The Tradition... Kacang Tumbuk

The Kacang Tumbuk or it's also called Peanut Barley Candy in English, is a traditional dessert that I've grown up with. I guess every kids in the 80's are so familiar with this peanut candy and I'm at least the one that have enjoyed chewing it.

William's favourite is the 亚和传统手工薄饼皮及贡糖 that is located at the Chowrasta Road. What I've heard is, people are queueing to buy the peanut barley candy that is crushed and being wrapped inside the poh piah skin. Thanks to Clony that I've manged to try out the Peanut Barley Candy and the Peanut Candy Biscuit by this Uncle Lim. The Peanut Barley Candy贡糖 is not sticky and it's very fluffy that the sugar just melts together with the smooth powdery peanut in the mouth. I like the Peanut Candy Biscuit花生角 the most as the peanuts have been fried to a nice colour and aroma before being coated with the sugar It's crunchy yet it's not too sweet.

If you're fancy over this traditional handmade candy, wake up in the morning and look for the stall at the Chowrasta Road.

The German at Lecker Ecke

Lecker Ecke is one of the very least German Restaurant that is available in Penang. It's located at the Burmah Road and I think it has been established since early of 2014. I've always talked to Attila about this restaurant yet we've not visited this place, partly due to the limited parking space in front of the shop itself. It's Chinese New Year and we've decided to give it a try, before the crowd is back to this Island.

Lecke Ecke means "Delicious Corner". It's just alike a small restaurant that is available at the outskirt or small village in Europe. The ambient is so calm and cosy that you can dine in peacefully with a bunch of friends here. Anyway, it has not been a lucky day for me that the coffee is not available during CNY due to the supplier is still on leave. Frankly, it's my breakfast time and I've been so disappointed about the fact.

Attila has ordered the Scrambled Egg with Bacon, Toast and Butter while I've taken the Kohlrouladen or the cabbage that is rolled with minced pork and being topped with tomato and rosemary sauce. Egg should be a simple dish that can't go wrong and the Chef has made it correctly for Attila, only with salt and pepper. The toast is definitely not my preference that I'll indeed look for a German Bread in such restaurant. On the other hand, the cabbage roll doesn't look tempting by swimming in the red sauce. I like the nice aroma of the rosemary in the tomato-based sauce and the tenderness of the minced pork, but the combinations just don't taste as stunning as I wish to have. Anyway, I like the lightly sauteed pasta that it's delicious even on its own. The side salad also tastes good with the honey mustard dressing.

There has been plenty of German dishes in the menu and I'm looking forward to try them again someday. And I'll hope for a coffee this time.

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BKT at the Coffee Island

I've known Coffee Island as the place only for Western Cuisine. It has somehow being added with BKT or Bak Kut Teh. Due to the special request from Boon Li for BKT and it's mainly because of the ample parking space for 2 cars, we've decided to give it a try for the BKT here.

We've of course ordered both the main "characters", the Bak Kut Teh Soup皇排肉骨茶 and the Bak Kut Teh Dry干香肉骨茶. The customers are allowed to choose the ingredients that range from the pork rib, tripe meat, soft bone, pig's tail, meat ball, pork intestines, pork stomach to Tao Kee or the bean curd sheet. They're definitely not the best for BKT as both the soup and the dry types are not so strong or "sufficient" in taste. We can't smell the herbal in the BKT soup despite we're just sitting nearby the kitchen area. It's quite disappointing as the meat is actually quite tender. I prefer if the dark soy sauce in the dry BKT is indeed thicker while the meat is being sauteed to a slight burnt that it's absorbing the taste of the dark soy sauce besides releasing a nice aroma of the soy. The dried chili is as well insufficient to bring out the tastiness of the dish.

