Dry Chilli Pan Mee @ Face to Face, Puchong

I am a self confess dry chilli pan mee lover as i am a chilli eating maniac. And when it comes to this dish, my personal numero uno is still Kin Kin Pan Mee shop in KL, off Jalan TAR. (which i will blog about seperately). However, ever since i stay put in Kota Kemuning, travelling to KL can be quite troublesome and jam packed. So i need to search for alternative, at least a close number two in my personal ranking.

When my wife introduced this shop to me, i am a little skeptical at first. Face to Face ? Never heard before. But after trying out their pan mee, i am well satisfied to park them under my number two ranking for the chilli pan mee.

This shop has many branches and is run under Face to Face franchise. But, QC are quite good in the sense that the same noodle taste the same in many of these branches ( i have tried the Puchong, Damansara Uptown, and also PJ Old town ones so far)

Besides chilli pan mee, this shop has many version of pan mee, wanton mee, as well as Sarawak Kampar Mee. (all are nice and tasty) For this blog, i shall stick to their dry chilli pan mee. The noodle is nice, not too wet/moist. The egg is my favourite "Explosive" type haha. And their chilli is ok ,and not too hot. (though Kin Kin one is still way better and pack much more oomph)  

The dry chilli pan mee at Face to Face

Their version of dry chilli flakes (not as oomph as Kin Kin's)

The pan mee after putting in the chilli flakes

After it is well blended with all the ingredients ...yum yum

Besides their noodles, they have some nice snacks as well, among the noteworthy one is their golden fried wanton. Taste really crispy and yummy, to go with your pan mee. And for drinks, try their white coffee, or their ribena lychee....nice to go along the hot chilli pan mee. 

Their golden fried wanton (not "shui jiao")

How to get there? For this Puchong branch, it is in Bandar Puteri, same side with Giant. The shop is same row with Maybank nearby Giant in Bandar Puteri. It is open daily until 9:30PM.

Some of my friends was saying the BEST pan mee these days is the Super Kitchen Pan mee (the one that started as a "copycat" opposite Kin Kin in KL) Will give it a try really soon and review it. Stay Tuned.

Overall Verdict:
Clean and air-conditioned environment, fast and efficient service, nice variety of noodle dishes, noteworthy snacks and drinks, and acceptable dry chilli pan mee (IMO).

I want iPhone 4!

While i was still working in China, i had the privilege of playing with my secretary's brand new iPhone 4 her beloved husband bought for her ......After taking it in my palm, i immediately fell head over heals for it .....It is so sleek, nice and professional looking. Putting it side by side with my faithful iPhone 3G makes my iPhone 3G looks like a age old dinasour .....

And drop calls i.e antennagate issue you were saying on iPhone 4? All i can say is in the 2 weeks i observe my secretary using her new iPhone 4 there is not a single drop calls and signal is almost always at full bar! (hers is a HK set brought in to China)

Conclusion? I love it so much that i tried to put my iPhone 3G into her phone pouch ....but the plan failed. I WANT an iPhone 4!!! 

Enough whining ...here's some photo......For those interested, forget about Maxis/Digi deal. iPhone 4 in Malaysia will be bound by plans and package with 1-2 year contract. Get it from Singapore, free of any contract, just get it, pay and go (if you are travelling by plane to Singapore, can claim VATs at airport some more) For your info, the singapore iPhone 4 works for Malaysia's Digi, Celcom, Maxis. But you need to get the new MicroSIM card from your telcos. (no software jailbreaking required, like previous iPhone models) Singapore is the second cheapest place to get iPhone 4 in Asia, after Hong Kong.

Breakfast @ Makan Makan

Staying in Kota Kemuning has its many bliss, one of them being away from traffic and noises and the other being surrounded with lots of nice food outlet. One of them is my personal favourite for breakie, which is none other than the already famous Makan Makan. (yes the title of the shop which loosely translated into eat-eat in English)

So whats good for makan at Makan Makan :P ? Almost everything. This shop is famous enough to get the attention of our local food review channel, Ho Jiak's review and not to mention countless newspaper highlights.

Those highly recommended ones are marked with a "eat" logo in Mandarin. So far they had not been disappointing. Among my personal favourite are their morning breakfast nasi lemak bungkus, loh mai fan, fried chicken, and also many of theirs nyonya kuihs! As for drink, my personal preference is their kopi kluang or their cham ice.

Business here is good especially during breakfast time and lunch time. but services here are generally good and you need not wait too long. If you crave for their kuihs or the nasi lemak bungkus, make sure arrive early during breakfast to avoid disappointment.

Where is it located in Kota Kemuning? It is very easy to find. When you are traveling from USJ to Kota Kemuning using the KESAS highway, exit at the first Kota Kemuning exit, take the 3 o'clock turn at the first roundabout. Turn right at the second turning (Mc Donald is first turning, second turning is the one at NTS food court), immediately after turning right at NTS turning, turn right again at the first available right turn, cruise along slowly, Makan Makan is on the first row of shop to your left, towards the end.
What is their business hours?

OVERALL verdict :

Clean environment. Good overall Malaysian food. Nice and tasty nyonya kuihs. 

