SIK FUN LA!

June 20, 2024June 21, 2024 / Alan Atkinson / Leave a comment

Wha-a-a-a-tt? Got to eat a-ga-a-ai-inn (said in sing-song fashion. Use your imagination)😲🤔? Oh, the chore of it. 😋😂!

Yeah, right! For Malaysians, this is a welcome “chore”. Generally, there are 3 main meals a day. Some people include an afternoon coffee (I prefer to call it this using “coffee” instead of tea for obvious reasons) and supper.

When you attend a convention in Malaysia, you will notice that there is a tea break in the morning and afternoon. This means 5 meals a day : breakfast, morning tea, lunch, afternoon tea, then dinner. O.K. We’ve got to admit that there are six meals (the sixth being supper) a day for the avaricious. Is “Avaricious” (1) the right word to describe the extra-hungry or over-hungry? Just having fun with the English language.🤔😁

We, meaning the Batik Influencer, who also happens to be my wife, Jeannie, as well; and I, decided to visit our nearby cafe restaurant, New Apollos for a bite. (2) If you think this coffee shop is chic… in a sort of way : everyone comes here in whatever style they which to impress on others: the very casual, just out of bed straight to the coffee shop (in pjs galore at times); shorts (here, shorts are taken to a new level of “shorts”), tees and slippers. On the other end of the spectrum are people coming in near full suit (dressed for business meetings and work. Something peculiar though. there are those full suiters who wear slippers instead of shoes. Is that a “photo-bomb” or what (possibly hear this from a young-er person)? We could have walked from our house to New Apollos. However, we decided to reserve our energy for the eating. We drove.😉

We got a table directly under the air-conditioning (3 – blade fan). I choped (3) the table first while Jeannie went to the stalls to order the food. The drinks guy came around. I ordered a kopi peng (pronounced koh peeh peh eng [as in egg]) (4) for myself and a kopi kecil (small in Bahasa Malaysia) for Jeannie. When you order just coffee or tea, it is understood that you want it hot, unless you state otherwise. When you add an instruction of “sikit / kurang manis (little or less sweet in Bahasa Malaysia) or sikit / kurang gula” (little or less sugar in Bahasa Malaysia); ain’t gonna happen. Haha.

*Our meal. Clockwise from the drinks: Kopi peng (No guesses for who ordered this drink; hot coffee or kopi kecil (small); roast chicken rice and char kway teow.*

Jeannie ordered a roast chicken rice set for herself and for me, char kway teow. Jeannie’s roast chicken rice set had a generous serving of rice, roast chicken and slices of cucumber on a separate dish, a soup that looked like a vegetable soup and not forgetting, a little container of chili, specially made to go with chicken rice. Chicken rice without the chili is chicken rice incomplete.

A closer look at our meal from a different angle. What you will notice is that chili is sort of staple food. It comes with almost every food in Malaysia, except for ice-creams and other cold desserts (to name a few).

The roast chicken and cucumbers came with a sort of brown sauce on them. It tasted as good as it looked – delicious. Jeannie, at times, likes to pour spoons full of soup into her rice to make it “wet”. Dipping the sliced pieces of roast chicken and cucumbers into the chili sauce, then adding rice and eating it – simple food. Satisfying to the tastebuds, satisfying to the senses. Sipping hot coffee with it, Jeannie was happy with her meal.

*You have a choice of roast chicken or steamed chicken. This is roast chicken.*

*Fried kway teow or as it is more commonly known as: char kway teow.*

My char kway teow order came in a banana leaf dark green colour plate to give that “char kway teow served on banana leaf” feeling. It looked good…not too oily…well, maybe a tad bit more than I would have preferred. It had tougey (you don’t say, “bean sprouts”. You will see a questionable look on the char kway teow-er’s [cook / frier] face) and a few strands of what looked like egg, vegetables, fishcake, prawns (5)….have I missed out on anything? Oh ya, kway teow, too. Stir fried in a black sauce, charred lightly and accompanied by the staple food of Malaysia – chili sauce.

You may think Malaysia is a mixed bunch – we are. We are inter-wined in our language and culture and are loving it. That extends to our food to where the names of the dishes can be mixed: Indian, Malay, Chinese, English, etc. Take for example: “char kway teow” is Chinese. Char means stir-fried. “Char” is also an English word. (6)

The char kway teow on a dark green plate. It tasted so good. This guy has been operating his stall at New Apollos Restaurant for many years. He has a technique of balancing and bringing out the flavours of all the condiments with the kway teow. He does not add chili paste into his stir fry process (unless you request for it). The chili sauce that comes with this meal is for those who want to tease their tastebuds with spiciness.

I enjoyed my meal. Not too filling; just nice to get by. I sipped at my kopi peng, while savouring the taste of the meal just eaten. We soaked in the atmosphere of the surroundings, peoples’ usual morning hangout, those in for a quick meal before or during work. It had its fair share of business.

Jeannie and I had the next chapter of our day to attend to – looking forward to the future which was the next moment and beyond, ahead of us.

