Fogal Meat Market Deli & Cafe, Plaza Damas

Posted on August 2, 2007 by Lyrical Lemongrass

“Why do you eat so slowly?”, he asked.I took my time answering. I piled a few strands of noodles into my spoon, making sure none fell out, and then picked up a fishcake and placed it in the centre of the spoon on top of the noodles, and finally scattered a few pieces of chopped spring onions around the fishcake.

“Because I am obsessive and compulsive”, I quietly replied.

He didn’t give up. “But you don’t have to be so prim and proper all the time”, he retorted. “If you feel like slouching, you should. If you feel like putting your legs up, you should.”

“This is who I am”, I tried to explain. “I can’t be someone I’m not.”

I have OCD. When I eat nasi lemak, I compartmentalise all the different ingredients, and have a certain ritual when eating. I first place the nasi lemak on my spoon and scoop up a bit of sambal using the tip of the spoon. I then place ONE peanut on the bed of rice, followed by a couple of pieces of fried ikan bilis. Once I am satisfied with the visual presentation, I place the beautifully designed arrangement in my mouth, while being very careful that none of the food touches my lips.

I think he understood me. Hehe.

Do you have any quirky eating habits?

I seem to be strangely drawn to Plaza Damas.

One day, my friends and I were in the mood for some simple, wholesome fare, and having read about Fogal in a couple of blogs and in the newspapers, we were keen to see what the hype was all about.

There aren’t many tables in Fogal, but I suppose that is because Fogal is primarily a meat market where you can pick up your choice of cuts and sausages. Behind the glace facade are chillers filled with different types of meat. We walked to the back of the shop which opened up to a outdoor terrace where we could enjoy the gentle breeze. The weather took a turn for the worse, subsequently, and we ended up huddling indoors, away from the afternoon rain.

And the food? My lamb burger with cheese and bacon (RM13 + RM1 + RM1) was nice; the thick patty consisted of juicy, coarsely ground meat which was cooked perfectly. The additional slice of bacon which I requested for didn’t make much of a difference to the burger as it was too thin to be noticeable.

Unfortunately, that’s where the excitement ended.

Barbie’s Aussie Pies – three slightly-larger-than-dime-sized pies comprising aussie beef, chicken & mushroom and steak & mushroom were scantily filled with the different meats. Pretty Pui had a more disastrous experience. She had been craving for a pork burger, so when her pork burger (RM11) arrived, she ravenously dug into it. Her face screwed up and we were all puzzled. “What’s wrong?”, we asked her, concerned about her expression. “Taste this”, she said as she pushed a chunk of the burger patty to me. It was extremely salty. And mind you, Pretty Pui and I are big salt lovers. We love to add salt to our food. We rationalised that maybe the chef had accidentally sprinkled too much salt on part of the surface of the burger. As Pretty Pui dug deeper, she passed me another piece from a different section of the burger. It tasted just as salty.

This reminds me of the Visa ad when Zhang Ziyi pronounced, in her most alluring chinese accent – “The soup is too salty”. An impersonation on my part would have definitely backfired!

Also check out:

Kampungkayell
Lots of Cravings
My Life Encounters

Fogal Meat Market Deli and Cafe
N-1-4, Plaza Damas,
No. 60, Jalan Sri Hartamas,
Sri Hartamas, KL.

Tel & Fax: 03-6201 3206/6201 3306

From Kampar With Love

Posted on July 30, 2007 by Lyrical Lemongrass

In the early days before the North-South Highway existed, every time we travelled from Penang to Petaling Jaya to visit my maternal grandmother, we’d make a pit stop at Kampar.

Kampar holds special memories for my parents as it was one of the places where they spent they dating days eating ABC at the corner kopitiam. And so, it only came naturally for them to stop at one of their favourite towns to fuel up both the car and our little tummies.

I used to throw up pretty often in the days before airconditioning was introduced in our cars, and my stomach would be ready for replenishing by the time we arrived at the sleepy old town. Thus, until the day this town got virtually obliterated by the superhighway, I shared my parents’ love affair with Kampar.Despite having sampled quite a bit of Kampar’s unique cuisine, I discovered the chicken curry bun much later in life when I visited my friend from Kampar, Pretty Pui, during Chinese New Year.

