Paldo Teumsae Instant Noodles from Korea. Inside the packet, a noodle block and two sachets of seasoning powder and garnish.
The noodles are the fried variety, so there is a very slight greasy film on the curly strands.
The seasoning powder consists of various chemicals and extracts. There is also red pepper powder.
The garnish consists of freeze dried cabbage, onion, red pepper, and mushroom.
My steaming bowl of noodle soup was ready to eat within 5 minutes. The noodles were generic wheat pasta, curly, soft, relatively thick and slightly springy. I like.
I like the taste of this broth. It was savoury and has an assertive spiciness that lingers. But most of the "savouriness" came from sodium and chemicals, so I did not finish the broth. Paldo Teumsae Instant Noodles did well in the dip stick test. There was hardly any grease stuck to the dip stick.
Paldo Teumsae Instant Noodles is not certified Halal. Rating: 5/10 based on Johor Kaki standardised instant noodle rating system. Join the Instant Noodle Facebook group for more fun with instant noodle fans.
MyKuali Penang White Curry Noodle 槟城白咖哩面 and Prima Taste Singapore Laksa La Mian are the two most popular instant noodles now in Malaysia and Singapore. Both noodles have their fans. I thought it would be interesting to do a comparison of the two hot favourites (which are similar in many aspects). Side by side, Prima Taste's packet dwarfs MyKuali's pack. The net weight of Prima Taste's is 185 grams, whilst MyKuali's is only 110 grams. A packet of MyKuali retails for about RM1.80 while Prima Taste retails at around RM7.25 a packet - quite a big premium. The noodle blocks look very different. Prima Taste's noodles are air dried, so they look cleaner and are grease free. On the other hand, MyKuali's noodles are conventional generic oil fried pasta. There is a slight film of grease on the noodles. The seasoning pastes and powders. Prima Taste's come with two large sachets of laksa paste and laksa premix. MyKuali's come with three smaller sachets of chili paste, seasoning powder and non dairy creamer. Prima Taste's laksa paste has a stronger dried shrimp (hae bee 虾米) aroma. The aroma of MyKuali's chili paste on the other hand is dominated by blended curry spices. Prima Taste's "laksa premix" is mainly coconut powder. MyKuali's packaging did not specify what the sachet of non dairy creamer is made of. Non dairy creamers are usually made of coconut or palm kernel oil. MyKuali's package also has a sachet of seasoning powder. The two instant noodles were prepared following instructions on the packet to the letter. When cooking MyKuali, the aroma of curry spices and lemon grass filled the air. When cooking Prima Taste, the dominant aroma was the smell of coconut. MyKuali's noodle felt generic. They were curly, soft and spongy. Acceptable but ordinary. Prima's noodles were thicker, straighter, firmer, more chewy. They were a little like properly cooked spaghetti in texture. Prima's noodles have a stronger wheat taste. Most people who have tried both prefer Prima's noodles. MyKuali's broth has a more layered blend of flavours resembling the curry laksa in Malaysia which are made with a blend of Indian and local spices. Prima's broth is simpler and the dried shrimp hae bee虾米 flavour is dominant. MyKuali's broth is spicier than Prima's broth. MyKuali's broth has a hot sting which lingers for a while. I like. Prima's broth is mildly spicy with not much kick. MyKuali's broth has medium weight body and a subtle graininess similar to those at the curry laksa hawker stalls. Prima's broth is heavier bodied and smoother, slightly creamy. I personally enjoyed MyKuali's broth more. Now for the dip stick test. I was a little surprised at the amount of grease stuck to the dip stick from the MyKuali broth. On the other hand, the Prima Taste broth was less greasy. Prima Taste also seems to the the healthier choice based on the labelling on the packet which states that no MSG, artificial flavouring, colouring or added preservatives were used. There are MSG and preservatives in MyKuali's broth. Both instant noodles are certified Halal. Both noodles were scored 6.5/10 by Instant Noodle Grader.
In a perfect world, we would have a package that uses MyKuali's seasonings and Prima Taste's noodles and retails at a price somewhere between the two (but preferably closer to MyKuali's price :D ). For the price sensitive, MyKuali has the edge. For taste and flavour of the broth, I prefer MyKuali. For the health conscious, Prima Taste would be more appealing. However, I prefer smaller packets of instant noodles rather than the current "up-sized" packets of Prima Taste. If I have to choose, which one will it be? I am with Prima Taste, mainly for health's sake. Of course, choice is a matter of personal preferences. There you have it, the shootout between the two most popular instant noodles in Malaysia and Singapore. Join the Instant Noodle Facebook group for more fun with instant noodle fans.
Grill Bar Steakhouse recently launched their brunch menu which is served from 12:00 noon to 3:00pm (except for Tuesday, the rest day). (Grill Bar Steakhouse is already well known in JB for their dinner menu.)
Gary, the Chef owner of Grill Bar takes great pains to come up with this brunch menu. This was actually my second invited tasting to give Gary feedback on the brunch menu. For this round, I joined Gary's biker buddies for the taste test. Steven, Mimi, and Ah Yong are a fun bunch :D
Gary is an avid Harley Davidson fan and his passion for these mean machines is seen in every corner of Grill Bar. This is a totem pole of Gary's collection of vintage helmets.
Let's check out Grill Bar's brunch menu.
I love Grill Bar's Ultimate Nachos. It was the hardest dish to photograph as it was a jumble of beef tenderloin and chicken strips, olives, baked beans, tomatoes, caramelised onions, and melted cheese piled on top of a heap of crispy nachos. But, these were the best nachos that I have eaten for a long while. Crackly, nice corn flavour and not a bit too salty or greasy.
