That’s cos I’m a pork burger addict and I was having a major craving for pork burgers for ages, which has to be appeased pronto before I start PMS-ing on those around me. 

It was also thankfully one of the restaurants around that didn’t feel there was a need to play annoying festival Chinese New Year songs during this festive season, sparing me the agony of endless looping of CNY songs in my head.

The restaurant is bathed in incandescent light, perfectly suited for its intended ambiance of casual dining and drinking environment. Divided into 3 main sections; there’s an al fresco dining section outside, a bar and an indoor dining area.

There was a quite a selections of beers, perfect to go with a rack of ribs; but I’m not a beer person so it was strictly food for me that day.

We started with 2 pork burgers, of which we eventally realized to be a BIG mistake, as both essentially tasted the same though the menu’s description was deceivingly different!

Blackened Cheese & Onions Burger
Grilled with blackened seasoning and topped with cheddar cheese and sautéed onions. Leon ordered this as he wanted to try the “blackened seasoning” or “black cheese” as we were lead to believe by the fancy name.

What we got was fundamentally a cheeseburger. No black cheese or blackened cheese. As you can see from the above, my cheese was as snowy pale as it could possibly be.

If it could be of any consolation, there was a subtantial amount of black pepper in the patty. However, the seasoning barely made any difference in terms of taste, as the pepper flavour was mild. While I liked the sweet sauteed onions, Leon didn’t think it was worth a mention at all.

Here is our next burger; the Smokehouse Bacon Cheeseburger. Obviously we ordered this for the bacon and for the BBQ sauce.

The description says “Glazed with Hickory BBQ sauce, cheddar cheese, sautéed onions and crispy pork bacon.”

But in the end, both patties were similar, and the only differentiating factor was the condiments that came with it.

The cheeses were the usual parmesan and cheddar, flat in taste and flavour. The BBQ burger is a BBQ burger just because it has added generic tasting BBQ sauce. Some slices of tomatoes and a few leaves of lettuce with the same sauteed onions topped off both burgers.

To conclude our experience, we didn’t enjoy our pork burgers. Obviously Leon would never step into Morganfields again, but I might still hop in for the ribs, if a pork ribs craving ever strikes. After all, a foodie has to sample other offerings on the menu at the same establishment before passing concrete judgement.
So who’s up for the pork ribs?

Morganfields

Level 4, Pavilion KL
+603 2141 3192.
Opens daily from 11am – 1am.

All pictures taken with:

In the first place, I went to Chicago Rib House after reading many many raving reviews online. Secondly, after much thought, I’m pretty sure ours was an isolated case.

Hence, I’ll be fair here and while I’ll still be honest & share with you guys what happened, I’ll focus more on the taste of the PORK BURGER (yes, this is another of my pork burger series) than dwell on the unfortunate “food poisoning” incident.

To start off my porky lunch, I attempt to allay the guilt by ordering a salad. This Oriental Salad (RM15.90) caught my attention as the menu described that the salad cames with mandarins oranges and a peanut based sauce.

When it was served, I was immediately disappointed with the ingredients.
Going a bit off topic here…this is my peeve about F & B outlets that offers salads on their menu. It’s challenging to find good salads these days. Most restaurants, if not all, charge a bomb (or to me it is expensive) for a few miserable leaves, quarters of tomatoes and proceed to drown everything in some generic sauce and they call that a SALAD! Is it so difficult to offer good, decent salads??

My salad above was just plain lettuce with tomatoes and a few cloves of mandarin oranges. All that for RM15.90++! That’s almost RM20!

If there’s any consolation, the peanut sauce was decent. Pour it over the lettuce, eat it with a clove of orange and enjoy the match of tangy juicy orange with savoury nutty sauce. While the salad is not bad, it still doesn’t justify the price.

BOC Pork Burger, topped with bacon, onion rings & cheese.

This was what I was there for. The presentation was certainly promising, though the sliced cheese put me off. What the heck, for RM27.90, I’m sure CRH could do better!

Anyhow, the snob in me doesn’t eat sliced cheese so I shove it aside and immediately halved the burger to inspect the patty.

The texture of the patty tells you a lot about how well it was made. A pork patty should ideally not be too finely minced or dense, which essentially means that too much fillers were mixed in. The meat should be loosely packed and able to hold its shape when handled with the hands. Generally, pork is pretty fatty meat but the ratio of fat to lean meat involved will have marked differences in the end result.

