At last. :)))
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Monday, March 30, 2009
Earth Hour 2009
After much hype and publicity, the Earth Hour has come and gone. What did you do during that one hour on 28th of March 2009? As for me, I was back in my hometown in Kampar, spending time with my family members. When we talked about Earth Hour, especially with my grandparents, they shooed away the idea, saying that it was silly and it would make us vulnerable to theft in the dark. Of course, my brother and I both said that as long as all of us were at home, there should be nothing to worry about. My grandma also opposed to the idea, because she said it would be difficult to eat in the dark, while my grandpa said that as long as all other lights were off, then we could turn on the dining area lights to eat!
Earth Hour 2009
Anyway, come 8.30pm on that night, my brother was persistent, and he went to fetch a couple of candles to light up the dining area. He also placed a couple on the dining table, so we effectively had candle-lit dinner! The drawback was, of course, with the candles being lit, we had to turn off the fan as well to prevent the candles from going off. So, I think we were more affected by the hot temperature rather than the dim lighting. But we persevered and watched Deal Or No Deal during that period. (I know we're not supposed to watch TV as well, but majority wins in our family) Which reminds me, the contestant that night was silly and greedy to have pursued even after being offer RM20+k for his case. In the end he only got RM3k. *shakes head*
So, I suppose for the first-timer like me, my experience wasn't that bad. I think as long as we have the will to do it, we can convince others to as well. In this case, both my grandparents gave in finally and we had an enjoyable candle-lit dinner for the first time at home. *LOL*
What did you do during Earth Hour?
Earth Hour 2009
Anyway, come 8.30pm on that night, my brother was persistent, and he went to fetch a couple of candles to light up the dining area. He also placed a couple on the dining table, so we effectively had candle-lit dinner! The drawback was, of course, with the candles being lit, we had to turn off the fan as well to prevent the candles from going off. So, I think we were more affected by the hot temperature rather than the dim lighting. But we persevered and watched Deal Or No Deal during that period. (I know we're not supposed to watch TV as well, but majority wins in our family) Which reminds me, the contestant that night was silly and greedy to have pursued even after being offer RM20+k for his case. In the end he only got RM3k. *shakes head*
So, I suppose for the first-timer like me, my experience wasn't that bad. I think as long as we have the will to do it, we can convince others to as well. In this case, both my grandparents gave in finally and we had an enjoyable candle-lit dinner for the first time at home. *LOL*
What did you do during Earth Hour?
Thursday, March 26, 2009
The ideal honeymoon
No, no, I'm not talking about my honeymoon, I bet that would be the first idea that came across your mind, yes? :) Instead, I would like to talk about the different types of vacation honeymooners could have, and what would be your ideal choice. What if you're given three distinctive choices for a holiday with your loved one, which would you go for?
1. Adventure-based
This is definitely something different from the typical honeymooners' dream. Imagine days and days of walking around with a heavy backpack larger than your torso, staying in budget motels and eating street food. Some examples:
a) Backpacking across Nepal
I have a friend who went for this crusade once, and she told me about her life-threatening experience there. The whole trip was about 1 month, and she actually wrote a will before she left, in case anything happened to her! Both herself and her husband joined a group of 4 to go for the trekking trip, and they rented a jeep with a driver to explore Nepal and the Himalayas. They had to sleep in tents without washrooms for days. Toilets would be in the jungle or bushes. Probably bathed once a week. Suffered due to altitude sickness. Ate lousy food along the way. And the roads were just next to cliffs, such that a small mistake in judgement would cause all of them their lives. It was all very scary, but she found what she wanted from the trip - spiritual awakening. As for her husband, a photography buff, he found what he wanted from the trip too - amazing pictures and a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Of course, not all couples are as lucky as them, to want the same thing in their lives and to want it hard enough to pursue it, regardless of the risks involved.
Himalayas (Source)
b) Climbing the mountains
Well for a nearer escapade, perhaps our very own Mount Kinabalu would suffice. I have been there years ago and I have to say, peer pressure works! Also, spending 2-3 days hiking with your partner could end up bringing you closer to each other, and understanding each other's weakness/strength, provided the plan doesn't backfire and both of you end up arguing the whole time! However, reaching the peak after buckets of sweats and lots of mind power really helped to boost my confidence. Of course, not forgetting the breath-taking sunrise that greeted all of us which made our hard work all the more worthy.
Mount Kinabalu (Source)
If Mount Kinabalu is too easy for you, perhaps you should try the Everest! :)
Himalaya Mountains (Source)
Mount Everest (Source)
c) Trek the Great Wall of China
For history buffs, perhaps a good example would be to trek the Great Wall of China and to admire the over 6,000km long wall of greatness. I never fail to be impressed with how people from centuries ago were extremely resourceful and smart to have built such an ever-lasting piece of art. Up until now, there is no other structure that is even remotely similar to it.
Great Wall of China
d) Dive in the deep blue seas
I have too many friends who are interested in diving! I think it would be a very romantic experience in the deep sea, for lovers to be surrounded by beautiful corals and sea life. Too bad I'm not all that interested in this, perhaps I am just too geli with fish or any other live sea creatures. Even the experience at a fish spa was a challenge for me!
