Saturday, March 1, 2025

[Kuala Lumpur] Let's Go Gai Gai @ 茨厂街 Petaling Street Chinatown [Part 1]

0 comments
We're back at Petaling Street for a short staycation with entire fam! We stayed at 5 Elements Hotel which is right smack in the heart of Chinatown. Basic amenities, basic level of cleanliness with friendly frontdesk staff. The toilet came equipped with bidet if that's of interest to you.

view from the hotel lobby

Because we were there during the weekends, we could hear the bass/music thumping from presumably the nearby bars in our room at night.

hotel lobby


instant coffee, tea, bottled water

closet, safe, hair dryer


bathroom things


Interesting observation during our stay at this hotel. Toilet roll supplied at max is one per room per day if it was near to depleted. By the next day of our stay, the hotel had run out of bath gel and advised us to use the soap instead. Hmm.

Hotel breakfast was minimal. There's carbs like nasi lemak rice, and fried bee hoon. White bread is available too. The usual condiments for nasi lemak like fried egg, anchovies with peanuts, sambal and cucumber slices.

Western fare included sausages, baked beans, hash brown and snacks like fried cuttlefish balls. 

hotel breakfast


Cereals, milk, watermelon slices were available too.



The 5 Elements Hotel

Address: Chinatown, 243, Jalan Sultan, City Centre, 50000 Kuala Lumpur, Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia






Right next to the hotel, a few steps away is the Fung Wong Biscuit shop/cafe.

signage


It is airconditioned inside for the tired travelers to rest and have a cup of coffee. Granted it is not the only coffee place around, but this shop hints at certain nostalgia due to their long history for their bakes. We used to buy their kaya roll cakes from the original shop whenever we visited Petaling Street.

Now, this new shop is modernized and cafe-like with simple snacks like dim sums on top of their daily bakes. 



choose your bakes 

I ended up with a cup of iced coffee as we'd be doing early dinner shortly. The sliced rolls or the baked siew bao price was around MYR4.50 each, and biscuits such as the hup tao sou (walnut biscuit) was around MYR3 per piece.

iced kopi



Iced kopi was not too acidic and I liked that the milk wasn't too overpowering either. Around RM5 after tax if not wrong.

Fung Wong Biscuit

Address: 85, Jalan Sultan, City Centre, 50000 Kuala Lumpur, Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Contact: +60320728888
Business Hours:
Daily: 8:30 am–10 pm


Passed by some interesting shops on our way to dinner. Like the 'Original Beckham' that made us did a double take. Apparently its instagram states that "鲍师傅 Original Beckham, with over 20 years of experience originating from China and specializes in chicken floss pastry and walnut cookies."



DurianBB looks like a durian cafe/dessert shop.

it must've been hot in there


For dinner, we headed to places that are really near the hotel so that our elderly parents need not walk too far.

As per previous visit, the old lady boss was at the shopfront, so we greeted her and she enthusiastically asked if we were having dinner there. Haha, yes we are.





Family of 5 adults, we ordered two noodles, an egg dish, a vegetable plate and a meat dish to share. The portion size for noodles is either for 1 pax or 2 pax. So we ordered for 2 pax.

 原汁鸳鸯 Ying Yong with original sauce (Cantonese fried noodles) @MYR30

福建面 Hokkien Fried Noodle @MYR30


Stir fry vegetables @MYR30


Tomato Eggs @MYR15

Lemon Chicken @MYR30


Overall taste was ok and the portions were still generous this time round for the noodles dishes. Fried chicken was nicer (not dry) as compared to past year, although lemon sauce is not my favourite. 

Westlake Restaurant

Address: 40, Jalan Sultan, City Centre, 50000 Kuala Lumpur, Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Contact: +60320723350
Business Hours:
Daily: 11 am–2:30 pm, 5 pm–1 am



Mixue half-half ice-cream for dessert


Saturday, February 22, 2025

[Buffet] Basilico @ Conrad Singapore Orchard

0 comments

It was a casual gathering and I guessed, we were in the mood for variety. A few places were proposed and Basilico was picked. For most, it would be a revisit, whilst for me, it'll be my first visit.

We opted for the weekend brunch buffet, priced at SGD128++ per adult. Reservation was made and we were set for the weekend.

Located at Level 2 Conrad Singapore Orchard, I was greeted warmly by the staff at the restaurant entrance.

