Best and worse chocolate chip in Malaysia and Singapore

I have been quiet crazy in making chocolate chip cookies recently and I find that different chocolate chip produce different results. So far my favorite is the HERSHEY'S Mini Chips Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips bought in Singapore~ i wish that JB supermarket would sell this though~ but i couldn't find it in jb~ whenever i want to restock i would buy 4 packs per trip as I know i will use a lot~

Below is my opinion whether i will try again the chocolate chip or to stay away from them

MUST TRY
1. (10 over 10) My favorite is this HERSHEY'S Mini Chips Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips bought in Singapore. The size of the chip is smaller than usual and able to spread more evenly in the batter. As the chips is smaller, my baking will usually look more appealing as its entirely covered by mini chips. It taste great and look great. So far i tried a few chocolate chip and i couldn't find one that could replace this yet~

2. HERSHEY'S Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
I use this chip before the mini ones. Its the same flavor and taste but bigger in size than number 1. As the chip is bigger, the cookies or muffins will looks like they have lesser chips on it. (7 over 10)

MUST AVOID
 3. HERSHEY'S Milk Chocolate Chips
I bought this 1 time and it took me a few years to finish it really~! Cause i use it the first time and find it too sweet for baking. Unsure what to do with it, i chuck it at one corner of my fridge. In the end i use it for my chocolate chip cookies and would never buy this again. Perhaps this chip has its own purpose that I have not manage to find out yet.

3. Nona Semi Sweet Chocolate Chips
Tried this once and i regret buying it. I bought it in Tesco KSL city and i am not sure why they carry many of Nona's line of bakery product. Many of Nona's line is more expensive than other brands with moderate quality. The taste of this chip is appalling - i couldn't really taste any good chocolate flavor in it. And they ended up making my chocolate chip cookies sweeter than normal though i have reduce the sugar. Better to avoid this entirely.

I would try to update this post if i manage to try any new chocolate chips. Meanwhile if you have tried any, feel free to comment and recommend good ones and to avoid bad ones~~

Food Review: Taste Bug's Restaurant and Cafe at KSL (My fav food part 5 JB)

 

Taste Bug's Restaurant and Cafe at KSL. Newly open this week! Just in time to countdown 2011!

KSL is a mega project consisting of shopping complex, condo, office and hotel. Currently they have open their shopping complex and the rest is still under construction. They have 8 Cinema theater, Karaoke by Kbox and Tesco (coming soon). The first week that i went there I notice that most of the eateries offers Hong Kong food and some fast food centers. I notice that there wasn't any western food eateries. I find it strange since it is a mega project catering to middle and upper income people. But just this week i notice this particular western restaurant/cafe open and I naturally made a "bee-line" towards it! And boy their food exceed my expectation! Their waiter/waitress are rather attentive too.

 Average western food that I ate feels like they are like a fast food centre. Just pop the chicken into the fryer and serve. No seasoning and taste like instant especially western restaurant chain store. 

However this restaurant are different! To me they offer quality food and I can taste their sauce are made from scratch. The main key is the western herb that they infuse into their food. I notice the green herb in almost all their dishes including the fried chicken (under finger food menu). The herbs are not overpowering and bring out the flavor of the food. Curious my friend and I complimented on the food and ask who is the chef and who is the owner. Apparently the chef (owner) just came back from UK and open the restaurant here. No wonder the food tasted delicious!

A Mushroom soup made from scratch! A must try! I scrap the mushroom soup to the last drop. Cost around RM8+

 

Fried chicken. Finger food but enough to share between 3 people. Cost around RM10

Spagetti (Tomato cili sauce). There is clams, cheese sprinkles and western herbs.  Forget the full name but I love this spagetti! I will definitely order again. Cost around RM15+

Spagetti (mushroom). Also forget this dish name. I prefer the tomato flavour spagetti but this also taste delicious. Suitable if you wanted something simple.

Their pizza taste amazing too~! Cost around RM13 plus. Forget the dish name again but there is tuna, vege and generous serving of cheese on very thin crust pizza (imagine indian style naan). There is 6 pieces but I think you can treat this pizza as a side dish and share with friends and family.

