Friday, January 28, 2011
Shaolin (2011) movie
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Tuai Pui Curry Mee / Da Fei Ka Li Mien @ Penang
Hotel D'99 at Muar
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Euro Rich Hotel @ Bukit Indah
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
The best Penang Laksa and Restoran Nasi Kandar Line Clear @ Penang
However, do not make the mistake of ordering chendul/chendol from this coffeeshop - the one outside where many stand slurping down the chendul is way better. The 50cents to bring that chendol into the coffeeshop is well spent as compared to ordering the overly sweet and sticky chendul from this coffeeshop. As mama was hungry, we ordered fried kway teoh too. The Slog Reviews: 9/10. The two prawns that came with the small plate (RM4) were succulent and fresh and the kway teoh was fried to perfection - not too oily and no burnt bits.
Good old mama didn't stop there though - she ordered the fried ngoh hiang which I am not a fan of but hey wow, the Slog Reviews: 8/10. The fried tofu was really good and the meat thingy was stuffed full of meat. I was impressed with how warm, soft and fresh the inside of the tofu was. The sauces that came with the dish were pretty delectable too. Not to be missed if 1 is there.
While walking down Jalan Penang in the direction of Cititel, we also passed by the famous Line Clear Nasi Kandar place - the entrance to the place looks like this. I remember the last time my CEB and I were there, the queue was so ridiculously long that as much as we wanted to try the food, we could not imagine joining the queue.
However, at 3.45pm in the afternoon, there was no queue whatsoever so despite being stuffed from the penang laksa, fried kway teoh etc, we waddled in the narrow alleyway to check out the offerings. On the left side of the wall were some cheery testimonies to the stall's popularity.
The prices of the items however were displayed after the offerings. :D Notice though that the prices of the prawns were not set out...and with good reason, one prawn was RM10!
So, the offerings - a mind-boggling display of pots and plates heaped full of various appetising food which assaulted not just the eyes but the nose. The guy in the picture appeared, or at least behaved like the owner of the place when he decided for mama and me how we should have our food packed for take-away. When I told him how long the queue was the last time and how glad I was to finally be able to try his famous food, he appeared rather pleased & promised me tt he would remember me. And, give me a "cut-the-queue" pass the next time(s).
We ordered chicken, 2 prawns and some veg out of the offerings (consisting of sotongs) below because these were, according to him, the items which would keep for dinner. We just couldn't put any more into our bellies at that time. The bill came to RM27 because 2 prawns = RM20!
In the night, we fell upon the packed food and it tasted as fresh as ever despite being left in packets for 3 hours. The Slog Reviews: 9/10. Like Shakira's song "Hips don't lie" in this case here, the queues don't lie!
Golden Sands Resort @ Penang
Traders Hotel @ Penang
Given that we were in Penang so near to the festive Chinese New Year period, the hotel lobby was decorated (rather garishly I felt) with lots of red. I'm not sure how the hotel lobby looks like on an ordinary day but I would think it doesn't quite look like tt with lots of dragons & lanterns.
No luck for a free upgrade to a club room despite the GC membership so a deluxe room (as I'd booked) on the 12th floor it was. I know that this isn't the Shang (although before it was re-named Traders it was called Shangrila) but I was quite surprised that this hotel was quite so old and old-fashioned. I didn't like the corridors of the 12th floor which were dark with thread-bare carpets and as for the room, well, how many hotel rooms these days still have CRT TVs! Even budget hotels have LCD TVs. And don't get me started on the limited cable channels. There was complimentary broadband service but no free wifi. The only thing I really dug about were the beds and beddings which were so plushy - it was so easy to fall sound asleep and a real struggle to get out of 'em in the morning.
We had a view of the city from our room - a view that reminded us of the blazing sun and merciless heat outside. According to a local, it hadn't rained for a month and this is the monsoon season we are talking about!
We didn't use any of the hotel facilities such as the pool but we had dinner at Island Cafe. The prices of the food are ridiculously cheap, esp for a Shang group hotel - RM25 nett for a large steaming pot of salmon fish head curry. The Slog Reviews: 7.5/10. Spicy definitely (esp if you eat the chilli in the pot) and more than enough meat for 2 adults to share because an entire fish head was used. However, sweet pink salmon meat doesn't really go so well with curry (or maybe I'm not used to that) so this dish isn't a must-try.
