Yut Kee @ Jalan Dang Wangi

Yut Kee @ Jalan Dang Wangi (established in 1928) is probably one of the oldest "kopitiams" around KL but has not lost its charm nor its customer base over the years.
 

The place exudes an old-world rustic charm with its marble table tops, dark wooden chairs and old-school floor tiles.  You'll find lots of framed newspaper clippings on the reviews of the restaurant (and a few family portraits) from days gone by.
 

The dilapidated, graffiti laden side wall of the kopitiam and the worn out multi-coloured window panes, shows obvious signs of ageing of an old, colonial (pre-war) shophouse of yesteryear that has run its course.

I've been coming to Yut Kee for many years now and, with nostalgia creeping in, decided to visit them one last time before they move to their new premises (news of them moving have been circulating on the internet for quite a few years now...and now the time has finally come).  

 

Yut Kee is always packed to the brim on weekends, so be prepared to wait for half an hour (at the least) if you want to eat here.  But what's different (and nicer) here is that all you need to do is to go to the counter and inform that you need a table for how many pax.  He will call your name once a table is available but you have to be prepared to share a table with others if you're in a small group.  With this system (at least), you won't have people staring down at you or 'breathing down your necks' while you eat.

 

When you come to Yut Kee, you (of course) have to order the most famous item on their menu and that is their signature Hainanese Chicken Chop @ RM9.50.  What makes this chicken chop so good, you ask?  After all, it's just a piece of deboned chicken thigh, dipped in egg (as evidenced by the frizzy strands on the coating) and deep fried.  It comes with some (fried) potato wedges, (softened) onions and a mixture of (unfrozen) carrots/green peas/corn (that you can buy from any supermarket).  

 

For me, the secret to a good chicken chop lies in its sauce and the one at Yut Kee is top-notch!  The not-too-thick, brownish Worchestershire-based gravy does not have the 'in your face' kind of punchy flavour but more of a mellow, subtle flavour which was truly delicious.  Sometimes, I would order a slice of toast bread to mop up the leftover sauce or I will just get a spoon to drink it up...it's that good!
 

Visually, the presentation does not do the dish justice but flavour wise on the palate, it's remarkable!  It's not the prettiest plate as they just plonk the chicken chop on the plate and serve it to you at a 'break neck' pace so that they can get you out as fast as possible, I guess.  [Note: I can't think of a better (maybe not better but equally good) chicken chop out there other than the one I ate (a long time ago) at Sin Seng Nam Restaurant in Medan Pasar.  But then, they too served their last chicken chop on 28 February last year after an 85-year run.]

 

They also have Pork Chop @ RM11.50 (served with the same gravy) but it's no where near as tender or as juicy as the Chicken Chop.  Because the pork chop is tougher and chewier, I would suggest you give this a miss and stick with the chicken chop.  At times, the chops do come out a bit darker than I would have liked (but this is the price we have to pay for the drop in standard as they need to dish out the chops 'fast and furious' due to the relentless crowd).

 

Another item that is very popular here is their Roast Pork @ RM15 (pretty pricey for 2 slices) and served with their inhouse apple sauce.  However, it's only available during the weekends and makes its 'grand' entrance at around 11am.  This is not the traditional Chinese roast pork ("siew yoke") that we're accustomed to but more of an English roast loin of pork with some stuffing of nuts (chestnut, pistachios?) and herbs (parsley, rosemary, sage maybe?).
 

I didn't care for the tart apple sauce although I know that pork and apples are a classic combo in western cooking (and so is the stuffing).  I preferred to eat the roast pork on its own and found the meat really tender and not as salty as our Chinese 'counterpart' (the "siew yoke").  You know your pork is not overcooked (but cooked to perfection) when you see a slight tinge of pink in the centre.

 

However, the best part of this roast pork is....wait for it......the crackling!  It's super crispy and so...so......good!!!  You know what's the secret to a perfect crackling...it's oil, salt and heat....and that's it!  And, at Yut Kee, these 3 were worked to perfection to create a super crunchy crackling.
 

If you like their roast pork, you can buy a whole loin for RM160 or half a loin for RM85 (not cheap eh).  Are you drooling yet looking at these beautiful rolls of awesomeness?
 