Grill Bar imports these American nachos and fries them in house, so it's minus most of those salt, grease and preservatives. The ultimate starter and beer food. The Big Boss (RM25) is savoury tender tenderloin with gravy served with scrambled eggs, baked beans and house made bagel. Those dark "dust" on the bagel are actually poppy seeds. The nutty seeds pop in our mouth and release a unique lovely flavour. That leafy green is Ulam Raja which means "salad for kings". The market fresh royal green has a nice fragrance and I was eating stalks of it from everyone's plates :D
I love this Signature Beef Stew with Waffle (RM30). Made with Wagyu beef cheeks braised till tender. The soft savoury cheeks are served with house made waffles, sous vide egg, baked beans, and house made brown sauce. At Grill Bar, the sauces are thickened by natural gelatin from the meat dissolved by hours of stewing. No short cuts or compromises by using starch here at Grill Bar.
Oh.... that brown sauce on the marshmallow soft Wagyu cheeks was really, really delicious. Must try. There is nothing sloppy at all about this Sloppy Joe's (RM23). I was delighted by this corn beef hash with sous vide egg served with bagels. The French fries cubed and fried had a surprisingly crunchy, bouncy, slightly spongy mouth feel. The fries soaked up the grease and beefiness from the corn beef, making them hard for beef lovers to resist. We all love this indulgent dish.
The Rambo Lamb (RM26) is a thick juicy home made Australian lamb patty with mint and rosemary topped with cheese and served with Grill Bar's house made bagels. Comes with sides of scrambled eggs, baked beans and Ulam Raja. Scramble Grumble (RM23) is scrambled eggs, cheese, Spanish sausage slices with turkey ham served with Grill Bar's house made bagel. Grand Mama L.C. (RM23). Forgot to ask Chef Gary what L.C. means but this dish is tomatoes, mushrooms, Spanish sausage, and egg baked and served in a bowl along with grilled buttered toast and baked beans. Flapjack's Long John (RM23) is made with Spanish sausage, scrambled egg and caramelised banana served with pancakes. The others liked it but I didn't try as there was just no more room in my stomach :P Shall keep this for next time :D ->> JB people's favourite steak house. The food is always good at Grill Bar.
Restaurant name: Grill Bar Steakhouse Address: 202, Jalan Sri Pelangi, Taman Pelangi, Johor Bahru Map: http://goo.gl/maps/WUYzl GPS: 1.480602,103.773548 Hours: Mon: 12:00 noon - 3:00 pm, 5:00 pm - 10:30 pm | Wed - Fri: 12:00 noon - 3:00 pm, 5:00 pm - 10:30 pm | Sat - Sun: 12:00 noon - 10:30 pm (Closed on Tuesday) No pork, no lard, alcohol (beer only) served
My blogger/ food writer friend Corrine invited me to join her for coffee at the spanking new Headmost Cafe at SunCity (Plaza Matahari) in Taman Pelangi, Johor Bahru. Corrine is also the admin of Coffee-mate 咖啡伴侣 Facebook group for coffee lovers. JB's coffee scene is getting more and more exciting recently with new cafes sprouting in different parts of the city. What excites me most is that some of these cafes are not just either good or bad clones of Western brands but home grown boutique cafes with innovative themes and coffee. They are opened by coffee lovers for coffee lovers. Stepping inside Headmost Cafe, we like it's contemporary clean decor. At the loft level is Headmost boutique, a US brand of casual men's clothing famous for their trendy jockey caps.
Taking pride of place is this gleaming Spirit espresso machine from the renowned Dutch manufacturer Kees Van Der Westen. I am told this machine which looks like the radiator grille of a vintage sports car actually costs the price of a small car in Malaysia. All coffees at Headmost come with double shot espresso. It's a bit of deja vu for me as this place reminds me of Double Ristretto Cafe (also by Just Want Coffee) which is closed. I love Double Ristretto a lot, so the opening of Headmost is great news for me. Somehow, this coffee grinder reminds me of Ferrari cars. Slick, bold, elegant, strong, confident, fast.
Nelson, the boss of Just Want Coffee joined us. We had an interesting chat about his passion for coffee, the Johor coffee scene, Just Want Coffee's philosophy and future plans. Energies are now focused on Just Want Coffee's coming new outlet at Taman Mount Austin.
This coffee is an example of the bold innovation in JB coffee culture. This is a concoction of house blended espresso, corn puree with steamed milk and foam topped with kernels of corn. How does it taste? Corn and double shot espresso pair surprisingly well together :D The robust aromatic full bodied bitter-sweet espresso alternates with the refreshing light bodied sweet corn to create a delightful taste experience. The soft juicy kernels of crunchy corn make interesting nibbles in the coffee. I like this a lot. Nelson said that Just Want Coffee experiments with new coffees constantly and comes up with new coffees on the menu regularly. (So, watch out for it :D ) My cappuccino and Corrine's Americano in the background. My cappuccino was full bodied and robust as all Headmost coffees are served double shot (known as "doppio" in Italian). Corrine enjoyed her Americano too. Blueberry cheesecake. Millecrepe, my favourite type of cake at the moment. Very well made. Creamy but well worth the calories and cholesterol. Interesting gold dusted coffee bean on top of the millecrepe. My apologies that I don't know the prices as Nelson graciously took the tab before we could ask for the bill.
Restaurant name: Headmost Cafe (by Just Want Coffee) Address: SunCity (Plaza Matahari), G07, Jalan Kuning, Taman Pelangi, Johor Bahru Map: http://goo.gl/maps/Meeem GPS: 1.476551,103.768774 Hours: Sunday to Thursday 12:00 noon to 12:00 midnight | Friday to Saturday 12:00 noon to 1:00am. No pork, no lard, no Halal cert Date visited: 26 Feb 2014 Return to Johor Kaki home page.
