Food Review - Ah Koong Eating House

Name

Ah Koong Eating House
Food
Chinese Fish Ball/Fish Paste Noodle/Mee
Location

Pudu (in the Berjaya Times Square vicinity)

They also have an outlet at the Subang Business Centre and another one at Taman Sentosa, JB.

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Getting there

There are various ways to get there depending on where you are coming from but if you just zoom in on a landmark (there are quite a few landmarks in the vicinity) such as the Berjaya Times Square or the Pudu Prison/Jail. Once you have located these landmarks, then, you just need to get your bearings and then make your way there as they are all within the vicinity.

Parking

There are lots of parking around the shop-lots or even at Berjaya Times Square itself which is located at about 300m away.

Ambience

Despite this place having the comfort of air-conditioning, this is strictly a no-frills dining place (hence I categorize it under "Street Food").

The place is relatively clean & well-lit, which is a plus point in helping it look clean & bright.

Variety

The process begins at the front door when diners are given an empty bowl and need to select the type of noodle they wish to have and whether they would like to have it dry or with soup. The standard noodle types  plus a couple of less common types are available:

- Bee Hoon (Vermicelli)

- Mee (Yellow Noodles)

- Loh Shue Fun ("Rat" Noodles)

- Kuey Teow (Flat Rice Noodles)

- Wantan Mee/Noodles (both flat & thin varieties)

- Spinach Mee/Noodles

There are simply too much choice in terms of the many types of accompanying items you can add on to your meal. They range from:

- Fish Cakes (this is a "must try" item when you are there*)

- Fish Balls

- Fujok (soya skin with fillings) items

- Tofu & Yong Tau Foo

- Prawns (or shrimps as the Americans like to call them)

- and many more

* The fish cakes are fragrant, springy in bite texture and it just looks fantastic! Can't resist this item!

Service

The place is mainly manned by Nepalese or Myanmarese workers. It used to be manned by local Chinese. Other than the occasional inability to understand due to their lack of command of our languages or strong accent, the service is quick & fuss-free.

You order your food when you arrive up at the front door, go find a table and the food will be served to you in usually 10-15 minutes. After you are done, just bring the order chit to the cashier counter located right behind the open kitchen, and you're done.

Presentation
Again, despite this place being a no-frills dining outlet, they have nicely branded themselves as all of their wares, from the white plastic plates & bowls to even the spoons have their branding. This helps make the place a lot more presentable than a mere food stall.

Nicely done.

Taste
I'd say that the food here is a little bit too savoury (salty-lah macha). However, I personally, quite like strong flavours in my food (despite my liver's silent protestations). 

I like my noodles dry while some may prefer their noodles in soup. Either way, you won't lose out on the soup as the goodies (fish balls, fish paste slices, sea-weed, etc) all come in a separate bowl soaked in the deliciously fragrant soup!

I usually like to add the finely cut red chillies to my bowl of Ah Koong noodles. However, they have recently switched from the red chillies to the significantly spicier Cili Padi (more commonly known as Bird's Eye Chili). And sadly, the red chillies are nowhere to be found! I guess the reason why they switched was because the Cili Padi is much cheaper when compared with the red chillies.

Overall

This place is a favorite of mine when I'm in the area and have run out of ideas as to where or what to eat. It's affordable and delicious at the same time. No need to worry about whether I'm appropriately dressed or not. As I had said, no-frills fuss-free quick bite kind of place that never lets you down.

Food Review - Zende

Name:

Zende Restaurant

Location:

Located right across from the Mall (which has since been renamed as the Sunway Putra Mall) and right next to the PWTC  (Putra World Trade Centre).

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Parking:

There are lots of parking if you are planning to dine here. You may either park at the hotel itself, the Mall or at the PWTC.

Service:

As there were lots of people present at the restaurant (actually, it was running a full house - could be due to the fact that many, like me, had bought the discounted vouchers as well.), the staff were scrambling with ushering diners to their tables and bringing out the food to the buffet lines (well, this is Malaysia after all - where people just grab piles of food on their plates and then just leave them on their tables to be cleared as it's obvious they can't finish the amounts they take).

Ambience:

I have to say the place looks really good. The glass ceiling provides the restaurant with a lot of natural light which adds a lot to the ambience. The light colored theme also makes diners feel very welcome & cozy. Top marks here.

Taste:

I have to say I was absolutely DISAPPOINTED with what we had to put up with! (Yes, I said put up with). 

This is because we have had food here at Zende before and it was infinitely better than what we had this day. The Dim Sum variety was limited (they only had about 6 types of Dim Sum, and some of them were un-available due to the greedy diners)

They had:

Chicken Feet

"Char Siew" Pau - well, it's halal

Siew Mai

Glutinous Rice in wrapped Lotus Leaves

Fish Balls

Congee or Porridge with condiments

Presentation:

The hotel had done their part in making the food look very presentable. However, due to the large crowds, by the time we got to some of the food containers, it had become a little messy (no fault of the hotel). Otherwise, the food presentation is pretty good.

Variety:

Not only the Dim Sum variety was limited but the other food items too. We didn't manage to get much satisfaction from the Dim Sum hence we thought of enjoying the other non-Dim Sum items but sadly, they too were limited in choice. =(

We took some deep fried items like Lobak & some Yong Tau Foo (which I'm disappointed to report was also lacking in variety)

They had an OK variety of desserts like bite-size cakes & sweets but by the time we got to the desserts, we were too depressed to even take the sweet items.

Value for Money:

On paper, RM48++ for a buffet lunch in a restaurant located in a 5-Star hotel like the Seri Pacific seems like a pretty good deal BUT with the food that diners got from their money, I'd say I can think of at least 79 other ways I can use my $$$ better. EPIC FAIL! 

