Restoran Sun Ban Lee.

Restoran Sun Ban Lee is a branch of the famous Restoran Ban Lee Bak Kut Teh off Jalan Ipoh, Kuala Lumpur.

I am sure you would have noticed that a lot of the old school restaurants are going into cleaner, brighter and well located places to entice the younger diners.


Besides Bak Kut Teh (Pork rib Tea), other all time favorites like steamed Sam Wong Tan (custard 3 types of eggs), Chinese rice wine chicken, tofu, steamed fish head, Marmite chicken wings...etc are available, too!


The young owner was friendly and open to constructive criticism.

Prices are quite reasonable.


The smell of herbs wafted the air as we waited for our food to be serve.


Parking is OK in the night and on weekends.

Small bone is a piece of meat shaped like a chicken thigh served on a piping hot claypot with foo chok (beancurd sheets), fresh lettuce and Enoki mushroom-tender and soft meat with a not too overpowering herbal soup-I'd prefer it with more Sook Tei (radix rehmanniae)-Rm11/.

Dried Bak Kut Teh-served in a claypot-cooked with dried chillies, thinly sliced lady finger (okra), dried squid's tentacles-very fragrant with some spiciness-Rm22/

Claypot with innards like pig's intestine (better if  it were thicker) and chewy stomach and topped with fresh lettuce, foo chuk-Rm11/ 

Steamed Soong Yee Thau (big head grass carp) with blended ginger/salt and garnished with spring onion-just nicely cooked-fresh and smooth meat-watch out for those fork like bones around the neck area-Rm22/

Stir fried Kai Lan with Hum Yee (salted fish)-crunchy and leafy-a good combination-Rm10/ 

Practical and clean containers to store garlic, big red chillies and green bird's eye chillies.

Total bill:Rm87/

Location:103 & 103A, Jalan20/7,

Paramount Garden,

Petaling Jaya, Selangor.

Tel:012-302-3268/017-280-9004.

Grilled Fish with a local touch.

Once in awhile, too much of the same kind of home cooked Chinese food can really get to me.


I am quite a fussy guy when food is concern and must admit that my wife pampers me too much.


For last night's dinner, she cooked something ala Western for a change.

Grilled Garouper chunk (Rm15) -well done on the outside, inside moist, thick, fresh and sweet-served on the side with fresh Lettuce, sliced Tomatoes, Zucchini and three balls of aromatic butter/mashed Potatoes-a slice of Lemon to squeeze on the glorious grilled fish-utmost satisfaction!

Sin Hup Kee Restaurant.@Puchong.

Bandar Puteri in Puchong is a real melting pot for many types of cuisine and pastry.

Many restaurants come and go and I noticed that only the strong and the best establishment survived the onslaught. 

Sin Hup Kee Restaurant which has it's roots in Ipoh, Perak is joining in the fray with Hon Kee Porridge, Fu Kua Thong, Bak Kut Teh , Teow Chew porridge....etc as neighbors. 


My daughter Mindy invited us to join her for dinner as her hubby Sam was in Singapore.

The place is new, clean and fuss-free but communication with their waiters was real bad !


Parking is OK.

Black pepper fish fillet-the Garouper fish fillet were thick and fresh-with just the right amount of pepper to flavor it up-star of the night !-Rm16/

Signature stir fried Chicken-the chicken thigh cuts tasted like Marmite chicken-fragrant, tender, meaty with crispy skin-Rm14/

Tofu with diced  Pickled Lettuce-the tofu was bland but the pickled lettuce/minced pork goes well with rice-Rm12/

Fiery Pork Ribs-turned out to be not fiery-not much meat and the gravy was a bit salty-Rm18/

Stir fried Brinjal with Long bean-with deep fried crispy dried shrimps and topped with diced garlic-was surprised that it was not oily-Rm10/

Watermelon came in a heart shape was complimentary.

Total bill: Rm80/
Location: 64, Jalan Puteri 2/4,
Bandar Puteri, Puchong,
Selangor.
Tel:03-8063-9498.