Red sea diving (Source)
Turtles at Sipadan (Source)
2. Traveling in style
If you're not an adventure freak, perhaps you could choose to travel in style. This would be the category that most people I know opted for. To me, traveling in style would mean staying at hotels, having wonderful meals and having transportation arranged with comfort. This type of getaway definitely has its perks because you get to travel in comfort and have good food, but of course, all of these come with a price. :) Some examples:
a) Tour in Europe
I have heard of plenty of couples joining for 8 or 10-day tours to European countries, and all provided great feedback. In my opinion, this type of honeymoon vacation is definitely enjoyable, especially experiencing the culture and lifestyles of other countries. A drawback in this would be the large amount of time required to cover more countries. In fact, even with a 10-day tour, it would still be somewhat rushed, because of the vast amount of traveling required in between the countries in Europe, and not to mention the very long flight from our beloved country. Therefore, for people who prefer to tour in a more relaxed manner, they might have to do it free-and-easy, and with a longer holiday too.
Eiffel Tower (Source)
Imagine all the things that you could do during the trip! Shopping in Milan, romancing under the Eiffel Tower, cruising on a gondola in Venice, taking pictures with the guards at Buckingham palace, eating the best pasta in Rome and so much more!
b) Milking the cows
*LOL* I actually meant visiting countries like Australia and New Zealand. Some people love to enjoy scenery and serenity of the countryside that comes with fresh air. One popular choice would be New Zealand, where there are plenty of farms, meadows and cows! Just looking at pictures already bring me to dreamland. Imagine seeing this scenery every single day!
New Zealand (Source)
3. Rest and relax at spa villages
Finally, this is the third category where lovers just go to one location, preferably some where isolated, and spend a few days there, just kicking back and relax. And with an added premium, you get to have people serving your every needs, almost treating you like a king too! For this category, I can't run away from the Banyan Tree resorts!
a) Banyan Tree treasures
I first heard about the Banyan Tree resorts from a lifestyle programme on the TV. At that time, it was introducing the Banyan Tree Bintan resort, with amazing footage of how each chalet looked like and how peaceful the surroundings were. Seriously, for people who enjoy privacy, Banyan Tree resorts is the place to go! They have many resorts all around the world, but you could see from their list that the locations they choose are usually outskirts, with names that I have not even heard of. I suppose they choose non-commercialized places to promise tranquility, away from the hustle and bustle of tourists. Look at some of the Banyan Tree locations below (Source):
Mayakoba, Mexico
Bintan, Indonesia
Look at the Bintan resort! Each chalet practically has a private pool, facing the sea! Isn't that just amazing? I could see myself rewinding at the end of the day on one of the beach chairs by the pool, enjoying a glass of wine. And swimming in my private pool in the early morning, while watching the sunrise! Gosh, I think this would be my definition of heaven.
Madivaru, Maldives
Seychelles
Lijang, China
Are you blown away yet? I think my choice would be to go to one of these resorts and spend probably 5 days or a week there, just getting pampered and spoiled with my husband-to-be. I read that with a price, you get to have massages every day, right in your own chalet! And breakfast in bed. And tea by the poolside. And candlelit dinner by the beach. Need I say more? :)
What is your choice?
1. Adventure-based
This is definitely something different from the typical honeymooners' dream. Imagine days and days of walking around with a heavy backpack larger than your torso, staying in budget motels and eating street food. Some examples:
a) Backpacking across Nepal
I have a friend who went for this crusade once, and she told me about her life-threatening experience there. The whole trip was about 1 month, and she actually wrote a will before she left, in case anything happened to her! Both herself and her husband joined a group of 4 to go for the trekking trip, and they rented a jeep with a driver to explore Nepal and the Himalayas. They had to sleep in tents without washrooms for days. Toilets would be in the jungle or bushes. Probably bathed once a week. Suffered due to altitude sickness. Ate lousy food along the way. And the roads were just next to cliffs, such that a small mistake in judgement would cause all of them their lives. It was all very scary, but she found what she wanted from the trip - spiritual awakening. As for her husband, a photography buff, he found what he wanted from the trip too - amazing pictures and a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Of course, not all couples are as lucky as them, to want the same thing in their lives and to want it hard enough to pursue it, regardless of the risks involved.
Himalayas (Source)
b) Climbing the mountains
Well for a nearer escapade, perhaps our very own Mount Kinabalu would suffice. I have been there years ago and I have to say, peer pressure works! Also, spending 2-3 days hiking with your partner could end up bringing you closer to each other, and understanding each other's weakness/strength, provided the plan doesn't backfire and both of you end up arguing the whole time! However, reaching the peak after buckets of sweats and lots of mind power really helped to boost my confidence. Of course, not forgetting the breath-taking sunrise that greeted all of us which made our hard work all the more worthy.
Mount Kinabalu (Source)
If Mount Kinabalu is too easy for you, perhaps you should try the Everest! :)
Himalaya Mountains (Source)
Mount Everest (Source)
c) Trek the Great Wall of China
For history buffs, perhaps a good example would be to trek the Great Wall of China and to admire the over 6,000km long wall of greatness. I never fail to be impressed with how people from centuries ago were extremely resourceful and smart to have built such an ever-lasting piece of art. Up until now, there is no other structure that is even remotely similar to it.