Overall:

I'd have to say I really regretted coming here for the buffet despite having only paid a fraction of the original price. The whole time I was there, I was feeling so sorry for the people who had actually paid full price for the buffet.

So, based on this visit, I would say it's a definite "No-no" from me. I would not be visiting Zende again at least for another 1 year, when hopefully, the management realizes the kind of poor quality and value cannot be presented in a hotel and restaurant with a rich a reputable history.

Food Review - Kuchai Yong Tau Foo

Name
Kuchai Yong Tau Foo (B’Fast/Lunch only)
I still have not found a good YTF stall that opens at night. If you know of one (or more), do let me know!
Address
Corner of Jalan 2/116B, Kuchai Entrepreneurs’ Park
Food
Yong Tau Foo/Jue Cheong Fun
Location
Kuchai

Getting there
You may come from any direction. Just drive toward the Kuchai Entrepreneurs’ Park from the Jalan Kuchai Lama Traffic Light Junction. After the junction, head straight where you will see lots of shop lots on both sides, and on the 2nd left turning, turn left there. There’s a row of shop lots on your left. This place is right at the left corner at the end of the road (and corner of a T-Junction).
Parking
Parking is a little haphazard as is generally so for the entire Kuchai Entrepreneurs’ Park but with a little patience, you will eventually find a spot within walking distance.

Service
Well, this is a typical Chinese-Styled coffee shop, so there is no service per se. You go to the stall you fancy and order directly from them.

The stall is divided into 2 sections:
- one for the Jue Cheong Fun (JCF)
- one for the Yong Tau Foo (where you can pick the variety and pieces you want)
The food delivery if quick and fuss-free.

Ambience
This place honestly needs a little clean up. Not a place that would attract diners based on appearance or cleanliness.
Taste
This stall serves pretty good YTF. One of the better ones I would say. The JCF is also good. The noodles are pretty smooth. The crunchy fried shrimp garnish on top of the JCF is really the good stuff that I can’t get enough of.

Presentation
Pretty standard. Dry items come dry and wet items come with the soup.
Variety
The standard YTF items incl: - YTF
- Jau YTF (Fried Tofu)
- Jau Fujok (Fried Bean curd skin)
- Jau Sui-gow (Fried Sui-gow)
- Yong Kok Tow (Ladies’ Fingers)
- Ai Gua (Brinjal)
- Lat Jiu (Chillies)
- Yue Dan (Fish Balls)
- Fu Gua (Bittergourd)
- Jue Pei (Pork Skin – This item is not quite standard and is personally one of my favorite items. This stall’s variety stuffs the Jue Pei with generous portions of fish paste and then lightly fried. LOVE THIS)

I order a plate of Jue Cheong Fun to round off the meal. There are 2 types of Jue Cheong Fun:
- Standard sweet and chili sauce
- Light curry soup

Value for Money
It’s RM0.90/pc. Higher than most YTF stalls. However, the pieces are larger than the ones you get at Ampang. So, a little compromise there.

It’s pretty decent for what would be considered a fairly healthy meal but it still loses out (but only by the skin of the teeth) to my all-time favorite YTF stall at Petaling Street.

Overall
The fact that the stall also sells Jue Cheong Fun makes it a solid combo stall to visit & try.

Food Review - Sg Besi Wan Tan Mee

NameSg Besi Wan Tan Mee (Dinner/Supper Only)
Food
Wan Tan Mee
Location
Along KL-Seremban Highway

Getting there
If you are on the KL-Seremban Highway headed south from the city, then the stall is situated on your left, about 800m after you pass the Loke Yew roundabout. The landmark to look out for is the BHP Petrol Station on your left just before the stall.

If you on the KL-Seremban Highway and are coming from the south towards KL, then you would need to make a U-turn to the right (after you pass the old military airport on your left). Head towards Jalan Chan Sow Lin. You may either turn in at Jalan 2 or Jalan 3 as the stall is between Jalan 2 & Jalan 3.

The stall is “co-located” at the side of a Car Accessory shop. So it’s not hard to locate.
ParkingParking is a bit of a challenge depending on which way you are coming from.
You may try your luck right at the stall front. The parking bays are very limited (probably may accommodate 6 cars). There are several more parking bays at the side of the stall but you would need to slow down and make a left turn right before the stall.
I usually park at Jalan 3 (as by then the metal works shops would be closed) and walk over.

ServiceService is fast and hassle free. As they have quite an extensive menu, the order takers would usually try to cross sell other menu items to diners.

Ambience
Typical of eateries of this type, it’s clean & bright enough for a comfortable dining experience. Plastic tables and chairs with the condiments and utensils on the tables.
TasteWhat can I say?
I have been eating here for almost 10 years. I love this place and the taste of the food. The noodles are firm and springy and the soy sauce that accompanies the noodles is just perfect (as I always take it dry).

I always add a generous dollop of the “good stuff” from the condiments. I believe it is fried dried shrimp, shallots and sambal. The other ingredient is of course the pickled green chili in soy sauce.
PresentationPresentation’s good as they always come in clean plates and the way the food is arranged on the plates just invites you to dig in.
VarietyThey have many varieties of Wan Tan Mee including:
- Jar Yuk
- Char Siew Wan Tan
- Curry San Jue Yuk
- Mushroom & Chicken Feet

There are other side order items including:
- Sui Gow
- Yong Tau Foo
- Yow Choy
- Jue Geok Choe

There is also a Rojak stall set up right in the corner as you approach the Wan Tan Mee stall.

Value for MoneyThis place offers good value for the taste and presentation. I love eating here and have no qualms eating here several times a week.

OverallGood value and quick service. Gibe it a try and let me know if you agree.