This one is Chocolate Fondant cost RM11.95. It is like a chocolate molten lava cake where chocolate syrup will ooze out when you cut the cake. The white topping are vanilla ice cream. Yummy and delicious cake prepared by the chef. The chocolate syrup is still warm and goes nicely with the ice cream. Great way to close the dinner! Next time i want to try their Mud Pie!

The dessert in the menu that they offer are also very attractive.  I am particularly attracted to their dessert when i first sat down! In fact dessert is always the page that I look at longest.

 

Their deco. Notice that it is actually spagetti and they are Disney characters? How cute is that!

Meldrum walk stall part 2 - Chinese section

Click here for part 1
My Favourite food in Johor Bahru/Johor (Malaysia) Part 5 - Meldrum Walk food stalls

This is part 2 about Meldrum walk stalls. I wanted to post more about the stalls that i frequent and love to go. Photo quality is low because i snap quick pictures with my phone. All the below stalls are located on the same stretch of street.

Famous Popiah stall

Chicken rice stall

I like to order white chicken rice from them. I like their chicken rice but overall the chicken rice is a tad too oily.

My friend ordered roasted chicken rice

Ikan bakar stall

Sotong bakar. I love their sotong. Its cook just nice and the sambal goes well with the sotong.

Udang bakar

 

 Char Kueh Tiao stall

 

The char kueh tiao that they cook. I love to eat this char kueh tiao

Fried Oyster stall

 

 This stall is also a hot seller. The oyster they gave are big and fresh. The egg cook just nice.

My Favourite food in Johor Bahru/Johor (Malaysia) Part 5 - Meldrum Walk food stalls

Picture: Sotong bakar, Ikan bakar and Oyster egg

Another one of my favourite eating spot in JB town near City Square has got to be the multitude of stalls sprawled across Meldrum Walk that comes alive during the evening time. First impression is that you can see countless number of stalls mushrooming with table and chairs littered everywhere in a huge road maze. Your sight and sound will be assulted with the various aromas and food choices available. It is a unique food heaven suitable for food lover and hungry mongers alike.

The stalls are open in between shop lots backlane. The setting itself does not look clean but once you have gotten over the initial unpleasant dirty impression, you will find that the place oozes a charm that is uniquely Malaysia. To prove my point I can see "Ang Moh" tourist walking past the stalls carrying their backpacks and taking pictures of the overall ambiance. You can see their expression light up as they stop to ponder and took picture with their DLSR camera. I can imagine it is quiet fascinating to them as they might not see it in their own country. It is uniquely Malaysia due to its environment and location. Looking at the stall owners and workers pounch into action serving at a frantic and practice pace. The customers that comes from different nationality hovering over stalls awaiting their tapao or enjoying their meal. Recently I saw a boy helping at a stall. He is almost like 11 years old but he is acting like a 25 years old. I watch in surprise wonder as he was really matured asking you for your order, serving the drink and getting the changes. People like this makes the place a special and unique place to eat. Needless to say I am in love with the place.

Once coming here i can order and stuff myself to the max. 2 days of stalls hunting at Meldrum Walk and I can really see my body and face bloating! Got to really control myself from going there for a while. Else i will seriously order all kind of food from there and get real fat!

Day 1: Tapao (takeaway) Char Kueh Tiao, Poh Piah 2 slices and 2 chicken wing - stuff myself to the max
Day 2: Ikan and sotong bakar (with ladies finger and vege) and Oyster with egg - shared with a friend but I have to finish 80% of the portion cos she ate very little.

Sotong and Ikan bakar review: The sotong was cook just nice. It was succulent and I like the sambal mixture use. I will definitely eat the Sotong bakar again. The fish tear off from the bone easily. Cost RM17.40 including 2 rice.

Oyster egg review: Its super delicious. The oyster given is big and fresh. I was totally hook and I kept craving for it the next day. Its a must try (if u are immunize)! RM5 smallest plate.

Char Kueh Tiao: JB kueh tiao is the salty version (unlike Malacca which has the sweet version). I like looking at the way the owner cook the kueh tiao. I view it as a live cooking show. There is a sense of purpose in his movement when he dump the kueh tiao/tao geh/chives, oil, salt and seasoning in the kuali and the way he cook furiously with the smoke billowing in all direction. I always tear up when he add in the cili while cooking. The kueh tiao is hot and off course delicious. I wallop them very quickly. The chives added brings out the char kueh tiao flavour and the taugeh act as a crunchy balance with the softness of the kueh tiao. RM3 smallest.