Having said all that, CRH’s pork patty was decent and well seasoned. The overall ensemble was rather plain, with the usual lettuce, tomatoes and sauteed onions thrown in. Seriously, a good cut of quality cheese would have elevated the taste of the burger. I’m not big on the rubbery Kraft singles.

And then comes the our half rack Pork Ribs with Honey Mustard, RM32.90.

The marinade, whatever it was, wasn’t memorable at all.

The meat?
I thought it had a very funny smell and the marinate was more of a coating than actual marinate as it surely didn’t permeat the meat as it should. Thus, me being the rather sensitive type, was able to detect very strong gamey taste as I chewed on the meat.

We left most of the ribs untouched. Even the remains as you see below were actually after several “forced” attempts to finish it as it would be a waste if we don’t. But eventually we gave up as it did tasted pretty foul.

Now this is where I have to relate the after-meal story. My dining partner, Justin vomitted shortly after we left the restaurant and was unwell the whole day. Myself had a short bout of diarrhea the day after.

We took a photo with the girl at the front because Justin insisted. Since we spoke, I took the opportunity to inform her about our weird tasting/smelling ribs. I relate the same to the waiter serving us as well as another guy that was ushering the customers to their seats that day. All of them simply nodded and didn’t even volunteer to check if there was anything amiss with our ribs.

I gave up after seeing their non-responsiveness and waved it off as “bad ribs place” and swore not to return. I had thought the ribs just tasted bad, but it was only after Justin told me he vomitted that I suspected that it may not be that the ribs tasted bad, but it could be that the ribs we had were contaminated.

After all, CRH did many raving reviews and nobody compained that the ribs tasted bad/weird.

Chicago Rib House
Lot F346, First Floor Rainforest,
1 Utama Shopping Centre.

Tel : 03-7727 3210

I missed the CNY preview last week no thanks to some unforeseen circumstances. By a happy chance, I managed to slot in a dim sum lunch here earlier this week where I got to sample a few items from the CNY set in addition to dainty morsels of the Chef’s specialty dim sum.

To start off lunch, we lou-ed another Yee Sang; effectively marking my 15th Yee Sang of the year. Oh, I’m certainly set for 2012. Imagine all that prosperity coming my way! LOL.

 We chose one that came topped with ebiko and deep fried soft shelled crabs which was pleasantly meaty.
Good, good. I hate it when I’m served soft-shelled crabs with more batter than meat!

Last to go on top was Golden Phoenix’s special mandarin gold “coins”;  a symbol of prosperity and fortune, courtesy of Equatorial Hotel.
These gold coins were like gummy jelly beans, tangy and very nice to chew on!

Golden Phoenix @ Equatorial Hotel is a non-halal outlet and their Water Dragon 2012 set at RM3838++ is an extravagant treat, perfect for the business dinner for your valued clients.

Water Dragon 2012

Caviar, Fuji Apple, Korean Pear, Pine Nuts and Salmon Yee Sang

Braised Superior Shark’s Fin with Brown sauce

Spring Chicken with Thai Sauce

“5 Head” Abalone, Dried Oyster, Black Moss with Broccoli

Stir-fried Lobster with Ginger & Spring Onion

Steamed Dragon Tiger Grouper with King Soy sauce

Claypot Rice with Chinese Sausage and Wax Meat

Double-boiled Hasma and White Fungus with Ginseng

Deep-fried “Nian Gou” with Banana and Cheese

RM3838++ per table of 10 persons

(RM438++ per person – additional cover)

 The Deep-fried “Nian Gou” with Banana and Cheese was a real treat. Sticky chewy nian gou with savoury salty cheese and sweet bananas sounds like a flawless match, which indeed it was.

For dim sum, I chose my usual favourites; the one that every self-respecting dim sum outlet should rightfully ace. The Chee Cheong Fun came with sweet plump scallops so no complains there but my favourite Char Siew Pau (Barbeque Pork Buns) had too sauce and fat.

I prefer my fish balls “fishier” in taste and bouncier. This didn’t quite hit the spot but was decent enough for hotel standards.

The outer layer for the Prawn and Cheese Balls below were actually deep fried maggi noodles!
Think of those Mamee snacks you had during your childhood days. Yes, those small yellow and purple packs ones.
These tasted somewhat similar, making these balls really more-ish and addictive. Pop one into the mouth, enjoy the crunch and the hot cheese as it oozes out and flood your mouth.

I was told this was one of the Chef’s specialty; The Har Kau (Prawn Dumplings) with Steamed Pumpkin. While the translucent skin and bouncy prawns won favour from me, I don’t see how the pumpkin enhances the overall taste. Having said that, I like pumpkins so I’m not complaining.

