I have been coming to Kampung Melayu since I was small. This is a place well known for nasi kandar . Their Nasi Kandar is so good (not sure cuz I am not really a fan of nasi kandar) that it would be sold out in the morning. In the hot afternoons, there is mee goreng next to the Nasi Kandar stall but I don't really like it, too wet :P There would also be a mamak tricycle stall selling delicious classic popiah near the kedai stor (mini classic Malaysian style convenience store). The popiah comes with sweet soupy kuah :D However I haven't seen him lately...

When the day eases to the evening, you can spot a makcik kneeding dough or frying the puffs (if you are lucky) among the makeshift stilts. It is a new addition to this little quiet place. A karipap stall.
Karipap is a Malay term for curry puffs. One of Malaysian's favourite afternoon tea snack.

The aunty had just started her business not long ago and her karipaps were selling like hot cakes. She starts selling after 3pm but sometimes the times are uncertain. Once she started to kneed the dough at 4pm. Sometimes, sells nasi lemak instead :P

Maybe the size of the karipap is not very clear but its priced at RM1 each. Its slightly larger than normal curry puffs. As you can see, the pastry is layered :D Very crispy when eaten hot and still crispy even you'd left it aside for a few hours.

I find the taste quite similar to USM's curry puffs but this is much better with loads of onions, chicken bits and potato. I am not sure but I do noticed some traces of spring onion in it.

Haha looks messy but I think its best to let you all see what's inside :) See? It really has chicken bits in it unlike some curry puffs, name is karipap ayam but no ayam (chicken in Malay) inside :S

Yummie!

Location:
Kampung Melayu Flats
(Ayer Itam or Kampung Baru?), Penang.

Operational Hour:
Not sure but mostly 3pm onwards.
Not sure when she takes a day off as well.


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Thanks to Criz for adding my name to the list and Mr. Dennis for inviting us. This would be my 3rd time meeting up with fellow bloggers to makan just for this month. With the rate we are going, any MPPP would kaput...hahaha!

There were too many photos. So I decided to compile them into a video for easy viewing.



Like most BBQ steamboat restaurants, an array of sauce would be provided. However I did prefer to eat without adding any sauce for the original taste :)

In JL Steamboat, there are 2 stations which is the Steamboat Station and Teppanyaki Station. However, it doesn't really matter. To me, anything can go to the hotplate XD I chose to grill seafood tofu and Japanese egg tofu this time around. It was well received and we had another round of grilled tofus :D

Of course you can choose to grill other items. If you don't like tofu, you still have canned button mushrooms, crabstick, sotong balls, sweetcorns, crab (seasonal), egg and so on...LOL...I would say BBQ Steamboats is fun as we can be creative in what and how we want the food to turn out.

With four soup flavour available (Clear, Herbal, Fish & Tom Yam), there is no limit on how you want to pair the ingredients with those soups. Maggi mee, Tom Yam and oyster musrooms would be my favourite combo. However the soup was a bit bland. Would be great if they can add some lemongrass and tomatoes to the soup for some depth.

It wouldn't be complete without a Drinks & Dessert corner. Besides fruits, jelly, red bean soup and iced teas, there is a chocolate fountain! Again, its totally up to your imagination. We had the chocolate coating skewers of marshmallows, finger biscuits and ice creams...hahaha!

BBQ steamboat dinner was fun, fun and fun with a crazy bunch:
Buzzing Bee
Criz
FoOd PaRaDiSe
Steven Goh
Yummy Station

It's nice meeting FoOd PaRaDiSe and Yummy Station :)

Price:
Adult
RM17.90 (Lunch time, Mon-Fri) ; RM21.90 (Dinner, Normal price)

Senior Citizen 55 years old and above
RM14.90 (Lunch time, Mon-Fri) ; RM 16.90 (Dinner, Normal price)

Children below 10 years old - RM8.90

Location:
JL Steamboat Restaurant
No. 27 Nagore Road,
Georgetown Penang.
(within walking distance from New World Park)

Business Hours:
11.30am - 3pm
5pm - 11pm

Contact:
04 - 2101122

Website:
www.jlsteamboat.com

Set Lunch Promotion:
*RM6.90 per set inclusive free flow drinks & one dessert.
There are 4 sets to choose from...

