Latest Condemn List Candidate: Marmalade Cafe, BSV II

One of my favourite places for Sunday Brunch is Marmalade Cafe. I like going to the one in Bangsar Village II.

I've had my fair share of people who wonder why I have brunch there, declaring the food to be variously 'weird' and 'tasteless' and cardboard. They have some winners on the menu (the salmon carbonara is not bad, and I do like their ricebowl options). Mostly, it's a good place to eat because the food is a reasonable effort at reducing the 'bad quotient' of most foods. It feels healthy, without feeling, like it's inedible. The staff are accomodating to requests such as serving the poached salmon with only brocolli, or cutting the amount of rice. And when it comes to weekend brunch, they have some interesting options beyond the usual boring eggs and toast.

They are the only place I know that does wholegrain pancakes. And since I'm on a bit of a health move, I try to chose wholegrain where I can and so Marmalade Pancakes are a good way to indulge without too much guilt. A friend likes their Green Eggs, and their French Toast is quite good too.

All this is a thing of the past.

Two weekends ago, we were at Marmalade and we noticed new menus.

New menus usually means, new prices. And sure enough, Green Eggs were up by RM2.

Now, obviously, prices going up is nothing to bat an eyelid at. It's surprising these days if you go to a restaurant and prices HAVEN'T gone up and portion sizes have said the same. But I'll get to what's objectionable in a bit.

At Marmalade, not only were the prices UP, but items had disappeared from the dishes. The Green Eggs usually come with 2 slices of mozzarella cheese, and avocados. The avocadoes were still there, but the mozzarella cheese had disappeared.

The wholegrain pancakes are usually served with cream cheese. Usually I get the waiters to get the chef to stick it into a separate saucer. Admittedly the last few times I have been there, I've not actually seen any cream cheese on the pancakes - this time I was there, there was a barely visible swipe on the pancakes. Now, it could be the waiters just decided that I was a health nut and since I always asked for the rice to be removed from my dishes, that I'd perhaps like not having any cream cheese on the pancakes.But here's the thing, that Sunday, I didn't ask them to take it out.

The French toast usually comes with a tumbler/shot glass of vanilla yoghurt. But given that the Green Eggs had come sans Mozzarella cheese, it was no surprise that the French Toast arrived with a container the same size as the miniature containers for chilli and soy sauce in the hawker center.

Now, I know dairy products have gone up in price but is it necessary to engage in these reductions AND embark on a price increase?

In all fairness, Marmalade has been frank by producing a new menu and indicating clearly what they are removing, and publishing new prices. Points must be given for not being deceptive (although of course, if I had my nitpicking ways, the waiters/staff should have been trained to tell customers that the Mozzarella Cheese was being removed).

But as far as I could tell, cream cheese was still part of the pancakes although I noticed in my copy of the menu, it was glued on. And there was barely any (not to say absolutely none, just BARELY ANY) cream cheese in my pancakes.

Am I harping? Yes I am. But as far as I am concerned, what aggrieves me is that there is no reason to cut back AND raise prices. I would be okay with a raised price for the same product - that after all is what inflation is all about. I would also be okay with a raised price, and say a slight cutback - one slice of mozzarella cheese vs two. But a bare scraping that's nearly not visible to the naked eye of cream cheese? And cutting back yoghurt by 2/3rds? Inflation means prices go up and if you've raised your prices, then you've address the inflation issue. But to charge more, and give less feels a lot like daylight robbery.

So what if Marmalade's argument is - we can't raise the price enough to cover our costs?

If an establishment is confident of the quality of the food that they are offering up, then they should be confident enough to increase the price to the level needed to maintain standards. And confident that the patrons will believe enough in the food to pay that higher price surely?

To increase the price AND reduce the amount of product, is a recipe for disaster for any restaurant. Patrons, specifically the REGULAR PATRONS, will notice. Admittedly, not all regular patrons will notice, whine/bitch and then blog about it. But they will notice.

Whether or not patrons will then translate that noticing of up price, decline in quantity and ingredients, into less visits, or simply not frequenting a place like me, depends. Significantly, it will probably depend on how easily you find a substitute for wholegrain pancakes, or green eggs or French toast. Unfortunately, there are hardly ANY places that do the wholegrain pancakes (although I am working my damndest on the chef at YogiTree). Green Eggs are a sort of niche dish of Marmalade as well so finding that substitute will probably be a challenge as well bar making it at home yourself. As for French Toast, one could make it oneself or visit Kim Gary and eat their heart-stopping version.

My friends and I, after contemplation, decided we will probably be going down the path of not frequenting Marmalade. And we will have to find another brunch place. I will miss the magazines, and the place. And the coffee was something else.

But I have put it on my condemn list. Which means, on principle, I shall not be frequenting it any more.

What's on your Condemn List?

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Reason #25342 to diet: mooncakes

It's that time of the year again - yes, mooncakes galore.

Cruised past the display at Midvalley today and noticed someone offering a ginseng chicken floss mooncake.

I cannot be sure if it is gross, a potential winner or beyond comprehension, food flavours wise. (still rolling it around my head).

Although, I did try the same company's Tiramisu and Black Forest mooncakes last year and was pleasantly surprised. Admittedly, it was hardly a quality product (I'm sure there were a lot of Es and Cs at work to produce those flavours. If you don't know what I'm talking about, try the last chapter of Fast Food Nation).

The KL Hilton's Chynna Restaurant has an exotic interesting offering this year - the Blue Mooncake. It has a blue skin and blueberry cheese filling. Sounds Vulcan (but interesting nonetheless.)

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Can you call something Pancetta if it's made from Beef?

Had dinner at Villa Danielli, Imperial Hotel (formerly the Sheraton Imperial).

We had a pizza that was described as Pancetta e Funghi. Which my rudimentary italian identifies as bacon and mushroom. Now, the description below informs the customer that it is beef bacon they are getting, not pork bacon.

My question - can it be called pancetta, if it is not made from pork, specifically pork belly?
Wikipedia does not seem to think so. And I don't think so either.

Why my blog does not have pictures of the food I eat

Somone asked me why my blog, which is about food most of the time, was so scant when it came to food pictures.

Because there are already enough food blogs out there with endless pictures of food, and not enough food blogs out there with WORDS in 'em. That's why. Especially Malaysian food blogs.

It makes you wonder why they are even called blogs if they are just full of pictures. A blog, lest we forget, was supposed to have originated as an online diary/journal which whilst it is appropriate that it includes photographs, should be more about WORDS.

From wikipedia

A blog (an abridgment of the term web log) is a website, usually maintained by an individual, with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in reverse chronological order. "Blog" can also be used as a verb, meaning to maintain or add content to a blog.

Many blogs provide commentary or news on a particular subject; others function as more personal online diaries. A typical blog combines text, images, and links to other blogs, web pages, and other media related to its topic. The ability for readers to leave comments in an interactive format is an important part of many blogs. Most blogs are primarily textual, although some focus on art (artlog), photographs (photoblog), sketches (sketchblog), videos (vlog), music (MP3 blog), audio (podcasting) are part of a wider network of social media.

So that is one of the reasons why I do not have an endless pile of food pictures on my blog. This is a blog where I talk about food - it is not a catalogue of every meal I have eaten, or for that matter, only about what food I have eaten.

Another reason: I'm not a professional photographer and my food pictures would just look like amateur food pictures anyway. Why would I want to insult the chef or restaurant owner by publishing amateur photographs of their food?

A professional photographer, assisted by a food stylist and further assisted by an army of assistants is how pictures in food magazines look so good. Since I am neither professional, not assisted nor willing to invest in the equipment or time to learn how to do it well, I refuse to accordingly do injustice to the food and to the Chef by photographing his or her food in bad light (or just lousy light), using a snappy camera and failing to complement what's on the plate with an appropriate styling.