Great Wall of China
d) Dive in the deep blue seas
I have too many friends who are interested in diving! I think it would be a very romantic experience in the deep sea, for lovers to be surrounded by beautiful corals and sea life. Too bad I'm not all that interested in this, perhaps I am just too geli with fish or any other live sea creatures. Even the experience at a fish spa was a challenge for me!
Red sea diving (Source)
Turtles at Sipadan (Source)
2. Traveling in style
If you're not an adventure freak, perhaps you could choose to travel in style. This would be the category that most people I know opted for. To me, traveling in style would mean staying at hotels, having wonderful meals and having transportation arranged with comfort. This type of getaway definitely has its perks because you get to travel in comfort and have good food, but of course, all of these come with a price. :) Some examples:
a) Tour in Europe
I have heard of plenty of couples joining for 8 or 10-day tours to European countries, and all provided great feedback. In my opinion, this type of honeymoon vacation is definitely enjoyable, especially experiencing the culture and lifestyles of other countries. A drawback in this would be the large amount of time required to cover more countries. In fact, even with a 10-day tour, it would still be somewhat rushed, because of the vast amount of traveling required in between the countries in Europe, and not to mention the very long flight from our beloved country. Therefore, for people who prefer to tour in a more relaxed manner, they might have to do it free-and-easy, and with a longer holiday too.
Eiffel Tower (Source)
Imagine all the things that you could do during the trip! Shopping in Milan, romancing under the Eiffel Tower, cruising on a gondola in Venice, taking pictures with the guards at Buckingham palace, eating the best pasta in Rome and so much more!
b) Milking the cows
*LOL* I actually meant visiting countries like Australia and New Zealand. Some people love to enjoy scenery and serenity of the countryside that comes with fresh air. One popular choice would be New Zealand, where there are plenty of farms, meadows and cows! Just looking at pictures already bring me to dreamland. Imagine seeing this scenery every single day!
New Zealand (Source)
3. Rest and relax at spa villages
Finally, this is the third category where lovers just go to one location, preferably some where isolated, and spend a few days there, just kicking back and relax. And with an added premium, you get to have people serving your every needs, almost treating you like a king too! For this category, I can't run away from the Banyan Tree resorts!
a) Banyan Tree treasures
I first heard about the Banyan Tree resorts from a lifestyle programme on the TV. At that time, it was introducing the Banyan Tree Bintan resort, with amazing footage of how each chalet looked like and how peaceful the surroundings were. Seriously, for people who enjoy privacy, Banyan Tree resorts is the place to go! They have many resorts all around the world, but you could see from their list that the locations they choose are usually outskirts, with names that I have not even heard of. I suppose they choose non-commercialized places to promise tranquility, away from the hustle and bustle of tourists. Look at some of the Banyan Tree locations below (Source):
Mayakoba, Mexico
Bintan, Indonesia
Look at the Bintan resort! Each chalet practically has a private pool, facing the sea! Isn't that just amazing? I could see myself rewinding at the end of the day on one of the beach chairs by the pool, enjoying a glass of wine. And swimming in my private pool in the early morning, while watching the sunrise! Gosh, I think this would be my definition of heaven.
Madivaru, Maldives
Seychelles
Lijang, China
Are you blown away yet? I think my choice would be to go to one of these resorts and spend probably 5 days or a week there, just getting pampered and spoiled with my husband-to-be. I read that with a price, you get to have massages every day, right in your own chalet! And breakfast in bed. And tea by the poolside. And candlelit dinner by the beach. Need I say more? :)
What is your choice?
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Feasting like a Prince
Short note: I am getting more and more flamer's attack on my recent post of Bravo Italiana. Seriously, these people have nothing better to do and than to read posts written by "BITCH Malaysian" eh?
Ever since the famous Korean drama Coffee Prince aired on our TV, I started noticing new branches of Prince Cafe. Now, I'm sure they have no connection, but somehow Prince cafe will always remind me of the drama. Anyway, there is one such branch in SS2 itself, which is very near to where Saucer stays. We ended up going to this restaurant for a good few times just because Saucer loves it! And we did enjoy some pretty great deals which I'm going to share with you soon. ;) This restaurant is located just next to KFC in SS2, PJ.
Prince Cafe
First of all, let me make it clear that the food presented in this blog was eaten over a span of several visits! I simply collected all the pictures and showed them all in one posts to avoid redundancy. :) Prince Cafe is actually very similar to Hong Kong cafes (char chan teng) with a twist! What twist, you say? Well, for one, Prince Cafe has a few other cuisines as well, such as Shanghai food, Korean food, Japanese food and so on. In fact, their menu list is so long, it will take you a while before deciding on what to eat. :)
Hot milk tea
One of the drinks that Saucer loves is this mocktail below called Virgin Colada. It also happened to be one of the most popular drinks in Prince, when we asked the waiter for recommendations. This drink is a concoction of ice-blended vanila ice-cream with sea coconut on top and below. While I love the drink itself, I didn't quite like the sea coconut pieces, because they were simply too sweet. I think the sea coconut pieces were actually marinated in sugar before being served, but it's overdone. I felt like I was biting into sugar cubes while eating them. Probably not a good choice for those with diabetes.