• Nasi Lemak with Curry Chicken(加里鸡椰浆饭)
• Seafood Tom Yam Noodles (海鲜东炎面)
• Yong Tau Fu (酿豆腐)
• Congee Fish/Meat (鱼粥 / 肉粥)

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*Previous reviews on table course dinners here and here.
*Click here to read about Food Paradise's visit to Jade Garden Seafood Restaurant at Sungai Petani, Kedah.

It was suppose to be a normal lunch (self paid) with my family (5 person including me) until the restaurant decided to foot the bill :P So I had to label the post as invited review instead. Hahaha many thanks to Jade Palace Restaurant.

My family and relatives relatives had been patronizing this restaurant since the restaurant started more than 30 years ago. First they were named Ming Palace Restaurant but at the 90's they moved to City Bayview and changed their name to Jade Palace. Only in 1997, they moved to Choo Plaza in Lorong Abu Siti, Georgetown.

The restaurant is located on 3rd floor of this building (Choo Plaza) so one would have to park in front of the building or go for the underground carpark beside it. Quite hidden and not many would have know there is a restaurant in that building.

Like I said Choo Plaza is located along Lorong Abu Siti (Georgetown) and the building is in between PPisland Hotel and Red Rock Hotel.

After going into the building's lift, it would get you straight to the restaurant's main entrance :)

One thing I like about Jade Palace is their big hall with less pillars. Some of you who do know Jade Palace, would have already dine here a couple of times for wedding dinners.

However, the restaurant also serves reasonably priced rice based lunch and dinner (ala carte). Now this is something not many would have know about. Haha

Its a bit difficult to order here as they do not have a menu for you to see and they depend mostly on the waitresses to recommend. So what we were about to have are dishes that is commonly ordered by customers and their signature dishes.

Hahaha chinese cuisine with knife and fork! You would see why XD

First up, Double Boiled Superior Soup with Apple, Chinese Herb and Deep Sea Garoupa Head (沙露鱼头汤) - RM8 per pax.

The soup was sweet and no fishy smell! Although no distinctive apple taste, the soup was still refreshing. Absolutely not oily. Good ah!

Another soup we ordered was Double Boiled Superior Soup with Fish Maw, Chicken and Chinese Herbs (鱼肚炖鸡汤） - RM8 per pax.

Not oily right? And I think RM8 is value for money. Equally tasty and sweet. Both double boiled soups had depth. They used superior broth (上汤) for the soup base instead of normal water. Therefore the soups are much more flavourful :D

After clearing every drop of the soups, we had some Deep Fried Crispy Money Bag (金钱满满袋, small, 6 pieces) - RM8 . My favourite item since I was a kid :D

The Money Bag consists of chicken bits, choped celeries and carrots. A dish created 30 years ago and still selling up to today. Perfectly fried as it did not absorbed oil during deep frying process. Yumz.

Next, Chinese Spinach Soup with Salted Egg and Preserved Egg (咸蛋皮蛋上汤苋菜, small) - RM10. In canto we call it Yuen Choy?

Although it has salted egg, only the egg yolks were added. Thus not salty at all. The preserved eggs were fried and added into the soup. The egg whites were perfectly done as they are smooth. Again, superior broth were used as the dish's soup base. Cheng cheng dei, good :)

Another signature dish of the restaurant is Fried Boneless Chicken with Mango Sauce (香芒鸡, small) - RM10 This dish is my relative's favourite.

