Month: April 2012

Mukha Cafe @ Taman Tun Dr Ismail (TTDI)

My wedding photographer, Anna-Rina recommended this place to us for coffee.

I must say it was a good recommendation. Located in the neighbourhood of Taman Tun Dr Ismail, this classy artistic cafe provides a comfortable environment for patrons which are predominantly hispter Malays.

According to their Facebook page:-

A Recipe For A Good Gathering In the heart of TTDI, nestles a cozy little cafe called Mukha that draws its inspiration from a place of the same name in Yemen where traders from all corners of the world used to meet and trade coffee in the 15th century. A place that was built out of love for good food and good company, Mukha will continue to inspire others as a place where you can meet, unwind while enjoying the taste of your favourite cup of coffee and other delectable offerings. Coupled with its cosy ambience, it’s the perfect recipe for all gatherings, whether with friends or families. Gather and share your common love for good food and good company at Mukha, TTDI.


The cafe shares a spot with a small pastry shop called Suoka which serves to-die-for red velvet cake. Cream cheese was sour enough. It was very moist too!


Big Breakfast (RM13). Large portion. Doesn’t come with many options like Departure Lounge. But Arab toast was tasty.


Latte. Coffee taste rather light and faint. Should have ordered double shot!

I accidentally left my iPad at Mukha and rushed back there after an hour. When I came back, the kind waiter kept it for me. Looks like honesty is one of the things they serve! Thumbs up!

Address
15, Lorong Rahim Kajai 13,
Taman Tun Dr. Ismail
60000 Kuala Lumpur

Opening Hours :
Mon – Thurs 12pm-10pm,
Fri 2pm-12am,
Sat 12pm–12am.
Closed Sundays.

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Samsung Global Blogger Contest

[Advertorial]

To digress from the main topic a little, the deadline to enter the Samsung Global Blogger is coming up on 29 April 2012.

Samsung are searching throughout the world for curious, imaginative and motivated people to invite to London for a once in a lifetime trip to experience the London 2012 Olympic Games.

If you’re chosen, you will be based in the capital during the biggest sporting event of the year. While there, you will search out the best London has to offer during the Games and share it with the world via video, photos and written entries on specially created blogs. You’ll provide a unique insight into the Olympics as it dominates life in London through the summer.

To become a Samsung Global Blogger now, you need to:-

STEP 1: Create a 30 second audition video in English
STEP 2: Upload it before April 29th
STEP 3: You could win a trip to report from London if your video is selected!

Click “Enter now” at Samsung Global Blogger website or read on for more details.

Some of my friends have entered the contest. Check them out!


Huai Bin


Tian Chad

Perhaps someone can do a video with Bersih rally on the background? 😀

You can find all the details from Samsung Global Blogger website.

Bersih 3.0

It’s been another crazy week. Hardly had time to think of what to blog.

The Bersih 3.0 rally is just a day away. Although I would love to attend it again, whether as an observer under the Bar Council or as a participant, I will not be in the country.

In fact, I will be New York City and Washington DC to attend the annual International Trademarks Attorney (INTA) Conference. New York City is also having their own Bersih rally on the day I arrive. Unfortunately, it will be over when I arrive the city.

Anyway, to anyone attending the rally in Kuala Lumpur, stay safe. Make sure:-

1. You wear comfortable clothes and shoes. You need to run when things go wrong. Looking pretty is the last thing you want to do in a Bersih rally. But perhaps not smelling bad is something you should ensure.
2. Bring water, towel and some salt. The effect of tear gas is a bitch. It feels like having onions rubbing onto your eyeballs.


Bersih 2.0 – the moment when tear gas was fired.

3. Never resist arrest with force but you can always question why you are arrested. If you resist arrest, you can be assured that you’ll be subdued with force. Look for the Bar Council monitoring team members so that you can provide your details to them. At least there is a record that the authorities have taken you away.
4. If provoked, never retaliate. Never participate in any form of violence. It gives the authorities the reason to arrest or disperse the crowd. Make sure you bring your identity card along. It is an offence if you are unable to produce your identification to the authorities when asked.
5. I was told that tear gas will be fired once a bell is rung. If you find FRU marching towards the crowd and a bell is being rung, start moving against the wind.
6. Always think of escape routes whenever there are many people. This will avoid you being trampled when something happens.
7. Be vigilant of explosions. If you see any suspected parcels, move away and alert people or even the police. During Anwar’s trial verdict early this year, homemade bombs exploded outside the Kuala Lumpur High Court. No one was caught until today.
8. Remember that not all police personnel are bad. There are good cops and bad cops. When I was running away from tear gas during the Bersih 2.0 rally, a policeman guided me to a safe spot. I ran towards the spot but he remained at his place taking the brunt of the tear gas.
9. You sign Negaraku as if it is your last time singing it. The state of our country is getting terrible. We need to boose the moral of the Rakyat to make Malaysia a better place.

