…… we decided to have this for dinner.
some of the stuff that went into the pot
got everything laid out on the table. We had dinner at the porch that night. The weather was cooling due to the drizzle. It was fun.
Steamboat or Hotpot. Took about 2 hours to boil the soup base, wash the food, fry garlic oil and etc. Took 30 minutes to finish everything *burp* We should do this more often 
I saw this cute sandwich idea on Pinterest a couple of days ago. I made one with wholemeal bread for Ashley to take to school yesterday. When I picked her up from school, she told me excitedly about the Heart Bread I put in her snack box. “Thank you mommy for the nice heart bread with sprinkles”, she said. I love surprising her whenever I get the chance Will try out other shapes next time.
Last night, we were invited to a sumptuous dinner with my good buddies Annie & family and Shireen & family. The dinner was at Restaurant Pin Xiang in Aman Suria, Damansara and is co-owned by local celebrity Alan Yun. He is the handsome actor from my favourite movies – Sepet and Gubra. I was giddy with excitement that I can meet Alan in person 
Pin Xiang is a simple no-frills restaurant which serve fresh food at affordable prices. The restaurant was packed so you can guess how good is the food huh?
Can you see the crowds?
I was pretty star-struck when I saw Alan at the restaurant 
Annie took this photo of him. Alan is very humble and down-to-earth. He even went around serving us rice and the dishes. Ahhhh….ate a lavish meal and being served by a star is such a rare treat Ok, let me show you what we had last night.
I had Fu Chuk Yee Mai (Fresh Beancurd Sheet with Barley) which is Pin Xiang’s speciality. This delicious drink is smooth and thick, just how I like it.
Yam Ring with Sweet & Sour Pork. Something different from the usual Kung Po style. I love the texture of the yam and Ashley can’t get enough of the sweet and sour pork.
Pin Xiang Fried Tilapia. The fish is very fresh. Its skin is crispy while the flesh is soft. I love that there are so much fresh garlic on top of the fish. My hubby who is not fond of fish ate quite a bit of this dish.
Kai Lan with Braised Yam. The creamy and mushy yam go so well with the kai lan. It is not a dish you can find in other restaurants. If you are a fan of yam, you are going to love this dish.
Mongolian Style Crispy Pork Knuckles. This is a must try dish at Pin Xiang. The meat is tender and juicy and it is very crispy on the outside. It tastes excellent with the sauce. Also together with the dish are some fried mantou buns for dipping into the sauce. Très Délicieux!
Here’s another favourite of the night – Yin Yang Prawns. The creamier looking prawns are cooked according to Alan Yun’s concoction. They have a salty, sweet and sour taste. Yummy! The other half of the prawns are cooked in soya sauce. Very tasty!
Champagne Spare Ribs. Succulent and flavourful spare ribs are served in a nicely carved watermelon. Those red balls beside it are fresh watermelon. This dish is lip-smacking!
Pickled Lettuce with Bitter Gourd. This is a dish which I have not tried before. I don’t eat bitter gourd but I really like the crunchy pickled lettuce. A very refreshing dish.
Assam Petai. I did not try this because I don’t eat petai. My husband loved it and ate almost one third of this dish. He said it’s better than his mom’s
Signature Fried Tofu with Minced Meat. This aromatic dish is one of my favourites. The tofu is very soft and cooked with minced meat and choy po (preserved radish).
Sweet & Sour Crab. Just when I thought my tummy is going to burst from all that food, Alan came out carrying a plate of Sweet & Sour Crabs. Since I love crabs, I had to take a piece. The crabs are very fresh and I just love the creamy gravy.
Lastly, we were served some Homemade Shanghai Mooncakes which were made by one of the owners for dessert. Since Shanghai mooncake is also my favourite (now you know why I can’t lose weight), I took a piece. It was really good!
We will definitely visit Restaurant Pin Xiang again and try the other dishes. Perhaps I should make a trip there in the afternoon for some Char Siew Egg Noodle with Wantons, Crispy Roast Pork Belly (siew yok) or Fragrant Chicken Rice. Pin Xiang is a restaurant which everyone should go for good Chinese food. It is reasonably priced and the service is excellent. Best of all, I didn’t feel thirsty after this big meal which means that no MSG was used in the cooking
We had a great time last night. It was great to catch up with my good friends and the kids had a wonderful time playing with each other. As for the men, well they were busy drinking away and chatting too.
Restaurant Pin Xiang Seafood, Chicken Rice & Noodle House
H-18-G, Jalan PJU 1/45,
Aman Suria, Damansara,
Selangor Darul Ehsan.
Tel: 016 276 1438
How’s your Raya/Merdeka holidays peeps? Enjoying yourselves? Can’t believe that the holidays are coming to an end and I have to go to work tomorrow 
On the bright side, tomorrow is Friday
We took another road trip yesterday and hubs decided to go to Bentong for some homemade ice-cream. He remembers having this yummy ice-cream when he was a kid and had been raving about it. Hubs actually forgot the name of the ice-cream place but we googled Bentong Ice cream and saw many blog posts on Kow Po Coffee Shop which serve delicious homemade ice cream.
We arrived in Bentong after a 45 mins drive from KL. We were lucky to be able to get a table right away
Vintage signboard just above the main entrance
This work area at the entrance is where the ice-cream orders are prepared
Choose your favourite ice-cream set from these framed photos on the wall.
Some of the flavours available.
My mom ordered the Chendol Ice Cream
Ashley’s single scoop of chocolate ice-cream
Mmmm…….
Hubs and I shared this Jumbo set which consists of 3 scoops of Ice cream (choc, durian and vanilla). The ice-creams are really good. They are so smooth and creamy. Their best seller is of course the durian flavour ones and ice kacang. Besides ice cream, you can also order yong tau foo. This ice cream place is so packed and the crowd kept coming in. We spent about 20 mins here and then head over to our next destination. We will definitely return to this hidden gem in Bentong. Coming up next is another good eating place we went to. Do stay tuned
Kow Po Coffee Shop
2, Bentong Heights,
28700 Bentong
Opens: 10.30am – 7.30pm (closed on Monday)
GPS Coordinates: N03 31.331 E101 54.651
I enjoy shopping very much, especially online shopping at US based stores. Not only is it convenient, I can have access to products from around the world. It is also cheaper to shop online than going to an actual store. I can also send gifts to family and friends without leaving my home. One of my all-time favourite stores is Zappos. I can spend hours on this online store. Another thing which I love about shopping online is the great savings with coupons from BestOnlineCoupons.com. This online coupon service site offers thousands of coupons from hundreds of online stores like Macy’s, Old Navy, Target, Walmart, Red Envelope, Babies R Us and etc. Of course, my favourite is always Zappos coupons.
I just saw one of the special deals available – Save Up To 75% Off Retail at 6pm. Awesome eh? With Zappos coupon code, you can get great discounts on shoes, clothing and accessories. Well, if you are like me who just cannot get enough of shoes and handbags, you may want to look for the Endless Shoes and Handbags coupons. There is up to 45% off all sandals for men, women and children. Gosh, I am getting butterflies in my tummy right now. I am so loving this red Swedish Hasbeens.
If you love shopping and want to save money especially for the Holidays, do not forget to check out BestOnlineCoupons.com.
I have been coughing for over a week now and the cough gets worse whenever I am sleeping. I was taking Mucoslovan for the phlegm and King-to Nin Jiom Pei Pa Koa for the cough but they did not help. Then yesterday, my mom suggested that I drink Ya Sei Mei (24 Herbs Tea) from the herbal drink stall near my house.
The Ya Sei Mei tea consists of 24 herbs all boiled together to make a dark, black, bitter tasting drink. It helps to clear toxic substances and heat from within the body. For extra oomph, you can add a teaspoon of powder into the drink. This powder is actually grind snake grass herb which is a good remedy for heaty body. Whenever I drink Ya Sei Mei, I had to gulp it down asap without stopping. You can imagine the bitterness. Then I’d need to suck on a sweet to get rid of the taste
Guess what? After drinking one big cup yesterday, I could sleep better last night and my coughing has reduced tremendously. I just drank another cup today and hopefully my cough will be gone soon. Have you tried Ya Sei Mei before?
The above is a photo of the Snake Grass plant via http://healthblog.yinteing.com, for your information. My late grandmother used to plant them at home. She would grind the leaves into powder for us to take whenever we are heaty.
A great way to add some whimsy to your kid’s food is by using colourful food picks. I saw these new food picks at 100 Yen last weekend.
Cute animals picks and candies & donut picks
Matryoshka doll picks.
Aren’t they the cutest? While I don’t do bento lunches because it requires a lot of patience which I lack, I use food picks to spice up some of Ashley’s snacks/fruits. The ones above are for a friend and also my 3 year old niece in Toronto. I hope she’ll be delighted to see these food picks when her mom uses them for her fruits. Every now and then, 100 Yen or Daiso come out with new food pick designs. I love shopping there. Oh that reminds me that I have to start looking for gifts for gradnparents day I also bought a Hello Kitty cutlery set for my niece.
Nice? I’m not sure if there are many Hello Kitty stuff in Toronto. I hope my niece likes it
Have a good weekend everyone! It’s going to be a busy one for us
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Last week when we were at Jaya Grocer, I finally found the Glad Rainbow Bags. I was giddy with excitement. Hubs couldn’t understand why I was so happy but I am sure if I were to give him a nikon rifle scope and he would be just as happy if not more. I have been looking for these ever since I got to know them from Dinah. These colourful bags are great if you want to pack some sandwiches for the kids. A change from using tupperwares. They are great as party favours too.
RM4.90 for a box of 30 bags. Cheap cheap!
They come with cute stickers for sealing the bags. You can even write on the bags!
This is how the bag looks like.
Nice eh? I will be stocking them up for my crafts
Last Saturday night, we had an early Father’s Day celebration with Annie and her family. We went to this open air Japanese BBQ place in Taman Desa, a nice and unassuming eatery. This open space is in between 2 rows of shoplots. There are no airconds, fancy furniture or decor. Just a few tables and chairs and patrons will dine under the stars and moonlight. Hubs and his friend know the owner, Mr Hunk Seiji Fujimoto, who also own another restaurant – Sanuki Udon in Taman Desa. (note to myself – I should visit Sanuki Udon soon).
Got this pic from Annie. Only a small part of this place is covered.
We were given 2 charcoal stoves like this for the bbq. The stoves look like goulds pumps to me. The above dish is lamb with cabbage.
Meat we ordered – belly, shoulder, tongue, etc Oh, the cabbage is for wrapping the cooked meat and dipped into the special sauce
Our food on the grill.
While the men had beer and sake, Annie and I had green tea and nescafe
The Hunky Dory daddies The hunk owner, Seiji is the one wearing the blue denim. Luckily he was around that night 
As you can see, the missy was holding tight to her daddy. She didn’t want him to take a photo *slaps forehead*
Below is the address of this eatery :
Gerai Makanan Japanese BBQ
Center Court, Plaza Faber,
Jalan Desa Jaya, Taman Desa off Jalan Klang Lama,
58100 Kuala Lumpur.
Non Halal
Opens daily from 6pm until midnight
