The Food Loft at Gurney Plaza has come and go. The lots are now being occupied by a new tenant by the name of Ko Fu Loft. When we were driving past Gurney Plaza and while looking to the vacated lots, I told Gill that if it were up to me, I would have occupied the vacated lots with a Dim Sum restaurant. Not long later, we got news that a dim sum restaurant would be opened to replace The Food Loft. There are numerous reasons behind the idea; the location, the type of crowd and potential customers, and the competition, but I won’t go into that here may be in my other blog.

I have yet to interview or have much information about Ko Fu Loft and their operations to provide a clear write-up of this place. Thus, it would be more of a pictorial post with focuses on the people, the atmosphere, the food and experience during the invited review that was held on last Sunday’s late afternoon (7th July 2009). Basically Ko Fu Loft took over the setup left by The Food Loft and made some minor renovation to suit their concept.

Let’s start with the people! This review saw some new faces that we have not personally met other than reading their blogs. We were overjoyed to have the opportunity to persanally meet up Christy from yumyumbites.blogspot.com, Cheryl from nuttyeve9.blogspot.com, L K Low from food-4tots.com, Eunice, Siew Ying & Iris from foodpromotions.com.my, CW Chan from noweating.com, and Chef Khoon(blog is still in the works) for the first time after reading their blogs for so long. In some way, the review was an occasion and opportunity to meet other persons that also shares the same passion for food.

Some how or rather, the majority of the food bloggers that attended the functions are women. Many would think that food bloggers would be like a 2 ton truck like me but you would be amazed to see many of them are like a SMART cars, petite and attractive to the eye. Other than having a smaller circumference, each and every one of these beautiful human beings are very approachable and easy to be with. They would be great companions to have at the dining table. We shared many laughs and ideas at the table, and time seems to fly by when there is great company amongst. Three hours seems like 3 minutes.

As we shared our laughs we also shared some pointer is photo shooting when the dishes were served. The moment the food was placed on the table we were all like bees to honey. Each one was trying to get the best angle and shot for our blog readers to feast on. The management and kitchen of Ko Fu Loft had generously prepared 14 types of dishes and a dessert for us to sample that range from appetizers and dim sum to ‘Poon Choy’ and fried noodles.

Crystal Spring Roll Skin Stuff with Vege & Chicken Meat(RM6.90), the presentation was average similar to many other restaurants that offered this kind of Vietnamese summer rolls. Taste wise it wasn’t appetising or refreshing as we have better experienced in Miss Saigon & Young Heart . This may be contributed by the powdery texture chicken meat and the vegetables that lack sweetness.

Steam Fresh Prawn Dumpling or ‘Har Kau’(RM5.50), taste and presentation was standard and comparable to some traditional dim sum restaurants.

Signature Steamed Custard Creamy Bun ((RM5.50), with one of the buns cracked opened it looked pretty nice golden yellow custard cream flowing out. But then was it supposed to be presented in this way? The buns were average in texture and taste except for the custard cream. The custard cream wasn’t smooth in texture; it felt sandy like an inclusion of duck egg yolk in the cream.

Szechuan Aromatic Duck (RM18.90), presentation average taste texture was below average. The duck slices were coated in some sort of batter and deep fried. But it may have been over cooked, thus the duck meat slices were dry and the lacks any aromatics and tastes. The accompanying egg wrapper was similarly dry and lacks that eggy taste.

Jingdo Pork Rib (RM14.90), presentation was average and for taste it was more like black pepper ribs than’ jingdo’ ribs due to the overwhelming pepper taste. In addition to that, there was a slight taste of soda on the surface of the ribs. But of all the dishes that were served it seems that the ribs and the following deep fried Calamari were my favourite as they have got some taste in them.

Read more verdicts here

What do left-over ingredients like sea cucumbers, bacon chips and ABC soup mean to me? EXPERIMENT! The raw sea cucumbers were left idle in the freezer since Chinese New Year and the bacon chips were acquire like two to three months back, couple with no other fresh vegetables and meat produce on hand I decided to make a quick dish out of these idle ingredient sitting in the freezer.

First thing is to do is to thaw the sea cucumbers, then boil it in just hot water and a few pieces of ginger to remove that fishy smell and taste. After boiling for a few minute, transfer it in to a colander to drip dry. Then it is time to put the thawed bacon in to a dry warm pan. Why dry warm pan? This way I would reduce the oil splatter. When the bacon is dry add in the cooking oil (was using peanut oil) and cook them till brown after which throw in a few cloves of garlic (here was using only 3).