SS20 Fish head noodle.

SS20 Fish head noodle opened a new branch opposite of it's open air food court's stall in Damansara Kim.

The air conditioned restaurant is spanking clean and served their usual fare of fish related noodles, soup dishes and of course their local favorites drinks like ABC and Chendol.

The hot and humid Sunday afternoon was a good time for noodles.

Parking is OK.

Fish paste noodle with thick rice vermicelli-springy home made fish paste-lacking in soup-Rm7.50/

Deep fried Soong Yee fish head with thick vermicelli cooked in a sourish and sweet fish broth with tomato, preserved salted Chinese Mustard, ginger and topped with chopped spring onion-lacking in soup and watch out for those fork bones-Rm8/

  Baby Spinach in Anchovies soup-young and tender-Rm8/

Total bill:Rm52/

Location: 28, Jalan SS20/10,

Damansara Kim, Selangor.

Tel:012-628-8896.

Thong Yew Seafood Restaurant.

Usually, we like to eat Bak kut teh with side dishes of steamed fish, prawn and vegetable ala Teluk Intan style at Thong Yew Seafood Restaurant in Klang.

After relocating to this new location (a former steamboat restaurant) opposite Wisma Acmar, they reinvented a new set of menu which include noodles and most Chinese cuisine.

The three of us skipped Bak kut teh and tried their new dishes minus the rice, of course!

Parking is OK.

Indonesian style Chicken-meaty-full of flavors tossed with lemongrass, onion, curry leaves and red chillies-appetizing-Rm15/

Pork belly-thinly sliced-deep fried until crisp then tossed in honey/bird's eye chillies/onion-snacky and addictive- Rm15/

Sang Har Meen-deep fried crispy Wantan mee topped with egg/prawn roe gravy and 4 halves of the Udang galah (fresh water river prawn)- meat was fresh, sweet and springy-Rm66/

Wat tan Poh Choy-blanched Poh choy bathed in egg gravy-smooth with a bit of bitter taste from the Poh choy stalk-Rm8/

Pu'er tea to finish off the meal.

Total bill:Rm110/
Location:Lot 930-934, Jalan Gelugor,
Klang, Selangor.
Tel:019-211-2375/012-249-6138.

Bubur Lambuk.

During the month of Ramadan, my cousin Azizah with the help of her husband cooks bubur lambuk for free distribution at a mosque near their home in Shah Alam.

Everyday they cook three big pots of bubur lambuk at home and in the late afternoon send it to the mosque to be distributed to the people before the breaking of fast (iftar).

I have been wanting to taste her bubur lambuk for ages but never did because of time constraint.

Yesterday when we visited her after a late lunch in Klang town, we were in luck !
She was in the midst of cooking and stirring the almost ready to eat bubur lambuk.

When it was ready she packed a big packet of the fragrant bubur lambuk topped with deep fried shallots and freshly chopped coriander leaves for us to takeaway.

Bubur Lambuk (Porridge)-cooked with beef, dried shrimp, fresh shrimp, Chai Poh (preserved Radish), ginger, garlic, lemongrass, pepper.......etc-topped with deep fried Burma's shallot and freshly chopped coriander leaves-gooey and smooth-a simple and nutritious meal.

Chicprawn Tofu.

Tofu i s made by coagulating soy milk and pressing the resulting curds.
Tofu has very little flavor or smell on it's own but is versatile, you can do wonders with it.

Like the minced chicken/minced prawn (50:50) tofu which my wife made for our dinner.

The minced chicken/prawn paste is mix with finely chopped coriander leaves, carrot, sesame oil, salt and pepper to taste.
The tofu skin is brown in color but the texture inside is like a firm custard.
Dig out some of the tofu from the center.
Fill it up with the minced chicken/prawn paste.
Pin discarded prawn tail into it.
Steam for about 10 minutes and it's ready to be serve !

Before and after.

Close-up of before and after.

The dish looks fabulously good but i feel it would taste better with a pork/prawn combination.

