Hmm.. How should I begin?
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
Errrm… how does a supposed signature suckling pig dish, suddenly manage to transform itself into an overweight nasi lemak bungkus??
LOL!!
From what my frens told me, the presentation is correct, everything else isnt’!
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LOL. It’s not that the babi guling is bad. It just doesn’t taste like it. It doesn’t taste like pork meat at all.
I think it should be in the category of Chicken Rendang rice. XD
NOTED!!
Gonna quote your description since you’re the one that has actually eaten babi guling!
I would surely love the rum ice cream just for its kidney beans. 🙂
LOL!
I like smaller kidney beans tho (the chinese red beans one).
damn… for the price i dun think it justify le… haha
Hear hear!!
Crikey! This does not augur well for lunch planned this afternoon! OK, there’s chicken pog… should I attempt the pizza?! :-/
Hey dont let this deter u!
I’m sure err.. Sam wil take of u guys; big group and all.
hint: *think Checkers DH ;p *
And let Nigel (the expert culinarian) advise on the babi guling..we do not know for sure…
oops, sorry to hear u didn’t like the food! i actually really loved the babi guling here, cos i thought it was pretty aromatic, heheh 😀 but if u do go back, try the roast pork, which was super-tender and had a wonderful crackling!
Oh that wasnt on the menu yesterday !
But i heard the lucky group got to try it today!
hahaha….i think nothing can beats original babi guling at bali…
I guess so 😥
I was expecting more of a babi guling than a nasi lemak ayam rendang.
😛
The nasi not lemak also!!
I think the babi guling was really, really good – as chicken rendang.
ROFL! *high 5*
mixed reviews so far? so go or no go? :p the famous Ibu Oka bali guling that we tried in Bali isn’t that good either!
Ahh.. since u guys been to Bali, u muz go try and tell meeeee!! i’m really curious weiii
As someone who’s tried the real article, I must say that it’s close to the real deal in terms of presentation and flavour. A bit more tart but the flavour of the wild ginger was there.
Granted its not better than the best I’ve had – Warung Ibu Oka in Ubud. But it’s better than some I’ve had in Bali. I’ve tried at least 3 different restos there. And been to Bu Oka about 4 times. Quality of the meat varied too.
Babi Guling is GREAT when it’s a slightly FATTIER piece of meat. But the flavours were authentic and the Lawar (which is the veg bit) is good.
Also I noticed, unfortunately, that you didn’t get to try the Roast Pork.
Am sorry you guys didn’t get the good bits of the resaurant but as they say, one man’s meat is another’s poison.
Ahh.. i see!
Thks for the clarification Nigel!
Yup, I would think the authentic one (not just “close enough”)would be more satisfying & yes, got a lot of comment on the lack of fatty meat too from other friends who has been to Bali.
But hey, if Sam can come this close, I’m sure with a bit of tweaking it would be just like the ones in Bali!
when i saw the photo of babi guling straight away I gave it a facebook like. But then when i read on and get to know the price..i’m going to unlike that. Heck…16.90…but let along if the taste is good. I miss Bali’s Ibu Oka babi guling so much. http://charlesloh.blogspot.com/2010/02/babi-guling-warung-ibu-oka-ubud-bali.html
Oh my.. ican’t wait to taste the actual one… :scratch: