Some Good Ol' Kampung Style at Sambal Hijau

It was one of those days where the metabolic rate shot sky high causing the stomach to rumble more vigorously than usual and the constant growling sounded like a rainstorm was coming.

Super Hungry Mode ON!

Called my reliable 'makan' buddy, Chelle for an escapade to monster-eating paradise.

MISSION: A PLACE OF SCRUMPTIOUS, HEARTY FOOD

Ting! We've got a destination and it was to Sambal Hijau for some good ol' Malay kampung food. But of course, as is always the case when I'm with Chelle, we HAVE to get lost on the way there. And once again, it was the smell of good food that leaves its trail of clues and we managed to find our way. Hip hip hurray!

A party of ikan bakar

Mmmmm...the smell of grilled fish (ikan bakar) was promising to some awesome food ahead. Having this grill stand at the outside part of the restaurant is a good publicity stunt as the delicious, sweet smell of ikan bakar is a definite head-turner! Not hungry also become hungry lah!

Super packed to the max!

There were throngs of people there and we resorted to sharing tables with this nice lady and her young son. Because we both wanted to choose the dishes, Chelle asked the lady to 'chop' our seats for us and she was so nice and obliging to help us! See, we still have nice, friendly people in our country.

Ok, TIME TO FEAST!

A star-jump for variety! Glutton Spirit doing some whoop-whoop-whooping!

Well, I almost did one, star-jump I mean. Can you blame me? Look at the spread in front of our eyes! There were rows and rows of every meat, seafood, curry, vege, innards, plants, shrubs and sauces to choose from. BLOWS THE MIND!

Didn't know where to start. We actually stood still taking it all in for a minute or two until we realized we were blocking the pathway and hungry people were shooting glares at us. Whoops!

So finally after much resistance to just take EVERYTHING, we had:

Pucuk Paku with Coconut Shreddings & Chili

Pucuk Paku is a kind of fern which is edible and normally prepared in masak lemak style (with coconut milk/coconut shreddings or some form of coconut inside). This dish was very fragrant and not too spicy.

Fried Turmeric Chicken & Fried Egg accompanying the Pucuk Paku

Fried chicken was relatively quite good. Always liked how the Malays will use turmeric to season their chicken before deep-frying it. Adds some salty and gingery taste to the common fried chicken.

Can't say much about the egg; tastes like the one Mum/Dad/Ah Neh-at-the-mamak-stall made for us for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Good thing is, it was not soaking in oil.

Beef Tendon in Sweet Curry

Was excited to try this dish as I have this knack for all things innard and jelly-looking. Makes it like a challenge, no? A food conquest more like.

Unfortunately, this dish was......not something we would have gulped down in seconds. Tendon was too soft. You know how when you eat tendons, you'll like it to have that slight bit of crunch when you bite into it? This one felt like biting into konyaku jelly. And the curry was a tad bit too sweet and mild.

Jelak after awhile!

The fish with a gazillion bones.....

We ordered grilled ikan terubuk. The plus points- fresh and very sweet. The down points- SUPER A LOT OF TEENY WEENY TINY BONES! Which made eating it quite a chore and time-consuming. If you spoon out the flesh the size of a teaspoon, you'll probably fine 30 bones in between.

Yup....that's how bony it is. Very sweet though.

Sambal Cockles

Mmmm..this dish was good! Cockles were rather tender (not overcooked like those in char kuey teow) and the sambal was spicy, tangy and full of flavor!

Overall, Sambal Hijau was a nice experience because of its diverse variety of Malay food. The throngs of people, the rows of piping-hot food, the grilled fish stand, the aroma- they all just add to this ambiance of a hearty meal awaiting the one who seeks.

Sambal Hijau & Belacan

And of course, every spoonful and every bite was topped with a bit of extra spicy kick- their famous Sambal Hijau and Belacan. The sambal hijau was sooooooo good (think fragrant, spicy, tangy), I could actually just eat it with a plate of white rice!



Restoran Sambal Hijau
2990, Kampung Sungai Penchala,
Jalan Damamnsara, 60000,
Kuala Lumpur.

BMW Did It The French Way

For you Beemer fanatics out there, don't jump the bandwagon just yet. BMW is still all-things Bavarian and Motor.

Was at the launch of the all-new sixth-generation 5 Series at KLCC. Working as ushers there meant that we got to see the new model first-hand! And best part is, I got to steal a peek at their gastronomical menu!

Ooohh..it's gonna be French! A 5-course meal specially concocted by chef Chris Bauer of Frangipani Restaurant & Bar. This should be very interesting.

Tables set up in amazingly long rows.....breathtaking!

With the French flair for delicate details and their secret touch of making everything look/hear/sound/taste OH-SO-ROMANTIC, I was very excited to see how sexy the dishes will look.....and of course, how tantalizing it'll be on the tongue..... Mmmm...

Freshly Chucked Oysters with Caviar, Lemon Pearls &
Pickled Japanese Cucumbers

Told ya' they're gonna be sexy. First dish and it's an aphrodisiac. Every dish is served with a different wine and for this dish, it was served with Cape Mentelle Sauvignon Semillon 2008.

Oysters were fresh but the temperature was a bit off. Would have liked it a tad bit more chilled. Liked how the Lemon Pearls would just burst in the mouth, causing a mini explosion of citrus-tangyness. Definitely lent a helping hand in neutralizing the extreme creaminess of the oyster.