Virgin colada
Moving on to the set meals. We ordered the famous cheese-baked rice set that came together with borsch soup and a drink. The milk tea here was definitely much nicer than the one in Kim Gary. It was noteiceably thicker, more concentrated and milkier, making the drink so much more enjoyable. These days, I find that the tea in Kim Gary is getting more and more diluted.
Iced milk tea
Then came the borsh soup. Well, there is nothing too special with this borsh soup. The taste was similar to those in Kim Gary, but the vegetables given were more. You know I always think of borsch soup as the HK version of minestrone soup. Don't you see the resemblance? :)
Borsh soup
Oh and the star of the night! Cheese-baked rice with chicken chop! I think Prince absolutely SCORED in this dish! Look at the amount of mouth-watering cheese used! It's so thick and chewy and very fragrant! The cheese coverage is so thick that you can't even see the meat underneath. A bit of warning though, if you decide to order this, I suggest you order a second lighter dish (if you come with a friend), because eating a whole lot of cheese will not do your stomach very good. :) That aside, this cheese-baked rice was delicious! The cheese actually melted and blended with the rice, unlike the one in Kim Gary. The amount used was extremely generous and the only minor drawback was that the rice didn't have much sauce, but seriously the cheese!
Cheese-baked rice
Our second dish was fried rice with salted egg. This plate of rice was certainly very aromatic, because I could smell this before the waiter even placed the plate on the table. Even though the portion was not big, the taste made up for it. Generous amount salted egg pieces were mixed together with the rice, giving it a natural saltiness. The prawns used were smaller than usual and there was probably not much of other seafood or meat used in this dish, however, the rice was fried just right. Each morsel of rice was thoroughly fried and I couldn't find any big lumps of unfried rice in this plate. Maybe if they added more seafood/meat such as calamari rings or chinese sausages, it would make this dish so much better! :)
Salted egg fried rice
In our second visit, it was during breakfast. Since I was in the mood for toasts, I immediately ordered their signature Prince Sandwich (RM7.90) which was proudly shown with a big picture on the menu. Thankfully, what they served looked exactly like the picture in the menu, so I wasn't disappointed.
The plate above had 4 sets of sandwiches, whereby each set was a combination of 3 slices of toast with cheese, ham, tomatoes, cucumber, eggs and mayonaisse in between. Gosh, I'm salivating while typing all that out. *LOL* The drawback of this sandwich was that it's too difficult to eat because it's too thick! The toothpick there was really functional to help keep everything in place, otherwise, the fillings would just start slipping out when you're holding the sandwich. A very messy process, but nonetheless an enjoyable one. :)
Prince Sandwich
Remember that I mentioned I wanted to share with you some great deals at Prince? Well, here is one of them! Breakfast of eggs and toast with milk tea at a mere RM3.90! Is that a steal or is that a steal? :) The best part is that this breakfast set is available every day, even during weekends or public holidays, so you can always eat them while lazing with a newspaper on a Saturday morning. :)
Pepper and soya sauce
Nothing like a cup of hot milk tea on a cool morning eh? The hot version is even much thicker and creamier than the iced version. However, it's unsweetened, so you'll have to add sugar in it while it's hot if you prefer sweeter tea.
Prince milk tea
This was the half-boiled eggs that came with the set. They were not overly or under done, just right. Add in some pepper and soya sauce and they're good to go - into your stomach, I mean. :)
Half-boiled eggs
Of course, nothing like the good old toast as the accompaniment. :) Dip the crispy toasted bread into the half-boiled eggs for a fulfilling breakfast that is healthy and wholesome.
Two slices of toast
These days especially in KL or Selangor area, it is difficult to get a decent breakfast with good environment at such a reasonable price! OK, I should say cheap price! If I stay in PJ, this would definitely be my weekly routine breakfast. ;)
RM3.90 set of toast and eggs
Moving on to our third visit, which was for brunch. Here is another great deal that I want to share with you. :) Now during weekdays from 9-12pm, Prince has a special morning set meals that come with a drink, and at a discounted price. For example, this Korean spicy noodle set with beef steak is sold at RM6.90 + RM1 (for drink) = RM7.90, while the ala carte price (without drink) is sold at RM10.90! Not only you pay a cheaper price, you get a drink to boot!
Korean spicy noodles
The noodles came with a sunny-side-up and lots of corn and beansprouts. Yes, the noodles were instant, but they were definitely Korean-made (think of the big red instant noodles packet with Korean words on it) and not the local Maggi or Cintan, so they were acceptable. In fact, I always buy Korean instant noodles so I could taste the similarity between these two. The portion was big but don't expect anything fancy, because it's exactly like what you would expect if you cooked the instant noodles yourself. :)
The attraction here, however, was the two big pieces of beef steak that came with the set! The steaks were considerably large in size, and well-marinated. They're also not tough/gamey, albeit slightly oily. The set also came with a side of kimchi. Finishing the whole noodles and 2 slices of beef steak proved to be a challenge for me. I was full to the brim by then!