Crispy fried chicken thigh with shredded mangoes, herbs and onions were just nice. Although similar to kerabu style, the taste was slightly subtle compare to kerabu as this mango chicken is not too sour or too sweet. Just nice. Pretty appetizing and you won't feel jelak after eating.

And they do not put in too much sauce, so the chicken stays crispy for much longer time and the taste won't be too empowering.

Later, this vege dish below was served. Stir Fry Four Types of Vegetable with Crispy Sliced Almond (杏香四宝菜，RM8, small).

I quite like this dish. Something I haven't see at other places. The vegetables are stir fried quickly to preserve the crispyness and I get to enjoy the original vegetable flavour. Celery's fibrous skin was peeled, asparagus (as well as baby corn) was tender and the best part was the fresh lily bulbs. It's naturally sweet and soft. Paired with crispy almond flakes, a multi textured dish indeed :)

Then came Grilled Lamb Chop with Black Pepper Sauce (密椒煎羊扒) - RM5.50 per piece, also a signature dish of the restaurant which was served since their Ming Court days (30 years ago) and the demand for it last till today.

There were 5 of us so 5 pieces of lamb was served, so it costs about RM28 for our plate. The lamb was tender and nicely marinated.

A very flavourful dish and the black pepper sauce is more to the sweet side (due to addition of honey) while there was a subtle heat from the coarsely grinded black pepper.

To give contrast to the dish, it was lined with edible garnish, crispy fried yuen choy (lightly salted). Pretty and interesting at the same time. Not all vege can be fried though.

So now you know why we needed the knives and forks? Delicious :D

To balance out, we also ordered Special Homemade Beancurd with Steamed Egg White & Mince Seafood (玉带豆腐, small)- RM10.

All I could describe was, smooth, smooth and smooth. Hahaha. Although the colour is red, it is not a spicy dish and the sauce is more to the lighter side so you can taste the tofu. The seafood bits consists of scallops, prawns and squids.

The beancurds are self made by the restaurant. The cubed beancurds are made with egg yolks while the steamed layer below is made with egg white. They just glided down my throat...hahaha!

Another recommended dish would be Stewed Pork-rib ala Jade Palace served with Buns (红烤招排骨, small) - RM16

Even though its named pork rib, I didn't see any bones at all...lol

The pork was flavourful and soft. The fried mantou buns were provided for us to dip into the sauce and eat them.

The meat was tender and soft while the five spices was not too overwhelming because I believe they also used other ingredients to create the depth of taste.

To wash everything down, we had hot Sweetened Water Chestnut Cream with Silver Fungus (雪洱马蹄露, RM8, small)

The desert consists of white fungus, loads of chestnut bits and egg whites. Hot dessert and its very comforting while not being too sweet. Another favourite dessert of mine.

The picture below was taken just to give you an idea on how much we had order for 5 person :)

Not expensive actually. I shall check again with my parents and confirm.

Definitely an extra option for those who are scratching their heads on where to have lunch or dinner around the area :D Not bad right?

I hope the subtotal is correct :P They didn't give me the receipt. The menu list they handed to me did not include price for rice, tea, peanuts and wet towel. My maths are getting worse these days. Sorry for the price difference mentioned earlier :P

UPDATE:

We ordered:

