May, 2012 | Rebecca Saw

Bubble Tea at Bubbles Telawi, Bangsar

By Rebecca Saw on May 30, 2012 in Food

Bubble Tea at Bubbles Bangsar. Now that’s a mouthful isn’t it?
Creative name aside, Bubbles menu also sports some originative blends such as durian and kumquat.

Chika Pow Wow – a genuine, fun, and reliable online auction site

By Rebecca Saw on May 28, 2012 in Technology

An avid techie, I follow technology developments closely and I buy way too many gadgets for my own good, all when it was newly launched.

The feeling of getting your hands on a mint new gadget, powering it up and exploring its power and capabilities. Awesome!

Yes, that’s tech addiction for you.

Ramen in KL – Menya Musashi & Gantetsu Ramen (1 Utama), Santouka (Pavilion), Yamagoya (Solaris Dutamas)

By Rebecca Saw on May 27, 2012 in Food

I’m never guilty of being a follower of fads, even when it comes to food. Well, I got hooked on the froyo craze but I stayed clear of the macarons, donuts, cupcakes, bubble teas, etc. craze back then.

However, the recent ramen mania got me all noodled up inside as well.

Just a week before Europe, I had Gantetsu Ramen for lunch followed by Menya Mushasi for dinner on the very same day. Blame the proximity of 1 Utama to my house or it could be that both were just superb ramen outlets.

The very next day, KC (ulric) dragged me to Pavilion for Ramen Santouka, saying it’s one of the best in KL at the moment and my ramen ramen experience is not complete without it.

I took his word for it; and ended up slurping the thin eggy strands cheerfully. Now I have him to thank, for indeed this post wouldn’t have come about as Santouka; being the furthest from home, wouldn’t have been possible without his insistence.

Last is Yamagoya Ramen in Solaris Dutamas. I sampled it as my last lunch prior to my flight to Europe and now that I’m back, I compiled all of these into ONE table of short notes, as I realized there are plenty of other detailed blogposts and thus my post may sound repetitively already.

Here’s my short summary. Perhaps a longer review will follow; after I’m done blogging about my France (Paris) – Netherlands (Amsterdam) – Belgium (Antwerp) trip!

The number 1 -4 denotes my personal ranking of preference for each component of a bowl of ramen between the 4 outlets.

	Menya Musashi	Gantetsu Ramen	Ramen Santouka	Yamagoya
Broth	1. Best murky soup with incredible depth of flavour. Unfortunately, it’s the most oily one too.	2. Though the depth of flavour wasn’t as great as Menya’s, it close to being my favourite as it is less oily and the flavour was distinctive enough.	3. Overall the broth here is the saltiest. I couldn’t eat the Kara Miso; it was that bad for me. Funnily enough, my Shio (salt) ramen was tolerable.	4. The broth somehow lacked character, though tasty enough. In conclusion, Yamagoya’s soups are less complex.
Noodles	1. Chewy, thick and very fresh tasting noodles	3. Thin, a bit stringy and springy noodles almost alike our local wantan noodles	2. Springy with a firm bite.Less of the “stringy” texture; but softer instead.	4. Thin springy noodles. Almost similar to Gantetsu. My preference goes to Gantetsu.
Pork	2. 2 big slices of tender	1. The pork slices are tastier, owing perhaps to the marination.	3. I find the pork slices too salty; the ones in the ramen as well as the pork cheeks.	4. Thinner slices, more streaks of fat. Taste was pretty forgettable.
Egg	2. Lovely, though on the 2nd visit we got overcooked eggs, which was replaced quickly after I spoke to the Chef.	I need to revisit for the eggs! However, it looked really good, rivaling Santouka’s from what we peeked from the other tables.	1. The most well made soft-boiled eggs from this list. The egg white is fully cooked, but the yolk retains a molten consistency. Areas surrounding the yolk remained wobbly too.	3. Decent effort, but still incomparable to the other 2.
Portion	1. I love the portion here the best. The noodles are thicker and chewier thus giving the most volume. To top it off, 2 large slices of pork are given per bowl!	2. A good satisfying portion, both noodles and meat.	3. Smallest and cost is considerably expensive per portion compared to the rest.	4. Satisfying portion and comparable to Gantetshu’s.
Price	1. Best value for both taste and portion!	2. I do not mind the price for the quality and taste, especially for the pork!	3. Seriously, why are the portions so small??	4. With so many choices, Yamagoya would be last on my list to re-visit.
CONCLUSION:	Love the ramen, like the broth but will omit the oil next time as the slick of oil over my noodles gets a little sickening at the end for me.	I dislike stringy noodles in general, but I love the pork slices here. Service was good as well.	No re-visit for me. The price is a factor, another is the sodium levels which is too much for me.	I applaud them for their efforts; but with Menya and Gantetsu there isn’t really a big drawing factor to come back, especially since prices are similar.

Gyu-Kaku Japanese BBQ Restaurant – Isetan 1 Utama’s Eat Paradise

By Rebecca Saw on May 26, 2012 in Food

I went to Jaya One’s Food Bites today and frankly I wondered why was it called Food Bites Gourmet Street Food Market when there were barely more than 10 stalls selling food.
You’re likely to be less disappointed if you’re there for shopping; as the variety of clothes, accessories, knick-knacks were abundant. Go with friends and you’ll likely to have a great time catching up and browsing around. For me, I was tired, jet-lagged and had a mountain of work. I went there for food, and I went back hungry.

A hungry Becky is never pleasant. Furthermore I was there specifically because a friend had set-up a stall; and thus I had wanted to show my support. Let’s just say a few incidents happened and I left shortly after, hungry and disappointed.
Luckily KC was still game for lunch after his RM10 dry bun-ed hotdog. We hopped in to Gyu-Kaku Japanese BBQ Restaurant, one of the new outlets in 1 Utama that we had wanted to try since it opened.

Conclusion of the meal was food is good, prices marvelously value for money and service was exemplary.

1 Utama

Home Improvement: Knowing your house before making changes

By Rebecca Saw on May 26, 2012 in General

Now back from Europe, I’m busy editing pictures and videos while stringing my thoughts together and drafting some ~~masterpieces~~ stories of my adventures in beautiful Paris, Amsterdam and Antwerp.
While that’s being sorted out, today I’m going to continue from my previous post, where I was yakking about tiles and house improvement/renovation stuffs.

I’m very happy with my new home, especially so the kitchen. Settled down a bit by now, I’m taking a serious look at my kitchen to fit a new oven and a proper storage space for flour and such.

I admit that even after 4 months since I’ve moved into my new house, my clothes are still unpacked because I still can’t afford a wardrobe! However, the other pieces of furniture are in place; my work space has been set up, and I’m saving up for an oven before a wardrobe. Yes, I’m crazy that way.

Spa Village Resort Tembok, Bali – YTL Hotels’ Summer Holiday Special

By Rebecca Saw on May 25, 2012 in Accommodations, Travel

After my recent Tanjong Jara break, I shared about the Resident Package that was a steal going for RM799 nett per night per room, and it includes daily breakfast, lunch and dinner with complimentary coffee, tea and mineral water served during meals for every night of stay.

If you have missed out on that, not to worry as the next one is the all-inclusive Summer Holiday Special which is valid from now until May 31, 2012. Similarly, this package covers accommodation with breakfasts, 3 course lunches and dinners with a selection of complimentary activities.

This experience is available from a minimum of two nights stay at the YTL Hotels awardwinning spa resort, Spa Village Resort Tembok, Bali.

Yes, this time is for Bali, Indonesia!