KL Sedap 2014 Part 5: Chili's

Chili's is definitely one of the more popular names when it comes to Western food fare especially when we go over to Malaysia since we can't have it here in Singapore. And yeah there are more choices nowadays but Chili's has been around for quite awhile and still seems like a very popular place to visit!

Burgers, Ribs, Steaks, Mexican - you name it and you can get it here!

Classic Nachos (RM25.95)

Okay we have to start by saying that this was not what we were expecting... LOL
When someone says Nachos, I think of a nice big messy pile of Nacho chips, beef, jalapenos, salsa, guacamole, sour cream, lettuce and cheese all looking gooey and stuff like that.

Well, this was a very... err... well presented plate of Nachos!

The Nacho chips were coated with some melted cheese and you're supposed to scoop on some salsa, guacamole and sour cream and have the chips like that one by one. Well, I guess that's one way to do it but maybe having it the good old fashioned (and more messy) way might have been more enjoyable. The taste was okay but definitely something different from the norm 'Nachos' we have.

Wings Over Buffalo (RM22.95)

Another appetizer we decided to have was Chili's take on Buffalo Wings.
Comes with some celery sticks to dip into the ranch sauce provided as well so you get your veggie intake while enjoying the junk food LOL

Let us give you a WARNING...
These wings are coated with a buffalo seasoning which probably includes a nice big dash of Tobasco Sauce... How did we find out? When you bring the wings to your mouth to quickly, you're probably gonna get a nice big whiff of the Tobasco in your nostrils. And THAT'S when you find out.

But besides the surprise, the wings were okay for a started. A little crispy on the outside and the BBQ flavour is really gonna awaken your tastebuds.

And another thing... they're kinda... small.

Guacamole Burger (RM25.95)

Time to starts on the mains and a nice bid ol' burger will do the trick.
You've got a nice juicy beef patty that's piled on with sauteed bell peppers, fire-roasted Jalapenos, caramelized onions, cumin-lime sour cream, Monterey Jack cheese and, of course, a nice big dollop of guacamole!

For the benefit of those who might be going "What's Guacamole??" right about now...
Well, it's a Mexican-food must-have and made up mainly of mashed-up Avocados. Some seasoning like salt and pepper is probable and some versions even go extreme.

Well, just the simple stuff here and the beef patty was cooked to perfection. This would be a great dish for someone who really loves burgers or is just really really hungry.

Chicken Crispers (RM26.95)

I actually wish I had taken this dish because it looks so darn good!
Hand-battered chicken strips are deep fried to a nice crispy perfection before being bathed in sweet-spicy sauce. Served with fries and come corn... MACAM POWER LIKE THAT!!

Anyways, because it's chicken breast and because it's deep fried, it turned out a bit dry...

BBQ Beef Ribs (RM57.95)

Here's what I had... And you know I'm gonna go for the meat right?
And even though we'd just had ribs at Tony Roma's awhile back, I couldn't resist to see if the ribs here were any different (or any better for that matter)

I will say that the ribs were considerably smaller but still had a very distinct BBQ flavour to them.
As you can see, they really baste it on there and you can even add more if you'd like.

Meat was tender but a little on the dry side though. But I guess I really can't complain much because I still quite enjoyed the ribs. And the serving was actually just nice for 1 person especially if you're going to have some side dishes to go along.

Southwestern Grilled Lamb (RM36.95)

This was probably the best-cooked meat on the table this time around.
The lamb was simply perfectly cooked and a nice medium well. Tender to cut and a great juicy flavour to it too!

You've got some Black Pepper sauce to go along if that's your thing. Enjoy with some mashed potatoes and veggies too.

Flame Grilled Ribeye Steak (RM55.95)

Here's the biggest disappointment of the meal....

We'd asked for the meat to be Medium Well but it arrived Blue.
What exactly is Blue? Well, it's the stage in between Rare and Medium Rare. That means only the outside is lightly seared and the meat inside is still pretty much raw. You can actually see this towards the bottom of the steak in that picture above... See those raw bits?

Yeah some people might go for that but not us and it was disappointing to order a good cut of meat and have it served not to expectations...

Anyways we send it back and they cooked it a little bit more and that was that.

