Bites: Hong Kong BBQ @ Francis Street, Northbridge.

Mom and dad were here last week so it was only reasonable if I had brought them out for a meal.  But dad’s preference for Chinese food is a little tricky to work with as my sister does not really like roast.  So when she is not around, I brought them to HK BBQ on Francis Street.  Leaving home for awhile now, decadent roast meats are never too far away thanks to a few restaurants which I frequent including this one and Good Fortune.   For me, both are equally lovely but when it comes to dining in, nothing beats the revamped interior of Hong Kong Barbecue.

Large roast came with crispy skinned roast pork and deliciously flavored roast duck.  Finger licking good!  No need to provide a description but what is better than that crunchy bit of skin followed by juicy roast pork with the savory bottom bit?  Nothing. Nom nom nom!

The fried tooth fish is another crowd pleaser.  Its crispy on the edges and the buttery fish just flakes of layer after layer.  Not to mention, HK BBQ has the perfect condiments and sauce to make what normally is a common fish, a super treat!  Funny thing how the fish is kept frozen upon being caught from the artic yet stays perfectly in shape.  But the local fish shops in the area always condemn the quality of the tooth fish!  Do not even know why!! This is yummy!!

Braised bean curd with vegetables!  A final course of greens, bean curd and mushroom to finish the meal. While this was not the most refreshing vegetable course, it provided a subtle finish to an already delicious meal!

 

Being a frequent customer of HK BBQ, I never quite knew what this restaurant ranked in urbanspoon.  Looking it up at work today, this restaurant landed a well deserved 3rd place out of all the Chinese restaurants.  Definitely a kickass place which I would frequent over and over!  SWEET.

 

WenY

Bites: Ming Court (2 Michelin Stars) @ Langham Place, Hong Kong

One very simple rule about traveling.  If you are really on a food journey, then you really have to try the best local food.  And so I did.  With so many restaurants in the country, one would literally be lost in translation.  Where do I go to?  This?  That? Where? Whatttttttttt?  But with Michelin guides, you do not have too many to choose from.  Just a simple list.  For my Christmas Eve dinner, I thought to myself, instead of leaving Mongkok and crowd with everyone heading to Tsim Sha Shui or Central, we would just eat in the hotel itself.  But Langham Place is no lousy hotel and that includes having quality restaurants too.  This includes the 2 Michelin Star Chinese Restaurant, Ming Court.  Coming at 8pm we  were promptly attended to and was brought to a table which was already awaiting our arrival.  I have to say even without a picture, that the restaurant looked fantastic.  Its long and warmly lit walkway made me feel like I was in Rockpool for a bit!

 

On the table:

Dipping sauces of XO Sauce and Spicy Bean Paste.

 

Then comes the food we ordered.  While most have praised Yung Kee in Central for their divine roast goose, I have to insist that the one in Ming Court was pretty damn good too.It has probably one of the best roast goose skin I have ever eaten.  It was really crisp!  But one thing I found rather weird was that the goose itself was not extremely tasty.  It was the sauce the goose was sitting on that tasted really delicious.  The meat was nothing to rave about but it was still fairly juicy for a roast!  However, goose being what it is felt a bit sickening after awhile as these had a good amount of fat in it.  5 ladies and 1 guy had problems finishing this meager first course.  I lol’ed.

 

Second coarse was the Bean Curd Sheet, Dried Shrimp Roe, White Button Mushroom, Chinese Black Mushrooms.Despite the bean curd and mushrooms looking extremely heavy in flavor, it was not.  The flavor felt subtle, no Chinese Oyster Sauce overdose whatsoever.  It was just very light and gentle where you can really taste each individual flavors. In fact, it was the broccoli that complemented the dish with a salty braising sauce drizzled over it.  The shrimp roe here appeared to me as a textural element along with a little fragrant more than anything else.  Sandy little bugger.

 

Fish Maw, Vegetable, Bean curd, Mushrooms.In my life, I have never eaten such weird looking fish maw ever ever before.  I guess this was one of the higher grade ones.  Then again, I have always though fish maw to be puffy little tubes.  But that does not matter much.  This was great as the broth was awesome.  Could have been better but good thing it was light because most of the dishes I have ordered were quite heavy on the palate.