NOTES:
1. Avaricious: showing an extremely strong wish to get or keep money or possessions:
The idea is to shift the bad debts of the avaricious and the greedy onto the shoulders of middle-class people.
She turned out to be a crafty and avaricious politician.
Cambridge dictionary
2. “A bite” means to get something to eat. It refers to food. Grab A Bite’ is an American expression – and it means to get something to eat but to do quickly, because you don’t have a lot of time.
When do you want to go grab a bite?” “I don’t have much time, so let’s grab a quick bite.”
3. Char kway teow (sometimes also spelled as char kuey teow, is a stir-fried rice noodle dish from Maritime Southeast Asia of southern Chinese origin. In Hokkien and Teochew, char means ‘stir-fried’ and kway teow refers to flat rice noodles. It is made from flat rice noodles or kway teow of approximately 1 cm or about 0.5 cm in width, stir-fried over very high heat with garlic, light and dark soy sauce, chili paste, whole prawns, shelled blood cockles, chopped Chinese chives, slices of Chinese sausage, and bean sprouts. Other common ingredients include fishcake and belachan.
Originally developed and catered to overseas-born Chinese labourers in the Southeast Asia region, the dish has achieved widespread popularity within the region from the late 20th century onwards, particularly in Malaysia and Singapore. The dish has also acquired a reputation of being unhealthy due to its high saturated fat content, as it is traditionally stir-fried in pork fat with crisp croutons of pork lard.
3. chop – (From English) Used to tell someone to do something fast. chope – Slang for reserving a seat. Derived from chop; to leave a mark. Malaysians have a habit of leaving objects on seats or tables to reserve places (usually tissue packets). Sometimes also pronounced as simply “chop”.
4. “Kopi” means coffee in Bahasa Malaysia. “Peng” is in Hokkien, a Chinese dialect word for “ice”.
5. In North America, the term “shrimp” is used much more frequently, while the word “prawn” is most often used to describe larger species or those fished from fresh water.
6. partially burn so as to blacken the surface.
late 17th century: apparently a back-formation from charcoal. (English)
late 16th century (as cha ; rare before the early 20th century): from Chinese (Mandarin) chá .
Oxford dictionary
It looks like the Chinese were using this word first.

COCONUT TART, COFFEE AND TEA

June 18, 2024June 19, 2024 / Alan Atkinson / Leave a comment

Alfresco at a kopitiam

It’s another beautiful morning. The 24 inch computer monitor screen stares brightly at me, waiting to display anything that I command it to. The Logitech MX Mechanical keyboard has its keys eagerly waiting in anticipation to be tapped on and, produce corresponding letters, words, paragraphs and essays, to create an article, which is conceived in my thoughts.

Last night, when we turned in to sleep, we switched off all lights, the darkness in our bedroom quickly brought our heartbeats to a resting pace. The air-conditioning above, was blowing a cooling air; silently. The blowing of the cool air was audible enough to be heard. The silence was loud, something that we have been accustomed to as we closed our eyes and fell off to sleep.

The maintenance team / section of our bodies swung into action, replacing unusable cells, replenishing those that have been used; repairing all those areas that need repairing. All this taking place during our rest, preparing us to meet the next morning, lively with energy and zest. This happens every time we rest. It is the purpose of our rest.

We had a very pleasant trip to and from Kay Al (pronounced this way by locals in general) (1), when Jeannie, the Batik Influencer, and I; dropped our daughter, Laura; at work. As we were getting off the Federal Highway and on to the second ramp into Subang Jaya, the second most common question popped up: “Where shall we have breakfast?” The first most common question is, “What shall we eat?”

Jeannie was quick to answer, “Let’s go to Kaw Kaw Pak Kopi in Taipan”. Good suggestion. We got to the restaurant in no time at all. Getting a carpark slot was fairly easy, too.

*Jeannie, making the orders; me getting some work done. This was a sort of “alfresco” atmosphere / style. The orange wall is of a building across a narrow lane / road from us.*

We both agreed that we just wanted a drink only. However, as we walked into the restaurant, it had rows or attractive pastries that were calling out to us. They all looked so good. We still wanted to maintain the “drinks only” today. The spirit is willing, but our taste buds are weak.😂

We ordered a coconut tart, yes one only. A former Prime Minister in his late 90s, was asked how he kept so slim, fit and healthy. He said, “When you see food that you like, just eat a little of it, not too much”.

*The coconut tart. This picture does not do it justice. It tasted better than it looked.*

For drinks, Jeannie ordered an iced black tea, no idea what that was; and I, I ordered a “kopi peng” (2). When Jeannie took a sip of her drink, she said that it was very strong. I would presume so. The drink was the blackest shade of black. It seems this drink is one of this kopitiam’s (3) best sellers. Wow!

Jeannie took a first bite of the coconut tart. It tasted not bad (opposite of quite good?😉). The size of the tart does not have room for too many bites, nibbling at it maybe. I took a bite. It was nice. Not too sweet. The crust was firm yet not too hard. It encrusted the coconut fillings well. I savored on the gratings or fibres of the coconut fillings – actual coconut. It was good. The about 3 inch diameter size of the tart was gone before we knew it. Reasonable price of RM2.80 or US$0.60.

My kopi peng was ok. I did not order kaw kaw (4), thinking it would have come kaw kaw as standard, living up to the kopitiam’s name. I should have ordered kaw or kaw kaw to have more taste of the coffee. Many of these coffee shops or kopitiams, have their own blend of coffee. Besides the different coffee beans used, the method of roasting and the length of time the beans are roasted will provide a wider range of “blends” of coffee for the coffee enthusiast.