Chicken curry is wrapped up in a greaseproof paper and then baked in a bun. To eat this bun, one has to cut through the bun and and unwrap the precious package. The curry is creamy and extremely tasty, and by this stage, this chicken would have absorbed the flavours of the spices. What bliss to dip the pieces of bread into the curry and savour the tasty morsels!

Yau Kee Restaurant
No. 55, Jalan Idris,
31900 Kampar, Perak.
Tel: 05-465 1738

120E & 120F, Jalan Raja Permaisuri Bainun,
30250 Ipoh, Perak.
Tel: 05-241 6504

Thanks, Pretty Pui, for the wonderful treat!!

Kokopelli Travellers Bistro, PJ

Posted on July 29, 2007 by Lyrical Lemongrass

Jalan Bukit in PJ was a favourite haunt for me during my university days as it was within walking distance from the university, and I could find cheap and tasty food there. Usually, when I had a craving for char siew pao (barbequed pork bun), I’d quickly call one of the more-than-willing fellas to accompany me to Jalan Bukit where we’d get our pork fix before trudging back to our residential college.Naturally, when I heard that a bungalow along Jalan Bukit had been converted into a restaurant, I had to find out more about this place and whether or not it deserved to invade my memories with so much pomp.

It wasn’t difficult to find an occasion to dine. It was Barbie’s last day at the office; Malaysians love to celebrate all occasions with food, and despite the fact that a farewell wasn’t really a celebration, it was still a reason to get together to dine as a family (which we had become over the years).

It was a cheerful sight indeed. A glass facade fronted the old bungalow, with warm lights greeting the guests. There were lots of pretty accents, from glass beads to chandeliers to fresh blooms to quirky tealight holders, obviously a female touch, which made the place look cozy and inviting.

Kokopelli serves both local and western cuisine. From the unpretentious char koay teow and lou shue fun to grilled steaks and pastas, there seemed to be something for everyone. Prices were very reasonable too. The local dishes were priced at RM8.90, while the most expensive steak was priced at RM38.90. The grills (pics above), according to my Makan kaki, were pretty good and flavourful. The Ribeye Steak (RM38.90) and Sirloin Steak (RM35.90) were medium done, but I thought they were still a little overcooked. The vegetables on the side, other than the grilled aubergine, were sparsely distributed among the dishes. I didn’t get to try the baked potato, unfortunately, but it looked yummy with scattered chopped beef bacon (at least, that’s what it looked like). The grilled New Zealand lamb (RM20.90) was a substantial portion, while the grilled salmon (RM32.90) was more suitable for a person with a smaller appetite.

The braised lamb shank (RM29.90) was served in a rich sauce which I found a little too sweet. The texture of the meat was tender, and the flavour of the meat came through despite the generous serving of the sauce. It was served on a bed of mashed potatoes which was milky and creamy.

We had heard so much about the Char Koay Teow (RM8.90) so we ordered a plate to share. I must say that I had set extremely high expectations for the CKT and even if I had lowered my expectations, I’d still have been sorely disappointed. How many ways can a CKT go wrong? It was soggy and greasy (see traces of oil at the bottom of the plate) and very spicy. Unlike good CKTs where the flavours blend in seamlessly, here the spiciness of the dish overpowered the rest of the ingredients. I was also unable to taste the egg in the dish, although I could certainly see bits of it.

The dessert selection was rather modest. We picked two out of the three choices. Everyone agreed that the chocolate cake was better than the pistachio cake, and I suppose at RM6.50 each, I can’t expect too much.

Overall, I’d say that the restaurant is worth a second visit. I’d come back just for the ambience alone.

Also check out:

Kokopelli Travellers Bistro
No 6, Jalan Bukit, Section 11/2,
PJ.

Tel: 03-7956 7505/019-267 6667 (Ariff)

Reservations recommended.

A Whiff of Lemongrass

NOT a food blog

Fogal Meat Market Deli & Cafe, Plaza Damas

From Kampar With Love

Kokopelli Travellers Bistro, PJ