Happy Rich Kopitiam : Economy Rice

Work brought me to Matang again. Today was half day .... and on the way home, I decided to takeaway rice and dishes from that area ....

So behind e-Mart were many cafes and shops .... and I went to Happy Rich Kopitiam.

Lunch, RM6.50

Well, The dishes were tasty. The okra was stir-fried with chilli belacan; quite tasty. My complaint is that the okra was too old that it was already very fibrous. My favourite dish was the salted vegetables and pork - it was a tad spicy ... and it was really appetising to eat with the rice. The chicken drumstick wasn't crispy anymore ... but it tasted alright.

Airfried Rosemary Chicken Fillet

So I'm partial to Rosemary Chicken. I have air-fried it twice - once with butter and once without. So I had planted a part of the rosemary herb in my garden .... and it did not seem to grow so well though it did not die yet. There was however a tiny sprig that seemed to spurt out .... and I harvested that to cook. Lol.

So I washed and chopped it up and mixed it with chopped garlic and butter .... and then I rubbed the seasoned butter on clean chicken breast fillets and airfried them on 8 minutes on each side at 200 degrees. And it was ready to eat.

Yummy! Served with  sweet corn given by my Second Aunt. 

It was also tasty when served alongside garlic toast. Yum. I hope my rosemary plant doesn't die! Cause I'd want to eat more of rosemary chicken!! 

Noms On Street : Mamma Mia Sandwich

After exercise the other night, I was thinking about what to eat for dinner .... I was indecisive. But I needed to get a loaf of bread .... so off I went to Mita's at Jalan Tun Jugah  .... and I chanced upon a food truck! It's cool to have food trucks on Kuching! We should have more of them!

So I was curious and I went to check out their menu ... and decided to try their Mamma Mia Sandwich.

Mamma Mia Sandwich, RM9.00 

Glad that the sandwich still looked good when I got home - still warm, looking pleasant, and crunchy. The portion was huge! A 6 inch baguette! What's in the filling? ham, chicken, roasted tomatoes, mayo, mustard an cheddar. Tasted pretty good!

Check out their FB page for their latest locations and menus. I'd go back to try their burgers and pastas.

Lepau Restaurant, Kuching

I've wanted to come to Lepau Restaurant for a long time! Ever since moving back to Kuching, I've not had my fill of ethnic food. Oh how I used to love to eat nuba laya and the other Kelabit dishes at The Summit in Miri!!

So it was the last day of school, and we had planned to end the academic year with a luncheon. The 5 of us went to Lepau Restaurant - a restaurant serving authentic Kayan cuisine. It is open from 11.30 a.m. The staff was very helpful, and was careful with our orders. She also came back to ask us for feedback of the food, which we provided willingly. She also introduced us to the proprietor of the restaurant, a Kayan lady by the name of Roslyn.

Wrapped rice

Fragrant and soft, I would love it to be hotter.

Ayam pansuh

The soup was very delicious, the meat tender; we commented on the lack of tapioca leaves in the dish; the staff told us that tapioca leaves were just stuffed into the bamboo receptacle as a cover, and not used as an ingredient by itself to cook the dish; she offered to bring us more tapioca leaves 

Cucumber leaves stirfry

We got this off the food counter; at Lepau, there is pre-cooked food available; one could actually eat or takeaway rice and dishes for a quick meal. This portion was RM1.50 only! And it was really very tasty. Yummy.

Tempoyak with anchovies

C loved this - so subtle with the taste of durians, salty from the achovies and slightly tangy; C scrapped the plate clean with her spoon. Lol. :)) 

Tapioca leaves stirfry

A bit dry and lacking the punch .... not sure why. So my friend S was telling the staff that she had eaten better versions of this dish ..... 

Complimentary!!

