Review of Green Talk Mahkota Cheras

Green Talk is one of the pioneer organic vegetarian restaurants in Bandar Mahkota Cheras. They have been in business for about 5 years now. Organic vegetables are grown without pesticide and therefore good for health hence the reason why these restaurants are popping up everywhere.

Green Talk

I was eager to try out this restaurant so I came here for dinner with friends. This place was nearly full but we managed to get a table and seated almost immediately. They have a good variety of offerings from fried rice, lei cha, noodles, spaghetti, snacks and so on. They also have a good range of fresh fruit juices.

Apple + banana + cucumber juice.

Apple + pineapple + beetroot juice.

I know I had to try the nasi lemak which was the featured item in the menu. My friend had the claypot tofu and steamed stuffed cabbage. We ordered some interesting drinks from the fresh fruit juices menu. The nasi lemak was good, which was rice served with greens, vegetable curry, fried tofu and sambal. The fried tofu was good too as it was coated with oats which were crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.

Nasi Lemak

The clay pot tofu looked really good, as it had lots of vegetable, mushrooms, tofu and corn. The taste was okay but it would have been better with a bit more sauce.  The portion of tofu was inadequate.  It would have been better with more tofu though plus this dish was served with brown rice.

Steamed rolled cabbage

A generous portion of steamed rolled cabbage was served. The filling consisted of vegetables and tofu. It was very fresh and full of greens. This dish was served with a green dip and it tasted like basil based sauce. I ended up having it with some sambal. The portion of the food was sufficient.

The fruit juice that we ordered was very refreshing and interesting. One of it was apple + pineapple + beetroot. It was actually quite good and we realised quite a number of other customers ordered the same drink as well. Another drink that we had was apple + banana + cucumber. This drink was quite refreshing.

The service was efficient and staffs were generally friendly. Overall it was a good dining experience especially if you are into organic vegetarian which is obviously healthy. You can also buy organic products ranging from tea to beans to flours at this restaurant.

How would I rate them? The atmosphere 3/5, Service 3.5/5, F&B 3/5.

Review of Restoran Nasi Kandar Pokok Cheri, Cheras

Restoran Nasi Kandar Pokok Cheri faces the entrance of Aeon Bandar Mahkota Cheras. Hence, it is prominent and easy to find.  It is a popular place judging from the number of people frequenting this place during lunch hour.

There is an interesting spread of dishes. They have a few types of vegetables, a few types of chicken dishes including fried chicken, fish, fried fish, mutton, seafood and a variety of curries. A number of dishes such as nasi goreng, mee goreng are on their ala carte menu. Since I was craving for nasi kandar, I took a plate of rice, ayam masak merah, stir fried long beans and egg omelette. The trade secret in having a good nasi kandar is in the curry. Over here, they probably added about five to six types of curry and gravy on the rice. It tasted very good. There was a hint of spiciness from the chicken and fish curry. You could also taste the kicap and masak merah gravy which gave a nice fusion of flavours. The gravy covered nearly all portion of the rice hence you have a whole plate to look forward too. The ayam masak merah that I had was tender and it was not spicy at all.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My friend had rice with mutton kicap, fried chicken and cabbage. The fried chicken was crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, indicating a sign of well fried chicken. Over here they prepacked papadams in packets to ensure its crunchiness. We had one packet.  I think they charged RM1.00 a packet containing three to four pieces of papadam.

 

Nothing beats cold drinks when you are having nasi kandar. We had teh O limau ais and Coke.

I ordered takeaway for a family member and apparently she liked the food too. She mentioned that she liked the mix of curry and gravy and how it enhanced the taste of the rice and the side dishes. Nasi Kandar Pokok Cheri serves good nasi kandar. They definitely have a wide variety of dishes and good curry. I will definitely come back to try other dishes.

Address: Nasi Kandar Pokok Cheri, No. 15G Jalan Temenggung 21/9, Seksyen 9, Bandar Mahkota Cheras, 43200 Cheras Selangor.

 

Pretty awesome stay @ Holiday Inn Resort Batu Ferringhi, Penang

It’s been a while since I have stayed at Holiday Inn hotels. My last experience was at Holiday Inn Express Bangkok which was totally awesome. For now, I am sharing with you my experience with Holiday Inn Resort which is located in Batu Feringghi, Penang.

Holiday Inn Resort Penang

Prior to my arrival the hotel made a courtesy call to confirm the reservation which was good.

I choose to stay at the tower wing with sea view room instead of staying at the main wing. Apparently the tower wing is newer and more spacious so I had to try it out. I am a regular visitor to Penang Island so I was expecting a hotel for a good rest and perhaps with a good view especially being in Batu Feringgi.