Adam's Verdict:
BBQ Beef Ribs 2.5/5 -- Classic Nachos 1.5/5 -- Wings Over Buffalo 1.5/5

Maryah's Verdict:
Southwestern Grilled Lamb 4/5 -- Classic Nachos 2/5 -- Wings Over Buffalo 2.5/5

Razali's Verdict:
Flame Grilled Ribeye Steak 3/5 -- Classic Nachos 3.5/5 -- Wings Over Buffalo 4/5

Fateha's Verdict:
Chicken Crispers 3/5 -- Classic Nachos 2.5/5 -- Wings Over Buffalo 3/5

Azim's Verdict:
Guacamole Burger 4/5 -- Classic Nachos 3/5 -- Wings Over Buffalo 4.5/5

So I guess Chili's is actually not too bad. They do have quite a big menu so you can really try a few things if you're looking for something you like.

CHILD FRIENDLY FACTOR

Ask the staff about the 'Kids Eat Free' specials they have! And yes they do have baby chairs upon request. But try and ask for a table near the window if possible because the booths are pretty crampy. Plus at least you'll have a nice view while you eat.

Overall Child Friend Rating - 4/5

Chili's

Lot 346B Level 3, Suria KLCC
Kuala Lumpur City Centre

Tel : +60 3 2164 1400
www.chilis.com.my

Operating Hours:
Sunday - Thursday :11.00am - 11.00pm
Friday & Saturday :11.00am - 12.00am

KL Sedap 2014 Part 4: Berjaya Times Square Taste Of Asia Foodcourt - Korean Food

So it was time for brunch and we were a bit short of time because we were leaving for the airport in awhile so we didn't want to have to go out too far to get something to eat. Since we were staying at Berjaya Times Square Hotel, we decided to just stick around within the shopping centre itself.

We'd heard about the foodcourt at B1 but never really visited. They seemed to have quite a few options but we didn't know what would be open since it was still early goings and looked like some of the stalls were not even open yet.

In the end, my Darling Wife and I settled on the Korean Food!

Chicken BBQ (RM8.60 ala carte)

I had actually decided on the Bi Bim Bap (because I love it) but the stall was just opening and it wasn't ready for sale yet :\

But I guess it's a good thing because if it had been ready, we would not have been able to find out that the Chicken BBQ is actually really good! It comes on a hotplate so it's nice and sizzling and bubbling when it arrives so that's always an appetizing sight!

It's also got a sweet/spicy gooey sauce to go along which I really enjoyed because I don't mind the sweet but my Darling Wife would have preferred it a little less sweet and maybe a little more spicy.
The chicken was nicely cooked and onions are always welcome.

Kim Chi Fried Rice (RM11.20 set)

We had the Kim Chi Fried Rice to go along and it was quite a pleasant surprise because this was the first time we were having Kim Chi Fried Rice. I mean, we both love Kim Chi, but we've never had it in fried rice before.

Firstly, let me say the accompanying side garnishes were a bit weird.
The seaweed was a bit misplaced to be honest and this was also the first time we had shredded potatoes in Korean food (is that normal??). Thank goodness for the sunny side up fried egg!

The rice itself is rather wet because it looks like it's fried with the kim chi (paste?) and also with bits and pieces of kim chi which was actually quite nice. It's quite starchy but the flavour was actually pretty okay to be honest. It's not as spicy as it looks by the way...

Set meals are accompanied by a bowl of soup (which you can give a miss no problem), a cup of Korean tea and also some kim chi and errrr shredded potatoes LOL

Adam's Verdict:
Chicken BBQ 4/5 -- Kim Chi Fried Rice 3.5/5

Maryah's Verdict:
Chicken BBQ 3.5/5 -- Kim Chi Fried Rice 3/5

Plenty of other choices at the Berjaya Times Square Foodcourt but the Korean Food stall seemed really popular and I guess we can see why. Now, after typing this review out, I feel like having some Korean food LOL

Korean Food

Berjaya Times Square Taste Of Asia Foodcourt
Lot LG-23, West, Lower Ground

www.berjayatimessquarekl.com/store/taste-of-asia-food-court-lowerground-floor-west-wing#

Operating Hours:
10.00am til 10.00pm Daily

KL Sedap 2014 Part 3: Mohd Yaseen Nasi Kandar Pulau Pinang

So my family has actually been visiting this same Nasi Kandar joint since Mein Bruder and I were just kids. We used to drive up to KL a lot for holiday and this was always the first stop. It's either we'd drive there straight after arriving in KL which would normally be close to lunchtime and we'd park and makan there or at most we'd pack a few and eat at the hotel.