The owner, Roslyn went into the kitchen and cooked for us a small complimentary bowl of tapioca leaves!! Thank you!! Because it was served straight from the wok, it was piping hot, and I had my fill of this vegetables .... which of course, tasted much better than the first dish - softer, saltier and sweeter. :))  

Kan mixed vegetables

This dish was yummy .... but it was a bit too salty 

Umai

Tasted good! My only complaint was that the fish was too little ... I could literally count the pieces! 

Terung Dayak and fish soup

We could choose the fish to go into the soup - Patin, Sultan or Tilapia. I did not like Patin. Sultan had too many bones, so I chose Tilapia. The soup was clear, and aromatic with the taste of the eggplant and the fish was fresh. S loved this dish. 

Together with the food and 5 drinks, we paid RM109.30. Very reasonable. I am coming back. :)) 

Happy hols! 

Steamed Pumpkin Bao

"Try! Pumpin Bao! Very nice!" J handed me half of a bao.

I thanked her and took a bite. It wasn't bad at all! Yums. "From Hui Sing?" I enquired.

"Yes! They make it on the spot!" she said.

Well, yeah, I know where the baos are sold. I always drive past them, but have never had the inclination to stop and buy them. 

So after aerobics the other night, I made it a point to buy some. I bought a char siew bao, and a meat bao. Both were RM1.80.

Orange skin, and very, very soft

I love the pastry very much.

And these are the filling ..... 

Meat Bao

Savoury, very light seasoning ... meat is chunkier and had more texture 

Sweeter filling, more goo than meat .... so lacking texture ... 

I shared my baos with S ..... She liked the char siew bao better than the meat bao .... but the opposite was true for me. :P

Nutella Mug Cake

I made Nutella Mug Cake today. 

Soft, good texture. I was so happy by how it turned out.

My ingredients were so simple ... 

3 tbsp of Nutella, 2 tbsp of milk, 2 tbsp of canola oil, 1 egg in my bowl.

I stirred it until well-combined. Then I sifted in 3 tbsp of flour, 1 tbsp of cocoa powder, 1/4 tsp of baking powder.

Instead of using a mug, I used 4 paper cups ... and filled the cup to 3/4 full and airfried them at 180 degrees for 10 minutes.

Lol! Not exactly nice looking .....  so I had to cut them up before serving them.

A good experiment done this evening. Took me only 30 minutes to make and wash up. :)) 

Cheese & Tea Revisited

Today, we ranked the food served here, based on its taste.

First place:

Chicken boxing, RM5.00

More like deep-fried drummets. Lightly flavoured, but well-fried and crisp. 

Second place : 

Pattaya Fried Rice, RM5.50

Take a look at the rice inside

Rice is stir-fried with cooked chicken breast, and a bit of long beans; the smoky flavour is a tad too strong though

Third place :

 

Hawaiian Pizza, RM8.50

Tomato base, shredded chicken, pineapple and cheese

This pizza wasn't nice at all

Our drinks : 

Iced plum RM2.50  & Matcha Milk tea RM4.00

Better check your bill when you pay, cause I was overcharged by RM9.00. Luckily I checked and had my money refunded. :) 

Go Fun Kee @ Ban Hock Road

It was a cold and rainy afternoon. S and I wanted something hot and soupy. So we headed to Go Fun Kee. There wasn't any place to sit at all ... and we had to stand around and wait for a while. Luckily, somebody vacated soon, and we sat down. Orders were taken in a jiffy and food was served not long after that.

Bakuteh with 3 meats for 1 person, RM9.00

I chose to have 软骨 , pork belly and liver

Dry bakuteh with 2 meats for 1 person, RM10.00

For this, we opted for 软骨and pig stomach. Then on a spur, we added pig tail too. An additional type of meat is charged at RM4.00 per portion. So our dry bakuteh cost us RM14.00 instead of RM10.00.

Between the 2 types of bakuteh, I preferred the soupy version. The dry version tasted burnt and bitter to me. Other than the overpowering taste of soy sauce, there wasn't much other flavour nor taste that came through. The soup bakuteh was a tad salty to me, and I would have preferred the herbal flavour to stand out more. Not exactly the best bakuteh in my books. 

