Review: Baba Low's 486 Bangsar

I've been reading about this little Nyonya place sometime back but never got a chance to give it a try as it was tucked away in the old housing area of Bangsar. Baba Low's 486 is located in a row of shop houses near Bangsar Heights. Since it's surrounded by houses, there isn't much parking spaces here but most times one can get lucky since most people doesn't park here for long.

Capt'n Hook decided to eat light but somehow he ended up ordering 3 appetisers and of course I took bites of them. The first was Tauhu Sumbat which is basically fried tofu stuffed with cucumber and turnips (sengkuang/jicama) strips drizzled with a sweetish chilly peanut sauce. Baba Low serves a rather plain tasting version with the flavourings only coming from the sauce.



Then there's a Otak-otak served with bread pieces. Kind of a first for us having them with bread. There are 2 largish pieces of cat fish (ikan keli) if not mistaken with bones and all intact. Capt'n Hook who dislikes to eat fish because of bad experience with its bones didn't like the idea of having otak-otak this way. For me, if one has the time to suck on to the meat and bones, then it could be enjoyable.



The popiah is well stuffed with cooked turnips, cucumber strips and sliced omelette. The skin looked homemade to me as it's thickish and not paper thin.



Then my piece de resistance, Nyonya Laksa! It came in a medium sized bowl and looked like a rather small portion but do not be fooled by it's size! The thickish santan (coconut milk) laced soup filled one up rather quickly. Luckily the noodles portion is just nice and has a good number of shredded chicken in it.



I have to order the cendol when Capt'n Hook was on his way for his second bowl. The ice is shaven fine piled over pandan tainted cendol strips and soft kidney beans topped with fragrant gula melaka and coconut milk. I concurred with Capt'n Hook that the cendol here is not too bad at all! The sweetness of the gula melaka is just nice and loved the creaminess of the coconut milk used here.



I've lost the receipt and I can't remember how much we have paid for this meal. The prices are more than coffee shop definitely and it's quite reasonable but I don't mind paying a little more since the restaurant is airy, spacious and quite comfortable, but most importantly the food is not bad to boost.

I was reading The Star and Baba Low's proprietor is from Malacca and is of Baba Nyonya descendant. The family owned an eatery in Malacca and I wonder if it's the one that is named 486 Baba Low?


Baba Low's 486 Bangsar
Lorong Kurau, Bangsar

59100 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 012-324 7200 / 03-2284 8486
Business hours: 7.00am - 7.00pm (Mon-Sat)
Map




I'm submitting this for Muhibbah Malaysian Monday blog event. This event is the brainchild of  Shaz (Test With A Skewer) and Suresh (3 Hungry Tummies). Read more here.

Review: Penang Village @ Alamanda, Putrajaya

**Halal**

Dealing with the Government departments in our country at most times can be quite a pain even for a simple thing like renewing BoiBoi's passport. Since he was born in 2002, he doesn't have a MyKid as it was only introduced in the following year. We managed to get him a passport 5 years ago and it's right about time for renewal. I went to the Immigration website to download the form and in the process, I found out that in order to renew his passport, he needs a MyKid!!! @#*%& 

Yes it's really a wtf situation since it's only renewal bleh! So no choice lorrr, I jumped into JPN's website and urrrghhh it's totally not very informative but luckily we can go to Putrajaya where JPN headquarter is on weekends to get things done. 

Come Saturday late morning we headed to JPN Putrajaya and got BoiBoi's MyKid done all under 5 mimutes! Sighhh... since it's approaching lunch time, I guess our best bet of finding food would be Putrajaya's one and only mall, Alamanda. Ermmm it must have been years since we last came here cos I remember clearly BoiBoi running around the lake front. Omigosh... its like errrr 5 years ago cos there was one picture of him in his stroller LOL and he last used it when he was 3+!!!

Seems like the majority of the tenants have changed except for Carrefour. Oh my there's even a Cold Storage here! Anyway, since we were quite blur, Capt'n Hook suggested to go outside to the lake side as he remember there are quite a number of restaurants there. We walked a bit and decided on Penang Village.