Tea-smoked Salmon with Echire Creme Fraiche,
Confit Potatoes & Salmon Roe

Salmon's texture was slightly chewy on the top half and the bottom half which was slightly more cooked, falls off nicely. Potatoes were really tasty and though its shape still remained, it was soft enough to just melt-in-the-mouth. This dish was served with Cloudy Bay Chardonnay 2007.

Black Rice Risotto with Grilled Prawns,
Baby Squid & Black Mussel

I liked the sound of Baby Squid (try spotting the teeny weeny baby squid in the pic). All food with the word 'baby' in it or has association with babies (means they're young) sounds extra delicious, extra tender and extra juicy, no?

You're just in self-denial if you said 'No'.

This dish was my favorite for the night (not just because there's BABY squids in them ok!). It was really, really tasty. The risotto was a greedy monster and absorbed all the flavor from the broth it was cooked in and still, managed to take in the sweetness and saltiness from its seafood friends. However, I must say that the prawn was slightly over-grilled and was a bit tough. This dish was served with Cloudy Bay Pinot Noir 2007.

Grilled Betel Leaf Wrapped Tenderloin with
Savoy Cabbage & Indonesian Black Nut Sauce

Didn't enjoy this AT ALL. I think if I had to eat something from this plate, I would have eaten the cabbage. Tenderloin was much too tough and the betel leaf gave a distinct, unpleasant taste to the meat. Not sure if it was the cooking method that made the betel leaf infused that kinda odor or it was the betel leaf itself, but it just didn't go. Heard quite a number of guests complaining about this dish on their way out as well.

That black thing which looks like a Shitake mushroom is actually the shell of the Indonesian Black Nut. Nothing much to comment on the sauce as there was nothing fancy about the taste. Just slightly salty and an earthy aroma to it. This dish was served with Cape Mentelle Zinfandel 2006.

Chocolate Terrine with Pistachio Mousse;
White Chocolate Cheesecake with Dark Chocolate Sauce;
French Toast with Roast Apple & Dulce de Leche Sauce

Mmmm...dessert was relatively good. The cheesecake was not too sweet and the dark chocolate overcoat helped take the intense richness away cos' of its slight bitterness. Loved the tangy raspberry puree! The pistachio mousse was creamy and a bit too sweet for my liking.



Dessert was served with Hennessy XO.

The launch of the new BMW F10 was rather spectacular. There were revolving thingymajiggies on stage, waiters at hand, excellent service and hospitality and of course, beautiful cars. Well, expectations are high. It's BMW after all.

Maybe it was because of the whole setup and ambiance that got my expectations really high for the food. I wouldn't say it was bad, but it was nothing to shout about as well.

Can't comment much on the selection of wines as me is no wine expert. Will need to brush up in that area. My excuse to drink more! HAH!

The Bread Shop

That was a much needed break. Now, time to share the gluttony L.O.V.E again.

Chelle brought the all-girls troop to this bread joint. As usual, she was a hopeless GPS and we lost our way during the drive. Perhaps it was the trail of delicious baking bread that our nose tracked and we got there eventually (HALLELUJAH!).



It was an intense pleasure to be greeted by freshly-baked bread and it made the stomach do a jungle dance.

Gotta love the loaf...

We is lovin' those industrial lights...

Loved the concept, loved the deco. So raw and industrial that it's surprising to see the workers clad in normal clothes and not their blue jumpsuits.

We had:

Tomato & Basil Dip

Tomatoes were nicely done. Not too mushy and still had a bit of structure to it. Tasted slightly tangy and the basil gave a nice earthy touch. Was a really good first dish to make us hopeful for the others. The portion is rather tiny though and seeing we have to share it between the 4 of us while waiting for the other orders, we were RAVENOUS by the time.

Not a nice feeling at all. Boo!

Curry Chicken Dip

Not one of our favorites for that day. Curry was too watery, not spicy and it didn't taste like curry at all! A bit disappointed with this. However, Chelle said she tried this dish another day and it was much better. A lil' inconsistency here, ey?




This was the week's special- Breakfast Danish. A choice of beef pastrami or smoked chicken and poached egg on a crispy danish with tomato relish on the side.

It looks really interesting and I was totally excited to try this! The verdict? Mmm..not bad.. but expected better.

We chose the beef pastrami and it was a bit tough. Took a bit of skill to cut it through. The danish was nothing to shout about as well. tomato relish was yummy but tastes suspiciously very much like the Tomato & Basil Dip.

Roast Beef Ciabatta

Once again, bread was good but beef was tough.

And after all that, we finally had their famous scones...

THE Famous Scones

Oooohhh...!! The scones were DEE-LEE-SIOS! Buttery, creamy, warm and soft with good ol' raspberry jam and fresh cream...it was lovely... (mmm..reminiscing that very moment when I took the first bite).

Though it was quite a mouthful for me even with just half a scone, was greedy and ate the other half. Definitely not a good idea as the richness of ONE FULL SCONE made me insanely full and I felt like gagging after that.

It was good though. I LOVE SCONES (been missing those scones in Cameron Highlands).

All in all, The Bread Shop is worth a visit. The minimalist concept is definitely eye-catching and unlike any other cafes here in KL. They bake crazy good bread and even crazier better scones. The main courses are so-so only but it's a nice place to take a chill-pill and grab that evil cup of latte!

The Pong sisters lovin' the place...

The Bread Shop
11, Jalan Setiakasih 5,
Damansara Heights, Kuala Lumpur.

Tel: 03- 2093 8734

Opening Hours: Monday-Friday (8am-7.30pm), Saturday (8am-5pm). Closed on Sundays.