Another common favourite at Yut Kee is none other than their Half-Boiled Eggs @ RM2.80 and Toast Bread with Butter and Kaya @ RM2.80.  These free range eggs (or otherwise known as "kampung" eggs locally) were cooked perfectly and I couldn't wait to slurp down the runny, oozy goodness (oops, that's why there's a 'before' pic but no 'after' pic)!
 

The toast bread, with butter and their homemade kaya, is a breakfast staple we all grew up eating on a regular basis.  As much as I like a simple toast, I was not particularly crazy for Yut Kee's homemade kaya.  Though it tasted alright, it was a bit lumpy for my liking (maybe that's how they wanted it to be) but I like my kaya smooth and silky (and not grainy).  Also, the bread tends to dry out if not consumed immediately.  Suffice to say, I've eaten better toast than this.
 

Apart from the above, Yut Kee also offers many rice and noodle dishes.  Their Fried Rice @ RM6.50 (or Salted Fish Fried Rice @ RM7.50) is not too bad.  The more popular noodle dishes are Hailam Mee and Fried Toong Fun.  Stay away from anything curry though.  Another firm favourite is their "Roti Babi" (Pork Bread) @ RM9 which I didn't like.  It's made up of minced pork, caramelised onions and "lap cheong" (Chinese sausage) wrapped in bread, dipped in egg and fried.  There were more (a lot more) onions than there were shredded pork.
 

They also make a pretty decent glass of "Kopi-O Ping" (Iced Black Coffee) @ RM2.30 too.

 

Yut Kee makes the most amazing Marble/Butter Cake ever!!!  The marble cake not only taste fantastic but it smells incredible as well.  It's so buttery, moist and fragrant.  What makes this one of the best marble cakes is because they are not stingy with the butter (I must warn you though that it's rather oily because of the butter) but that's a good thing!  I usually buy a whole cake and take home but didn't get to this time as I was told the cakes will only roll out after 11.30am.

My Personal Opinion

There's a reason why Yut Kee has consistently been on the Shortlist of Time Out KL Food Awards for Best Cheap Eats (2013), Best Malaysian Restaurant (2012), Best Chinese (2011) and Best Hawker/Mamak (2010 Winner) for the last 4 years because what they do well, they do really well.  Although they had to compromise on the standards a bit over the years because of the massive clientele, it is still good!

 

It's not a place to eat and linger...or sip and enjoy your Hainanese coffee (slowly) during the peak hours and on weekends.  It's...you order, you eat, you leave (quickly).

 

I'll see them (again) at their new location (and hope that they bring back the old architecture, charm and ambience)!

What I really liked:  The Hainanese Chicken Chop and Marble Cake!

What I really disliked:  The waiting time for a table, the sharing of tables (with strangers) and the kinda 'hurried mode' of your dining experience (as evidenced by the super fast clearing of your plates once you've finished eating).

Footnote: 

After 86 long years of countless servings...it's the end of an era!  We (finally) bid farewell to their current premises (which we'll all miss) as Yut Kee is scheduled to move out in early June.  Their new site on Jalan Kamunting (the red building) is located directly behind their current premises.

Update through article in the Star papers (12.08.2014):
The shop finally called it a day last Sunday and will reopen its doors at No 1, Jalan Kamunting, from 25.08.2014...c u there ;)

(Kedai Makanan) Yut Kee
35 Jalan Dang Wangi 
50100 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 03-2698 8108

Kaki Bola (Fish Head Noodles) @ Paramount Garden

We chanced upon this fish head noodles restaurant one Sunday morning when we saw that Choon Prawn Mee House was too crowded.  This fish head noodle shop is known as Kaki Bola Dua @ II @ Paramount Garden, which was kinda weird as it had nothing to do with fish head noodles.  When you enter the restaurant, you'll realise why when you see posters of football clubs adorned on the walls...owners, fans of football, perhaps?

This is the Paramount Branch and their main branch is in Taman Segar which is one of the famous fish head noodle restaurants in Cheras since it was featured on 8TV's "Ho Chak".  In fact, there's a banner hanging outside the restaurant indicating their other branch at Taman Segar has been around since 1999.

There's basically 2 ways to eat fish head noodles, one is to choose the type of rice vermicelli or "meehoon" (either the normal meehoon or the thicker version of meehon which is referred to as "cho mai fun"), and the other is to choose the broth, whether with milk or the clear soup version.  For me, any version will do because I just love fish head noodles!

