2005 - Non-malaysian food

Ropponggi Hill Restaurant, 2nd floor, New Wing, 1 utama - a mix shanghai and japanese restaurant, I think they did a mixed up job in decorating the place. From the outside, I thought it was like a food court but inside, it had an upper class ambience. Probably the reason why it is relatively quieter than its neigbours. Not sure why there weren't more tables, as they had so much floor space. Looking at the menu, it was a mix of shanghai dishes and noodles as well as japanese ala carte and bento sets.... strange combination. Always asking for recommendations, the young student-like waitress named Yuli, pointed confidently at no. 31 (shanghai spicy noodles with mixed meat - RM9.50) and no. 113 (Torikatsu Don - RM17.90). I was skeptical about the reddish looking soup in the menu, but what the heck... I wasn't that hungry anyway. Sure enough, the noodles came and it was as expected, uninteresting. Despite its spicy-prawn-noodle-looking color, it wasn't spicy. The soup was just salty and without any distinctive taste. The noodles was springy but came in small portion (probably equivalent to 1 packet of instant noodle). Overall, not worth it. As for the torikatsu, the portion was big and tasty. Hmm... perhaps their strength is in their Japanese cuisine. Still, with their pricey menu, I'm not sure if they should depend on selling Japanese food in a non-jap environment. Green tea is RM2 each. Will I come back? Perhaps, just to given them a chance at the noodles.


Thai Express, Curve at Mutiara Damansara - avoid this so called thai place like the plague. Has to be the sorriest excuse for a thai restaurant. Deco or layout was bad.... ventilation was bad - our clothes stunk after, could hear the kitchen wok being stirred throughout, food sucked worse than a foodcourt.


Ton Chan, 1st floor, The Curve, Mutiara Damansara - another japanese joint, this was the worst. Had the ramen, california rolls of sorts and teriyaki chicken rice. Except for the ramen perhaps, the rest doesn't qualify as japanese standard. This is the last time for me.... and even for future ventures in The Curve.


Country farm organics at Rainforest section of 1 utama new wing - decided to eat healthily one day, this place came to mind immediately. Ordered one of the rice dishes, fried noodles and rojak. All tasted good surprisingly and were a change of tastes for once. Not too oily.... just right. Very nice... will come back for more.


Ikano Food court - running out of restaurants, I've resorted to food courts now.. hehehe. Anyway, this place is very spacious and has good lighting/ventilation, very suitable for families and children. Tried the ramen at korean stall..turned out alright, nothing like those I had when in Seoul. Had the pancake at Taiwan stall, alright but passable. The weakest stall was the Penang one, the worst popiah ever and at RM2+ each... terrible, I could make better popiah...it's common sense skill...sheesh.


Update April 2005
Deciding to give the Taiwan noodle stall a chance, this time I asked for recommendations and a confident answer was their signature beef noodles (soup or dry). Always skeptical about beef dishes, I ordered the dry version. Turned out to be a good surprise, the noodles were soft and tasty (with garlic garnishing). The beef was tender and super tasty... my wife wanted to exchange dishes then. My taste satisfaction was slightly dissatisfied with the smaller-than-I-would-prefer-it portion, but then again, given a good thing, one always wants more. Had another recommendation, this time from the dessert stall... yam ice kacang of sorts. The yam was generous and rich in taste, mixed with the evaporated milk and sweets, overall was satisfying. Definitely will frequent the food court for more good surprises.


Korean stall at Food court at Bangsar Shopping Center - owned by koreans, I tried the bibimbap which turned out better than I had in Seoul, Korea, strangely. Perhaps the one here was localised to our palettes.