 

Third Course was the 2009 HK Silver Culinary Award Winner the Giant Groper Enrobed in Minced Shrimp, Pepper Shrimp.I really liked this one.  The minced shrimp on the fillet provided a nice chewiness to the fish.  And oh, the still crispy skin of the fish made this really moorish! Definitely could have more of that!  While I did not touch the prawn head, Nigga’s mom happily ate a few.  And while the vegetables look like decorative items, they were meant to tone the dish giving a healthier feel.  Not that it mattered to me.  I was on holiday! hohohoho!

 

Fourth Course was an in-house signature dish of Silky Egg White, Pepper Shrimp, Crispy Perilla Leaf.While this was a feast to the eyes, we slow eaters left it out for too long making these fluffy layers of egg white pillows oily.  The food really came out quite quickly @@!  I guarantee it could have been very pleasant when ate warm but I guess we were a little too slow!  The prawns that was hidden inside though was still delicious with a hint of pepper.  More importantly, it was cooked spot on! :)!

 

The fifth course was a course of Pan-Seared Chicken, Water Chestnuts,Black Truffle, Buttery Pumpkin.  It was something all us agreed tasted like a Michelin Starred Creation!  More importantly for Ming Court, this dish was awarded a Gold Medal in the 2010 HK Culinary Awards.  The idea was simple a chicken cake mixed with finely diced chestnuts for that little bits of sweet crunchy feeling.  Buttery pumpkin did its job of bring subtle sweetness along with  buttery sensation.  The whole idea for me went really really well.  It was tasty, yet light on the palate despite looking like something drenched in black pepper sauce.  The truffle was used sparingly and provided no more than a modest coating.  Delicious!  It for me was the star of the night!

 

Our final course to fill the already filled tummies were diced black chicken fried rice.This although fried to perfection, it did not entice me.  The “wok-hei” as the Chinese calls it or flavor of a hot wok was really alluring but somehow, the flair of an old school yong chow fried rice would have sufficed.  No need for fancy black chicken or additional ingredients.  Nonetheless, this was not a bad fried rice at all. 

 

Our meal at Ming Court was really enjoyable but in terms of pricing, one would definitely not call Ming Court cheap.  The meal for 6 including tea added up to 2000HKD or $40 a head which is pretty on par with most upper market places in Australia.  However, the quality and ingredients used today were no simple thing one can easily order outside.  But was this really a 2 Michelin Star restaurant?  I really found that a difficult question to answer.  The roast goose felt somewhat lackluster for something so highly rated.  The bean curd dish was special but not quite that 2 stars along with the fried rice and fish maw dish.  But when it came to the shrimp enrobe giant groper or the chicken with truffles, I decided to put the petty issues aside and enjoy the food for what it was worth.  Such special dishes in my opinion might not be super new because fusing two meat together has been done quite frequently, but the way Ming Court does it, I was sold.   So there you have it.  Will I return?   Yes.  Next time around, I know what I would order :)!

 

WenY

Bites: Overseas Restaurant @ Jalan Imbi, Kuala Lumpur

Having celebrated dad’s birthday so many times, I soon realized that I have never paid his dinner once.  Since I have started work, this spelt the perfect opportunity to treat him to his favourite food.  Chinese food.  While Malaysia is a heaven for foods of all sort, our Chinese food is easily one of the best in the world.  But as restaurants become overly popular, they become way too commercialized.  One such restaurant is Overseas Restaurant in Malaysia.  While I have tried so many of their branch restaurants before, I was never a fan of any.  Yet, the hype of this charming old spice continued in Malaysia.  So for this rare occasion, I decided to bring dad to Overseas first roots located along Jalan Imbi in the heart of the city center :)!

 

Calling some of dad’s favorites, I decided to start with a Chinese delicacy, the sharks fin soup!

While I am not a big fan, this one definitely blows your mind!

