Klang Bakuteh @ Miri

My usual fave bakuteh in Miri is at Centrepoint Miri but somehow everytime I felt like having it, the shop would be closed. Maybe I just always happened to crave for it on their off days? Anyway, the same thing happened again a few days ago and we decided to go to another bakuteh place along Jalan Permaisuri, Klang Bakuteh (that's their name, not the bakuteh from there). 

It's not our first time and having sampled their dry version of bakuteh (not a fan), I usually just stick to the usual soup version nowadays. That day we felt like having something else and my dad recommended their Assam fish. 

I did not regret ordering their Assam fish at all. It was so good I finished nearly everything in that claypot; even the broth!  I personally felt it should be their trademark dish rather than the quite mediocre bakuteh they served. 

Service left a lot to be desired as they left out our order of a stir fried vegetables, and it was not just our table. I overheard a few tables complaining over their missing orders while we were there too.

Would I be back? Honestly? Only if my usual shop closed and I would be there most probably for their Assam fish. 

PS: their yao char kwai was quite chewy and not as good too!

Desa Cattle Sabah, Kota Kinabalu

If you have never been to New Zealand, a visit here would probably give you a taste of how it would be minus the cost of expensive airfare and other travelling cost I would say. Located in the Kundasang area in Sabah, I tagged it under Kota Kinabalu as most people would make a day trip from there to this picturesque farm up in the hilly area of Kundasang.

They have very beautiful flowers along all the pathways in the area and the experience is quite enjoyable on its own. Cool mountain air, beautiful scenery...life is good. 

They have calves and kids for petting. Adorable! Even though I ended up with calf snot on my dress, it was quite a fun experience for us!

When we are tired from petting (more like disturbing) all the animals, we walked back to the front of the farm where they have a thriving cafe selling all sort of farm produce from milk to yoghurt, even cheese and pizzas made from the farm fresh cheese! They have Camembert, Brie, Mozarella, and more to name a few. We wanted to order their pizza but was brusquely told that it's all sold out and it's a 45 minutes wait. When we contemplated waiting, again we were told it's a long wait. Hmm. We ended up not ordering after that and had their fresh milk and ice cream only instead. 

The boxed fresh milk are similar to the ones they put out at the supermarkets I would assume but probably slightly "fresher" since it was packed on the farm. LOL. Taste-wise, it was average I would say even though my family loves it!

They only had chocolate ice cream that day and durian one as the vanilla version sold out. I was quite disappointed as my sister informed me the vanilla one was the best! 

Drop them a visit if you happened to be in Sabah!

The Coffeholic, Seremban

For teabreak, I wanted to try this cafe mainly because they were rated sufficiently high on Trip Advisor. They looked promising upon our arrival and the ambience was really welcoming. Soft music in the background, cool air and fragrance of coffee wafting in the background. Perfect for a cuppa!

I had the hot hazelnut latte and Hubby had the mixed fruit tea. When my drink arrived, it looked promising with a piece of cinnamon almond biscotti on the side. Upon tasting it, the coffee was alright but the hazelnut syrup used was really too little for the flavour to come through. I was quite a fan of the hazelnut flavour especially if they use the Monin one but this cup was a little disappointing. The coffee was nice enough but I think I should have ordered the plain latte if I have wanted them to be that way.

The mixed fruit tea was alright and you get a rather big glass/pitcher. Taste was not bad at all and you get pieces of fruits inside like kiwi and Apple. 

They do have a fair amount of cakes available but I did not feel like it yesterday.

The Coffeholic

No 250, Ground Floor,

Jalan S2 B12, Seksyen B,

Seremban 2, 70300 Seremban.

Yee Kee Beef Noodles, Seremban

We were out the whole day yesterday looking for furnitures and what not for our house. It was really tiring and hot especially with the hot weather yesterday. By noon we were sweating bucketloads and ready to sit somewhere cool for some much needed rest. We found this shop not too far away from where we parked. I cannot fathom how the average Serembanese go to their town centre. The parking spaces were minimal and the roads were crammed by cars double parking etc.

We actually had a glass of sugarcane drinks each outside this shop from a small stall but that didn't stop us from ordering more drinks inside. It was a really hot day! The apple and sour plum juice was sour and really nice in my opinion. Hubby wasn't a fan but I guess this is pretty subjective. I have always been a fan of sour-y food and drinks.

The orange and apple juice was delicious too! Or maybe it's because I was too thirsty already. It was a tad too watery but it can be forgiven.

We had the beef noodles soup and also its dry version. They do have some other food on the menu like a selection of western food as well as some local favourites but why order anything else when even the shop's name denotes beef noodles as its specialty, right?

