Pepper Lunch @ Sunway Pyramid

Few years ago when I was in Singapore, I met up with a friend in Orchard Road. Even before arriving in Singapore, my friend had already told me about this fantastic restaurant that she couldn't wait to bring me to. She kept raving about how awesome the food was and how much she loved it.

Ah well, that place was called Pepper Lunch. When I first heard of the name, I thought to myself - Does this restaurant only serve lunch? Do they add pepper into all the food? What's so special about a place that only serves lunch with pepper? But little did I know that I was in for a surprise. Pepper Lunch is all about food served in a hot plate, and we as customers, get to grill our own food in the hot plate. I could still remember the portion was huge and the food was surprisingly good and tasty. And ever since I came back to Malaysia, I've not forgotten about this place.

Much to my delight, I spotted their outlet in Pavillion KL early this year. But due to time constraint, I never had the chance to visit them until they started opening a few other branches in Klang Valley. Finally, I managed to visit one of their branches opened in Sunway Pyramid.

Before I go on with my review, here's the thing. I had very high expectations for this place, BUT sadly, the experience here was nowhere near the experience that I had in Singapore. Reason? The portion was small yet the price was expensive. Even the presentation of the food was just average. I mean, to charge at such a price, shouldn't you be serving something up to par?

Initially, hubby ordered the Beef Pepper Rice + Bonus Meal, but they took down the wrong order and came with the Chicken Pepper Rice Set + Bonus Meal instead. Being the patient person that he always is, he said it was all right. We took a peek at the dish - it was just a few chunks of chicken pieces served with rice and topped with corns and spring onions. Seriously, they could have done a better job than this. Plus, it looked very different from the illustration in the menu.

Bonus Meal (ice cream) 

Then came my food - Smoking BBQ Chicken served with 7UP (set lunch). Hubby said my dish looked more appealing than his. But for me, it was just a simple hot plate of smoked chicken meat, egg, mashed potatoes, corns and long beans. Nothing much to shout about.

The bill came up to RM40.80.

I hate to say this, but I was kind of disappointed with the experience here and I wondered if this was the same Pepper Lunch as the one in Singapore. If they really want to draw in a huge crowd, they need to work on serving quality food in an appropriate portion at such price.

Pepper Lunch

Add: F1.05, Lv 1, Sunway Pyramid Shopping Mall.





My Elephant @ Section 17, Petaling Jaya (Happy Mansion)

"What's for lunch?? Where to eat?? Which way to go??"

Do you often get questions like these thrown at you whenever it's lunchtime? If you're exactly in the same situation and this is what you face almost everyday, then welcome to the "What's For Lunch" club. This club is open to those who don't want to can't make up their minds or have no idea of what to eat for lunch and hoping that some kind soul would come up with some brilliant suggestions!


So if you're working in PJ and going to Section 17 for lunch is no big deal, then here's an ideal place for you to unwind and enjoy a variety of great Thai food - My Elephant @ Happy Mansion. However, do bear in mind that this place is always packed during lunch hours, so to avoid wasting your time waiting to be seated, be sure to go there early or call them to make reservations.

See, I was so hungry waiting to be seated that even the picture I took became senget!

This place is a hidden gem. It is tucked away at a quiet corner of the flats on ground floor, just behind the famous Chicken Rice Shop and right next to a school called Sekolah Kebangsaan Sri Damai. Do not be deceived by the outlook though, because it may look simple and uninteresting on the outside but on the contrary, you get to experience a totally different and pleasant ambience once you step into the restaurant. Just perfect for a date or birthday celebrations!


Most of the time, it was an impromptu visit, so we had to wait for about 20-25 mins to be seated. Once seated, we started going through their set lunch menu. Basically all sets come with a glass of refreshing pandan drink and a watermelon. The lowest price starts from RM9.90 per set. After visiting them for a couple of times, I must say that they serve, by far, the best green curry chicken! 

 (Ala carte) The curry is thick and rich in flavour...mamamia!!