Yeah we know there're so many Nasi Kandar places in KL right? Guess there's just something special about this one...

They've got quite an array of dishes for you to choose from. Granted that most of them are variants of the same thing (e.g. chicken or prawns cooked in 3 different ways) but you're still going to be hard pressed for choice let me tell you that.

And this place is old school so the rundown is really simple.
You join the queue and when you reach the counter, there'll be a guy ready with a plate of rice. You then proceed to tell him what you'd like piled on your plate and he obliges.

And when you're done, that's when the magic begins!
The guy will then proceed to finish off your plate with a little bit of every type of gravy there is there.
A little bit of this and little bit of that. What you end up with is a plate of yum!

Not sure what I mean? Check this out!


And that's considered not much okay! I've seen guys literally scoop out a little gravy from as many as 10 dishes onto a plate!! Well, suffice it to say that you'll have a very flavourful meal!

But what exactly can you choose from?

So you'll see this giant price list on the wall but not all the items will be available at one time of course. But rest assured you'll have quite a few to choose from. Let me give you a better idea of what you might consider getting.

I know this is not the best picture I could have snapped but hey I was impeded by the glass!
Anyways, this is a chicken dish. In fact, this is the #1 chicken dish here! I'm guessing this is listed as Ayam Kicap on that pricelist but it's far from just being your average Ayam Kicap trust me.

Pretty much everyone gets it because this is the bomb and they wheel this dish out by the bucket (literally) because it's such a sell-out item that goes really fast! It's got a very distinct taste which is really something that makes you wanna have more and more.

They've also got other types of chicken such as Honey Chicken and Masala Chicken but trust me and try this first okay.

Other big ticket items are the seafood dishes and it's not a guarantee they'll be out because I guess it depends on what they can get at the market too.

Crabs are a rarity and the prawns are always a big draw. But the Fish Roe is always the bomb am I right? But don't have too much okay leave some for the others LOL

So this is what our plates looked like.

The plate on top is mine and costs about RM13 somehow. Well, I wasn't counting because this was really a great plate of makan. I always have a little extra Salted Egg on there!!

They also have a few vegetable dishes for you to choose from but I always garnish with a simple serving of ladyfingers and also they have this cucumber/pineapple pickle thing.
Sometimes, simple is best!

My Darling Wife's plate costs a bit more because of the prawns and the fish roe so it;s about RM20. She opted for the Masala Chicken by the way which had a bit of a spicy kick.

And you can wash everything down with some Ais Limau!! Refreshing!

Adam's Verdict:
Nasi Kandar 4.5/5

Maryah's Verdict:
Nasi Kandar 4/5

The only other Nasi Kandar joint we've tried was Nasi Kandar Pelita.
Yeah it was not bad but I guess maybe because we've been going for so long so it's might be a habit. But there's no doubting the Nasi Kandar here is power.

My Dad has been to Penang and tried the 'original' Nasi Kandar there and he tells me it's really quite different from the Nasi Kandar we get in KL. Well, the original may be different but I think I might still prefer this version instead. :)

PS the newly renovated sign outside the shop reads MOHD YASEEM for some reason...
Maybe a typo?? LOL well look for the old school sign in the shop or just look for the queue.

Mohd Yaseen Nasi Kandar Pulau Pinang

351 Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Operating Hours: 24hrs Daily
Closed between 1-2pm on Fridays

KL Sedap 2014 Part 2: Tony Roma's

Tony oh Tony... you master of the beef ribs.
I don't know about you guys but when someone says beef ribs, we think of Tony Roma's. Yeah we know that we have to go across the Causeway to get our fix (for now) but hey when we're in the area we figure why not? Cos it's the rocks!

But first, something to get the appetite going (as if BBQ Beef Ribs were not enough)

Kickin' Shrimp (RM26.90)

I'm not really the shrimp/prawn guy because I'm really fussy about it. Yeah I know but hey that's just me. It's gotta be done some way I really like or I really can't be bothered. But these Kickin' Shrimp were not half bad to be honest.