Golden Phoenix @ Equatorial Hotel is one of the few non-halal Chinese restaurant in KL city, making it ideal for a porky Chinese feast or dim sum meal in a posh comfortable environment.

We were there on a weekday and the lunch crowd was impressive, consistent walk-ins on top of prior reservations diners. Thankfully I took my pictures before lunch.

Lastly, we polished off Golden Phoenix’s famous Durian Pancake and wished each other Gong Hei Fatt Choy; with best wishes to life, health and career!

** The dim sum item prices are ranging from RM8++ per portion onwards. It is available from 12.00 noon to 2.30 pm, Mon to Fri.

Golden Phoenix @ Equatorial Hotel Chinese New Year set menus: 

Yee Sang 2012 

                                                                                S                      M                     L

Australian Abalone Yee Sang                                 RM128            RM198            RM278

Soft Shell Crab with Caviar Yee Sang                   RM108            RM158            RM188

Norwegian Salmon Yee Sang                                   RM98              RM138            RM168

Korean Pear with Salmon Yee Sang                      RM98              RM138            RM168
Fuji Apple with Salmon Yee Sang                          RM98              RM138            RM168

Korean Pear Yee Sang                                                RM58              RM88              RM118

Jelly Fish Yee Sang                                                     RM58              RM88              RM118

SET 1

Celestial Dragon Tales

Norwegian Salmon with Caviar Yee Sang

Braised Shark’s Fin soup with Dried Scallop and Crab Meat

Deep-fried Spring Chicken with Lemon sauce

Braised Dried Oyster, Black Moss with Mushroom and Broccoli

Steamed Sea Grouper with King Soy sauce

Stir-fried Tiger Prawn with Salted Egg

Steamed Claypot Rice with Wax Meat and Chinese Sausage

Chilled Black Glutinous Rice with Ice Cream

Golden Phoenix Delights

(Loh Mai Chi and Deep-fried “Nian Gou” with Yam)

RM1338++ per table of 10 persons inclusive of one Prosperity Peach Tree*

*(While stock last)

Earth Dragon Tales

Norwegian Salmon with Korean Pear Yee Sang

Braised Shark’s Fin Soup with Crab Meat

Roasted Chicken with Onion

Braised Sea Asparagus, Black Moss with Lotus Root and Broccoli

Steamed Pomfret with Soy sauce

Stir-fried Tiger Prawns in ‘Vietnamese’ Style

Fried Rice with Salted Egg and Diced Prawn

Glutinous Dumpling with Ginger Tea

Pan-fried “Nian Gou” with Cheese

RM1538++ per table of 10 persons inclusive of one Chinese Tea Set*

*(While stock last)

All pictures taken with:

Now, porky Italian joints are not many, and good ones are even fewer and far in between.

 That was probably the reason why Neroteca remained popular although Italian restaurants are sprouting up like fungi in KL. I remember how fellow foodies would always recommend Neroteca whenever the debate of “which is a good Italian restaurant in KL” came up in conversations; and how recently, the feedback was more of “Neroteca was so good back then, but now… ahemmm..”

To be honest, I have visited Neroteca on my own accord somewhere last year after hearing all the glowing reviews. Unfortunately, my experience wasn’t exactly memorable.
Needless to say I haven’t been back.

The good news is, The Nero Group had recently roped in a new chef for Nerovivo (post  HERE –> Christmas comes early to Nerovivo) while simultineously implemented a management team shift.
My experience at Nerovivo was assuring enough, and I looked forward to this session at Neroteca, more so since it is a porky-licious outlet, as how a real Italian food joint should be.

This was an exclusive preview of Neroteca’s Year of the Dragon “Meatilicous” January and I was thrilled for the opportunity of savoring Italy’s best meats & wines specially flown in for this wine pairing & tasting session! 

The savory 7-course meal aims to please meat enthusiasts, where each dish is creatively designed and paired with selective prosecco and wine.

We started off with some top notch selection of cold cuts, namely Prosciutto di Parma, San Danielle, calabra piccente and mortadella.
I arrived late, and missed the opportunity to snap a picture of the cold cuts platter. Thankfully, I managed to sample each of the cold cuts and I find them superb! Most importantly, they were not too salty and has a good cured flavour.

Below: Chef Lorance Abusang preparing our next course – The Steak Tartare.

I can’t begin to tell you how much I love Prosecco. The italian Prosecco di prosecco Conte Neri was excellent, light, fruity and very easy to drink, exactly how I like my alcohol.

