Perfect Char Siew

This has got to be the best Char Siew that I have ever tasted in my life, so far.

Tucked in one corner in Glenmarie, Kuala Lumpur is this ordinary looking coffeeshop called Restoran Meng Kee Char Siew.     We arrived way before lunch time and there were only a few tables with patrons and just a stall displaying some steamed and roasted chicken.   Ah, Chicken Rice for lunch today, I thought to myself.    At this moment, my Malaysian colleagues insisted that I try the Char Siew here.    Without much ado, we placed our order of chicken rice and a side order of the supposedly famous Char Siew.

The rice came first - nothing extraordinary except that it is a little more brown than the Singapore version.   Taste-wise, it is less fragrant too.    Next came the plate of steamed chicken.    Less oily than the Singapore version and I am suspecting that they use kamoug chicken instead of the mass farm reared type.

Finally, the Char Siew came.     Boy, the look is just so appealing - well charred with a beautiful shine to the dark red outer layer.    Good balance of fat and lean meat.

Now the real test - the taste.    The meat is just so succulent and flavorful that it simply blows one away!    Just the right amount of sweetness to it and the tenderness of the meat is simply unraveled in my opinion.    The mere mention here set my saliva glands working.   Simply awesome and highly recommended should you visit Kuala Lumpur the next time.

I should mention also that they do not sell their Char Siew as a standalone item for take way.    I thought I could buy a slab and smuggle it back to Singapore in my luggage.   As the lunch crowd starts trickling in, and seeing that almost every table having a plate of this signature item, I can understand why - the supply cannot catch up with the overwhelming demand.

So even for dining in, to avoid disappointment, do come by early as the Char Siew is on a "while stock last" basis.

Note : They have another outlet called Meng Kee Char Siew Wantan Mee located at No. 48, Jalan Kuchai Maju 6, off Jalan Kuchai Lama, 58200 Kuala Lumpur (Tel 03-7982 9781)





RESTORAN MENG KEE CHAR SIEW
20, Jalan Pekedai U1/36, Hicom Glemarie Industrial Park,
40150 Shah Alam, Selangor
Malaysia
Tel : 019-379 3629
Operating Hours : Mon-Sat & Public Holidays 0900hrs - 2130HRS  (closed on Sundays)

BE PREPARED TO WAIT FOR YOUR MEAL HERE!

I was introduced to this place, tucked away in a corner in Johor Bahru, by Lynn who in turn was recommended by her mum.  

The interesting thing about this place is that this shop will stop accepting diners rather early - shutters down at 2pm daily. However, if you prefer take away, you may preorder and then pick it up between 2pm to 5pm. Don't come on tuesdays though as they will be closed.

When I came here yesterday at about 10.30am, there were about 2 or 3 empty tables and the lady who took my order told me that there will be a 30min waiting time, minimum. The usual long wait is definitely worth it, I'd tell you.

The wanton noodle is like nothing that I've tasted before. It is not the typical black sauce Malaysian version in case you are wondering. The sauce is just the right amount, not too much, not too little. The noodle is cooked just right, chewy, not soggy. Wonder if they make their own noodles. The taste of the noodle is just so wonderful, the sauce blending beautifully with the "done-nes" of the noodle. I've ordered mine dry with chili and the spiciness is not overwhelming, just the right amount to tease the taste buds. The char siew is nothing shout about though. My friends will all know that I like my char siew with little fat and a little burnt but here it is just the usual thin slices of the dry and non juicy type. But that is alright, after all we are here for the noodles and not the char siew right? As for the wonton, it is typical JB style where they place it in your noodles, not in the accompanying soup. If you are a big fan of the "a full prawn wrapped in a big wonton" version, you will be disappointed. Anyhow, the wanton here is reasonaly good in my opinion given the reasonable price they charge. The cost of my meal - RM$8.10 complete with 2 glasses of drinks.

RESTORAN HO SENG KEE

(www.hosengkee.com)

12 Jalan Kancil, Taman Century

80250 Johor Bahru, Malaysia

Tel : +60 12 717140

The Bad, The Good and The Tasty in Hong Kong Disneyland!

The most horrible Wanton noodles in Hong Kong can be found in...Hong Kong Disneyland! On our recent trip there, we came across this Tahitian Terrace cafe in Adventureland and my gosh! the wanton noodles here is absolutely horrible! The noodles just do not have the typical "皂水"("soap water") taste to it. Just plain yellow noodles that you can find in every school canteen in Singapore. Utterly disappointing. And guess what? They have got the cheeks to charge HK48 (S$9.60) a bowl! What a rip-off!

Next stop......Tomorrowland on Day 2. This time we went to the Comet Cafe, which is located just outside the Autopia station and we tried the Rice with Stewed Chicken as well as the Rice with Sweet and Sour Fish. Nothing much to talk about the former but I must say the Sweet and Sour Fish with Rice is simply marvelous! No overly strong fishy taste and somehow, the sweet and sour sauce just gives an overall balanced flavour to the dish. A simple but delicious meal that cost HK$45 (S$9) a plate.