1. Double Boiled Superior Soup with Apple, Chinese Herb and Deep Sea Garoupa Head (沙露鱼头汤) - RM8 per pax
2. Double Boiled Superior Soup with Fish Maw, Chicken and Chinese Herbs (鱼肚炖鸡汤） - RM8 per pax
3. Deep Fried Crispy Money Bag (金钱满满袋, small, 6 pieces) - RM8
4. Chinese Spinach Soup with Salted Egg and Preserved Egg (咸蛋皮蛋上汤苋菜, small) - RM10
5. Fried Boneless Chicken with Mango Sauce (香芒鸡, small) - RM10
6. Stir Fry Four Types of Vegetable with Crispy Sliced Almond (杏香四宝菜，RM8, small)
7. Grilled Lamb Chop with Black Pepper Sauce (密椒煎羊扒) - RM5.50 per piece (5 piece - RM27.50)
8. Special Homemade Beancurd with Steamed Egg White & Mince Seafood (玉带豆腐, small)- RM10
9. Stewed Pork-rib ala Jade Palace served with Buns (红烤招排骨, small) - RM16
10. Sweetened Water Chestnut Cream with Silver Fungus (雪洱马蹄露, RM8, small)
11. White rice (RM1 per pax - refillable)
12. Tea + wet towel (RM.150 per pax - 5 person, RM7.50)
13. Peanuts - RM1.50 per plate
14. 5% service charge + 5% government tax
    

Subtotal: RM140.60 including tax (for 5 big eaters)

*Reminder: All the dishes ordered were small and each double boiled soups was meant for 1 person. Japanese food as mentioned on the sign board is no longer available.

Business hours:
12.00 noon - 3pm
6pm - 10.30pm

Address:
Jade Palace Seafood Restaurant
Choo Plaza (Formerly known as Wisma Chocolate)
3rd Floor, 41, Lorong Abu Siti, 10400 Penang.

Contact:
(Please call for reservation... just in case)
Tel: 04-2275758 / 2275759
Fax: 2275755


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*Previous reviews on table course dinners here and here.

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I was suppose to meet up with my friend until W ppk-ed (pang poey ki in hokkien) me :S and X-Man Origins didn't turn out to be as great as I'd thought. Bad day (not enough sleep) and bad movie. At least, the gelato was something good :P

I saw an ice cream stall afar near G Hotel's back entrance while I walked along the Gurney Plaza Alfresco. The word "Gelatomio" was enough to make me walk over and check things out. A chef was just about to move the ice creams into the cart and its manned by Jose (G-Hotel worker) from the Phillipines.

A friendly guy and he was kind enough to explain which are the top sellers among the available choices. Practically, "Oreo & Cream" was the only flavour that needs frequent stock ups :) By the way, no one bought "Wildberries" so far. Anyhow, I still wanted liquor-ish ice cream.

"Rum & Raisin and Orange Cointreau, please."

I decided to forgo lunch and save the money for gelato...RM11 nett for 2 scoops of gelato leh. The price were reasonable and he gave huge scoops :D So no complain lah.

Although tables were placed near the stall, you can still choose to sit at the buffet area's smoking zone. Hmm maybe asked if its possible? I bought the ice cream while the cart was still in front of the back entrance of G Hotel.

The Rum & Raisin was superb. At least it tasted like "Rum & Raisin" not "Cream & Raisins" :P Every spoon was packed with distinctive Rum flavour and there were a lot of raisin chunky bits. The ice cream was smooth and I enjoyed it alot.

Orange Cointreau was packed with the liquor smell. French Orange Cointreau liquor always has the nice subtle orange smell. Don't worry, I believe the liquor was evaporated during the process of making the ice cream. It was also as smooth as Rum & Raisin.

However, I find the gelatos sweeter than it should be. And it could be because I bought it before the gelatos had the chance to be freezed again, so they melt quite fast :P Fortunately the wafer cone wasn't sweet and I munch them while shoving spoons of gelato into my mouth :D

I also realised the menu stated "99% fat free". Hmm I think prefer 100% whole milk XD

Jose also added that the ice cream stall was set up by G Hotel and still on trial basis to check on the price and flavours. The flavours would be changed weekly (if I heard him correctly).

Besides that, I thought serving a glass of ice water would be nice for those who wanted to sit down and enjoy the ice cream.

Would try more next time around. And yeah, I, satu orang, walloped the whole double scoop cone :)

Note:
My mistake. Should have checked out Gelatomio's website. Apparently, the owner is Italian and the gelato are locally produced.