Ishin Japanese Restaurant, Old Klang Road

I brought my wife to Ishin Japanese restaurant for her birthday after a treat at Khayena Spa. My friend recommended Khayena Spa and my wife thinks it’s great.

Anyway, Ishin Japanese Restaurant is located in an old bangalow facing Old Klang Road. The bangalow has been there ever since I was a kid. Before it became a Japanese restaurant, it was a laundromat. Now its a spanking Japanese restaurant with nice ambiance and interior. Service is not bad. There’s free valet parking too.


Their menu is in the iPad. Quite impressive. Would be better if you could order your food using the iPad!

Their website stated that their ingredients are specially flown from the famed Tsuji market in Tokyo. Notwithstanding the distance, their food was fresh. Our first meal, salad tofu, was great. The tofu tasted was thick and creamy. It was like ice cream.


I had their Unagi Zen. Like any normal Unagi dinner set, it came with tempura, chawamushi and fruits. Priced at RM45, it was nevertheless good.


Sushi was great as well. Wasabi was great too. Gave me a massive headache.


For dessert, we ordered chocolate parfait and gomo (black sesame) ice cream.

The chocolate parfait was disappointing. It was just a cupful of chocolate icecream and whipped cream. I did not even finish it. So far, I prefer Pasta Zanmai’s parfait.

In fact, their goma ice cream was better although it came in a small bowl.

Overall experience was good. I will come back again.

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Address
No. 202, Persian Klang Batu 3 3/4
Off Jalan Kelang Lama,
58000 Kuala Lumpur

03-7980-8228 (Call for reservation)
Website: http://ishin.my/

Fukuoka, Japan – 2012 – The City

This post has been long pending. I finally found time to complete this!

These few weeks I’ve been busy with my new firm. In fact, you’ll find more updates at my blawg than here.

The Fukuoka City that I know is a quiet city. It’s unlike Tokyo and it’s not buzzing with activities. Probably it’s because I was only there for a day on a weekday. It’s a mixture of old and new buildings.


Most of the buildings are in dull colours. Yawn.


Eeny Meeny Miny Mo is a shopping centre.

I spent the entire day in the city with my new friend, Indian lawyer Chander. We roamed around the city on foot so that we can see the city in detail. But we stopped by a few places for a break.


At one of our many breaks.

Gaythri highly recommended that we head to Ichiran for their to-die-for ramen. In Ichiran, you can custom make your ramen by filling up a questionnaire requesting precisely how they want your noodles prepared. Flavour strength, fat content, noodle tenderness, quantity of special sauce and garlic content can all be regulated. An English language request form is also available.


Explaining how Ichiran works.

Each patron is given a private cubicle to consume his or her ramen. It’s you and your ramen having a good time together.


Me and the bowl before our sexy time.


My, my..how you doing.

I must say this ramen is extremely delicious. I’ve never tried anything like this before! Pork melts in your mouth! ARGH!

We continued roaming the city on foot after our delicious meal.

For dinner, we chose a place randomly. However, I realise that it’s the same place I went when I was in Tokyo many years ago. I remember it serving good food and indeed they serve good food in this branch. Japanese quality never fails!

With my rusty Japanese, I managed to order a few good sashimi to be shared between me and Chander.


Chander and me

We had a little problem getting back to our hotel. Our hotel bus was no where to be seen. We decided to take a train home. It wasn’t easy as we were merely guessing our way home. We asked for directions from the locals. I must say that the Japanese, when it comes to giving directions, is extremely helpful. They personally brought us our location even though it took more than 10 minutes to get there!

After more than an hour, we found our way to the hotel. We had to walk to the train station. It was almost pitch black and extremely cold.

I wish I had more time to explore Fukuoka especially the countryside. Let’s hope there will be another opportunity like this again!

Muar Creampuff @ Fung Seng Confectionary, Jalan Abdullah, Muar

I was at Muar with my wife to attend my former house mate’s wedding. My former house mate, Alex Ng, moved back to Muar to practice as a lawyer after years of serving as a lawyer in one of Kuala Lumpur’s reputable firms. He now runs his parents’ legal firm.

The wedding was massive. There were more than 90 tables.

So back the topic of food, I went back to the chicken rice ball and otak-otak place for lunch.


The place was packed. But it was well worth the wait especially the concoction of chicken rice balls, otak-otak with dark and thick soya sauce. You can read my earlier review here.

Lynnzter recommended that I try the cream puffs at Fung Seng confectionery at Jalan Abdullah. It’s a massive bakery with all sorts of cakes and pastries. Since I was quite full with lunch, I only bought their cream puff which came in a box of 8 small mini cream puff.


Each cream puff was chilled. Their corn flavoured cream filled the pastry to the brink. It was absolutely delicious!

Not much is said about the creampuffs on the internet but I think it’s worth buying back home for friends and family. And it’s only RM2.80 per box!

Address
89, Jalan Abdullah,
84000 Muar
Johor

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