Admittedly, most Malaysian food blogs are not pro-blogs wherein the bloggers are full-time pros who earn their living from their blog or who use their blog for purposes of showcasing their work as writers/photographers/food writers. So really, they can write whatever they want, and use as many pictures as they want. But I maintain that the biggest problem we have towards educating people on gastronomy and culinary arts and sciences in Malaysia is simply that there is insufficient exposure to quality writing about the subject of food. And a slew of food blogs that are picture driven don't help.

Which brings me to the conclusion: Malaysians are lazy readers and lazy reviewers.

Why bother to work at describing what you ate when you could just show a picture right? Save time writing mah. And no need to describe so much. After all, why crack one's brain trying to figure out a comparative descriptive of what you are eating when you can just slap a picture there and tell people - nah, so obvious right what it is no? And why bother to arrive at your own conclusion about whether what you ate was of a high standard compare against an objective standard, or revolutionary, or exciting, or unique - slap a picture there and let people see for themselves lah!

And heaven forbid if Malaysians are actually asked to IMAGINE what something tastes like using their brains, and taste memory, or composite two flavours through their imagination (think Ratatouille) and based on a description written in text form. Yes, photographs cut across the language barrier, but they also function as an intellectual barrier. They ultimately reflect the absence of a need for critical thought when it comes to how we approach the subject of food.

Which naturally results in Malaysians becoming IMHO faux gourmands and lazy foodies.

Admittedly, food should not be a complex exercise. It is after all about enjoyment. But it is another thing to entirely remove any measure of intellectualising from food - that is to simply downgrade all food into two categories: YUK or YUM. No, I do not ponder and contemplate every mouthful of food that I consume, but I am particular about what I will eat and will not eat, am very clear about when I am eating nonsense food and when I'm having a serious gastronomic experience (and also all those experiences in between).

Does anyone bother to wonder why it is that top notch restaurants do not provide you with PHOTOGRAPHIC menus? You can't be a serious foodie/gourmand if you're too lazy to read the menu or the description of the food. Photographs are only fit for fast service restaurants or in places where the menu is in a foreign language or the food is extremely foreign and you need a photograph to know that 'pesce' is 'fish'.

Check out a food review in The Times or the Guardian - guess what? There are NO food photographs. The focus is on the food, but you don't get pictures of the food. You might get a photograph of the restaurant's exterior to help you identify it's location if you happen to go looking for it, or to give you an idea of the ambiance. But NO FOOD PICTURES.

Look at the Dining and Wining section of the New York Times. Mark Bittman's 'The Minimalist' column this week on Blueberry Cheesecakes (blueberries are in glut, hence their sudden availability for RM10.99 at BSV) features ONE PHOTO. The rest are words. Descriptives. Explanations. Science. Commentary. Insight. Knowledge.

The restaurant review section of the New York Times restaurant review archive has a similar pattern of wordiness. Each review contains a singular photograph taken of the interior of the restaurant and guess what? More words.

Gastroporn can be about pictures and words, but one without the other or one without being respectfully and sufficiently complimented by another?

Words are what provide us with a more complex vicarious food experience and most importantly, and indication of TASTE. A photograph capture a limited number of textures (wet, dry, textured, smooth) but it cannot communicate sweet, sour, bitter, spicy, hot, cold, warm, comforting. Photographs show you what something looks like and a multiplicity of colours (which can also help influence your viewpoint of the taste of something) but it is wordscapture complexity in flavour, the combination of tastes, the different textures, and most importantly, the sensation of the food.

So no, I do not put pictures unless I have a very good reason to do so, or I am just feeling frivolous. And I personally find it annoying to sit in a restaurant and see people photographing their food. I can understand if say, you were on a quest to eat at a Michelin-starred restaurant for 365 days of the year, and your blog contained an image of every Michelin-starred meal. Or if you were documenting a special meal (for example, a blow out on a really expensive degustation menu at a top tier restaurant) and just wanted to have a memory of the blow-out moment.

Photographing your afternoon snacks, and lunchtime meals and late night cakescapades? I'd be insulted as the baker/chef at a restaurant if someone took amateur snappy camera photographs of my food and slapped it up on the Internet. What if the pictures don't do justice to my food? What if it makes people just say - oh that looks yummy but in fact, my food is BEYOND MERE YUMMY?

Learn to read. You'll be a better gourmand for it.

Chocolate Ricotta Cheesecake @ Alexis - Jury Still Out

Had it for lunch today. (no pictures people, learn to use your imagination)

Biscuit base, and then a light fluffy chocolate 'cake' on top. Biscuit base tasted like digestive biscuits but wasn't crunchy or hard, but quite soft.

Ricotta always produces a 'lighter' cheesecake compared to cream cheese, which can be claggy and dense, especially if used in the wrong proportion, used in too much quantity, cheap cream-cheese is used, or you just have a refrigerator that is too cold. All these basically create a cheese but claggy cheesecake which leaves you feeling like you still have cheese stuck to your teeth despite the coffee you glugged down.

It does taste like a compromise choice - neither sinful enough to satisfy a desert craving (for that, please refer to the gorgeous Bittersweet Chocolate at Alexis) nor low in calories to make the dieting feel guiltless.

Jury is still out although for a change, it provides a different texture and a certain fluffyiness.

Bye Bye Bakerzin, Hello Oriel?

So, it has finally happened. The Titanic has hit the Iceberg.

Yesterday, whilst lurking at Starbucks, I noticed that my once-favourite cafe, Bakerzin, (to find out why it has fallen from favour, see 'Thoughts on Kuchen') has changed names. It is now known as Oriels.

Now, I am inclined to think that it possibly has the same owners or at least, it is not a total change of hands as the staff are the same, furniture is the same, and everything is more or less the same. Even if you sell a business to someone, they're going to surely make some changes? But perhaps the name change is the 'big change' then.

I am not surprised that this has happened, although I can only speculate why. The easy possiblity is that the franchise owner of Bakerzin here in Malaysia (Billion Berg) and Bakerzin (which is a Singaporean company) fell out - most franchises go pear shaped over one thing usually and that's $. Maybe Bakerzin Singapore was taking too much of the profit from Bakerzin Malaysia, making it hard for Bakerzin Malaysia to put enough money back into ops and expansion, which may also have been part of the franchise agreement.

The requirement of expansion of a certain number of stores is not uncommon in the franchising world. The doughnut-mad amongst us who are wondering why it is that Krispy Kreme has not set foot in this part of the world or who are considering if a KK Asean franchise might be the key to world domination might want to consider the following criteria (as published on the the Krispy Kreme website):

• Applicants must have current ownership and operating experience or previous ownership and operating experience of multi-unit food service operations in the market that you desire to develop.

• Our franchisees must possess the capital sufficient to fund the development of the market. We currently grant franchises on an area development basis. Specifically, our area developers are required to build multiple stores (10 or more) in a market. The minimum net worth requirement is $30 million or $1,000,000 per store to be developed, whichever is greater. For instance, a 15-store market requires a minimum net worth of $30,000,000. (emphasis is mine)
  

Perhaps Bakerzin Singapore was being very demanding and requiring Bakerzin Malaysia to open up lots of outlets quickly and this put a strain on Bakerzin Malaysia's resources, which in turn created a cash crunch problem.

Or perhaps, Bakerzin Malaysia was insisting on making the cakes here, rather than getting the primary cake ingredients from Bakerzin's central facility in Singapore, and this was a deal-breaker. I know that for some time, Bakerzin Malaysia was working on making the cakes locally rather than getting their primary cake ingredients (sponges, mousses and the like) from the Singapore central facility. (this is the reason for their meagre collection of cakes, which has been the state of things for a good six months).

