Xiao Long Bao at Paradise Dynasty

It is weird that I have eaten more Xiao Long Bao when I was in the Philippines compared when I arrived here. Believe it or not, earlier was my first time here. There are scattered Din Tai Fung at major malls but I just didn’t care about going in. Maybe, I got used into dining this favorite dimsum when I was still with Rui.

Earlier, Vange and I went to Paradigm Mall at Kelana Jaya. Paradise Dynasty is offering The 8 Legends of Xiao Long Bao. We didn’t order it, why? Because we knew that we would be fighting for the assorted colors/flavors. Ergo, we ordered the original. Besides, I knew it would never disappoint us.

Xiao Long Bao

We just couldn’t believe we ordered too much. From the picture below, I even forgot to take a picture of the Sweet and Sour Pork. Hahaha. In order are Fried Noodles, Sliced Pork in Signature Pork Bone Soup and Scallops with Scrambled Eggs.

Noodles, Soup and Scallops

And guess what? We ordered some more! A bunch of dimsum buns, both cooked steamed and fried. Glutton it was!

Dimsum Buns

By the way, some of the food crew do not speak English. So you have to be patient. They have an awesome ambiance decorated with a big buddha at the middle of the dining area and a flowing water the runs from the statue to the front of the restaurant. The area is softly lit with tungsten pin lights which is somewhat irritating especially when they’re overcrowded across the ceiling. Other than that, the budget per person is about 30 to 40 Ringgits. We just had to pay more than 50 each because we ordered too much.

Gluttons at Paradise Dynasty

Oh yes, we ended bringing the half of what we ordered home. Yes, half of what we ordered were leftovers. LOL. Maybe next time, we will go for the assorted flavors.

Malones Irish Restaurant & Bar Pavilion KL

Last Tuesday, I went to Pavilion KL on my wee hours of my afternoon (as I work during the night) to have an Irish pub experience in the middle of busy streets of Bukit Bintang in Kuala Lumpur. I usually pass by the restaurant and I did not even notice that most of the waitresses are Filipinos. So, apart from the relaxing ambience that you felt like it was a Friday afternoon, I felt at ease that my fellow friends from my motherland were there to serve us.

Malones Pavilion

It has a small pool where you can play while drinking. This little thing actually provides a very relaxing ambience from the usual office environment since most of the offices near the Pavilion are just a few steps away.

Pool

So let us start from the appetizer.

Deep Fried Camembert with Cranberry Sauce

Golden fried breaded Camembert cheese served with greens and cranberry sauce. Me, as a nomad in eating, at first, I thought it was cooked with mozarella cheese inside. But I was wrong. It is as tasty as the Italian cheeses but this one is chewy. The Deep Fried Camembert with Cranberry Sauce retails at RM 20.90.

Irish Sausages on Colcannon and Guinness Onion Gravy

Grilled beef, chicken and lamb Provencal sausages served with Guinness onion gravy and colcannon (cabbage and spring onion mash). Your usual sausages but on this plate, it comes in three varities – beef, chicken and lamb. You can even ask to change the meat source if you do not prefer to eat beef or the other, from your friendly kitchen staff. Irish Sausages on Colcannon and Guinness Onion Gravy retails at RM 31.90.

Irish Seafood Pasta

Prawns, clams and dory cubes tossed with extra virgin olive oil, garlic, white wine and chili flakes. I am not really into seafood pasta because usually it is either too oily or too salty but the chef has a sensitive taste and he got the right saltiness. Is it me or my low-sodium diet that caught my heart on this dish. The Irish Seafood Pasta retails at RM 27.90.

Galway’s Cod and Clam

Baked cod fillet, white wine simmered clams and beef bacon. Served with colcannon (mashed potatoes with cabbage and spring onions). Always, when I do food review, a day before, I would need to visit my ortho for to tighten my braces and this was an answer to my prayer! The fish and mashed potato were soft enough to tickle your taste buds without chewing too much. Galway’s Cod and Clam retails at RM 47.90.

Gaelic Beef Steak

Mustard Baked Chicken

Seared 280g sirloin steak served with fries, peas and creamy mushrooms. There are two options for the garlic steak house specialty since of the publishers do not eat beef. Garlic and mushroom sauce have never disappointed me. Though it is the typical taste you would experience from most restaurants, still, this classic has always been a safe choice if you are not sure what to eat. The Beef Garlic Steak retails at RM 50.90.

Guinness Beef Stew

Seared beef cubes stewed in Guinness and root vegetables for 4 hours. Served with slices of Tuscan bread. I remember when Kaizer prepared penne pasta simmered in beer and this tastes like this one. I would imagine that the beer helped to make the beef meat more tender and sweeter with a kick of Guinness. Guinness Beef Stew retails at RM 30.90.

