tesss

For the first time, I actually hecked my meal plan and headed into a mall and decided what to eat based on the crowd and the menu. Located next to Dragon-I, I was surprised the turnout was continuous. Shrimp Siew Mai Shrimp Dumpling None to scream about yet decent dimsum staples. Sze Chuan Style Dumplings A let down with sweet chilli sauce. Shanghai Style Soup Dumplings were no Din Tai Fung since the skin tore and the soup spilled out even before they got eaten. Char Siew Buns For such a dimsum chain, the paus are pretty decent and is on par with some of the pau specialists out there! Shrimp and Beancurd Skin with Cheese   Shrimp Rice Noodle Rolls Deep Fried Shrimp Rice Noodle Rolls I'm not sure which disappointed more, the rice noodle roll or the over fried dough stick. Stir Fried Dragon's Green  Stir Fried Baby Pak Choy Wanton Noodle Soup Surprise of all surprises, the wanton noodle is a really legit version with springy noodles (no alkaline taste - hooray!) and meaty wanton...

Thinking this would be crowded judging from the online reviews, I made a reservation and turned out we were one of two tables for the night. I guess from the point of view of being parents to toddlers, this worked out well for us anyway. The dishes arrived really quickly after ordering, prompting us to wonder if these were just microwaved. Ayam Buah Keluak The quintessential of any nyonya meal and this was pleasant, friendly and lacking in some oomph. Even the buah keluak lacked some nuttiness. Ngor Hiang This is too classic to ignore, and as usual I had to have it. More meat would have been ideal, this was decent at best. Sweet and Sour Pork to break away from the monotony and ended up being the best of the meal. Otah too was another delicious one, I love how thick and generous the portion of mackerel used in this fragrant delight. Lukewarm beef rendang that missed out on some spiciness, else great for those who prefer their curries non spicy. Ever tried a sweet popiah? They could ha...

Restoran Pekin got me sold on their suckling pig and I in turn convinced enough people to visit and the menu we decided on looked completely like wedding meal caliber. Garlic Wine Clams (RM 45) Huge and plump clams fried in garlic, next to white wine clams, these are top of my list. Slurping a clam plump with gravy is as shiok as it can get - literally slurpworthy. Whole Suckling Pig (RM 199) Since we were all sold on this, naturally I would have high expectations of it and fair enough - the first bite of grease, fats and crispiness was satisfying. Except that lingering sweet belachan that could have caused the disappointment to seep in like a tidal wave. All would have been perfect if not for that sweet finish. Foie Gras Fried Rice (RM 20) Technically speaking this was more foie gras paste and scallop fried rice yet so tasty! The price is offputting though, even with the exchange rate in our favour. Cereal Fried Prawns (RM 68) I love my cereal prawns doused in cereal and this was over...

This was by far the most memorable meal in JB - we jammed a total of 4 hours getting into JB one public holiday and only had time to do 1 thing. Eat. TKK needs no further introduction and we had all our favourites, except the crabs that I was not in the mood for. All for less than SGD 90 amongst 4 of us. I love how chill this place is, food is always on point and crowds are better controlled. Restoran TKK 天公仔海番村 Lot 684 Kampung Teluj Jawa

Since Ya Wang, we have been sold on the dang gui ducks JB has to offer and since we were in the vicinity, why not check out the other disciple? It seems that both owners are disciples of the same master who taught them the recipe. Wall of famed boxes.  This restoran seems a lot more localized, the crowd too were mainly Johoreans and the pricing does reflect that too. RM 55 for a whole herbal duck with chicken rice chilli as a condiment. They also serve up other roasts - chicken and pork too and braised duck. Talk about a full menu. We had this chopped up for our dinner after a long day spent at the customs. It lacked the same fragrance as Ya Wang and the marinate was a lot sweeter. Although the duck is equally tender, I prefer Ya Wang's better. I guess it is back to the drawing board for the next best duck, or back into the arms of Ya Wang for another of those delicious takeaways. Restoran Lapan Dua Dua 36 Jalan Nakhoda 1 Skudai, Johor Bahru 81300

Thanks to Hello Kitty Land, I had the chance to check out Sutera and it turned out to be a durian haven! Perhaps the season too but after buying my first durian for the season, google revealed a whole bunch of other sellers within the vicinity! Durian King, located along the main road offers a whole suite of durians - you name it and they probably have it. I had my sights on Red Prawn (RM 22 per kilo) and ours ended up more sweet than bitter sweet. Not complaining since our durian harvested at least 15 seeds and the toddler had a field day screaming for more.

My bad for not writing about our enjoyable staycay last December. We flew into KL for Christmas and with a toddler in tow, I had my eyes set on a serviced apartment accommodation - the space and kitchenette is ideal too. Elements it was for being almost brand new and the reviews online about their 2 bedroom apartments were so sparkling, it was almost unbelievable how positive everyone's experience was.   I wish I have a full snap of the kitchenette, dining area and living room but yes, that idea was canned when the toddler ran in, started scooting through the rooms and...mayhem. The spacious kitchenette, laundry area behind that closed door and entrance! The master bedroom with such an inviting bed! The second bedroom was slightly smaller but three single beds fit really nicely inside so this apartment sleeps 5 really comfortably without anyone being master of the living room. Marble tiled bathroom with some #bathroomgoals right there. Couple sinks, both a shower head...