I chose the XO Fried Fish Head Noodle (Without Milk) @ RM8.30 with the thin meehoon and clear broth.  The clear broth was flavoursome, of course (knowing that it was the result of being boiled with lots of fish parts and bones), with a hint of rice wine (maybe XO?), while the salted vegetables and tomatoes added a slight tang to the broth.  The fried fish head was fresh, fragrant and fried till crispy, it was pretty good.  I'm not sure if the XO was in the marinated fish head or in the soup as I couldn't really taste the XO as it was not dominant at all.

You can also choose the Fried Fish Head Noodle (With Milk) version also @ RM8.30 and I opted for the thick vermicelli this time.  Strangely though, the thick vermicelli or "cho mai fun" was not the usual kind we're used to.  Their "cho mai fun" is more 'spaghetti-like' looking but with a much softer texture.  The broth (with milk) tasted slightly sweeter than the clear version and it was just as good.

You can ask them to serve the fried fish head separately from the soup if you are one who likes to enjoy munching on the crispiness of the fried fish.  Or, if you are like me, I ask them to serve the fried fish separately and then I put half of the fried fish pieces into the soup (to soak up some of the broth) and enjoy the crispiness of the other half.....that way, you get the 'best of both worlds'!

For those who doesn't like (or too lazy) to pick fish bones off the head, you can opt for fish paste or fish fillet (fresh or fried), though nothing beats chewing on fried fish head.  Apart from the XO flavoured broth, there's also other options like the "Shiong Tong" (clear soup) and "Tom Yam" flavours.

We also ordered a side dish of Fried Fish Cake @ RM8.50 which were slices of fish paste that looked kinda flat and somewhat different from the usual thicker ones that I'm used to having but they were good.  They tasted like they were made from pure fish paste (with very little flour), and maybe that's why they are thinner and the texture is softer but not as springy as those thicker ones made with more flour, I guess.

The Fried Wantan @ RM4.50 (for 6 pcs) was another snack we ordered and it was ok, nothing memorable.

If you have family members in your 'eating possy' that are not 'into' fish head noodles, you don't have to give up on eating it if it's one of your favourite noodles.  They can order other type of noodles like Wantan Mee @ RM6....

.....and Cantonese Fried "Sang Mee" (Crispy Noodles) @ RM7 (but they're probably ordinary but acceptable).

My Personal Opinion

I would say the fish head noodles are pretty good and I especially liked the fried fish head which was both fresh and crispy.

If you're looking for a reasonably priced and respectable bowl of fish head noodles, you can give this a try.

Kaki Bola XO Fish Head Noodles
No 23 Jalan 20/14
Paramount Garden
46100 Petaling Jaya
Selangor
Tel: 016-391 1577

Wai Fung (Pork Noodles) @ Pandan Perdana

Wai Fung Coffee Shop @ Pandan Perdana is one of my regular 'haunts' when I'm looking for a good bowl of "chee yuk fun" (pork noodles).  The stall in question is located at the front of the coffee shop.

This corner coffee shop is located in the vicinity of the Pandan Perdana wet market (somewhere behind Hong Leong Bank) and is usually packed in the mornings by all the market-goers who stop by to have their breakfasts after doing their marketing.

You have a choice of "kon lo" (dry version) or the soup version.  This is the Kon Lo Pork Noodles (Mee+Kway Teow) @ RM5 (small).  This dry version of Pork Mee is tossed in thick, dark soya sauce with pork lard oil and topped with the ever important ingredients of crispy "chee yau char" (fried pork lard bits) and fried garlic.  These 2 ingredients just bring out the flavour of the pork noodles.

The soup is served separately with slices of lean pork, minced pork, "chee yun" (pork liver), pork intestines and "choy sum" (Chinese flowering cabbage).  I like the lean pork and the partially cooked pork liver that is extremely tender and the broth is full of flavour.  The advantage of having the soup separately is that you can taste the clarity of the porky broth without the noodles...it's slurpy soupy goodness!

This Pork Noodle Soup (mee+meehoon) @ RM5.70 (for big) is equally good.  The thought of a warm bowl of chee yuk fun on a rainy day or even when I'm 'under the weather' is really comforting.