I must say all their meat have a wonderful tender texture and we liked both the soup and dry version but I did not enjoy the salted vegetables and peanuts which accompanied the dry noodles. They did not seem to complement the noodles much especially since the peanuts tasted a little old? You get that slightly smelly oily taste when peanuts are kept too long. Maybe it's just me. Otherwise, the noodles were actually pretty good and I like that they use the Assam Laksa noodles as opposed to the kueh tiaw noodles which are more synonymous with beef noodles.

Yee Kee Beef Noodles

No.32, Jalan Dato Lee Fong Yee, 70000 Seremban, 
Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia

La Bodega, Empire Subang Jaya

Dinner was at the Empire, Subang Jaya. After my last visit a few years ago, we finally revisited La Bodega again. I must say, nothing much has changed except the hike in their prices. LOL. 

We had a glass of lemon lime and bitters each and it was amazing! I couldn't get enough of it. The hint of lemon and line was just right that it felt refreshing and each sip (more like gulp in my case) felt soooo good!

Next up, the squid ink paella. The portions of the paella was quite small here so if you have a big appetite, I would recommend ordering the two person's portion so you could actually feel satisfied. They had a lot of squids inside and the dollop of garlic cream on top was  to die for when you stir it in.

The seafood paella was quite alright in my books but Hubby preferred the black squid ink's version. This one had wedges of lemon for you to add to the paella. You will then get a hint of citrusy tang with each bite. The gigantic prawn was succulent and the clams were fresh too!

We enjoyed our meal immensely although Hubby was still hungry and we went around looking for snacks after  dinner. LOL.

Teo Chew Lor, 1 Utama

Usually when we go to 1Utama, we headed straight to our usual Sushi Zanmai or some random restaurants on the higher floor. Yesterday we decided to drop by the lower floor "Food Street" for something different, especially since during my last visit with my sister we discovered a budget nyum fast food (Little Fat Duck or something along that line). 

We were not disappointed. We found this tiny shop around the corner selling cheap fast food. 

They look like a typical Chinese coffee shop except that they are air-conditioned.

The Quick Lunch Set comes with free Chinese tea and a side of cabbage and half a braised egg.

Here comes our free drinks!

We had the braised duck set and the mixed platter set. As you can see in the duck set below, portion was really small. The only pro was that it was delicious. Duck was tender and fragrant. Although the cabbage on the side was on the cold side, it was alright in terms of taste.

Hubby had the hindsight of orderingextra kueh chap. It was good even if it was just empty of other ingredients. In fact, it reminded us of the one from Penang (at Carnovan Street).

Here's my mixed platter set. The portion looked ridiculously small but the innards, pork belly and beancurd that do make it to my plate was simply too tasty for words. But two small bites of everything was a little too stingy, don't you think? 

We ordered a plate of vegetables to share (ChoySum) and it was very very nice! I know I kept singing them praises but it was well deserved. Their portions were very small, granted but the food is good.

Since we couldn't get enough, Hubby ordered another set of the quick set meal: peppery mixed soup with rice. The soup was really warming and the innards were delicious especially the intestines. Too bad for hubby who refuses to take any of the pig innards. Ah well, more for me! 

Would I come back? Maybe but only when I am not super famished as their food are all meant for small eaters. Hahaha.

GoGi'Ya, Korean Stylish BBQ, Kota Kemuning

My friend and I came here for our girls' night out to catch up. This was my first time but if was not a very impressive experience. Located in Kota Kemuning, it was just a few minutes away from both our places.

Instead of the usual unlimited refills for the sides, it's a buffet style for the sides here. I guess technically it's the same as refillable sides but somehow it detracts from the usual Korean food experience. 

Check out our sides below. I actually like the sour seaweed (middle) and the soy sauce potato. 

They even gave us a bowl of porridge each to accompany the condiments. It was a...different experience I would say, as usually dining in a Korean restaurant does not involve a warm bowl of porridge.

Truth to be told, we only ordered a set for two to share, but with it come a "wok" of seafood broth which hides a sea crab, a few prawns and squids beneath its orange sea of tofu an cabbages.

Finally the star of our set arrived! We got the one which had 5 different types of marinades for the pork belly. All in all, I would say they all tasted alright only.

We also shared a fried rice amongst the two of us. 

Somehow, this restaurant wouldn't make it to the top of my list. But for convenience, it fits the bill. 

Address:

GoGi'Ya, 

Korean Stylish BBQ,

4.45.1 Jalan Anggerik Vannila,

31110 Kota Kemuning,

Shah Alam