Below: Our Steak Tartare, made from Angus beef sirloin.

Starter: Beef Tartare with Butter Lettuce and Rustic Bread.

I’m a huge fan of tartare, since most of the time I like my meat almost raw and I’m not squeamish about eating raw meat or seafood.
However, I find the tartare that I was served with that day a bit oily; and I would have preferred it “creamier”. Perhaps more yolk might have helped.

Entree: Pappardelle Neroteca (Papardelle pasta with wild boar ragout) and Stozzapretti Nduja (Homemade curl pasta cooked with rare salami).

Wine: Valpolicella DOC Corte Giara. The red wine was a superb match. I liked it as it wasn’t dry and tannic, a common characteristic of most reds. It’s slightly spicy notes on the palate at the throat gave it a bit of “heat”.

Yes, this was a very agreeable red, smooth and easy to drink, which was a surprise, as I never had a red that I actually enjoy and would consider buying for further consumption.

Our pasta came al dente, as it should. My preferance was for the Stozzapretti Nduja, a curl pasta which was a bit chewy (Leon thought it was a bit undercooked). Anyhow it was the slightly spicy sauce that I liked; which I thought gave it a bit more punch flavour-wise. The papardelle was more bolognese-based, hence more familiar, with its sweet and fresh tomato-ish flavour.

The meal was proceeding smoothly, me happy with the prosecco and the red wine while waiting eagerly for the main, which was a trio of 3 different meats, a bonus for any carnivore, such as myself.

Main Course: Porchetta (Deboned suckling pig stuffed with sausage and capsicum). Grilled sliced beef sirloin top with sauteed spinach and potatoes. Grilled lamb rack with garden salad and balsamic reduction sauce.

The best of the platter was the beef.
Beautifully succulent and impressively juicy, it was full of flavour. We (Leon and I) thought it was worthy of praise. Dismally, the suckling pig fell short of expectations. It nearly choked me with the gamey and strong aftertaste. I have no idea what could have happened and had to ask around the table if the other thought the same way. Naturally we were all stupefied.

But the lamb was alright; nicely pink and juicy but it was really the beef that stole the show.

Costa di Nugola Syrah Toscana.

This was another marvellous red, even more so than the one previously. My dining companions around me concurred wholeheartedly that it has wonderful body and wasn’t dry at all. We love how smooth and drinkable it was, with sweet and floral notes. Even for non-red wine lover like myself, I drained my glass.

I thought RM198++ was a steal for the menu as above. What do you think?

For reservations:
Ground Floor, The Somerset,
8 Lorong Ceylon,
50250 Kuala Lumpur.Tel: 03-20700530
Email: info@neroteca.com
Opening hours: 11.30am to 11.30pm (Daily)
We ended our meal with more alcohol, a specialty from Neroteca itself. I didn’t quite got the name of this liquor but it’s heady stuff! Alcoholics rejoice!

OMGGGGG… he’s such a cute little piggy isn’t he?

It’s a bit surreal to go gaga all over these cute memorabilias of the swine and yet, 20 minutes later you’re heartily tucking into dishes that are made out of these cute little piggies…

but I digress….

My pork burger radar bought me here to the unfamiliar territory of SS15 Subang.
The Hungry Hog (total approval awarded for such an original name!) is not at the popular stretch of SS15; where the Asia Cafe and Snowflakes are located but it occupies a lot at the quieter side along rows of shophouses.

The main goal was to chow the Pork Burger of course, followed by the the Guinness Beef Stew. Unfortunately, they were out of Guinness Beef Stew by 8pm, and we settled for The Bangers and Mash instead.

Yes, 8pm. Even though located at a not-so prominent location, The Hungry Hog has it’s share of fans. The restaurant was full and there were a constant stream of customers throughout the night.

‘

The Hungry Hog Pork Burger aka 3 Little Pigs – RM15.90.

The Bangers and Mash. RM15.90.

We had absolutely no regrets whatsoever as the bangers and mash were lip-smackingly good! The Hungry Hog is actually a newly start-up restaurant to their existing made to order meat-based items online store (mostly swine-related) and hence the sausage is their own homemade recipe.

The bangers were juicy and meaty with little filler. Seasonings were added  in the right doses; and the result was tasty yet not too salty sausages.  The accompanying mash was perfectly executed as well, not too buttery or rich but full of real potato flavour. Even the gravy was faultless to me. I admit I enjoyed this dish very very much!

Somehow the pork burger paled in comparison after the bangers and mash.