Aside of arriving late, around 10pm, the check-in process was smooth. The room was pretty impressive and it was in my favorite color scheme; blue. The room was spacious, looks new and well ventilated. The balcony is huge with a nice view of sea and part of Batu Ferringhi.

Tower wing sea view room

Coffee & Tea

One of my favorite thing about the room was the was super comfortable king bed, more of a super king! I wish I had more time to hang out int he room. There is a set of soft and firm pillows provided. The sheets was clean and smelled fresh.

The bathroom was spacious. Some part of the bathroom (the mirror frame and the area near drain hole) are not very well maintained. The normal toiletries are provided. For others, you may request from the hotel. There is coffee & tea facilities as well. There is a large lcd TV provided in the room with cable channels.

All marble bathroom.. very luxurious.

The toiletries.

We didn’t try out the breakfast so couldn’t comment on that. Being in Penang, there are so many choices for places to have breakfast. I did check out the pool and hang out for a while. This hotel (main wing) has been around for many years now. Perhaps a refurbishment on main wing would do the trick.

Anyway I enjoyed my stay at the hotel. The room rates are pretty decent for the area which is a very popular place. I would say the location is pretty good as you can discover all the happenings in this are by foot. The night market is just next door. I cant wait to be back! 🙂

The view from our room! 🙂

Visited in September 2015.

Where at: 72 Batu Ferringhi, Batu Ferringhi, Penang Island 11100, Malaysia

Review of William’s Corner at Taman Mayang PJ

It’s been many years since I have been here. To be honest, I don’t really recall the exact location of this place until a friend mentioned about this place recently. So I decided to check out what is the hype all about.

The location is pretty easy to find. This place is located at the back of Lincoln College in Taman Mayang. There is no clear signage of this place but you can spot a restaurant with lots of tables arranged on the corridor. Apparently it can get really busy here however as usual I got here pretty early for dinner on a weekday so it was not crowded at all.

There is no menu handed out at this place. You can check out the menu which is written on the green board in the restaurant. This is not a ‘mamak’ restaurant. The owner is a Chinese who servers halal / pork free food. This place has been around for many years now. As recommend by my friends we ordered soda herbs, seafood fried rice with soft shell crab, cheese naan with dips and friend noodle with garlic butter grilled chicken.

Soda Herbs

The soda herb is served in a big mug, perhaps a full pint size. I would say you can share with this drink with 2 or 3 person. So what drink is this? Its ice cream soda drink, fresh local herbs, asam boi and lychee.

Seafood fried rice with soft shell crab

The seafood fried rice with soft shell crab is nice. The fried rice is fried with seafood and seasoned with kicap (soy sauce). The soft shell crab is deep fried so it’s crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.

Cheese Naan with dips

The cheese naan bread is served with variety of dips such as butter, caramel, coffee and chocolate sauce. This dips goes really well with the cheese naan. I quite like this.

Noodle with garlic butter grilled chicken

The noodle with garlic butter grilled chicken was alright. The fried noddle tasted plain (with soy sauce) and lots of pepper. I didn’t really enjoy this.

The portion of the food and drinks is large or some might say x-large portion. I would strongly advise you to check with staff so that you don’t over order. This is a normal restaurant with no air conditioning and with mostly outdoor seating.

Visited in September 2015.

How would I rate them? The atmosphere 3/5, Service 3/5, F&B 3/5.

Review of Cosans Coffee at Sunway Pyramid

Have you heard of Cosans Coffee? I have heard about it through word of mouth.

This review is based on my experience at Cosans Coffee outlet in Sunway Pyramid. I am looking forward to try out the coffee here being my first visit. I always love the smell of fresh coffee brewing at any time of the day. The outlet looks pretty cosy and definitely a nice place to hang out with friends. I saw the menu on the board above the cashier and the offerings looked pretty common. I then asked the staff to recommend their best seller coffee for me. So I end up having Hazelnut Latte.

Here is the Hazelnut Latte (RM13) which looks pretty good. From the looks of it, you probably would guess that the coffee is full bodied with strong aroma and has bitter aftertaste.

Cosans Coffee : Hazelnut Latte

The Iced Latte (RM14) was okay but seemed a bit milky for my taste. I get the feeling that the coffee flavour is being ‘diluted’ once the ice starts to melt bit by bit.