 (I'm sorry I can't give much description about the green curry, because the taste is just too amazing for words! You have to taste it for yourself to understand my special love for it!)




 Besides the Green Curry Chicken, we ordered a salad dish called Yum Mamuang.

Yum Mamuang is an ala carte dish of green mango salad mixed with assorted seafood and myElephant's secret chilli dressing. You may think that this is just the same as any mango salad dish, but what distinguishes it from the rest is the special chilli dressing. It gives the mango salad a juicier taste that soaks in every bit of the flavours to give you the perfect sweet and sour sensation.



Then, our lunch sets were served.

First on the list was Phad Thai. The Phad Thai itself tasted marvelous, and the unique part was, they actually served sugar with the Pad Thai! This is to enable you to control the level of sweetness as per your desire.

Next was the Phad Grapow Noodles. It is pan-fried holy basil flavoured chicken served with noodles and vegetables. Hmmm, it kind of looked like maggie mee goreng to me, but the basil chicken definitely scored an A for me. Not too sure about the overall taste though but there were no complaints from my colleague , so I'll consider a pass for this dish.

Then came the rice with green curry. At My Elephant, they serve brown rice instead of white rice as a healthier alternative. And as I've mentioned earlier, they serve amazingly lip-smacking green curry, so anything that is eaten with the curry will not go wrong!

If you think that the set lunch is not enough to fulfill your appetite yet you do not wish to order another dish, you can always add on a deep fried chicken whole leg for RM6 per piece.

Brown Rce with Phad Grapow Chicken. This is another dish that's worth mentioning because of its basil flavoured chicken. The chicken was very flavourful and the basil taste was not too empowering. I loved it!

A meal would not be complete without the presence of tom yam at a Thai restaurant! And since tom yam is my favourite dish, I couldn't resist ordering their Tom Yum Noodles. Hmmm... you know, I can't really recall whether this was good or not, but all I can say is that the tom yam soup tasted just like any ordinary tom yam soup.



Verdict: I'm beginning to understand why this place is so popular. The food is definitely wonderful and it has a very welcoming ambience. Oh, and before I forget, they  have another outlet in Sri Hartamas and have just opened a new outlet in Sunway Mas (Aman Suria) a couple of months ago. Pay them a visit and you won't regret!



My Elephant
Address: Block C-G4, Happy Mansion, Jalan 17/13, Section 17, 46400 Petaling Jaya, Selangor.
Tel: 010-2201283

Stickhouse @ Citta Mall / Sunway Pyramid

Remember those days when we were young, we used to anticipate eagerly for the ice cream man to come by our house and we would dash out with sheer joy whenever we heard the ice cream bell rang? Well, in those days, most ice cream cost less than RM1 - even an ice cream bar cost less than that too. But today, ice creams, gelatos, sundaes, etc, can easily cost more than RM8 for just a small amount! Ahhh....how things have changed and evolved over time!

The reason why I’m being so dramatic over the whole ice cream thing is because I was in Citta Mall one day (if you don’t know where Citta Mall is, it is located opposite Saujana Subang in Ara Damansara), I came across an ice cream shop tucked in a small cubicle space at Ground Floor called Stickhouse. It sells dozens of Italian hand crafted gelatos or sorbets on sticks in different sizes and flavours. Needless to say, I went gaga instantly when I saw those ice cream sticks! 

   

I was so distracted by the colourful ice cream sticks that I actually forgot to check the price and the additional charges for add-on toppings and dippings! (How ridiculous can that be yea?) I asked for a Classic Vanilla (RM6.90) to be added with half topping (RM1.00) and half dipping (RM1.00) that came up to a total of RM8.90. Pricy? Maybe, but I was intoxicated and satisfied with the outcome. The size of a classic ice cream is almost the size of my husband's palm (note: he has huge hands!)

Months later, I bumped into their outlet in Sunway Pyramid by accident. The kiosk is situated right opposite McDonald's (where the ice-skating ring is), so you can imagine how excited I was again!

