J Tean Kitchen Restaurant in SSTwo Mall – fusioned pork BKT, pork burgers, pork pies & more!

It’s been a while since I have written about the swine. That’s mainly so because of the Ramadan month; and hence my blog has been populated with Ramadan buffets & bazaars posts so I had avoided non-halal posts in respect to my Muslim readers.

Anyhow, it’s time to get back on track! This post was drafted a while back, but J Tean Kitchen is still very much in business & drawing in the crowds for their innovative & tasty porky dishes in SSTwo Mall. There’s isn’t much good food outlets there really, and J Tean Kitchen is definitely a good bet if you are in the area. And oh, parking is free still.

The outlet spaciously seats a big group, or a family yet still cosy enough for a small yumcha gang or a couple.

Just choose whichever corners that caught your fancy..

……or you could opt for alfresco balcony seating with wooden shades to shield yourself from the afternoon rays.
The outlet is eye-catching; with a array of beautifully “Chinese” designed furniture, ranging from antique mix of opium bed, drum table (see below!), drum stool imported directly from China to modern pieces of glass tops tables & Ikea-like chairs.

 Note these pretty traditional Chinese ornaments.

Food-wise, expect traditional favourites but with a twist; in some dishes it’s in the recipe, in others it’s the presentation & flavours.

Take this example this J-Soup – Signature recipe herbal bak kut the soup that are individually served covered with puff pastry. RM4.90……..

………..and JTean’s pumpkin soup.
Tear open the puff pastry & dig into the piping hot broth within.
I personally think that the pumpkin soup could do minus the enoki & chinese mushrooms; as the fungi only made the soup taste weird. But the puree itself was tasty enough, very fresh, very homemade.
The bak kut teh soup was a tad salty & thick for me to drink on its own. Guess I would stick to having my bak kut teh with rice.

Since we on the topic of Bak Kut Teh, here are the signature dishes of JTean Kitchen. Mr James Tean, the owner has been in the food industry for almost 30 years. He has successfully developed his own mixture of BKT herbs to produce the best flavour of the soup. From the humble beginnings of a Klang BKT store, Master Tean’s business has since evolved & today, his factory produces consumer packed “Bak Kut Teh” spices in aluminium foils that are sold both locally & internationally across Chinatowns in Australia, Asia, Europe & the USA.

Below: JTean’s Bak Kut Teh Combi 1 – Ribs + Pork belly+ pig stomach. RM20.90.

Malaysia Boleh eh?
The Bak Kut Teh served at JTean Kitchen is a “fusion” version, stewed using a special blend by Master Tean himself. While I had no issues with the ingredients; the pork belly & ribs were tender enough & infused with the herbal fragrance from the soup, I would still stick to my traditional old school brew.
But I would recommend one to sample JTean’s BKT for its unique flavour at least once, and be marvelled with the creativity of Master Tean!

But, you know what I would come here for?

THIS!

The J Tean Pork/chicken Burgers!
The above is sandwiched with a normal bun (RM7.90)  while the one below has the pork patty encased between mantou buns (RM16.90).

I much preferred the mantao version immediately, as the sweetish bun, deep-fried, added a nice overall sweetness to the savoury pork patty.

Below here you’ll see the de-constructed patty; which was very well seasoned, with very very faint trace of bak kut teh flavor, making this quite an unique burger & a must try if you are in JTean Kitchen.
I noted critically too that the patty is very meaty, so I was assured that I wasn’t served overly processed gunk here.

The mantou burger was good enough for me minus the condiments of mayo + onion mix, since I do not like mayonnaise that much. Hence for my next visit I would request for the burger without the sauce & perhaps double the patty!

Next was the Braised pork with buns which really reminded me of the popular Taiwanese pork buns.
These 3 sumptous braised pork mixed with JTean special thick gravy sauce cost merely RM7.90. Yes, overall prices of food here is very reasonable; taking into consideration the portions & ambiance.

A huge pork knuckle like the below is RM38.90. Named The J-Knuckle (what else??), the knuckle is pre-stewed & slow cooked until golden brown. It comes with the Master Tean’s special made sauce, which includes plum sauce & chilli. Very thai-ish.

And here’s another favourite of mine. The J-Porky Pie. RM19.90.
It’s their signature pie filled with braised pork meat in special herbal sauce. Tear away the pastry top to reveal within tender chunks of pork, swimming in slightly fiery gravy; and some chunks with layers of melt-on-the-tongue fat intact.  OMG, orgasmic! Hehehe..

It helps also that the flavours here is different from the rest of the dishes. It is still their “special” herbal sauce (all JTean’s dishes are named ‘special sauce’) but this has got chilli in it!

Love pasta? Try the Curry Ribs Pasta. RM19.90. While the pasta are less then al-dente (think Chinese way of cooking pasta), the thick rich curry & pork ribs made up for it!

Pork knuckles, pork burgers, pork pasta, pork pie .. so what’s missing?
PORK RIBS!

The J-Ribs. RM34.90.
The finest pork ribs, pre-stewed with JTean special spices, specially marinated with our special sauce & cooked til tender (noticed how many “special” in that sentence alone? LOL!) . Served with salad, potato wedges, & yea, what else, Jtean special sauce of course!

I bought Chef Jason Koppinger (Exec Chef of Starhill) along with me for this review as he is a huge pork fan. Here’s where he got his first taste of our Bak Kut Teh!

Not a pork fan? Go for the Chicken in Wine then. This was wonderfullyherbal-ish, pungent with ginger & sweet chinese wine. I don’t know about you, but I love my pork or chicken cooked this way, with the wine emitting the most wondrous smell!

Another snack we tried, the Radish cake, almost similar with the ones you get at dim sum outlets, but JTean’s version is much well prepared in comparison of course, with a soft fluffy texture due to the much generous use of radish compared to flour.

Desserts for a sweet closing to the meal. Golden Beach – Pumpkin puree & Melaka Rainbow (background of the picture below). Too sweet to recommend.

 

Conclusion?
There are some hits & misses for me. I find most of the dishes a tad strong on the sodium side, and the Bak Kut Teh a bit too “fusioned” for my liking. Traditionalist at heart may balked at JTean’s version, but hey, it is marketed as “fusion” BKT for a reason.
Anyhow, I would still hop in for the Pork Pie (but to eat it with rice, not the pastry), the mantou pork burger (minus the mayo) & the Pork Ribs Spaghetti!

ADDRESS:
J Tean Kitchen
G-58, Ground Floor, SS2 Mall
No.40, Jalan SS2/72,
46300 Petaling Jaya.
Contact Number: 03-7954 0819
Business Hours : 10.00am – 10.00pm

 I just checked JTean Kitchen’s Facebook & saw this intriguing BAK KUT TEH MOONCAKES!!
Wow!! This is a MUST-TRY for me!! Anyone up for it??

All pictures are: