My last offshore fishing trip of 2012 (18-19 July)

Yes, for the same reason that travelling via plane will not be something that I will be doing for the next few months, I have just hung up my fishing gear for the rest of the year. It is very hard to put aside something that one loves so much (and I've just acquired an ice box from Carrefour the last weekend!) but time and circumstances dictate otherwise. I'm going to miss the sparkling blue of the sea, the wait with the rod in hand, the lapping of the waves....

And of course, the thrill of a great hook-up Anyway I wanted to blog about this trip not only because it is the last fishing trip for me this year but also because of a very unusual hook-up I had this trip.

Now you might be thinking - a greasy grouper! What's the big deal? But let me tell ya, I caught this table-sized grouper on sabiki size 8 hooks! Here's the evidence below, you can see the sabiki rig and my friend's Size 12 sandal next to the grouper (to give an indication of its size). The grouper was chasing the smaller fishes that usually takes the sabiki bait and in biting its prey, it got hooked too! From the two other hooks stuck in its body, it might have tried to escape but well, with 3 sabiki hooks in it, its day of reckoning has come.

Now, this trip was a far cry from the previous trip on this boatman's boat where we had a massive haul. I guess I should have known when he said that it was sotong season but I didn't expect that the bottom fishing would be so bad with the abundance of sotong eating the prawns. The school of tenggiri which we had hunted 2 months back had dispersed according to the boatman and so back to bottom fishing we went.

Now, I have to confess that although a squid has absolutely no fight when it is caught, I still enjoy that tug on the my jig when I am casting and retrieving, casting and retrieving. The pull by the sotong on the jig never fails to take me my surprise as I am retrieving line and then it's come to Mama time as I reel in the sorry greedy squid.

We caught a sackload of squids this trip - I think I caught about 11 pieces altogether on the first day and another 10 pieces on the second day. It would have been great if I ate sotong but that's the one seafood that I absolutely detest!

Thankfully, the other anglers on board managed to catch other fishes such as a large chermin. We saw lots of leather jackets at the surface nibbling away at our baits on the sabiki but no matter which size sabiki hooks we used, we failed to hook up the leather jackets. It was frustrating to watch them take the bait and even follow it all the way up close to the surface. The boatman said it was because their mouths were too hard for us to set hook.

We had dinner at a different restaurant this fishing trip instead of our usual Restaurant Rompin Bahru. The reason is of course the proximity of this new restaurant to the jetty and our chalet. The boatman and 1 other angler caught a red grouper which we cooked with the chermin. And of course lots of deep fried squid.

This was our haul to be split from the two days of fishing after us having eaten most of the good fishes over 2 dinners. The very red fish on the right was what I had caught on sabiki too. It's in my freezer now waiting to be cooked by yours truly! And yeah, we pretty much wiped out the ang kor li clan (left of picture).

I am proud to say I caught the most of the ang kor li on board the boat - not so much by luck but by pure diligence. When we hit the ang kor li spot, I changed to a sabiki rig (large size hooks) and put prawn heads/tails on the hooks before lowering the same to the bottom and just waiting. Always the pull, the ugly bend of the rod, and then me reeling it to bring up at least 2 ang kor li at a time. Then the reaching for the pliers to shake off the fishes into a pail, and then setting my rig again before lowering it to catch more.

My friend used some of my ang kor li to go after Tenggiri/Sail Fish or I would have more to show for the trip. The other angler holding the chermin also went after bigger game but someone has got to go after the smaller fishes and ang kor li makes for great eating! My mum fried some of the ang kor lis with tumeric powder and it was all just delicious!

Dim Sum Buffet at Chynna Hilton Hotel at KL Sentral

During our weekend jaunt up to KL last weekend, we decided to abandon our reservation at Jogoya because we had a late checkout (3.30pm) from the hotel and we had to catch the 5pm bus (which was just next to the hotel) to the airport.

After some last minute searches on the net, we found out that one of the top 5 Chinese restaurants in KL was located about 20+ floors down from our room - Chynna. I made reservations for 12noon but we were too stuffed from the breakfast buffet that we ended up going down at 1pm instead.