*The black tea that Jeannie ordered. It was very…er.. black indeed. Too strong for Jeannie to finish in an hour.*

Our order: Black tea, kopi peng and coconut tart.

The atmosphere / mood was very relaxed and quiet. I could get some work done while talking with Jeannie. I like the idea of being in a different locale every time, as it adds to my “chest of experiences” of what I see, hear, feel, think and idea create.

Before we realised it, an hour had gone by. The coconut tart was enjoyable while eating it, not too big, just about the size of eating something that we like, but not too much of it. I was done with my kopi peng. Jeannie took her unfinished Iced black tea with her. It was time (which is all the time) for us to move to the future: the next moment.

About a 360º view of Kaw Kaw Pak Kopi

NOTES:
1. Kay Al or K.L. is short for Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia. It is one of the many cities and places of attractions in Malaysia for tourists.
A new study has revealed that Malaysia was the most visited country in Southeast Asia during 2023 – further indication of the nation’s recovery and meteoric rise since the end of the pandemic era. Malaysia welcomed a total of 29 million tourists last year, outstripping more established neighbours in the process.
panaroma-destination.com
2. (“ko-peeh peh-eng”)”Kopi” means coffee in Bahasa Malaysia. “Peng” is in Hokkien, a Chinese dialect word for “ice”.
3. Kopitiam: kopi means coffee in Malay, and tiam is the Hokkien word for shop. Hence, Kopitiam translates literally to “coffee shop”.
4. “Kaw” originates from the Chinese dialect, Hokkien; which means “thick”. When you hear “kaw-kaw”, it literally means “very very thick“. Kaw or kaw kaw is normally used when ordering coffee at the local coffee shop.
Malaysians have taken it to a new level to mean “very serious”. He got into trouble with his employer “betul betul kaw kaw” for losing a big clientele account. “Betul betul” is Bahasa Malaysia for “exactly” or “rightly”.

THE “WHY” IN BEING A FATHER

June 16, 2024June 18, 2024 / Alan Atkinson / 1 Comment

“Today is my day”. And so I am made to believe. Until…

“You still have not done an article for Father’s Day?”, asked Jeannie.

I thought I get a day off today since it is Father’s Day and on a Sunday; to boot.

We made it to St Thomas More Church just in time for mass at 8.30am. This was even after having parked our car (double-parked in an orderly fashion) about a couple of hundred meters away. Jeannie brought an umbrella with her just in case. Though there weren’t those usual dark rain clouds lurking around, the sun was no where to be seen. The sky had an overcast, with patches of light grey here and there, dabs of white, hints of dull light blue – a bit like the skies of Decatur, Illinois, U.S.A.; after a snowfall (or is it “snowfell”?) morning during winter.

As soon as mass was over, we had to rush to our car so as not to hold traffic up. Then, Jeannie started, “You still have not done an article for Father’s Day?”😅

*The reason I am “Dad” / “Father”. Picture of Laura when she was about 2 months old on her baptism day. The other was with her Year 2 class in school.* These pictures are placed at my work station.

“Coming, coming. First, breakfast (not “breakfast first”😉). We had to go to Court 2 (Goodyear Court 2 in USJ 2) (1) to buy “chee cheong fun” (2) for dad as the Atkinson family was meeting in Klang to celebrate Mum’s 87th birthday (her birthday was on June 14th), Mum’s & Dad’s 68th Wedding Anniversary today and Father’s Day. Dad loves the chee cheong fun from the stall at Court 2.

As we were walking in the restaurant, a very cheery lady passing us by, wished us “Good Morning” quite loudly. Even though she had a face mask on; we could see her face smiling and very friendly. We found a a table quite quickly though the place was quite crowded for the breakfast session.

*Many stalls offering a wide variety of food. This is the front view of the restaurant.* *If you look closely, you may think there are white hanging lights. They are not. They are raindrops creating a special effect 😉 It was raining quite heavily.*

Now, this is how to hold chopsticks. The lady, eating what looked like char kway teow (3), seemed to be in ecstasy. The char kway teow here is really, really good. You can tell by the lady’s expression. The guy in the white Tee, showing how to hold the handphone with chopsticks.

Jeannie ordered Wan Tan noodles. A while later, the very cheery lady who greeted us as we got in the restaurant was the one who served us our Wan Tan noodles. I told her that I had to have a picture of her taken with us. She gladly obliged.

The very, very, very cheery and pleasant lady, Amelia. She is a graphic designer by profession. On her weekends and holidays, she helps out in her family business which is running a Wan Ton noodle stall, here. With her top notch PR, people will always to come back here for more.

*The Wan Tan noodles came with char siew and siew yuk (additional order). It was really, good.*

The Wan Tan noodles was very delicious. The char siew was char siew, and the siew yuk was siew yuk; not just sliced pieces of pork. My kopi “o” ais kosong was pretty decent. Quite good. Breakfast here at Court 2 was good.

