Big Family Gathering @ Little Penang Kafé The Curve

it was the final weekend before ramadhan starts, and my whole family (abah, umi, my sisters & husbands plus kiddos) stayed at the royale bintang the curve for the weekend just to lepak satu family. and also because my abah wants to belanja his cucu-cucu for a day of fun at kidzania the next day.

for dinner we gathered together at ‘little penang kafe’ for a taste of penang hawker food at the curve damansara.

 

‘little penang kafé’ described itself as being “the first restaurant to offer authentic penang hawker food in a shopping mall”. the interior certainly sets the mood, taking us back in time. and the menu suggests the same – filled with penang hawker food and baba nyonya delicacies like char kuey teow, kuey teow soup, mee udang, curry mee, assam laksa and many more.

 

it’s not often do we get to dine out ramai-ramai like this. most of the time atok prefers to just tapau and eat ramai-ramai at home. tak pening atok dengan cucu-cucu yang bising! hihi. so this was considered a HUGE outing for us. we were just missing azi’s husband faiz (working) and my mr khairul who was still in dubai at the time. syida’s hubby nash was taking the picture.

 

obviously I can’t help NOT ordering my favorite kuey teow. penang fried kuey teow has always been my favorite and would never miss getting kuey teow sani or kuey teow gagak whenever I’m in penang. the kuey teow at ‘little penang kafe’ is as good as it gets – well-seasoned, dry just the way I like it. I would order this again.

 

abah with his choice ‘penang curry mee’

 

‘penang curry mee’ for abah. said to be ‘the most sought after hawker dish in penang’. judging from the empty bowl at the end and hoq quiet abah eats – the curry mee must be dead good.

 

this was umi’s pick of the day : ‘penang jawa mee’ – a nyonya style mee rebus. the gravy looks deliciously thick and the portion is huge. you can share this one if you’re not too hungry!

 

abah & umi with their delicious penang dishes at ‘little penang kafe’.

 

my eldest nephew haiqal with his dinner : fried rice with egg sunny side up. simple yet satisfying. haiqal next time order something else ok. nasi goreng ni mama pun bole buat! haha

 

BFF & cousins : my nephew haqeem & my eldest son khaleef ordered the same food – ‘fish ball noodle’ simply noodle in clear fish ball soup. not spicy, hot from the pot. delicious.

 

the boys’ ‘fish ball noodle’. you can even choose your noodle – bihun, mee kuning or kuey teow.

 

cousins & BFF! haiqal, haqeem & khaleef in their football jerseys

 

 

love the interior : the ceiling, the walls that look like it’s made from papan in kampung house and the grill looks authentic too – like eating in those old chinese coffee shop in penang. ‘little penang kafe’ is my new favorite place to makan!

‘little penang kafe’ is on ground floor at the curve. forget marche. go hawker style next time!

Father’s Day Dinner @ Vietnamese ‘Hanoi’, JLT

it was father’s day, and on a special day like this we usually get something like a fat juicy steak. however, this penang boy mr. khairul with a kampung taste wanted something asian. something simple yet delicious. something that reminds him of home.

we looked for something simple like kuey teow soup or noodle soup – and found a nice vietnamese restaurant called ‘hanoi’. by the end of our visit there, it has become one of the best place to get soupy dishes in dubai – vietnam style!

 

 

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the first thing I noticed when I walked into ‘hanoi’ were the trees! fake trees of course, but a lovely addition nonetheless. it blends well with the color scheme of orange and green. simply loved it!

 

walls are adorned with random pictures of vietnamese makcik in vietnam setting that brings out that asian feel. simple, random, but it works! the bench-seats are comfy and gives that homey, relaxing feel too. overall a family-friendly cozy place to enjoy delicious soupy dish!

 

the ‘open’ bar – juice bar, that is.

 

simply love the color scheme! ceria!

 

* * *

 

the menu is quite extensive within the soup domain – written in vietnamese, with translation. everything looks good, really. there are mainly 4 types of noodle available :

• pho – rice noodle
• mien – glass noodle
• bun – rice vermicelli noodle
• mi – egg noodle

 

the celebrated guy – the father – bapak – mr. khairul’s choice : pho dac biet : ‘hanoi special pho’ (pho = rice noodles aka kuey teow) with meatballs. delicious. really. just like the plain kuey teow soup you get at RnR tapah. instantly a favorite with him, and me too!

 

stuff for the soupy dish that i won't even consider adding because I just like my soup to be plain. so tolak ke khairul hihi

 

my 'mi vit tiem' - braised five-spice duck noodle.

