Char Siew at Spring Golden Restaurant, Taman Perindustrian Axis, Shah Alam

SG5

Inspired by I SAY A LITTLE PRAYER (Dionne Warwick)

The moment I wake up
Before I put on my makeup
I say a little pray’r for char siew
While rubbing my tum, now
And wondering what size dress to wear, now
I say a little pray’r for char siew

Forever, and ever, you’ll cause me to fart
My poh lei char siew
Forever, and ever, I love your charred part
Thanks to my friend, Boo
We went there, and lunched there, to eat the babi
My melt-in-my-mouth char siew
You’re more than a heartburn to me

SG4

I think you’re the best, dear
Your glistening meat I want, dear
I say a little prayer for you
At work, it’s like wartime
As everyone waits for break-time
To grab as many chunks of char siew

Forever, and ever, you’ll stay in my heart
And I will love you, char siew
Forever, and ever we never will part
Oh, how I’ll love you
Together, forever, that’s how it must be
To live without you
Would only be heartbreak for me…

SG2
Also available, delicious vinegared pork trotters

Spring Golden Restaurant (click HERE for map)
25, Jalan Sepadu C, 25/C Section 25,
Taman Perindustrian Axis, 40400 Shah Alam.

Tel: 019-337 9319/016-205 0660 (Max Lim)

Also see:
Boolicious
Julian Si

Note:  There is also an outlet at Glenmarie.

Psst.  Thanks, Boo, for loaning me your camera in my time of need! 😛

Chinoz on the Park, KLCC

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1.

If it weren’t for Fatboybakes (FBB), I’d probably have no stories to tell you.  But we’re all fortunate to have our muses, although I’d gladly sell mine.  This limerick is my birthday gift to FBB!

There was a bakerman in Bangsar
Who professed to love eggs, toast and butter
But try as he might
He couldn’t fight
An urge to eat strangled goose liver.

“Macallan’s my spirit of choice!
And occasionally a double malt bliss
But feed me a Tiger
And you’ll definitely hear
My tuneless rendition of Les Mis!”

He parties all day and night
Surrounded by fans aplenty
But one stands out
His hairy chin stout
And winks to FBB, “Who’s your daddy?”

He’s a simple man, this baker from Bangsar
Who eats foie gras with his kopi
Tuna sashimi, yes please
Lobsters? With cheese!
And truffles and cakes with lotsa brandy!

“Yes, I’m a simple man, trust me, I am
My properties are just four and counting
I crave not a fortune
I’m almost a mormon
But touch my Blue Label and you’ll face a lynching” 

So happy birthday, we bid thee, FBB
You’re a lucky one, we insist, FBB
Expensive presents abound
But how many will sound
As precious as this limerick, O FBB?

2.

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A couple of weeks ago, Bald Eagle and I celebrated our 8th wedding anniversary, and while to many of the young ones out there, we appear ancient, it’s amazing what a RM700 monthly visit to the hair salon can do for the greys.

He made reservations at Chinoz on the Park at KLCC, refurbished, shiny and new with an eye-candy of a chef with credentials to match.  I like the fact that Chef Haffizul Hashim came out often to speak with us.  Perhaps it was the benefit of having ordered a degustation menu?  I prefer to think it was my captivating smile or bald eagle’s shiny head, but I doubt if either made an impact on him.

The degustation menu consisted of 6 items (including dessert) which gave a good idea of what the restaurant served.  Our first course was such a delight to eat – a Cauliflower Veloute with Hokkaido Scallop and Truffles.  The veloute came in the form of a foam pumped out directly on our plates.  What I liked about the degustation menu was the way the chef had paired all the different ingredients to create a synergistic explosion of flavours.  It was not just the taste but the textures as well; the firmness of the scallop to the fizziness of the foam to the bits of crunch from the grainy sea salt…it was an appropriate opening allegro to this symphony.

As a symphony continues seamlessly, so did our subsequent dishes.  The Parsley Risotto, tinged in brilliant green, was served with sauteed escargots.  The risotto was creamy but hinted very little of parsley.  We marvelled at the next dish, the Grilled Brittany Turbot with Citrus Fruits and Etuve of Asparagus.  It was an explosion of colours, cheery and bright – food should be like this, a treat to all the senses.  Prized for its firm, white flesh, the turbot was complemented with a tangy sweet sauce made from blood oranges and other citrusy fruits.  We loved this dish, but at RM128 for 180g on the ala carte menu, we shall probably reserve this order for special occasions.

The Roasted Duck Breast and Pan Fried Foie Gras, Glazed Figs & Beetroot Puree was a more subdued visual affair, but didn’t lack in the taste department.  The duck breast, still pink and firm, was a good match with the melt-in-your-mouth foie gras.  The last time I had fresh figs was in the UK where I holidayed last year, and so eating this brought me back to that evening in Bath where I laughed over scones and fresh fruit with my dear friend, Msiagirl.  Like all the other dishes, this one didn’t disappoint due to the excellent matching of flavours by the chef.