Now, the obvious reason for this would be cost control - delicate items like sponges, mousses and ganaches need to be stored in a refrigerated storage facility, and also need to be transported in refrigerated trucks. All this adds significantly to cost especially in light of the price of petrol going up (transport costs 30% more now) and electricity bills going up for commercial premises (imagine having to keep a refrigerated facility going). Compare that to having to just store the basic ingredients to make these items (which you wouldn't need to store up in advance since the supplier is local and can just deliver on demand) and not having to pay the considerable freight/transport change of transporting the delicate cake ingredients from Singapore to KL.

But on Bakerzin Singapore's side, the central facility is the key to two goals: firstly, maintaining quality. By centralising the production of the key components of their cakes, they can ensure that the end product will always be consistent since the franchisor is only effectively doing 'assembly' of the cake or just doing modest finishing touches onto the cakes. Secondly, this ensures they are able to protect their culinary IP - meaning, to minimise the risk of anyone copying their cakes or passing off their cakes as their own. It also is a sort of leash that they use to control the franchisor. This is quite common in ALL franchise concepts - the master franchisor always controls the ingredients going out. For example, all cakes at Secret Recipe outlets come from a singular factory source and franchisors have to buy the cakes from the factory. This is a requirement of the franchise agreement.

The plus for the Franchisee (ie: Billion Berg) is that they can concentrate on just operations, knowing that the food is already a winning formula and the brand is already a known brand.

A sign of the impending demise of Bakerzin could be seen when they switched out of Illy coffee to Lavazza (a sign the operator is trying to cut costs to make more profit) and I think when they started wanting to make their own cakes, Bakerzin Singapore either balked or saw it as an attempt to muck around with the quality. Conversely, it is also possible that Bakerzin Singapore just started becoming very unreasonable. Who knows. Whatever happened, it is an unfortunate fact that those of us who are fans of the sublime Lemon Tart, and the divine Jivara cake, that light Japanese-inspired Strawberry Shortcake, and the amazing molten chocolate cake....and the Oreo Cheesecake...and - well, one could go on. I mourn the loss of Bakerzin Malaysia, for it now means I can only get an alternative cake fix in Kiasuland rather than BSV, and there is one less option for cake on the 'must-have-cake' days.

Once again, Alexis (I'm really starting to wonder if the name was an inspired choice now sic Dynasty) rules the cake roost.

Life's a Grind...

I was quite excited when the Daily Grind opened up in Bangsar Village in December 2007. After all, the local restaurants should always be kept on their toes with a good bit of competition and really, I was getting kind of tired of the La Bodega burger (getting tired of La Bodega also).

I was also a bit curious to see how well this establishment would do, since they touted themselves as a 'Gourmet Burger Diner'. My previous experience with the 'other' gourmet burger place, Relish (located ironically round the corner at the car showroom opposite Bangsar Village) was decidedly poor. At Relish, we waited 45 minutes for our burgers - it was almost like they were looking for the cow, then slaughtering the cow, then grinding up the meat and the service was nothing short of appalling. Then came the crinkle cut chips! I expect a place with the word 'gourmet' in its name to make their own chips for heavens sakes. Hand-cut MINIMUM. If I want crinkle cut chips, I'll buy a bag of McCains and make them in my own oven!

So Relish is definitely on my Condemn List.

In any case, all seemed interesting when the day before they opened, I walked past and was told that the Daily Grind made it's burgers from Wagyu beef. Ah, this might explain the rather high price. However, this turned out to be misinformation (or an error perhaps) on the part of the staff. The Daily Grind makes its burgers from Australian-grain fed beef, not Wagyu.

So ahem, not quite the same moo.

I have been in twice, and by my reckoning and in gossip sessions with some other food aficionados, the Daily Grind's future does not look so bright. Admittedly in the first lunch I had there, there were some teething problems. Notably at the start they were having trouble getting the orders out quickly and in a timely fashion. This is common problem most restaurants have - opening week yips and teething problems from getting the staff to work with the kitchen folk. My burger arrived on time but I suspect it was also because two diners (who I knew) before me cancelled their orders out of annoyance.

All in all, the Cheeseburger I had was quite good. The hand-cut fries were also nicely made - crisp, and thick cut. But does it justify the term 'gourmet' and my RM42.55 cents bill? (respectively RM27 for the cheeseburger, RM10 for my cranberry juice, RM3.70 service charge and RM1.85 GST)

Me thinks not.

The obvious problem I had was with the perfectly formed burger patty. A gourmet burger should be hand-made and hand-shaped. It certainly should not be perfectly formed like it came out from a mold. And at RM27 it was about average-sized as far as burger's go. I've seen bigger.The burger bun was admittedly tasty, slightly sweet, but crisply toasted and buttery. Very more-ish. But again, RM27? I have a definite beef with that price.

Still, condemnation should not come after one try. So I went back again with some friends, and this time I had the chicken burger (waistline was dictating my choice). Impressions did not improve given that the first time around, my chicken burger was still flapping when it arrived (read:not cooked).

Now, if a beef burger is perhaps a little underdone or a bit pink in the center, this is quite understandable because beef does taste better under-done and burgers generally do not benefit from the charcoal treatment. But for a cook to get a chicken burger under-cooked (and it was cooked outside) is suggestive of firstly, a lack of attention being paid to the cooking process but also, indicates the burgers are most likely pre-made (my chicken burger was also perfectly 'molded') and more importantly, are possibly frozen when they arrive at the store. Thus, when it hits the very hot grill, the outside cooks quickly but the inside remains under-cooked.

Of course, they sent for another and this time it came properly done and cooked inside. And the policy of bottomless fries refills apparently had been instituted between my 1st visit and 2nd visit. The fries were still good of course, but my impression was certainly affected and since then, I haven't contemplated a return visit.

And it's not because I have an issue with the price per se. My view is, if the product justifies the price, then pay premium. But premium had better be premium. For RM27, I don't expect a machine molded burger, or just a nice bun. I expect maybe a burger that's big enough to be shared OR posh bread and maybe some sophisticated proprietary sauce that goes with it.

Speaking of sauce, the owners are proud of their home-made ketchup. I am not impressed again. It tastes more like tomato puree than ketchup (which SHOULD be sweet, not just spiced and tomato-ey), and it has a distinctly unpalatable texture and appearance. For the amount they have bottled on the walls, either there's going to be a lot of tomato puree (oops, ketchup) being thrown away, or the recipe isn't changing for a while. So if you plan to check it out, I suggest you bring your own ketchup or chilli sauce.

I'm told that the Daily Grind is modelled on a burger diner that the owners liked to patronise during their time in Australia (Aussies AGAIN!). From my two visits, I think a lot of work needs to go into the product to really give it a touch that justifies the description 'Gourmet'(which incidentally, Wikipedia defines as "meals of especially high quality, whose makers or preparers have used special effort or art in presentation or cooking the meal"). In short, that personal touch is essential to justify the use of the term 'gourmet'. Machine molding your burgers already violates this concept in spirit and in principle.

Of course, this is not just a problem we have here in Malaysia. Serious Eats has a lamenting post on the subject matters of 'The Sad State of American Burgers' - what I like about this post is that it delves into the question of 'What is a Gourmet Burger' and what qualifies as a gourmet burger.

The Daily Grind sure doesn't.

Postscript: I wrote this review around six months ago. Since then, I've observed that the traffic at the Daily Grind has been...well, hardly daily, and grinding to a halt quite possibly. This is despite their very attractive and well-done poster ads all around BSV. And I have not stepped foot into the Daily Grind since, preferring to eat my expensive burgers at Carl's Jnr - the subject another post, another day. At this point, it would seem that both the establishments that attempt to tout themselves as the place for a gourmet burger, namely Relish and The Daily Grind, are over-rated attempts at getting people to buy an expensive mediocre burger.

Perhaps we need a law against the random use of the word 'gourmet'.

The Doyen Returns

Alexis @ Telawi has re-opened and gosh, is the place gorgeous. A certain blogger was spotted there the night I was there. And shamefully I must confess I couldn't help myself and snapped some photos with the BB, which is proving to be a damn good de-facto camera.