 

my noodle with the duck is super delicious. imagine eating this big bowl of hot delight in a cool winter’s night? perfect! makan panas-panas time sejuk-sejuk winter sure da bom!

unlike mr. khairul’s soup dish with ‘pho’ or rice noodles, mine was with ‘mi’ – egg noodles. I really prefer the rice noodles because it’s my favorite noodle of all but this ‘braised five-spice duck’ dish is delicious enough to eat with any type of noodle.

the duck is tender, and because it’s in a soup dish, it’s not as dry as the other duck dishes I’ve ever tasted before. hoisin sauce is available on the table so it was just a delicious dish to enjoy. huge portion of noodle, a lot of duck to munch and the soup is tasty.

altogether a highly-recommended dish. the next time I order this dish, I’m requesting them to change it to rice noodle!

 

my eldest boy khaleef absolutely LOVE anything soupy so he totally enjoyed his kuey teow soup, a dish ordered from the list in the kids’ menu. I’m glad to note that the portion is huge even for a kids’ meal. delicious, enough for two. A plus!

 

seriously, this is the first time I’m using metal chopsticks. pardon me for getting a little over-excited. there’s a certain feel of authenticity when you enjoy chinese/japanese/vietnamese food using chopsticks. somehow it tastes better! haha.

 

this is ‘goi cuon’ or ‘fresh summer rolls’

 

the worst-tasting popiah i've ever eaten!!!

but wait – before you decide to take my word for it, consider that a) I don't really like popiah basah, or unfried spring roll like this; b) i don't like prawn, and c) i hate the taste of cilantro, and d) I don’t like disproportionate food (eg: more filling than the percentage of pastry in a pie bla bla) – tapi gatal nak makan just to try. amik ko. sohun pun ade dlm tu.

but mr. khairul likes it. fresh. unik. so you guys might like it too. just not my cuppa tea.

 

thanks for being a great bapak to my boys. funny, yet responsible. playful, yet strict. the boys look up to you to make them the man they’re going to be. a good role model, peacemaker and a coach. love always!

 

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‘hanoi’ is situated at JLT (jumeirah lake towers) cluster C. you’ll see the italian café ‘o pasta’ and walk down. you’ll see a pizza place, so walk further. soon you’ll see an unassuming place called ‘hanoi’. sit back and enjoy sipping your hot soup with yummy noodle.

 

save this spot for me when winter comes! to my fellow malaysians, kalau nak merasa kuey teow soup ala-ala RnR tapah, moh la ke ‘hanoi’!

Kuey Teow : Sany @ Penang & Mali’s Corner @ Taman Medan, PJ

i LOVE kuey teow!

these are two of the places i tried recently : one, on our trip to penang. and another one was recommended by my little bro-in-law right in PJ.

* * *

everytime we go to penang, we surely meet up with my in-law’s family friend, a childhood buddy to the kids – muhaidi, or fondly called ‘tato’ – don’t ask!

he wanted to take us for a kuey teow yummy time at kuey teow gagak, (read my review here) but it’s closed! so he took us to the next best thing – kuey teow sany near ‘tokong ular’. it’s just a humble little stall, but cooks up delicious dishes inside!

 

 

omg. even looking back it this picture now (i’m already back in dubai) i’m salivating! i want a plate of kuey teow now! hihi.

but there was one funny incident while we’re at kuey teow sany. you see, CHAR KUEY TEOW is kuey teow basah with gravy, and PRAWN. i don’t like prawn, so i asked the the kuey teow man to make my kuey teow with chicken instead, and also DRY.

his reply : “nih pertama kali dengaq org nak kuey teow taruh ayam nih. sat naaa..” and he proceeded to shout out my request to the cooks at the back in such a way that i was like a freak for asking such a ridiculous alternative for their original char kuey teow. haha. even tato was smirking at the incident.

 

..and here’s MY plate of kuey teow – just the way i like it! kuey teow kering taruh ayam – dry kuey teow noodle with chicken instead of prawn! and i unashamedly ordered the BIG plate! pinggan besaq!

 

mr. khairul with ‘little bro’ tato, our designated host in penang. thanks for your time, bro!

 

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when we were back in KL, my youngest bro-in-law asrar took us to ‘mali’s corner’ at taman medan, jalan klang lama. they serve delicious kuey teow, and nasi lemak kukus too (steamed glutinous rice).

this place is arguably THE place to get good char kuey teow in the klang valley – we’ll see!

 

again, i requested DRY-style kuey teow with chicken instead of prawn, but they don’t have cut-up chicken so i had the kuey teow as it is. mr. khairul was the happiest since i passed all my prawns to him! this is as tasty as a plate of kuey teow gets. and i’m sure it would be more perfect with my chicken bits!