Desserts were in two parts – a Mango Ravioli with Lime Sorbet, light, citrusy and sweet – very refreshing, while the finale was a Chocolate Parfait with Tuile and Peanut Butter Ice Cream.

My experience was only marred by the restaurant settings, where we were led to a beautifully arranged table with the right forks and knives and wine glasses, but lacked the formal atmosphere one would expect when one pays RM180++ per person for a meal.  Beside us, a family was dining (complete with pram and baby), and although I have no objections under normal circumstances, the view didn’t do much for romance!  Perhaps the restaurant was attempting to achieve too much in wanting to have its cake and eat it too.  It’s hard to have both a cafe and a fine dining restaurant under the same roof without having a clear demarcation of space (and that includes soundproofing as well!).

It’s funny how after being together for so long, I thought I’d figured Bald Eagle out and that I knew him well, but well, I didn’t.  But that makes it more fun, doesn’t it?  “We are going to KLCC,” he had said.  What??  Our 8th anniversary and he’s bringing me to a place I see everyday?  For a brief second (and it was a tiny micro-bit of a second), I wished I had joined FBB’s soiree at Nikko Hotel instead.  At least I could get all dolled up (with my most excellent Shu Uemura fake eyelashes) for the event there.
 
But I was wrong.
 
Because the food was amazing that night…. 

Chinoz on the Park
G47, Ground Floor, Suria KLCC, KL.

Tel: 03-2166 8277

Also check out:
Jules Eating Guide to Malaysia
The Star
for writeups on the Tastings menu.

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Warm bread

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Scallop

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Risotto

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Turbot

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Duck

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Mango

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Chocolate

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Petit Fours

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Coffee

747 Kopitiam (SFS Kopitiam), Sunway Mas

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1.

“Queue up and you’ll get your food faster,” the lady at the stall said in a low voice.  “If you order and go back to your place, you’ll have to wait longer for your food.”  In Malay, our language of communication – “Awak tunggu sini order ar, awak dapat cipat-cipat lor.  Awak duduk ar, nanti tunggu lama oh…”

I merely nodded, a noob at this ordering game.  Suddenly, the fellas who initially looked like they were surrounding the curry wantan noodles stall fell into line.  Or perhaps it is all about perception and realisation; once I knew about the queue, I saw the queue.  I know, deep stuff.

I turned around and gave a penetrating stare at Bald Eagle who was sitting contentedly at the other end of the kopitiam, studying the sunday newspapers.  The look was, of course, my secret communication tool with my husband after having been together for more than 10 years because hey, married people can communicate by telepathy, okay.  (But sometimes, it isn’t good when you’re trying to lie to him about how much you paid for your Loewe handbag.)  My message sent via our private frequency channel was:  “I’ll be back at the table with two bowls of piping hot curry wantan noodles, with bloody cockles, in less than 5 minutes, sweetie!  Love you love you love you!”

So I waited.

And waited.

And waited.

Twenty minutes later, after clearing all of 4 customers in front of me, it was finally my turn.  Without hesitation (because I had been rehearsing my order for the past 20 minutes for lack of anything better to do – had I known better, I’d have brought along a Flavours magazine or something like that to keep me occupied because the gentleman in front of me was definitely not in a chatty mood despite my frequent smiles at him hmmphh),  I blurted out my order.  “Duakariwantanmeemauseehumdengancharsiuarrrrr!”

Going back to our table, Bald Eagle looked at me.  “I thought you had been abducted.”

So much for telepathy. 

2.

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The noodles are egg wantan noodles, stored in dehydrated form and softened when it is ready to be consumed. At first glance, I wonder if the curry is too diluted due to its thinness, but upon drinking it, I realise that the curry is full of flavour and is perfect; any thicker and it would be too cloying. I don’t get the feeling that I’m drinking santan (coconut milk) as the ratio between curry and santan is just nice. The ingredients are generous – lots of cockles, taufu-pok, long beans and char siew.  The char siew is lean, though, as in my haste to give my order, I forget to add the usual “char siew more fat arrrr“.  I don’t like lean char siew.

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Also available at the same stall is char siew wantan noodles. The noodles are soft, but not as springy as I’d like it to be. The char siew is tender and delicious.

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If you’re not ready to wait for the wantan noodles, try the char koay teow at another stall. It is fried well and has a good amount of cockles and prawns but doesn’t have any lup cheong (chinese sausages).

Also check out Cumi&Ciki (in the days when Cumi used to blog hehe) for their take on the curry wantan noodles.

I must thank my Weekend B^*ch © for introducing this place to me.  I was recovering from the flu, and this was, in his opinion, the perfect remedy.  I concur.

747 Kopitiam (SFS Kopitiam)
Jalan PJU 1/3C,
Sunway Mas Commercial Centre.