U-Village @ Sungei Wang Plaza

My spouse took us to the vicinity of Low Yat Plaza as he wanted to get something from there.  That's how we ended up at U-Village Restaurant @ Sungei Wang Plaza for a late breakfast.  It has been ages since I've stepped into Sungei Wang Plaza although I wouldn't quite term this as stepping into the shopping mall as the restaurant is located at the rear of the mall (which you can access from the streets outside without even stepping into the mall).

 

It's a very old-looking place (then again, what do you expect...as Sungei Wang Plaza is really old) offering Hong Kong-style food.  I wasn't impressed with the food but the service was far worse.....and this was what happened! >:(

 

Right after we were seated and given menus, the wait staff (a Chinese lady) came up to us for our orders.  We haven't even had time to browse the whole menu yet.  I told her we needed more time and she left.

As we were browsing through the menu (and the one here is freaking long), I could see that she kept looking our way rather impatiently.  While we were still 'studying' the menu, she came over to our table again.  I told her that we weren't ready and that we'll call her when we were.  She left again.  I can understand her impatience (or if we took too long to order) if there were a lot customers...but there weren't, there were only about 3 tables occupied.

 

But before I even called, she came by a third time to take our orders.  Sensing her impatience, I was 'forced' to order.  I ordered my drink and main dish.  Only after I told her my order, I realised that my choice of main didn't have the 'thumbs up' (recommended) sign on the menu and (so) I wanted to pick something else.  I flipped through the menu again and went....err.....erm....err...and that's when she left again for the third time (without saying a word and without taking the rest of our orders).  [#Note: The right thing to do would be, "I see that you're not ready to order yet, do you need more time?"]

 

Then, she came back with my Coffee in Hong Kong Style @ RM5.50 (which was not even filled to the brim) and it tasted as horrible as it looked.  I think it was her way of telling me...see, I can even bring you your drink faster than you can decide what you want to eat!  At that point, sensing her growing impatience, we just ordered....whatever!  [#P/S: I could have walked out, of course, but my spouse wanted to have his meal quickly and leave us there (to eat slowly) while he crossed over to Low Yat Plaza to get his stuff.]

 

This was the Crispy Pork Rice with Salted Egg @ RM12.90 and my spouse ordered the same dish (after me).  On another occasion, I would have probably changed my order then since I would want to try more dishes (but you know the situation lah...better not).

 

There was nothing worthwhile on this plate...the "siew yoke" (roast pork) skin was not crackling nor crispy, the meat was dry and chewy (in fact, it tasted like "yesterday's" siew yoke) and the rice was mushy.  The only thing I can give a 'pass' is the salted egg...and that didn't involve any cooking...lol!  As I glanced over to their food counter, I only saw slabs of "char siew" (barbequed pork) and instinctively knew that was probably what was good here.

 

My mother-in-law had the Crispy Pork Rice with Garlic @ RM12.90 which was just deep fried pork pieces stir fried with some garlic, onions, chillies and spring onions.  Although it looked and tasted mundane, at least it came in a respectable portion size.

My son had the Garlic & Pepper Shrimp Rice @ RM13.90 which turned out to be the wisest choice.

 

The fried prawns were, at least, fried till crispy and the crunchy fried garlic bits brought a fragrant aroma and taste to the dish.

I also ordered a plate of Fried Prawn Wantons (5 pcs) @ RM9.90 (for sharing) although the filling wasn't just prawns.  A bit pricey for just 5 pieces, in my opinion, at a place like this.

When we were finished with our meal, we walked up to the cashier counter to pay and there wasn't anyone there.  Even though the wait staff (a lot of them were foreigners) could see that we were standing by the counter, they didn't bother to get someone to attend to us, they just left us there standing and waiting...I guess cashier duties aren't part of their job, so they couldn't care less.

Their body language and the look on their face said it all....they wish they weren't working here.  The only smile you'll get here is the one from the menu cover! :D

My Personal Opinion

Sometimes rude staff and an awful service tend to mar the overall taste of the food making us judge the food more harshly.....and, perhaps, I did.  Maybe, the food wasn't as bad (since it's frequented by the working crowd in the area) but with that kind of service, it made it worse!

 

For me....rude staff + lousy service + mediocre food = I won't be back!

U-Village Restaurant
LB-R1 Sungei Wang Plaza
Jalan Bukit Bintang
55100 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 03-2148 9686