After the bacon chips are brown or firmed up and the garlic starting emit that garlicky aroma, pour in the sea cucumber and stir fry until the liquid dries up. When the liquid is evaporated, I proceed to scoop some spoonfuls of last nights ABC soup to braise and further tenderise the sea cucumber and also to infuse more flavour into the sea cucumbers. The ABC soup is actually soup made of carrot, potato, onions, meat and flavoured with crushed white pepper corns. This time the soup had an added ingredient of sweet potato. In a way, this soup could also be used as soup stock to cook other dishes if the pepper corn is left out.

arrhhh....want to learn more about the new creation? click here!

It was on a busy afternoon, we just came back from a food review at Agryll Road and we had to rush for another gathering in Island Glade area. It was a pot-luck cum fellowship with the church’s young adult group. For our part, I decided on this untried recipe which I saw in the tele, which I modified to suit the ingredients that I had on hand.

It is a simple but time consuming recipe, pan sheared scallops and bacon. I begin by placing bacon strips in a shallow pan to just brown them on both sides, and also to collect the bacon drippings for my scallop.

After the bacon strips have been browned on both sides I then removed them and placed the bought boiled scallops on the pan glazed in the bacon drippings. The scallops were season with some freshly crush rock salt and black pepper. It would be best if fresh scallops are used as it produced a light sweet taste. Boiled scallops would normally have lost that sweet taste, and it is most often prepared with something that can give them flavour like the sweet sauce the Japanese uses for grilling.

After both sides of the scallops have been browned, remove the scallops and deglaze the pan with seafood soup stock, liquor or white wine. At this instance I was using vodka to deglaze the pan, but from the experience I would prefer wine because it would then infuse that fruity taste of wine in to the scallops. Vodka was a bit blend for the boiled scallops....

Interested to read more? click here

Haven Delight is located on the 1st Floor of Penang Time Square which has open its doors not long ago on 2nd of March and officially launch on the 7th, and started their buffet spread on the 20th of the same month. Words have it that Penang Time Square would hold their official grand opening in between the month June and August this year. Thus, Haven Delight would be one of the pioneer businesses to step foot into this mall. This outlet in Penang Time Square is the flagship restaurant conceptualised and created by Mr. B.T. Ng who is the Managing Director of this restaurant. And at the helm of the kitchen is their Executive Chef, Edwin Teo, who has in total 10 years of experience in the kitchen preparing various types of cuisines ranging from Japanese to local Malaysian cuisines. At the Haven Delight kitchen, Edwin has teamed up with Alex a Sous Chef who specialised in Hong Kong and Shanghainese cuisines, K.P. Lim a Demi Chef de Partie and Melvin Loo at the sushi bar.

Any person who steps into Haven will be greeted with their specially design decor and friendly crew of stewards who are ever ready help you on your orders and recommendations as there roughly about 200 different dishes to choose from the A la Carte menu. And if are undecided on what have, may be you would like to try out their Buffet Menu which would only set you back RM49.90++ per person for adults, as for kids under the age of 12 you can expect to only pay 50% of the adult rate. In the buffet menu there are around 90 different dishes to savour within the stapled two(2) hours ordering period. Although it is stated that the ordering period is only 2 hours, you are most welcome stay longer to finish the food that you have ordered within that period to prevent any waste of food.

Accompanying the abalone dish was the Unagi Tofu which is also found in the cold cut section of the menu similar to Hotzzz Abalone. The Unagi or eel in Japanese Restaurants are normally served with sweet sauce, at Haven Delight there is no exception. The only difference here is that the unagi sweet sauce was not too sweet like those found elsewhere. As the name says UnagiTofu, the dish is really just a cut of unagi resting on top of a small block of cold tofu dressed overwith sweet sauce and garnished with sprinkles of spring onion, sesame seed, bonito flakes andcrispy bits of garlic. At the first bite into the unagi, the texture was plum and firm and the taste was not excessively creamy. Then when I combine the unagi to the tofu, it gave another type pleasure to the senses in my mouth. The cold tofu with its sweet soy scent and cold creamy taste match well with the unagi cutlet, giving it a refreshing experience rather than a dull end. But one thing to point out was that the unagi’s skin was a bit chewy, otherwise it would be a fantastic starter.

