Books, books & more books

Oh dear...I bought 4 books the last round & only managed to read 2 books. I still have 2 more to go & yet, I bought another 3 books from BookXcess. My bookshelf is so gonna pile up. -.-"

Who wouldn't be tempted to buy a 3-in-1 book set at only RM39.90? It's even cheaper than buying at RM17.90 each. BookXcess is evil! XD

Kokopelli Travellers Bistro @ Section 14, PJ (Revisited)

Two years ago, I visited this bungalow-turned-restaurant called Kokopelli nearby my house which serves Western food. I thought the food was mediocre & way too expensive for rather small servings.. From then, I didn't stop by for a 2nd visit for almost a year. Apparently, the restaurant was closed for a period of time due to renovation works. I thought to myself, they might be doing some touchups to the interior. Several weeks later, the restaurant was back to business as usual.

Out of the blue, my sis asked me out for dinner simply because we have no idea on what takeout food to buy. This is how the restaurant looks from the roadside.

It's a pity that the restaurant is situated unstrategically at the roadside just opposite 3 Two Square cuz parking is seriously lacking in the area. Walk through the entrance & you'll see tables & chairs with parasols adorn the outdoor.

The interior looks simple & homely, a little old as traces of the old bungalow house structure is still evident.

The menu design is a vast improvement from my last visit. Their old menu design was atrocious cuz it was printed out of white paper & binded messily. It was obvious the design was prepared & printed from a personal printer at home. Plus point for better presentation this round!

We ordered 2 main courses to share but was rather disappointed with the portion served. The price ain't cheap at RM20.90 per dish. Moreover, the dishes tasted so-so. Hmm...not a good sign.

Chicken with BBQ sauce, salad & poached egg

Seafood linguine aglio olio

Of course, we weren't fully satisfied & had to order more to whet our appetite. Another 2 orders were made & thankfully, those dishes wasn't too bad.

Classic mushroom soup

Garlic & chilli clams

Restaurants shouldn't go wrong with classic mushroom soup as it's the most basic & common dish. Glad that Kokopelli's chef hit the right note with rich taste & aroma, not to forget in the right thickness. The garlic & chilli clams was pretty delicious. Again, I've to stress that the clams were too tiny in size & the whole portion was too small. Definitely not worth paying RM12.90 for it.

I'm not sure if I would return for the 3rd time or more in the future. It seemed to me the owners have no reason to attract more customers to their already dwindling business. From my observation, business are quiet on most days & even if there are...I presume they are of close friends or relatives dropping by to support the business. The owners should really look into improving their weaknesses or risk facing closedown.

Address:
Kokopelli Travellers Bistro
(opposite Jaya 32 Square)
4, Section 14/46
Petaling Jaya, Selangor

Contact:
03-7956 7505

Opening Hours:
Lunch 12:00pm - 3:00pm
Last table booking 2:45pm
Dinner 6:00pm - 11:00pm
Last table booking - 10:20pm
Closed on Mondays

Makan trip

The desire to break away from my regular weekend routine had been fulfilled when I decided to travel to Penang with WL & his colleagues on Friday late evening. This marked the 2nd time I'm on a journey with WL up north & the intention was to scout for good food.

For this trip, we have WL's Penangite colleague to take us around to the must-eat places. The morning after our late night arrival started off early at the market near the foot of Kek Lok Si temple. The food court at the market was bustling with noise from the old folks' chatter.

We ordered lots of food for breakfast any signs of hesitation. =P

Kuay teow th'yng & char kuay teow

After breakfast, we drove up to Kek Lok Si temple at the top of the hill. The view looks the same as before, only the skies were more hazy.

The temple is similar as before, only difference is this photo has better composition. XD

Then we descnded the hill & headed nearby our hotel for lunch cuz our stomachs were growling & a quick bite was much appreciated. Later in the evening, we came down from our hotel & walked to Macalister Road where food stalls operate from evening until midnight. It was munch time again...just take a look at our table. The heaviest tea break I've ever had!

More food to come! Not long after that, WL's Penangite colleague whisked us to a restaurant which serves authentic Nyonya food at Transfer Road. He ordered a plethora of dishes which are mostly house specialties. Oh, the food galore!

As if dinner wasn't enough, we decided to have a walk at Esplanade before driving off to a mamak which sells the popular nasi kandar. We snapped some photos of the night scene before settling down at the food court for "dessert" - fruit rojak.

Finally, we drove to Restoran Kassim Mustafa for the nasi kandar supper. It was no doubt delicious despite the fattening & sky-high cholesterol content. I've never eaten nasi kandar before in my life & this is the first time & probably the best I've ever tried. Served here is curry chicken & mutton.