Enough of al-Fresco street dining, we decided to go for restaurants on Day 3. We tried both the Main Street Corner Cafe (which serves western food) as well as the Plaza Inn, which is managed by the Maxim's chain of Chinese Restaurant. The fish and chips served at Main Street Corner Cafe is quite tasty with the batter fried to a golden brown color. Again, there is no overly strong fish taste to it, just right to my liking. The tartar sauce that came with it compliments the fish very well too. The ambience in this place is very cosy, ala Little House on the Praire! A meal for the four of us, comprising of one Christmas Set Meal, one Fish and Chips complete with drinks and dessert cost less than S$100. Reasonable food at reasonable prices.


Lunch at Plaza Inn was Chinese food. Finally, we had decent tasting Wanton noodles, Char Siew and some Dim Sum. The 流沙奶皇包 is quite normal. The buns are served hot and soft but the filling could have been more watery to make it better. Anyway, the asthetics more than compensates the mediocre taste of the buns. Well, it is pretty difficult to find a decent Chinese Restaurant in Disneyland and somehow it must be my yearning for Chinese Food that I would rate this place as a must visit even though the taste of the food here is not quite what you would expect in Hong Kong.

Satay or Sate? Jakarta or Jogya?

One of my favorite Sate, or Satay as Singaporeans will call it, can be found in this open-air eatery called Pondol Sate Djono Jogya located in a place called Pejompongan, right in the centre of Jakarta. (I wonder why it is called Jogya when it is located in Jakarta?) Although it is open-air, the dining area is actually quite dim, hot and stuffy. It is usually crowded during meal time as it is a favourite amongst the locals. Quite a number of other stalls selling sate have begun to spring up along the same stretch of road but a local told me that this is by far the best and the original one.
This place is renowned for its Sate Kambing (lamb) and interestingly, it is served with a plate of steamed rice and not the usual ketupat (compressed steamed rice wrapped in leaves). The meat is not too thick by comparison to the other Indonesian sate which is usually thick and chuncky. I guess this is so that cooking it is much easier considering the high turnover required given it is a popular warong. Barbequed to perfection outside the shop (see picture on the left), the sweet flavour and tenderness of the lamb sate is simply yummy! The small portion of skewered meat means you can go on and on, stick after stick....... sinful! What is also similar to the Singapore style satay here is that the peanut sauce is served separately quite unlike other Indonesian outlets where they pour the peanut sauce over the sate before serving.
Another very nice side dish that this place serves is the Fried Toufu. It comes with a small plate of dark and thick sweet sauce and some small spicy green raw chilli to go with it. The fried toufu is crispy on the outside and steaming hot on the inside when served. Dipping it into the sweet sauce just adds flavour to the otherwise blend toufu. Simply brilliant!
So if you don't mind sweating it out for some good sate, you should not miss this place.

Pondol Sate DJONO JOGYA Pejompongan
Jl. Penjernihan I No. 5B, Pejompongan,
Jakarta Pusat
Tel : +6221 5701292
Operating Hours : 1100 - 0000hrs (daily)

The Real Taste in Central Java

This afternoon, a business associate of mine brought me to Ungaran, a suburb which is approximately a 45 minutes drive away from Semarang city for lunch. We arrived at this place called Roso Nyoto (meaning, the real taste in Bahasa Indonesia), which apparently is well known for its Kepiting Taoco or Crab cooked with fermented soy bean.
This place is simple in its setting, some may even call it spartan, much like the ubiquitous warungs (simple open-air eateries) which you can find all over Indonesia. Pak Robert and Ibu Ruby ordered the signature dish of Kepiting Taoco plus a side order of Kangkung fried with soy sauce. For drinks, we had the Es Degan Jeruk, which is a very unusual combination of lime juice with coconut pulp. The lime juice is not too sour (I suspect they added some sugar syrup to it) coupled with the young succulent coconut flesh, unique and refreshing indeed! A must try if you happen to come to this place.
The signature dish, Kepiting Taoco, is cooked using local crabs, the size of which is just slightly larger than a human palm instead of those jumbo-sized Sri Lankan type which we get to see a lot of in many a Singapore seafood restaurants. When placing your order, you have to state your preference of either Jantan (Male) or Telur (egg, meaining female) species, which by the way, is the norm in most Indonesia seafood restaurants. The crab is fried with a generous serving of fermented soy bean (taoco) and a little chilli, the small green spicy kind. Surprisingly, this dish is not at all spciy as one would expect, but instead, the taoco gives it a very unique and original taste. Not overwelming but does very well to bring out the sweetness of the crab meat. Finally, I have found a place in Indonesia that serves crab in a uniquely different non-spicy flavour, so unlike the usual black pepper or chilli (or saus padang as they call it in Bahasa). Simply delicious and definitely finger licking good! Oh, by the way, this dish is always served with a plate of steamed rice. Although I would prefer to skip the rice and just dig my fingers into the crab right away.
As for the side dish of Kangkung fried with soy sauce, it was pretty normal and nothing to shout about.
Overall, if you love crabs and don't mind eating in a simple non airconditioned setting, you must not miss this place if you happen to visit Central Java.
Enak Bangngat like they say in Bahasa Indonesia, Very Delicious!
Es Degan Jegun - Rp 8,000
Kepiting Taoco (1 portion of 2 crabs) - Rp 40,000

Roso Nyoto - Kepiting Ungaran
Jl. P. Diponegoro 100, Ungaran, Indonesia
Tel : 024-6922894
Operating Hours : 1130 - 1600hrs (daily)