Basilico

She was all smiles as she led me to the table. As I mentioned that this was my first time at Basilico, she was helpful in pointing out the specific 'room' or 'section' designated for drinks and cheeses. 

table for 6

I like the designs on the plates. Kinda pretty.

secondi section

cold seafood section

antipasti / cold cuts

desserts

beautiful cake

antipasti

fresh burrata

tomatoes galore

cheese and more cheese

I was pleasantly surprised when staff brought out some pretty looking bread for the table.

focaccia

The focaccia was fluffy and served warm. Best to eat it as soon as served.

with olives and dried tomatoes

Guess what was on my first plate. Oysters for sure!

Australian Oceanlink oysters

New Zealand Coromandel oyster

Super loved the Australian oysters. Plump, luscious and clean tasting. The New Zealand ones were also good but I preferred the flavours of the other one.

lobster

scallop

crab claw

Time to get some juices from the bar.

bar

pineapple, mango, orange, cranberry


Next up, would be the meaty platter.

roasted sole (busara sauce), roasted pork knuckle and crauti, grilled sirloin tagliata

close up view of sirloin

crispy cracklings

For the roasted pork knuckle, I asked the staff to give some of the skin as well otherwise, he would've just given me the meat part only.

Surprisingly, my favourite 'meat' was the sole fish.

plate of carbs; pizza, wild mushroom risotto, seafood cavatelli and wagyu beef lasagna

Had an overload of focaccia that day... I ate half of the fluffy bread and a single slice of the pizza focaccia. 

we remembered to eat our greens


Oh and when was I going to do the cheeses? Hahaa, I noticed too but I was kinda full by now. Chef at the cheese room asked if I would like to try the eggs benedict with cheese. Haha, had to decline due to limited stomach space.

tiny bit of truffle burrata

tiny bits of hard cheeses

But I was determined to do desserts. I asked Chef which was the most popular ice-cream flavour and he said coconut. So I had that and yes, it was so good!

coconut ice-cream

And then, another Chef appeared out of nowhere and offered us some berries dessert. Ok, we said.

berries sabayon

fluffy, creamy and full of tangy berries

tiramisu

cappucino

best paired with coffee

At some point in time, I went to the washroom and upon return, there was a mysterious glass of drink appeared. Oh, a palate cleanser kind of drink; Sgroppino made with Prosecco and lemon sorbet. Refreshing!

Sgroppino 



Basilico

Address: 1 Cuscaden Rd, Level 2, Singapore 249715

Websitehttps://www.hilton.com/en/hotels/sinodci-conrad-singapore-orchard/dining/basilico/

Business Hours: 

Daily: 12–3:30 pm, 6:30–10:30 pm


Saturday, February 15, 2025

[Travel Melbourne] NY Style Brekkie @ Bowery To Williamsburg

0 comments

It was breakfast and decided to grab breakfast outside before heading towards the airport for our flight back to SG. Drove out, parked and walked about 10 mins to our destination.

us waiting to be seated

Indoor was all occupied and staff informed that they will be right back to seat us outdoor.


I think here would be the closest I'd ever get to experience a New York style diner and food. Do note that there's surcharge during weekends as well as Public Holidays.

Hot chocolate seemed to be my favourite drink throughout this trip and yes, I ordered their Peanut Butter Hot Chocolate to try.

Peanut Butter Hot Chocolate @AUD6.50

Reese Chocolate

I was wondering if the 'peanut butter' in the drink was that separate piece of Reese chocolate served with the drink... Hahaa, turns out to be false alarm as the peanut butter taste in the hot chocolate became more apparent after a few sips. Lovely.

The Benjamin (bagel, smoked salmon and maple smoked bacon) @AUD18

Brisket and Eggs @AUD29

The Reuben @AUD22

pastrami, swiss cheese, sauerkraut, served with pickles


I had the Omelette and Pastrami Roll which I think is probably off-menu by now, as I couldn't find it in their current online menu. 

Omelette and Pastrami Roll @AUD20


I forgot that the food would be in the typical US sizes. Omelette served thick, loaded with lots of pastrami beef brisket, and saucy from the tomato relish and oozing cheese. Basically it was a messy eat but tasted good! If you're a small eater, can consider sharing with a friend/partner.

Breakfast was heavy and rich. What an experience! 

Payment at the cashier inside the restaurant and washroom is available inside as well. 

Staff were friendly and efficient.



Bowery To Williamsburg

Address: 16 Oliver Ln, Melbourne VIC 3000, Australia

Websitehttps://www.bowerytowilliamsburg.com.au/

Business Hours:

Sat - Sun: Saturday, 8:30 am–2:30 pm

Mon - Fri: Tuesday, 7:30 am–2:30 pm




 
All Rights Reserved. © Purple Taste
Blogger Theme by BloggerThemes| Theme designed by Jakothan Sponsored by Internet Entrepreneur