Poh Piah stall: The owner are teo chew ppl in their middle age. The stall is really popular. I think they prepare the poh piah so many times that their rhythm look rather artistic. Their shoulders are stoop as they hover and fuss over the poh piah. First they line the poh piah skin out carefully. Swipe black and cilli sauce at the poh piah skin. Next they drain and scoop up the reddish carefully and put on the poh piah skin. This is followed by their special seasoning. RM4 minimum 2 pcs.

Chicken Wing stall: Its skewered and cook bbq style. RM1.70 per chicken wing. Delicious finger licking food. They will chop into small pieces and cili sauce will be given.

Singapore Hokkien Mee: Its manage by a middle age woman. Too bad it was close for 2 days. When it is open i always make a beeline to the stall and order Hokkien Mee from the aunty. Not sure how she manage to cope the stall alone. She shared that her husband has to go through kidney dialysis. Guess that explain her absence. I love her Hokkien Mee.

I seriously enjoyed the makan session though it is really sinful! Wish that i had taken more photos but i was way too impatient to start! All this delicious food is within the chinese area section that I always go to and they are located nearly next to each other.

I mainly hunt the stalls located in the Chinese area. The Chinese area is more than enough to satisfy my palette. However meldrum walk stalls offer so much more. They have a wide selection of Malay and Indian food. Walking pass the Indian food you can see that many of them sell lamb soup (erm..due to the lamb body part displayed) and mix rice. You can also find burgers and roti john in Meldrum Walk. Its hard to give Meldrum Walk justice when writting a review about them. Its going to be a very long/endless post if i truly need to write out about the place. Therefore go there, see for yourself and try their food! Relax, chill and order lots of food - enjoy them the way that I did!

This post may be updated once I took more pictures in the future.

Part 2
Meldrum walk stall part 2 - Chinese section (click here)

My Favourite food in Johor Bahru/Johor (Malaysia) PART 4

This part 4 of my favorite food in JB will mainly consist of the nice food that I had around my work area in town. There is a few nice food that i went during my lunch break.

1. Burger Stall. My favorite burger stall in town locate opposite of McDonald City Square. The formula of how each stall prepare the burger looks the same. But each of them somehow acquire different taste.

Typically they would at first cook the burger, when the meat is soft, slice in half. Put the curry powder and maggi soy sauce in the middle. Flip the raw side down. When its almost cook close the flap and turn it a few times till its cook. After that break an egg, spread it over the pan and put the burger in the middle and cover the burger meat with the egg. You can also add black pepper and maggi soy sauce in the egg. If you request that they cook the meat and egg separately, the stall i visited will add onion and curry powder into the egg.

Eating burger from this stall is my favorite supper. Today as I wanted to blog about the burger, I forgo my usual dinner and tapao a burger. I open and ate the burger in the office. To my surprise I find myself standing at the burger stall again after eating the first burger because my colleague say that my burger smell so nice and wanted me to help tapao. As the taste is really delicious, I couldnt resist and tapao another burger for myself too.

The first burger i ate is the Burger Ayam Special Cheese (Chicken burger with egg and cheese) and bought a second burger Burger Daging special this time without the cheese. The first burger cost RM4 while the second burger cost RM3. If you order the normal burger with no cheese and egg it would cost RM2.50. I will typically request the burger seller to make mine "pedas pedas" (spicy spicy) as I love the taste of curry powder in the burger.

The burger daging is so delicious. I ate halfway and took a pic~ Inside he put the egg, burger meat, black pepper, cilli, salad. He also put some margarine on the bread and cook the bread over the pan

The burger stall. Its located in front of City Square Mcdonald. And its located at the bus stop. Above him is a large advertisement board. He typically open from 7pm to 12am. The burger seller share that his usual customers would be those who are waiting for public bus to go home.

Chicken burger special with egg and cheese

My second order for my colleague and myself!

My rating: 4 /5. Its really delicious and makes a tasty supper!