The decor of the restaurant was definitely Chinese-style with all the lanterns but far from being gaudy, the decor was tastefully done up without being overdone (too "cheena"). For the dim sum buffet, one could either have the buffet with 1 bowl of seafood soup at RM55++ or buffet with 1 bowl of sliced abalone soup at RM98++.

After we were seated and had made our selection from the menu, a waiter dressed in traditional Chinese Manchu Garb came over to our table and poured us a cup of welcome tea from this tea pot with an extremely long spout. I think only a few Chinese restaurants have that! Anyway, other than that one cup of welcome tea, drinks were not part of the buffet.

We placed our order for the dim sum items about 1pm and it took the restaurant 15 mins before serving the first item - fried Thai fish cakes which was very good. We finished the dish in about 2 mins and waited for the next dish which took another 5 mins to come. There was some sort of a cooking/steaming area at the side of the restaurant but it didn't seem like anyone was manning the counter at all. So we got a tad worried about how long it would take for all the rest of the items (this is a buffet, mind!) to be served given that we had to check out at 3.30pm.

After asking the waitress to hurry with our orders, the next dish was finally served - char siew baos. Warm and soft fluffy buns with sweet juicy fillings. Very good stuff.

My CEB ordered the porridge which I didn't have any of but he said it was decent. I on the other hand ordered siew mais which looked rather unappetizing but was in fact done very well. The pork was tender and wet, and when poked with my fork, fell apart in nice bite-sized pieces.

As you can see from the picture below, we also had beef balls, har gaos (prawn dumplings), and rice rolls with scallops. Every item except the rice rolls (which was too plain and tasteless) is worth a try!

I had a second order of the scallops dumplings (pic on the right) and another dim sum item which looks like stuffed balls of some sort - I can't really recall. My CEB had a second order of the Thai fried pan cakes. We also had other dim sum items in between but I can't recall what they are because I was too busy eating to take more pictures.

We ended with dessert - one gets to choose one dessert from a choice of 4 desserts on the menu. I ordered ice cream with red bean and this dish gets a huge thumbs down from me. Not because this is Chynna and I expected the dessert to be of a certain quality but because on its own, the dessert tasted awful - the red bean was tasteless and watery and of course, a heap of flavored ice mixed in did nothing for the dish at all.

Before we left the hotel, my CEB bought mooncakes from Chynna for his mama-in-law. A box of 4 mooncakes cost about RM80 for 2 snow skin mooncakes and 2 baked mooncakes.

The Slog Reviews: 8/10. While the large majority of the dim sum items at Chynna are definitely palate-pleasing, Chynna would do better if the service was much faster (there were only a few tables occupied at that hour and they were still so slow!) and if the quality of the desserts on the buffet menu was improved. Still, I would definitely visit Chynna if in KL and the urge for dim sum strikes me. Will be back.

Lago Restaurant at Boat Quay

So, we had 3 places reserved for my birthday dinner, thanks to my generous CEB who had offered to let me celebrate at any place I wanted.

Well, I wasn't in the mood for miniscule portions so I cancelled our reservation at Forlino in the afternoon. Red meat also didn't tickle my appetite the least so I decided to go to the place with the "Best Pepper Crab" according to my sister. I figured that given her lifestyle (fine-dining on the regular), we couldn't go very far wrong.

So, I called Lago to confirm the reservation I made 1 week ago and what do you know, they didn't have a record of it. No matter, they assured me that a table for 2 would not be a problem.

We made the mistake of parking at UOB which was all the way to the other end of Boat Quay. Lago is nearer the South Bridge Road of Boat Quay. The boss/manager was an aunty with a sling pouch across her body and she was a jolly friendly soul who gave us drinks (soft drinks) on the house when she heard it was my birthday. And that's where the good part ends.

So, the food right? She recommended kangkong which was the first dish to be served. I can find no fault with the cooking but it certainly was far from lip-smacking delicious. It was severely overpriced at SGD12 given the lack of quantity!

Even worse was the sambal stingray. It certainly tasted fresh but I think the restaurant has a darn lousy cook. Nevermind the size - smaller than 2 of your palms joined together - but the method of cooking was far below average. The fish was fresh but not juicy, just bland...and slices of onion heaped on top with some lemon slices did nothing for the dish. IT sucked and it cost SGD22.