Our last visit to Penang Village was the TTDI branch a few years ago and the food was rather bad on that day hence we never step in again :p 

As we walked in, the decor of this place looked much more pleasant and very bright due to natural light coming from the sky roof. Service was efficient and our order was taken within minutes of sitting down.

BoiBoi opted for the Fried Rice set from the Kids Menu at RM9.90 with 2 choices of drinks. Since he didn't like both, I took his Soy Bean with Cincau whilst he ordered plain Soy Bean (RM3.50). 

His rice tasted decent and I can tell it's freshly fried. The rice came with some fries on the side and a fried egg on top. LOL there was a funny moment as the egg looked like bulls eye but I think they must have precooked the egg earlier that it has harden so when BoiBoi poke his spoon on the yolk, he said out loud "Why so hard one???!!!"

Capt'n Hook's Belacan Fried Rice (RM14.90) came with 2 pieces of fried chicken, kerabu mango and some fried fish crackers. The rice is flavourful since it has belacan (shrimp paste) in it, yes yums albeit the chicken looked sad and dry.

By now our Oyster Omelette is delivered to the table. Hmmm doesn't look like Penang style and there were some kind of tangy chilli sauce is added to the frying process. This omelette is not too bad.

My Char Mee Suah (RM9.90) took a while to arrive. When it does, it's piping hot! Glad that it's full of wok hei which made the noodles wonderful. Liked it with the accompanying sambal belacan with a squeeze of calamansi lime.

Capt'n Hook ended his meal with a decent Cendol (RM6.90) with loads of red beans, kidney beans and green stringy cendol. We liked it that they did not used canned red beans nor kidney beans.

Seems like the quality of the food depends on the location? I guess we ought to give them second chance huh. Anyway, it's also brilliant of them to offer set menu of dishes to be served with rice and it's great for Great Eastern Mall branch to offer dim sum.

Our total bill came up to RM68.20 after the additional 10% service charge and there is no Government tax.

Restaurant Penang Village
Lot G89, Ground Floor,

Alamanda Shopping Centre,

Jalan Alamanda Presint 1, 

62000 Putrajaya

Tel: +603 8888 4268

Review: Nyonya Yue Sang at Peranakan Place

**Halal**


It was already 4 in the afternoon and Capt'n Hook nagged me for not making reservations at Canton-i but hey as far as I know, I don't think they accept reservation. Anyway I googled the number and called numerous times but no one pick up the call. So we left Kepong ahead of my family and head on to 1 Utama hoping to "chup" a place BUT BUT BUT the shutters were down!!! Ohhhh you just dunno how much the old man nagged!!! *roll eyes* and this was the Friday before eve of CNY urrghhh... on closer look at the piece of paper stuck on the shutter... ahhhh they've shut for their annual dinner.

After making a couple of calls later, I picked up a flyer at the reception and saw Nyonya style yue sang (raw fish salad) is served at Peranakan Place which is just a floor up. We decided on this place since we've been there for a couple of times and I think it'll be good to check out their dishes. Moreover, it will be a change from the usual Chinese dishes. Just a word of warning... lousy pics ahead as I need to hurry before the food got attacked.

When we sat down, my family arrived just in time to place our order. We started off with a platter of Nyonya style yue sang which is kinda totally different from the usual Chinese ones. It has portions of pomelo, pickled ginger strips, deep fried yam strips, fresh red onions, raw mango strips and the usual crisps, crushed peanuts and sesame seeds. The sauce is not the usual plum sauce and the oil is already mixed into it. It is served with generous slices of salmon, the thickest and freshest that I've ever eaten! There were white pepper powder and 5 spice powder which seems quite a lot but the staff assured us that we need to add in all into our yue sang. After the customary lou hei, time for a taste. There were mixed review round the table. Capt'n Hook didn't like it as he's a traditionalist. My brother who detest strong sesame seeds oil and raw onion said it's not nice but the general consensus was it was a refreshing change.



Next the dishes started to arrive. A must order in a Peranakan restaurant is Sambal Prawn with Petai! Hmm my favourite but not the best I've eaten.



Since we have tasted their Deep Fried Honey Squid and loved it, we ordered this again. The squid are coated with a sweetish honey sauce and the best part is - it's still crispy! *crunch crunch*



Stir-fried Paku (a type of ferns) in Sambal Belachan was just mediocre as it's lacking of wok hei (breath of a wok).



