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THIS HUNAN UMAMI @ CWB IS A MUST

 

We were in CWB around lunch time this past weekend and without a booking walked into this new Hunan restaurant behind Time Squate. To put it mildly we were blown away by the authenticity of the taste and the friendly service. Opened a year or so ago on the 6F of the Holiday Inn Express the immediate reaction was “fresh & clean”!  It felt that everything is in place, and no hint of that unmistaken smell of cooking oil and in this case, spices which normally takes over your senses. The menu is substantial with a generous collection of items, some seldom seen, even at venues under the Hunan cuisine umbrella. Our waitress was a bundle of joy, bubbly and eager to introduce us to their signatures. We were hungry and greedy which led to over-ordering and we were so glad we did. Between excellent choices in the appetisers, mains and veggies the lunch was a wonderful introduction. I do not know how one should address the menu because the best and only way to is to go through it page by page, dish by dish, and order a wide selection as we did.h

Hunan Weiguan .. loosely translated as “House of Hunan Flavors” or to be more esoteric “Hunan Umami” .. is a must. Do it soon. We were told that weekend lunch time is in fact less busy. You can book a private room without a minimum charge, now, you cannnot be more civilised than that?

HUNAN WEIGUAN
6F Holiday Inn Express
33 Sharp Street East CWB
(852) 2601 2660

JEWEL IN HAY @ PRINCES

 

I was recently introduced to this “Jewel in the Hay” where (I am told) M-Star chefs go for late after service suppers in the wee hours of the morning. It is the brainchild of a young chef who hails from Guangzhou who, together with his Vietnamese wife, has certainly made a name for themselves. As the name depicts, emphasis is on that magic word “home” as they offer dishes and tastes that remind you of home, and home style cooking. Service is from 6pm until 2am in the morning when culinary giants would take over. Dinners have 2 seatings at 6pm and 8pm but both slots normally fill up quickly, especially on weekends. I do not think “walk-in” is in their vocabulary. The neighborhood has a number of eateries, almost all of have a theme, and it is great fun to explore. MTR is the best access as the restaurant is literally a 1-minute walk from Exit D of Prince Edward Station. It is always crowded with the unmistaken ambiance of successful local Cantonese joints. The kitchen is small and tight as one wonders how they manage to keep producing quality food at such a maddening pace. The front of house is friendly and no nonsense without the white table cloth facade, my kind of service.

The most popular dishes are : Seafood on Crispy Rice Patties, Steamed Crabs, Sticky Pork, Fish in Preserved Vegatables, Eel in Black Bean Sauce, Roast Pigeons, Salted Chicken .. not to mention Specialty Soups that need to be pre-ordered.    

BACK TO THE PAST

One of my often made but not often achieved New Year Resolutions for 2019 was to distance myself from the I-Phone. I have become more critical with people whose phones are like appendages to their hands. I was further shocked that my Screen Time is a staggering 8-hours per day or 50+ per week, a sad testimony to my addiction. I also discovered while my plan offers 2,500 talking minutes per month actual usage is less than 10% ie almost everything is conducted via WhatsApp, WeChat or the now antiquated Email. Worst of all, people closest to me especially my family, have become spechless. I approach my vendor with this brilliant arrangement  .. Just Voice .. only to be told quite a few of my peers ie late 60s and retired have done so already. I am no genius. Here I am with my “Nokia Banana” the best selling model when Nokia could do no wrong as the definitive market leader, for a royal sum of HK$650. My IP is now “Read Only” when I am out. Most of the time I do not even bring it, least of all to dinners where I hate sitting next to guests who absentmindedly check their phones after each course. I tried to stop taking food pictures too (for this Blog & TripAdvisor reviews) as it is now considered an act of rudeness. The picture of 3-4 phones taking the first bite of a dish when it arrives is very annoying, now that I am with the audience. At my age, I need to accept that almost nothing is urgent, unless one makes it so. Here I am “on voice only” I love to chat, call me instead.

POSTCRIPT : my Screen Time has been reduced to 5 hours per day which is still 50% away from my goal of 2.5 hours max, join me?        

SOONG KEE @ JALAN TUN H.S. LEE IN KL

 

Another hole-in-the-wall in the KL Chinatown neighborhood I checked out (and liked) was Soong Kee on Jalan Tun HS Lee which is a major road crosswise with the main drag by the Central Market. I am a fan of Axian, the Malaysian Chinese “Food Guru” on AFC or Asian Food Channel which I watch regularly for inspiration. He was just introducing Soong Kee a few weeks ago and here I am, perfect timing. Here is the story .. Soong Kee is renowned for its Beef Lo Mein and the guy in the red polo was Mr Congee selling across the street as a competitor. One day the two owners decided 1 plus 1 could mean 3 or even 4 so they joined hands. The rest is history as the partnetrship has been hugely successful serving KL locals, out-of-towners and tourists like me, who need the menu. In greed I ordered the famous Mixed Pork Innards Congee, Steamed Chicken, Plain Wonton & Veggies .. way too much but it was an excellent sample of what they do best because every table ordered the same items, almost. I loved everything and my only issue is the congee can be less salty. The place is high keyed, quite stressful in fact, with all the customer traffic and the help rushing around at dinner time. To put on a positive spin this is Soong Kee’s unique ambience, the ingredient that qualifies a successful road side street food joint that M-star restaurants can never accomplish, no matter how hard they try. The name is now on my “Must Return” list and I urge you to put it on yours.     