Now, we came here for the crab and let me tell you, although the crab was huge (2kg right?), it was crap. It took forever to come which led my CEB to wonder if they had run out of crabs and had to go get one from another restaurant. After he took a couple of bites, he had his answer: It was probably defrosted. I am not so sure - it seemed to me that the crab was severely overcooked - barbequed to the point where the meat was all tough and tasteless instead of succulent and fleshy. It was truly again to me, an absolute horrific waste of SGD100 eating this dish. We would have done so much better at Jumbo or No Signboard.

The only thing good about the restaurant was of course, the view we had dining facing Fullerton Hotel where there was a local band playing next to the hotel. Then again, this view could be had from anywhere along the river on this side. And not at such a steep cost. The total bill for the 3 dishes above came up to over SGD150 (There is no GST payable but there is service charge of 10%)

The Slog Reviews: 1/10. The 1 point is for the service by the Aunty. This place, it deserves the one star it got on Hungry Go Where (Click here). I don't blame the (quality of the)food so much as the cook(s) who display an appalling lack of skills for a restaurant where so many tourists frequent by pure bad luck. I am not returning to this place. Ever.

Executive Lounge at Hilton at Petaling Jaya after the renovation

The last time I stayed in Hilton Petaling Jaya was May 2012 and the executive lounge was still undergoing renovation. Then, I had been given a standard room which had not been renovated and I found a painter in the toilet when I opened the door. Of course, I went back to the reception and refused absolutely to stay 4 nights in that room, especially with my Hilton Gold membership. And what do you know, where they had previously insisted that there were no renovated rooms available, I was given a renovated room on the 4th floor.

This time, I asked for a free upgrade to an executive room (being a Hilton Gold Member) and I was told that there were no rooms available. I recognized the manager and told him that the service at his hotel was a lot worse than that of Hilton at KL Sentral and DoubleTree where I would always get upgraded to a executive room. He promised that he would upgrade my room the next stay. We shall see. I will definitely be coming back to call on that promise! :D

Anyway, I was given a room on the 20th floor and there was a welcome platter all set out on the table. I would have been even more pleased if they had got the name right.

In any case, here is a picture of the room. The view from the room's window is nothing to crow about but this room is definitely larger than the rooms I had stayed in the past two times (click here for a review of the stay in April 2012).

Another picture of the room taken from the window - it's pretty modern in decor with the safe and robes tucked away in the beige cupboards. The only feedback I have about the room is the placement of the central light switches at the bedside. Now, if one is going to choose which side of the bed to sleep if one is alone, one would naturally sleep near the bedside telephone where the wake up call will come. Surely it would make sense to place the master light switch there so one can conveniently switch off the lights in the room to sleep but no, the switch is on the other side of the bed.

Anyway, given that this was a work trip, I didn't spend much time in the room. I was curious to see the lounge though which had been moved to the 21st floor so right after I checked in, I headed up just in time for the evening cocktail at 6pm.

As you would be able to tell from the pictures above and below, the new lounge is sprawling and tastefully decorated. Very very nice, especially if you consider what the old one looked like. There are plenty of different sorts of sitting arrangements - settees like the one I had, high seats by the window overlooking the highway and normal round table seats.

But of course, the true measure of a lounge is the quality of food they serve, no? So off I headed to the buffet table where there were 4 types of hot plate dishes and 1 pot of mushroom soup.

Oh, and this was the spread of non-hot cocktail food available ranging from fruits to sushi rolls to various types of pastries. Very aesthetically presented with variety and quality. Definitely a big thumbs up! I would dare say that the spread is on par with that of its sister hotel, Hilton at KL Sentral where I just came back from tonight!

But let's talk more about the hot food selection at the executive lounge of Petaling Jaya which deserves a picture on its own - the mushroom soup was done to warm soupy perfection and the prawns and salmon dishes were very well presented in dainty portions with just the right amount of garnishing to render them appealing.

However, what blew me and my colleague (and our guests) away was the smoked duck. The meat was tender, tasty and came with a delicious sweet sauce that instead of detracting from the taste of the duck, somehow enhanced it so that the juices from the smoked duck and the sauce filled one's mouth with orgasmic delight. I swear I closed my eyes with each bite, and I had more than 6 bites of duck altogether.