Chicken Pong Teh for boiboi... not as great as my version kekeke



This tofu dish is also for boiboi. The egg tofu is homemade and came with a thickish eggy mushroom gravy. After this dish I think we'll have to stick with their spicy dishes. Even though I liked sesame seeds oil but this one is overwhelming! All we could taste was sesame seeds oil.



I had always like Cencaru Stuffed with Sambal (RM10 for one fish) and will always have them whenever I spot them but this round my mom jumped on the chance and asked for this when I told her it's available. Since they are deep fried instead of shallow fried, the fish turned out very crispy. Excellent! By the way, do removed the skin before eating :D



My parents loved their Durian Cendol (forgot to take a pic) that came with large blop of durian puree on top of the shaved ice which looked so enticing that Capn't Hook asked for one too!

Can't provide the price as I did not pay for the meal. Overall, I felt this place is quite ok but definitely not the best but one of the better places in the building.


Peranakan Place
F221C First Floor
One Utama
Bandar Utama
Tel: (603) 77288 728

Review: Nyonya Colors @ The Gardens

Just as my past visit to Nyonya Colors at 1 Utama, this round at The Gardens did not disappoint us. We loved the Nyonya inspired decor, let alone the colourful, pretty and tantalising kuih-muih on display which is kinda evil as they call out "bite me, bite me" whilst you queue to order and pay for your food.

Capt'n Hook had Nasi Lemak Pandan with Chicken Rendang. I stole some bites and totally loved the fragrant pandan infused steamed rice! Look how generous the portion of chicken.



Boiboi picked plain old Chee Cheung Fun (flat rice roll RM3.90) which didn't disappoint. How I know?? Cos my boiboi finished 3/4 of the portion!



Since I knew I would be the one who will have to sapu (wipe off) my boiboi's unfinished ccf, I opted for a packet of plain Nasi Lemak (RM2.50 not exactly cheap huh?) and Mee Siam (RM2.50)

Capt'n Hook's Bubur Cha Cha (RM3.80) was no match to our fave in Penang. A little too watery for me but I like the black eyed peas in there.



I loved the Hak Lo Mai (Black Glutinous Rice RM3.30) though as it came very thick and filled with santan (coconut milk) flavour. If you prefer a watery kinda tong shui, you can skip this.



We have some kuih-muih too but was too preoccupied in eating, hence no pics, but I have to say the kuih-muih were fantastic albeit they came in such small piece that I could eat them in one mouthful bite!


Nyonya Colors
LG 230A, Lower Ground Floor
The Gardens Shopping Mall
Mid Valley City
Kuala Lumpur


Technorati Tags: malaysian food + nyonya

Review: Red Door Cafe & Restaurant

Red Door is one of my parents' favourite joint but seriously I don't find them that great, just mediocre on the number of occassions I have joined them for dinner. Even though claimed by a couple food writers that this place serves authentic Nyonya food but I chose to digress. We have ordered ala carte dishes to go with rice but the portion is way too small and doesn't taste fantastic, let alone authentic. Funny that this place is always packed on weekends, well maybe there isn't much choice in Jusco Metro Prima.

Since sometime back, they decided to widen their menu by introducing individual meals like noodles or rice and when we went there recently, they have some additional items added to the menu as well.

I went for their Duck Noodles (RM8.80). The soup is of the herbal kind which is similar to the famous duck noodle found at Pun Chun, Bidor but clearer. Hubby was busying helping himself to my soup whilst waiting for his Char Koay Teow (stir fried flat rice noodles).

This was hubby's Char Koay Teow (RM6.80) which I tried a bite. Great to note it has enough "wok hei", a must for Char Koay Teow. Tastewise, it was surprising a good one.

Dad ordered Hainanese Chicken Chop (RM8.80), errr in a nyonya restaurant??? Aiyoh hahaha but he said it's a new item and he wanted to try it. When it came, it looked not too bad. I didn't taste it so no comment but he said it was ok.

My mom had their Melaka Chicken Rice (RM7.80) which came with 3 elongated rice balls served with soy sauce chicken. I ate this before and it was nice. The soy sauce chicken tasted like my mom's style. I like the chili sauce (sorry no photo cos her food came late and I didn't want to delay her from digging in).