They're coated in this kinda like spicy mayonnaise cream and just the right size to pop into your mouth for a nice bite. The sesame seeds are a nice tough and give a nice texture contrast. Not a bad start to the meal I'd say.

Onion Loaf (RM12.90)

Something deep fried can seldom go wrong and the Onion Loaf is a good example. When you're talking good ol' deep fried goodness, onions are a good bet!

Giant Spanish onions are ringed, battered up and fried to a nice crisp for you to dig into. You could go in with a fork but you know the best way is to just dig in with your fingers. The batter has a nice crisp to it and the onions are not going to overpower your tastebuds don't worry.

The only fault I found is that it's served with a BBQ sauce. I'd much rather have my deep fried battered onions served with a nice creamy ranch sauce. It's because of this factor that I'd still rank the Onion Glory at The Manhattan FISH Market still #1 in our books for deep fried onions.

Strawberry Walnut Salad (RM19.90)

For all you salad fans this one is for you. Some greens tossed in with walnuts, strawberries and feta cheese and a tangy vinaigrette here. Nothing really spectacular here but I'd definitely give points for the fate cheese.

Bountiful Beef Ribs

 Now this is what we are talking about - MEAT!!!

Time to unleash your inner caveman/cavewoman and enjoy a nice rack of BBQ Beef Ribs. These big ol' things are BBQ-ed to perfection in BBQ sauce. The meat is so succulent and tear off the bone with no issues whatsoever.

Like we said - cooked perfectly! It's got a nice char on the outside and inside you get some meat and some chewy bits. ZOMG I'm drooling just thinking about it!!

If you find the meat a little too dry for your taste, you can squirt on some additional BBQ sauce too.
They have a few flavours to choose from depending on what your taste is... Blue Ridge Smokies for that extra smoky flavour, Carolina Honeys for that sweet hint, Tony Roma's Red Hots for the spicy seekers and last but not least The Original BBQ Sauce.

Put on whatever sauce you want in whatever combination. The star is still the meat!!

You can choose to a Roma Rack of Ribs (RM53.90) or go the full monty with a Full Slab (RM78.90).

Filet Medallions and... Beef Ribs (RM69.90)

We decided we wanted to try some steak too and the Filet Medallions seemed like a good choice. But as you can see from the picture, it was a big disappointing.... And those ribs there are supposed to be the same Bountiful Beef Ribs from the first picture above but errr.... so different right...

So if you're going for the BBQ Beef Ribs, then we'd suggest you just go for the BBQ Beef Ribs.

Anyways as you can see from the pictures above, you do get some sides to go with your ribs...
You can choose from

• Fire Roasted Vegetables
• Cole Slaw*
• Corn on the Cob*
• French Fries*
• Loaded Mash Potatoes*
• Rice
• Ranch Style Beans
• Fresh Vegetables
• Baked Potato

The ones with the * are the ones we have tried. The Loaded Mashed Potatoes are a must and the Corn is a nice touch to be honest. If you want more sides that what you get in your meal, feel free to add on as much as you'd like but keep in the mind that the ribs are a big filler-upper!

Mint & Fruit Dream (RM14.90)

Orange juice, strawberries and cane sugar plus some mint make up this refreshing beverage that is guaranteed to cool you down. To be honest, one is not enough LOL
But do keep in mind that the fruit garnish may be fresh but not necessarily sweet *wink*

Adam's Verdict
Kickin' Shrimp 3/5 -- Onion Loaf 2/5 --  Strawberry Walnut Salad 1.5/5
Bountiful Beef Ribs 5/5 -- Mint & Fruit Dream 3.5/5

Maryah's Verdict
Bountiful Beef Ribs 4.5/5

Well, until a better beef ribs joint comes a long (and is Halal) then this is tops in our list.
May the beef be with you.

And before any of you go "Are you sure Halal? No lah not Halal! Got alcohol how come you say Halal?", please note that they do it a little differently in Malaysia compared to Singapore :)
Please do enjoy this read at this link. Maybe it'll help.

http://www.businessinsider.sg/heres-tony-romas-won-customers-muslim-majority-malaysia/

PS no need to go all the way to KL! Johor Bahru City Centre also got Tony Roma's!!
Thanks to our reader @NoraHirin for the heads up!!