 

This time, I made sure that I took more pictures of the shop.

Eight reasons why you should choose Stickhouse ;)

Basically, the gelatos and fruit sorbets are categorized into three types: Classic, Premium, & Mini. The Classic ones are sold at RM6.90 per stick, while the Premium ones are sold slightly higher at RM8.90 per stick. For Minis, they are smaller than both Classic and Premium, and are sold at RM4.90 per stick.

Can you see the difference between the size of
the Classics (left hand side) and the Minis (right hand side)?

Check out the different flavours - Yogurt Strawberry, Almond, Dragon Fruit, Hazelnut,
Gianduia, Grape, Strawberry, and many more!

Now to make your ice cream more interesting, you have a choice of two add-ons: Dippings & Toppings. You may choose to add a full dipping (RM2) or a half dipping (RM1) for the coating of your ice cream. Three types of sauce are available for dipping - White Chocolate, Milk Chocolate & Dark Chocolate.

As for the Toppings, a full topping would cost RM2 while a half topping would cost RM1. You may choose from a few toppings such as Pistachios, Hazelnut and Almond. These toppings add that finishing touch to your ice cream. 

After staring at the ice creams and thinking for a long time, I finally decided to go with the Classic Yogurt with milk chocolate (half dipping) and hazelnut (half topping). The taste? Loved it! :)

So even though the price of ice creams has increased, the quality of the ice creams today has also been enhanced significantly!

Stickhouse (Sunway Pyramid)
Address: Lot LG2.RINK, Sunway Pyramid, No. 3, Jalan PJS 11/15, Bandar Sunway.
Tel: 03-56310375

My pregnancy last year

Ok, so here's an account of my pregnancy last year, and I'll try to keep it simple. My purpose of blogging about this is to share my experience with all mothers-to-be out there and to reassure you that you are not alone and it's ALRIGHT to feel a little anxious and have a little mood swing at times for no particular reasons.


When I was conceived, frankly speaking, I didn't even know I was pregnant - not until I started having morning sickness (or evening sickness to be precised). Again, I would like to emphasize on one thing. Every pregnant woman goes through different things- some have morning sickness, some don't; some put on tremendous weight like Jessica Simpson, while some are blessed with the body like Demi Moore; some can't stand the smell of durian, while some just can't get their hands off durians. Whatever the changes are, we need to understand that we are unique and we must never compare ourselves with other mothers-to-be. When you learn to accept your body and who you are, you will have a happy pregnancy - and eventually, your baby will feel the joy in your womb too.


Some of the physical and emotional challenges that I faced during the course were nausea, stiff and swollen fingers (third trimester), swollen feet, water retention (especially my face), swollen and itchy breasts, heartburn, backaches, mood swings (a licence to throw your tantrums), food cravings, fatigue (a good excuse to laze around), headaches, frequent urination, stretch marks, and many more. At times, when I looked at myself in the mirror, I didn't like what I saw, but my husband played a huge role in encouraging and reassuring me that it was all normal and told me to stay positive and think of the many happy thoughts of our little one. It was not easy, especially for someone vain like me to see myself all bloated up. I was reluctant to be in any photos, and stared at all the clothes that I used to be able to wear. But when I thought about the baby inside me and saw him through the ultra-scan each time during check-ups, I told myself, "It was all worth it!"


When people found out that I was pregnant, all of a sudden everyone tried to be "helpful" by giving all sorts of advice about my food intake, physical changes, emotional challenges, and the list goes on. It was so overwhelming that I started having butterflies (not only the baby!) in my stomach during the pregnancy.


I'm one of those who don't really care about the pantang-larang that most Chinese believe in, but some people felt that it was important for me to follow the rules and believe in the "myths" instead of being ignorant about it. Have you ever come across certain people telling you to ignore your gynae's advice on the food that you are allowed to take, and forbade you to consume most of the food that the gynae said was ok? And have they ever told you not to perform a certain kind of action or be involved in certain activities that would bring 'bad luck' to your baby? You know, these things are so funny that they aren't even funny!