Chef Felix Siew and Regional Director Andy Chin

To date, Malones has 5 outlets at Suria KLCC, Sooka Sentral, Pavilion KL, The Curve and their recently launched outlet at Jaya One. Also, the Jaya One branch serves pork specialty dishes while the rest of the outlets have a pork-free menu.

The Unlimited Flavours of The Ocean (Part I)

Apart from the normal choice of menu that The Apartment Restaurant and Bar offers, this April, they are featuring Chef Rafizi Shariff’s greatest passion in culinary, seafood. The Chef Series is The Apartment’s latest promotional menu that offers the culinary flair specially created to cater to guests seeking a tantalizing gourmet experience.

Lounge

With the modern spacious loft ambiance of the restaurant, it is nice to dine here with your partner especially that even during the noon, the place is filled with warm lights and you get the feeling of dining in a high-rise apartment away from your home.

The Unlimited Flavous of the Ocean (Part I)

The Unlimited Flavours of the Ocean (Part I) as themed for these new choice of menu, you can get a 4-course meal which includes the amuse bouche, appetizer, main and dessert at RM 79.90++. Also, with every purchase of the set meal, you can also a glass of Frontera Chardonnay wine at RM 15++ or a bottle for RM 75++. If you want to try just a few from the selection, the price ranges from RM 11.90++ to RM 39.90++ as a la carte.

So let us start from the appetizer down to the dessert.

Amuse Bouche Oyster Shot

Fresh oyster with lime and mango shot. RM 11.90. I am not a big fan of clams and oyster. But the way how the mango and lime killed the odor of the fresh oyster rocked this shot! Maybe next time, I will pour it into my mouth rather than a finesse-etiquette use of fork.

Seafood and Tomato

Slow braised seafood and fresh tomato soup. RM 16.90. With freshly squeezed tomato and herbs, this is a nice appetizer. Not the usual salty soup you will find.

Scallops

Pan seared scallops, green peas puree and fried sweet potato chips. RM 23.90. It was my first time to taste a fried sweet potato and it was nice. The fish was fried perfectly, oh wait, it was pan seared 🙂

King Prawns

Sautéed prawns, Saffron butter rice and young mango salad. RM 37.90. I guess the cost of the shrimp tossed this dish a bit far from your usual budget. Prawns are nice but I am more into protein meat.

Red Snapper

Pan fried red snapper with couscous and lemon butter. RM 39.90. This looks like a replica of sea creature on a sand. The couscous was a mimic of white sand, the leaves are from the sea weeds and the chicken-tasting red snapper in lemon butter sauce was great! This was my favorite!

Stuffed Squid

Baked squid stuffed with herbs rice, served with okra and seafood gumbo. RM 25.90. Did I say that one of two kinds of vegetables I do not eat is okra? Lady fingers have its own way of producing a slimy liquid which engrosses my taste buds. But even the okra was part of the dish or for me, being part of the plating, the squid stuffing was done nicely. It looks like it is the squid itself but with added carbs from the rice and herbs.

Brulee

Rich custard base topped with a hard layer of burn caramel. RM 13.90. Recommended serving is for two or I guess I have just been avoiding myself with too much sugar and fat. But I highly suggested this to be part of their main menu. Not that it is part of the seafood dish launch but the creme wasn’t too sweet nor bland, it was just enough. The added vanilla ice cream on top, though adding more calories to it, compliments the mild creamy and sweet taste of the creme brulee.

Buah Melaka

Palm sugar dumpling served with coconut ice cream. RM 12.90. This interests me because this is a local cuisine. I was hesistant to taste it because of the palm sugar, not that it was obviously sweet, but I just had my orthodontic braces adjusted yesterday and when I poked it with a fork, it was kind of hard. But nevertheless, the buah was very nice, very Malay in food profile. Much more when they added the coconut ice cream.

For more info on their branches, visit their website, http://www.atheapartment.com. The menu is available 11 AM onwards at KLCC and 6PM onwards at The Curve. Below are shots taken inside the restaurant and bar of The Apartment at The Curve.

Eriz's Driveway Cafe Bar and Resto

Every Tuesday, after Laqui’s Body Jam class at Fitness First Metro East, my Metro East friends always dine out. Recently, we have been craving for fried and sizzling tofu which we found our way to Eriz’s Driveway Cafe Bar and Resto. This is a pretty small place located at Marquinton Residences; plus, they have very friendly staff.

Driveway Cafe

They offer cheap food from -silogs, pasta, Filipino dish, entrees and salads. They also offer local beers and cocktails whenever you feel like loading some alcohol before going to sleep. The budget for food is 80 pesos to 150.

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I used to order sizzling tofu until recently they were very open to new suggestions that they now offer just fried tokwa 😀

So if you’re lost somewhere in Sto. Niño, Marikina City, they can be located at:

Eriz’s Driveway Cafe Bar and Resto
Unit 17, Alicante Towers Marquinton Residences
Toyota Ave., Sto. Niño, Marikina City
http://www.driveway_cafe@yahoo.com
4907372