Don’t get me wrong, I like the pork burger too but El Meson’s Pork Burger (RM25.90++)  rules and for a cheaper alternative, Andes’ BYO at Aman Suria (RM12.90) still holds the award for the best pork burger. The one at here comes close though.

For RM15.90, one can’t really complain for an adequately prepared pork patty, 2 slices of bacon plus ham all encased in a freshly house-baked bun (yes, the bun was good too!). Generous servings of fries and salad completely the ensemble.

What we had impressed us enough for a 2nd visit. This time I called in advance to order the Guinness Beef Stew. I’m not sure what happened; I think it was discontinued or something and we ended up with the Feijoada – RM15.90.

A Feijoada is a hearty black bean and mixed meat stew that is often associated as the national dish of Brazil. The Hungry Hog uses pork for this recipe, and we agreed to their recommendation without any hesistancy.

At first glance it looked very Chinese, especially since when it came served with rice! I stared at it in disbelief but since the test is in the taste I withheld verdict till I had a few mouthfuls.

The final verdict was not in their favour though. All 3 of us thought it lacked the robustness and depth of flavour of a stew. Brazilian or what-not, this was like bland Chinese pork stew with a mistaken identity – this part is refering to the slices of orange & salsa sides.

We gave up on this after a while and waited for the ribs instead. Pork ribs at a porky outlet shouldn’t fare too badly; we hoped silently inside….

Ribs – RM27.90.

The ribs were decent, both in taste and size. But would we come back for it? Not me though, as I prefer my ribs where the marination are thoroughly infused right to the bone. But my makan mates enjoyed it, and the meat remained tender at all parts of the ribs.

Note: Iced water are charged RM0.50 per glass while their refreshing lemonade is RM3.50. 10% service tax applies but there are no government tax for now.

The Hungry Hog (www)
71, Jalan SS15/4C,
47500 Subang Jaya
Opening Hours: 12:00 – 2:30pm, 6:00 – 10:00pm (closed on Mondays)

Call: 012 – 2250 877.

As usual, weeks turned into months as I tried to make time to come savour E42T’s pork burger.
Work’s been crazy lately; & although that’s a fabulous thing (more business is always awesome no?), it has left me with barely any time to catch up on personal matters; like my food hunts & my passive income business, Auruma International. For Malaysia, we’ve got our investment blog here; of which my article is 3 weeks due!

Yes, work’s been a bitch. And when the going gets tough, the tough gets eating! ;-)
Skewed philosophy I know, hehe, but it works. After all, who won’t be cheered with this in their hands?

42 East Restaurant & Bar’s Pork Burger (RM22++) is a huge ensemble of thick juicy patty, pickled cucumbers, tomatoes & lettuce sandwiched in a specially made bun. The bun was neither too doughy or dry and was just of the right texture to eat with the patty.

Here’s a cross section shot! Hungry yet? ;-)

And another one; just because I want to make you drool….

The patty was good. It has a good ratio of meat to fat; and thus effectively ensuring that the patty retains its juiciness & moisture. I’m loving the pickled condiments it came with too; for that imparts a level of piquancy to the whole burger, rather than the normal bland lettuce leaves & slices of tomatoes. It’s worthy to note that they were generous with the sides of fries and vegetables as well.

Overall, I think it’s pretty value for money; with both factors of quantity & quality taken into consideration. All of this goes for RM22++.

IMHO, nothing beats Andes’ Pork Burgers that comes in the price range of M13.90 – RM15.90. Still, this one was way better than D Legends’ Bar, TTDI (review still in draft *sigh*), S‘Mores Bar Restaurant in Bangsar South (review still in draft! *sigh sigh*) & Brussel’s. And you do not have to wait for nearly an hour for your burger, like how a few friends reportedly did when they went to Nambawan.

As I was really hungry, I added an order of the Peranakan Pork Belly Pong Teh as well. I mean, how could anyone resist the words “pork belly” ??

Pork Belly Pong Teh (RM16) - tender pork belly with alternating layers of melt-in-the mouth fat & chunks of potatoes that has absorbed all the spices and flavours of the gravy. Best eaten with rice I reckon.

Orders generally took a while to be served, of which I would like to assume it means that the dishes are not pre – cooked & then warmed up prior to serving. The Pork Belly Pong Teh however,  met with my disapproval as it was sodium laden enough to pickle the whole bowl. I’m of low sodium tolerance yes, but even my dining & fellow business partners Daniel & Nigel concurred on my verdict.