Besides, we've also taken the Deep Fried Grouper Fillet with Shredded Ginger干煎石班鱼块, the Sambal Four Vegetable四大天王 that consists of the lady finger, long bean, lotus root and the eggplant and also the French Bean with Minced Meat肉碎四季豆. The fried fish is definitely a joke whereby it's served without the shredded ginger. The name has mentioned the ingredients, isn't it?!! We've to request for the ginger and it's just topped on the fish with an arrogant attitude from the Aunt. Disappointing! On the other hand, the Sambal doesn't taste delicious while I find it weird that this dish is served with lotus root instead of French Beans or Petai. Luckily, the French Bean is delicious especially being sauteed with the minced meat in the dark soy sauce.

We dislike the dishes here, the BKT is somehow not so tasty anyway. It's good that they're providing ample private car parks here yet I think this is the only reason that the customers are visiting this place.

Lou Sang or "The Third"?

It's not easy to spot a Chinese restaurant that is still running the business as usual during the Chinese New Year and it's not filled with the crowds. Being recommended by William, we've decided to have our dinner at the Lou Sang Seafood Restaurant老仨海鮮飯店 that is located at the Jalan Bayu Mutiara 1. To ensure that the business can run smoothly during the busy days, the owner has prepared a simpler and shorter menu that contains only the dishes that can represent the CNY.

I can't recall the beautiful names for all the dishes correctly. We've anyhow ordered the Pork Knuckle, the Fried Dragon Fruit with Scallop, the Claypot Seafood Treasure and the Prawns with Glass Noodle. The Thai-style fried pork knuckle is very crispy while the meat is still juicy. It's slightly disappointed that the whole pork leg has not been marinated with sufficient time that the meat is not salty enough. I'm amazed by the plate of dragon fruit that is fried with the scallop, celery and French beans. The juiciness of the dragon fruit is still maintained despite after frying. I've indeed enjoyed the various combinations in this dish especially the freshness of the green vegetable that goes well with the sweetness of the dragon fruit. The Claypot Seafood Treasure tastes good yet it's quite ordinary. I normally fancy over this pot because I'll be able to try various seafood that includes prawn, sea cucumber, fish maw, cuttle fish and sea asparagus. One spicy dish to stimulate the appetizer, the Prawns with Glass Noodle that is cooked in the curry sauce. The curry has a nice aroma from the Bungan Kantan and the leaves of the Kaffir Lime. It's thick, strong and it tastes delicious! I've enjoyed the glass noodle that has absorbed the curry sauce completely, yummy...!!!

I'm happy with the recommendation by William as the Lau Sang Seafood Restaurant has indeed served some tasty dishes. My parents have enjoyed it as I do, I think we love the time being together as a family.

You're My Valentine... You & I, at TLWB

Attila has insisted that we should go on a dating night together on the Valentine's Day. It's not an easy task in deciding the location and moreover, the must to make a reservation in order to prevent the disappointment on the actual day. We've finally decided to visit That Little Wine Bar, TLWB that has been one of our regular restaurant.

"Happy Valentine's Day to my Valentine, Attila"

The Valentine's Day Set Menu costs RM 198 per pax, excluding government tax and service charge. Sitting down on our table, we're firstly served with the Kir Royale or the cocktail that is made of champagne and blackcurrant liquer. It's an easy drink and I've enjoyed the mixture as the blackcurrant liquer has added a little sweetness to the sourness of the champagne.

Our starter is the Foie Gras Brulée. It's a very special dish whereby the Foie Gras Terrine or the goose liver pate is topped with the dried fruits and being surrounded by the champagne gelée. Chef Tommes has used a special cooking method to remove the excess fat from the goose liver. The purpose is to create a compact and smooth Foie Gras that is completely differing from the traditional liver pate that is soft and very oily. I hate Foie Gras but... this dish is so awesome! The dried fruits has added a refreshing taste to the Foie Gras that is on the hand, covering up the smell of the liver pate that I dislike of. The champagne gelée is another surprise to the tastebud as it's creating a tiny explosion or bubbling on the tongue. It's delicious, it's marvelous!