*The Wan Ton noodles set, which includes wanton soup, and a small container of green cut chili. And my kopi “o” (meaning no milk) kosong ais (and no sugar).* *“Kosong” is Bahasa Malaysia for “empty”.* *“Ais” is Bahasa Malaysia for.. you’ve guessed it: ice.*

As we made our out of the restaurant to pick up the chee cheong fun for dad; We passed by the stall where Amelia was stationed at. She introduced us to her parents and her sister. Her father and mother showed us many pictures, stories and satisfied customers’ comments on their phones. They told me that Mr. Kong’s grandfather started the business. Then, his mother took over. Now, he is running it. Soon, the 4th generation will take over.

Mr Kong cut pieces of his best char siew and pork ribs for me to try. They were really good. They definitely have earned and deserve the recognition of being amongst the top 50 Wan Tan noodle stalls in Malaysia.

*Amelia’s father, Mt Kong; the head of this business. There is a newspaper article pasted on the side. This Wan Tan noodle stall is voted as one of Malaysia’s top 50 Wan Tan noodle stalls.*

The whole Kong family are very friendly. You should definitely visit “Kong’s Wan Tan Mee” when you are in Subang Jaya looking for a reasonably priced meal.

*Here, with Amelia (with the yellow face mask) are her parents in front and her sister, standing at the back.*

What a great start to Father’s Day.

The “why” Father’s Day (which is every day) is so special to me:

HERE’S WISHING ALL FATHERS A CONTINUING JOYOUS, HAPPY, FANTASTIC AND AMAZING HAPPY FATHER’S DAY!!!

NOTES:
1. USJ2 is part of the city of Subang Jaya in the state of Selangor, Malaysia.
2. It’s just simply a flat rice noodle dish that is normally rolled up and served with simple sauces.

THAT DANGEROUSE STEP!

May 21, 2024May 24, 2024 / Alan Atkinson / 5 Comments

updated: 3rd day after the fall. I had the dressing changed.

Today was almost a light and easy day. I didn’t have to drive to P.J. (1) and K.L. (2). I went for my usual coffee, meeting up with Chris (my cousin) and Jino, our friend in USJ 17 (3). Got home at about 5pm for a short rest. My wife, Jeannie’s colleague, Soo Yin; who has always been a wonderful, wonderful (repeated deliberately) person, was dropping Jeannie off at the LRT (Light Rail Transport) station, nearby here.

I picked Jeannie up at about 6.00pm and when we got around to the usual question, “What shall we have for dinner?”; I already had fried kway teow (4) in mind. Without saying much, I drove to the coffee shop (now known as restaurant. It is more “upmarket” or a perceived value to be more upmarket than just a plain ol’ coffee shop) in Taipan.

Now, Jeannie and I were quite laid back and relaxed as tomorrow is a public holiday, “Wesak” Day for the whole of Malaysia. Wesak is a celebration of the Buddhists.

After dinner, Jeannie wanted to buy a can of corned beef and luncheon meat, so that we could +have many of our meals at home; which has a huge cost savings benefit. Another thing is I am usually one for quick meals. I decided to stop by at our regular pharmacy to get a couple of things before heading to the quick convenience mini mart to get the provisions.

As I came out of the pharmacy, I looked down to mind my step. There were three steps. The main step, from the road to the sidewalk (and vice versa) is pretty steep; meaning the height of the step is around 10 inches to 12 inches. There is a gradient climb of the road along the width of the step, which means it is not level.

Somehow or the other, I did not clear the main step, and fell, lunging forward onto the road. I saw that step. In my mind I was clearing it, but I didn’t. It was as though I was in mid-air hitting turbulence for a split second.

Jeannie, who was in the car, just parked by another car, saw what happened and came rushing out. At the same time, a gentleman who was parking his motorcycle near there, saw what happened and came to my aid.

First thing I did, like any other normal human being; was to check if my smartphones were ok. Yeah, yeah… I was bleeding and bruised on my leg, hand and palm, but both the phones had to be ok…first?😅

I had to fall in style, where when I fell, I still had my panama hat on my head.🕵🏻‍♂️😁 I was able to get up on my own, check on my wounds and felt that everything else was ok. Since, my leg had my blood dripping from it, Jeannie said she would drive me to the clinic near our house.

I thanked the gentleman for his concern and waited to make sure that I was alright.

The nurse in charge of that duty shift, attended to me. As she cleaned my wounds, I realized that I had a wound on my palm and some cuts and grazes on my left hand. The doctor on duty attended to me, too. She gave me a tetanus jab.

I grimaced in momentarily pain when the medicines and the sprays were applied to clean my wounds. The sprays were cold, really cold. They felt nice when the cold touched me, then the sting from these medicines lingered on. I think I left the clinic with more pain then when I had arrived. I am grateful to the doctor and nurse. Their kindness. attentiveness and patience reassured me that I was in excellent hands.

*The nurse attended to cleaning up the wounds. She had to painstakingly remove all the tiny stones and gravel that were lodged in the wound.*

Notice that the Hatted Writer remained Hatted throughout the painful ordeal.

After the clinic, we stopped at the 7-11 a few doors away to buys some buns and other stuff just in case I was going to be awake the whole night and would end up hungry.

The employee there was trying top sell us some drinks and chips that were discounted – the day’s promo. I told him that he was a good salesman. He told us that he was from Punjab and has been in Malaysia for 5 years. Prior to this, he worked as a plumber in Dubai. Come November, he goes home to Punjab and does not plan on another overseas work stint.

