In search of Pavlova...

After Aliyaa I swear we were stuffed...

but perhaps the wine made us heady and a little silly, so the quest for pavlova seemed like a great idea at the time. It really did.

We went to Delicious at Bangsar Village 2, but they were all out.

WHAT??? Out of pavlova... huh... unbelievable...

Then we had a brainwave... onward to Alexis!!! They were bound to have Pavlova!




See??? How to eat summore? How???

" I feel the earth.. move.. under my feet.. i feel the sky tumbling down, tumbling down.. - sung to the tune of that song... "




Well, I guess we found a way...

...but it wasn't death by pavlova , rather, death by Nutty Chocolate Meringue! Either way, exquisite way to go, i tell ya.


very, very generous with their nuts...



and since we were already at Alexis, (though glutted to the gills), might as well have the carrot cake too!

see... you CAN have your CAKE and eat it.. You really can! :P

Totally finished.

Both ME and the cake.



And even though, i felt like my stomach, was on the verge of shattering into a thousand little stomach bits...

I survived.

I always do.

Really.



Cake : 7/10
Taste : tres tres yum
MSG level : nil
Fat factor : 9/10 ! (I feel a 10km run coming on)

Aliyaa ... aliyaa... wherefore art thou my aliyaa...

Doesn't broken glass... especially broken glass done tastefully just get under your skin???
I stood and stared at this gorgeous wall for the longest time..

Then I had to go in for dinner...

Aliyaa is one place that grabs your attention. I don't know if it's the lighting or the location, but when that white bungalow comes in view... it really makes you sit up and notice :)

Aliyaa means 'elephant' and is situated in Damansara Heights.This place serves Sri Lankan cuizine...
Since i've been exercising (i.e. running 10KM) all week, I felt completely ENTITLED to a good southern Indian meal... i really did..!



Big big spaces... you don't feel hemmed in or remotely claustrophobic.
And they have outdoor garden sitting as well.

We noticed that the whiskey was served in these really cute glasses....

they looked like mineral water bottle bottoms... don't u think? haha:D




Anyway, I ordered a massive portion of the Sri Lankan crabs because I was starving like a madman. I really was.
The waiter brought us this! Alive and kicking..!
He was like : "erm.. is this OK for you?"
We were like ; "Yes!"
The lamb cutlets for starters knocked our socks off. I mean, they had chili padi in it! It was so hot !! And I didn't even need to demand for extra hot. It just goes without saying that everything worth eating is spicy here... happy happy me:)



Wow! Up close and personal.. see...? packed full with flavour and HEAT .. :D




My first introduction to LUMPRAIS... and I was totally riveted...
The anticipation.. the gorgeous presentation... I held my breath.. I didn't dare hope....

....


.....






Yes! Again... I was totally bowled over. Just look at that composition of colors and unique aromas...
And if you think it looks good.. wait till you put that rice in your mouth.. every single mouthful is intoxication. Herbs, spice.. salty, sweet, sour, tangy, pungent, zesty... Need I say more?

And then they served up the soup, the Nandu rassam, which is one of the Chef's specials. If you like rassam (that liquid they serve you at Banana Leaf shops, which is sour and yummie) you will LOVE this !




This is the crab we picked out earlier. Massive, sweet and bursting with succulence was what it tasted like.
The flesh is tout, and chewy... none of that mushy, soft and cooked-to-death stuff that you sometimes get.
Nope. This was the real Mac Coy.

I couldn't move for a good 1 hour, after that meal,.. and it was just as well, that I had some great chardonnay, to keep me company..





.....




.....

We obliterated the food. We really did.


Then,


someone suggested we go look for Pavlova of dessert...

What??(Incredulous look on my face)...

Ok, ok, give me a minute... maybe I can eat summore in a while...

To be continued.. the search for Pavlova... ;P

Food : 7/10
Service:7/10
MSG levels : low
Ambiance : 7/10

Aliyaa Restaurant and Bar,
Jalan Dungun,
Damansara Heights,
KL

Just what the Doctor ordered...

How many times have I eaten at Hajime ... and how many times have I been completely impressed??

..... countless times!!!

Hajime is tucked away on Jalan Damai (just off Jln Tun Razak) further along the road behind the French Embassy...



These people know how to do fresh sashimi... Clean white concentric lines on the salmon tell me I have arrived ! ( Yeah baby... )

And just look at the paper thin Yellowtail Cappacio... sliced to perfection... doesn't the sheerness of it just kill you..!