Beef steak with kimchi
On the other hand, Saucer's brunch meal was Shanghai noodles with pork slices, at RM4.90, and additional RM1 for a drink, totalling it to RM5.90.
Chilli and sauce
The noodles used here resembled wantan noodles. The portion, as usual, was huge. The pork slices also came with salted vegetables, giving it a natural salty and sour taste. Very appetizing. Saucer loved this dish a lot, because it was the second time he ordered the same thing. :) Price wise, it was definitely worth every penny! If I'm not mistaken, the ala carte price for the noodles was around RM8+?
Shanghai noodles with pork slices
Have you got enough of Prince yet? *LOL* I still have one more dish to share, which was Shanghai rice with beef slices and vegetables. The rice was rather dry because there was no sauce given, but the beef slices were delicious and tender with a slightly crispy outer layer. Pretty good!
Shanghai vegetables rice with beef slices
Overall, the food at Prince Cafe was above average, and in my opinion very reasonably priced, especially the special breakfast menus. :) The only thing, perhaps, is that they have too much variety in terms of cuisine and they don't have a signature dish to promote, thereby might confuse customers with their extensive menu. However, cheese-baked rice won't fail you! :)
Prince Cafe
No. 58 & 60, Jalan SS2/67,
47300 Petaling Jaya,
Selangor, Malaysia
Tel no. : +603-7874 3995
Operating Hours:
Sunday to Thursday (10am-1am),
Friday & Saturday (10am-2am)
Ever since the famous Korean drama Coffee Prince aired on our TV, I started noticing new branches of Prince Cafe. Now, I'm sure they have no connection, but somehow Prince cafe will always remind me of the drama. Anyway, there is one such branch in SS2 itself, which is very near to where Saucer stays. We ended up going to this restaurant for a good few times just because Saucer loves it! And we did enjoy some pretty great deals which I'm going to share with you soon. ;) This restaurant is located just next to KFC in SS2, PJ.
Prince Cafe
First of all, let me make it clear that the food presented in this blog was eaten over a span of several visits! I simply collected all the pictures and showed them all in one posts to avoid redundancy. :) Prince Cafe is actually very similar to Hong Kong cafes (char chan teng) with a twist! What twist, you say? Well, for one, Prince Cafe has a few other cuisines as well, such as Shanghai food, Korean food, Japanese food and so on. In fact, their menu list is so long, it will take you a while before deciding on what to eat. :)
Hot milk tea
One of the drinks that Saucer loves is this mocktail below called Virgin Colada. It also happened to be one of the most popular drinks in Prince, when we asked the waiter for recommendations. This drink is a concoction of ice-blended vanila ice-cream with sea coconut on top and below. While I love the drink itself, I didn't quite like the sea coconut pieces, because they were simply too sweet. I think the sea coconut pieces were actually marinated in sugar before being served, but it's overdone. I felt like I was biting into sugar cubes while eating them. Probably not a good choice for those with diabetes.
Virgin colada
Moving on to the set meals. We ordered the famous cheese-baked rice set that came together with borsch soup and a drink. The milk tea here was definitely much nicer than the one in Kim Gary. It was noteiceably thicker, more concentrated and milkier, making the drink so much more enjoyable. These days, I find that the tea in Kim Gary is getting more and more diluted.
Iced milk tea
Then came the borsh soup. Well, there is nothing too special with this borsh soup. The taste was similar to those in Kim Gary, but the vegetables given were more. You know I always think of borsch soup as the HK version of minestrone soup. Don't you see the resemblance? :)
Borsh soup
Oh and the star of the night! Cheese-baked rice with chicken chop! I think Prince absolutely SCORED in this dish! Look at the amount of mouth-watering cheese used! It's so thick and chewy and very fragrant! The cheese coverage is so thick that you can't even see the meat underneath. A bit of warning though, if you decide to order this, I suggest you order a second lighter dish (if you come with a friend), because eating a whole lot of cheese will not do your stomach very good. :) That aside, this cheese-baked rice was delicious! The cheese actually melted and blended with the rice, unlike the one in Kim Gary. The amount used was extremely generous and the only minor drawback was that the rice didn't have much sauce, but seriously the cheese!
Cheese-baked rice
Our second dish was fried rice with salted egg. This plate of rice was certainly very aromatic, because I could smell this before the waiter even placed the plate on the table. Even though the portion was not big, the taste made up for it. Generous amount salted egg pieces were mixed together with the rice, giving it a natural saltiness. The prawns used were smaller than usual and there was probably not much of other seafood or meat used in this dish, however, the rice was fried just right. Each morsel of rice was thoroughly fried and I couldn't find any big lumps of unfried rice in this plate. Maybe if they added more seafood/meat such as calamari rings or chinese sausages, it would make this dish so much better! :)
Salted egg fried rice
In our second visit, it was during breakfast. Since I was in the mood for toasts, I immediately ordered their signature Prince Sandwich (RM7.90) which was proudly shown with a big picture on the menu. Thankfully, what they served looked exactly like the picture in the menu, so I wasn't disappointed.