Now, when I say superb location of the hotel, I meant the hotel's accessibility to one of the bigger shopping malls in Penang - Pranglin Mall which spans two atriums. It has a Parkson at one of the atriums as well as a Giant supermarket, Watsons, Guardian and all sorts of local clothes and shoes shops. Nothing high street like Mng, Zara much less, Bebe or LV. There is also a cinema on the top floor of Pranglin Mall.
And right next to Pranglin Mall is the new shopping centre called First Avenue. It appears to be very new with a (not-yet-opened) covered linkway to Traders Hotel. There is supposed to be a supermarket here but it isn't opened and the shops look slightly higher-end (there is supposed to be a Coach store soon) but that remains to be seen as the place isn't fully tenanted.
The Slog Reviews: I'll rate a stay at Traders Hotel Penang 8/10. While you should not expect to be blown away or even the least bit impressed with the rooms or the state of the hotel because of its Shang branding, the location (shopping) and accessibility (not just to public transport but to all the famous eating places at Jln Penang / Jln Burma) makes it a viable hotel option. There is also a free daily (11.30, 2.30 and 4.30pm)shuttle bus ride to and fro Golden Sands Resort (also under the Shang group) which one has to register for early due to the limited seats (lots of Japanese tourists stay at Traders and use this facility).
Because Traders Hotel is right next to Komtar, one can take the public bus 401E from the airport to Komtar and walk the 2min walk to the hotel. The bus ride costs only RM2 per pax as opposed to taking a taxi from the airport to Komtar at RM44+. However, I should mention here that I had waited 45mins at Komtar for the 401E to get to the airport on the last day and it never showed - the taxi driver we used in the end mentioned that there is only one bus and well, if that bus gets stuck in the a traffic jam (which Penang is famous for) or breaks down, one could wait a really really long time...like more than an hour!
Monday, January 10, 2011
Double Bay Australian Dining & Bar
I'd been shivering and miserable the entire morning in the office because of the weather and my doubts about well, certain decisions and people. A friend of mine decided to relieve me of both by taking me out for lunch to a restaurant I'd never been before - Double Bay. He said a change of scenary would cheer me up and so we sat outside in the non-smoking alfresco dining area with a full view of Raffles Hotel's majestic architecture, sipping hot chocolate, talking and watching the world (rain and people) go by. The Slog Reviews: 9/10 for the hot chocolate - it was really warm, sweet and frothy. And bitter at the end bits which is a sign apparently, of a good quality chocolate drink. Best antidote for a rainy day.
Because Australia is famous for its pies, we decided to order the first pie on the pie list (I forgot the name) which was big enough for 2 pp to split. The Slog Reviews: 6/10. Would not recommend this pie to those who do not like vegetables or fish. The fish baked in the pie - sea bass - tasted very fresh but very fishy - and I have to say the chunks of fish were far from plentiful, making this pie a very over priced item indeed (it was more than 20 bucks I recall).
In any case, if I don't go back to Double Bay for its food any time soon, I'll certainly remember it as the place where I was struck by my friend's willing expenditure of his precious time, money and brain cells just to make me a rainy lousy day just that bit less gloomy for me. He impresses me - what good is all this talk about caring, or even loving if there is no effort shown indeed? And worse, what is the point of sweet words when one directs/uses one's effort and time to do things that do not build the relationship that one claims matters?
So, if you want to be where I was when I had all these mind-numbing relevations or just want some pick me up hot chocolate, you need to make your way to 252 North Bridge Road #01-22A Raffles City Shopping Centre. The telephone number is 65-6334 6530
Tuesday, January 04, 2011
Meet the Parents: Little Fockers (2010) movie
The next day, we were at Jusco with the express purpose of changing monies but we ended up checking the movie timings at the cinema and buying tickets for the comedy. The Slog Reviews: 6.5/10. Jessica Alba appears to be in better shape than ever in her role as a well, temptress. The jokes in this movie are a tad re-cycled - you know, the 2 fingers pointing at the eyes "I'm watching you", "yeah I'm watching you watching me" but if one is out looking for a laugh, there are plenty to be had in the movie. Slap stick verbal humor mostly - think "Fockerised" and "Godfocker" but the rap during the credits is worth staying for. My humble opinion is that this movie should be watched on DVD rather than on the big screen since there is nothing remarkable about the movie or effects.