As for the steps in front of the pharmacy, I will go to the pharmacy tomorrow to highlight my accident, that this was my second accident there. The first one was a very minor fall with some slight grazes. I hope they will take action in making the path much safer for its customers and all those people who use those steps daily. I will suggest for them to change the smooth tiles which covers the walkway of the pharmacy. Nice to look at but when the tiles are wet from the heavy rains; they become a very slippery, dangerous walkway.

I often come to this pharmacy because the staff there, are very courteous. To me, as a customer; that goes a long way.

Update, May 23rd 2024:
The old dressing was removed and a clean one administered, this afternoon. I will have to go for a further dressing each day from tomorrow, for the next three days.

*About to have the new dressing put on.*

May 24th, 2024; The second update.
After dinner; we, that is Jeannie and I; went to the clinic to change the dressing. The doctor says the wound is healing nicely. Pain is still there, slight pain around the edge of the wound. Once in a while a sharp pain comes and goes in a while. Other than that, everything is good.

NOTES:
1. P.J. or Petaling Jaya, is a city in the central state of Selangor, Malaysia.
2. K.L. or Kuala Lumpur, is the capital of Malaysia.
3. USJ is part of the thriving city of Subang Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia.
4. Char kway teow is a stir-fried rice noodle dish from Maritime Southeast Asia of southern Chinese origin. In Hokkien and Teochew, char means ‘stir-fried’ and kway teow refers to flat rice noodles. wikipedia

MY WAY

May 7, 2024May 8, 2024 / Alan Atkinson / Leave a comment

And now, dinner is near…I ate Yau Char Kway…I did it my way (to the tune of “My Way”)

Damansara Heights is a place where the rich tougeys stay…tougey or towkay? Depends on how one pronounces it. However, this is a place, the place where those who are above the affluent status (just being affluent doesn’t cut it.), live.

As you would expect, everything or almost everything here is at a premium price. The stores are premium, too. When you hear Pavilion; you know that everything here, almost; is ssseesss so hotly expensive.

It was after work for Jeannie. I picked her up from her office and drove up here, to Damansara Heights. Jeannie, my wife; and I, window-shopped at this latest Pavilion premium mega shopping gallery, while waiting for our daughter, Laura; who had an appointment at one of the restaurants. Laura was done within an hour. We decided to have dinner in Pavilion; instead of wading through the traffic jam all the way back to Subang Jaya.

We came across a “I Love You” restaurant. You would think this was some sort of dating restaurant, for romances to bloom and relationships to bond. Not so. They actually serve food like “yau char kuey” and “ham ching peng”. (1)

We have eaten this delicious food on multiple (not many. “Many” is for the commoner 😉😏😅.) occasions at their other outlets in Publika Shopping Gallery and Empire Shopping Gallery, to name a few. However, it has been a long time since we last ate at one of these establishments.

I Love You is sort of a fast food restaurant where you get your food immediately.

I picked a table that was not directly under the air-conditioning. The Pavilion was a tad bit uncomfortably cold, temperature wise. Jeannie and Laura brought our food over.

*Me, trying to be inconspicuous and not make it obvious that I am looking at the love sign, not the lady. I am so transfixed on the sign, trying to read the whole poster.*

*Me: The suave look, with a big bone above my head.*

While waiting for Jeannie and Laura to order our dinner at the counter, I was trying to create “the look” which would be used for newspapers, magazines, online publications and social media. So, shoot away. With the smartphone camera, I tried capturing “that angle“. At least that was what people around me must have been thinking; with all those selfies that the camera was taking of me. Haha😂

*Made by hand. Made by love. The rest of the poster is kind of gibberish, especially when I am trying to read the message reflected off my phone’s screen in camera mode.*

*Something seems to have caught her attention. What is she looking at? She’s constantly on the lookout for new products for her Business Development unit.*

Laura on the left, the Batik Influencer, Jeannie in the centre, and me, the Hatted Writer. Me, the Hatted Writer; having had experience with former World Ventures; with one of their famous poses and smile / laugh with mouth open.

Laura and Jeannie wanted porridge. It looked yummy as they dipped pieces of the yeow char kway in the porridge, then ate them. I, personally am not into porridge, but I can imagine that it was good, as I saw the satisfaction on Jeannie’s and Laura’s faces as they savored it.

*Yau char kway, cut in pieces; ready to be eaten with porridge rice.*

I had the butterfly style, and a couple of other types of yeow char kway. We had a large glass of hot soya bean drink, shared between Jeannie and me. You can choose to order the soya bean drink cold, as well. It is just as good. Laura had her Starbucks iced coffee drink with her.

*My meal, a mixture of hum ji peng with red bean filling, hum ji peng with sweet glutinous rice and butterfly shaped style yau char kway.*

*Rich, thick, soya been milk drink. No added sugar. We took it hot. Delicious to the last drop.*

The food and drink was really (“really” – should I use this word? There will be a question mark”?”) good. Dinner was good. The staff were friendly, too. If ever you are in Pavilion Damansara; drop by to this restaurant for a good local meal.

After dinner, it was a short walk back to our car, before heading home. The weather was good throughout the evening. It was a pleasant and comfortable evening at the Pavilion. We were at a relaxed pace. Nice.