But I don't blame them. These beliefs, and well, "superstitions", have been passed down to them for generations, and their intention, after all, is for the sake of the baby and you. But then again, that doesn't mean I have to condone their beliefs. It was frustrating at times when people went, "Hey, you shouldn'tbe doing this or eating that because it will harm your baby!" And when I asked why, they couldn't explain, and just told me to listen to them. *Zzzzz....*


I did a lot of research about my pregnancy mostly online, through books, magazines and videos. One of the websites that I would highly recommend is www.babycenter.com. It has everything you need to know - from A to Z - right at your fingertips. By keying in your estimated due date, you may subscribe to their weekly newsletter to find out about your baby’s progress in the womb as well as some other important information about your pregnancy. Plus, you may also include your partner’s email into the subscription list so that both of you will receive the newsletters and have a better understanding of what’s going on with that tiny fella in your tummy.


I went for my check-ups at Tropicana Medical Centre (TMC) in Kota Damansara. Pricy, I would say, but the service and facilities were top-notch (even the nurses were very helpful and friendly). Each check-up would cost us between RM200-RM300++. During the initial stage, we felt the burden of having to fork out so much each month because we could have easily paid lesser elsewhere. But I was very comfortable with my gynae Dr. Dev Kumar Menon. Dr. Menon is a very cheerful and bubbly doctor. Even as you step into his room, you can already hear him calling out your name and greeting you with a big smile on his face. He’s friendly, confident, very experienced, and pays attention to all your needs and problems. Best of all, he doesn’t criticize or pass remarks about you. I’ve heard a lot of stories about some gynaes being rude to their patients, or so busy that they don’t have much time for you. Dr. Menon made sure that you were alright before letting you out of his room. And for that kind of service, I didn’t mind paying the extra.

During my third trimester, Dr. Menon noticed that my baby was lying horizontally because I had a low placenta. This condition is known as Placanta Previa (also called Placenta Praevia). In layman terms, Placenta Previa is a condition whereby the placenta is close to or covering the cervix. In a normal labour, the placenta is not supposed to cover the cervix so that the baby’s head is able to engage and pass through the cervix. But for someone who has this complication, there is no way for the baby to go through the cervix normally, hence, a caesarean section(c-section) has to be performed without any question. Thank god for modern technology today that we were able to find out about these complications beforehand!

Then comes the part where everyone is anxious to know – the total bill of my hospitalization fee at TMC. During surgery, Dr. Menon discovered a cyst inside me. Right after Baby E was delivered, Dr. Menon went ahead to remove the cyst. So, it was considered two operations done at the same time. Oh, and they upgraded me to their Single Executive room because they ran out of single rooms (which I've booked beforehand). I was there for two and a half days, so everything came to about RM8K++.


I still remembered not being able to sleep on the first night after I've delivered, because I've requested for the nurse to bring the baby to me for breastfeeding. At first, I had a hard time trying to help Baby E to latch on, and he was constantly crying after sucking for a long time - and I realised that I wasn't producing any milk at all! So the nurse had to bring him back to the nursery room to feed him with some formula milk. I was so upset and discouraged by the fact that I didn't have any milk for him, and started wondering what was wrong with my body and felt guilty about not being able to give him the best.


On the second night, a nurse by the name of Patricia came to my room to check on me. She saw that I wasn't sleeping, so we started chatting a bit. She told me that it was normal not to have any breastmilk at that moment, especially for C-section patients, but we should never give up on feeding the baby, because the more the baby sucked on your nipple, the more it would stimulate your body to produce the milk. Thanks to her, I felt better. It was only on the 5th day after I went home that I finally had milk! You can't imagine how happy I was! So what I wanna say is - everyone is different, so do not be discouraged if your body is not producing any milk, because it takes time and patience, and your determination to give your baby the best will finally pay off in the end! 