Cosans Coffee : Iced Latte

The Lemonade cooler (RM10) is pretty normal ie a glass of lemonade.I dont even a photo if it. The Nutty Banana Caramel cake (RM14.90) was average. The cake’s texture was a bit dry. It’s a chocolate cake with filling of caramel and banana. The banana filling was in the form of paste. Although typically I love any chocolate cake, this one was not really to my liking.

Cosans Coffee : Banana Caramel Cake

The service was ok but I notice that it takes for a while for the staff to prepare the drinks. We ordered 3 drinks and guess which drink we got last? It was the Lemonade. I really wondered what took them so long to prepare a Lemonade? So, in summary it was an OK experience. I think the coffee here is average. The price seems competitive and seems to match other (establish) brands.

Cosans Coffee : The damage…

Visited in August 2015. How would I rate them? The atmosphere 4/5, Service 3.5/5, F&B 3/5.

Nana’s Green Tea; Impressive drinks and desserts!

Nana’s Green Tea is a Japanese restaurant. I have always wanted to try out the food here and finally manage to do so recently. This outlet which I have visited is located on the lower ground floor of The Gardens Mall (Midvalley). Recently they have opened another outlet in Midvalley however on 3^rd floor, near to GSC cinema which focuses on drink and desserts.

The concept of the restaurant is clean and modern take of Japanese food outlet. The staffs are dressed in white t-shirt which is pretty classic to me. So what do they serve? Off course it’s all about Japanese food! They do serve a long range of Matcha green tea drinks and desserts.

After checking out the menu, we decided to go ahead with Chicken Nanban (Crispy deep fried chicken fillet served with warm millet rice garnished with red leaf lettuce, broccoli, tomato, potato salad and tartar sauce), Locomoco Hamburg (chicken patty served with millet rice, with homemade tomato locomoco sauce, garnished with red leaf lettuce, capsicum, broccoli and Japanese style poached egg).  We had a drink; Matcha Shiratama float and a dessert Matcha Nama Chocolate Parfait.

Chicken Nanban

Locomoco Hamburg

The Chicken Nanban was nice. The deep fried chicken fillet is not too oily and it was cooked perfectly. The millet rice was nice and it was filling. Meanwhile the Locomoco Hamburg dish was average. I didn’t really taste much of chicken in the patty which was overpowered with potato. The sauce was a bit too sour for my taste.

I really enjoyed the Matcha Shiratama as the matcha taste creamy yet full of green tea goodness.

Matcha Shiratama

The dessert Matcha Nama Chocolate Parfait was really good. You will find layers of Kanten jelly, matcha syrup, soft serve vanilla ice cream, layer of cornflakes, matcha ice creams, matcha chocolate ganache and red bean paste. I don’t think I ever had any green tea based dessert as much of green tea as this but I loved it!

Matcha Nama Chocolate Parfait. How can you resist this! Slurrp!

The staffs were friendly and they were efficient. I would highly recommend this place for the Matcha drinks and desserts. I didn’t really fancy the food however it might differ to you. One thing for sure, I will be back soon for the green tea desserts! muaahahaha

Walliserkanne Zermatt. Not too bad but…

We had our first meal in Switzerland at the Walliserkanne in Zermatt hence the experience was a memorable one. We were also recommended by the hotel staff of this place as they serve decent food with decent price. In case you don’t know, nearly everything in Switzerland is expensive.

We were for lunch. We were seated immediately and handed with the menu. We choose to sit on the balcony on the 1^st floor. The view was nice with the cold fresh mountain air. Nearly everything in the menu has something to do with cheese. That’s Swiss common food. I can smell cheese as I walked into this restaurant. The service was limited, not much conversation other than taking the order and delivering the food on the table.

Good view overlooking the mountains.

Pasta with chicken

Penne pasta

We had a chicken pasta dish and another pasta dish. We didn’t had to wait long for the food to arrive. The portion of the food is generous. The taste was a bit bland for us. I couldn’t help but to notice that the service was better at the next table. I wonder why, perhaps it’s because we don’t speak local language? Anyway we ate, tried to enjoy the experience and left. Nothing memorable though.

Our drinks

The damage…

Where at: 3920 Zermatt, Switzerland.

Visited in June 2015. How would I rate them? The atmosphere 4/5, Service 1/5, F&B 3/5.

Decent place for a quick fix of local cuisine.

This review is based on my dining experience at Nyonya Colors outlet in Gardens Mall (Midvalley), Kuala Lumpur.

So what is Nyonya food? Nonya cooking is the result of blending Chinese ingredients with various distinct spices and cooking techniques used by the Malay community. This gives rise to Peranakan interpretations of Malay food that is similarly tangy, aromatic, spicy and herbal. In other instances, the Peranakans have adopted Malay cuisine as part of their taste palate, such as assam fish and beef rendang. It is a popular cuisine among the locals.