The plate above had 4 sets of sandwiches, whereby each set was a combination of 3 slices of toast with cheese, ham, tomatoes, cucumber, eggs and mayonaisse in between. Gosh, I'm salivating while typing all that out. *LOL* The drawback of this sandwich was that it's too difficult to eat because it's too thick! The toothpick there was really functional to help keep everything in place, otherwise, the fillings would just start slipping out when you're holding the sandwich. A very messy process, but nonetheless an enjoyable one. :)
Prince Sandwich
Remember that I mentioned I wanted to share with you some great deals at Prince? Well, here is one of them! Breakfast of eggs and toast with milk tea at a mere RM3.90! Is that a steal or is that a steal? :) The best part is that this breakfast set is available every day, even during weekends or public holidays, so you can always eat them while lazing with a newspaper on a Saturday morning. :)
Pepper and soya sauce
Nothing like a cup of hot milk tea on a cool morning eh? The hot version is even much thicker and creamier than the iced version. However, it's unsweetened, so you'll have to add sugar in it while it's hot if you prefer sweeter tea.
Prince milk tea
This was the half-boiled eggs that came with the set. They were not overly or under done, just right. Add in some pepper and soya sauce and they're good to go - into your stomach, I mean. :)
Half-boiled eggs
Of course, nothing like the good old toast as the accompaniment. :) Dip the crispy toasted bread into the half-boiled eggs for a fulfilling breakfast that is healthy and wholesome.
Two slices of toast
These days especially in KL or Selangor area, it is difficult to get a decent breakfast with good environment at such a reasonable price! OK, I should say cheap price! If I stay in PJ, this would definitely be my weekly routine breakfast. ;)
RM3.90 set of toast and eggs
Moving on to our third visit, which was for brunch. Here is another great deal that I want to share with you. :) Now during weekdays from 9-12pm, Prince has a special morning set meals that come with a drink, and at a discounted price. For example, this Korean spicy noodle set with beef steak is sold at RM6.90 + RM1 (for drink) = RM7.90, while the ala carte price (without drink) is sold at RM10.90! Not only you pay a cheaper price, you get a drink to boot!
Korean spicy noodles
The noodles came with a sunny-side-up and lots of corn and beansprouts. Yes, the noodles were instant, but they were definitely Korean-made (think of the big red instant noodles packet with Korean words on it) and not the local Maggi or Cintan, so they were acceptable. In fact, I always buy Korean instant noodles so I could taste the similarity between these two. The portion was big but don't expect anything fancy, because it's exactly like what you would expect if you cooked the instant noodles yourself. :)
The attraction here, however, was the two big pieces of beef steak that came with the set! The steaks were considerably large in size, and well-marinated. They're also not tough/gamey, albeit slightly oily. The set also came with a side of kimchi. Finishing the whole noodles and 2 slices of beef steak proved to be a challenge for me. I was full to the brim by then!
Beef steak with kimchi
On the other hand, Saucer's brunch meal was Shanghai noodles with pork slices, at RM4.90, and additional RM1 for a drink, totalling it to RM5.90.
Chilli and sauce
The noodles used here resembled wantan noodles. The portion, as usual, was huge. The pork slices also came with salted vegetables, giving it a natural salty and sour taste. Very appetizing. Saucer loved this dish a lot, because it was the second time he ordered the same thing. :) Price wise, it was definitely worth every penny! If I'm not mistaken, the ala carte price for the noodles was around RM8+?
Shanghai noodles with pork slices
Have you got enough of Prince yet? *LOL* I still have one more dish to share, which was Shanghai rice with beef slices and vegetables. The rice was rather dry because there was no sauce given, but the beef slices were delicious and tender with a slightly crispy outer layer. Pretty good!
Shanghai vegetables rice with beef slices
Overall, the food at Prince Cafe was above average, and in my opinion very reasonably priced, especially the special breakfast menus. :) The only thing, perhaps, is that they have too much variety in terms of cuisine and they don't have a signature dish to promote, thereby might confuse customers with their extensive menu. However, cheese-baked rice won't fail you! :)
Prince Cafe
No. 58 & 60, Jalan SS2/67,
47300 Petaling Jaya,
Selangor, Malaysia
Tel no. : +603-7874 3995
Operating Hours:
Sunday to Thursday (10am-1am),
Friday & Saturday (10am-2am)
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Traditional toasted bread at Toh Soon Cafe
What comes up to your mind when you think about breakfast? Ham and eggs? Noodles? For me, it's toasted bread! Well, on that particular morning, that is. Saucer came to visit in Penang, and we met up with his ex-colleague Wailian, who's a true blue Penangite. He always has a long list of famous eateries that he would recommend to us. So on that morning, I asked him about the famous charcoal-toasted bread in Campbell Street and he immediately said he knew where!
On the way to breakfast!
Needless to say, I gleefully sat patiently at the back of his car while he maneuvered through the busy streets of Georgetown. It's amazing how many people were up and doing marketing at 8.30am on a Saturday! It was a lucky day for us as we were able to find the perfect parking spot just in front of the bread place! This is the Campbell Street arch that you can't miss if you drive around the Georgetown area. And this is where Toh Soon Cafe is located.
Campbell street
It is a quaint little cafe, situated in the middle of a junction, and you would have missed it if you didn't pay attention. However, the large crowd there would probably be good enough to be the attraction. Again, we were lucky second time when we managed to get a table just when we entered the shop! In fact, a few minutes later, we bumped in Saucer's friend who had to stand outside the shop for a good 15 minutes to wait for a table!