THE REAL DEAL

I am always looking for the underdog whilst on my study tours. Here is one for you .. a tiny hole-in-the-wall on Jalan Sultan in the KL Chinatown neighbourhood, run by a Mother & Daughter team. These folks have the broadest and friendliest smiles that will bring the sun out in the middle of a thunderstorm. Their signature is Fried (not Char I was reminded) Kuey Teow and in my book it deserved all the accolade. This is a roadside stop one would walk right past so one needs to keep a careful look out for it. The genuine flavour, al dente noodles, perfect seasoning, not to mention the ambience of chowing it down on the pavement .. made the encounter memorable. We talked about the ridiculous costs of eating in Hong Kong and I told them they will win hands down if they should open a branch with me. If you are still not convinced that banana leafs held a plate of goodies for MYR4 or a mere HK$8 .. what do you have to say to that?  

SMILE MALAYSIA

Thailand clams to be “The Land of Smiles” but I found recently that Malaysia is slowly encroaching on that claim. There is something about Malaysia that attracts me and the genuine friendliness of the people is one prime reason. I am on my way to Sandakan Sabah of North Borneo where I heard the “street food scene” is vibrant. I am making a stop in Kuala Lumpur and these were taken just off the street .. top one I was helping the girls to take a shot with the KLCC as backdrop and the bottom one are service staff from a food court who actually asked to have tehir pictures taken. I travel alone on these study tours and it is always a joy to add these human angles to what I do. Food may be my aim but the people behind the food are actually more fascinating.

 

MEET MY ROOMMATE

I saw this baby on the wall when I checked ino the Naza Talyya. He or she must love me as I keep seeing him the last 2 days. I am at this 3-star establishment on the 'quieter' side of Johor Bahru Sentral (yes in Bahasa it is spelled with an S not a C) which I asked for as it is cost-efficent. At reception I was told most guests are transit business people from other parts of the country and 'we have very few tourists'. OMG what does that mean? Later on I found out everything works ... great shower, excellent breakfast, friendly, smiling service, and complementary internet access. Of course there is no travel desk, no duty manager and probably other no's as well but for HK$1000 I get 3 nights, what more can one asks? By the way their lobby music is '50 classic tunes too.

This was an old blog I wrote in 2011 when I was on a sojourn in Johor Bahru but I never published. I am now in Malaysia transitting Kuala Lumpur for Sandakan Sabah so this ia as good a time to return to the fold, with your permission.

BACK TO THE BLOG

It was 2 years ago almost to this date in 2017 when I stopped writing on this blog. It was by no means intentional but rather a combination of happenings, some out of our control. 2 key events in the family; firstly our Matriarch, affectionately known to everyone as Grandma, left us shorty after she turned 97. We missed her wisdom and her matronly love a great deal. Secondly to console us the Almighty sent us Robyn, our third grandchild after Jamie & Sonya, and what a delightful baby she turns out to be.

Now the confession .. the major reason for my delinquency is my becoming a key contributor to TripAdvisor the past two years. I have close to 75,000 readers globally who clicked on my Restaurant Reviews from my travels. This has become “addictive” so much so it directly led to the negligence of this space, much to my regrets. I have therefore made it a 2019 Resolution to return and here is my penance.

My Boss joins me to wish everyone a Happy Lunar New Year of the Pig. If it is not too much do ask do take a moment to think of the animal before you put that morsel of Char Siu, Iberico Ham, Prosciutto, Katsudon, Sausage, Hot Dog, Roast Crispy Belly, Smoked Bacon ... be grateful.  

Gong Xi Ga Cai to you all !!!!

ARROZ? LOOK NO FURTHER ...

When in Spain do what the Spaniards do .. Arroz! All this time I was trying to differentiate between what they do in Valencia, in Madrid and of course in our favorite city Barcelona but let me put it this way .. it does not matter. Why? It is because each style tastes slightly different and the chef's interpretation is what makes the dish unique. 

I strongly believe I have the perfect answer in Pez Vella at the beach front W Hotel complex in Barcelona. Chef Rosanna Pando is a no-nonsense professional, you only need to peer at her super efficient open kitchen if you want proof. Our party of 10 ordered 4 of their top selling Arroz recipes, at lunch, plus simple but the freshest appetizers from the sea. They all came out with flying colors, figuratively and literally. Pez Vela defined "value-for-money" as the kind of eatery that diners would keep going back. I certainly would if I were a local, and how I wish. Skip breakfast, make yourself hungry, plan to skip dinner as well and then order a variety of their starters, salads and of course the piece de resistance .. Arroz! You will not regret it.

PEZ VELA CHIRINGUITO
www.grupo.traguluz.com/restaurante/pez-vela
Paseo del Mare Nostrum
19/21 W Hotel
08039 Barcelona 
(34) 932 21 6317