Anyhow, the pong teh was immediately replaced when I voiced my displeasure to one of the waiters. Good service indeed. I’m happy to report that the new bowl of Pong Teh was of much bearable salt levels & tasty enough to recommend.

The Pork devil curry is a must for those who love their food with heat. This one packs enough to knock down anyone who are of less fiery tolerance. You are forewarned.

While I agree with Nigel that using smoked bacon back soft ribs makes all the difference in this dish, I do hope that the chef could reduce the sodium levels. It was too salty for me but I guess it would be alright for everyone else if you were to eat it with a lot of bread.

Well, it’s one happy fruitful meeting with a solid business model, good food & fabulous business partners. Let’s hope I get my trading on Auruma International going now that I’m all geared up to go!

For more details on Auruma International – check it out HERE!

E42T’s newly revamped menu:

And some cupcakes from Just Heavenly Pleasures for a sweet end to the meeting.

42East (Forty Two East),
42, Lorong Rahim Kajai 14, Taman Tun Dr Ismail.
Contact No:
03-7728 7688

All pictures are:

Source of story here: HERE

Truth to be told, I thought Yut Kee’s food was average at best & its quality has seen better days; and my sentiments was echoed by many fellow foodies & friends. Hence obviously I wasn’t that “affected” by the news.

Still, Yut Kee is institutional, and rarely would one see the humble coffee shop empty during breakfast or lunch hours. The queue is pretty epic. And uncomfortable too; as it stretched out to the main street under the hot sun.

Having said all that, where else can I find tender savoury pork chops, roti babi (a personal favourite thought I didn’t quite like Yut Kee’s version), and all that traditional kopitiam fare & variety of Hainanese food under one roof in Selangor/KL?

Hainanese Pork Chop.

Roti Babi (Pork Bread/Bun).

And not to mention our traditional breakfast favorites; the humble half boiled eggs & toast.

Plain toast with crisp, slight charred flavour. Simple & satisfying.

The kaya spread infused with the aroma of the egg and coconut milk has a thick & lumpy texture that I like. The bottled version is a popular takeaway item too.

The eggs were perfectly done here.

Yut Kee happens to be the perfect place to bring your travelling guests from other countries too, as the ambiance is hard to beat; old-school charm, nostalgic & simple. The signboard, the chinese calligraphy, the old ceiling fans all adds character to the place.

(Credits to Wilson for the 2 pics below as per watermarked.)

Tables are the traditional marble tops ones which I love. If I do have my own place in the future, I’ll definitely have one of these in the dining room. It bought back much memories for me.  ;-)
Patrons sits on simple wooden chairs. The floor is those nostalgic tiled marbles. It reminded me so much of my grandma’s old house on Hutton Lane, Penang. Old photographs and newspaper articles dotted the walls.

Nothing beats drinking from these green flower motif cups. Not much can be said for the drinks/coffee here, but it’s really about the vibe.

The chicken chop is pretty popular as well. The gravy for both (pork & chicken) is similar, which is served with lots of potato wedges, onions &  mixed vegetable in a flavorful brown sauce. Both varieties of chops & the roti babi comes with Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce.

I personally liked the Hai Lam noodles. It came loaded with prawns, vegetables, pork slices, bean sprouts & CRAB meat in flavourful gravy.

This however, was pretty ordinary.

One of the reasons why I didn’t like Yut Kee’s roti babi was simple because I felt it was not well prepared.

There were barely any meat for the fillings. To top it off, it was dry & bland.
I mean, look at this below. The bread was thick & the fillings was measly.

I’m not sure why would anyone would order porridge here but one of my friends did during one of my makan trips. We were pleasantly surprised though; as it was actually pretty good! For RM5, there were plenty of fish slices & the congee was smooth & thick.

Yut Kee’s is also famous for their marble cake, butter cake and kaya (coconut egg jam) rolls. One can either buy them whole or by slices.

All cakes are freshly baked daily at the premise itself. So while you are enjoying your meal, your senses are assaulted with the wondrous smell of butter; which translates to a high probability of you taking home a whole cake like I did.

But that won’t happen again. While it wasn’t bad, my vote goes this one at the OUG morning market.

Tried the kaya rolls too. (RM0.80 per slice). Again, I didn’t like it.

For an earlier entry of Yut Kee’s Weekend Roast Pork - HERE

Prices: Mains – Noodles, pork chops, roti babi are about RM8-RM10.

Yut Kee Restaurant
35 Jalan Dang Wangi
50100 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: +603 2698 8108

Business Hour : 8am till 5pm.
Closed on Mondays.