You Tiao, RM1.20 per portion 

It looked soft and soggy .... but when added into the bakuteh soup, it was still tasty. :))

Carrot Milk, RM4.50 & Chocolate Milk Tea RM4.00

Rice was RM1.20 per plate, and inclusive of GST, we paid, RM35.10 for the whole meal.

Kuching Siew Pau

J always bought for me the Siew Paus from this shop at Rubber Road, and I liked them very much. Today I went to buy some for Second Aunt to try. At the same time, I bought a curry puff and a yam puff for myself.

Curry Puff, RM1.80 & Yam Puff RM2.50

The curry puff filling wasn't nice - not aromatic, slightly tangy - so I did not like it. On the other hand, the yam puff was good! The pastry was really crispy, and the filling inside was the same as those used for the Siew Pau - chunky meat, slightly sweet and very moist. Very delicious. Recommended. :)) 

Portico

S and I had lunch at Portico. It's really empty of customers at lunch time, but it's alright with us. I loved the decor at this place ....

 Beautiful garden 

 The interiors 

What we ate .... 

 Calamari Rings, RM12.00 

Crispy batter, quite tasty .... and huge portion

While we waited for our main courses, we ate our calamari rings with White Coffee, RM6.00 & Lemon Juice, RM5.00 

Seafood Fried Rice, RM8.00 

S liked the fried rice very much, and there were actually 3 pieces of prawns embedded in the rice somewhere ... :)

Ayam Kremes, RM15,00

Crispy bits on fried chicken served with sambal

The chicken was a tad too dry, and I did not like the crispy bits, the sambal wasn't that great too ..

Loved the ambience, not really the food. We paid RM48.75 inclusive of 6% GST. 

Mediterranean Eryngii Mushroom Burger & Sesame Soy Milk @ Idealite 品味舒食

Okie. I like this shop. I have come for the third time. And I would be coming back. Why?
1) The food is tasty.
2) The food is fresh, natural and wholesome. They are not laden with MSG. They do not serve
     anything synthetic or processed.
3) The food is beautifully prepared and presented.
4) The staff is amicable and helpful.
5) The eatery itself is clean, bright and conducive.
6) The quality of the food itself is consistent. I have never been disappointed by the freshness of the
     ingredients, the taste nor the service.
7) And the food does not burden my body. I feel absolutely good after every meal here. Shu (舒)
    food. That's why. 舒 means "comfort" in English. I believe the food is served to preserve our
    health.

Today, we came back here for the Mediterranean Eryngii Mushroom Burger and Sesame Soy Milk.

Black Sesame Paste and Soy Milk

Very natural, not sweet, very thick and best of all, it is guilt-free!! 

Our burger platter

Just look at the freshness of the vegetables! Crisp and carefully shredded, and served with a light, yet sweet and aromatic dressing

Cross section of the burger
The charcoal bun was fresh and soft, and served with tender and succulent slices of flavoured Eryngii mushroom, egg omelette, fresh vegetables and seasoned with a dash of black pepper; very delicious and highly recommended!

And so, after the meal, I posted my burger on FB and tagged 3 friends. I called the staff and showed them my post and got a complimentary dessert. 

FOC

I'm not exactly sure what it is .... but we think it's guilingao in almond milk; We shared out this dessert and we liked it too.

Very refined food at an affordable price. I love it here. I'll come back soon. :))

First Visit - Read Here
Second Visit - Read Here 

Soon Fatt Cafe

G told me that this cafe served good Foochow cuisine. So I came to try some items and found myself disappointed, especially by the Zaocai Fengan.

Zaocai Fengan

The soup wasn't sweet enough, not infused with the preserved vegetables; ingredients were minimal - just the noodles, chicken breast, and zaocai. Sigh. No fragrance of red wine evident in the broth; so I asked for some .... and added it into the soup. This is certainly not a good bowl of Zaocai Fengan in my book. 

