Syawal in Penang : Over the New 2nd Penang Bridge

mr. khairul’s mom is from langat. and his bapak has a thick perak accent. so where did that penang accent come from the way he speaks? well mr khairul was born and raised in penang – so while all his other siblings seem capable of speaking with a perak accent, mr khairul is utagha through and through.

on that note, that is why it’s like mandatory for us when we come back to malaysia from dubai, to visit his old playground – the penang island.

 

the boys were super excited. this was their first ever ferry trip and even more fun to share this momentous occasion with their atuk.

 

of course, a trip to penang is incomplete without enjoying a plate of nasi kandar at his favorite spot - ‘line clear’. me, i don’t understand the obsession with nasi kandar. it’s basically just curry and fried chicken. so? haha but the magic is in the curry campoq, and the crispy crunch special flour-marinated fried chicken. i cant remember having nasi kandar while growing up – i only ate it more often since married to this penang boy!

 

my sis-in-law with her scrumptious plate of nasi kandar. mr. khairul loves it so much! no time for selfies or pictures! dig in!

 

 

this is also a must-stop. chendul teochew – soft fat beads of green cendol, in a pool of cool coconut milk with a drizzle of gula melaka. heavenly when you slurp it on a hot day, especially after a huge mountainous plate of nasi kandar! that’s khaleef in 2014, and that’s us in 2005 with the family friend tato.

 

 

us & the boys

 

 

went to penang by ferry, went back to kg lalang through the new 2nd penang bridge or its official name, ‘the sultan abd halim muádzam shah bridge’ (the sultan of kedah, and the reigning yang dipertuan agong). totalling 24 km in length, it will take motorists around 20 minutes to cross the RM4.5 billion bridge from batu kawan on the mainland and batu maung on the island. it is the longest bridge in southeast asia!

Borong Kerepek @ SS Kacang Putih, Manjoi

aku suka kerepek dan keropok. siapa yang tak suka? bole makan kudap-kudap sambil tengok tv. bole makan sambil tengok wayang tgv (seludup je dalam handbag). bole jugak hidang kat org datang ke rumah. laku weh.

bercakap pasal hidang kat orang, masa raya, kerepek memang laku kan. ye la ko nak bersembang pungpang pumpang dgn acik pipah ko yg dah setahun tak jumpa mesti la lama kan. banyak mana la london almond ko nak telan masa berborak tu. jadi kudapan paling best masa datang beraya dan tak muak semestinya kerepek.

masa kat ipoh, yong aku bawakkan ke satu kedai ni – SS kacang putih kat manjoi. katanya kedai ni memang super famous, org jauh pun tau tempat ni.

 

kahfi, cousin adam & kazim

 

kalau nak tau owner dia start bukak kedai ni dalam 10 tahun lebih kot. berbekalkan rm10K simpanan sendiri je buat kecik-kecilan kat rumah dia sampai la dapat bukak kedai yang popular ni. siap ada kilang kot.

mula-mula dia ade 15 jenis je kacang putih – sekarang sampai dah berlonggok-longgok tak tau nak pilih yang mana satu. memang bermacam jenis – nak yg klasik kacang putih ada. nak yang macam jenis keropok macam keropok roda tu ada. yang manis-manis untuk bebudak pun ada. semua sekali dalam 50 jenis dah sekarang.

sempoi je letaknya. takde penuh kabinet pun. kacang-kacang dah siap pek bior je dalam kotak tu atas lantai. ade saiz kecik dan besar. ok je tak nampak serabut pun. asalkan ada sistem, kemas dan orang ramai senang nak lalu-lalang pilih kacang.

 

 

btw kome takyah was-was ok. insyaAllah, muruku, kacang-kacang ngan kepek ubi pisang sume ade sijil halal. pegi la manjoi nak borong kerepek. takyah tunggu raya pun. bila-bila bole pegi borong untuk kudapan harian. huhu. tengah tergendala dalam traffic jam pon kome bole makan kan?

satu lagi fakta menarik, owner SS kacang putih incik sandera juga adalah pengerusi persatuan kebajikan penjual-penjual kacang putih perak! fuyyoh. .

 

 

kakak sulung aku yong yg comel bertudung pink gigih beratur sambil menjinjing bakul yg penuh dengan kerepek dan kekacang. kalo teringin, silalah ke manjoi!

