Food Review - Heritage Village

Name 

Heritage Village 

Food

Baba Nyonya, Local, Halal 

Location

Jaya Shopping Centre

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Location
Located on the 3rd floor of the completely rebuilt PJ Icon - Jaya Shopping Centre, which is directly opposite another equally recognizable PJ landmark, the PJ Digital Mall.

Parking
There's ample parking spaces. Diners can opt for parking within the complex or along the various public parking spaces along the road & vicinity.
 
Ambience
This place seems to be packed almost every single time I am there (I've been there 4 times so far). It looks like the PJ community really likes this place as the diners I see there range from young couples, and groups of young people to families from 3 generations (from grampa to grandchildren).

I guess this may be partly due to the fact that the mall had just been re-opened fairly recently after it was demolished & rebuilt from scratch. Ths place is clean, new & very inviting.

Service
The staff are mainly non-locals. However, that's a plus point in fact because they are very courteous and understand what real service means. The only downside with them is the communication part as they may not sound or say things in the way we understand them easily. However, their enthusiasm in their work more than makes up for this.

Food
I've a bias for Baba-Nyonya cuisine, so, of course I'm gonna like most of the food items here. Special
mention goes out to the Lo-Bak (deep fried meet-rolls), the Pong Teh Chicken.

Taste 
As I had said earlier, I love Baba/Nyonya Food. I haven't identified any item from the menu that I didn't like despite my not having tried out every single one.

Presentation
I have not been to a Baba/Nyonya place that doesn't serve their food in the traditional Chinese clay-ware. And Heritage is no exception.

Variety
There are lots to choose from in their menu.
They range from the Baba/Nyonya classics like
- Otak
- Lobak
- Pong Teh
to sections for Rice, Noodles, deserts and dishes.

VFM
The prices are pretty reasonable and for the various times that I dined there, the place was full.

I'd have to say that if you like Baba/Nyonya cuisine, this would be a good place to try out. Let me know what you think once you have done so. =)

Food Review - Opika Organic Market (1 Utama)

Name  

Opika Organic Market

Food 

Organic Cuisine

Getting There

Located within the 1-Utama Shopping Mall.

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Parking

There are ample parking bays within the 1-Utama Shopping Mall. As with most malls here in the Klang Valley, you just need a little patience in finding an available one.

Ambience

Because this place also serves as organic food market, the dining area is rather limited and for some, it may make them feel cramped in. However, the place is well lit and clean making it very inviting for diners or casual shoppers at the organic shop.

1 nice and unique feature of this place was the kitchen that's visible to diners and shoppers alike, right smack in the middle of the restaurant. The kitchen is well-kept & clean. Diners might have a little bit of fun watching the kitchen staff do their magic.

As I like bright contrasting colors, I might be a little biased when I say the the bright contrasting colored walls gave the place its unique identity.  

Taste

Well, I'm not sure if I'm influenced by the hype but I did find that I quite enjoyed my food during my visits. I did find the food to be fresh & tasty.

Other than the one time when I ordered fish and they had overdone it thus making it a little too dry for my tastes, their food is generally quite well prepared and taste good.

Variety 

They have ample choices for diners and even for the slightly fussier eaters as they have rice, chicken, beef, lamb and even fish items on the menu to accommodate even the pickiest eater. 

Personally, I found that even after having tried a few of their menu items, I would still gladly go back for a repeat visit for either menu items I have not yet tried or even go back for more of the same.

Presentation

I may be biased towards this place but the food is served on white chine, which reinforces the healthy and clean image that is already in the diners minds the moment they step into the place, making almost impossible to resist sinking your teeth into the food that was just served to you.

Value For Money

Altho' I'm not a believer in the term "Organic Food", especially not in this country, but I truly believe they do serve you organic food here and they also remind diners of the percentage of the materials used in each menu item that's organic.

The prices altho' are not cheap but I think are very reasonable seeing as they are comparative to other cafes/bistros/restaurants of this category - ie: clean and located within a premier mall. Diners be prepared to spend about between RM25 - 45 per person for a meal. I also need to mention that the portions are reasonably large.  This is a good place to try if you've not tried dining in an "Organic" place before. You may find that you'd end up a believer.

Food Review - MOF - Japanese Cafe (Sunway Pyramid)

Name 

MOF - Japanese Cafe

Food

Japanese, Halal 

Location

Sunway Pyramid Shopping Mall

Getting there

Located in the heart of Sunway, right next to the Subang township, this premiere mall is also quite easy to locate. 

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Parking

There are lots of parking bays available within the Sunway Pyramid Mall itself, which is adjacent to both the Sunway Tower and Sunway Convention Centre. So, with a little patience, you should have no problems getting yourself a parking bay.

Ambience

The place is quite busy and makes the outlet not quite the right place to bring your date for a long quiet evening because it very much looks and feels like a fast-food joint. I also recall having seen this brand MOF at the Pavillion KL some time ago but it doesn't seem to be there anymore. So now, the only place you can find MOF is at Sunway Pyramid.

The restaurant is split into 2 areas: 

- within the restaurant 

- outside the restaurant (a la cafe style)

It's very clean and brightly lit, making it pretty inviting for a family dining experience or an alternative to the burger fast-food joints for dating couples.

At the back of the restaurant, they also have a section that mimics the Japanese tatami dining style, which I thought is kinda cute.

Presentation

The presentation isn't fantastic as the food is presented in plasticware. It would've been much classier if they had used some sort of china. However, it does fit with the theme very well - clean, simple & fuss-free.

Taste

I must say that the food is not bad. I'd definitely go back for repeat visits despite the fact that they had made errors to my orders twice on 2 different occasions.

I tend to like my food with a little more or stronger tastes, so for those who prefer their food to be milder may find some of the items might be too savory. As I said, I'm kinda OK with it, especially if you go for the rice meals.

I quite liked the Teriyaki Beef  Bento set as well. The beef was done with the right tenderness, slightly sweet (from the Teriyaki Sauce) and slightly savory (from the Soy Sauce), together with the rice, makes it an irresistible combo. I found myself wanting more of it even after I'd finished it...=)

I especially liked the pan-fried Salmon Fillet with Roe. I have not seen salmon done this way before but perhaps other places may also have it but it's not quite the standard fare. The roe really adds a new dimension to the salmon, which we are all familiar with. If you have not tried this item before, you must try it.

Variety

There are enough different items on the menu to cater to diners with different preferences. They include items with fish, beef or chicken. All of which are pretty standard for Japanese eateries here in Malaysia.

Value For Money

While the price points for the menu items are not really expensive, they are not so economical that you'r go there for your daily meals.

While I'm usually quite disappointed with the portions that I get when my food is served, this place pleasantly surprises me with their portion size. I was surprised by the size of the fish that they served more than once. If you look at the images I included here for the grilled mackerel, you'd have in idea of the size of the fish they gave us. It's significantly larger than the bento box it came in.