Just look at those crispy chee yau char bits and the fragrant fried minced garlic...it can't get any better than that!  [#Tip: You probably won't get as much chee yau char as me (unless you ask) coz the stall owner gives me extra for he knows I love it....and want it!  And it has become my regular order all the time...special just for me ;)]

One note of caution though is that the drinks here is more expensive than other coffee shops in the area.  A glass of "Kopi-O Ping" (Iced Black Coffee) here costs RM2.20 and, worst still, it's not even as good as the cheaper one from Restoran TO behind.

My Personal Opinion

There are other hawker stalls here selling 'I don't know what' since I pay no attention to them other than the chee yuk fun stall.

When I come to this coffee shop, it's for one thing and one thing only....a bowl of wholesome chee yuk fun!

(Kedai Makanan dan Minuman) Wai Fung

No 30 Jalan Perdana 4/3

Pandan Perdana

55300 Kuala Lumpur

Oiso @ Cheras Leisure Mall

I was in Cheras Leisure Mall to look for a previous issue of a magazine that I read on a monthly basis.  After successfully getting the back-dated issue, I decided to have our dinner there before heading home.

Our dinner place ended up to be Oiso @ Cheras Leisure Mall, a restaurant serving Korean set meals.

I chose the Saba BBQ Fish Set @ RM18.90 which was grilled Saba (mackerel) served with rice and some Korean condiments like soup, kimchi, fried anchovies and sautéed spinach.  The condiments were rather disappointing as the soup was not hot, the kimchi I don't like, the anchovies were not even crispy and the sautéed spinach was just too little.

Although the accompaniments were a letdown, I was more than happy with the portion size of the saba as it was a pretty big piece and the fish was nicely grilled.  To get a piece of saba that size for just RM18.90 was indeed value-for-money.
 

Our other order was the Chicken BBQ Set also @ RM18.90 which was made up of grilled chicken meat marinated in gochujang (Korean red chilli paste) sauce.  

Do not be fooled by the description of grilled chicken and expecting it to be dry as it's not.  It comes in a reddish sauce which tastes somewhat similar to eating bibimbap.  I did not like this as I don't fancy bibimbap.  It came with the same unfulfilling accompaniments.

I ordered the Iced Korean No. 1 Coffee @ RM3.90 which looked more like tea and didn't taste like coffee.  I have not drank Korean coffee before so I don't know how it should taste like but it tasted diluted without a strong coffee taste.  But, then again, can't expect too much from a glass of coffee that costs so little.

The other drink we ordered was the Grape Juice @ RM6.90 which tasted just like any bottled grape juice we can buy off the shelves.

My Personal Opinion

If you're looking for a very affordable Korean set meal, then you can give this a go.  But, just know that the food here is only passable.  The plus point here is the cheap price and not so much the taste...you can even get a beef bulgogi set for RM19.90!

The grilled saba is definitely worth the price for such a sizeable portion.

If you're on a budget, this Korean set meal makes a complete meal for under RM20 and it's a bargain if you don't set your expectations too high!

Oiso

Lot 57A Level 2
Cheras Leisure Mall
56000 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 03-9134 5029

Bonjour Garden Bakery @ The Intermark

After our (more than) satisfying meal at Fresco @ Jaya Grocer, we proceeded to Bonjour Garden Bakery @ The Intermark to get our caffeine fix since we didn't quite get the 'kick-start' we wanted earlier in the day.

"Bonjour" is the French way of greeting you "good day" (like hello or welcome)!  It's a stylish, continental bakery cum cafe with an all day dining concept offering big breakfasts to steaks, pizzas, pastas, gourmet pies, sandwiches to all your favourite patisserie and boulangerie items (made fresh daily).

The Intermark outlet, with its chic Parisian cafe design, is their 5th outlet.  This garden bakery uses traditional French techniques with Japanese precision to produce authentic French bakery and pastries.

We made our selection of cakes and pastries at their bakery counter before proceeding to the cafe to order our coffee.  We were pleased that they serve Lavazza coffee here.

Iced Cappuccino @ RM10

Iced Latte @ RM10

Hot Cappuccino @ RM9

Water is chargeable @ RM1 a glass

Soon after we sat down and ordered our drinks, our selection of cakes and pastries arrived.

The Strawberry Shortcake @ RM8/slice was airy and light, coupled with the freshness of the strawberries, it was a delight to eat!

The Chocolate Galaxy @ RM6.95/pc looked stunning (with the glistening chocolate) and tasted as good as it looked (and that's coming from someone who doesn't like chocolate that much).  The chocolate cake was moist inside with a smooth, velvety chocolate on the outside.  I truly enjoyed this although I'm more of a 'savoury' gal than a 'sweet' gal (hmmm...that didn't quite come off the way I intended it to, if you "get my drift").