GPS Coordinates :  N03° 09.416′ E101° 43.351′

All pictures are:

Since I’m not much of a drinker, I’m more appreciative of pubs that offers a good ambiance, which can be as simple as providing comfortable & roomy sitting arrangements where if I were to turn or raise my arm, I won’t hit anyone!
The appropriate noise levels matters as well, cos I’m just peeved if I’m required to shout to be heard & lastly, I adore pubs that offers good grub to fill my tummy. LOL.

42 East seems to offer all that at the moment. Even the common problem of me having to order water whenever I’m at a pub (because most other pubs offers only soft drinks as a non-alcoholic alternative & I avoid soft drinks as well) is taken care of here with the healthy & delicious fruit mixes available.

Orange + Banana & Peach + carrot. My vote goes for the Banana & Orange, as the carrot one had too much carrot residue. I think they blended instead of juicing it.

The highlight here is the baby back pork ribs of course. We had a slab of the one glazed with Connor’s stout, which was my favourite & another which is Hot & Spicy, which wasn’t all that hot or spicy. LOL!

The Hot & Spicy ribs, pretty obvious from the reddish marinate rub right?

And here is the Connor Stout ribs, which is darker & more intense in flavour.

I had no complains for the ribs, for they were perfectly succulent, with a smoky char that I love. For RM55 for a full slab & RM32 for a sizable half-slab, it’s ideal for sharing among 2-3 friends.

Slosh it all down with some of 42 East ‘s signature margaritas (RM18 during happy hours) & your work day may seem not that bad after all. ;-) (Flavors available for the margaritas are Strawberry, Original Lime, Passion Fruit & Mango).

I love this part, where the soft bones are. Nice to chew to smittereens. ;-)

We were served other dishes as well, like 42 East’s Crispy Pork Bacon, Cheesy Wedges, Chicken Chop & etc. But nothing could overshadow the lovely ribs.

The clams pot (RM12) wasn’t too impressive that night. Chewy clams & overly heady wine stock is just not my kind of thing.

Now, if only they add a pork burger into their menu! Imagine a smoky, Connor’s stout pork patty in between 2 freshly halved buns, topped with fresh pineapple with sides of coleslaw & mash. Now, that’s the ideal pork burger! ;-)

Find 42East on facebook.

42East (Forty Two East),
42, Lorong Rahim Kajai 14, Taman Tun Dr Ismail.
Contact No:
03-7728 7688

E42T simple menu:

TQ to the owners of E42T for their hospitality to us Advertlets Bloggers!

Perhaps I should keep it short & simple.

Overall verdict: No re-visit for me till perhaps when there is new dishes.

*LIKE*
Chicken Pogs
Rum ice cream

*DISLIKE*
Price
Portions

Let’s keep the babi guling open for debate shall we? Since all of us never had babi guling before except for Kelvin (www.ktheblogger.com) who had babi guling in Bali prior to this & whose verdict was that the babi guling was really bad; maybe there are others out there who wants to share their experience?

So, yea.. does the babi guling in Bali look like this?
This version has tender pork cuts (the texture was alike chicken) with gravy that tasted like rendang, plain rice, bland vegetables & the only credit to be awarded was; at the very least, the sambal was ok.  RM16.90 +.

Salad, RM19+.

Tangy vinaigrette dressing with pomegranate. Nothing great & essentially it fulfilled it’s role in providing fibres for our meal.

Pork ribs: 6 ribs for RM39+ (RM42.90). Ahem..

The ribs were well marinated enough, but it’s fundamentally BBQ – sauce rub with some mild tweaks I think..

This side sauce was the bomb though. Very interesting medley of flavours, with us detecting chinese celery, onions, lemon juice and some other unidentifiable herbs/spices. I thought there was lemongrass, but I can’t say for sure.

The pork shoulders that probably did too many push-ups/chin ups. And oh, would you pay RM39+ (RM42.90) for this?

To quote Vivian, one out of our group of 8 diners, “Is this pork satay?“. I rest my case.

I shall end my Ad Hog post with something positive..

The chicken pog was the saviour of our lunch! Such irony huh?

Delicous chicken thigh stuffed with Italian sausage and wrapped with bacon! Delightful!!
The stuffing was redolent with herbs, the chicken thigh tender and the bacon wonderfully crispy. A little bowl on the side holds some funky salsa mix but seriously, the chicken pog doesn’t need any embellishments. It can certainly hold its own.
The mash could do with some butter & salt. We do appreciatetangy  side salad of young mangoes though.
Still, would you pay RM49+/ (RM53.90) for this dish?

