The Malaysian Insider

Breads, scones and hot cross buns, all so good.

OCT 10 — Bread always makes me happy; whether I’m eating it, or breathing in its aroma as it’s baking. But when was the last time you sank your teeth into some really good bread? Something always falls short: it’s too soft and cottony, too sweet or too greasy.

Since The Bread Shop opened in Damansara Heights, it’s been creating a buzz, mainly because the owners are dedicated to bread, the wonderful ones that they remember from childhood, or from studying and travelling abroad. (more…)

Drenched in gravy, this nasi kandar is a treat for the tasebuds.

By Alexandra Wong
JULY 11 – IMHO, for a total Penang culinary experience, you must try nasi kandar at least once.

Sure, big boys like the ubiquitous Kayu have sprouted wings to other states in the country, but nothing beats OR tastes like the nasi kandar in the Pearl of the Orient.

Having studied and worked here for more than a decade and spending a fair portion of that decade sniffing out all the choicest nooks in the state, I consider myself a nasi kandar connoisseur, ahem.

My all-time favourites are:

Nasi Kandar Shariff’s (a mobile van that parks next to a drain at Gelugor, near the USM Minden gate, with a perpetually long queue, 5.30pm until sold out): Addictive chicken curry kapitan in a thick, dark gravy, sotong eggs and omelette.

Line Clear (located on an alley at the Chulia Street and Penang Road junction, across Argyll Road, opens 24 hours): Most stuff are good, but I especially love their scrumptious liver. (more…)

Crystal Jade is elegant and offers the best in Cantonese cuisine.

MAY 2 — I have a friend who believes in eating dessert first, much like the last Empress Dowager of China. It’s so that you won’t miss out on anything good because you have no room for it at the end of the meal.

I would say do this at Crystal Jade at The Gardens (or wherever else they are located) if you are having dim sum. I bit into a Lau Sar Pau or Steamed Egg Custard Bun and a kaya-like filling poured out. There is a lovely salty tang from the rich salted egg yolk inside. I’m told that the filling should be so liquid that you can pour it out and drink it!

The Black Sesame Bun also made me feel I’d done the right thing having it at the start of the meal. It was pure, very fragrant black sesame paste that tasted like an excellent chee mah wu (black sesame broth).  Then there is the Tarn Tart (egg tart) that melts in your mouth and are impossible to resist here. Besides, I regularly have these as a starter when eating wantan noodles at a restaurant in 1 Utama, Petaling Jaya.

We would come back to the sweet side later but for the moment I just so dig the Wu Kok or Deepfried Yam Pastry with pork and mushroom. It was so light, so crispy and the filling liquid and delicious. These days I notice that restaurants do wonderful things with radish. It is no longer just a slab of panfried radish cake. Here we get the Deepfried Crispy Radish Pastry, a rich, layered pastry with shredded radish inside. It had a wonderful mouthfeel.

(more…)