 

this is the original version : char kuey teow basah, with prawns. mine looks more delicious! haha.

 

mr. khairul with little bro asrar.

 

we got the nasi lemak kukus too for the boys. delicious, panas-panas!

 

mali’s corner is just a couple of stalls selling kuey teow and nasi lemak, but both the dishes were really tasty. however, nothing beats the real thing in penang!

 

* * *

 

now i really, really, really want char kuey teow! *pull hair*

Penang Kuey Teow @ Dataran MBI Ipoh

that day was a rare moment for me. my 3 boys were with my in-laws in puchong, and my husband went out for supper with my uncles. i was by myself! what to do? i joined my youngest sis azi, her fiance faiz who drove us, and her best buds dot, bell and dyla on an ipoh night-outing.

me without mr. khairul, without the kids – literally single and free, in the company of the girls who are funny, chatty and giggly, and faiz is just one cool dude – it made me feel young again! haha.

 

we had char kuey teow! yum!

 

* * *

 

 

the girls were here to help out with the my sister’s kenduri kawen in whatever’s needed, and spent the night at abah’s house too. that night, after the wedding reception, i joined these young people on an outing to ipoh’s ‘gerbang malam’ – more on that in the next posting.

after that we stopped by the dataran MBI (majlis bandaran ipoh) for supper. dataran MBI is in the ipoh new town area called greentown. there are syuen hotel and ipoh parade too around the vicinity. the most distinct landmark is the clock tower right next to the MBI building, and can be seen while we enjoy our delicious local dishes, hawker-style.

these hawkers open only at night, sellling yummy local food from yong tau foo, ‘goreng-goreng’ dishes, to satay and of course, char kuey teow.

 

 

we were looking for a good plate of char kuey teow and decided to choose this stall – ‘MBI terrace – no 15 – penang char kuei tiaw special’! this stall is situated more or less opposite the textile store riamoda.

the stalls are not that many, and as you walked along the stalls looking for or still deciding what to eat, don’t be surprise if you hear many cat-calls urging you to try their food, or stop by their stall.

either these folks are a friendly lot, or because i just happened to walk together with four pretty young girls!

 

* * *

faiz and the girls ordered char kuey teow in its ‘original’ form – wet, with gravy and few prawns. they loved it, and azi said the prawns are fresh and the taste is just right. fans of char kuey teow won’t be disappointed!

 

nyum nyum slurp slurp~ let’s just say that it was so good that it was too quite in the air. semua diam je enjoying the food!

 

i ordered kuey teow chinese style too – with an added syigim style! haha. i requested my kuey teow to be DRY, no prawns, but with CHICKEN! owh, just writing about it again is making me drooling and craving for another plate! and this was a GOOD plate of kuey teow.

my only concern is that the chicken bits are not BITS at all, but these huge cut-ups with bones still attached. usually it’s the chicken white meat cut into cubes or long strands. otherwise, perfect. still taste delicious, though. i will definitely go again whenever i’m back to ipoh!

 

* * *

while we’re eating, these two ‘buskers’ or street performers stopped by and sang local songs while playing their own instruments. these dudes are talented! nice voice, and nice guitar works. they sang ‘aku anak kampung’ and he really sounded good. he should enter a talent contest haha. gaya pun ade. tak kisah la tak handsome sgt haha.

after they’re done, one of the guys took off his hat and passed it around to get some ringgit. i don’t mind, and it’s an honest way to earn some bucks for the night plus the crowd gets entertained as well!

 

yeap. it’s SO good that we bought back two packs. tapau dua bungkus tu! haha. the next morning, abah and my other sisters shared the packs during breakfast – that’s what we do when we find good food! SHARE!

Farewell Thai Food Lunch @ Black Canyon, JBR

two of my dubai gal pals are leaving dubai for good. sob sob. fida and husband amran is leaving dubai this saturday, and lin is delivering her 2nd baby sometime next 2 weeks, and then with hubby bob leaving dubai too after her confinement.

we’ve known for quite some time that lin and bob are leaving, but news of fida’s departure came as a shock to me as it’s too sudden. tiba-tiba je dapat tahu kena balik malaysia dalam sebulan-dua. uhuk uhuk. they will be sorely missed.

 

a dubai family (if you’re wondering why mr. khairul was in bike boots, he was out riding with his biker pals that morning, and came straight with his bike)

 

we treated them for a thai lunch at black canyon coffee in the walk, JBR (jumeirah beach residences). this branch is situated right opposite sheraton dubai marina, next to starbucks amwaj. it’s at the more laid-back and quiet lane of ‘the walk, JBR’, so you really won’t miss it.