Celebrated Aidiladha in Abu Dhabi

this year, 2013 is our 6th year celebrating aidiladha (hari raya haji) in UAE (united arab emirates). wow. 6th.

I still remember clearly our 1st ever aidiladha when we’re still a one-kid family. just the 3 of us; and I had just arrived in dubai the month before. I remember making popiah daging the night before hari raya haji 2008 to bring to the potluck breakfast at matrade building after the eid prayer (sembahyang raya).

6 years later, here we are. another aidiladha in the middle east! alhamdulillah!

 

berkorban apa saja untuk lelaki-lelaki ini.

 

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this year is interesting as we spent the whole day in abu dhabi, beraya with mr. khairul’s fellow bikers.

we first went to manx and zira’s house. they prepared a scrumptious spread of various malaysian delights. I was so excited to see so much food, especially one coveted food of mine – pulut kuning! haha. thanks zira, thanks manx for having us!

 

with tuan rumah, the spunky zira

 

my favorite and long-coveted pulut kuning (yellow glutinous rice, eaten with chicken curry) and on the side is the garnishing for curry mee.

 

sempat pulak menjala! that’s the soft roti jala with the delicious chicken curry.

 

garnishing for noodle soup. yum.

 

 

* * *

 

this is one awesome drink. lime and asam boi. sugar and lots of ice. perfection. good job, zira!

 

oh my goodness – there’s even tapai!

 

mr. khairul in green sampin hanging out with tuan rumah manx in red, and another good friend wak.

 

spoilt for choice!

 

kiddos have the most fun during raya gatherings!

 

gorgeous malaysian ladies of abu dhabi & dubai; after such delicious variety of aidiladha lunch from manx and zira’s crib. there’s even laksa from zuraidah (along’s wife). burp, alhamdulillah! thanks so much you guys!

 

* * *

 

the next house we went to for dinner – don and jaja’s place. don is another fellow biker, and I SO enjoyed talking to their daughters. smart and chatty! being a mom without daughters, I tend to be that one creepy aunt who likes to talk to little girls at gatherings. haha.

 

don and jaja served another fantastic spread for raya haji – malaysian style still! chicken satay complete with tasty peanut sauce. lontong (not a fan) and nasi tomato (HUGE fan!).

 

It was heavenly when I saw the nasi tomato complete with tomato-ish ayam masak merah (chicken cooked in chilli and tomato ketchup). love love love! my favorite nasi perisa aside from mandi rice!

 

from left zira, zuraidah, hostess jaja, balkish and me

 

from left : my mr. khairul, along syamsulfaiz, wak, host don, manx & bro razali

 

* * *

 

another memorable aidiladha in the middle east – especially grateful for all the delicious malaysian dishes that we still get to taste all the way out here, jauh dari kampung halaman. thanks so much to manx and zira, and don and jaja for inviting us to beraya, and for that moment of borak-borak and makan-makan, aidiladha felt just like home.

Malaysian, Japanese, Spore or Myanmar Dish? Try Innlay Asia @ JLT

there are a few good restaurants around dubai offering delicious malaysian dishes and singaporean food; ‘noodle bowl’ in satwa, ‘singapore deli’ in karama or  – the closest would be ‘noodle factory’ in JBR.

so we were so glad to find out that there’s another restaurant nearby our place offering malaysian taste and from all over south east asia – the ‘innlay asia’ restaurant at JLT (jumeirah lake towers).

 

the ‘innlay asia’ restaurant is set in JLT (jumeirah lake towers) at HDS Tower, cluster F. if you see green-black 'K Pop Chicken' korean restaurant from the main road, you're in the right place. just ask the guard at the parking lot about ‘a thai restaurant’ nearby and he’d know it.

 

the restaurant is in a row facing the man-made JLT lake. you can also opt to eat outside with the nice view of the lake. however, it is already hot summer in dubai and it’s only sensible to eat indoors with the air-cond on full blast!

 

* * *

 

the menu consist of many delicacies from all over south east asia – there’s the ‘crabstick VIETNAMESE spring rolls’, crispy duck with hoisin sauce, pad THAI noodle, SINGAPORE noodle, MALAYSIAN curry chicken, BALI chicken, JAPANESE udon, kyar zan chet MYANMAR and many more chicken, beef, noodle and vegetable dishes.