1. Restoran Muthu. 118 Jalan Trus, 8000 Johor Bahru. Tel:07-2214113
Near my work place there is an Indian temple. The Indian temple are surrounded by many shops. There are a variety of specialty shops that sells cloths, grocery's and jewelery shop that tap on the Indian market. Its like a Little India in that area. Out of these shops there is a few note worthy Indian restaurant that me and my colleagues goes to.
From Jalan Wong Ah Fok, walk towards the Indian temple and Komtar cross road. You will see a sign board say Jalan Trus. Turn to the left on the cross road and walk straight. The restaurant hang their sign board at the side of their shop and at the front. The sign board says that they have open since 1893.

The sign board at the front of their shop. The shop looks rather big as it looks like two shop lots attaches next to each other. When we came, the workers usher us to go upstairs which is fully air condition. We throttle up the staircase to the second floor. The look of the second floor is different from the first. The second floor looks well renovated and the aircond is at full blast. Their first floor does not have any air cond.
We order Banana Leaf rice. My colleague says that the rice is usually vegetarian style unless you add on the chicken. The banana leaf they will provide rice, papadam, long bean, cabbage, bitter gout, sambal, soup and chicken curry. The bitter gout is so well disguise in the curry that I hardly notice its bitter gout until i have finish halfway. As for the chicken I order the Chicken Varuval.

The chicken Varuval, the cup is their soup and the bitter gout.

Close up of Chicken Varuval. Its actually very tasty and I feel is the main highlight of the whole dish.

One of my colleagues has ordered fried rice.

My lassi yogurt drink (kurang manis). Their lassi drink has the choice of salty or sweet. I drank my colleague's salty version and it taste like the yogurt that I DIY at home. Its more sour than salty to me. My sweet lassi is sweeter and I prefer it that way.

My rating: 3.9/5. Delicious food if eat once in a while. I ate this during the lunch time. Be ready to go with an empty stomach as its very filing. Feel drowsy and woozy after eating such a big portion. I paid RM11 for the banana leaf (RM5), lassi and Chicken Varuval. I suspect the lassi should cost around RM3.50 or RM4.

2. KIM LOONG RESTAURANT
Their name card: 74, Jalan Wong Ah Fook, 80000 Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia. Hp: 016 752 8382/ 016 796 2288

If you are walking from City Square, just cross the road to Hong Leong bank and walk straight till you see their yellow sign board. Its rather easy to find. Plus their jam pack shop will attract your attention.

They are famous for selling their fish head curry. I am not really into eating fish head curry but I like to eat the fish head curry from this restaurant. The price is also reasonable. 2 of us ate and it cost us RM22 including 2 rice and 2 drinks. As I remembered, the price of fish head curry for 1 person cost RM15, 2 person RM18. They also have different price segment for medium and big.

Close up of their fish head curry. Looking at this picture I can still remember the taste in my mouth. I recall the taste of spicy curry while pouring the curry sauce onto my rice while eating the tasty fish. Its a really big pot filled with fish head, "Tau ke", ladies fingers, cabbage and long bean. They taste great with reasonable price.

The front of their shop with the yellow sign board.

The shop is easily noticeable. I always see a large crowd at their shop. Though the crowd are big, I like it that they manage to have very fast service. We sat down sharing our table with other customer and only waited for few minutes to be serve. They really have great system.

lol~! My colleague couldnt wait anymore! Look at her hand!

Delicious fish head curry from Kim Loong Restaurant at Wong Ah Fook

My rating: 4/5. Delicious food if eat once in a while. Price is reasonable. Standby tisu and be ready to break a sweat. Their curry is not very spicy but its enough to make one sweat a lot! I ate this during the lunch time and i heard that they close once they have sold out. So the best time to be there is during lunch time.

My Favourite food in Malacca part 2

Just went to Malacca for a relaxing and fun trip. Its a thrill to visit my favorite makan places. I am back to JB and now i have starting to miss the food there. Below are some of my favourite makan places in Malacca~!

1. NADEJE
One of my favourite cake eating place! They serve crepe cakes in various flavour. When i was there i saw about 6 different flavours: original, chocolate, double chocolate, banana chocolate, strawberry and tiramisu. As the cake is very filling, we only order about 2 pieces of cake: banana chocolate and original.A photo of their name card. It shows their address and branches. The one i went is the Plaza Mahkota main shop.