Kompia with minced pork

This is tasty because it's served hot. So the crisp pastry was really good! The meat filling was generous and tasty, but what I did not like was the bit of starch used to bind the meat together. The filling was starchy, gluey .... and I did not like it like that

I guess I had expected a mind-blowing bowl of Zaocai Fengan ... my expectations were too high, and I ended up being so disappointed. :(

Just Like Old Times

Philip Yancey's seminar was widely anticipated by many churchgoers. I, too, bought a ticket but could not go, but luckily C was going and she redeemed my book for me. She was even kind enough to get it autographed by Philip Yancey himself! 

Wow! My first autographed book! 

W and N, and many of my friends from Miri actually flew in just to attend this seminar. I did manage to catch up with them, some of whom I had not seen since I left Miri. W and N went for breakfast, and it reminded me so much of the good old days in Miri where we used to hang out every weekend. :))

W wanted to go to Ban Hock Road, where she could takeaway her favourite pulut panggang from Lee Coffee Shop. She bought 20 sticks to bring back to Miri. So many!

So we had breakfast at Yang Guan, just a few shops away from Lee Coffee Shop. 

Radish cake

 Laksa

Handmade noodles with pork belly slices

We also shared a pot of bak kut teh, which I found to be quite palatable. I'd eat that next time. The radish cake did not have the taste of radish unlike the ones I was accustomed to at home. Plus, I think they could do with a bit more of preserved radish or cai po as the entire dish was a bit bland. I had the laksa and I found it to be quite good actually. I liked the gravy which was thick and rich, and yet had a good consistency. It was also served very hot, so I liked it. I did not eat the noodles. :)) 

Saw many familiar places when eating around this area. A happening place to eat. :)) 

Lunch @ Foo Cheng Cafe

S gave me a call and said that she was super hungry. She was at Pending, while I was in town. We agreed to meet at Foo Cheng Cafe at Jalan Wan Alwi ....

Stir-fried Glass Vermicelli 

Cangkuk Manis and Wheat Vermicelli Stirfry

 Thai-style Midin 

The 2 noodle dishes were very big portions, and the use of ingredients were also generous. The glass noodles was a bit bland, but the generous ingredients gave the dish lots of texture. The wheat vermicelli dish was tasty too, topped with lots of dried prawn bits. Of the 2 noodle dishes, I preferred the glass noodle over the wheat vermicelli. The vegetables were crunchy, not overcooked .... but I find the chilli dressing a bit too artificial and too sweet. Price is reasonable, the air-con environment provided much comfort from the mid-day heat outside. :)) 

The Raintree Restaurant @ Borneo Convention Centre Kuching

So we saw from the banners hanging on the streets about this home and lifestyle exhibition called Perfect Livin 2015 at BCCK ... we just wanted to browse to get some ideas for doing up our apartments which would only be ready in a few years' time. :P

But of course lunch would be first priority before we visited any booths .... so the Raintree Restaurant was the most natural destination. For the both of us, it was our first time there ....

Bread roll and butter
I quite love the freshly baked poppy seed bread roll .... break open the crust and find it soft and fluffy inside ...

We ordered 2 set lunches ... comprising a main course and also a dessert.

Linguine Carbonara 

Raintree Club Sandwich

Chocolate Cake 

Food wise, I would say that the linguine tasted better than the club sandwich; at least the pasta was served hot, and tasted rich and creamy enough. The sandwich was rather dry ... and had a greasy taste and smell which I did not like .... the chocolate cake was dry too.

Each set meal was RM21.00 nett. We agreed that we wouldn't come back all the way for these ...

As for the exhibition, it was quite fun to browse, though I felt that the choices were still limited. Of all the things that I saw .... I was interested in only a daybed and also a wall laundry rack. :))