 

The next dish was the four season which is a large appetizer platter containing four types of dishes.  That night we had:

Sharks fin and crab meat Sang Choi Bao.  Very nicely prepared.  And for me, definitely a good variation of lettuce wrap compared to the overeaten duck Sang Choi Bao.

 

Braised bean curd stuff with fish paste.  Deliciously braised in a sauce which coated these tiny morsel nicely!

 

Crumbled prawns with fish paste.  Crispy on the outside soft on the inside!   Best eaten with the garlic-chili sauce!

 

Crumbled scallops drizzled with mayonnaise!   Another kid favourite but at this age, I could easily do with lesser fried foods lols.

 

Another house specialty at Overseas! 

Homemade tofu with hairy gourd!  Really yummy and more importantly, smooth on the inside!

 

Overseas Restaurant Roast Pork!  Crispy skinned delicacy!  Very lean but still pack that beautiful crunch!

 

Overseas's Barbecued Pork is another highlight among it frequent customers.  But for the family, we have tasted better.    Then again, this is easily delicious when compared to most restaurants!

 

To finish the night, we also ordered a ginger steamed fish and a longevity noodles! While the noodles turned out fine, the fish was really salty.  Probably intended to be eaten with rice rather than on its own @@!  If more complains are needed from me, my only comment would be the slow service which could be due to us being seated in a private room on the 3rd floor @@!

 

Dad’s favourite cake is the classic butter cake with a butter icing made by an old aunty.  No fake cream or unnecessary additives.  Just plain honest butter cake from the olden days!  Pretty delish except for that after thought on how unhealthy each slice is!   lol much?

 

At the end of the day, this restaurant was pretty impressive.  I guess the original is always the best.  Never could I have understood why is it that parents have shun this place.  But when you see the effort required to reach this restaurant in the heart of the city, you will probably understand why @@!  This restaurant now span 4 floors above the ground which  is an impressive feat.  But when you learn that they have more than 6 branches around the state, their success is clear! 

 

For those who are concerned about cleanliness in dining in Malaysia, this restaurant definitely is the place to be!  But remember that booking is compulsory for most nights!  Specialty dishes like the sharks fin and barbecued meat are very popular and often finish early.  So always pre-order :)!   Also, do not expect this old school restaurant to be cheap!  By Malaysian standards a meal like this should only cost around $300 but for this restaurant, it was something closer to $550.  All in ringgit of course :)!

 

Address:

84 Jalan Imbi, 55100 Kuala Lumpur,

Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Phone:+60 3-2144 9911

 

They also have a website which can be accessed here  Overseas Restaurant Website.

 

WenY!

Bites: Dragon Seafood @ Northbridge.

While its younger brother Dragon Palace on Francis Street is known for the posh and glitzy interior, its the older Dragon Seafood that still packs the punch many might have overlooked in search of ambience.  My lunch there earlier this week clearly proved that because if anything at all, Dragon Palace merely recreates the quality of dim sum seen at Dragon Seafood.

The usual suspects included the Siew Mai which pack a burst of juicy pork and delicious prawns under the same skin.  As I have mentioned before, the Siew Mai at Dragon Palace is the best in my opinion and this clearly was not any lesser.

These were deep fried crab cakes which were ok.  Typically, I find most Chinese Restaurant using crab flavored meat than the real deal itself.  This was no different.

Bean curd rolls were one of the more moreish food that lunch.  I enjoyed it delicious filling of meat, vegetables and prawn.  The braising sauce used was flavorsome as expected.

Sister’s favorite were the pot stickers which did not appeal on the outside but on the inside, it was all game on.  Super juicy pork meat with the perfect amount of green onions.  Perfect for dunking in the vinegar or enjoyed just by itself!

These are one of my dim sum favorite but as I have always complained, the chicken feet in Perth are plagued with inconsistency revolving about the tenderness of the dish.  More often than not, the dish has not been given sufficient time in the steamer making it touch to chew.  Unfortunately, this is one of those times :(!

Last but not the least were the egg tarts.  Not only is this a favorite of mine, but dad’s as well.  These were delicious except for the fact that they were serve cold which possibly indicates the lack of demand.