Some visitors to my blog have noted that there is a distinct lack of photographs. This subject to be discussed, tackled and dissected forthwith. In the meantime, Alexis @ Telawi is my new favourite of all the Alexis outlets in Bangsar (and the Maitre'D there is just a real dear).

A new cake has appeared in their delightful front door facing freezer: Chocolate Ricotta. *interesting*. Cake-free for another 4 more days so it may just end up on my review list soon.

Thoughts of Kuchen...

Have declared the next two weeks to be cake-free weeks - not because I am off cake...I am NEVER off-cake. The waistline demands I be off-cake although honestly, it has simply driven me potentially into the arms of Goreng Pisang.

Anyway, as a result I have been thinking a lot about cake. And how hard it is to get good cake. When I used to make an annual pilgrimage to H.K to visit sibling and friends, finding good cake was also a bit of a challenge. I found myself ending up in the Peak Cafe, MidLevels on a regular basis because as much as I got through their cake menu in a week of being in H.K, it was good cake. I never made it to this shop called Antique, highly recommended by a friend (next time maybe). The problem of finding good cake isn't just a uniquely Malaysian challenge it would seem.

Here in good old Kay-El, I have abandoned my old favourite, Bakerzin (more on this in a bit) And it seems as though the old faithful, the ever-reliable when it comes to cake, is that doyen coffee-house, Alexis. Thankfully, they have expanded the number of outlets, thus enabling me to obtain my cake-fix without too much difficulty (all the worst for your waistline, grandma, whines my diet conscience). The Bangsar Telawi outlet is finally getting a long-overdue facelift, and it seems frantic renovation is going forth to ensure that the Telawi outlet opens in time for the Bangsar Shopping Center outlet to shut pending BSC's massive renovation of the East Wing of BSC.

My favs at Alexis remains the staples: Tiramisu Cake (emphasis on the CAKE), Bittersweet Chocolate (fabulous on a very, very good day when they get the sticky, gooey chocolate top perfect, excellent even on an off-day) and the Black and White, which tends to only make sporadic appearances and even then, has to be eaten only if absolutely fresh (read, don't eat the last two slices). I do also like the Strawberry Mascapone Cheesecake and the Chocolate Mousse, and if the baker is having a good day, the Chocolate Moist is also a good bet. They do have cakes I won't eat. The cheesecake is claggy, and way too dense, and frankly, it the kind of thing which anyone on a diet who only is allowed to eat cake once a week will order and immediately regret the calorie wastage. This is one cake they haven't got right. I tried the White Forest Cake a week ago and it excites me not. I have an occasional weakness for the Pear and Ginger Upside Down Pudding, but most of the time, I just go between the Tiramisu and Bittersweet Chocolate because they just are so good and so satisfying.

As a second string option during the day if there is a cake emergency would be the YogiTree at the Gardens, MidValley. Personal favs there include the flourless chocolate cake (you wouldn't KNOW it has no flour), the Oreo Chocolate Cheesecake and the Cheesecake with Berry Compote. Consistency-wise, the flourless chocolate cake is usually a very very safe bet. The cheesecakes can fluctuate if the temperature of the refrigerator is too low and the cheesecakes get a bit dense. A new feature on the menu is a Pineapple Upside Down Cake - a nice choice if you're looking for something sweet but not too calorific.

But strictly speaking, it is only if the day is going very badly that one can justify breaking the cake emergency alarm and having cake after lunch. There is no real reason to eat cake at lunch if one actually wishes to remain un-fat. (that's diet conscience talking again....shoo!)

Now, admittedly it sounds like no where else does decent cake. I suppose my standards are high, on the theory that if I am going to expend calories eating something sinful and bad for my waistline, I want nothing less than an excellent top-notch cake-dessert. Which is why for the longest time, I practically had a seat with my name on it at Bakerzin. And which is also why contrary to popular viewpoint, I do not think that highly of the cakes at Delicious. And it is also why I will not just eat cake anywhere either unless it is vouched for. Those extra calories are too precious (and the amount of time spent sweating it off far too torturous) to justify 'average' cake.

For those who are wondering, Bakerzin has been put on on my Titanic Watch - meaning, it's headed for the iceberg of the Condemn List. Reasons being that the management has recently decided that they want to start making the cakes in-house rather than bringing in some of the ready-made sponges and ingredients from Singapore, where the Bakerzin franchise originates. As a result, you basically go to Bakerzin nowadays and your choices are all of about six cakes. From a selection of over 20 cakes, it's now down to about 6. Not only does that suck, but it also means that the cakes get sold out quickly. So late night coffee and kuchen raids are out as far as Bakerzin goes.

And of course, my major motivation previously for eating cake at Bakerzin was the coffee. Perfect cake, with perfect coffee? A reason to be fat really. Although both Alexis and Bakerzin (and Delicious) use Illy coffee, Bakerzin made a mean latte and great Americano and for reasons I still haven't figured out, Alexis still can't get their coffee to taste better than a few notches beyond air longkang (it has improved of late but still not doing justice to Illy). Delicious does a decent job though but because I don't like their cakes, I won't go there just for the coffee. Now, Bakerzin has switched to Lavazza coffee, which during my brief visit to Italy, I seem to recall as coming in 3rd after Segefreddo and Illy coffee. So I don't drink Lavazza and I certainly won't pay top dollar for a cup of Lavazza coffee. Nor do I want to ruin my cake with a yuk coffee.

But anyway, that's why Bakerzin is no longer on my great cake list, which now seems to just consist of one place, and that's Alexis.

So why do Malaysians rave about cakes that are generally just average? Cost probably plays a part. Two cakes and two coffees at Alexis can set you back about RM40 - expensive in a time of inflation, and especially the case now that the prices of key baking ingredients like flour, butter, dairy products and especially cream cheese are going up through the roof. Ditto cake at Bakerzin averages about RM7 a slice. And because at Bakerzin, they're dainty portions, the Malaysian ringgit psyche deems it to be not 'value for money'.

Secondly, I am going to go out on a limb and say most Malaysians don't know what good cake should taste like (and hell, good food) because most of them don't actually cook or bake and thus don't actually KNOW what is good or what is bad. They simply know what they like and thus equate that with what is good. What you LIKE, will taste good to you.But it may not be good on an objective assessment level. Being able to evaluate food on an objective level means to be able to determine if it is good or not, based on the benchmark of the product FIRST, and then by your personal preferences second. Most of the time, when Malaysians say something is good, they mean, by their tastebuds, it tastes good. (Ratatouille rat mode off).

For example, the lemon tart is a rarity in cake shops because not only is it hard to get right, but it's not the sort of dessert that most Malaysian taste buds are attuned towards eating. Yet, a good lemon tart is an absolutely sublime experience and is something I'd consider ordering if I was sure I'd get a good lemon tart (so far, I'm still looking and no one has topped the one at Bakerzin).

Similarly, the perception of the dainty portions of cake like Amer and Jivara at Bakerzin being not value for money reflects ignorance rather than intelligent wallet management. To the average Malaysian, RM7 on a small piece of cake that they could probably scarf all by themselves, and RM7 on a gigantic slice they can share - duh, obvious choice right? But hang on - if I'm getting Valrhona chocolate in one, and Van Housten or worse, Cap X cooking chocolate in the other, I'm paying my RM7 to the Valrhona thank you. But really, if you didn't know your Valrhona from your Michel Cuizel, and your Hersheys from your Van Houston, you'd think RM7 for a dainty slice of cake is a total rip-off.

And at the absolute bottom of the triangle are those who eat cake just to have some sugar or something sweet to go with their coffee. There is no eating in the pleasure, just a sort of sugar or cheese craving that is being satisfied.