As I'm not a huge fan of cheese, I'm not the authority to comment on the next 3 items.  The Cheese Symphony @ RM6.95/slice was equally good (according to my friends) and even better with the freshly grated coconut on top.

This is the Caramel Cheese Raisin (Butter Roll) @ RM2.95/pc.  Inside the roll, you'll find a thick layer of caramel cheese and raisins.  When you bite into it, you can taste the softness of the roll and the creamy cheese oozes into your mouth (I did take one bite just to see why my friends loved it so much).

As for the Caramel Cheese Cranberry @ RM2.95/pc, it's similar to the one above except you get cranberries instead of raisins.  My friends preferred the one with the raisins more.

The Croissant @ RM2.60/pc we had was one of the last two and, maybe because of this, it was not as soft and flaky as I would have liked.  It was still quite good though I've eaten better (and more buttery) ones than this.

My friends found themselves tempted by some of the other bakery items that they didn't get to try and so decided to take a few bakery temptations home with them.

As for me, I bought 2 loaves of bread to take home.  The Campagne Cereal @ RM8.65 was crusty on the outside and soft on the inside.  The black and white sesame seeds on the crust made it more fragrant.  [#Note: You can get 10-12 slices from one loaf...the pic here shows only half a loaf.]

The Ciabatta Junior @ RM2.50 (literally "slipper" bread) is made from French flour and fresh yeast.  It has a crisp crust with a soft, porous texture.  [#Note: You can probably get 7-8 slices from one loaf.]  If you like your bread hard and with a bit of bite, then you'll like this.

Their 5 signature bakery items (the 5Cs) are Caramel Cheese Raisin, Ciabatta (hard bread), Croissant, Campagne (levain bread) and Cranberrry Cheese (levain bread).  Of these 5, we managed to try 4 of them.

My Personal Opinion

The laid-back, cozy ambience makes this a good place to simply sit back, relax, socialise and spend quality time with your friends or family.

Having a relaxing time, sipping a good cup of coffee while enjoying scrumptious cakes and pastries, in a comfortable setting, is the perfect way to unwind.

My favourites:  The Chocolate Galaxy, Strawberry Shortcake and a good cup of Lavazza coffee.

Bonjour Garden

Lot LC-01-08 Intermark Mall
The Intermark
348 Jalan Tun Razak
50400 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 03-2181 1822

Jaya Grocer + Fresco @ The Intermark

As it was a public holiday, my friends and I decided to do some grocery shopping and try out their "grocerant" (grocer + restaurant) ie. Jaya Grocer + Fresco @ The Intermark.  The concept of this grocerant is to allow customers to do their own grocery shopping by choosing from a selection of meat or seafood that has a green sticker that says "cooks for you", pay for the items you selected and then bring it to the grocerant (in this case, Fresco) who will cook it for you for free (you just need to order one side dish with your main meal).

This grocerant, however, is not available in all their outlets.  Apart from The Intermark, only the outlets at Empire Shopping Gallery, Bangi Gateway and Cheras Sentral have this service.

And so, we met up at 11.30am and started our (late) morning with a cup of coffee to get us 'going'...coz you just can't start off the day without a good cup of coffee.  We didn't want to venture too far from the supermarket and, hence, we had our morning cuppa at Fresco....and, boy, was that a mistake!

We ordered an Iced Cappuccino @ RM8, a Hot Mocha Latte @ RM8 and a Hot Chocolate @ RM6.  All 3 drinks were horrible...the Iced Cappuccino was overly sweet without any coffee taste whatsoever.  Even our packet Milo tastes a lot better than this Hot Chocolate and what the heck was that on the Mocha Latte...you call that coffee art?  I call that a 'smudge'!  If you can't do it well.....don't attempt!!

Needless to say, we didn't finish our drinks (which were left 'half full' or 'half empty' as some would say) and our morning didn't quite get off to the 'flying' start that we were hoping for.  [#Tip: Have your morning coffee at Bonjour Garden (a bakery cum cafe) instead!  That's where we went for desserts and coffee (after our lunch) which I will blog in a separate (upcoming) post.]