At the end, the food was no 10 out of 10 but neither was it a flop.  For me it is good as the benchmark of dim sum has been met.  But the usual complain is what really stands out to make a dim sum place outstanding.  For me, there isn’t a factor that makes this place perform better than other.  But if you hate the queue and can do with a less dainty setup, Dragon Seafood definitely meets that criteria.  Also, chili sauce and oil is a self service thing here with no extra charge, so if you are sick and tired of flagging one waiter after the other just for sauces, this might just be your cue!  Despite a rush lunch, I was satisfied with the food I had.

WenY

Bites: Dim Sum @ Café Delight

Last week, the lads and I had a little dim sum adventure where we tried a new Yum Cha place called Café Delight nearby my office.  I have to say, the interior looks pretty damn good as it has just recently opened.  But the layout of the entrance obviously showed that the restaurant expected long queues which hmm lets just say that has not turned out quite correct yet.

Its food was not the tastiest and at best, most were mediocre.

The prawn dumplings felt rather typical.  Not that it tasted bad but after having so many, most seem to taste the same.  One point to note was that the dumplings were cooked spot on as the skin did not break when we brought it out.   Prawns were springy not powdery I guess this it a good thing.

Another thing we ordered was the chicken feet which I found was well marinated.  It was sweet, and salty with just the perfect amount of heat which is not too much at all.  I liked the way the skin was puffed and fell right of the bone when I ate it.  This to me is the most important thing for a dish like that.  No bad smell as well, so yay!

We also ordered bean curd skin rolls and congee which were all ok but then again, mind blowing it was not. Too many thing here felt rather typical.

At the end of the meal, we also ordered things like the egg tart, chicken pie, rice flour rolls and chili pepper squid.  All of which were under average compared to its peers with the exception of the chili pepper squid.  Chicken pie felt certain as if they were trying to copy New Moon/Dim Sim Café all of which I believe are related to Hoi’s Kitchen when I try certain dishes.  The fillings of the pie were shadowed by what seemed like an eternity of pastry! Rice flour roll was deceptive with a thin layer of the roll on top ending with 3 layers at the bottom.  My dim sum comment shall always be the same about rice flour rolls in Perth! They suck so bad!!  But what made me happy was the squid which was crispy and really tasty which to some would equate to very salty.

When I asked the guys what they thing about the food, Mr Cincai said “OK” which he always does,  while Chau said it was OK, but felt really bland at some point.  Win reckon’s Dragon Palace is better.  To me, many things that day felt lucky.  Well cooked chicken feet and good dumpling skin has always been a matter of luck for most diners.  Sometimes if you are lucky it is good, sometimes everything feels overcooked and falls off the dumpling.  Chicken feet always has the issue of being too tough.  Fry it more! Soak it in colder water! or just braise it more!  But when intimidating crowds of 100s queue outside, I guess dim sum business really becomes the hardest!  Would this be a valid excuse for us to pay continue paying $20 per head when the quality fluctuates so much?  I wonder.

WenY

Bites: Imperial Court @ Como

Sometimes, after seeing a few reviews, I thought I know what my favourite dish would be when I visited a restaurant.  But just when you thought so, be prepared to expect the unexpected.  Walking in here I noticed that the man managing the whole place actually owns the HK Tea Cafe along James St. unless I saw wrongly. At 11.30 in the morning, we were quickly greeted by the lady who manages the place.  I’d reckon this is the perfect time for a yam cha session minus the crowd :)!

First up!  Har Gou/Prawn Dumpling!

While most places do not fail in taste and fresh prawns, most of them never succeed in cooking the dumplings properly.  Unlike most places, these were fresh and the skin did not tear while being picked with my chopsticks.  Definitely no overcooking for this one!

Darling’s favourite Pork and Century Egg porridge was also nice.  A lot better than the one’s we have had at Golden Century and Dragon Palace, but nowhere near the ones we had in Hong Kong!  While this was not blend, I think the eggy taste from the salted and century egg really help the porridge in Hong Kong shine!

The Siew Mai were also delicious here.  I like the additional touch of dried scallops.  Not much taste but a sign of generosity!  It was nice and perfectly cooked once again! But was this mind blowing? Hmm not really that but it was nice!