Beyond a cake being dry (which most people would instinctively AND correctly associate with bad cake), you don't get a lot of discrimination in what Malaysians are willing to give the thumbs-up to as good cake for the above reasons. And so, we will continue to have establishments that make just average cake (because hey, no one can tell the difference right?)
and get away with it, and I will just have to keep going to Alexis.

Temporary Irreverance II - KeAdilan Rally in Bangsar

On the final lap, after deciding not to go for the DAP rally in SS2 (which apparently caused a major traffic jam), I rushed to Bangsar to catch Nurul Izzah Anwar speaking in Bangsar, in front of CIMB Bank near TMC.

Pictures uploaded first. Account to follow tomorrow AM soonest, after voting.

Highlight of the evening: met Raja Petra Kamaruddin! Unfortunately, felt too shy to ask to have my picture taken with him despite the formidable photography power of my new Blackberry 8300, which was on hand to take these pictures.

Interestingly, parking to Bangsar Village I was sealed off, forcing us to go to Jolly Green to park. Is the Ng family subtly showing an allegiance one way?

Temporary Irreverance - BN Rally at Bangsar

As they say, one has to know how the other half lives, or rather, campaigns. Pictures taken from last night's BN Rally 'Malam Mesra' in Bangsar. I'm putting this on the web because it will be easier for everyone rather than send massive files of the pictures (and also it will collate the images from all the various sources)

The turnout was abysmal with most of the observers preferring to camp out at the VIP Corner of Nirwana Restaurant for teh tarik and milo ice, and steadfastly refusing to actually enter the tent set up. The entire lane sandwiching Bangsar Village II and the row of shops where Nirwana is located was cordoned off, with the lane running in front of BSV II cordoned off for the VIP cars. (of which included a Mercedes S class, a BMW 5 series, a BMW 4 wheel drive - wonder who those cars belonged to and why they were getting a police escort). Bangsar has never felt safer with half a dozen cops on every nook, cranny, corner and back lane. Pity it's not like that EVERY night of the year.

At 9.15pm the stated time for Najib to appear, there was nary a sight of the DPM (which is strictly speaking incorrect since Parliament has been dissolved and he is NOT the DPM any more at present time). The tent was still only about 1/4 full with the organisers having shoved the first few rows of chairs closer together to give the impression of a packed tent. But it was empty all the way.

Here at the pictures taken at around 9.15pm.

The Lion Dance Troup kills time...pity they got washed out by the rain

Here is a video of the start of the rally showing the empty seats, from KeAdilan's website.





Alas, the pulling power of Erra Fazira and uber-celebrity Siti Nurhaliza (who sang in Malay AND Chinese - waitaminute, who the hell in Bangsar speaks Mandarin?) was not enough to bring out the crowds from where they were at Lembah Pantai. There was also somewhat misguidedly a Bhangra band, which as one of the observers sharing our VIP perch at Nirwana pointed out, is a bit silly considering Bangsar doesn't actually have a large Punjabi population.

Erra performs to the no-crowd

From our perch at Nirwana, we noisily made rude comments throughout Najib's rally - he is an appallingly nervous speaker, having to constantly wipe spittle from his mouth during his rally and he spoke in a ponderous fashion more appropriate to a kampung crowd than the sophisticated intellectuals that haunt Bangsar. It was shocking how he made remarks about Islamic states when he himself has been quoted as saying Malaysia is an Islamic state. Needless to say, I don't have much confidence in this 'Dopey' being the next PM. Or should that be Drool-Boy.

There were no loud cheers whenever he tried to get the crowd to respond and react to him and except for the BN chorus that cheered 'Hidup BN' on cue during select pauses in his speech, it was a tame crowd.

Shahrizat speaks but preaches mainly to the BN converted. View from Nirwana

Shot towards the end of the rally

Here's what the NST published this morning - obviously the rally was not a success, hence it didn't make the front page:


The Star buried the story in 2 paragraphs, with ZERO mention of the pathetically small turn out, which could not have numbered more than 100. Full points to Najib and Shahrizat though for keeping up the face and smiling all the way through despite the appalling turn out. I would have given a million bucks to have mind-reading powers at that point and know exactly what was on their minds.

In a disgraceful moment of manipulation, the national anthem was played, in an attempt to get everyone present to stand up (and thus show I suppose our respect for these politicians). Some people stood up, but a number of people (yours truly included) refused to stand, for obvious reasons of declining to be a part the propaganda. I shan't say anything about the inclusion of a prayer for the BN candidates by some ulama wearing a BN shirt.

Shahrizat promised Bangsar a police station of their own should she be returned with a heftier majority. It kind of conjures up images of majority comparison contests in the backrooms of the BN doesn't it? Except I guess they play who's majority is bigger, as opposed to whose appendage is bigger and pisses further.

There were a couple of BN cap wearing heavies on the next table who obviously didn't take too kindly to our sarcastic remarks about 'commissions' and 'altantuya' which periodically punctuated our conversation. And then it bucketed in the midst of Shahrizat's rally and we wondered if it was the PAS bomohs at work (but since it also rained in Lembah Pantai at the KeAdilan Rally, perhaps it was the result of both sides bomohs cancelling each other out!

Haris Ibrahim's Blog carries an account of the two Lembah Pantai ceramahs.
Another account from a blog, with comparison pix of the two ceramahs here

Doughnut Discourse - Much Ado about Doh?

Prologue

This lengthy diatribe on doughnuts is finally ready to be published...some people argue taste is subjective (you say potato, I say po-tato and all that), but really taste is not. It is objective. At least, I'm trying to suggest it here.

This has been lying in the edit folder for at least a month and keeps getting longer each time. Although I haven't had a chance to revisit JCo doughnuts (and being back on diet, that's not happening for a while), I have revisited the Big Apple ones. And I affirm my verdict still.

Doughnuts away...

The Great Doughnut Dissertation

Okay, so Malaysians (and it seems Singaporeans) have gone crazy over doughnuts. The queue at Big Apple at The Curve is long and big enough to convince the owners that they must now be also in MidValley, and Pavillion and One Utama.

For the uninitiated, they are taking a leaf out of the Rotiboy book and positioning the store right in front of the elevator - lazy Malaysians are more likely to spot something next to an elevator than the stairs. Indeed, the outlet in MidValley is positioned on the lower ground floor, in the bypass to the new Gardens @ MidValley - the lowest possible level so that non-stair-climbing Malaysians do not have to go far for the dougnut fix.

Doughnuts it seems, are the new must-eats, judging by the number of Malaysian bloggers who have raved about the Big Apple Doughnuts and the queue at JCo in Pavillion.



Being a discriminating doughnut person, I decided to investigate (at cost to my waistline) - the Doughnut. And herein I present my Doughnut Dissertation.

First, terms of the experiment. I have had the opportunity to eat Krispy Kreme Doughnuts during my visits to HK (for those are are KKK - Krispy Kreme Krazy - it is only available in SEA in either Hong Kong or Indonesia, at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Jakarta). I have also eaten JCo Doughnuts and Big Apple Doughnuts. Secondly, basis of comparison. The comparison will be glazed vs glazed, in the interests of fairness, naturally. Of course, the ultimate ultimate comparison would be a blind test, but my waistline won't have it so the experiment is somewhat limited in that the doughnuts were not all tasted at the same time. However, as I have eaten Big Apple and Krispy Kreme doughnuts quite a few times, I believe it is possible to compare the taste of the two, and against that of J Co.

Meet the Contenders.

In the Blue Corner, the local boy, Big Apple.



And in the Red Corner, the American Giant, Krispy Kreme:



In the Yellow Corner, the Indonesian Juggernaut, JCo:



I have deliberately left off Dunkin Doughnuts from the equation because honestly, I don't think Dunkin Doughnuts qualify as doughnuts. A piece of grandma's shoe sole maybe. But doughnut, I don't think so. But, in the interests of a complete discourse on the doughnut, I'll probably have to buy a Dunkin Doughnut at some point, to add it to the mix. However, as Dunkin Doughnut does not actually have a 'glazed' doughnut and only powdered sugar ones, the comparison of how DD lines up against KK and the other Contenders, will have to be saved for a discourse on my other favourite type of doughnut: the jelly.