Oh yes, there was another nice dish, the vongole. To quote the owner of the dish, Dale (@frostier) - “nothing fancy lo except the meat is tender (this is for the babi guling). Pasta rich in flavor especially black pepper & garlic with rice wine”.
I’m not sure about the rice wine part ( I would bet my dollar on white wine if there was any) but I agreed that the pasta was pretty tasty. The seafood, parsley and plenty of garlic helps to impart most of the flavour to the gravy.

Rum Ice Cream RM12+. A bit of a misnomer actually. It is rum with vanilla ice cream. Not rum ice cream per se. Still, it sweeten the experience here at Ad Hog quite a bit. ;-)

Date cake: RM12+. I shall reserve further comment.

Our bill: It was almost RM50/pax, split by 5 of us. There was another separate bill for those who came late.

The only menu they have, outside of the restaurant.

LOCATION:

GPS: N03° 09.81′ E101° 35.91′

Interior:

Open ceiling..

The tables and chairs looked as if they were scrapped together from everywhere (mismatched). I’m not sure if it’s on purpose and supposedly to add to the ambiance of the place..

So, babi guling anyone?? ;-)

Note: Babi guling is only available at lunchtime.

Ad Hog
25, Jalan PJU 3/45
Sunway Damansara
Kota Damansara, Selangor.
Tel: 019-312 1922 (Sam)
Closed on Mondays

I got to know about this place from a reader, many thanks to her for leaving a comment & attaching the FB link in one of my post; or else I wouldn’t have known about this Uncle Ben Burger Babi.

I admit I was a bit put off by the name at first; well… I mean using the word “babi” so literally! It sounded rude somehow?
But let’s ignore that for now & focus on the food instead..

When I visited the FB page, I was immediately fascinated, for it was declared on the side bar:
“We’ll defy anyone to find a better meal than ours! Our meal is a perfectly balanced ensemble of 100% PREMIUM PORK patty, cooked to perfection, with oozing MELTED CHEESE and served with fine cuts of VEGETABLES. All wrapped up in a hot toasted bun.”

Wow! That’s like Uncle Ben calling out my name -” becky becky, come try my porky patty! ” Heh!

The opportunity came rather unexpected yesterday when a certain event left all of us hungry enough to eat a pig, literally. And luckily for us, Uncle Ben Burger Babi opened their 2nd outlet (stall) in Ming Tien Food Court yesterday as well! A good sign; I thought.

It was almost sold out by 9pm (it opened at 6pm) & I managed to order the last 7 of their SINGLE Pork patty with cheese burgers - Each @ RM5.50 .

I admit expectations were high, bought about from all the pork burgers I have eaten & from reading the Uncle Ben FB comments of their burgers…

…..thus, I was hit hard with disillusionment the moment I took my first bite. The squashy patty turned me off instantly. Moist is good, but not to the extent of mushiness! The patty gave way to pieces in my hands & we had trouble keeping the burger together.

Kevin instantly regretted that he had placed an additional order of Double pork patty with cheese – RM 8.50. Haha! As expected, the double burger was double the trouble – imagine 2 mushy patties together in a bun!

Needless to say, he didn’t finish it. Neither did I. Pretty wasteful I know, but I just couldn’t take another bite. As if the texture wasn’t bad enough, the patty was salty as well.

Below: Looks good eh? Well, don’t be fooled by clever photography! ;-)

Oh, the one in the middle below is the PORK CHOP burger, which we ordered 2. Everything is similar except that pork chop is actual meat & it came with a slice of caramelized pineapple ring. While it sounded better than the pork patty burger, there wasn’t really much of an improvement. The patty was dry & salty.

Overall Uncle Ben Burger Babi is pretty decent if you are not fussy like me ;-) . After all, out of 10 people in the group, there were a few who thought the burgers were nice. For the price, the patty is substantially thick & each burger came with generous helpings of vegetables & a slice of cheese.

For me? I think there are better options (tastewise) for it’s price range:

1. NAMBAWAN Pork Burger, Taman Sri Manja

2. SS2 Wai Sik Kai Pork Burger

Uncle Ben Burger Babi Stall
(middle of the Food Court, at the open air area)
Ming Tien Food Court,
Taman Megah,
Petaling Jaya.

OR

48-1 & 48-2 Jalan PJU 5/9, Dataran Sunway, Kota Damansara
Petaling Jaya, Malaysia, 47810

NOTE: Thanks Ewin for the photos! ;-)