Places to eat

Went to Dave's deli at the Starling Mall, Damansara Utama (Address: F-126, Level 1, The Starling Mall, Damansara Utama, 47400 Petaling Jaya, Selangor), and had some spaghetti. My daughter recommended this branch. She liked the carbonara here. It is quite good. We have eaten at other places but it was either too watery or too thick. The carbonara at Dave's deli is just right. It is no wonder my daughter likes it. We also had the olio oglio with mussels. It looked great and the taste was alright although my son did give it five stars. Please note that these were from the branch at Starling Mall, and it may not taste the same at other branches.

With the ridiculously hot weather nowadays, it is nice to find a stall (Address: No. 5, Block C, Happy Mansion, Ground Floor, Section, Jalan 17/13, Seksyen 17, 46400 Petaling Jaya, Selangor) that serves great ABC. It stands for ais batu campur i.e. shaved ice with a variety of nuts, beans, jelly and topped with coconut cream, syrup etc. Without a doubt, one of the best place to have ABC. It is often crowded but they provide fast service. Looks delicious on the surface. Tastes delicious. Thumbs up! There is more than meets the eye. More goodies inside. If ABC is not your poison, then I recommend their chendol. Very delicious and one of the best chendol in Petaling Jaya.

Updated Feb 2021: With 7th mile kitchen moving out of PJ, Mama Ting is a good option for Sarawak comfort foods.  If you are staying in Petaling Jaya, and looking to try Sarawak noodles, you would not go wrong to try them at Mama Ting (Address: 8, Jalan SS 2/10, SS 2, 47300 Petaling Jaya, Selangor). The Kolok Mee is springy and is quite good. I am a sucker for tomato koay teow noodles. Of course, I prefer the original in Sarawak but this one will have to suffice until then. Even had time to dress up my plate (above). Had the Sarawak Laksa (below) recently, and tasted good. Enjoyed every bit of it. The gravy is tasty without being too thick, an the bee hoon noodles are the tougher kind (just nice for Sarawak Laksa). I have managed to include their menu here. As you can see, very traditional Sarawak fare.      And I have also included their business hours to avoid disappointments. Go and try this place! ...

We went to the branch in Gurney Plaza, Penang (Address: Gurney Dr, Georgetown, 10250 George Town, Penang). The shop is located at the basement level, and we needed some time to look for it.  Of course there are other branches throughout Malaysia, and we also frequent the one at One Utama, Petaling Jaya. This photo shows the entrance to the branch at One Utama (new wing). (Address: City Centre, 1 Utama Shopping Centre (New Wing), Lot G343A, Ground Floor, No1, Lebuh Bandar Utama, Bandar Utama, 47800 Petaling Jaya, Selangor). Good and simple Taiwanese noodles are available, and Xiao long bao is their specialty. They also have good beef noodles and fried rice. Xiao long pau. A must try. Their specialty. Noodles with roast pork Noodles with wonton Fried rice with pork Fried rice with prawns Dry noodles with pork and scallion. One of my favourites.

One of the better places to have Wantan Mee (Address: 49-G, Jalan SS 22/19, SS 22, 47400 Petaling Jaya, Selangor) in Petaling Jaya. The noodles are nice and char sui (caramelized roast pork) is good. Best thing is, it is open till 11pm. Now you have another place for supper. So, is the wantan really big? Above average, yes but not very big to warrant it's namesake.

Located opposite the Sister Curry Mee is a small coffee shop (Ah Chuen) that serves up a nice warm Chee Cheong Fun dish with prawn paste that is not too strong. (Address: C72H+47 Air Itam, Penang) Of course, a breakfast is not complete without a hot cup of traditional Chinese coffee.

If you like duck, you should probably try this koay chiap at the Wah Meng cafe (Address: 612, Jalan Air Itam, Pekan Ayer Itam, 11500 Ayer Itam, Pulau Pinang). Koay chiap is a savoury soup with braised duck meat and innards served with flat rice noodles. Wah Meng cafe is as quaint and authentic an old Chinese coffee shop as you can get in Malaysia. Give it a try.

No, I do not go to the famous Sister Curry Mee at the Ayer Itam market. I used to but somehow found the taste to be different now. Or did my taste buds changed? Now I prefer the stall next to it (Address: 612 T, Jalan Air Itam, Pekan Ayer Itam, 11500 Ayer Itam, Pulau Pinang).  I find the taste to be more similar to the ones I used to enjoy when I was younger. Try it. You may even thank me for it.

This is a quaint little cafe with a Penang like atmosphere (Address: No. 14, Jalan SS 2/103, SS 2, 47300 Petaling Jaya, Selangor). Not a surprise here as the owners are Penangites. Speaking Penang Hokkien here in PJ will not be awkward at all. All the favourites are available but as you can see, I cannot resist the economy fried noodles with sambal and a fried egg. Their nasi lemak is also good (below). Yam cake (below) and Penang style Chee cheong fun are also good here. Their yam cake or Chinese steamed taro cake is one of the best in Petaling Jaya. There is just a nice amount of yam inside with all the traditional garnishing. Prices are reasonable too. In fact their Tai Pau or big bun (essentially bun with pork and egg stuffing) is most probably the cheapest in PJ! Tastes good too!

My favourite place for Korean food (Address: T-03A, Atria Shopping Gallery, Jalan SS 22/21, Ss 22, 47400 Petaling Jaya, Selangor). They have good set meals, and my favourite has to be the one with roast pork. Their fried rice is also good and is a favourite with my daughter.  Below is their Kimchi jigae set (kimchi stew with tofu and pork). Easily one of the best in town. Their stew is not just hot, it is flavourful which is what a lot of other Korean restaurants fail at. If you like kimchi stew, then this one is for you.   Kimchi jigae close up (below). Trust me, this is delicious but a bit hot. Below is their Kimchi san gyeop sal gui set (grilled pork with stir fried kimchi). Nice.....   This is a good place to have authentic Korean food, and they make great kimchi.  Every set meal comes with soup and refillable side dishes, and I always asks for more refills.  Especially their Kimchi. Mmmmm...

Do you know that you can get good and affordable Yong Tau Foo, the Ipoh Road kind, at SS2, Petaling Jaya? Address: Petaling Jaya (North) 2 & 2A, Jalan SS 2/3, Taman Bahagia, SS 2, 47300 Petaling Jaya, Selangor. All your favourites, brinjal, ladies' fingers, bitter gourd etc with generous portions of fish cake. You can also choose from a wide variety of fried stuff. If you want something other than rice to go along with your Yong Tau Foo, you may choose their Chee Cheong Fun. It is a good place to go for Yong Tau Foo i.e. tastes good and it would not burn a hole in your pocket.

Had mee mamak and chicken porridge at Hainan Joy, Taman Megah, Petaling Jaya (Address: 53, Jalan SS 24/8, Taman Megah, 47301 Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia). Mee mamak is fried yellow noodles with thick gravy. It was a bit spicy and sweet. There were pieces of chicken, fish cakes and about two pieces of prawn. Quite the way I like it but a bit too heavy for regular eating.  Chicken porridge was heavier than usual. We usually go for porridge to clear our digestive tract but the porridge here was quite rich with flavour. Some may like this type of porridge. PS: Most popular food here is their Hainan chicken rice. I have always enjoyed the Hainan chicken rice here. Very good. The chicken meat is tender and succulent whereas the rice is aromatic and not too oily. Remember to prepare your own dip, my formula is two spoons of ginger with one spoon of chili, and one spoon of soy sauce. Mix well and enjoy. Their curry laksa noodles with nyonya style coconut milk...