After being amazed by the Foie Gras Brulée, we're then served with the Warm Tiger Shrimps that are served on a bed of salad and being garnished with the champagne vinegar emulsion. What I like the most? The chopped shallot that is mixed with special sauce and herbs that has matched the succulent prawn and the freshness of the vegetable completely. The best option for me will be a big plate of prawns with the special sauce yet without any green.

Choosing between the main courses of the Steamed John Dory or the Smoked Japanese Duck Breast, we've both decided for the latter dish. The slices of the duck meat are served on top of the mash potatoes and being garnished with the pineapple, tomato and bean sprout. I personally think that the texture of the meat is very smooth that it tastes a little alike meat loaf. I like particularly the bean sprout that has added refreshing taste to this meat dish. The whole platter has the elements of sweetness and sourness that I'm thinking indeed if it's maybe tastier with a little more saltiness? Having the chance to peep at the kitchen after the dinner, we've regretted for not ordering the John Dory Fish earlier... it looks delicious!

Ending with the dessert that consists of a threesome of sweet things. The plate comes with the Raspberry Cake, the Banana Sorbet and the Cookies. My favourite is the warm cookies that are served freshly from the oven while Attila likes the Banana Sorbet for its icy feeling. I like the beautiful heart on the cake while for the taste, I'll opt for more raspberry jam indeed.

A delicious dinner with a good service from the staff, we've enjoyed the Valentine's Dinner to the maximum satisfaction. It's very pity that a lot of customers have turned down their reservations at the very last minute and without any early information at all.

Discovering... the French Cuisine at the Croisette Villa

Entering the Infinity Condominium that is located at the Tanjung Bungah, this small restaurant is definitely not really known by many people not even the Penangites. The Croisette Villa is renting out the rooms as vacation house and its specialty is the concept of solid colours for each room independently. Thanks to Su for the information and recommendation to the French Restaurant that is located at the ground floor of this small bungalow house, the Croisette Cafe. According to a newspaper cut on the wall, the restaurant is ran by a famous French Chef that has retired yet aimed to introduce the innovative French Cuisine to his customers.

Picking the starter from the menu of the day, we've taken the Mussels baked like Escargots. The mussels are topped with the butter and garlic and being served with a bed of rock salt on a hot white plate freshly from the oven. The mussel is "coated" with a nice aroma of the butter and a refreshing taste of the garlic yet the best is the saltiness of the rock salt that has completed the wholeness of the mussel.

Ignoring the advice by the lady boss and we've crazily ordered 3 stews that are Coq au Riesling, Beef Bourguignon and Pork Civet in Merlot. The earliest is the chicken that is cooked in white wine while the beef and the pork meat are both slowly cooked in a sauce that is red wine-based. The various meat are very soft except the beef that is slightly more succulent due to the tendon. The texture of the meat is just the perfect example of a stew. Su and my favourite is the white and creamy chicken stew. It's hard to be explained whereby there has been a refreshing taste in the white wine sauce that has indeed enhanced its deliciousness. We both have almost swallowed the whole pot of the sauce. I don't really like the smell of the beef stew as it's somehow too strong. Oh ya, the side dishes... the Ratatouille Nicoise is matched with the chicken, the noodle is served with the pork while the Mushrooms Mixed Grilled is meant for the beef. The Ratatouille is so marvellous, I love it so much! The noodle is slightly too hard while the mushrooms can't go wrong with the sauteed garlic. To our surprise that the side dishes are charged separately except the plain noodle.

We've also taken the Duck Confit with Potato Sarladaise. It's actually a duck drumstick that is cooked to a tenderness that the meat is falling off with only a soft touch and then being served together with the sliced potatoes that are sauteed in duck fat with garlic. The duck meat is quite delicious despite it's a little too salty for me. I prefer if the duck is grilled further that the skin is crispier while the meat is drier that it doesn't have the slight duck's smell.