*Our din-din. Looks simple. It is simple. It was delicious. We had more than our fill.*

A follow up from the previous article:
http://leatherpotato.com/2024/05/06/a-new-burger-joint-in-town/

NOTES:
1. Yau char kway is an oil-fried pull-apart dough stick popular throughout Southeast Asia. Twinned lengths of wheat-flour dough are fused together, with a groove down the centre making them easy to tear in half lengthways. wikipedia
2. ‘salty fried pancake’, also spelt hum chim peng, known in Singapore and Malaysia as haam ji peng, hum ji peng, or ham ji peng, is a deep-fried hollow doughnut of Chinese origin. Commonly eaten as a breakfast food, it is sometimes fried with a coating of sesame seeds. Ham chim peng. wikipedia.

SUNDAY MORNING INDIAN CUISINE BRUNCH

April 28, 2024April 28, 2024 / Alan Atkinson / Leave a comment

8.25am, Sunday morning. Just managed to park the car in a good spot, about a third of a kilometer away. You don’t really hear people say half a kilometer, or a quarter kilometer or even a third of a kilometer away. It’s usually a quarter or half a mile away. So, many of you must be wondering, “How far is a third of a kilometer in miles?”

The calculation will be 300 metres (0.3km or a third of a kilometre) x (stands for multiply) 0.621 miles (1 kilometer = 0.621miles) = (will give you the answer) 0.2484 miles. To round the answer to 2 decimal places : 0.2484 miles = 0.25 miles, or a quarter of a mile.

You may ask, “Why didn’t I say miles in the first place?” Well, the Americans use the non-metric / imperial system : miles, yards, feet, gallons. The rest of the world or most countries use the metric system: kilometers, metres, kilograms, etc. Now, both sides will get an idea of the distance.

Parking the car this far from church was not really by choice. We, that is, Jeannie and I; left our house later than usual and arrived at church later than usual. Hence, our third of a kilometer or quarter mile walk to church.

We were 5 minutes late. So was the priest as mass had not started yet. He was caught up at the confessional, I think. The Assistant parish priest of Church of The Visitation Seremban, Rev, Fr. Xavier Andrew was presiding at mass this morning. He was at St. Thomas More church to promote Archdiocesan Ministry of Ecumenical & Inter-Religious Affairs (AMEIA). Lively priest. Interesting ministry. I remember working with Rev. Fr. Jojo Fung, SJ; to start up a fairly similar ministry like this on a regional / international scale; somewhere in 1999.

After mass, a leisurely walk back to the car must have created an appetite as we had to decide what to eat…as usual. This time we narrowed the choices down as the figure on the weighing scales was inching (not millimetering) its way up. It would have been a good idea to use A.I. or Artificial Intelligence in weight meaurement. Then, we won’t have to believe the scales.

I am determined to get back down to the weight I set as a goal. By being conscious what we eat, the amounts we eat and the times we have our meals, getting to our desired weight goal is possible.

We decided on the place where all the stars meet, Star Bhavan in SS14, Subang Jaya. (8) We had to go round a couple of times, looking for a car park. We found one about 150 meters away.

The restaurant was crowded. However, we managed to get a table. Jeannie ordered idli (1) and black coffee. I wanted capati (2) (as it is made without oil), but they were out of it. So, I went for their roti canai (3) and an iced lime juice.

Jeannie’s Idli came with 3 condiments: curry, white coconut chutney (4) and a sort of red / orangy chutney / sambal (5). She enjoyed her meal. My roti chanai also came with 3 condiments: fish curry, sambal (chilli) and what looked like a vegetable curry. Our meal was light, yet tasty. It was more brunch for us.

*Jeannie’s meal: Idli with side condiments of coconut chutney, curry and an orangy, spicy sambal.*

*My roti canai with fish curry on the right, sambal and a vegetable curry.*

On our back to our car, Jeannie wanted to stop by at the provision shop to buy some Indian Spices. SS14/1 has one long stretch of shops selling all sorts of Indian products. There are many restaurants along this stretch, Star Bhavan being one of them. This is a sort of a mini or micromini of the Mini India found in Brickfields, K.L.; (6) or Jalan Tengku Kelana in Klang (7).

Jeannie did not just stop at one shop. She went into a few shops. I thought it was quite interesting when I walked into a provision shop with her. They had multiple products from India. I guess this would be a one-stop shop to get all the ingredients for an authentic Indian curry. We bumped into Uncle Ronnie, my dad’s youngest brother, who bought a comb of bananas. He was in and out of the shop in a dash. It was good seeing him.

Looking forward to the rest of the day, though at a relaxed pace. Have a great Sunday!

