Steamboat and Grandpa's Birthday

Every year after the Chinese New Year, all of us in my family would travel down to KL to visit my maternal grandparents. Coincidentally, my maternal grandfather's birthday also falls around the same time. Hence, we took it as an opportunity for CNY visiting and birthday celebration and gambling session all in one. *LOL* Usually, the birthday dinner would be held in some swanky, high-class restaurant that cost at least RM1K per table. Mind you, our extended family is huge so it would be at least 2 tables every year. Due to the economy slowdown, however, my uncles and aunties decided to do something different this year, and organized a steamboat gathering.

We reached KL around 3pm in the afternoon, which was way too early for any steamboat event. My uncle from KL decided to show us this new place that he likes to hang out at currently, called Desa Parkcity. It was really near the place he stays, and we reached there in just 10 minutes. I fell in love with that area immediately! It was slightly out of the city, which means tranquility, with a nice lake and jogging track, and lots of quaint cafes and restaurants, not to mention a supermarket! I mean, those people living in Desa Parkcity practically have everything within their fingertips. And I mean within walking distance. It was peaceful and quiet, away from the hustle and bustle of the big city. It was really a perfect place to grow old in, or for children to grow up in. :)

Lake at Desa Parkcity

Since we were there during CNY, there were many nice fake cherry blossom trees around to brighten the area.

Cherry blossoms

After visiting the area, we ended up in a cafe for our tea time. It was this coffee place called Kluang Station. Apparently, the coffee was second to none, and the chicken chop was marvellous. Without much ado, we ordered the following dishes to be shared:

Hot coffee and iced Nescafe

The coffee received thumbs up from Saucer. It was apparently much better than those in the Old Town Kopitiam shops. As for the Nescafe, nothing special about it really.

Nasi lemak

Fried chicken

Oh the nasi lemak was pretty good! It came with a piece of fried chicken which was crispy and well-marinated. I loved the chicken to bits! I wish there was a Kluang Station in Penang. It would beat the over-priced Old Town Kopitiam hands down.

Butter and kaya toast

The toast was nothing to shout about, as you can see from the picture. It was definitely thicker bread compared to the barely-there bread in Old Town.

And the star of the day was the chicken chop, which was ordered by my dad. He is a big fan of chicken chops! Wherever he goes, if there's chicken chop in the menu, he would order it. Unfortunately, he has a very sensitive and picky tongue, so more often than not, the chicken chops would get criticisms instead of praises. For the case of Kluang Station, however, I was surprised that he praised the chicken chop there, and said that it was good. (Not GREAT yet, but good is very rarely mouthed by my dad). I immediately took a bite and agreed with him. There was this fragrant smell from the chicken chop which indicated that it was well-marinated, and the meat was juicy without being dry from the frying. I would love to order it again next time. And for the price of RM12.90, it was definitely reasonable!

Chicken chop

Fast-forward a couple of hours down the road, it was dinner time! The steamboat was held in this gorgeous huge house of my uncle and auntie's in Sg Buloh. It was the first time I visited their new place and it was fabulous! The interior was floored with granite and first floor was solid timber. Granite flooring in the house! That's a first for me (pardon my ignorance).

Awesome giant house

There were lots of food prepared that day, and one of my uncles bought these satays for us. I wonder where he got them because the satays were so meaty and delicious! And for only 60cents a piece! I have to say it was the most popular dish that night, considering that it finished the first. (Thanks to my help, too, I must say *LOL*)

My love

My brother was also crazy with the satays!

When gluttony rules...

Look at how they posed when I asked them to take a picture.

Brothers who are posers

Some of the food for the steamboat: Lots of fresh vegetables, raw meat, yong tau foo, noodles, eggs, dumplings and the like.

Steamboat ingredients

The only gripe that night was the warm weather. There was no wind and the air was stuffy. Couple that with the hot steam coming from the pots, it was recipe for a sauna experience.

Cousins having a good time

My brothers, Saucer and Angie

Before the night was out, we went into the house to sing birthday song to my grandpa.

Cake-cutting ceremony

The Tiramisu from Secret Recipe scored well among us, especially the young ones, who went for seconds. After that, it was a whole night of gambling, ala CNY style. It was the perfect end for the CNY. I miss it already! I guess I'll have to wait for another 12 months for this festival again.