The Slog Reviews: 7.5/10. Hilton PJ's lounge definitely deserves a visit. It would be good though if they had takeaway boxes/doggy bags because I was rushing to work in the morning (about 7.15am) and had requested to take away some croissants (they had large delicious chocolate ones - I ate one while waiting to check out at the lounge) but was told the executive lounge does not allow one to take food away which is utter rubbish since I am entitled to breakfast. The restaurant at the lobby level allowed me to take away some croissants the day before when I was likewise rushing to go to work.

While Hilton PJ is definitely a much better hotel after all the renovations, it still has some way to go in treating its hotel guests, especially its Hilton Gold members. It would do well to learn from its sister hotels like Double Tree and Hilton KL which does a far better job overall.

Hyatt Hotel at Kota Kinabalu and its Oxtail Assam Pedas

There was an airfare promo some months back and I'd booked a short weekend getaway to KK for us on the first weekend of August.

I'm really glad for it because this break from the stress factors of the past month has recharged our marriage even though (or maybe because!) we had a most unpleasant experience together on our first night at Hyatt Hotel.

We reached the hotel about 9pm after a RM30 airport ride from the hotel and the check-in was fuss-free at that hour. Unfortunately, our request for a complimentary upgrade to a seaview room was denied (though I had the Gold card) and this was the view from our room in the morning. I'd stayed in a seaview room before at the Hyatt and the view was awesome (click here) so I'll say that if you had to choose, just pay that little bit extra for the seaview room.It's worth it. The mountain/city view is hideous.

We had an hour's complimentary internet access (WIFI as well as wired) which came in quite useful. As the hotel's restaurant only served buffet dinner till 10pm, we decided to order room service for the hotel's famous oxtail assam pedas. We were delighted to find out when placing our order that there is no tray charge and the cost of the hotel's famous Oxtail Assam Pedas for room service is just RM35 (with taxes and svc charge it works out to RM40) compared to the cost of the dish at the restaurant which is RM42 (without tax and svc charge).

My CEB went to the shopping mall next door to see if the shops were still open and when he returned, dinner was served literally. The meals came with rice and a glass of ice-cold water.

Now, make no mistake about it - the oxtail assam pedas is delicious. No two ways about that. There is lots of succulent tender meat cooked to tasty perfection and the sauce is thick and flavorful without being too spicy or too "coconuty".

We enjoyed our meal very much and retired to bed shortly after....only to be awoken up by our tummies less than an hour later! Everything exploded out of my tummy with a huge gush the first time I rushed to the toilet bowl. As I sat on the bowl, my CEB called out to me that his tummy was not feeling too good and he needed the bowl. So I got off and he got on. I was tired from being awake the entire day and fell asleep without waiting for him to be done, only to be awoken up two more times in the next two hours by my rebelling stomach. Liquid from the wrong place! It was awful!

At 7am, I asked my CEB to call the hotel to ask for charcoal pills as my stomach felt shaky and the hotel suggested that we go to the clinic instead. Now, I was exhausted from all the trips to the toilet and definitely was not happy to get out of bed at 7am on a holiday to go to a clinic. So I decided to go back to rest and hope for the best. My CEB and I both fell asleep till 11am when he woke me up.

The first thing I did was call the guest services to complain. They had the assistant manager call me back . He explained that it was the hotel's policy not to dispense medicine and urged us to go to the clinic. I did not see the point of so doing since everything had been purged during the numerous trips to the toilet. He told me that this was the first time any hotel guests had complained about their famous oxtail assam pedas giving them diarrhoea. I told him that this was the first time I had ordered room service that I had such a stomach upset - not even room service in a South Africa hotel had given me an experience like I just had!

I even had to tell him specifically that I was not going to pay for the food that had given us diarrhoea. He did not offer to take it off the bill. And he definitely did not offer to compensate us in anyway to make us feel better. If this is all the Hyatt can offer, and to its Gold member, then I'm definitely glad that we have chosen to maintain our Hilton Gold and SPG Gold memberships instead.

PS: I gave Hyatt feedback by referring this post to them and what do you know? They took almost a week to respond and all the manager said was that they would take the cost of the meal off my hotel bill, something which they had already done. There is absolutely no way I'm going to support the Hyatt group of hotels ever.