NOTES:
1. Idli or idly is a type of savoury rice cake, originating from South India, popular as a breakfast food in Southern India and in Sri Lanka. The cakes are made by steaming a batter consisting of fermented black lentils and rice. wikipedia
2. Chapati, also known as roti, rooti, rotee rotli, rotta, safati, shabaati, phulka, chapo, sada roti, poli, and roshi, is an unleavened flatbread originating from the Indian subcontinent and is a staple in India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Kyrgyzstan, Sri Lanka, the Arabian Peninsula, East Africa, and the Caribbean. wikipedia
3. Roti canai or roti prata, also known as roti chanai, and roti cane, is an Indian flatbread dish found in several countries in Southeast Asia, especially Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand. wikipedia
4. Coconut chutney is a south indian condiment made with fresh coconut, chilies, spices & herbs. Swashti’s Recipes.
5. This is a Kerala style Red Coconut Chutney. Yes, red because of the dried red chilies in it, yet not something that is too spicy to handle! The flavor of this chutney is as beautiful as it looks. Thus, instantly becomes a great pair with Dosa, Idli, Medu Vada, Uttapam and Appe.
Red Coconut Chutney (Kerala Style), Dassana Amit, Dassana’s Veg Recipes, http://www.vegrecipesofindia.com
6. Kuala Lumpur or K.L., is the capital of Malaysia.
7. The Little India enclave, located along Jalan Tengku Kelana in Klang, is the largest Indian-influenced street in Malaysia. Klang City is in the state of Selangor.
8. Subang Jaya is a bustling city in the state of Selangor, Malaysia.

SEE YOU AT F3.02

March 22, 2024March 23, 2024 / Alan Atkinson / Leave a comment

3rd Floor, Amcorp Shopping Mall,
Booth 3.02, 3rd Floor, West Wing,
Amcorp Shopping Mall,
8, Jalan, Persiaran Barat, Seksyen 52 Petaling Jaya, 46050 Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia
Date: Mar 23 and Mar 24, 2024
Time: 10.00am to 5.30pm (can be extended to 7.00pm)

“I shall return”, said the Hatted Writer at the end of the last outing at Amcorp Shopping Mall in Petaling Jaya.

And so I will. The Batik Influencer and I, the Hatted Writer, will be at Amcorp Shopping Mall tomorrow, March the 23rd, and Sunday, March the 24th. We have loved every time we organised a booth at the shopping mall. It can be a tad tiring, but (stronger emphasis than the word “however”) we always have fun. Every outing has always been different mainly because we constantly meet new people who are kind enough to share their personal likes, family and culture with us.

This time out, the Batik Influencer has a whole new line up (every line up is new) of her fabulous “JEANNIE’S OWN” batik capes. The number of pieces have been limited to a very tight number. However (gentler word than “but”), they are already being snapped up pretty fast. So, if you want to own one or more of Jeannie’s Own Batik Capes, it’d be best if you come early to get it / them.

One of the Batik Influencer’s customers came by with her husband, the last time we were here, and shared their wedding picture of her, the new bride; wearing a JEANNIE’S OWN timeless creation at their wedding ceremony. Congratulations to the newlyweds. The bride looked beautiful in her newly acquired JEANNIE’S OWN batik cape.

The readers of Leatherpotato.com : I look forward as usual, in meeting with many of you, subscribers, readers, supporters, fans; this weekend. Come share your thoughts on how my book should pan out. There seems to be some historical facts (Though what we deem as “historical fact” is constantly altered to suit the whims and fancies of those who can alter [fact]) lined up, together with personal experiences, campur-ed (1) with sci-fi and hopefully humour. I can’t see through the depth of the novel yet. I wonder how J. K. Rowlings could even come up with a series of books. She is brilliant. J. K. Rowlings will not be at Amcorp Shopping Mall this weekend. You will have to settle with me. 😉😁😂

We continue, too; to have a wide array of things, including from our travels; that you can acquire for your very own. Come and have a look-sie.

I know that we are gonna (American for “going to”) have loads of fun. Come and join in. Make lots of noise. Looking forward to seeing you.

NOTE:
1. Campur is the Malay word for mix. the “-ed” is adding English flavour 😂 to the word to make it past tense – already done.

*A limited number of Hotwheels, Corgi, Matchbox, and other brands of yesteryear are available this weekend.*

THE STAR: LOTS GOING FOR IT

March 12, 2024 / Alan Atkinson / Leave a comment

The Monday after Taylor Swift was in Singapore. No, I did not go for her concert. However, (I replaced the word “but” with this. “However” does not sound brash like the word “but”) it is the Monday after Taylor Swift performed her week long string of concerts in Singapore. I am not really a Swiftie fan like the Australian Prime Minister. I like more than “some” of her songs; not all of them.

On our way back from K.L. after picking my wife, Jeannie, and our daughter, Laura; up from work, we were caught in the usual snail pace traffic jam. One would think; after going though this daily evening task for months and years, we would be used to it by now. Well, traffic jams are one of those things that we do not want to get accustomed to. We are a nation of motor vehicles. Our roads, streets, highways…are not coming on stream fast enough to cater for this blizzard of motor vehicles.

So, what do we do? We chug along, impatiently patiently to get to out destination with our nerves intact (sometimes – barely). The car radio is kept off since there is more noise from it with its constant advertisements than from the traffic outside the car.

As we are meter-ing (We are averaging speed momentum at around 6kph to 8 kph), the question of what would we like to have for dinner. We want some place that is air-conditioned as the humidity is still high, though a bit lower than last week. So, we want comfort. Then, the offerings of what type of food, if Indian, will it be at the Taj or the Star, if Chinese food, will it be the coffee shop in SS15 or Kar Heong for their chicken rice and siew yuk, or do we go for Scottish food at McD’s?

We (Jeannie and Laura) quite quickly decided on the Star (Star Bhavan) because the restaurant is air-conditioned, clean, brightly lit, fairly easy to get parking (this is where the Taj loses out – parking is limited). Most important the food is superb and at decent reasonable prices.