The map to their main and branch shop

I order the Banana Milk Shake. Cost RM7.50

Banana Chocolate Crepe cake. Price: RM8.50

The price of the cake is rather more expensive than your usual average cake. But its worth it considering that its delicious and you can see that a lot of work has gone into it to create layers of crepe cake. Total i spend RM24.50 with no tax/service charge for 2 pieces of cake and 1 milk shake. In terms of service level they are just average. Personally I feel that they should hire more waiters. As the shop are pack to the seam they are so busy serving customer that they did not really take notice of their surrounding. I actually have to wait for them to stop serving only then can I attract their attention and get them to take my order.

Banana Milk Shake and Banana Chocolate

Original Crepe cake

My favorite is the original crepe cake. Its a perfect dessert after a meal. Its delicious, smooth and creamy! I miss it very much. After eating it the first time, I make it a point to go back there every time I go to Malacca. They also taste way better than Secret Recipe and a perfect cake for any birthday party.

The main branch front door. The signboard is in blue color. There is a lot of customers queuing for take away. The shop is always pack to the seam every time we are there. Its also a favorite spot for university student to mingle and working adults to enjoy a great tasting desserts.

My rating: 4.5 / 5
Service level: 2 /5
I find the taste will linger in my mouth and I feel like eating it again the next day. Too bad i couldn't stay longer in Malacca to enjoy more of the cake

2. KLEBANG COCONUT SHAKE
Another spot for great tasting Coconut Shake! Its located at Solok KG Bahagia. I do not have the full address but in other to go there you need to pass by Sampan and its before the Klebang beach. The shop is more like a road side stall and next to the stall is Caltex petrol station.

Photo of their locationIts a roadside makeshift stall

The que is building up. There is always a long que at this stall. There was light drizzle when we que for the coconut shake. Which is a blessing in disguise as there will be a very long que during clear weather. Previously when the weather is clear we have to que for about 45 mins!

The signboard: Solok Kg Bahagia, 75200 Melaka.

Caltex petrol station is right next to it

Some of the road sign located near the stall

Queing for the Coconut Shake

Their pricing. Its very cheap. We order Coconut shake special and it cost RM2.20 each for take away. Their special means that they will top the coconut shake with 1 scoop of Walls ice cream. Most ppl will take away as there are limited seats at the stall.

The making of coconut shake

A man chopping the coconut to get the coconut water and the meat of the coconut

Finally after about 20 minutes of queuing we bought 2 cup of tasty Coconut shake. I order the special which has a scoop of ice cream top on it. Cant see clearly in the picture as it was squash in during take away. Its really cheap considering the special has total of 2 scoop of ice cream when the price is RM2.20
The taste is divine. Inside there is ice, coconut meat, coconut water, sugar and walls ice cream.

My rating: 4.6 / 5
The price is dirt cheap and the quality of the drink is great. However you will need to allocate some time to buy this drink as there is long que.

3. SUNSET RETREAT RESTAURANT
Address: 3854-C, Batang Tiga, Klebang Besar, 75200 Melaka.
Website: www.sunset.my
Scroll to the bottom for their name card and map.

I find that this place is a hidden treasure waiting to be discovered. Though i have studied many years in Malacca, I only know this place during my final year. The area is rather secluded and its easy to miss the crucial turn into the cafe while driving. Its a cafe located next to a beach. I been there a few years back. I use to watch in wonder as the wave hit the cafe. But due to the land reclamation in progress, there is no more of the waves like it use to have.

However the place is still a wonder. The ambiance is soft, soothing, relaxing and romantic. Ideal for gathering and a romantic outing. In fact according to Cliff which is the owner, the place has been open for about 10 years and there are couples who dated there, get married and return to the cafe with their kids in tow. Its obvious to some of us that the place has a special place in our hearts.
We didnt order much at this place. We order 2 cups of their cocktail. If you refer to their website they also serve seafood.

They have a bar erected. Which is something different as there wasnt any during my last trip.

Some of the cafe view from where i am seating

Name card: The full address, fax, reservation number, website, email and they are open from 5pm to 12.30pm

The map

My rating: 4/5
Ideal for a romantic date. If you wanted to bring your love one to some place special. Bring them here! Also ideal for outings.