Coca Restaurant

Coca Restaurant has always been famous for its steamboat. Tried that couple of time many years ago. The last was back in year 2003. Wow, now that I recalled, it has indeed been a long time, and honestly can not really recall how it tasted like. Apart from steamboat, Coca offers other Asian cuisine including Thai. being my favourite cuisine, Adrian and I decided to try out the dishes for dinner.

Yum Mut Muang according to the menu was supposedly sour mango with peanuts, dried shrimps and spicy lime sauce but it turned out to be shredded sweet sour mango with cashew nuts, sliced onions in rojak sauce. Priced at RM15.80, it was mediocre and very localised to Malaysian tastebuds, and was not at all like any authentic Thai mango salad.

Tod Munn Pla, the thai fish cakes were good. For six pieces at RM12.80, they came with chillie sauce with chopped onions and cucumber and pounded peanuts.

Kui Teow Pad Thai was fried pad thai noodles with eggs, beancurds, minced chicken and served with prawns, grounded chillie, white sugar and pounded peanuts. Priced at RM14.90, this fried noodles was supposed to taste sweetish, hence the given white sugar.

Tom Yum Kung Kam Kam was vermicelli in Coca special tom yum soup served with four pieces of fresh large prawns, mushrooms and tomato wedges. Gravy was a lot thicker than the clear tom yum soup. This RM16.80-bowl-of-noodles was one of Coca's signatures, which I found reasonably tasty with the right level of spiciness, but it was not impressive. The fresh prawns however did some compensation.

For RM12.90, the Roselle flower juice was quite an interesting refreshing drink. Came with three pieces of the flowers, which were crunchy, the drink was sweet, salty with tinge of sourness. It was not something Adrian would enjoy as he disliked sour drinks (even just a tinge of it), so he settled for some hot chinese tea.

Roselle flower

The spoon that came with the Roselle flower juice was actually a long stainless steel piece with one end a spoon and the other a fork.

The restaurant in the weekends was packed with families and large groups of friends. The sound proofing was not good, hence it got a little too noisy to our liking. That was partially because we a were seated about 15 feet from a group of 10-12 friends getting together and they were unaware the volume they were making. Much to our dismay, we had to put up with almost every word in their conversations.

Simple Asian concept with minimal decors, the restaurant uses wooden tables and chairs, and a carved wooden panel separating the dining area from the main entrance of glass panels. Only a few tables can be seen as one enters the front.

CoCa Restaurant

Lot G38&F40
1 Utama Shopping Centre (Old Wing)
Bandar Utama, PJ
Tel: 603-7727 3180
Fax: 603-7728 2151

Bombay Spice

Been a long time since we had Indian food and we thought we would give this restaurant located in the Gourmet Emporium in Pavillion KL a try. Pricing of food was on the high side but since we have not tried anything on its menu, we would not dwell too much on that.

Chicken Vindaloo

Adrian ordered the chicken Vindaloo to go with the garlic naan and I ordered chapati with chicken Varuval, a chef's recommendation. We were both not disappointed at all when the items came and we dugged in. The chicken Vindaloo came with a bit more gravy than the chicken Varuval. Both spicy, the former had a tinge of sourness whilst the latter, a dry curry, had a stronger taste of spices. Both the curries were priced at RM18.90.

Chicken Varuval

Garlic Naan

The naan and chapati were the most expensive we ever had (haha..well, there's always a first time) as each cost RM8 and RM7 respectively. The Masala tea that I had was also one of the most expensive I had thus far. Priced at RM7 per cup and only a few mouthfuls, it was not sweet nor thick and had spices mixed in it, hence it was quite fragrant and thirst quenching.

Chapati

Masala Tea

The restaurant had rather vibrant colour scheme - red-pink, vermillion, orange, yellow and walls with hanging wooden cabinets and concrete pigeon holes which had glass bottles of a wide variety of spices and curry powders on display. It adopted the see-through kitchen with glass panel segregating it from the dining area.

See-through kitchen

Bombay Spice

Lot 1.09.00, Gourmet Emporium

Level 1, Pavillion

168, Jalan Bukit Bintang

55100 Kuala Lumpur

My Elephant

Tucked in the back corner on the ground floor of one of the Happy Mansion blocks of low-cost flats in Section 17 Petaling Jaya, My Elephant was the brainchild of a group of university graduates. The small restaurant adopts simple decor of glass panels that allow one to see through to the inside of restaurant. Its tables are of basic shape of square and rectangle and wooden mixed with aloy chairs. A set of comfy looking sofa at the right next to the entrance allow a laidback mood, perhaps for a drink and snacks but might not be too comfortable for proper dining.

Our second visit to this place, we had dinner with Fai and Connie as they had been asking about its whereabouts. This round, we ordered six dishes as opposed to four the first Adrian and I were there; two being salads.

Red rice served with dishes



Tod man plah, deep-fried Thai fish cakes served with sweet sour chilie dipping was priced at RM8 for five pieces. These were fresh and good, with just the right thickness and bursting with lemongrass fragrance.

For RM10, Yum Mamuang was green mango salad with shredded carrots, onions, pounded chilies in spicy dressing and served with lettuce, sliced cucumbers and and roasted peanuts. The salad was spicy and sour and would have been a turn-off for those who are unable to tolerate such level of spiciness. Too much pounded chillies camouflaged the mango fragrance in my opinion as one who loves mango salad. The ones at Baan26 and Ceylon Hill are much better and less spicy. Nevertheless, for the price, the portion was worthwhile.

Tempura Squid served with semi sweet Thai sauce was mediocre. The upside was that the squids were fresh, coated with thin batter and the portuion was reasonable for price of RM18.