With a deft hand, the expert chef flambes our DOCTOR'S ROLL!!!
(it's actually the salmon cheese maki) but affectionately known as the Doc's Roll... because it sends the Dr. running!!! No just kidding... because their regulars are Drs who love, love, love this roll :)



Viola !!! The end product! Are you impressed???


Some Spicy Salmon Salad... to counter-act all that cheese and keep your gut flora healthy...

And they even do pretty decent Chicken Nanban .... for those who can only do so much raw fish... (Their chicken taste fresh - no weird smell... i.e. not like tesco chicken:P)

And the superb Eringi Butteryaki... (fancy-schmancy name for mushroom)... that is just so tres, tres gorgeous it melts in your mouth like butter . Hence the name butteryaki!!!




The show continues! The experts move with grace as they bring out surprise after surprise...
This one's called the CRAZY GOMA ! (crazy sesame)

The man pounds, grinds, pulps the sesame in a frenzy... and this results in some amazing concoction...



The dip with which you eat your roll hits your nose and has that crazy kick you don't expect! Hence the name... Crazy Goma !



Another "melt-in-your-mouth-I've-gone-to-paradise" dish, the Ebi Miso Mayo. Fabulous prawn dish. Just try it.



And finally, almost as if lead by psychic powers, the chef knows not to overkill a wonderful meal by doing too rich a dessert for his guests.
This lime sorbet, ice-cream trio is light and refreshing and goes down well.


That's enough good quality Japanese to last me a while... i think...


Hmmm... maybe I'll come again next week :P

Food : 7/10

Ambiance :7/10

MSG level : moderate
Service : Excellent ( the chef actually comes over to talk to you!)

Hajime,

No. 64, Jalan Damai,

Off Jalan Tun Razak,

55000 Kuala Lumpur

The On-line Pub and Burt Lancaster...

The minute I walked into the on-line pub....

and saw that lonesome train, on that lonesome track..


and that single, solitary table...


... I knew I was home. It was love at first sight:)


This place has been around a long, long time... not swanky.. not chic.. but it has that magic that makes you wanna stay and stay, and tarry awhile longer...


For a split second, I thought I would see cowboys with their horses bucking and guns ablazing...



hmmm....


Incidentally, I digress for a minute... speaking of guns ablazing.. my fav spaghetti western of all time just has to be, Gunfight at the O.K.Corral... ( I just watched it last week, again, for the 12th time). I never get bored.


I mean like .. WHO does not love Burt Lancaster.. ? Yea, Kirk Douglas is cool too but a far second (in my books anyway).

Look at him... so bloody brooding and sexy right? How come actors do not look like that anymore now a days huh???
Anyway, Marshall Wyatt Earp and Dr. John "Doc" Holiday are just the coolest and my favourite heroic characters of a bygone era...
If I was born in the 20's I would marry Burt Lancaster.. i would.. sigh...

ok... end of digression (and daydream) ... :):)



Anyway... I didn't see any cowboys at the on-line pub that night...




But what i did see, was many friendly faces, and a really laid-back and warm, relaxed atmosphere which made the place feel different from your regular pubs in PJ and KL..

This is refreshing as some places around town can be just so impersonal now a days... its all about clearing tables and selling more beer... mmm... not cool!

Soon we got pretty hungry and decided to order some food.


....




.....




....



....


Let me just say... the menu looked promising...



But the food...



Was bloody awesome!

It is totally non-halal and as porky as they come... so brace yourselves for a carbo and lipid overload !



The luncheon meat was superb... fried to perfection and complemented with chili sauce. It was crispy (but not hard) and to die for...



The Hokkien Mee can be ordered regular or with extra "chee yau char" (pork lard/fat ... whatever you want to call it.. )

We went with the extra lard, of course, coz we are self-destructive that way.. haha :P



and we also had the wild boar curry (really, i hardly ever eat this, but have done so twice in the past 3 days.. it must be a sign.. but I am not sure what... )

The curry goes with toast and is out of this world...



And finally, the dish that sends goose bumps down my spine and reminds me of sitting in grandma's kitchen, eating grandma's cooking (sob.. brings a tear to my eye :P)


The corned beef ! Fried with cabbage! Gawd.. it's like i died and went to heaven...


If this is not wow-ing enough for you.. they also do corned mutton! How crazy is that??!


Totally mad! Fantastic!

By the end of the meal, we were left in a not unsimilar state to that of post-coital bliss...

Fully satiated, we were serenaded by the soulful sound, of a solitary voice, on a solitary guitar...


Yes, the last lonesome train, on that lonesome track.. is just about ready to leave town...


Food :8/10
Price : totally affordable
Service : like on Cheers.. where everybody knows your name:)
MSG levels : nil


Address:
Online Pub
32, SS20/10 Damansara Kim

Thank you Tan Sri Lim...