"Wu Shan" Ikan Bakar (BBQ fish) Chong qing Style, Beijing

Being a Wai Sik Chai, i am priviliged enough to explore China while working there for 2 years ....
One of the food i like the most in Beijing, is this BBQ fish shop called Wu Shan Kao Yu (in Mandarin)
The way they prepare the fish is different form our Boleh Land version.
Is it good ? I shall let the picture do the talking

When my parents visited me in Beijing, i brought them to this shop as well, here is the Before and after photo haha

This place is packed with people during dinner time. So be prepared to wait if you do visit there. Where is it located? It is in the third ring road, east, nearby Kempinski Hotel.

Final Verdict:

Kedai Kopi Hai Peng (Kemaman)

For those who travels to the East Coast, this place is a must have for a cuppa of nicely brew coffee, and many of their nicely baked, slightly burnt toast.

There are many kopitiams these days mushrooming in Malaysia, but rest assured Hai Peng coffee shop still maintain the oomph and originality (the shop has been around for many many years, 3 generations alreadfy)

So, what to look for when you are there?






 Among the noteworthy items to order:

• Packets of mee siam (Fantastic)
• Vietnamese style coffee (Kao Kao)
• Roti bakar (normal)
• Roti bakar peanut butter with pisang (yummy)

The coffeeshop is located in the middle of Kemaman town, if you are coming from Kuantan direction, it is immediately after The Store shopping mall. (There is also branches now in Kuantan, but personally this original Kemaman one is still THE ONE)
The shop is closed on Friday.

Final Verdict :

Back with a vengence

Hello all ...

After neglecting this blog for almost 2 years due to my posting to work in China and China cannot access Blogspot (can you believe it? also there is a ban on facebook, youtube, etc.) So, lotsa materials i have accumulated on food, gadgets, which i will slowly share from now onwards .......

So, enjoy the posting and do help promote this site!

Cheers.
Just another Wai Sik Chai in Boleh Land

Durian from Penang Yum Yum

A selection of branded durians in a plantation in Balik Pulau, the durian centre of Penang Durians of Balik PulauIn Penang, Malaysia, the best place to get good durians is in the town of Balik Pulau, on the southwest corner of Penang Island. Balik Pulau is a 30 minute drive over the main range and has a lot of durian estates.
The following is a selection of branded durians

• D11 "Number Eleven" is a very popular durian in the 70's. It has creamy yellow flesh with a pleasant taste and a subtle smell.
• D604 The D604 was first cultivated by the late Mr. Teh Hew Hong of Sungai Pinang, Balik Pulau. The flesh is quite sweet, and has some "body" to it as the seed is small.
• D600 This durian originates in Sungai Pinang in Balik Pulau. The flesh has a bittersweet taste to it, with a touch of sourness.
• D700The flesh is darker than D600, like chrome yellow. Also slightly hard. Crispy, but the smell is not very strong.
• Ang Sim (Red Heart) Ang Sim is a durian with flesh which is quite soft and very sweet, and dark yellow in colour. It also has a nice aroma.
• Khun Poh This durian takes the name of the late Mr Lau Khun Poh, who first budded it. Khun Poh has beautiful orangy flesh with a slightly bitter-sweet taste and a heavy aroma.
• Hor Loh (Water Gourd Durian) The flesh of the Hor Loh is very soft, dry and quite bitter. It has a sharp smell to it. Hor Loh was first cultivated at the Brown Estate of Sungai Ara. It got its name from its appearance resembling a "Hor Lor" pumpkin. If the durian hits the ground hard when it falls, the flesh tends to be bitter thereafter.
• Ang Heh (Red Prawn Durian)Ang Heh originates from Pondok Upeh, Balik Pulau, and has a round-shaped husk. The orange reddish flesh is highly aromatic, very soft with a bitter-sweet taste.
• Xiao Hung (Little Red Durian) Xiao Hung, whose name means "Little Red One," originates in Sungai Pinang, Balik Pulau. The flesh has a bittersweet taste to it, with a touch of sourness. There are only one or two seeds per section, but the flesh is thick.
• Yah Kang (Centipede Durian)Although its flesh is whitish, the taste is superb, milky, like very sweet, melting chocolate. The name "yah kang" means centipede, and accounts for the number of centipedes found at the foot of the tree, hence giving it the rather unusual name.
• Bak Eu (Pork Fat Durian) Bak Eu has a slightly acidic aroma. The flesh is whitish while the taste is quite bitter but nice.
• D17 is dark cream flesh. The taste is slightly dry but sweet. It is a tasty durian.
• Coupling This durian gets its unusual name because it looks like two durians joined together, one big and one small. When split open, you almost thought the two halves belong to two different durians. Coupling has whitish flesh which is slightly dry but tastes good.
• Ooi Kyau (Tumeric Durian)The name Ooi Kyau (tumeric) describes the colour of the bright yellow flesh of this durian. It is very sweet and tasty.
• Chaer Phoy (Green Skin Durian) Chaer Phoy is shaped like a small canteloupe. The skin is bright green, giving it the name which means "green skin". Chaer Phoy has creamy white flesh which is a bit dry, not too sweet but tasty.
• Ang Jin (Red Yoke Durian)As the name suggests, Ang Jin Durian has deep orange flesh. It is very sweet and tasty.
• Lin Fong Jiau This durian is named after Lin Fong Jiau, aka Mrs Jackie Chan. One wonders whether it is indicative of the relationship of the celebrity couple, for Lin Fong Jiau is a bittersweet.