Recently, we celebrated our 15th wedding anniversary. Usually, I would be able to arrange a short staycation somewhere, but for 2025, our date fell in the middle of the week. It was difficult to apply for leave as it was also the school holidays. So, the competition for annual leave is fierce.
The best I could come up with is a special dinner. With the kids.
I made a reservation at Wagyu Melaka, located at Kota Laksamana. We can redeem a wagyu stick for our special occasion. Since we were not big eaters, we ordered the RM150 family set meal and a kids’ meal for our daughter. The food was astonishingly good. The taste of the meat came through with minimal flavouring. Just the simple salt and pepper.
Since Mr Husband has already gifted me with an Umrah trip (he paid at least 90% of it), the least I could get him was this gadget I found online. It could translate a foreign language in real-time. I have no idea if it works, but surely it counts for something. Ha ha ha.
The moment it was opened, the kids and I briskly walked over to try it out. Nujum Cafe promoted itself as a place that serves Western cuisine, and I was craving a huge chunk of meat. I would say that the price range is about Medium. It is not as pricey as the high end places like Chef Wan. Nor is it priced like the regular family bistro like Mr SteakHouse.
On our first visit there, I ordered a rib-eye. My kids had the familiar spaghetti and macaroni. We shared a Tiramisu Crepe and 2 bottled sodas from Haus Boom. It tasted like those Cola candies. My steak was just shy of RM100, and my kids’ dishes were roughly in mid RM20s.
The rib-eye was prepared quite well. It was not tough to chew.
Hence, during my subsequent visit there with my husband, I ordered a Sirloin steak. However, that second time around, the meat did not taste as good. Maybe it was a different chef. The tiramisu crepe still tasted fabulous, but I really hoped that they would remove the doily paper underneath the crepe.
Overall, Nujum Cafe provides good food. The atmosphere is also Instagrammable, which is a must nowadays. I look forward to many more meals afterwards.
People say life starts at 40 and that every habit that you’ve moulded yourself into will become your way of life. Well, he is a health enthusiast at the moment. He has his morning jog before 6am and another one in the evening after coming back from work. Over the weekend, he is in his running shoes 3 times a day. I guess that means he is off to a good start at 40.
Since his birthday falls on a weekday this year, a staycation is not an option. Hence, I racked my brain to figure out what is best to be done for a milestone birthday. Since he seems to like Pizza Hut a lot, I thought of spending some money on really good pizza. Something fancy like wagyu. However, there were not many recommendations I could read about. Until I came across ‘pizza parang’ on Instagram. It’s a family-friendly place that serves Western dishes and, most importantly, delicious hand-tossed pizza.
Easy parking. Slight walk up the hill to the restaurant.
Grass Stream Kitchen (GSK)
GSK is located at Paya Rumput and opens at 6pm. I made it clear to Mr Husband that we are to leave early from home and beat the office traffic so that we could reach the place before the crowd comes. Indeed, we did.
We ordered a meaty pizza (RM60), a tiramisu (RM15), a mocktail (RM10) and sirap bandung (RM5). The server would cut the pizza in style with his parang once it is ready. Not bad for a 40-year-old party show. No clowns or fire-eating stunt, just pizza cutting. Personally, I would go there again and try other versions of the pizza because the crust was crunchy and nice, whereas the toppings were full and superb. The ambience is nice too. It does not open every day, thus, one should check their site first.
Huge pizza portion
Iced water is available for free. Nice to know that they have healthy choices
ordered the mocktail – a mix of coke and grenadine syrup
Tiramisu – love it
Can also easily tapau our own food as packaging is provided. Even the pizzas are served on paper plates that are easily disposed off.
I muted the sound cause I was too giggly
As for his birthday gift, I got him a Minecraft Limited Edition wallet. It was pretty sleek. I would use it if I were a man. I bought it from Fossil at Sunway Putra Mall during my convocation weekend. The sales rep was a very nice young man who helped me decide what to buy. The wallet was worth at least 5 times more than the birthday dinner. I hope he will treasure it well.
Comes in a nice metal box and a fabric casing
There was also a mini Minecraft indulgence cake I bought from Zowacakes. The size was just enough for me to cut out a few portions for his nieces, who love cakes. I still prefer the cakes from the usual Italy Cake House. Ha ha.
The cake was RM45. Ferrero bouquet RM35. All for love!
Celebrating Mother’s Day is a rare occasion on my husband’s side of the family. I honestly do not recall any extravagant gesture for the past few years to mark that day. I do, however, remember that we frequently celebrated it when my mom was still alive. I’m not sure how it will be once my dad marries Tante. The dynamics would feel quite awkward. Maybe we would be more enthusiastic about Father’s Day.
Ames Hotel has a Hi-Tea special for Mother’s Day. I do not know how much it cost, but the food selection was great! I honestly loved it. I had several helpings of the sate and roasted lamb. My carbs were the nasi goreng kimchi, potatoes and penne pasta. The Laksa Nyonya was superb, and the dessert cakes were luscious. I had plenty of iced water to down the dishes and also enjoyed a cup of cappuccino.
My plate
Towards the end, I received a flower and a chocolate cake. I am not sure if it was free from the hotel or if it was something ordered by my husband. A big thank you anyway to our sponsor, who is my husband, who paid for the buffet and the Ames Hotel for the great hospitality.
I thought my husband was joking when he said we were going to have Sahur at a hotel. Turns out he wasn’t. Thus, the usual Speedy Gonzales packing method that I despise. I had no time to plan my OOTD and dumped whatever I thought was necessary in the suitcase for our staycation.
Ee couldn’t join us as it was not during his PB weekend. Hence, it was just the 3 of us being enthusiastic about the experience. Thankfully, Anim could wake up for sahur without any tantrum. In fact, she really enjoyed the food choices. As usual, the other Malaysians were in their modest pyjamas, kain pelikat and slipper jamban. In other words, guests made themselves so comfortable eating Sahur at Swiss Garden.
The price is reasonable for the type of food offered. I wish I had taken more pictures. InsyaAllah, we would opt for a similar Sahur experience next year instead of a packed Iftar buffet at hotels. Sahur seems calmer and more appealing to introverts like myself.
Minci Moss 