Category Archives: Food and Drinks

The long weekend in Kuching for a wedding

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I was in Kuching over the Malaysia Day weekend. I had a wedding invitation to fulfil. I flew there with Malaysia Airlines. My initial scheduled flights were canceled twice and I almost lost hope of going there. Thankfully, on the day itself, nothing sinister happened and I arrived in KCH safely.

I booked a room at the Grand Margherita Hotel this time.

Once I landed, I immediately walked over to the nearest Bing cafe to get myself a chicken panini. It is my comfort food whenever I am in KCH. As I was too full afterwards, I decided to just stay in and order room service. The rib-eye steak I ordered was disappointing. That will be another post.

The following day, I went for a stroll at The Waterfront. I walked to the end of Carpenter Street and checked out the waterfront mall as well. I bought some T-shirts for my little family and was honestly undecided on whether I should have lunch or wait for my brother from KL to arrive and eat with him. I ended up walking further towards the Borneo Cultural Museum and spent my afternoon there.

Borneo Cultural Museum

I loved the museum. The layout is like Muzium Negara but it showcased more of Sarawak’s history. I enjoyed reading and listening to the explanations about the tribes and their uniqueness. I couldn’t help thinking that if James Brooke never set foot in Sarawak, we’d probably still be fighting among each other for space and power. Somehow Brooke brought in order to the chaos and harnessed the waging spirit to fight into friendly sports like the Regatta we see today.

IG AIS KACANG, Padungan

Once my brother landed and checked himself into Merritin Hotel, we walked along the same lane and came here. They have another nearby branch at Jalan Gambier. I was looking forward to trying their mi belacan and sotong kangkung but they don’t have that in that branch. So we settled for their nasi lemak ayam, Laksa Sarawak, long fries and gula apong ice cream.

The Waterfront and Darul Hana Bridge

Later at night, we walked to the waterfront for photos and went up the Darul Hana bridge. If only they have a food court with more options towards the other end of the bridge in the near future. There was a lantern parade that night and the city was so lively. I felt so energetic during the walk. I liked that this beautiful place is open to the public for FREE. At least, families can come here for low-cost entertainment with their kids.

We had dinner at a halal restaurant. It took ages for the owner to fry our nasi pattaya and daging. Thankfully, it was digestible as sometimes the Sarawak version of these semenanjung dishes can taste awkward.

The Dead Malls

Once my brother checked out from his hotel the next day, I thought we’d go check out the mall. My sister said Riverside Majestic Mall was already dead so we didn’t go there. Turns out Tun Jugah Mall and Sarawak Plaza Mall are equally dead. I suppose the curse of shopping malls set up beside hotels is true after all. So, if say you need to go to a proper mall, my best bets are The Spring or Vivacity. We only had fast food for lunch.

We did get Sam’s ice cream though. The soft serve was OK but I felt Mokti’s gula apong flavour is more intense.

Top Spot

This famous seafood spot was just a 5-minute walk from my hotel. We had our family dinner there. Sadly, Midin was out of stock. But the other dishes that we ordered were, of course, delicious; the Egg Oyster, curry ambal, udang nestum, salted egg crabs, sweet sour fish, crab corn soup, Kerang kicap

I had an early night after devouring all that food. The wedding was happening the following day and I need to get up early.

The Wedding Reception

The event started off early at 830am. Only close family members gather for the akad nikah ceremony. Once that was over, other guests began to come to the hall by 10am for the main wedding reception. It was a short and sweet event, the food portion was adequate and everyone got a photo with the couple.

Our stay at Hotel Rosa Passadena, Brinchang

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This is probably one of those older hotels in Cameron Highland. My good take on this hotel is that it is within walking distance of Big Red Strawberry Farm, Centrum Mall and lots of eateries at the nearby shop lots. My idea of walking distance is less than 20 minutes walk. There’s even a huge Mr DIY beside the hotel in case you forgot to bring your toothpaste. Like we did!

Mr Husband booked a triple bedroom that comes with a bathtub. He paid more than RM200 per night. Like other hotels in CH, there is no AC unit in the rooms. However, this hotel was considerate enough to provide a little fan. Although the cold atmosphere would be sufficient and comfortable to sleep in at night, the room needs ventilation during the day. We do not sleep with the windows open at night because of mosquitos despite there being a netting on the window frame. Our net had a hole big enough for mozzies to enter. Each room has a WIFI connection, a mini fridge that is not working and a TV unit. Complimentary beverages and bottled water are provided daily. Housekeeping services also replenish empty shower foam and shampoo bottles.

There is no parking space at this hotel but there are ample public ones outside the hotel. The coupons can be purchased at the hotel reception. They have room service but we didn’t require any.