Toh Soon Cafe signboard
Even though the place was small, it was not stuffed or cramped. At least the ventilation was good. Business was brisk too.
Alfresco dining
We started with our drinks order. The guys ordered iced coffee while I joined the crowd by ordering iced Nescafe. To me, Nescafe is a milder version of coffee because it's not as bitter. :)
Iced coffee
Iced Nescafe
We ordered three sets of half-boiled eggs, 2 sets of toasted Hainan bread and 1 set of steamed Coffee Marble bread. For your information, they have a variety of bread available, including wholemeal bread and the normal white sandwich bread. Of course, we only opted for the traditional Hainan bread to savour its goodness. The half-boiled eggs were done perfectly! Not a minute more or less than it should take. :) Went very well with bread too, I must say.
Half-boiled eggs
I must mention that the main specialty of this shop is that their toasted bread were toasted with charcoal! Not the modern toasters that you usually see in the shops. Isn't that amazing? Really old-fashioned! To me, I found that the bread was much crispier at the outside but soft and moist on the inside. Compared that to normal toaster, the whole slice of break would usually be hard or crispy. However, the two gentlemen with me said they couldn't taste the difference. :S
Toasted Hainan bread
The Hainan bread came with butter and kaya spreaded in between too. It's nice to even eat it on its own.
Second plate
Finally, if you don't like toasted version of bread because of heatiness, you can also try the steamed version. We tried the steamed coffee marble bread, which was very fragrant and extremely soft! Seriously, it's so soft it could melt in your mouth! I loved this very much.
Steamed coffee marble bread
Total amount spent for 3 drinks, 3 sets of bread and 3 sets of half-boiled eggs was RM13.50. That's pretty reasonable, I'd say. With the old-style kopitiam environment to boot! I enjoyed the experience very much and would definitely go back there again. :)
On the way to breakfast!
Needless to say, I gleefully sat patiently at the back of his car while he maneuvered through the busy streets of Georgetown. It's amazing how many people were up and doing marketing at 8.30am on a Saturday! It was a lucky day for us as we were able to find the perfect parking spot just in front of the bread place! This is the Campbell Street arch that you can't miss if you drive around the Georgetown area. And this is where Toh Soon Cafe is located.
Campbell street
It is a quaint little cafe, situated in the middle of a junction, and you would have missed it if you didn't pay attention. However, the large crowd there would probably be good enough to be the attraction. Again, we were lucky second time when we managed to get a table just when we entered the shop! In fact, a few minutes later, we bumped in Saucer's friend who had to stand outside the shop for a good 15 minutes to wait for a table!
Toh Soon Cafe signboard
Even though the place was small, it was not stuffed or cramped. At least the ventilation was good. Business was brisk too.
Alfresco dining
We started with our drinks order. The guys ordered iced coffee while I joined the crowd by ordering iced Nescafe. To me, Nescafe is a milder version of coffee because it's not as bitter. :)
Iced coffee
Iced Nescafe
We ordered three sets of half-boiled eggs, 2 sets of toasted Hainan bread and 1 set of steamed Coffee Marble bread. For your information, they have a variety of bread available, including wholemeal bread and the normal white sandwich bread. Of course, we only opted for the traditional Hainan bread to savour its goodness. The half-boiled eggs were done perfectly! Not a minute more or less than it should take. :) Went very well with bread too, I must say.
Half-boiled eggs
I must mention that the main specialty of this shop is that their toasted bread were toasted with charcoal! Not the modern toasters that you usually see in the shops. Isn't that amazing? Really old-fashioned! To me, I found that the bread was much crispier at the outside but soft and moist on the inside. Compared that to normal toaster, the whole slice of break would usually be hard or crispy. However, the two gentlemen with me said they couldn't taste the difference. :S
Toasted Hainan bread
The Hainan bread came with butter and kaya spreaded in between too. It's nice to even eat it on its own.
Second plate
Finally, if you don't like toasted version of bread because of heatiness, you can also try the steamed version. We tried the steamed coffee marble bread, which was very fragrant and extremely soft! Seriously, it's so soft it could melt in your mouth! I loved this very much.
Steamed coffee marble bread
Total amount spent for 3 drinks, 3 sets of bread and 3 sets of half-boiled eggs was RM13.50. That's pretty reasonable, I'd say. With the old-style kopitiam environment to boot! I enjoyed the experience very much and would definitely go back there again. :)
Friday, March 20, 2009
Boiling
I'm literally boiling now, with anger, no less. I feel like I have been betrayed, by someone I've been loyal to. Why in the world would he do things behind my back? Has he no respect for me? Or worse, does he think I'm invisible? This is simply too much to stomach, after the same incident happening 2 days in a row. *sigh* What is a girl to do? I can only keep quiet and accept it. As Saucer always advised me, if I want respect, I have to stand up for myself. But do I have the courage to stand up for myself? I really do not know. But what I do know is that my emotional thermometer has just shot way up, beyond scales. I. AM. PISSED.
