor

Address:
G-11, Ground Floor, Evolve Concept Mall, Jalan PJU1A/4, Ara Damansara 47301 Petaling Jaya, Selangor

Opening Hours:
Should be Daily 10am - 10pm since it's inside the mall.

Time Visited:
Approximately 6:45pm on a Tuesday evening

Attire worn:
Business

Item(s) Ordered (Photos taken as inconspicuous as possible with my phone):
Spaghetti Napoli and Spezi (well, sort of)

Am Sande Cafe is not something new here in Malaysia because there's one that is at One City Mall in Subang Jaya.

Since I decided to check out the Evolve Concept Mall this evening, I figured I find something to eat there too. The place like any typical mall consists of mainly franchise eats such as Texas Chicken being the most popular there, Little Fat Duck, Teh Tarik Place and Sushi Q. I probably only saw 2 eateries so far that weren't franchise born. 1 is called Peninsula which is a Chinese restaurant that's located way up on the 3rd floor where I had no idea how to get up there, LOL, another is a Japanese restaurant which I don't know what it's called. Haha. Right next to the Japanese restaurant is Am Sande Cafe. Though it's hardly a franchise, still it's a branch from it's first outlet.

I ordered the Spaghetti Napoli to which the lady owner replied to me in a thick foreign accent which I can't tell which part of the world it is that there's no meat in the dish. I acknowledged that having googled my way to see what it consists of and knew exactly what to expect; a pasta dish with tomato sauce like spaghetti bolognese.

For drinks, I noticed that they had Spezi written in the soft drinks section and got me wondering what it was. So I took a shot at it and ordered it. Turns out, they just mixed Mirinda Orange with Pepsi. LOL. It's not even the Spezi soft drink from Germany. Felt a bit cheated there that they called it Spezi.

Anyway, being freshly opened from the not so distant past, the outlet was empty of patrons. While I was there, there's a table of four person before me. Then there was a person who took away a meal after buying a bottle of beer and another 2 old uncles slowly scrutinizing the menu before finally deciding to enter and give it a try. The place was blaring cheesy international music, some German oom-pah-pah music, some Italian music and some English cover songs.

My Spaghetti didn't take long to arrive and when it did, it looked very pretty. All neatly laid out with cucumbers and tomatoes at the bottom with the pasta and then what looks like tomato puree. The taste wasn't bad at all. In fact it's quite nice. And with such a pretty presentation, it taste even better. With this, I forgive them on the rip-off Spezi. LOL.

I finished off quick and off I went grocery shopping downstairs where the Jaya Grocer is. Looks like this has to be my go to place before I head home ever since the Presto moved out of Citta Mall.

Total Wallet Damage:
RM19.80. There's a 6% GST charge and a 5% service charge.

Final Verdict:
6/10. Although Spezi is basically orange mixed with soda, they should have just called it that instead of Spezi because it's not exactly that. Anyway, the food was not bad. But then again, it's just pasta that I tasted and it's not exactly rocket science to get that right.

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The Apartment, The Curve, Mutiara Damansara, Petaling Jaya (PJ)

Address:
Lot 72, 73 & 74
Ground Floor, Western Courtyard
(next to TGI Fridays)
The Curve Shopping Centre, No. 6, Jalan PJU 7/3,
Mutiara Damansara, 47800 
Petaling Jaya, Selangor.

Opening Hours:
Daily, 10am - 12am

Time Visited:
6:30pm. Monday night.

Attire worn:
Business

Item(s) Ordered (Photos taken as inconspicuous as possible with my phone):
Lipton Ice Lemon Tea and a Flatbread with Keftedes

School holiday is approaching and expected clear roads ahead. Not that my route is filled with traffic jams but on occasions, I do venture out of the norm in search of food to ever oh so enliven up my meaningless existence that can barely be called as life. Anyway, today was a day that I do just that by going to The Curve's The Apartment.

Though not the first time being here, it is however, the first time in trying out just dining there. On previous occasions it was all event based hence it's merely catering food from them. Those times were only marred with the scars of not so great food. But I can't expect much if it's catering because this means that they cooked in bulk which would bring down the quality of the food in comparison to preparing an individual dish.

The Apartment at The Curve situates below a bar upstairs which is connected. I approached the entrance with a Maitre D there but was totally ignored by her. With that attitude, I walked in by myself instead and sat myself down. In consolation, I was chased down by a waiter with a menu and left it with me when I had chosen my desired place.

The Apartment does offer a posh like settings but the pricing is a little under for that kind of environment. But then again, this is not exactly a fine dining restaurant but rather one that merely looks like it. Their service certainly do not reflect so. The dim lights that brighten up the surroundings barely help my now poor eyesight but I guess this sets a romantic mood. I quite enjoy the charm of the place especially with the table that I placed myself at. It was the nearest to the convection oven and one of the staff manning the pastry section was baking some cakes. Each time he opens the oven door, I get a good whiff of the cakes good smell and am happy with that odor lingering around me.

The ice lemon tea as demonstrated by the menu mentions it's the brand Lipton which means it's merely the bottled version and was confirmed by my taste buds as I started to drink it. I do applaud of their efforts in making it nicer by throwing in a slice of lemon and some white liquid at the bottom which I have no idea what that is. It may sound horrid as per my description above, but I assure you, it's probably just lemon or lime juice poured in it. It couldn't have been syrup because drinking right at the source of it produced no sweet taste whatsoever but a lime like or lemon like type of sourishness hence my conclusion albeit a very mild and subtle taste. In any case, it didn't deviate at all from the taste straight from the bottle and certainly wouldn't be much value at double it's original price even though it looks really pleasant.

The Flatbread with Keftedes took a bit of a waiting till it reached me. I was curious on what Keftedes was as this is my very first time hearing this word let alone know what kind of food it is. After doing a bit of a research, I found out that Keftedes is actually a Greek Meatball. In this version with the Flatbread, the Keftedes were depicted as Greek Spiced Lamb Meatballs. I noticed that it is incredibly tiny in it's size just like how Chinese fishballs or pork balls are. I wonder if Keftedes were supposed to be that small? I'm not sure since I've never had these before and from the picture Google provided me, it looks much bigger. Eating those meatballs didn't come out with any unique taste that I've never tasted before hence it's not really new to me. The Flatbread as usual can only produce one type of taste and the texture was how it's supposed to be but the thing that draws my attention the most is the vegetables that's put in the mix with the others. It's actually Acar Timun (Spicy Cucumber Pickles). I'm not really a fan of Acar Timun but this was okay, acceptable and I'm able to finish it off. It's interesting that they categorize this dish as a sandwich.

Total Wallet Damage:
RM31.25. Lipton Ice Lemon Tea costs RM6.90 and the Flatbread with Keftedes costs RM19.90. 10% service charge applies along with 6% GST.

Final Verdict:
6.5/10. I must admit I do like the ambiance especially getting whiffs of the cake blowing my way but I would like their service to be better. Although the lady that snubbed me at the door did thank me as I left, I'm still a bit bothered on how they seat their customers. Whilst dining, I noticed that all their customers at the front door show themselves in instead of the Maitre D asking a table for how many persons. Nonetheless, 6:30pm on a weekday at The Curve has very few people around and is clearly a time where a lone diner can easily get a place without any hassle.

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