My (2nd) Elephant

It was reported that the recent World Cup generated billions of dollars in illegal gambling's throughout the world. This dinner was part of these billions. At an earlier dinner in the midst of the football fever, the conversation inevitably drifted to the World Cup. To make things interesting, we decided on a small wager. A paper was passed round and each of us was to list down the 2 teams that we thought would make to the finals. The losers would buy dinner for the winners. When Germany and Argentina won their respective semi-finals, the group duly re-gathered for the dinner. I wasn't lucky. I predicted Germany and Nederland. 

The restaurant picked was a Thai in Aman Suria, Petaling Jaya. When this place was suggested, I immediately remembered My (Thai) Elephant that I had featured in my blog way back in 2010. That Elephant was in Section 17, PJ. I did not know that the restaurant had prospered and expanded - with branches, not only in Aman Suria but also in Sri Hartamas, K.L. 

The Elephant in Aman Suria occupied 2 shop lots with 2 dining areas. It was simple but tastefully furnished. White, blue and grey was the featured decor. Our reserved table was in the inner sanctum.

When we arrived there, SP had already ordered the dishes. The waiter was still around taking orders for drinks. The popular selection was this pandan juice with lime and mint. It looked very green.

I believed the more refreshing drink was this serai (lemon grass) juice which I opted for. It was cold and fragrant and thirst quenching. The biji selasih (basil seeds) added colour and flavour to it.

We started the meal with this miaeng kum. It was a Thai appetiser comprising various raw ingredients - chilli padi, diced lime, garlic, shallot, peanut, dry shrimp and sesame. It came with a sweet sauce. All these wrapped and eaten in daun kaduk - wild betel leaves.

The papaya salad had shredded unripe papaya with garlic, chilli padi, peanuts and the usual Thai stuffs in a sweet and sour sauce. And if it was not sour enough, they provided a slice of lime. The serving of very small. There were about a dozen of us with a couple of big eaters. Fortunately SP had presence of mind to order double servings for all the dishes.

The seafood tom yam was rather strong - hot, spicy and sour. There were prawns, squids and fish slices.

The waiters dished the 2 servings into small individuals bowls.

Gai tod is a Thai style fried chicken. Again, the serving was dismally small and even the 2 servings were not quite enough to go around. I could taste a strong herby marinade. The flavour was good. Wished there was more.

This was a platter of fish cake, tofu, and fried and fresh spring rolls. I only managed to taste the fish cake and the fried spring roll. I liked them both. But why couldn't they serve at least one piece of each for every diner? Moan.

Without sounding like a broken record, just look at the serving of the grilled squid. I had a bite of it. It was succulent and flavourful. Very nice.

The panaang gai or chicken curry was very nice. Like all Thai curries, it was thick and rich in santan (coconut milk). It went very well with rice.

Steamed siakap (barramundi) in Thai sauce. This was the only decent size serving of the meal. I didn't quite like the dish. Firstly, siakap is not my favourite fish. And the preparation was not fantastic.

This was kia jiao tofu. Kia jiao in Thai means omelet. So this had to be a tofu omelet. Honestly, this was a first for me. I had never heard, let alone tasted a tofu omelet. I did not taste any tofu in it. It was like one thick plain omelet. I guess they blended the tofu into the egg and then fried it into an omelet. I liked it. The texture was soft and nice. I think I will try making this one day. Tofu omelet - quite a novelty, isn't it?

Stir fried kai lan. Very mundane. Still it was a good choice of green.

We had a choice of white of brown rice. I was glad SP opted for the brown. 

With the small servings, I guess we all still had ample stomach space in spite of the many dishes. Each of us ordered our own individual desserts. Their was no suggestion of sharing. I believe this was a cheese cake. It looked like one with a thin layer of crust at the bottom. The reason I wasn't sure was the way they served it, with sticks on each piece of them.

My wife had this cold sago with nangka (jack fruit) and other goodies in it. I had a taste of it. It was very good. The coconut milk was rich and very fresh. The sago was plentiful and the nangka went very well with the whole thing.

The most popular dessert that evening was the red ruby (water chestnut). It was topped with diced mango.

My choice was the Thai classic - mango with glutinous rice. The serving was quite large. The glutinous rice was a mixture of white and brown, which was quite good. But the whole thing was not up to my expectation. The mango was rather soggy and the coconut milk was not quite enough. I wished I had ordered the sago instead.

The dinner was very enjoyable. I liked the company more than the food. And it was not going to end there. During the meal, another piece of paper was passed around to predict the champion. Like the tournament, there again would be winners and losers. And we would re-gather one more time.

Thai Street Food

I was really not sure what the name of this Thai restaurant was. It was variously known as Thai Street Food or BBQ Thai. Both names were prominently displayed on an old fibreglass water tank that was the branding signboard of the restaurant.

Located in Old Klang Road, KL, this Thai eatery occupied a big area of land, offering both outdoor alfresco dining and indoor compartmentalised air conditioned comfort. Since the Old Klang Road is such a long one - this is the exact address - 17, Lorong Jugra, Off Batu 3 1/3, Jalan Klang Lama, Kuala Lumpur.