HK Food and Tea restaurant, Ipoh
During one of my visits to Kinta City, Ipoh, I passed by one of the relatively new restaurants there, known as HK Food and Tea restaurant. It is located towards the back of the mall, just opposite the Maybank ATM machines. Coincidentally, this place used to be a Western restaurant. Now that I come to think of it, there were many different restaurants taking place in this lot previously. Somehow, business always didn't manage to survive for long, resulting in frequent change of ownership. I wonder if it has anything to do with fengshui... Anyway, my family and I were hungry and we didn't have much choice Chinese food in Kinta City, so we went in to try.
witch on the red couch
Business was pretty brisk on that Sunday, filled mostly with teenager groups or families. My first order was this signature drink that was shown in the menu. It was apparently a mixture of yogurt and mango, which didn't work very well, I must say. I think they used too much ice. You can't see it from the picture below, but the whole glass was FILLED with ice! After a few sips, the drink became very diluted and I could only taste slight sourness and that's all. Not worth the price at all.
Signature mango drink
My grandma ordered this fried udon with seafood fish, which was the nicest of all our dishes, comparatively. It was actually pretty good if it wasn't too salty and oily. For people who like salty dishes (like my grandpa), it was a hit! :) It was fried with generous amount of black pepper too, so if you don't like black pepper, you might not want to try this.
Fried udon
My grandpa ordered the pork and century eggs porridge, which came with some crisps on top. I tried some of the crisps to find out that they're already not crispy anymore. :S I guess they thought it's ok because the customers would mix them up in the porridge anyway. Otherwise, the porridge was pretty good. It was thick and smooth, and there were plenty of century eggs inside too! Yum!
Pork and century eggs porridge
We also ordered this seafood noodles just because it was on promotion that day. I still remember the price to be RM8.80. The picture in the brochure definitely looked better than the real thing. For one, the prawn size was much smaller in the real order, and it wasn't very fresh. Also, the gravy wasn't thick/hot enough hence most of the noodles were still hard even after mixing them up together. Again, too salty. This comment was not only by me, but by my grandma and my dad too. It's not biased. :)
Crispy noodle with seafood
Then my dad ordered the honey pork ribs with rice. I guess this is a very common and basic dish in all HK eateries. The pork ribs were well marinated. I love ribs so I might be slightly biased in this dish. :) But it really wasn't that bad.
Pork ribs rice
As for dessert, we ordered one of the ice-cream dishes in the menu. I don't remember the name of this but it was the first item listed in the ice-cream section. The colours were a let down, really. I am turn off by food which is obviously coloured artificially, such as the ice-cream and the colourful flakes below. I regretted with this order, although I believe kids would have loved this. Nothing much to comment about this ice-cream, it's obviously from Walls.
Ice-cream
Overall, I think the food quality was OK, but there is still much room for improvement. Perhaps starting by making the food less salty. I have yet to try out their other HK specialties such as the toast and polo bun. A reason for a next trip! :)
witch on the red couch
Business was pretty brisk on that Sunday, filled mostly with teenager groups or families. My first order was this signature drink that was shown in the menu. It was apparently a mixture of yogurt and mango, which didn't work very well, I must say. I think they used too much ice. You can't see it from the picture below, but the whole glass was FILLED with ice! After a few sips, the drink became very diluted and I could only taste slight sourness and that's all. Not worth the price at all.
Signature mango drink
My grandma ordered this fried udon with seafood fish, which was the nicest of all our dishes, comparatively. It was actually pretty good if it wasn't too salty and oily. For people who like salty dishes (like my grandpa), it was a hit! :) It was fried with generous amount of black pepper too, so if you don't like black pepper, you might not want to try this.
Fried udon
My grandpa ordered the pork and century eggs porridge, which came with some crisps on top. I tried some of the crisps to find out that they're already not crispy anymore. :S I guess they thought it's ok because the customers would mix them up in the porridge anyway. Otherwise, the porridge was pretty good. It was thick and smooth, and there were plenty of century eggs inside too! Yum!
Pork and century eggs porridge
We also ordered this seafood noodles just because it was on promotion that day. I still remember the price to be RM8.80. The picture in the brochure definitely looked better than the real thing. For one, the prawn size was much smaller in the real order, and it wasn't very fresh. Also, the gravy wasn't thick/hot enough hence most of the noodles were still hard even after mixing them up together. Again, too salty. This comment was not only by me, but by my grandma and my dad too. It's not biased. :)
Crispy noodle with seafood
Then my dad ordered the honey pork ribs with rice. I guess this is a very common and basic dish in all HK eateries. The pork ribs were well marinated. I love ribs so I might be slightly biased in this dish. :) But it really wasn't that bad.
Pork ribs rice
As for dessert, we ordered one of the ice-cream dishes in the menu. I don't remember the name of this but it was the first item listed in the ice-cream section. The colours were a let down, really. I am turn off by food which is obviously coloured artificially, such as the ice-cream and the colourful flakes below. I regretted with this order, although I believe kids would have loved this. Nothing much to comment about this ice-cream, it's obviously from Walls.
Ice-cream
Overall, I think the food quality was OK, but there is still much room for improvement. Perhaps starting by making the food less salty. I have yet to try out their other HK specialties such as the toast and polo bun. A reason for a next trip! :)
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