Monday, December 16, 2013

Singgah Selalu @ Johor Bahru

Whoops, didn't realise that this post was languishing in the unpublished pile!



Apologies for the lack of photos, we only had the camera phone to work with.

The restaurant is quite easy to find as they have a few branches. We went to the one at Danga Bay, which is opposite of Tune Hotel.

The restaurant is huge, could easily seat a 100 pax or more!

K: I think it can seat more than 100. Maybe 200++? It also has live music performance at night. Very convenient place to meet up & lepak. Nak tengok bola pun bolehhhh....

We had the controversial asian favorite; sharks fin soup, tomato chili crab and butter fried sotong (calamari).

The sharks fin soup, to be honest, was forgettable. The restaurant didn't even have black vinegar and instead gave us kicap - FAIL wey! It wasn't bad, mind you, but it wasn't great so why spend money and have a poor shark die in vain for mediocrity?

The tomato chili crab was rather pricey (RM40++) but the portion was fair enough. I don't have chili crab often enough to tell you if this is the best thing ever but it was good. The crab was meaty and fresh, I only wished the sauce was just a little more sour. 

The outstanding dish was the butter fried sotong because of the generous portion. Rm14 for a dish big enough for 3! And yes, it was yummy too.

K: Yeah, the butter fried sotong is the only dish that I would consider value for money. The rest were, hmmmm, average.

Good variety of food - Western, Malaysian, Chinese - so, if you come in a big group there're plenty of choices for everyone. Shisha pun ada!

Quality wise, not bad but just doesn't have that extra zing.

Verdict - It's not bad but it's not outstanding. Certainly won't have us rushing for another trip to JB.

Singgah Selalu
36, D,E,F, Jalan Skudai, 
80200 Johor Bahru.
T: 07-2377255

Price - $-$$$
Halal
Open 24 hours

Thursday, December 5, 2013

Restoran New Holly Wood @ Ipoh


Another place that came highly recommended in Ipoh is Restoran New Holly Wood, a halal chinese kopitiam. It's on the opposite end of Restoran Canning Corner.


Apparently the must have is the char koi (RM0.70)


Looks good yes?

But it was a let down, as we found it to be rather oily and chewy compared to Canning Corner's char koi which we had the previous day. 

K: It was also saltier. 





Thankfully this dish made up for the disappointment! I love Hong Kong Chee Cheong Fun, so I couldn't pass up the opportunity to have this halal dish. Can you see all those generous sized prawns? So fresh and crunchy! If you can find ones of that size with that price (RM3.50) in KL (that is halal or pork free of course) then do tell.

K: One thing we didn't do here was order drinks. Why, you ask? Well, in the course of researching places to go, we surfed the web to find reviews. And in a review for the New Holly Wood Restaurant, the operator was apparently caught red handed recycling straws. Yuck!! The idea of sucking drinks through a straw that has been used by God knows how many countless strangers is really gross. So, no drinks, only food.

But to be fair, the straws didn't seem to be of different lengths when we went. 

K: Compared to Canning Garden, none of the stalls here have Halal certs. 

However this place, which has been established for a longer period, is the more happening of the two. You'll see a lot of people here.

K: Yeah, we saw Mamat Khalid of Hantu Kak Limah fame, younger brother of Lat, having his lunch here.

Restoran New Hollywood
38, Jalan Lee Kwee Foh,
Canning Garden,
Ipoh, Perak

Price - $
Certified halal meat sources (not that we saw them that day)
Apologies, we forgot to take the operating hours but it's open for brunch.