Tony Roma's

Pavilion KL
168 Jalan Bukit Bintang, Kuala Lumpur
Lot No. 1.15, Level 1

Tel 603-2143 3278
www.tonyromas.com.my

Operating Hours:
11.00am til 10.00pm Daily

Sidratul Seaweed Cordial

Here at The Halal Food Blog, we are all about spreading the word and trying to help people along the way if we can. All the more if the makan or the product is good! So here's something interesting that we were not quite sure of when we first heard of it but now we're completely sold on it!

There have been plenty of 'food health fads' over the years. There was Acai berries and then Pomegranate and then Wheatgrass and then who else can remember lah (We are still waiting for the Fried Chicken phase to arrive). Well, we don't consider this product here a craze because it's been around for years and it's good enough that people don't need to glorify it to extoll its benefits.

Sidratul Seaweed Cordial not only has loads of health benefits but it tastes great too!

It's really true when they say that nature gives us the best things to consume and this is a good example. We're talking about positive effects all bottled up and ready to consume with water!

So what exactly does Seaweed Cordial help?

We read the benefits include improving skin health and elasticity probably because seaweed contains Magnesium, Vitamin A,C and E!

One thing everyone agrees on is that seaweed actually helps to purify the blood. Besides that, it's an excellent anti-oxidant, helps you to detox, treats ailments like gastritis, high cholesterol, gout, anemia and also helps to alkalize our blood. Especially helpful if we eat a lot of junk food!

And speaking of eating a lot, seaweed also supposedly helps with weight loss!!

Well besides health benefits, this cordial tastes great!!

This cordial contains minimal sugar but you can see from the picture that it's actually really concentrated! Just one tablespoon into a glass of water and ice is more than enough to get a great tasting and refreshing drink. It does not taste overly sweet compared to other cordial which add A LOT OF SUGAR to make it tasty. This Seaweed Cordial goes the natural route for prefect results.

I'm someone who LOVES to have sweet drinks especially when having a meal and even I know that too much sweet drinks is no good for you. But if you're gonna insist on having something like cordial to drink, you might as well choose this - a healthier choice!

Not only is this product certified Halal but it has also been given the stamp of IMP (Islamic Manufacturing Practice) in Malaysia. That's gotta be a big plus!

Well whatever the case is, this cordial tastes really good and we really enjoy it.
We just thought you might like it to! Give it a try and you could end up being hooked just like us!

You might see this being sold at certain roadshows or at certain mosques but if you want to place and order, we have the details right here for you.

Each bottle is priced at $10 a bottle and you can place your order by contacting;
Khairul (9474 2523), Haliza (9144 4702) or Jofrie (9272 5611). You can even clarify any questions you might have and I'm sure they'll be happy to oblige.

Thanks everyone and Seaweed Cordial FTW!!

KL Sedap 2014 Part 1: Nasi Ayam Hainan Chee Meng

So before we set out to KL, we asked our readers for some suggestions on makan places in KL that they'd like us to visit and review. Boy oh boy did we get a great response and a nice long list of makan places to visit.

Yeah we probably won't be able to fit every single one in because some are really far away from the city centre where we will be based and well technically we're only there for a total of just about 2 weeks. So we will try our best!!

So one of the places suggested by a few readers was Nasi Ayam Hainan Chee Meng.

At first, we thought that this chicken rice place was the one located just beside BB Plaza / Sungai Wang Plaza because we remember a chicken rice place from our past few visits. Well, apparently that's a different one and this one was a little further up the road.

Let us tell you that the Bukit Bintang stretch was under really heavy renovation when we visited. Guess they are re-doing the roads or something so it was quite a big turn we had to make on foot plus it was raining really heavily too!

Anyways we finally found the right place and we were ready for a nice hearty meal because the weather was cold and we were hungry!!

Half Roasted Chicken (RM33.00)

So we came all this way and no way were we gonna order just a small set.
We wanted to order half a Roasted Chicken and half a Steamed Chicken but they were all out of the latter so we settled on a whole chicken but it gets served in halves anyways.