The breakfast spread was commendable for this classic hotel. I particularly enjoyed the sambal for the nasi lemak. I also liked that they fry their eggs in advance. Normal fried eggs for our mains. No such thing as having to wait for the cook to prepare an omelette.

On the first night, we had dinner at the nearby Tomyam restaurant. We had the tomyam, egg bistik, sotong tepung and rice. Of course, it was delicious. Pernah ke kedai tomyam tak sedap?

The following night, we had Western food at Pizzarella Misokimchi. The pizza had a thin crust and our toppings were tomato cheese and Hawaiian chicken. Haneem chose chips. The pizza was not so bad. I actually loved it.

We didn’t do much at CH this time. It was more of a visit to go somewhere with a cool temperature and have strawberries. I will write about our mini-activities later.

Cafe Chef Wan, The Shore

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The price range for most of their meals is between RM20 to RM40. Loved the atmosphere and the service.

The initial plan was to eat Mi Tarik. However, the branch near The Shore was closed. So, the visit to Cafe Chef Wan was an unprecedented move. I do not know whether to laugh or feel blessed by the twist of fate. I don’t think Mr Husband had this cafe in mind for dinner. Interestingly, I did experience a strong gut feeling that I would be having my meal there, only that I had no idea that this cafe wasn’t the first choice.

As usual, I entertained my own thoughts that this would be my birthday dinner celebration. Even though no one actually said that it was. Ha ha.

When I was younger, birthdays meant that we got to eat fast food. This is because I ate home-cooked food most of the time. Nowadays, guiltily, fast food has been incorporated into our daily diet so much so that it’s not special anymore. Hence, to some, celebrations have been brought up a notch by bringing them to fancy restaurants or hotels. Of course, the best birthdays are always the ones when you feel noticed, loved and appreciated.

We ordered a duck pasta dish, spaghetti bolognese, Nyonya Laksa and margarita pizza. It’s good restaurant food although the portions to me, a 4ft10 lady, seem huge. My husband with the better palate rated the spaghetti and pizza as a solid 9 over 10. My daughter scored everything as 100! The pizza could have tasted better if the crust was burnt just a little bit more. I don’t really know how to taste food. I eat for energy and to live for just another day.

I have no idea what the total cost of our meal was. After all, the husband paid for everything. I would say that the prices are ‘atas’ though so be prepared to dine like royalty.

Mee Tarik Sedap Lanzhou, MITC

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Lanzhou, the capital of Gansu province in north-central China, is a fascinating blend of history and modernity. Nestled along the banks of the Yellow River, Lanzhou boasts stunning natural scenery, including the surrounding mountains and the iconic Yellow River. The city is renowned for its delicious hand-pulled noodles, a local speciality enjoyed by residents and visitors alike. This delicacy has now landed at MITC, Melaka.

I never had mee tarik so I have no other recipe to compare. I am glad that it made a good impression for me to eat as a first-timer. The hand-stretched noodles were delicious. My husband ordered the original beef noodles and a plate of dumplings. I did not put a lot of chilli oil but the dish could still hold up on its own. I shared my meal with my daughter because the portion was huge. The beef was tender and placed in an adequate amount for a bowl of noodles. The dumplings were nicely cooked from its frozen state.

There were a lot of other menus at the restaurant. I would probably try the egg tomato noodles if we were to go there again. You could browse more of the food options and watch reviews on their social media platform. (Facebook/ Instagram)

Celebrating husband’s birthday at Rest Haus, Melaka

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We’ve been to Rest Haus a couple of times because of its good food and general ambience. The restaurant is air-conditioned with calm music playing in the background. My personal favourite dishes are the Salai and the Rib Eye. I was actually hoping to order the latter but now the menu has changed. There is no more rib eye. So I ordered the salmon dish instead. It was equally delicious. My daughter had the macaroni and cheese whilst Mr Husband ordered the chicken grill. He was disappointed that they didn’t list Mac and Cheese as an adult option. Ha ha.

I bought 2 slices of cake from Secret Recipe but we had that at home. I parked my car at Rest Haus but I walked to Secret Recipe so that I could get my steps in. Managed to get 5K in by walking inside Lotus itself. Makes me feel better devouring the cake afterwards.

I bought an Obermain laptop bag for my husband. I made a really quick trip to Freeport Famosa Outlet Park last Friday during lunch hour just to get it. The salesperson was amusingly inaccurate in her sales pitch and product description. She said things like ‘PVC’ instead of ‘PU leather’. Then she was so confident saying a 14-inch laptop fits in a smaller bag I was looking at just because another customer could fit his. I had to measure the bag in front of her and said nicely, “Look, this bag wouldn’t even measure up to 13 inches, how could you say it fits a 14-inch laptop. That customer must have had a smaller laptop”. And yes, I asked her for a ruler and demonstrated it in front of her.

Thankfully I knew what I was aiming for and got a nice one in brown as opposed to a classic black.