The rave all over has been with the pork dumplings in a delicious fish broth.  With much admiration, the fish broth was a genius idea.  These juicy Shanghai dumplings had an almost perfect mince which packed a juicy bite with a hot warm soup in there.  The very subtle flavour of the broth toned the flavours nicely!   There was a near perfect balance here.  Comparing my previous experience in Perth, the one in Xin Tian Di, Golden Century and most places have never really satisfied my cravings for Shanghai dumpling!  It is now good that the little darling’s favourite in Dragon Palace now have a nearer alternative!   However though, the skin was slightly, very slightly undercooked.  At most 30 more seconds in the steamer!

The next dish was a new and interesting addition to add to my culinary list!

Imperial Court’s Teochew style dumplings with black sesame.  This was a good one as well.  Even the lady manager said this was yums! The texture was a slightly chewy skin an a tasty filling of meat, vegetables and black sesame.  I felt like perhaps a little more filling would be good but this is a nice eat!  While I have eaten a typical Teochew style dumpling, never have I had one with black sesame.

The chilli pepper squid was tasty but  fishman found it a little salty.  Also, despite hitting all the right notes in terms of taste a little bit more fiery would have been much appreciated! And of course, it needs to be more crunchy too! It was a little chewy when it reached my table!

These little radish cake here again felt like a hit and miss.  It had the right recipe for the perfect radish cake.  The little bit of meat, a mixture of both well blended radish as well as bite size pieces, but it all came crashing down when it felt a little too mushy! But then again, perhaps because this was steamed.  Next time around, pan fried!

In recent years, chicken feet has became a staple at my yum cha sessions!  I often look forward to a rich slightly sticky sauce and when it comes out my mouth, it comes out clean.  At Imperial Palace, I felt that the sauce was slightly runny but what it lacked in taste, it made up for it in terms of cooking.  Very well cooked. For the flavours, I would have like something richer, more savoury a little more salt and sweetness from the a reduced sauce is definitely the way to go.

The rice roll with barbecue pork and coriander was another deceptive dish.  The top roll was the best cooked one out of the lot.  It was perfectly rolled out, thin and delicate.  When it came to the bottom two, it did not live up to the expectations of the first.  We were back to square one with the rice roll slightly thicker than what I like.  But then again, this seems to be an issue which have plagued dim sum places all over the city!  If it wasn’t this time, it would be the next and it happens over and over again.

The last dish is my typical way of finishing my meal at a yam cha place.  And for me, Imperial Court made this ending as sweet as it could have been! I was gobsmacked.

Your typical egg tarts! Just moments ago, we were complaining of the deteriorating service over the course of an hour heading into their peak at 12.20pm.  Almost then we thought we might do without the egg tarts! Luckily we did not do so.  These golden beauties came out looking too thick on the pastry but gosh I was wrong. One bite and it was heavenly.  To some, the runny hot custard in the middle might be a little undercooked but god that transition of consistency from the crunchy outside to a jelly-like inside with a nirvana runny centre was too good to resist.  Seriously wow for me.  Perhaps that is too much a praise for an egg tart.  But for a person who loves his egg tarts, this was kickass.

Overall, my experience at Imperial Court was pleasant.  Starting with some of the best har gao and siew mai in town and not to mention a really delicious Shanghai dumpling, what can I say?  Even the deteriorating service was forgotten with that sweet ending of a really top quality egg tart.  Was this a once off that the selected few dishes were shining ever so brightly? I can never say the answer but when you pay them a visit, you will know.  So when will you be heading there for a try? Because I know I will be! Soon! At the very least, for a confirmation :P!

WenY

Bites: Old Cathay @ Victoria Park

Last Sunday, my sister decided have the Moon Cake festival dinner earlier since the little darling, and I were going to be super busy with our mid-semester tests during the mid-autumn festival itself.  Without much ado, we book a table for all of us at Old Cathay in Victoria Park which sits comfortable underneath the Monadelphous Office.  As we went in, I enjoyed the assurance of a large crowd at the restaurant.  But I suspect that part of the crowd was actually using coupons which were sold a couple of weeks ago!    Nevertheless, it did not matter much! I was going to eat here anyways :P!