‘black canyon’ in JBR offers authentic thai cuisine that’s both delicious and affordable, considering that it’s in dubai marina where everything is a little more expensive than anywhere else.

 

ladies : fida in red, lin, jaja in blue - lin’s sister vacationing in dubai, and me in purple

 

currently the weather in dubai is lovely to have your meals outside, but at 2pm, it’s quite scorching! so we took it inside and was ushered upstairs where we took hold of the entire floor. just us!

the kids went bat-crazy running around screaming and wailing while the moms and dads were able to enjoy their meals without worrying that the kids were running into the waiters or disturbing other patrons.

it was fun!

 

the dudes : my honey mr. khairul in T, lin’s hubby bob, and fida’s amran

 

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don’t go to a thai restaurant and not order TOM YAM! we always go for black canyon’s tom yam whenever we’re here. it is commendable – huge portion, with the right amount of spicy and sour. highly recommended if you ever thought of dropping by. this huge bowl can basically be shared by 2-3 people, depending on how hungry you are!

 

this is mr. khairul’s favorite, and we ordered this as well to share the uniqueness with our buddies. it’s basically sweet-spicy fried rice (fried with prawn, chicken, capsicum and pieces of pineapple) and served in a half-cut pineapple. very cute, very delicious.

the chicken bits are slightly stir-fried before adding them into the rice which explains the slight brownish look on the chicken – and i love it! the first time i tried it i didn’t immediately like it since i thought it’s too sweet for fried rice, but it kind off grows on me, especially since mr. khairul loves it so much. it’s a unique dish, and try it if you’re curious!

 

we also tried this. well, i will try ANY kuey teow i find in dubai just so i could find the ONE that taste like penang/ipoh char kuey teow! this kuey teow in black canyon – well, imagine you fry kuey teow in sweet chilli sauce – that’s how it tasted like. it’s tasty, but incomparable to our malaysian style fried kuey teow!

however, i appreciate them putting aside the taugeh. saves me time asking them to fry without the taugeh! hihi.

 

we basically had white rice with lauk-lauk (savoury dishes, thai style) from top left : red chicken curry, green chicken curry, beef and broccoli, a fish dish with mix vege, kerabu sohun, and my favorite fried calamari.

i would recommend green chicken curry as it’s delicious and unique though if you’re looking for something spicy, this is not it. sedap, tapi tak pedas sangat ok. the fish was so-so, because the texture was soft but i don’t find any specialty about its preparation. i would be biased against the kerabu since i’m not a fan, but the fast-emptying plate clearly shows that the rest enjoyed it!

the fried calamari – what can i say, freshly fried – crispy and crunchy. also recommended. i just wish the portion was bigger with that price.

 

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pulut mangga – glutinous rice with mango

 

what better way to cap this farewell lunch than a sweet dessert shared with sweet dear friends? we ordered the pulut mangga – warm glutinous rice served with cut-up sweet mangoes and sweet-salty coconut milk poured on top.

this is one delicous dessert – the combination of the warm glutinous rice with the cold mango gives quite a party in your mouth. and the sweet-salty coconut milk just adds to the richness of the dessert. yummy!

one complain – it’s too expensive for this small plate of humble dessert, and i advice you to order this ONLY if you’re really craving! haha.

 

makan sepinggan membawa berkat hihi

 

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noisy kiddos : from left : kahfi behind haffiy in white shirt, amily is hugging him, adam in red, khaleef holding his hand and kazim walking aimlessly in front

 

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now for my touching sad speech. huhu.

we didn’t see each other as often as i would hoped, but throughout our friendship, i found them to be friendly and easy to go into conversation with – senang nak ajak borak. when we see each other during events or makan-makan at friends’ house, it’s just easy to hang out with these gals as we can get along well. boleh masuk-masuk la kata orang melayu. hihi.

lin is the sweetest, and always smiling while her husband bob is just one charming dude. perfectly lovely couple, with great sense of humor. amran is just the nicest, soft-spoken guy around, while fida is the dubai baker i always go for to get the most delicious cakes. last year i think we ordered about 4-5 cakes from fida for the boys’ birthdays – and ALL of them are carrot almond cake with cream cheese, nothing else!

most importantly, they are the kind of friends you can count on. i will forever remember that one fateful night away from mr. khairul, and had to sought help from these brothers and sisters of dubai. their help was unconditional, and was offered without the slightest hesitation. i am grateful to be in dubai with friends like these. alhamdulillah!

take care now, and keep in touch for we “meet new friends, but keep the old – one is silver, but the other one is gold.” till we meet again! *hugs*