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Dining at Canton-i previously brought me memories of my first visit to Shang Palace at former Shangri-La Hotel and I was a little kid. Those were the glorious days when a number of Chinese Restaurants were manned by Hong Kong chefs. I absolutely miss those flavours.

Now, I have the chance to savour those flavours again.

Hmm...Although some might not agree that Canton-i serves good food but I enjoyed them a lot. So I guess its the matter of personal preference and individual tastebuds?

This time, we get to sit at another part of the restaurant.

Flowering Red Amaranth (水中花篮, RM5) tea again and the flower had bloomed before it reached my table! Ish...

This is the fillings of the garlic chives with prawns dumpling (韭菜虾饺, RM9). Normally, I do not take garlic chives but their dumpling was delicious.

After asking dad about pre-made dumplings, he rectified that the dumplings had to be pre-made and stored at the fridge, so they can move on preparing other things. Normally they would be made the night before or in the morning. Unless the ready made dumplings are sold out, the chefs would have to make more. This situation usually happens at Hong Kong restaurants where the demand exceeds the supply. So you would see the chefs keep on making fresh dumplings on the fly.

I did not detect any fridge smell so its considered fresh to me and tasty too. I would say pretty good results for a person (me) who doesn't take garlic chives at all :)

Among other dim sum we ordered was Char Siew Bao. RM 6 for 2 buns :P

Like Precious Pea mentioned "Hong Kong char siew bao sticks to your teeth but the fillings were delicious." Pork flavour was distinctive and not overwhelmed by the dark soy sauce.

The char siew bao served in Canton-i is exactly like the char siew bao made during the olden days and you can buy it at 60-80 sen each... Still available at the streets, provided if you can find the stall :)

2 Combination (Roast Pork & Char Siew) Wantan Noodle , 双洴捞面 - RM13.80. Hahaha this way, you get to taste the noodles, some soup and the roast pork with char siew XD

The egg noodles (全蛋面) were very springy and they do not expand a lot even being left aside for some time. No sign of lye water smell which is good. The egg noodles were flown in from Hong Kong but I am not sure daily or weekly.

According to their brochure, those Hong Kong style egg noodles were produced using Beijing eggs and Canadian flour. Still using eggs and flour but there is a difference.

Beijing eggs has thicker consistency compare to our local eggs and Canadian flour (high gluten) is the best flour in the world. And no water is added in the process of making the noodles.

No wantan mee stalls in Penang would serve 100% egg noodles as they cost alot. However some noodle producer do make egg noodles specially upon orders from restaurants.

This time the Char Siew is delicious. Equal proportions of fat and meat made it softer compare to my last visit. Slightly charred fat definitely adds depth and smokey flavour to it. The char siew is very similar to the Char Siew sold at Tengkat Tong Shin, KL. Every bite was a joy :D

Japanese Stew Pork Wantan Noodles (猪软骨面,干- RM12.80）

Japanese Stew Pork Wantan Noodles was one of my parent's favorite item. The pork (including the tendons) was soft with a bit of springy texture and there were several huge chunks of it! Although its named as Japanese Stew Pork, I am pretty sure the recipe of making the stew had been changed to Hong Kong style with addition of spices and less salty.

Roast Goose (Drumstick) Wantan Noodles (烧鹅面 - RM26) . The goose skin was tasty as they used maltose (麦芽糖) as one of the marinating ingredients. I think we had the left drumstick again XD Additional RM8 for the juicy drumstick :P This should be the last plate of goose we're gonna have. Too expensive.

Never look down on this bowl of soup given together with all dry wantan noodles.

I disagree with NKOTB that the soup had strong alkaline smell. The flavour was actually coming from the dried flat fish (左口鱼) they used. Very common ingredient used in Hong Kong style soups and they are quite pricey these days.

My grandfather absolutely love the soup as the flavor was nostalgic to him.

Stewed Beef Tendon and Brisket in claypot (原汁柱候牛腩 - RM13）. Its a bargain.