After the two cold cut samples that we had, the steward crew started to roll out the main cause sample for our review. In all we sampled 7 main dishes during the event, which was started with their Chicken Ban Ban.

Wish to read more for this post? Read the following story, click here.

Wish to explore more interesting food post? please visit our self hosted blog @ gourmetgarden.com.my

Last Saturday before going to our church for the blood donation campaign, me & Gill headed to Seng Thor coff shop for brunch. Seng Thor is an old rustic coffee shop or kopitiam in local dialect located at the junction of Carnarvon Street and Kimberly Street. We have been here for numerous times not for their famous Oyster Omelette nor the Loh Mee, but for the little known wantan mee. Basically at the Seng Thor coffee shop there are a five(5) hawker stalls(Koay Teow Th’ng, Loh Mee, Loh Bak, Wantan Mee & Oyster Omelette) in and around the shop and an economy rice stall(was not open that day or has ceased operations) operating at different hours. During the morning breakfast hours the centre of attraction is the Loh Mee and the individually cooked koay teow th’ng stalls. And in the afternoon until early evening hours, the limelight is on the Oyster Omelette stall. These 3 hawker food stalls are quite famous in Penang as many Penangites and outstation people like to patronise them, and little attention is actually given to the wantan mee stall there. 

Today my attention is only on the Koay Teow Th’ng(KTT) and Wantan Mee(WtM) stall because that were what we had that faithful day. Let’s talk about the KTT stall which we actually tried before quite some time ago and this was like a revisit for us after reading about it in the blog-sphere. The KTT at Seng Thor is actually individually cooked upon order which is quite scarce and hard to come by now-a-days, especially good ones. Although the KTT was cook without or less MSG, Gill noticed that the uncle has a lot of rock sugar in stock in the cupboard below the stall. Rock sugar is normally used to give sweetness to soups, especially clear ones.

For last Saturday’s brunch we ordered a bowl of ‘Lo Shu Fun’ and a bowl of Koay Teow and Yellow Noodle mix, which cost us RM7. By looking at the toppings and the size of the bowl they quite worth the money paid as both bowls were requested to have additional toppings of pig liver, lean meat, minced meat, pork balls, fish balls and pig heart.

But the sad thing about these 2 bowls of KTT is that the soup base was not as tasty and ’sweet’ as we expected. My bowl of koay teow and yellow noodles weren’t that bad, with the additional innard toppings the soup had some ’sweetness’ to it. Other than the soup base the koay teow and yellow noodles was also a put down. The koay teow and yellow noodle felt limb and blotted(like noodles soaked i n water for too long).

Gill’s bowl of ‘Loh Shun Fun’ was blend with very little taste of ’sweetness’ although we had the same toppings and was cooked in the same pot. But the ‘Loh Shu Fun’ was of consolation because they were firm and full. 

Because we were not satified with the brunch that we had, we went for the wantan mee that we usually patronise at the same coffee shop.  This wantan mee stall is not very good or delicious, the main reason we like it is because it is cheap. The bowl of 12 wantan dumpling in soup and the regular size noodle only cost us RM5. Remember to ask for the dry noodles toss in only oil and dark soya sauce without or little soup mix, but the taste is some times inconsistent due to the dark soy and the lard oil.

Another attraction is the fried wantans which have a slight sugary sweetness to their crispy skin, one can even eat them like snacks on its own and on the go. 

The fried pork lard bits are also a must at this stall, but you must ask for it as the proprietor seldom provides them without requests. The lard bits were actually more fragrant than the ones provided by the KTT stall.

 

On average I would grade the Koay Teow Th’ng stall:

* 3.5/5 for value(considered cheap in Penang standards)
* 2.9/5 for taste & texture (soup was blend and the noodles not firm and fresh)
* 3.0/5 for service
* 3.0/5 for cleanliness 
* 3.0/5 for atmosphere (what do you expect from an old rustic kopitiam man by seniors)

 

And on average I would grade the Wantan Mee stall:

* 4.2/5 for value
* 3.8/5 for taste & texture (not consistent on the dry sauce)
* 3.5/5 for service
* 3.4/5 for cleanliness 
* 3.0/5 for atmosphere (what do you expect from an old rustic kopitiam man by seniors)

GPS Coordinate: N5*24′91″ E100*20′07″

Since when was the trend get started to add extra ingredient other then innards and porkmeat in the Bak Kut Teh? So curious about why those people keep on adding more and more items like meat ball, beancurd skin, dried beancurd (tofu pok), Veges into the soup and become rojak rather then taste it in original way?