Heong Moon Seafood Restaurant.

It was drizzling on a Saturday evening, my brother Meng invited us to try out this restaurant near his house.

Heong Moon Seafood Restaurant is located near the junction of the ongoing road widening Subang New Village/Shah Alam road.

The village house converted into a restaurant is partly air conditioned and clean.

Parking is OK.

Hoong Siew Yee Thau-the whole fish head was lightly batter-deep fried until crispy-topped with a gravy full of baby corn, onion, black fungus, chillies, tofu, carrot, straw mushroom-Rm39/

Steamed Village Chicken-meat were muscled and fragrant- red kei chi (wolfberries) plus the natural juices from the chicken was a bit salty- Rm19/

Clay pot Seafood-came piping hot and filled with fish maw, mushroom, sea asparagus, limpets, crabstick, blanched broccoli and sliced fish-flavorsome gravy, goes well with rice-Rm35/

,Butter Crabs-mud crabmeat was very fresh, fine and juicy but the gravy were too diluted-Rm35/

Shell-shaped buns to lap up the fragrant butter gravy-Rm6/

Stir fried Siew Pak Choy-crunchy and juicy-Rm15/

Total bill:Rm180/
Location: N0: 6S-A+B, Lot 4030,
Jalan Satu D,
Kampung Baru Subang, Shah Alam,
Tel:03-7846-9440.

Gelama Pisang.

Gelama Pisang aka Croaker fish is mostly found in both fresh and saltwater, near to muddy river banks, bays or estuaries.

When alive, the fish make a croaking sound by beating it's abdomen muscles against the swim bladder-hence the name Croaker fish.

They are usually small and medium in size and the ones that we bought weigh around 200gms.

The 1st fish stall located at the junction of the Section 17/1A Pasar Tani, Petaling Jaya sell these fish whenever it is available.

Open every Thursday morning-go early for the freshest produce.

Gelama Pisang-deep fried until it's skin was crisp and drizzled with light soy sauce-not bony with white sweet flaky flesh-delicious.

They even cut/chop/descale/slice up the fish for you at no extra cost!

Chee Kiok Sheen Beehoon

Have you ever tried Chee Kiok Sheen (black vinegar pig's trotter stew) with beehoon (rice vermicelli) ?

Oh ! it is out of this world !

This particular stall's chef is very innovative and he cooks 38 different types of fried noodle/noodle with broth everyday.

So far I have tried his herbal chicken thigh noodle and Kong Nam mee and came away satisfied.

Chee Kiok Sheen-filled with 5 pieces of trotter which were stewed till it was soft and bouncy with ligament and tender meat, sliced ginger, dried red chillies, Chinese black vinegar which were not too choking and beehoon-sweet and sourish with a sharp taste-Rm6.50.

Location:a stall in Restoran Happy O,
Pandan Perdana Commercial Center,
Pandan Perdan, Cheras.

Restoran Asli Makanan Laut Mutiara Biru.

Guest post by Michelle.

My family and I went to Johor Baru for a holiday and we stayed at our cousin Samantha's parent house.

I remembered the last visit, we went to a huge Orchid farm in Pulai, swam in a waterfall in Kota Tinggi, ate various types of food along the way and enjoyed the sea breeze on the beach in Desaru, all in one day !

It has been a long time and now Johor Baru have changed, with traffic jams and new developments all over the city skyline.

I missed the nasi lemak at a shop with no name located near the Perling mall.

But never mind, my uncle Kam treated us to a delicious seafood dinner at Restoran Asli Makanan Laut Mutiara Biru near Skudai.

Deep fried Squid's rings-lightly batter, fresh and chewy.

Butter Crab-fresh and meaty with a smooth texture.

Steamed Prawns-real fresh and juicy-was alive in the aquarium awhile ago!

Stir fried Choy Tam-only green of the night.

Asli boy was happy after collecting Rm2 parking fee from us.

Location: Kg Sg Temon Baru,
Skudai, Johor Baru.