I doughnut wish to digress...so let's move to the analysis.


a) Colour

KK doughnuts, as can be seen by the photo comparison below, are clearly, fried (yes, doughnuts have to be fried so let's not delude ourselves that they're somehow NOT fattening) more consistently, to produce a consistent golden tan to the doughnuts. By contrast, Big Apple doughnuts are frequently paler than the Krispy Kreme version and oft-lack the caramelised flavour that comes with a properly fried doughnut.

The reason for this could be either the fryer is not timed properly so the doughnuts from Big Apple are coming off a little bit earlier than they should, or the oil is not as hot as it should, thereby cooking the doughnut but not giving it the right golden tan, or it is related to the dough mixture. I'm more inclined to lean towards the first two, although the dough mixture is probably a contributing factor - flour and sugar proportion, as well as sugar quality likely play a part in determining how 'golden' the doughnuts come out.

J Co on the other hand, seems to be not quite in the same league as KK, but looking less pale definitely.

b) Texture

Texture-wise, the KK doughnut has a more cakey texture, and holds up better after one day, maintaining its cakey softness. By contrast, the Big Apple doughnut, whilst still tasting pretty okay a day later, tends to be doughy on first bite, and lacks that cakey fluffiness that Krispy Kreme has. JCo doughnuts seemed to have the right mix, slightly cakier than the Big Apple doughnuts, but also just enough fluff to them.

Big Apple doughnuts seem doughey in general, and have a stick-to-the-top-of-your-mouth dougheyness that one tends to associate with local Chinese pastries rather than a proper cakey-flour texture.

I have also noticed, whenever I step off the elevator at 1Utama, where the Big Apple store is, that the scent of trans-fats (that sort of semi-rancid oil/grease smell) is particularly strong from Big Apple, compared to J Co (you get a bit of it from a KK doughnut but you really have to hold it up to your nose). The flavour of the trans-fats can be quite obvious when the doughnut is a day old but as I have only experienced this with KK doughnuts (and post-diet, sensitivity to trans-fats smell is high) - however, the smell factor is something which again, I take into account as a measure of quality and standard. All doughnuts have to be made to a degree with trans-fats but typically the smell only permeates if the frying oil is an issue. I am of course no expert...but I trust my nose...

C) Glaze and Toppings

The glaze from Krispy Kreme is of course infinitely superior - smooth like marble, and it doesn't have a sugary texture (which is usually an indication in my humble opinion, of either a poorly mixed glaze, or just inferior quality sugar). This smoothness is evident also in the JCo doughnut, although not to the same standard. Whilst the glaze on the Big Apple doughnut is okay, it is clearly not of Krispy Kreme standards, and lacks the marble smoothness of a quality glaze.






In order of appearance: JCo, KK, Big Apple - the superior glaze is obvious IMHO. KK doughnuts photographed in the day, JCo at night with Flash, Big Apple in the day.Both Big Apple and J Co doughnuts were photographed fresh whilst KK doughnuts photographed one day later, and after a 3 hour plane journey.


Toppings are another issue (and fillings as well).

A good indication also of the quality of chocolate being used on Big Apple doughnuts is the amount of shine visible on the doughnut under the lights in the display. When chocolate has a lot of shine, it is first usually in my mind an indication that it is not of particularly good quality chocolate and secondly, that it has been kept or reheated often, thus nearly separating the fats from the cocoa butter. That's why if you buy cooking chocolate, good quality cooking chocolate is glossy without an oily appearance, whilst poor quality cooking chocolate derives an unnatural amount of gloss from the addition of other fats into the chocolate. In short, the less high quality the chocolate, the shinier it appears under the light.

Taste also will give an indication of the quality of the chocolate being used. (and anyone can use Belgian chocolate in their toppping - the question is HOW MUCH is being used, along with other things).




My photography skills (and these shots are not photoshopped) aren't the greatest but tastebuds and eyes don't lie, even if photos don't always do justice to what is being said.


Your eyes of course do not lie...and nor do tastebuds (especially when it comes to sussing out cheap peanut butter vs better quality peanut butter - don't believe me, do a blind test between Skippy and Steffi peanut butter...).

Why is doughnuts have suddenly become so popular? Deprivation is probably the answer, with faddishness or novelty coming in next. For most people, Dunkin Doughnuts was the only doughnut in Malaysia for the longest time. And frankly most people know it's not a particularly good doughnut but what choice do you have if you want a jelly doughnut? Compared to the doughnuts in conventional bakeries (which are usually pale, covered with knobbly sugar, and potentially a mouthful of clumpy dough), Dunkin's Doughnuts were vastly superior.

Compared to the doughnuts in Big Apple, the stodginess of Dunkin's loses out to the lighter and fluffier texture of Big Apple.

But compared to Krispy Kreme, Big Apple is a whole doughnut short of the Krispy Kreme standard.

Coming in the middle is the JCo doughnut. I haven't dared brave the queues that have been piling up since it opened in Pavillion but I have eaten them, early when the Pavillion store first opened. And I resoundly am of the view that they trounce Big Apple doughnuts, hands down. (assuming standards have not declined since then - queues have a habit of wrecking quality control I find).

My increased reservation of putting Big Apple doughnuts in the same league as JCo (forget KK) comes from the fact that I have concluded that Big Apple seems to be engaging in obvious and clear imitation of JCo doughnuts. From the box design, to the types of doughnuts on offer (the Green Tea and Tiramisu ones are a dead giveaway) to the fact that the doughnuts at Big Apple appear to look a lot like the ones in JCo (and really the difference between a 'Glazzy' doughnut and a 'Glacier' doughnut is?), there's more than a hint of suggestion that Big Apple is in fact, knock-off of JCo.

Its almost like the owner went to JCo, studied their selection, and then prodigiously implemented it, with slightly different names, but the same look and feel of the doughnuts,and even the same flavour concepts.

Clearly between JCo and Big Apple, JCo has a greater legitimate claim to being the Grade A fake, if Krispy Kreme is the doughnut being copied. But my view is that we can't put JCo in the category of mere imitator (that would be Big Apple, albeit not so good mere imitator.)

JCo is in itself, a very good purveyor of doughnuts in their own right.Extra points to them for NOT copying KK wholesale and actually coming up with their own concept doughnuts with their own unique take on the doughnut (in fact, someone told me that Indonesians are actually known for making really amazing rustic doughnuts). I plan to brave the queue again one day at Pavillion to see if they have maintained their standards...I hope they have.

But back to the original topic of this blog which was to decide which doughnut takes the cake so to speak. My personal verdict is Krispy Kreme still rules the doughnut roost, but JCo a very close second (not just as an imitator, but in its own right, a good doughnut shop) and Big Apple, well, distant, distant third place, for the reason that it is not only nowhere near being a KK substitute, but it deserves points being knocked off for...well, knocking off other people's stuff. Alas, though, right now, in the absence of KK being in KL, it is only a toss up between JCo and Big Apple realistically (although rumours of the KK Franchise coming to Malaysia no doubt will regularly be doing the milkrounds). I'd prefer to save my calories for JCo, even if Big Apple is more conveniently located, and less insanely crowded.

Postscript:

Aliens vs Predator is a nice doughnut, but my stomach squelches at the though of how much of that chocolate is really 'the good stuff'.) The smell of the trans-fats from the Big Apple doughnuts cooking oil has started to get to me and I've heard also a few remarks from people who have bought doughnuts from Big Apple of the same 'scent' of trans-fats. Granted you get it from KK doughnuts too but you have to have a really sensitive nose to suss that out. So strike one more blow against the Big Apple doughnuts...