Lammeeya @ Paradigm Mall, Petaling Jaya

Paradigm Mall is the latest buzz in town and it looks like everyone in PJ is literally flooding this place! Well, I have been to this mall a couple of times, and the first thing I noticed about the mall was their car park. The car park is rather confusing and unsystematic. Once, we went round and round just looking for the entrance to the mall, and when it was time to go home, we got lost again because we couldn't find our car!

Ok, all ranting aside, let's get back to my main objective of writing this piece of food review.

One fine day when me and my colleagues were in Paradigm Mall deciding on what to eat for lunch, we came across this shop called Lammeeya. They have other branches in PJ and Subang as well, such as One Utama, Damansara Uptown, and Empire Subang. By looking at their shop from the outside, it is a no brainer that the shop specializes in lam mee, i.e. braised noodles cooked in thick broth made of prawn stock or other meat stock. It is located on the 2nd floor, next to The Chicken Rice Shop.

  


The pictures in their menu certainly looked appealing and appetizing! (Gah, I'm such a sucker for these illustrations even knowing that I shouldn't fall for them!)

And when you look up and browse through the walls, they sort of have this hypnotizing power to make you feel the urge to order more food and drinks.

 .... and the pics on the wall say, "Come on baybeh, you know you want me!"........

Initially, we wanted to order their set lunch, but we were told that the set lunch was not available, yet. Feeling a little disappointed, we had no choice but to order from their ala carte menu. My colleagues opted for their Original Lam Mee - one requested for bee hoon, and the other one asked for thin noodles. I must say that when I first saw the price for a plate of lam mee, it almost turned me off right away. But I'm glad that I stayed on to try it because the broth was smooth, rich in flavour, and blend in well with the noodles to culminate the perfect combination of both noodles and broth. Even the serving was generous with huge portions of noodles, thin chicken strips, prawns, meatballs and gravy.

 

Then came my oh-so-eye-tempting Lam Mee (Udon) with Char Siew Chicken. The presentation was so beautifully done that I found myself obsessing over its outlook. The dish came with udon, half boiled egg (1/2), slices of char siew chicken and vege cooked in thick, yummylicious broth.  Now, you must be wondering what is "Char Siew Chicken"? Is it chicken meat stuffed into char siew? Or issit chicken meat PLUS char siew? Err.....nope, and nope. It is not char siew but chicken meat sliced into the form of char siew. Check out the picture below and see for yourself.

Pricy but satisfying! :)

 For side dish, we ordered a plate of deep fried tofu that came in 8pcs. The tofus were deep fried to golden brown, and the texture was crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.

Verdict: For a plate of lam mee to cost at this price is considered high, but the quality of the food was worth the penny. It may not be a dish that you would crave all the time, but it is definitely a dish that satisfies your tastebud.


Lammeeya
Address: Paradigm Mall, 2nd Floor, Lot 2F-31, No. 1, Jalan SS27/26A, 47301 Petaling Jaya

Baby High Chair from Ikea

Ok, let's take a break from all the food reviews thus far, coz to think of all the food that I had eaten in Melaka in just 1 day gives me the jibbers!

As Baby E enters his 8th month (and coming to 9 months soon!), I noticed a big change in his physical development - he has mastered the skill of crawling, and I mean crawling in full speed! Sometimes I wonder where he gets the energy from, moving from one place to another. It is so funnny that I get exhausted so easily simply chasing him around the house. I can't imagine how it would be like when he starts walking. Plus, one of the challenging things that I faced lately is during feeding time. After taking a few spoonful of porridge, he tends to become very restless and starts throwing a mad fit. Usually, we would feed him by putting him in his bumbo baby seat (which appears to be getting smaller for his growing body), or a more tedious way, which is to carry him with one hand, and holding his bowl in another hand.

So to solve this problem, we decided to get a high chair from Ikea for him.

If you want your baby to feel more comfortable while sitting in the high chair, you may also get Ikea's Barnslig Support Cushion to give your baby a soft and more comfy back support.

Colourful, isn't it? ;)

This is how it will look like after fixing the cushion to the seat.