As we prefer to go for Genuine taste, we will usually ask for Pork Belly Meat, Pork Ribs, Pork Intestine and thats it! no more additional staff as those thing will spoil the Herbal Taste from the soup.

Do you know there is a good Bak Kut Teh selling at Parma Food Court (Previously known as Kim Eng food court "Gold Eager" ) in the morning? i just only remember the stall name in chinese "食王肉骨茶". It is located the one and only food court in Pulau Tikus just after the Sell Petrol Station if you come from Midlands Park.

i can't really describe how good it is (actually i cant recall the flavour...how to describe leh? lol), and the soup base is clear, not that heavy herbal type, but still you got the hint of special aroma from there. And those meats are tender and innards is just nice. The Yam rice is yummy with added in the aroma of yam and dried shrimp.

i will give 4/5 for the Bak Kut Teh.

Ok now, does anyone knows the Gurney Drive Carnation Bak Kut Teh, that one who putting up the HK celebrity face "Choy Lan - 蔡澜" in front of their coffee shop leh ? Just have some info to share. Actually 2 of the above Bak Kut Teh are connected.

The story is from my retired daddy. Actually my dady knew the "食王肉骨茶" when he was still attach with his previous famous jeans corp many years ago, and the "食王" was originate from Kuantan and it was very famous. The Carnation's bak kut teh owner from penang paid up thousands and go kuatan to learn from "食王". So, after the Carnation's owner came back and became famous, and the "食王" turned up in penang and opened at pulau tikus, opp midlands known as Safari food court at first, secondly moved to gurney (behind the Mamak Store) just nearby the Carnation coffee shop, and business was dropped. So the Parma food court is their 3rd address so far.

Chinaman atitude!

On average, I would give this place:

2.5/5 for value
3.8/5 for taste & texture
3/5 for service
3/5 for cleanliness
2/5 for atmosphere (Soka Gakai was practicing the drump just next door, it was very irritating, so don't go there on sunday morning!!! )

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Yesterday, I had a short lunch cum discussion with colleagues. Because of the whether we were looking for a place with air-conditioning and close to our office. Then one of my colleague suggested that we go to Restaurant Lin (Lorong 7 Koay Teow Theng). I have there 2 times prior to this, and the food has basically not change much, may more variety but not the taste.

That afternoon, we had 2 Koay Teow Theng, 1 Ramen, 1 plate of poach vegetable, 1 plate of white chicken, and 2 servings of something deep fried.

The chicken looks quite nice but taste wise is a bit average and blend although accompanied with the sauce.

The soup base for the Koay Teow Theng is just normal like those found in hawker centres. But the mince meat was really not my type, I prefer those with texture and juicy.

The Ramen looks appetising but is it good, I don't know for sure. It was my female colleagues.

Not much could be said about the food there, they just near average. But the place is quite well know by the locals there.On thing to mention is that they have improve the atmosphere there. It used to be a common kopitian, but it has transformed in to something like Hong Kong style cafes.

On average, I would give this place:

• 3/5 for value (the total bill was only RM 30+ for 3 pax with drinks)
• 3/5 for taste
• 3/5 for service
• 3/5 for cleanliness
• 3.2/5 for atmosphere (due to the improvements)

Including the Penang Food Bloggers gathering on the 27th September 2008, I have patronised this cafe, Edelweiss, 3 times since July. I must say, on all the visits I have managed to try a few of their signature soups, entrees and deserts. This cozy cafe is tacked in one of the oldest parts on the Penang Island and was once used as the backdrop for the Hollywood movie, The King and I. The cafe is located in Armenian Street, just before the Colonial Restoran which serves modified Hainanese cuisines.

Do not let the Swedish name fool you, as this cafe serves cuisine from the East(Malaysia) and the West (Sweden). But me and wife only had the privilege to savour part of their western side of their menu. Thus, we still have more to go before we can't say that we have tried everything there. This place does not only serve good homey food, it also serves some good European beers, but it would be a bit pricey for us locals.

Before I continue with my review of this cafe, I would like to put forth that the photos were taken during my various visits to Edelweiss at different occasions, thus the different ambient color of the photos.


The Barley Soup which is serve daily is something different from your common cream of mushroom or corn. It is light on the pallet but still provides the opportunity to feel the texture and taste the various ingredients used in preparing this soup. With some bread, one could be filled the brim and not be able to go further with the entree. So the best way to savour this dish is to share amongst yourself, don't let this not so little bowl of soup fool you!