Everything in the restaurant seemed to be built out of re-cycled material - the old fibreglass water tank for the main signboard, tables, chairs, the toilet fittings, dining cabins - all made from re-used wooden planks, zinc sheets, old water basins, etc. Seemed like a darn good idea. Recycling is the way to go. It is so much cheaper. And if done properly, can be quite charming. The whole place looked very rustic. Everything was in good working order.

Except perhaps this old Fiat 500 on display.

The alfresco dining area was in the centre of a big compound. Surrounding it were individual dining cabins. 

There were many of these cabins, and since they were made from recycled material, no two were quite alike. They looked very comfortable, cosy and air-conditioned. Some of the cabins were small, with single dining tables. Others were bigger with multiple tables.

We opted to dine in the open, even though it was aftermath of a shower. The tables and chairs were wet. I personally liked the outdoor. It was a reunion of sort from our European tour. In the party were Eddy, Bee, Benson and Nelly. My poor wife was could not make it because of work.

The BBQ pit was large and busy - and definitely hot. They were doing fish, prawns, squids, chicken, pork and all the usual stuffs. These were apparently very popular here.

Benson had always been the man in charge of F&B. He made the menu selection.

I guess BBQ was a must in this place. Benson ordered the pork. It was very well done. The meat was succulent. The flavour was delicious. It was served with a green sambal sauce. Very nice.

The kangkong was most ordinary. 

The seafood tom yam was served in a steamboat pot. I wondered why they did that. It served no purpose. They was no fire to keep the soup warm. Anyway, the tom yum was not great. There were some good size prawns, fish and squid. It was rather sour and spicy - not to my personal liking. 

I did not find the fish fantastic as well. It was a siakap (barramundi) steamed in a spicy Thai soup - not very dissimilar from the tom yam. The fish was fresh. But the flavour was not my favourite.

I like this plate of cockles (鲜蚶 - see hum). It was plainly boiled and not overdone. It was served with the same green sambal sauce. I liked opening them with my fingers. Messy, but finger licking good (apologies to KFC).

And of course, rice that came in a pot.

We had 2 types of desserts. The first was the "tub tim grob". It was red rubies (water chestnut covered with flour), with mango strips in coconut milk and shaved iced. Not bad at all. 

The other dessert was the local favourite - cendol, served with red beans and leong fun (凉粉 - grass jelly). Another good dessert. 

I would not rate the dinner very highly. I thought it was a very everyday sort of meal. The flavour of the food did not match the uniqueness of the place. And I really did not know why they call themselves Thai Street Food. They was nothing "street" about it - just normal Thai restaurant stuffs. I probably would had enjoyed more if there was some authentic Thai street fare. I was so looking forward to some deep fried grasshoppers.

Thai Nyonya

Restoran Thai Nyonya is a neighbourhood restaurant in a remote corner of Ara Damansara, PJ. Even we, having lived in the area for so many years, were not aware of its existence until we saw a flyer at a local mini market. The place is not so easy to find, especially if you are not familiar with Ara Damansara. 

The full address of the place is L27, Block L Taipan Damansara 2, Jalan PJU 1A/1, Ara Damansara, PJ. The place was so isolated and quiet that I wondered why anyone would want set up a restaurant here. Inside, we were the only other customers.

We were there mainly because we did not have the foggiest idea where to eat one weekend evening. My wife remembered the flyer and thus this blog posting.

As the name goes, this place is supposedly Thai and nyonya. But I did not see a lot of nyonya dishes in the menu. It was mainly Thai.

Our first dish was this chicken feet kerabu. It arrived in a boat. It was quite a big serving, with a generous amount of springy chicken feet. The flavour wasn't too strong. It was really quite a delicious dish. A good start...

Next was the deep fried kangkong (scientific name Ipomoea Aquatica). In some countries they call it morning glory - not unjustifiably so as they do bear a purplish flower quite like the morning glory we know. Anyway, it was a huge serving. Almost a hill of kangkong deep fried in a batter. It was quite a pleasant dish even though the taste was rather neutral.

The Thai fish cake was most ordinary. It wasn't bad - just that it was not great. It was served with some slaw.

The soft shell crab was terrible - an epitome of how it should not be cooked. It was deep fried in a batter. And it was dry as bone - inside and out. They totally seared the succulence of the crab, so much so the flavour was gone and the texture was like cardboard. What a waste of good crab.

The bad crab dish was compensated with a most pleasant green curry. It was delicious. In it were the usual ingredients - chicken, long bean, egg plant, small green pea-like thingy we find in Thai curries (what do you call those?), fresh basil, etc. The curry itself was quite watery - not too lemak. We drank it like a soup. The flavour was very good.

The final dish was this "dancing fish". It was a deep fried siakap (barramundi), in a sweet sourish sauce with plenty of raw garlic, onion and peanuts. The fish was very nicely fried so the extent that the head, fins and tail were crisply edible. The flavour was typically Thai. It was a good fish.

The dinner ended like this. A testimony of a good meal.

The restaurant is worthy of a return. The next time I go back, I will specifically look for nyonya dishes. And if they are noteworthy, I may do another write-up of the place.