Tan Sri Lim Goh Tong, the founder of the Genting Group and one of the world's richest men, died this year 2007. He was 90.

"DREAM HILL: A stroll at Cameron Highlands in 1964 led Tan Sri Lim Goh Tong to this hill -Genting. In 1965 work commenced and in 1971 Genting Highlands started operations.

STARTING POINT: In 1965, work on the access road started at Batu 20 of the old Bentong Road. The arch with the signboard reads `Proposed project 12,000 acres of land 5,000ft above sea level.’

and in 1998 the access road was widened to four lanes for a more comfortable and safe journey to the resort. " - Quoted from My Dream as narrated by Tan Sri Lim Goh Tong…

Wow.. ! What a man.

Today we have the amazing GENTING SKYWAY which is the cable car… and,

FUN LAND: The Outdoor Theme Park with the boating lake and joyrides … Also, The Arena of Stars where we’ve seen many international shows etc…

And the busy Pit Stop, GOH TONG JAYA, where we can pause to fill our stomachs .. do some sundry shopping…

And finally… the infamous… KA-CHING(2X) Casino.. !

Tan Sri Lim was a hardworking entrepreneur, a philanthropist…. An icon…

He contributed greatly to Malaysia’s economic development and his death is a loss not only to the nation but also to the business and entrepreneurial community in Malaysia.

We thank you for teaching us about what it is, when we say, “an honest day’s work” and you are deeply missed by us all.

What a man.



On Christmas day, we were in the Genting area, and decided to check out Goh Tong Jaya for lunch...

As you can see, there are no shortage of restaurants to eat at..


Not only that, being a holiday and all it was insanely packed..

wallau.. summore mostly Singaporean no. plates... seems like we are always fighting for everything, water.. car park.. etc etc...

Anyway, coming back to the restaurants...

One word of caution, if you don't know where to eat, you can really get ripped off.

Some of these unscrupulous owners can charge up to DOUBLE the price for some simple TaiChow(Chinese style stir fry) meal...

I guess they think we are all Singaporeans or foreigners or are just plain dumb... duh?

Anyway, not all the restaurants are unscrupulous.. a few are actually ok.. ( When I say OK, I mean close to KL price.. or a little bit more.. as things are not cheap on this dream hill!)

Here is one of those restaurants, that charges reasonable prices for their food.

Qui Lin.

While you wait for your food, all sorts of vendors will come and try to sell you stuff and snacks.. such as dried sotong.. keropok...

roasted chestnuts...

pretty yummie and if you are feeling generous then you can buy some from the vendors.

However, stay away from the "jungle honey lime" drink (or something jungley sounding like that...) . It's sold in a bottle (750ml), and the asking price is like RM90 or something! Apparently it cures everything...

(erm.. does it cure heart pain caused by an idiotic purchase..)

Anyway, the steamed fish in gravy is great... Fresh! not Fishy!

I know, I know... someone once asked me "why you eat fish, when you wanna eat unfishy-fish.. ? Might as well eat chicken la then.. "

Its complicated.. I don't like fishy fish.. beefy beef... or ducky duck... how to explain... ? :P

the TEEN CHUT is really out of this world... apparently good for lowering cholesterol...

Can I just ask anyone who knows what this "TEEN CHUT" is in ENGLISH, to comment, because I have been trying to find out, and no one bloody knows.

It taste like "fan shee yip" the other vege... ? Slimy and sticky and all but yummie:)

And introducing my favourite dish... Deep fried pork belly...! (she says... looking down at her pot belly)...

but who cares... coz it's tres tres scrumplicious.. ( and I love my pot belly.. i do!!!)


and the wild boar curry... soft and succulent and NOT SMELLY! (un-boarish boar... ! do u see what I am getting at??!)

Oh and because I was worried I was eating something unusual, I checked... and wild boar is not on the earth's endangered species list..(look under worldwide or asia list)

So.. ok la... we didn't do anything mean on Christmas .. lucky .. or else 10 years of blogging bad luck... no joke.



and then some very crunchy crispy fried squid...


and more crunchy, crispy, fried veges... straight out of Genting's hydroponic farm... !

The whole meal set us back RM127. 00

Like i said.. not cheap, but an OK price... for genting.

Considering that some of the shops could charge you up to RM200.00 (because, they reason, "that is like less than SD$100.00 wat ... cheap liao... !")

Food : 6/10
Price : reasonable
MSG levels : moderate
Service : Must wait on public holidays and peak hours
Cleanliness :7/10