The beef was absolutely delicious and very cheap! With so many huge chunks in it and nicely cooked to perfection. Very flavourful and tasted just right. Too much sauce would make it salty. The white radish was juicy minus the pungent radish smell.

We had it with rice. Although RM1 per bowl, the rice was delicious too. Chewy and smooth. Nicely cooked.

We finished off our meal with great egg tarts (3 pieces for RM5) and winter melon wife pastry (老婆餅).

Multiple layer pastry spells good pastry base. Well it depends on the person. I like my pastry base like this. There was a hint of lard added to the pastry base which makes it fragrant and its fluffy too.

With the addition of lard, the egg tarts reminded me of Tong Kee Egg Tarts near Petaling Street. Tong Kee adds more lard and their pastry is slightly denser than Canton-i.

There is something different to their egg custard. The milk taste was quite prominent. I guess the milk added into the custard was also imported from HK.

Canton-i serves a different version (traditional type) of Hong Kong 老婆餅 . The winter melon wife pastry were stronger flavoured compared to the ones I'd tried before. I noticed the chefs here added more almonds together with some other non-regular items like nam yue and sweetened winter melon. It had a similar taste to Kai Chai Peng. Funny because they actually called it Lotus Paste Pastry in the menu.

Although I did not like the filling, I love the pastry wrapped around it. It has very strong buttery smell with fluffy texture.

I still prefer the other version of winter melon pastry made of steamed winter melon, some kind of flour (糕粉) and almond.



Besides ordering the baked items, we also had their Milk Tea and Yin Yeong (RM5.50 each).

The tea and coffee powder as well as the milk were imported from Hong Kong as well. The texture were smoother compare to Kim Gary and I like the idea of serving the drinks with crushed ice instead of cubes.

At least, the evaporated milk used contains real milk unlike our local brands :S

I did not mention all items in this post tho. Based on the receipt we (5 person) ordered:

1 pax Flowering Red Amaranth (水中花篮, RM5 perpax)
2 pax Vintage Pu Er (普洱, RM10 - RM5 perpax)
1 glass Yin Yeong (RM5.50)
1 glass HK Milk Tea (RM5.50)

1 plate Japanese Stew Pork Rib Noodles(猪软骨面, RM12.80)
2 plate Dumpling Noodles Soup (水饺面, RM23.60 - RM11.80 each)
1 plate Roast Goose (Drumstick) Wantan Noodles (烧鹅面, RM18 - additional RM8 for drumstick)
1 plate Two Combination (Roast Pork & Char Siew) Wantan Noodle (双洴捞面, RM13.80)
1 pot Stewed Beef Tendon and Brisket in claypot (原汁柱候牛腩, RM13)
1 basket Garlic chives with prawns dumpling (韭菜虾饺, RM9)
1 basket Char Siew Bao (RM6)
1 bowl White rice (RM1)
1 bowl Plain Porridge (RM4)

3 pieces Egg Tart (RM5)
2 pieces Winter Melon Pastry (RM4)
2 Jasmine Jelly, sea coconut, white fungus with iced Jasmine tea (RM18 - RM9 each)

Plus tax total damage was RM192.30

Quite a lot of stuff I would say.

Tips to save money when dining at Canton-i:

1. Just order 2 pax of tea (comes in a pot) and ask for more cups or just order hot water (RM1 per pax) XD Both are refillable.
   
2. Put aside the wet towels (RM1 each O.o) and tell the waitress you do not want them. They will deduct from the bill.
   
3. The stewed items were absolutely worth ordering! Perfect with rice~ The beef brisket was enough to feed 2 person :)
   
4. Dessert is huge enough to share (2 person)

*Disclaimer: All tips were thought of during time of dining only. Will not responsible if things happen the other way round :P

After 2nd round, I am sure I will not step into Dragon-i anymore (unless people belanja) :D

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