We walked around Jaya Grocer (reportedly the largest outlet) for a bit to 'take in' the 30,000 sq ft of space and produce offering premium imported foodstuff to organic products to gourmet cheeses to premium meats and more.

This is Vom Fass where you get to sample delicious fruit vinegars, oils and spirits (Whisky, Cognac, Rum, etc.) straight from their casks and get them bottled for you...Look.Taste.Enjoy.

They seem to have everything from wines and beers to illy coffee to good quality chocolates to even Ben & Jerry's ice cream...and there's a lot more!

There's also a lot of cheeses to choose from.  You can also find imported gourmet cheeses from the Cheese & Gourmet Section.

Soon, it was lunch time.  We went to the Fresh Meat Section first to pick out our meats (be it beef, lamb or poultry) though our favourite is beef, of course.  They have quite a good selection of quality meats from Australian Grain Fed Beef to Angus Beef (Rib Eye, Tenderloin) to Wagyu Beef (Striploin, Rib Eye, Tenderloin) with different marble scores.

We chose the Wagyu Tenderloin (with a marble score of 9+) @ RM46.90 per 100g (the most expensive cut available that day).  Our piece of Wagyu Tenderloin weighed 162g for a total price of RM75.98...a real bargain!

We also selected the Angus Rib Eye @ RM18.60 per 100g.  This piece of Angus Rib Eye cost RM45.38 for 244g which is also a 'value-for-money' buy.

Next, we headed to the Fishmonger Section to choose our seafood.  There's a variety of fresh fish (whole fish or fillets), prawns, squid, crab, clams and scallops.  For fish fillets, you have a choice of salmon, lemon sole and garoupa among others.

We chose the Salmon Fillet @ RM90 per kg for one of our seafood main courses as we all love salmon.  Our 256g piece of Salmon Fillet cost RM23.04.

We also got some King Prawns (M) @ RM65 per kg (and not RM55 coz the price tag was wrong) as our other seafood main.  I picked up 9 fairly huge prawns (though it's stated as medium size) which weighed in at 398g for only RM25.87....how cheap is that!  [Note: That's like less than RM3 a prawn.]

Here's our selection of 4 main proteins - Wagyu Tenderloin, Angus Rib Eye, Salmon Fillet and King Prawns.

With our shopping done, we brought our meats and seafood to the chef at Fresco to have them cooked.  Since we have 4 mains that needed to be cooked, I had to choose 4 side dishes as accompaniments.

The first side I chose was the Hollandaise Asparagus @ RM12.80.  The asparagus was nicely grilled, though the ends were a bit woody.  I liked the Hollandaise sauce which was rich and buttery with a refreshing lemon-flavoured tang.

The second side dish was the Baked King Mushrooms @ RM10.80.  The King Mushrooms were topped with fragrant bits of fried garlic and served with some herbed oil...mmm...yummy!

Our third side was the Baked Garlic Mashed Potatoes @ RM6.80 which were cheesy and buttery.

The fourth side dish was one of their RTE (Ready-To-Eat) dishes of a Waldorf Salad @ RM7.50 which was not from the menu (unlike the first 3 sides).  They have a few ready made side dishes that you can choose as well and the Waldorf Salad was one of them.  It's made up of red and green apple chunks, grapes, sliced celery and raisins dressed in mayonnaise.  The fruit salad was refreshing and crunchy.

We also ordered a fifth side (later) of Steak Fries @ RM6.80 just for the young ones.  The freshly fried fries were seasoned with salt, black pepper, parsley flakes and served with a cheesy sauce.  It went down well with the kids (and the adults too).

On a recent revisit, I chose one of their RTE side dishes, Coleslaw @ RM7.50 which was refreshing, with a crunch from the white and purple cabbage, and some cornflakes thrown in.

All the side dishes make worthy accompaniments and were (surprisingly) fairly decent.

The side dishes were served first and were quickly followed by the mains.  The first main to arrive was the Wagyu Tenderloin (162g) @ RM75.98 with a drizzle of herbed oil and dark sauce (balsamic reduction, maybe).  I asked for the Wagyu Tenderloin to be done Medium Rare which is the best way to eat this piece of fine steak.