Time passed by so fast that it was already the last day. All of us - up & early - was eagerly waiting to try a popular prawn noodles nearby the hotel. Ever since this trip, I became so fond of the prawn noodles which I thought I wouldn't be able to appreciate it due to its spicy taste. Cuz the noodles & soup stock tasted so darn good! With mantis prawn to add the savoury feel.

After breakfast, we went back to the hotel to pack up cuz we need to check out by noon. As planned, we stopped by at Bukit Tambun for seafood fiesta. This was my 2nd time dining there the food standard is still as good as before. Seafood is superbly fresh & price is affordable. I think I should make a yearly trip there to indulge on my annual dose of seafood galore. XD

That's all for my gastronomic adventure. Eating has never been happier than this. XD Hope to return to Penang again next year, perhaps in a not-so-rush manner. =)

Dream kitchen

I was a little bored over the weekend & did a random visit to a renowned kitchen appliances brand, KitchenAid. I found out about this brand when I did some research while scouting for a stand mixer (though I ended up buying a Philips cuz I couldn't afford KitchenAid).

In case you have no idea how the stand mixer looks like, here it is...the ever gorgeous Kitchen Aid tilt-head stand mixer in a wide array of hues.

In the website, there's a page that showcases several kitchen design concepts equipped with KitchenAid appliances. Boy, I was captivated by all the designs but I was definitely attracted to 2 designs.

My first favourite - Modern American.

My next favourite design - Contemporary.

Such beautiful kitchens...who wouldn't dream of owning one in their homes one day? If only achieving it is a not-too-distant reality. For now, I can only dream.

Pics credits:
Appliance Online
KitchenAid Gallery

Korean noodles no more

I'm devastated! Even my favourite Korean instant noodles is banned due to suspicions of contamination by excessive amounts of plasticisers. I still have 2 more packets of Shin Ramyun in the kitchen, still unconsumed. T.T

If you're a fan of the noodles, check out this article in The Star on the product recall.

Click here to view.

Pic courtesy www.rameniac.com

First class men in first class movie

The first time I saw this poster...

...I had mixed feelings. I felt elated that James McAvoy, the Scottish actor (with his sexy Scottish accent) will be the young Charles Xavier. However, one look at the other casts with unfamiliar names & faces had me deliberating whether to watch it in the cinema. I couldn't deny the uneasy feeling tugging on me that it may turn out to be a boring movie. Then again, I may be wrong. Who said that movies with A-list actors/actresses are guaranteed not a flop?

With that in mind, WL & I bought tickets for last night's session. The verdict? It turned out pretty awesome! It's like the rejuvenation of the X-Men franchise, brought to life by these promising stars. The plot mainly focuses on the Cuban missile crisis in 1962 & the developing friendship between Charles Xavier & Erik Lensherr before they became the unformidable Professor X & Magneto respectively; parting ways due to conflicts in beliefs & ideology.

No doubt McAvoy looks convincing as the intellectual professor but the real star power here is Michael Fassbender's portrayal of Erik. The angst, revenge & spiteful demeanour mixed with his softer side is overwhelming. Much credits to other stars in the film who performed very well to bring out their characters. I wouldn't reveal any further cuz you really should go see it for yourself. I'd give thumbs up for this movie, if I were you. =D

Batch 85 Graduation

Last Saturday was a memorable day for my dear little sister. After two years of sheer hard work & struggles, she is finally graduating from her diploma course in advertising design. Though not a degree yet, it's still worth celebrating cuz she's eligible to work. Yay!

Here's my little sis in a robe & mortar board before the ceremony commences.

The graduation ceremony was held at the Grand Ballroom, Sunway Resort - a pretty grand event when compared to my graduation which was only held in a multi-purpose hall in INTI's Nilai campus. While my sis & other graduates waited outside the ballroom, the guests were ushered to be seated at their assigned tables.

The ceremony started almost 2 hours later & without further adieu, the procession began with graduates marching into the ballroom. One by one, names of graduates were being called up to receive the dummy scroll. As a symbol of respect, guests were advised against applauding during the ceremony. We were also not allowed to stand near the stage to take pics so I had to resort to snapping my sis on stage from the large projector screen.

Two hours later, the ceremony finally ended. Whee! Here's a pic of me & my sis after officially graduated.

And not forget family pics... =D

Dinner was served right after the ceremony ended - a rather interesting feat as most graduation ceremonies do not provide meals, perhaps only refreshments. Anyways, guests had to pay about RM100+ per pax for ceremony tickets therefore it's not surprising that dinner is expected.

The food wasn't too bad despite it being halal. In fact, I personally enjoyed most of the dishes. To keep everyone entertained, there were some pretty good performances specially arranged by the students themselves. Overall, we had an enjoyable time laughing & chatting away. Sure bet this pic shows it all... =P

Well, congratulations to my dear sis & here's wishing her all the best in her future endeavours. =)

Bone & Pot, Uptown Damansara

WL promised to take me to this steamboat restaurant to try out & the day had finally came. After work, we drove straight to Uptown Damansara before the heavy traffic started to build up just before the toll to NKVE. When we arrived, it was drizzling...a plus point since we're eating steaming hot food today to balance off the heat. Judging from the bright neon lights outside the restaurant, it looks pretty eye-catching from the highway.