You can also choose the Ayam Kampung version but it's a bit pricier at RM40.00 per half.
Rice is RM2 for a small and RM2.50 for a large one. Drumsticks/Boneless chicken is an extra RM1.
Bishop's Nose aka Tongkeng Ayam at RM0.50!!!

Quite a fair serving of chicken if we do say so.
But there was one problem... 5 of us all agreed on one thing about the chicken - it was tasteless.
It was pretty disappointing because we really thought this was gonna be the bomb.

Not sure maybe it was our bad luck to drop by on the wrong day?
The soy sauce was salty goodness in my opinion but then again a good roasted chicken should not have to rely on the soy sauce to give it flavour right? A good example is the Roasted Chicken at Tang Tea House in Singapore. Yeah the soy sauce is the bomb but the chicken on its own is power too.

But one thing is for sure. The chicken is really a big chicken so you're getting your money's worth in that respect. That picture above is a snap of the chicken breast part. Look at how thick it is!

The rice was also a bit of a let down. It was really grainy and actually it was close to being considered uncooked in some parts. Dry and a little bit hard to swallow on its own and also lacking the chicken flavour you'd expect in Chicken Rice.

The chilli seemed to be the saving grace here.
It was nice and spicy probably because they don't include too much garlic but more chillies instead (rightfully so) but still lacking in the flavour department. Yeah spicy... but not tasty.

But we guess that, in a way, the chilli was probably the best part of the chicken rice there.

Kailan Sos Tiram (RM14.00 Large)

There was a bit of the split decision on the veggies though.

We had the Kailan Sos Tiram (Oyster Sauce Kailan) which I personally thought was really good because the kailan was nice and cooked through as opposed to being too tough like some other places I'd been to before.

But a few others seemed to think some improvements were in order because it was a bit on the sweet side. I thought it was on the salty side which is probably why I liked it so much LOL. Well, anyways they also have a small serving for half the price in case you'd like a smaller size.

Wantan Goreng (RM6.00)

As a side, we decided to go for the Fried Wantons which seemed like nice and deep fried crispy goodness from the picture in the menu and I guess they were not that bad.

Nice and crispy fried goodies but a little lacking in the flavour department (as with most of the rest of the stuff we had there unfortunately).

They're packo full of minced chicken meat and good for dipping in the chicken rice chilli if you're looking to add a little kick into the wanton.

Other sides you might to choose from are the Kerabu Mangga (Thai Style Mango Salad) or maybe go for the Kerabu Kaki Ayam (Thai Style Chicken Feet Salad).

CHILD FRIENDLY FACTOR

Baby chairs are available upon request but a little crampy. Depending on the weather, might get a little stuffy too.

Overall Child Friendly Rating - 2.5/5

Adam's Verdict:
Roasted Chicken Rice 1.5/5 -- Kailan Sos Tiram 4/5 -- Wantan Goreng 2/5

Maryah's Verdict:
Roasted Chicken Rice 0.5/5 -- Kailan Sos Tiram 1/5 -- Wantan Goreng 1.5/5

Azim's Verdict:
Roasted Chicken Rice 2/5 -- Kailan Sos Tiram 1/5

Razali's Verdict:
Roasted Chicken Rice 2/5 -- Kailan Sos Tiram 2.5/5

Fateha's Verdict:
Roasted Chicken Rice 2/5 -- Kailan Sos Tiram 1/5

They actually have quite an extensive menu with items like Chicken, Prawns and Squid cooked in various styles like Salted Egg (!!), Sambal, Sweet & Sour etc and also a variety of vegetable dishes to go for as well but when a place has the words 'Nasi Ayam' in the name, you'd expect Chicken Rice to be the specialty there that can't go wrong.

We eat a lot of Chicken Rice (have you read The Chicken Rice Chronicles by the way?) and we have to say this was pretty disappointing. Sure this might appeal to some peoples' taste for sure but this wasn't for us.

PS the staff were really unfriendly too. Maybe it really was a bad day for us to visit.

Nasi Ayam Hainan Chee Meng

50 Jalan Bukit Bintang
Kuala Lumpur Malaysia

www.cheemeng.com.my

Operating Hours:
11.00am til 10.00pm Daily