It was cooked to medium rare, though a tad more on the rare side, but I can totally understand why as it's better to undercook a fine piece of steak than to overcook it (coz once it's overcooked, it's a waste of a good piece of meat).  Probably another 30 secs more and this tenderloin would have been 'perfection on a plate' but it was still very good nonetheless.  Although you can't compare Australian Wagyu to (the better quality) Japanese Wagyu, it was certainly good enough for me and my friends.  [#Note: Not everyone can afford to eat the high end Japanese Wagyu.]  The steak had a nice char on the outside and was flavourful (from the salt, black pepper and dried rosemary seasoning), tender and really soft.

Even my friends, who are not used to eating steaks at medium rare doneness, commented how good it was (I'm glad they've finally come round to enjoy eating steaks done medium rare...yay)!

Our next piece of meat was the Angus Rib Eye (244g) @ RM45.38 which I requested to be done to medium.  This was to cater to my friends just in case they may not enjoy the medium rare Wagyu.  For those who do not like their meat with a reddish centre, you can take your steak to medium (at the furthest) which will render a pinkish centre (and nothing beyond that, god forbid!).  [#Tip: If it's a very good piece of steak, it's still best to eat it medium rare.]  Our Angus Rib Eye was beautifully seared, well seasoned and just 'hit all the right buttons'!

After 2 courses of meat, our first seafood main made its appearance and it was our Salmon Fillet (256g) @ RM23.04.  It was nicely seared and served skin side down with a squirt of mayo.  Really fresh fish needs nothing more than quick, simple pan-frying or grilling which leaves the fish with a beautifully crisp skin and succulent flesh...truly delicious!

Our final seafood main was the King Prawns (398g) @ RM25.87 simply grilled to perfection....just look at the lovely grill marks.  Where in the heck can you eat 9 fairly huge fresh king prawns for only RM25?  We were happy ladies!!

Just look at my enticing big prawn...how gorgeous is that?  If there's one little complaint, it would be that the chef did not properly clean all the prawns entrails.  It would be a big 'no-no' in a fancy restaurant but here (and knowing the price I paid), I'm willing to let it slide.

On a recent revisit, I thought I'd give my favourite fish of all time, the Cod Fish @ RM24 a try.  The freshness of the cod fish was acceptable (although not super fresh) as it came frozen (and, yes, I was amazed that Fresco could cook it from a frozen state).  The fish was flaky and sweet (after grilling) and, at the awesome price of RM24 a piece, I can't complain (at all).

All the mains were simply seasoned (with salt and black pepper) and simply cooked (on the grill).....fast, fresh and simple...but yet truly appetising!  If you're looking for more 'complicated' cooking methods with different sauces, I'm afraid you won't find it here.

A word of caution though, you have to order one side dish per protein you choose, so you can't have a combo of (let's say) cod fish and prawns (coz then they'll ask you to order 2 side dishes).  I learned it the hard way....yikes!

My Personal Opinion

This is a place where you'll find fresh food, quality cuts, simple cookimg...and, most importantly, it won't 'burn a hole' in your pocket.  It's worthy of 'repeated' visits if you're looking for a 'no frills' western meal in a 'no ambience' diner/food court environment (probably not the best place to impress your date though but great for families who want decent food at affordable prices).

What makes this place so desirable?  Well, let me tell you the plus points (again)...

1.  Fresh Produce - The meats and seafood are incredibly fresh.

2.  Option to Choose - You get to choose your desired cut (what you like) and weight (how much you can eat).

3.  Reasonable Prices - The prices are 'wallet friendly' (compared to restaurant prices) for the same food.

4.  Cooks for You - You don't need to do the cooking (it's like having a personal chef cook for you).

5.  No Washing Up - Finally, there's no washing up to do (even better).....5 thumbs up!!!

What I loved:  All the freshly-cooked meat/seafood and side dishes and the fact that you get to eat Wagyu without 'breaking the bank'!

What I disliked:  Their coffees were really disappointing!  Just stick with warm water @ RM0.50 or iced water @ RM0.70.

What I could excuse:  Not quite 'spot on' with the cooking (doneness), but knowing the prices we pay, I'm willing to forgive the (slight) inconsistencies in cooking.

I can't wait to return...again.....and again......and again....pretty darn good food without "going broke"...now that's a "match made in (food) heaven"!!

Update:  17.06.2014 (With effect from 1 June 2014, they now charge a nominal fee of RM5 per item for cooking but the one side dish per protein is no longer a must)

Fresco @ Jaya Grocer
Lot LC-01 Intermark Mall
The Intermark
348 Jalan Tun Razak
50400 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 03-2161 1323