I still don't understand the crazy queue at JCo, but I guess when you are the only one, the Keynesian rules of supply and demand apply. Just call it doughnut economics I guess.

Evil is...

Taking low-carb options off the menu at Coffee Bean!

What gives?Are the people in Coffee Bean determined to make their customers fat? And I even tried to get them to make the sandwich for me WITHOUT the bread, just so temptation wouldn't be in my way.

And they refused. You can pay more to add smoked salmon, you can pay more to have more chicken, but you can't pay less to not have bread, and you can't even pay the SAME PRICE, and have them not give you the bread.

ARE THE PEOPLE IN COFFEE BEAN ON A WARPATH TO MAKE US ALL CARBOHOLICS?

I now will have to pay the standard price for a sandwich at coffee bean, and then take the bread home for my dog. Which works about as well as putting me in front of chocolate cake and telling me to just take one BITE!

Waistline will not be pleased with this.

So much food, so little time...

Been to many new places this last month since the last post and despite my best efforts to actually write up my thoughts on these new places, I really just haven't been able to find the time. Even my long-gestating Doughnut Dissertation post hasn't been published because I've just not been able to find the time to edit it.

Lest we we take the subject of writing about doughnuts likely, it is after all, the paramount issue of taste here. (and a recent re-tasting of Big Apple doughnuts confirms my conclusion - nowhere near JCo, and absolutely far below Krispy Kreme).

This week, the one place I have been to rather consistently has been a new restaurant at the Gardens @ MidValley, called The YogiTree.

A friend mentioned the place and I happened to chance upon them whilst they were promoting their food in the basement at a little stand in the Gardens. The Orange and Carrot Cake seemed quite good and being a sucker for all things cake, I ventured there to try it out for lunch.

And I've had lunch there about 5 times already this week.

Conceptually speaking, it is innovative for the Malaysian food scene, although the ideas they are promoting are strictly speaking, not all that new. The idea of eating slow cooked food (meaning food prepared ala minute, rather than with a great deal of prep and simply then reheated), and favouring organic and thereby seasonal produce, over commercially grown produce is not *new* per se. But it is quite revolutionary in Malaysia as far as a mid-range cafe goes.

YogiTree is not a pure organic cafe but it operates on the idea of striving to be as organic as possible, without having you essentially eat cardboard. I have lost count of the number of friends who look like I'm about to force wheatgrass down their throats when I suggest eating at an organic place.

Admittedly, most organic food shops don't have a reputation for making particularly tasty food (I have not eaten at Country Farm Organic Cafe so I can't compare the food but it's hardly the place where everyone scrambles to have lunch so...).

People seem to feel that healthy almost always necessitates a compromise when it comes to taste. Marmalade Cafe, which I frequent quite often, has positioned itself as a healthier alternative with 'healthy' foods but frankly there are some serious bombs on the menu, which no matter how 'healthy' they are, simply will be impossible to persuade someone to eat on the basis that it is 'nice'.

Personally, I maintain a limited selection of items I will eat at Marmalade because I believe health does not require a compromise with taste.

When I first encountered the YogiTree, I was a bit skeptical about the whole organic = health argument. This is a seriously *misguided* theory that people have, equating organic with health. This was especially the case after I had a squiff at the menu of the YogiTree - cheesecakes, fry ups and nasi lemak, even with brown rice, are not by any stretch of the word, 'healthy'.

But having eaten there 5 times this week, I've gotten a better understanding of the positioning, which is 'Real Food Cafe', and understand the concept behind it better.

The food is not healthy in the sense that it is not all whole-grains (they do serve white bread) and they do not compromise on their cakes in the cream, eggs and butter departments. You will not find a egg white omelette on their menu, or whole grain pancakes, although they do have muesli. The notion of healthy food at YogiTree is food that is free of the usual gunk you get in commercial kitchens (think MSG, artificial flavours and nuking food), and that with good quality ingredients, there's the need to do less with the food (less sauces to disguise bad flavour for example) in order to achieve more.

Like I said, it's quite an old hat idea, but new here in Malaysia.

The YogiTree does have some compromise items for the people who want to eat something that is unhealthy but which is done in a healthier incarnation, read, not the full-fat, artery-clogging, cholesterol raising form. Nasi Lemak is the classic epitome of an unhealthy dish that defies being made healthy, without some form of unacceptable compromise. But I guess it depends on the kind of person you are. If you think of eating nasi lemak as an indulgence, but would rather not go the whole hog, then this is the place for a 'health-conscious' nasi lemak.

Personally I reckon that if you are going to eat Nasi lemak, might as well just eat the artery-clogging variety. As Delia Smith said, roast chicken with butter once a week, rather than roast chicken without butter 3 times a week. Moderation is the key, but not all of us can quite figure out how to use it.

But in any case, I have found the food to be quite exceptional and of a higher quality and standard than Marmalade and Delicious (caveat: I revile the place...and so my viewpoint on the food in Delicious should be taken with a bag of salt). And it's not that its new-fangled or exotic although there are some interesting ideas on the menu (the Organic Grilled Chicken Salad with peanut sauce is an interesting fusion of Malaysian and Japanese flavours). But there are lots of easy choices - a chicken sandwich, jazzed up simply by a good mayonaise, a simple steak sandwich, quiche and a solid cheeseburger. The cakes are also exceptionally good, although the shortcrust pastry is a little on the dense and hard side.

And because my loathing of Delicious stems from an incident relating to their lemon meringue pie, I have to say, the lemon tart at YogiTree is above par. Not quite touching the sublime version at Bakerzin, but there. A buttery thick curd, with just the right mix of tart and sweet, with a slightly burnt sugar crust. A splash of cream on the side completes the dish quite well.

I don't usually wax lyrical about a place but right now, the YogiTree is getting my vote. It helps that the owners used to run The Social and the Ivy. Teething problems are still being ironed out - one of the problems they face is the challenge of getting all the food out all at once (improving the last time I went) but initial visitors might not want to chose to visit during a SHORT lunch hour, just in case.

Again, it harks back to the concept of slow food and not gobbling down your lunch/dinner/meal but alas, the reality of Malaysian life is that most of us are impatient with food and expect it to turn up at the table within 15 minutes of putting in the order. Which is a tall order for a place trying to do ala minute food, and minimise pre-prep of food, to keep it as fresh as possible.

It certainly is going to take some time for them to educate the public, a somewhat uphill battle in a land where many people think that they know what is good, simply because they know what tastes good, and where people have come to expect their food to appear at hawker-food speeds.

Read their menu here.

Meanwhile, I've worked my way through the menu and have found some favourites - despite the banning of bread on my diet, the hummus and moutabbel (aka Baba Ganoush) is excellent with both white and brown bread (ask for brown to feel less guilt). I also love the Grilled Mediterranean Vegetables Superfoods Salad (still trying to perfect it in my own kitchen - damn!). The cakes are also solid performers - simple ideas well executed. I've had the Chocolate Cheese Cake, Mixed Berry Compote Cheesecake and Carrot Cake, all which were well-made, which is really what it comes down to when it comes to a good cake.

The Segafreddo coffee is sorta growing on me.

The Grilled Organic Chicken Salad is also a winner. For sides, the coleslaw is excellent and the mash very tasty, whilst offering the sensation of healthiness (I'm sure there's butter in it but I didn't taste that much of it). I also like it that the mash is a textured mash (more crushed/smashed than mashed), which is a nice change. At least you know for sure it didn't come out of a box.

Although I haven't tried them out, there are also Daily Blackboard specials. Was nearly tempted by the baked organic potato with baked beans and coleslaw harking back to uni cafeteria days.