With the high chair, not only were we able to use it during feeding time, but we were also able to place him in the chair while doing some housework or cooking in the kitchen. However, we made sure that the baby was always within eye distance so that he would not be left unattended and he was able to see us too.


Sometimes, whenever he gets bored, we would put books or toys on the tray to keep him occupied. 

  


You may opt for some other high chairs, but Ikea's high chair is by far one of the most affordable ones around without burning a hole in the pocket! :)

Restoran Mei Yuen @ Machap Baru, Melaka

(Day 1) 5th and Final Stop - Mei Yuen, Machap Baru, Melaka


By now, our stomach was on the verge of blowing up, but our host still insisted on bringing us to a Chinese restaurant for supper. Despite feeling overly stuffed after our dinner at Capitol Satay, we agreed to follow her as she was very keen on introducing us to what she claimed "The best cantonese fried kway teow in Melaka, and even in Malaysia!" WOW, what a HUGE statement she made! (And putting her head on the chopping block if it wasn't THAT great!)

The Chinese restaurant, which is called Mei Yuen, is located in a small Chinese village in Machap Baru, Durian Tunggal. Durian Tunggal is a small town in Melaka, and is about a 20-minute drive from Melaka town. When we arrived at the restaurant, her ever enthusiastic parents were already waiting for us. They came to the restaurant all the way from Tampin just to meet us - and I must say that her parents are some of the coolest and friendliest folks that I've ever met!

Initially, we thought that only the Cantonese Fried Kway Teoy would be served, but what we didn't know was that her parents actually ordered a few other dishes for us! *GULP* Feeling extremely full, we had to force the food down our throat.

The first dish was Braised Meat with Sang Mee (deep fried noodles) cooked in dark sauce. Even though I was full, I still loved this dish! The sauce was uber yummy, the noodles were soft and and the braised meat was tender and chewy.

Two thumbs up! My favourite dish of the night

Then came the much anticipated and talked about Cantonese Fried Kway Teoy. It was served in a huge plate, covered in a generous blanket of smooth, velvety gravy. Our expectation for this dish was so high that we digged in right away.


Sadly, I did not find it special or any better than the ones that I've tasted elsewhere. The gravy tasted so-so and it did not live up to our expectations. Even our host and her parents were not happy with the dish and complained to the restaurant owner. According to the owner, the dish was not cooked by the head chef, which explained why the dish did not taste as good as it should have been. I guess they were more disappointed than us as they had wanted us to try this dish so badly.


Next was the Kung Pao Chicken Meat, which was surprisingly tasty and not too overpowering for our taste. This has never been one of my favourite dishes but I must say that this Kung Pao Chicken was an eye-opener for me. The saltiness, sweetness and spiciness gelled perfectly well and the chicken literally found its way into my mouth, tricking my mind into having more despite my stomach screaming for me to stop shoving food down into it.

 Yummehhh~!

Some other dishes served was the Sweet and Sour Pork, which had a sweet and tangy flavour to it (just like any other sweet and sour dishes). The meat was succulent, tender and juicy.

Next on the list - Deep Fried Yam Ring. It was simply crispy and savouring.

And lastly, the Kung Pao Chicken Feet was served. Just like Kung Pao Chicken Meat, this dish was equally nice with the right seasoning, ingredients, and cooking style. (But seriously, by now, we were feeling a little sick with all the food that we have stuffed ourselves with!)

Verdict: All in all, I would say that the food here was great (except for the Cantonese Fried Kway Teoy, ironically) and the price was undoubtedly reasonable. But I have to be honest that we didn't entirely enjoy the experience here as our stomach was so full that we just wanted the whole eating spree to end for the day.

And thank god this was REALLY our last meal for the day!



Restoran Mei Yuen Sdn Bhd (梅园餐室有限公司)
Add: 238, Machap Baru, 76100 Durian Tunggal, Melaka.
Tel: 06-5251534

.......................... To Be Continued ...............................