*Laura’s rice “set”, with masala chicken, potato, curry and papadam.*

As we walked in to the restaurant, I noticed all their vadai, currypuffs and other snacks. I immediately chose 1 of each variety (a total of 5), packed them in bags (self-served) for takeaways as breakfast for tomorrow.

*Indian doughnut (“donut”, American spelt), known as methu vadai.*

*Parapu vadai and a sort of kueh ringkas style in a ball.*

Laura went for a rice set. She chose rice, masala chicken, potato and papadam. Here meal did not only look good, it tasted good, too.

*Jeannie’s order of roti canai telur (egg). You can see the egg on the left, bottom, of the roti canai telur.* *It came with a spicy curry and what looked like dhal gravy.*

*My order of Nescafe ice, kurang manis (less sugar).*

Jeannie ordered a roti canai telur (1). She ordered a hot tea to go with her meal. The tea looked good and I’m sure it tasted good, too. I am not a “tea” person.

This was the third time I ordered roti canai sardine; 3 visits in a row. It must have tasted so good that I had to keep ordering it. It did! This simple, yet fabulous meal, was served with a spicy curry and dhal gravy. RM5 or US$1.07: that was how much it cost.

Star Bhavan is clean and brightly lit; making it a pleasant experience each time we dine there. The food is consistently good. You are most likely going to come out of there each time, a happy and satisfied customer. This restaurant has its star shining brightly, for sure.

*My order of roti canai sardine, with a spicy curry and dhal gravy.*

*Right to left: Laura in white, me, the Hatted Writer; and Jeannie.*

NOTES:
1. Roti Canai telur. “Telur” means egg in Bahasa Malaysia.
2. Star Bhavan is in SS14/1, Subang Jaya. Subang Jaya is a bustling and lively city in the state of Selangor, Malaysia.

AT THE TAJ

January 30, 2024January 30, 2024 / Alan Atkinson / Leave a comment

Whenever we are on our way back from either K.L. or P.J. (1), going towards Subang Jaya, the Federal Highway, heading towards Subang Jaya, Shah Alam and Klang (2) is usually choked with traffic, causing traffic jams which could last for an hour or more. It usually takes us about 40 minutes to an hour just to get to Subang Jaya from P.J., which is only 10km away.

The traffic jam – a permanent feature on this route most times of the day, or night, is no escaping. I heard the news over the radio recently that over 800,000 new motor vehicles were registered last year. Our city roads and highways were not built to cater for the every increasing number of vehicles each year.

So, what do most Malaysians do in traffic jam situations like these? You guessed it – Food! Malaysians love to eat. You think? Restaurants are springing up everywhere. Though prices continue to escalate, restaurants continue to thrive. If more restaurants operate along highways, they give highway and road users more choice of food. They provide a service which is greatly appreciated.

Jeannie and I decided to make a slight, that is a very slight detour and head to The Taj Curry House located in SS12, Subang Jaya. They are across Subang Jaya Medical Centre and the Dorsett Grand Hotel. We usually come here just to break journey from what may be 1 to 2 hours in the car because of traffic jams.

The Taj Curry House is nice and comfortable. One gets to appreciate the air-conditioning especially on very hot and humid days like today. They serve Indian cuisine. The quality of food served here has been consistently good. I wondered if the sweet-looking, “diva-like” waitress would recognise me in this new look, with me wearing my newly acquired Panama hat. Can it be considered a “disguise”?

She did, not immediately. “Is that you, Carlos, the electric guitar player? You shaved your moustache”, she asked. I said, “No, it’s me, Alan, the writer”. “Ooohhh!”, she replied. Why “diva-like”? You will have to meet me and I will tell you. She’s a shy, but nice waitress.

As it was said, the food here was good as usual. The service here is fast. Jeannie ordered one roti canai (3), I ordered two roti canai(s). We also ordered “Limau ais” (though I always say, “Ais Limau”), which is iced lime juice.

With our roti canai which was served on a tray with 3 multi sections, came the usual dhall, fish curry and sambal condiments. Jeannie ordered fried chicken as an additional dish. The fish curry was extra nice today. We enjoyed our meal.

The idea of break journey from long trips or long times spent in the car (even though the distances could be short) is a good idea. Places like The Taj Curry House offers good food at reasonable prices, in a comfortable, relaxing environment. It is one of Jeannie’s and my favourite go-to places when we come into Subang Jaya.

As for me with my Panama hat on, I did have a fair share of glances and looks towards me. Who knows, maybe when we come here the next time, there will be others wearing hats, too.

On a different note, I wonder why people wear dark glasses (shades) inside buildings, even when some of these buildings are poorly lit. I have come to an assumption:
1. They are hiding a black eye.
2. They have rings around their eyes.
3. They don’t have beautiful eyes. (Mine are brown, and they are beautiful😉😁)

Having fun

NOTES:
1. K. L. or Kuala Lumpur is a city in Malaysia.
P. J. or Petaling Jaya, is a city in the state of Selangor, Malaysia.
2. Subang Jaya, Shah Alam and Klang are cities in the state of Selangor, Malaysia.
3. Roti canai or roti prata, also known as roti chanai, roti chennai and roti cane, is an Indian flatbread dish found in several countries in Southeast Asia.

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