The YogiTree
F-237B, 1st Floor, (Isetan Side)
Gardens Mid Valley, 59200 Kuala Lumpur

Invasion of the Aussies

Aussie seems to be the theme dominating the tone of F&B outlets. I recently went to The Daily Grind in Bangsar Shopping Village and was told that the outlet was inspired by a place the owners frequented and really liked in Australia. Delicious is inspired by Aussie eateries and delis that the owner liked to frequent. It apparently is also the reason for the 'rustic' style of the food in the restaurant (I prefer to just think of the food at Delicious as 'rough' rather than 'rustic' but that's me grinding my axe).

But back to my original point about this whole fascination with going Aussie. From my experience a few years back at the KL Hilton's Senses (Aussie Fusion) to my lunch at the Daily Grind (i have a few other bones to grind there but...let's stick to the topic - more on the Daily Grind later), it's hard to have good things to say about Aussie-inspired cuisine.

Yet we have the famous 'Bills' restaurant in Sydney. His Sydney Food cookbook is incredible - amazing photography, yummy ideas especially for breakfast. It all goes great until you get to the Asian-oriental creations. That's when I have to roll my eyes. The decidedly Aussie OTT tone about 'beautiful' and 'fresh' produce feels a bit dated because that's what all chefs will tell you. Honestly, I have yet to meet a chef that advocated using 'old' produce or 'rotting' produce but there you go.






Those who want to take a peek at Sydney Food and do the Malaysian thing(read:copy the recipes) Alexis@The Gardens has a copy - a great distraction whilst you await your coffee and cake.

Then there's Tetsuya, that 'must visit' for any self-respecting gourmet. But then juxtapose that with the mixed culinary bag called Kylie Kwong, and the fondness Curtis Stone (he of Discovery Channels Take Home Chef) displays for making Asian food or Asian flavours, despite um, obviously being better at making the European stuff, and you really have to wonder: WHAT IS SO AMAZING ABOUT AUSSIE CUISINE?

Caveat: I have never been to Australia, but have eaten at some Australian delis in Hong Kong, and the ones known to be inspired by Aust in KL.

Why isn't anyone setting out to open a proper French bistro serving good quality European food with a decent plat du jour and prix fixe menu for LUNCH? Or a nice little Italian trattoria with nice anti-pasti and modest portions of rustic pasta? Heck, I would hanker for a decent spot of pub grub any time - a proper roast beef, or a nice pie, or a simple fish and chips, done well. Of course, all this is available if you are brave enough to venture to KL, but the fact is that most of the eateries coming up are 'daily' eateries (places you can eat at say, for lunch most days) rather than places you would go to for a night out with friends. And they are mostly opening up in places in PJ or bordering PJ, rather than KL.

I don't fault the quality of produce that comes from Australia (great lamb, and beef, as well as good dairy products). And yes, there are lots of talented Aussie chefs cooking in restaurants in London and we seem to see a lot of them on television. And yes, Aussie cuisine in itself has tremendous breadth and range. And I've eaten at one or two Australian-inspired delis in Hong Kong that were quite good (Percy's in Kennedy Town comes to mind).

BUT, something seems to be lost in the translation here in KL. What I've eaten doesn't feel like its Aussie by any stretch of the word when it comes to the quality of the food, or the kind of zing in flavours that one would expect. What you get is Aussie Outside - the look, the concept, and the menu - but none of the execution inside. (the breakfast menu at Delicious, and their ricotta hotcakes being a good example).

It's Lamingtons for the sake of Lamingtons, if you like.

As for the whole 'rustic' look and style being marketed as something different or 'homey', frankly rustic is hardly uniquely Aussie - it's a common thread that runs through all classical cooking. Think Ratatouille. Think La Cucina. Think good-old fashioned English food. Think Swiss food.

And if rustic is supposed to translate to better flavours (as opposed to the conventional Malaysian thinking of 'portions like mom makes it'), then we're not getting rustic either in my view.

Frankly, the Daily Grind and Delicious (and arguably Senses in KL Hilton) are in my view, not a measure of how good Aussie cuisine is, and can be, from what I have eaten, and what I see on TV on 'Surfing the Menu'. Eateries here are but pastiches or homage to a place, or a notion of food, that countless Malaysians, educated in Australia, have of what Australian food is.

I don't care in a sense what the inspiration for the food is, as long as its good and decently priced. but why it is that there always has to be a toss up between indecent quality and decent pricing and indecent pricing and decent quality?

Kedai Roti Tun M @ Pavillion

I must confess to being quite partial to Tun's Bread, even if the prices are in my view, somewhat undemocratic.

My last venture there racked up a bill of RM21 for 1 Escargot, (Cranberry Roll) 1 Magazine (Pain au Chocolat), 1 Pepite Coconut (Coconut Cream Pastry) and 1 Moon (Brioche). Owch.





The problem we have in this country when it comes to deciding if something is expensive and worth paying for, or just plain expensive, is that often we're making the decision in a sort of gastronomic vacuum. Tun's Bread is expensive when compared to say, DeliFrance or even any of your standard mall bread shops like Breadtalk or King's.

But obviously, we are not comparing Rotiboy with Rotiboy here.

The Loaf's Magazine (effectively, their Pain Au Chocolat) is miles above in pastry quality, chocolate quality and taste, compared to what you would eat at DeliFrance (if one even contemplates eating Delifrance pastries except out of desperation). So really, I suppose, it's unfair to expect Rotiboy prices, for a non-Rotiboy standard product.




Magazine aka Pain Au Chocolat - chocolatey, buttery, flaky AND with bite! Not quite your typical Pain Au Chocolat in that sense, but certainly, a unique take on the pastry basic.


But still one can't help but flinch at the price. RM21 for 4 pieces of bread is a lot of moolah to lay out. But I realised that you really can't eat that much of the bread, perhaps because it really is so rich and dense, that you're satisfied with say, two pieces rather than the four air-breads you'd be able to throw back from a routine bakery.



Moon aka Brioche - the hint of orange peel takes it to a new level, like marmalade in your bread, without the squidgyness.

I have been asked what is the difference between Tun's Bread and what's on sale in the standard bakery. Certainly the workmanship and skill that goes into making these breads provides some measure of justification to the heftier price tag. And the high price is also probably justified by the fact that you're eating an obviously richer dough (eggier, more buttery, soft without feeling like its full of air, like many of the local breads, meaning better quality flour is used) and hopefully no improver tossed in. It is very good bread. I suppose Malaysian simply balk at the idea of paying so much for bread, in the way perhaps we'd just not be able to justify RM15 char kuay teow.

One of my favourites is the Pepite Coconut (RM3.80) and I also like the An Pan Cream (also in the region of RM3.80). The Moon Brioche (RM3.80) is also quite good. Alas, the coffee is a serious let down (clearly, we not yet ready for Kedai Kopi Tun M), which makes a case for opting to go take-away and grabbing your caffeine from the Illy next door or popping to La Bodega for your coffee and pastry. Shame because the ambiance at The Loaf is just the place for a pre shopping tete-a-tete or just a break in between marathon retail therapy.

And if you have trouble finding it (as the map at Pavillion is somewhat, useless) - just look for Coach and follow your nose...

Happiness is...a Milkshake

Move over warm puppy...Happiness is a hand-dipped made on the spot chocolate milkshake from Triple O. Another one of those things I'm soooo going to miss...

The Perfect Sunday Morning Breakfast

Last Sunday, I found myself making my way to Pacific Coffee in Hollywood Road, HK for a nice morning cuppa. For some strange reason, here in HK, sleeping on a fold out bed in a tiny room the size of my bathroom at home, I wake up at 830am every morning. Must be vakay.

Anyway, I will update on my food adventures soonest I find the time from all the shopping and eating distractions, and the modest quantities of work that require my attention!

And yes, this was my first doughnut in 5 days. What you don't see is the Vanilla Cake and Powdered Strawberry Filled one in the bag underneath...

The newspaper, a nice cup of coffee (this one had Cream in it, rather than milk natch!) and a doughnut - BLISS!