This version of Laab Gai, northern Thai style of sauteed minced chicken with chillie-lime-mint dressing and freshly crushed peanuts was not too bad though the one at Sri Siam was better and refreshing. For RM14, it was a good portion for four.

Khai Jiao Ho Mok, priced at RM12, was special egg omelette with fish otak-otak and it was something different. Not too oily, it was quite tasty and juicy. The special thin sweet sour sauce (more sour than sweet) that came with the dish was really good and complemented the omelette very well.

Tom Som was clear galangal-lemongrass-lime soup with aromatic Thai herbs, which was recommended to be served with fish although chicken was also available. The large portion was priced at RM20 and small for RM15. We had the large serving, which was more than enough for four with reasonable appetite.

Paku with sambal, onions and dried shrimps was our choice for My Elephant's Jungle vegetable of the day. Fresh and crunchy, the RM 12 paku dish was quite delicious, with the right hint of taste and saltiness.

Small restaurant with simple modest dining tables and chairs

In one corner of the restaurant lies a raised concrete platform for those who fancy getting cosy sitting on the floor, with a glass panel wall that faces a small fish pond. At the bottom of the glass panel, on the inside of the restaurant, there is an open gap that offers a sneek peek at the koi that steal a gulp of air or two before happily gliding away. One could even dip own feet into the water.

My Elephant

Block C - G4 Happy mansion

Jalan 17/13

Section 17

46400 Petaling Jaya

Tel:

Patrick 012-328 5028

James 019-360 8911

Soong 019-379 5759

Kom 016-345 9298

www.myelephant.com.my

Reservation is highly encouraged to avoid disappointment.

Business hrs:

Tue-Sun (except Sat & Sun Lunch)

Lunch: 12noon-2.30pm

Dinner: 6pm-10pm

Bumbu Bali

Overlooking the balcony on the first floor of Bumbu Bali, I took a picture of the amber sunset, while we waited for our dinner. This two-storey Balinese restaurant with open concept, which is located in Bandar Puteri Puchong came highly recommended by good friends. I had been bugging Adrian to try out the food.

Truly Balinese, the tables and chairs were teak, with its walls lined with paintings of the face of Buddha. Whilst the ground floor catered mainly for walk-in diners, the floor above it was reserved mainly for those with reservations.

Ground floor was packed with walk-in customers. Customers with reservations were placed mainly on the first floor.

We browsed through the menu fairly long and finally made our picks - Ayam Betutu and Nasi Campur, beer and barley lime for drinks.

Barley lime was a sweet but refreshing drink for RM4.50

Es Campur is Bumbu Bali's version of Balinese ice blended coconut served with banana slices, finely cut jackfruit and honey dew, sago and crystalised sweet coconut stripes. To stir before digging into it as the syrup is still at the bottom of the glass when dessert is served; it was priced at RM8.50.

Sambal matah is a blended fresh chilie sauce

Sambal Terasi is an interesting sauce as it is made of coarsely pounded bird's eye chillie, garlic, onion, lemongrass and parsley in oil

Nasi Campur Bumbu Bali is rice served with lemongrass marinated squids, prawns, fish, a choice of beef / chicken rendang, sauteed kang kung, crispy crackers with anchovies, fresh chunks of turnip, cucumber and pineapple, sambal terasi and sambal matah in a basket lined with banana leave. Though priced on th highside of RM29.50, the tasty combo was well worth the price.

Ayam Betutu, Balinese roasted chicken marinated with lemongrass served with special sweet and salty and mildly spicy paste and heavily garnished with chopped parsley and onions, and accompanied by yellow rice, crispy crackers with anchovies, sauteed kang kung, fresh chunks of turnip, cucumber and pineapple, sambal terasi and sambal matah. Priced at RM20.50, the serving portion was well worth the money as half a small chicken was served.

Decors that added colour and ambience to the place were also for sale

Bumbu Bali would certainly see us again, perhaps with some friends :). Just so you know, we gluttonly stuffed ourselves with the amount of food that could feed four, or more!

18 & 18-1, Jalan Persiaran Puteri 1

Bandar Puteri, 47100 Puchong

Tel: 603-8061 8699

Fax: 603-8062 6698

Business hrs: Daily from 11am onwards (incl Public Holidays)

Baan26

Adrian and I were in the heart of the city one Sunday afternoon, and we decided to take a look at the dining spots along Changkat Bukit Bintang. Traffic of course was not too bad, and it was quiet along that road which is usually packed with tourists and party-goers on weekdays, especially in the night.

We spotted this ordinary and modest looking restaurant, Baan26 and took a look at the menu. Lover of mango kerabu, my eyes lit up and we walked in. We had the place to ourselves and with Thai love ballads in the background, we happily chatted away after ordering couple of snacks and drinks.

The place had interesting, antique-looking decors. Old fashioned electrical fan and radio, china pots and cups, and mini blood red glass chandelier. The concept and theme was a mix of Western, Chinese and Indochinese.

Mango kerabu with dried shrimps was really good, with just the right intensity of sourness and spiciness. Shredded mango served with peanuts, shredded carrot, sliced onions, freshly cut bird's eye chillies and dried shrimps, with sweet-sour lime dressing and garnished with shredded carrots and parsley.

Thai fish cakes with chillie dip was good. Bite-size fish cakes that were served hot, fresh and soft with cucumbers and dried chillies.

Umm hum...


Ice ginger tea with fresh ginger. Great thirst quencher, it was a refreshing and fragrant drink, which tasted just right.

A modest floor space on the front for about 8-9 tables

Some of the ornaments and decorative pieces at various parts of the small restaurant