Firstly, it’s not easy to get a table here during weekends. We were here early so we were able to get a table and have breakfast here, ‘Malaysian’ breakfast. The chairs and tables here are following the old kopitiam style (small but sturdy).

We had kopi (local coffee) with half-boiled eggs, toast bread, meehoon siam, kuih talam (famous nyonya dessert) and karipap (curry puff).

Breakfast @ Nyonya Colors

Breakfast @ Nyonya Colors

The price is ‘ok’ however some items are expensive. One piece of karipap will cost you RM1.85, that’s inclusive of GST. The portion is small or shall I say sufficient for breakfast portion. If you are a big eater, please get something on the side. I would say the food is tasty and they offer pretty much Malaysian food with nyonya influence. Don’t expect to be seated long and have a ‘catch up’ time with your friends here as it can get crowded and there you can spot a queue for table. Overall, a place that I will return for local food.

AirBnb??? This is my first experience and it was awesome!

Do you know that Airbnb has been around since 2008? I didn’t realise that they have been operating for that long! Over here (Malaysia) Airbnb gain popularity only in the recent years. So, when I was planning for Europe trip in June 2015, I was curious to try out Airbnb. After reading up a little bit I was determined to book at least one place out of 7 cities that I was planning to travel. Are you curious on what is AirBnb is all about? Well, let’s say it’s about renting someone’s home. Anything from renting a room, apartment, house or even a villa.

Da Francesca AirBnb

Da Francesca AirBnb

I booked a studio apartment in Milan for 2-nights accommodation. I was more comfortable in having the whole place to me rather than having a room in an apartment, etc. So this place that I booked in Milan seemed convenient in terms of the location and reasonable price. At least it was much cheaper than booking a 2 or 3 star hotel in Milan. Accommodations in Italy has never been cheap anyway. My communications to the owner has been positive as well.

Da Francesca AirBnb

Our train ride from Venice to Milan was delayed for about 30minutes which resulted with us arriving late. The owner contacted us to make sure everything was ok. She waited for us to arrive as she wanted to brief us about the place. It was an easy walk from the Milan train station to the apartment. We took about 15minutes time to reach here. The owner: Francesca showed us her place and briefly explained to us what’s around the area. I was pretty impressed with the apartment as it was pretty huge and super clean.

Da Francesca AirBnb

As we discover the surrounding area, it was exactly what we wanted; to be near to shopping places and eateries. This apartment is located on ‘via san gregorio’ which is a street away from ‘Corso Buenos Aires’ which is a major street in Milan and has lots of shopping places.  The train or tram stops are pretty nearby. We pretty much walked during our time in Milan enjoying the view of the city.

Da Francesca AirBnb

It’s a pity that we didn’t have more time to spend in Milan, it’s a fast moving city with lots of fashion and style. A good place for shopping and people watching.

Have you AirBnb-ed? I would love to hear your comments on the experience of it.

Absolutely worth it! @ Pontini, Venice Italy

When we were in Venice, we noticed that many restaurants that are operating around the attractions are very ‘touristy’. In fact, some of them are managed by non-Italian. I have nothing against it but I was curious in trying out Venetian cuisine. I spoke to the hotel staff and we were recommended of this restaurant as an authentic Venetian restaurant.

Pontini outdoor seating

Pontini Menu

Pontini

So we planned it out and came here for dinner, at around 7pm. Despite thinking we arrived early, there were other people in the queue waiting for a table. We waited for about 15-minutes time before being seated. You probably end up sitting very close to another table as they try to accommodate the customers.

Spritz and a coke.

Breads and crackers

Its obvious that it is a small restaurant and a family owned business. Despite being busy, the staffs were pleasant and friendly throughout our dinner.

Salad

Scallop Mushroom Pasta

 

I had a set meal consist of salad, seafood fritters and fish lasagna. My partner had a scallop mushroom pasta. For the first time in my life I am having fish lasagna and loved it. For dessert, we had tiramisu.

Seafood fritters

Fish Lasagna

I have to say that everything tasted so good, fresh and made upon order. I can understand the wait time required for the food preparation however it is totally worth it.  I highly recommend this place especially if you are looking for an authentic experience. Wish I had known this place a little bit sooner. 

Tiramisu

Where at: Cannaregio 1268, Venezia. Telephone: 041/714123

Visited in June 2015. How would I rate them? The atmosphere 4.5/5, Service 4.5/5, F&B 5/5.