 

The Menu

 

There was 7 of us that night, so we decided to order 6 dishes.  Some were blogger recommendations, others were simply what we felt like having :)

Our first dish was the Curry Fish Claypot with Lady’s Fingers @$24.50.  The sauce looked slightly pale at first which in contrast to its taste, was miles apart! The curry sauce was aromatic, rich and downright delicious!  It was well liked among us all.  However, things did not turn out so well for the fish due to the deplorable quality of the meat which had a horrible consistency.   After the first slice of fish, I never took another.  This left me with mixed feelings because it now seems that the hero material turned out to be the much coveted sauce and the lady’s finger instead of the fish.. now.. you would not pay $25 bucks for sauce and vegetables would you..

 

But before I could whine another word, the Sweet & Sour Pork @ $15.80 came!

Before I talk about this dish, let me talk about the TYPE of Sweet & Sour Pork I like.  It’s simple, the pork must still hold some crunch.  I hate a Sweet & Sour Pork dish where the batter uses baking powder which develops a soft batter which makes the meat look non-existent.  The sauce must not be overly sweet, and must be tangy!  By tangy I mean that sharp aroma when it first reaches the table!  And the one at Old Cathay had it all.  A typical Malaysian Sweet & Sour Pork which was YUMS!

 

The next dish was the Eggplant with Minced Pork and Salted Fish in Claypot @ $15.80!  While this dish sounded promising, the taste was slightly too salty for my liking.  Initially, I did not like it but after a few more pieces, I was like “Hey! This is actually quite good!”. This dish is one of those claypot styled eggplant dishes which admittedly, goes well with steamed rice!  But this deviated from my usual eggplant dish which is normally cooked with minced meat and preserved bean sauce.  Still yummy though!

 

After this came the star of the night, the Steamed Whole Herbal Chicken @ $34.80!

I know this picture totally sucks! But OMG, the herbal chicken was super nice!  While having corn starch mixed into the sauce was not the best way to go about it, everything else was undeniably good!  The chicken was soft, the skin sinfully tasty.  The herbs were just right!  And this kept us refilling our rice bowls! The little darling herself had 2 bowls while my sister definitely ruined her diet plan.  It was good, what more when we were starving!! Definitely a winner that night.

 

Next was the Sizzling Beancurd with  Shredded Chicken and Mushrooms @ $16.80!! This dish was quite atypical.  Nothing outstanding unfortunately! Next time I will try out their Giu Fei Beancurd which is popular among diners there! Could that be my replacement for the Fuzhou Beancurd @ Hawkers?  The last dish for the night was the Sambal Longbean @ $14.80 which turned out mediocre only.  At least for me, the beans just were not up to expectations! Next time, I will request for Sambal Spinach or Kangkung instead! 

 

To end the night, we ordered a few desserts to share. Being in a Malaysian restaurant, it was only normally that were ordered something which reminds us of home! And we surely did!

A trio of ice creams which are a close remake of the Ice Cream Potong in Malaysia! The jackfruit (yellow), pandan (green) and taro (purple)!  The waitress told us that the ice creams were homemade.  After tasting them all, I liked the jackfruit the best.  It had that necessary taste and fragrant.  The pandan taste was a little too mild while the taro was missing that little saltiness that most taro ice cream has! 

 

After enjoying a good meal, we were satisfied.  While most of the food were delicious, (only naturaly considering the chef is Malaysian) a few things needs to be done to improve the vegetable dishes and the curry fish.  To sum it all, Old Cathay is a good eat with decors that are equally impressive and worth boasting.  The waitress were eager to serve unlike a few restaurants which I will not point out.  Overall, I was satisfied and its definitely a restaurant which I will be visiting again shortly!  Before finishing and paying, sister and I naughtily dropped a request for Durian Ice Cream to be put on the menu.  For most Malaysians, Durian Ice Cream will definitely be a treat.  And I also need to thank the little darling’s dad who treated us that night.  Hohohoo! Free meal xD!

 

WenY