Dim sum at Tai Zi Heen

Hello dear neglected blog!

I've been pigging everywhere, but in my midst of enjoying the food, I totally forgot I had a food blog lying dormant for 2 months. And when I remembered to whip out my camera, the food's all gone. But I will work harder, I promise!

Today I finally satisfied my cravings for dim sum! I am quite picky when it comes to dim sum because, 1) I don't really eat pork, and 2) Ipoh, where I come from, has a few very good dim sum places and I feel that nowhere in KL matches them, except of course, hotels like Prince and Mandarin Oriental.

I managed to drag my sister and her boyfriend to Tai Zi Heen at Prince Hotel today for an All You Can Eat Dim Sum and it was so gooooooooooooood! I was there for their dim sum a few years ago and today, I haven't been disappointed. They maintained their standard all these years!

There were about 50+ items on the menu, and I think we ordered almost all of them. Yes, we could really eat. I didn't take any pictures though, because I was too busy stuffing myself silly. I love their lime dessert with aloe vera and jelly very, very much. It came in a deep dish, with a scoop of lime sorbet. Just the perfect dessert to have to aid the digestion!

Here's a screenshot from Prince Hotel. Be sure to snap pictures if you go, ok. I'll be less of a glutton the next time I go, and reward you with some glorious dim sum pictures.

The Olive @ Genting Highlands

The pilot and I celebrated our 4th year anniversary with a dinner in the clouds. Well, literally anyway. He told me to get ready by 5pm. He was being rather secretive about the dinner venue, but never in my life would I expect it to be at Genting Highlands!

After we parked the car, he took me on a long walk, and in my heart I was wondering if I would ever get to eat. As we passed by The Olive Restaurant, he suddenly took a sharp turn and entered it. My jaw dropped for the first time that night.

"Hi. I've got a reservation for two, under the name Pilot." (Of course his REAL name isn't 'Pilot'!)

It was a beautiful restaurant, The Olive.

Nice lighting.

Beautiful ambience.

Great service.

And here's what we ordered for appetiser. I couldn't remember the names of all the food we ordered, so I am describing only what I remembered. Prices quoted are inclusive of tax and service charge.

Grilled snails in pesto sauce and olive oil (RM 40.25)

Portobello mushroom salad with eggplant and arugula (RM 28.75)

My main course:

Saffron angel hair pasta with scallops and radicchio (RM 59.80)

The pilot's main course:

Grilled sirloin steak with mushrooms (RM 112.70)

We didn't order any wines because I don't drink, and he has to drive, so we made do with water. The steak was done beautifully, and the meat was tender and melt-in-your-mouth kind. My pasta was slightly dry, but the scallops were very fresh. Overall, it was a great meal, which was very enjoyable thanks to a great company and wonderful surroundings.

A good place for special occasions.

The Olive
Lobby Floor, Genting Hotel
Genting Highlands,
Pahang.

Chocolate and Banana Muffins

I baked these for our New Year's Eve party and they tasted great! I made enough to feed a party of 20, with leftovers for the pilot's nephew. Recipe found here.

Enjoy!

Ipoh's Big Tree Leg

Direct translated from Cantonese, 'Dai Shu Geok' means 'Big Tree Leg', literally, under the tree. This place is very famous in Ipoh. Located in Pasir Pinji, it is one of my favourite places to have lunch.

I love ordering their various kinds of yong tau fu. I especially love it when they're just freshly fried.


Here's my favourite thing to order:

Assam laksa

I am salivating just thinking about it!

Four Seasons in KL!

Each time I flew to London, it's become a routine to hop over to Four Seasons Restaurant in Bayswater just to have some of their world famous roast duck. I was so happy when I found out that Four Seasons decided to branch out, right here in KL!

A few friends and I hopped over to the newly-opened, swanky Capital Square for duck, and more gastronomic pleasure. I will let the pictures do the talking.

Four Season's special roast duck (Half portion for RM 32)

Two combination BBQ (RM 29)

Deep fried squid with salt and pepper (RM 30)

Black pepper chicken in hot stone bowl (RM 37)

Stir fried kailan with ginger (RM 20)

The duck was great! It didn't have that gamey taste at all. One bite into it, and all the herbs and juices oozed. I didn't try the siu yoke and char siu though (I don't eat pork, remember?) but my friends said they were nothing to shout about. I loved the squid - they were very fresh and topped generously with garlic. The chicken was a disappointment, though. Not only was it expensive, it was really nothing to shout about, except well, the hot stone bowl. The kailan was imported from Hong Kong (that's what the menu claimed!) but I think it was probably from our own backyard in Cameron Highlands.

Overall, I'm glad that Four Seasons is now here in KL. I've missed their duck so much, and their chilli oil too. I tell you, duck + chilli oil = the best combination in the world! I am going back again for more, that's for sure.

The bill for 5 people came up to RM 185.35, inclusive of rice, Chinese tea and 10% service charge.

Four Seasons Restaurant
Lot G16-17, Capital Square Center,
No.7, Persiaran Capital Square,
Capital Square,
50100 Kuala Lumpur.
Tel: 03-2698 9393

(The restaurant is just a few doors away from Coffee Bean).

Lorong Selamat char kway teow

I was back in Ipoh last weekend, so I thought we should go down to Penang. It was not a regrettable trip, because I finally had my dose of Lorong Selamat char kway teow!

The last time I ate there was a year ago, and it was still the goggles-wearing aunty who fried it. But this time around, it was taken over by her son (I assume).

Taste wise, it's still quite all right, although I would prefer my beansprouts to be slightly more cooked. I ordered mine to be extra spicy, and extra spicy it came, as evident from the colour.

I can't wait to go back there for more! This time, I hope it's the aunty who fries it for me.

Chocolate Chip Cookies, part 2

I've been appointed 'official baker' this coming Chinese New Year, so all I do is to bake, bake and bake. Yesterday I attempted another chocolate chip cookies recipe, this time from videojug. I must say the cookies turned out absolutely delicious! It was crunchy on the edges but slightly chewy in the middle. Give this a try!