The Beef Goulash came in a small bowl but was packed with potatoes, carrot, beef, etc. As I am not an authority on goulash, I am unable to judge whether it is good or bad, but to me it is something that I can accept. It is not too heavy on the flavour, therefore would not subdue your taste buds for the entree.


Edelwiess serve some good and genuine sausages in town. So far I have tried their Double Jumbo(top) and B 52s (bottom). The sausages are juicy and firm to the bite. It is totally different experience with what we get from some of the eateries that serve sausages as their entrees. To compliment the sausage dish, the cafe prides a portion of mustard that is essential in enhancing the smokey taste the sausages have.



Then there is their specialty, Smoked Pork Belly. This is my wife's' favourite of all that we have tried in Edelweiss. At a glance one may think that it will be very hard to consume a piece of pork layered with all that fat, even for any non-health-conscious person. Then you would be missing out on the experience of savouring the piece of well smoked and tender piece of pork that is well complimented with mash and mustard sauce. It is like a marriage made in heaven.


Not much I can say about the Pork Ribs other than it is tender and juicy. I find the ribs to be a bit over flavoured by the glaze or sauce(some may call it), but by not much. Although so, overall it is still a good piece of rib. For my preference, I would have better enjoyed the ribs with mash rather than fries. The mash potatoes would have brought down the richness of the sauce to my acceptance level.




These two offerings, the Gammon Ham and Leg of Lamb are not included in their daily menu. They were specially requested and prepared for our Penang Food Bloggers gathering. But fear not, if you are interested in tasting the two, then you would have pool enough people to order them. The Gammon Ham was not heavy, it gave me a little hint of saltiness, smokiness and sweetness of the meat. In short the flavours were clean and light, suitable for those that are not meat crazy and dislike rich tasting food. If you ant to bring the Gammon ham to a higher enjoyment level, one could try layering the ham with black pepper, mash and brown sauce to enhance the taste and texture of the ham.

As for the Leg of Lamb, it taste common and nothing extraordinary about it. This may be due to that it was already cold from all the photo shooting before I got acquainted with it. The lamb was actually still slight pink in the centre and warm when it arrived on my table. But fear not, I improvised by adding salt and the accompanying gravy to make it more delightable. The lamb was actually good enough without the accompanying mint sauce, it did not need the mint to cover-up the overwhelming smell and taste that lamb emits.


At the end of each meals, I had their signature deserts to cleanse my pallets. Although I do not fancy sweet delights, their two signature deserts were quite acceptable to my standards. Their warm Apple Flam with Movenpick Ice Cream, gives one the sensation of soft and hard, cold and hot. The cool creamy soft ice cream matched with the textured and warm apple flam. Then there is the other signature desert, which I forgot what it is called, ice cream on bananas, poach peach and almonds. It is flavourful but a bit too sweet for my taste buds. It would be a favourite for those who have a sweet tooth to satisfy.

Other than enjoying the food in Edelweiss, one could also feast your eyes on the furniture, old photos, decor and ambiance in the cafe. If you are lucky, one may find their ancestors' photos in the cafe as the owner is an avid collector of old stuff. Another thing that one could find is the funny looking light overhead. These are the work of the proprietor's husband. He recycles and modifies the old stuffs into something which is practical and usable for the cafe. Innovative and earth-friendly!

Lastly, I would like to take this opportunity to thank the propietor, her husband and staffs for the friendly, prompt and accomodating service to all of us bloggers although we were a bit a handfull with all the moving around and talking. And also we would like to show our appreciation to the proprietor for preparing the special menu for us bloggers to enjoy and review.

On average, I would give Edelweiss Cafe:

• 3.8/5 for value (for the the blogger gathering, then it would be 4.5/5)


• 4.5/5 for tast
  
• 5/5 for service
  
• 5/5 for cleanliness (what can we ask from a coffee shop)
  
• 5/5 for atmosphere (old style cafe without air-conditioning)

The below photos were taken during the Penang Food Blogger (PFB) gathering recently at Edelweiss. We are currently planning another gathering for the PFB in te coming December to celebrate Christmas. The date is 6th of December 2008. And the location is at my in-laws house in Tanjung Bungah. The gathering is a test of the cooking skills of PFB as it would be a 'Pot-Luck' gathering. Places are limited and it is first come first serve only!




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