We have a plate of fruit rojak (RM6.00) which is all right too but our only complain was the fruits were not cut in consistent sizes. Some of them came thinly sliced but some came in huge chunks! Just purely fruits and no crisps nor yau char kwai (deep fried crullers).

Mom and hubby each ordered cendol (RM2.80) which I think has improved tremendously but the portion is still kinda small. At least this time the cendol strips didn't came frozen.

Note: Not sure if it's halal or it's just pork free. Price stated above is excluding the 5% Government tax and 10% service charge.


Red Door Cafe & Restaurant
F27 First Floor
Jusco Metro Prima
Jalan Kepong
Tel: 603-6252 6186


Technorati Tags: malaysian food

Review: Nyonya Colors @ 1 Utama Shopping Centre

We stopped by Nyonya Colors kiosk to grab some snacks for boiboi since he did not take a proper lunch. Hmmm I remember we used to frequent Puffin Muffins in the exact same spot... but it's really sad to see it disappeared just like that. Well, maybe business was hard hit when the muffins and brownies weren't as great as they used to be. Anyway, I took boiboi to the display, oh my oh my... so mind boggling cos there are so many types of tantalising kuih-muih!!! Even my boiboi took so long to decide haha...

Anyway, hubby ordered a bowl of Dry Curry Noodle cos he told me he hasn't find a place that can do a right one according to his taste. To him, dry curry noodle equals to blanched noodles of his choice, beansprout and topped with thick curry chicken. Other condiments ie. long beans, brinjal, cockles, and beancurd puff are secondary. Guess what??? Nyonya Colors passed with flying colours, so to speak! The picture looked a bit pathetic cos hubby removed the mint leaves before I could snap it. I had a few bites and liked the curry as it is not overly "lemak".



Pardon for this blurry picture. I had to click fast cos my boiboi had started jabbing his fork on the 9 Layer Kuih and Pulut Tai Tai, both items he picked on his own. I asked him for a bite each and both were good. Can't remember the price but it's slightly on the steep side judging from the size of the kuih. The kaya that came with the Pulut Tai Tai is not overly sweet and it's full of eggy flavour.



I had a bowl of cendol to quench my thirst on that hot afternoon. Good but of course not as great as the one I had in Penang haha, at least their cendol strands are soft unlike some places where they came in frozen strips.



I've packed some pre-packed Mee Siam back and took a tiny bite. Tasted like tom yam fried bee hoon to me but I can't tell more since I only had a small bite. I'm going back for more... definitely! Great place to stop for afternoon tea.

Nyonya Colors
F66, First Floor, Old Wing
1 Utama Shopping Centre
Bandar Utama

Technorati Tags: malaysian food + nyonya

Review: Precious Old China, Central Market

We finally checked out Precious Old China over at Central Market along Jalan Hang Kasturi!!! My friend had recommended me to check out John Locke's Happy Restaurant when he first opened in Imbi a couple of years back but I never got around to that place and next thing I knew, he's cooking Nyonya over at Precious Old China! So embarassed hahaha... ok friend, I've finally tried John's cooking and I'm loving it! Tell your mom that. (John is his mom's friend).

Precious Old China is a branch of Old China Cafe over at Jalan Balai Polis. I used to frequent Old China Cafe but they never seems to be consistent with their food quality. I found a gem a few doors away - Beam Cafe but it's sad they have since closed. Now, I'm glad John is helming the kitchen at Precious Old China as the food is wayyyy superior than Old China Cafe.

Precious Old China is housed in Central Market which used to be a huge wet market in the centre of Kuala Lumpur. The wet market built in 1928 was converted back in the 80s into a one stop destination of arts and culture showcasing the country's handicrafts, arts and of course food. There is a change of hand in the management of Central Market sometime last year or so. The new management is giving some life back to this interesting place by refurbishing the entire building, section by section. Renovations are still on going but gee the revamped sections looked great! I'm gonna go back there one day for picture galore since most of the shops were closed after our dinner and it has gotten too dark to capture some decent photos without flash.

This is the main walkway which has yet been renovated.