Ending with the desserts, the Chocolate Orange Parfait and the Trio Chocolate Mousse. The dark chocolate that contains orange bits and being topped with the slices of dried orange, we've indulged into the thickness and smoothness of the chocolate completely. The history has never changed whereby the sourness of the orange has always matched the bitterness of the dark chocolate perfectly. We're just wondering... what is the light brownish liquid on the plate? It tastes alike medicine. The forgotten chocolate mousse is finally served, it's delicious!

The whole meal is indeed quite delicious! Some dishes are of course not to my favour in taste yet I think that the place is still worthwhile to be explored further. It's a new experience anyway...

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Back to the 1960s

The business doesn't run well at this particular shop that it has changed to a few different names before and it's now an Oriental restaurant that is called 1960s. The decorations and the songs that are played in this restaurant tend to bring back the nostalgic old years.

Beginning with a starter of Curry Capitam Chicken with Fried Man Tao. The curry sauce has a nice aroma of the Kaffir Leaf while its thickness fits the Oriental Bread Dumpling or Man Tao completely. The curry is indeed quite sweet based and it's not too spicy that it can be accepted easily by various customers.

We've tried out the Spaghetti Carbonara with Bacon奶油培根意粉 and the Chicken Egg.Salted Egg.Century Egg Congee三黄粥. The presentation doesn't look alike the typical Italian Spaghetti Carbonara that we've known of, it's more wet and this is the first time that I've seen the broccoli in the pork bacon pasta. Anyway, the creamy sauce is quite delicious and the crispiness of the sauteed bacon has indeed added taste to this white sauce. I do enjoy my bowl of congee that is filled with various eggs except the crispy bacon. I personally think that the oily bacon has overridden the taste of the plain congee.

The food at the 1960s is indeed quite delicious. Yet, the restaurant is not overwhelmed with customers and I'm wondering why? Maybe, the lighting is just too bright? Or, the menu is just too simple?

Drink a Beer at the Brussels Beer Cafe

Su has suggested the venue for gathering at the Brussels Beer Cafe. It's definitely not an old place yet I've never been there, despite that I've been very frequently passed by the Gurney Paragon. I'm really wondering what can I be expecting here...

Being recommended by Su to her favourite drink of Hoegaarden Rosée. It's a sweeter and more refreshing version of the original wheat beer that contains the fruity taste of the raspberries. Elaine and I think that it tastes very alike the "Shandy" that is every child's favourite drink.

We've as usual decided to share the food by ordering the Beer Food Platter and the Mix Grill Platter. The earlier comes with roast pork, fried squid tentacles, bacon that is wrapped with cherries, meatballs and the Belgium frites. The roast pork tastes quite delicious from its saltiness yet the taste and the crunchiness of the skin are way too far comparing to the Asian-style roast pork. The tentacle is coated with too much flour that it tastes very softy and oily. A special idea indeed by wrapping the preserved cherries in the pork bacon, but this is definitely a "No-Go"! The artificial taste of the cherries have destroyed the tastiness of the bacon completely. The pork meatballs are topped with a sweet-based black sauce that contains sauteed onions. The best or my favourite dish is the fries that can't be wrong in the taste. The mix grill platters consists of German bratwurst, lamb cutlets, chicken skewers and beef ribs that are supposed to be served with rotkraut instead of fresh salad. The bratwurst or the pork sausage is too soft in its texture. I'm not fancy over lamb as it's too smelly while Su has commented that the lamb cutlets are indeed too chewy comparing to the one that she has tried with the mom before. The beef ribs taste quite delicious from the marination that contains various herbs and spices. What has pissed me off the most? The chicken meat that is served uncooked on the skewer!

Every dish that has been served to our table is basically quite cold. I'm somehow disappointed by the food at Brussels Beer Cafe. Oppositely, Su is very optimistic that she thinks that they may serve some delicious food here yet we've ordered the wrong dishes.

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