We were handed this menu to take our pick...

We ordered two different soups - signature pork bone broth & black pepper pork broth - plus other ingredients as our main dishes. Since this steamboat is ala carte style, we were quite selective on the ingredients as the price tend to be rather pricey. These were some of the ingredients that arrived at our table.

The unique aspect of this restaurant is that it provides 5 different sauces to suit your varying taste buds - from spicy to sour. Though I quite fancy the dried chilli flakes similar to those used in dried pan mee, it was a pity that I couldn't consume much due to its spiciness.

While waiting for the rest of the ingredients to be served, we poured some of them into the broth & brought it to a boil. Seeing the boiling pot each time makes me go hungry. Yum!

What I really liked about dining here was the comfort of eating boiling hot food without sweating it all out. The heat source comes from an induction hob installed on each table to keep the broth at boiling point without releasing heat to the surrounding. Not only we felt less heat, eating steamboat becomes less messy & most importantly safer than ever before.

Our only complain (like what I've mentioned earlier), the price was rather steep with their choices left much to be desired. Maybe cuz we were too used to eating buffet style steamboat which offers variety at an affordable price. Overall, Bone & Pot is alright but it wouldn't attract us...or at least me for another visit. It wasn't that worth it, if you ask me.

Address:

Bone & Pot
No. 88, Jalan SS21/61
Damansara Utama
47400 Petaling Jaya
Selangor

Contact:

03-7724 2623

Opening Hours:

5:00pm - 1:00am daily

Kungfu fighting panda is back!

What more can I say? This is by far the most entertaining film of the year. This story picks up from where it ended without causing much confusion to audiences like me who missed the first instalment.

It's so damn hilarious yet the storyline is well told. I'd say that finally there's a 3D animated film capable of matching works of Pixar; unlike most films which only contain so much humour that they become lame, meaningless & most importantly, forgettable.

I won't bother providing a synopsis this time or risk spoiling the excitement. Just go enjoy the movie...I'm sure you do. Do try 3D if you don't mind forking extra bucks cuz the effects are pretty good.

Pic courtesy of Movie Poster DB.com

Porto Romano, Taman Tun Dr Ismail

After our movie night out, me & WL headed out of One Utama for dinner. We came across this website which mentioned about Porto Romano which serves Italian-Mediterranean dishes in the heart of TTDI. We decided to try it out since the restaurants & cafes in One Utama no longer appeal to us.

Both of us were not familiar with the location & depended on WL's car GPS to lead us there. However, the GPS directed us to a house instead of the restaurant which left us puzzled. One call to the restaurant to confirm that we were actually close by but have ventured to the housing area. We should instead head back to the old IBM plaza area.

Stepping into the restaurant on a first impression was a pretty cosy & intimate ambience despite its rather small premise.

The lights used were deliberately dimmed to give way for more light source from the candle on each table. This calls for a candlelight dinner. =) Sweet...

Nevertheless, we didn't order much from the menu cuz we were pretty stuffed from munching McD nuggets while watching Kungfu Panda 2 earlier. More on that later in the next post. Therefore, we called for 2 dishes only - Porto Romano Spaghetti (house specialty) & Calzone (half moon pizza). The first dish was pasta which consist of shrimps, squid & mussels. The presentation wasn't very neat & the abundance of sauce soaking up the pasta led to questionable taste.

Taste wise, it wasn't as bad as it looked. I liked the fact that the slight spiciness from black pepper in the sauce adds excitement to the dish. It's disappointing that the seafood weren't fresh & seriously...why only one piece of mussel? :/

When the next dish was served...

...we were intrigued. It's half the size of one pizza folded into half with stuffings in it. On 2nd look at the crust, it didn't look mouth-watering cuz the surface just seemed too dry. If you're wondering what's on the inside, it contain turkey ham, cheese & wild mushrooms. One bite of the half moon pizza didn't give us much excitement as compared to the pasta. It could be due to the weird taste from the ham or the crust lacked moisture that spoilt the entire dish.

The price range is pretty normal when compared to other Italian dining but it wasn't worth it for us cuz we were left dissatisfied. I mean, food's worthiness very much depends on how much it can provide us pleasure while charged at reasonable price.

Address:

Porto Romano
8, Persiaran Zaaba
Taman Tun Dr. Ismail
60000 Kuala Lumpur

Contact:

03-7710 0509

Opening Hours:

11:00am - 11:00pm daily

Links:

http://www.porto-romano.com/