And just look at this newly done section named Little India. Look at those beautiful tiles... and the grilles plus the old fashioned metal door haha... wooo I'm impressed.



Precious Old China is located on the Mezzanine floor which is easily accessible by the stairs or the lift. This is the entrance to Precious Old China that doubled up as an antique and art gallery. It is filled with antique furnitures from Malacca and China. Vintage advertisement, prints and oil paintings adorn the walls. Folding stained glass doors served as dividers at certain sections of the vast area. Victorian-style glass lamps and chandeliers dimly lit the place up. I loved the medicine chests and cabinets decorated with my favourite blue and white porcelain. Do check out the spacious washroom, yeah haha... the vintage sink; black and white tiles; and wooden door where you need to close it with a wooden shutter lend a very old world charm to the place.









Since we were celebrating my mom's birthday, my parents and brothers went on an ordering spree... they ordered so many dishes! I have no idea what they have ordered since we arrived slightly later than them, so all I could do was to wait in anticipation.

The first dish that came was this superb steamed assam siakap (RM39.80). The balance of sourish assam gravy was just right, not overly tangy. The fish was accompanied with brinjals and ladyfingers.



I absolutely loved this Kerabu Pucuk Paku (RM13.80). The portion is pretty huge for 7 adults and look at the price! The spicy level is high but no one is complaining... the shallots, dried shrimps and crushed peanuts gave me loads of satisfaction that evening.



See how fast the Four Seasons Beans disappeared! Another spicy dish with a zing. It has long beans, four angle beans, ladyfingers and loads of petai... fried in tasty sambal belacan. Luckily I managed to snap a pic before the whole dish got gobbled up.



My mom ordered a non-spicy dish for my boiboi and he seems to like the chicken and potatoes cooked in fermented soy bean paste. The salty gravy went well with plain rice.



Next came the Sambal Petai Sotong... so by now you could have guessed how much the family have loved petai. This dish tasted similar to the Four Seasons Beans except that it contained petai and squid.



We also have a Nyonya Rendang Chicken. I can't really tell what's the difference between this and the usual rendang chicken. Tasted pretty usual, no fireworks for me here.



Chui Pei Tofu (crispy skin tofu) came with a whole piece of soft tofu coated with a light flour batter, quickly deep fried and served with a pool of gravy. The tofu is topped with some minced chicken meat and crispy deep fried shrimps. The sauce did perk up the bland tofu.



The Otak-otak came and everyone dug in except myself since I was busy with other dishes. After some time, my brother was about to help himself for another helping, my mom stopped him. She said the Otak-otak tasted funny, like stale coconut. I took a bite and confirmed it. Most likely they have used canned coconut milk instead of fresh one. We quickly summon the Captain (are they still refered as Captain these days??) and told her about it. She took it back to the kitchen and came back apologising for it. She told us that she will waived the Otak-otak from our bill and in replacement she suggested a serving of Ju Hu Char (a Nyonya signature dish of shredded yam beans and cuttlefish). As usual Ju Hu Char (RM13.80) came with a plate of fresh lettuce as the wrap. Since this dish came later, I have forgotten to take a picture of it. The yam beans were shredded so finely! I wonder if they have used a machine or done by hand.



Lastly, the Itik Tim (RM10.90 per serving which can be shared by two) arrived. We have been hankering for ham choy (preserved Chinese mustard greens) for a long while since my mom had stopped cooking them for years. Apparently ham choy aggravates the pain on her knees due to arthritis, hence no more ham choy in the menu at home. This soup is hearty and the tomatoes in there lend a slight tang to the soup.



We were too stuffed by then and declined the offer of dessert but we gonna come back for the bubur cha cha and chendol next time. Overall, the food did satisfied our tastebud but seriously I can't tell how authentic they are, for this I'll let Lanatir to be the judge. However, I don't mind returning though to try out other items in the menu.

Currently there is no Government tax being charged except for 10% Service Charge.

**Apology over the photos... they're heavily edited as the interior of Precious Old China Cafe is very dim in the evening.**

Precious Old China Restaurant & Bar
Lot 2, Mezzanine Floor, Central Market,
Kuala Lumpur.
Tel: (603)2273 7372

Technorati Tags: nyonya