 

our appetizer was this special myanmar dish - 'deep fried homemade tofu', made at the restaurant. sedap! freshly fried, with moist texture like fried potatoes. love it. but a bit pricey for such a simple dish.

 

this is khaleef's. he wanted something with noodle, and something NOT spicy. this dish fits the bill – 'japanese udon noodle with seafood', but he asked for chicken instead. delicious! kids-friendly dish that's not spicy, and without much frills. simple and straightforward.

 

khairul the adventurous foodie tried 'mandalay chicken noodle' for the first time, which is a myanmar dish. the noodle is first boiled in chicken broth, then set aside. the chicken is sautéed separately. then noodle and chicken are put together, with the hot chicken broth served in a bowl separately. another straightforward dish that is both tasty and filling!

 

char kuey teow : one of my favorite malaysian dishes!

 

knowing that I can get malaysian food here, I jumped at ordering char kuey teow, without thinking twice. I LOVE char kuey teow! this one in ‘innlay asia’ is a seafood char kuey teow but as usual (even in malaysia) I would ask to change to chicken instead.

this char kuey teow at ‘innlay asia’ is yummy to my standard – not too spicy, the flat noodles were soft and taste delicious of prawn broth. most importantly not too much beansprout!

 

 

a typical malaysian char kuey teow should be darker and more charred, slightly watery, served with seafood, and with much more beansprouts and eggs. still, this plate of char kuew teow at ‘innlay asia’ is satisfying enough for me!

 

 

there are a few south east asia dessert offered in the menu : most of them I can just make at home, haha – like this one dessert was disguised as ‘green pancake with coconut caramel’! hihi. padehal kuih ketayap je sebenarnya! they also have fried banana!

well, those are really delicious desserts from malaysia so foreigners do try them if you have the chance!

we malaysians in dubai would rather try something different – so we tried this ‘chilled sago with honey melon’ – simply chilled, sweetened coconut milk with sago and cut up honey melon. sweet and cooling.

while the main dishes at ‘innlay asia’ are reasonably priced, this dessert however, is a bit pricey for such a simple dish with simple ingredients.

 

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the ‘innlay asia’ is comfortable and clean, a nice family-friendly place. the setting is minimal, with framed scenic pictures of rivers and village on the wall, including one with what I assume are the dewa-dewi of myanmar folklore.

 

 

the service is A-plus; friendly, polite and personalized. the staff suggested different dishes for us to pick, as well as describing how certain dishes are prepared, and their ingredients. a knowledgeable staff like that is a gem in any restaurant as it makes it easier for patrons to decide on their order.

not all restaurant staff make it a point to approach customers to ask ‘how’s your food?’ but here at ‘innlay asia’ they do. kudos!

 

nice table mat, hard and I can imagine easy to wipe clean! (haha, thoughts that only mothers can have!) the glass-ducky chopstick rest is cute

 

this is the view that greets you right outside ‘innlay asia restaurant’. nice and calming.

 

the next time you’re around JLT (jumeirah lake towers) area and have a hankering for delicious asian delights from malaysia, singapore, japan and especially myanmar – head on to ‘innlay asia’!

I will definitely be back just for the char kuey teow!

Rare Night Ride : Murtabak Jumeirah, Creek Pictures & Movie Date

my sis-in-law was here last february. so we had a babysitter. who loves my boys like crazy. doesn’t mind doing the job for a place to stay and free food. haha. so that their mak and bapak could go out. just the two of us. date-night!

thanks teh!

 

going out just the two of us meant that we could take the harley! vroom! zooming through the night across jumeirah road…

 

..stopping over at a small restaurant that says MURTABAK up front!

 

the place is along jumeirah road, called ‘murtabak masoub’. turns out to be a saudi-owned restaurant selling arab food, along with (the owner said) a ‘healthier’ version of murtabak.

 

 

when we said we’re malaysians and we have murtabak in malaysia, she said yeap – acknowledging that it IS from malaysia and that they’re putting a healthy spin on this favorite malaysian pasar malam dish.

 

how healthy? for starters, I miss that super OILY feel when I eat our malaysian murtabak – this jumeirah-road version is not oily! haha. this one has that capati feel but crispier. the filling has that distinct curry-onion-egg taste that I recognize, but the wrap is a lot different.

 

a good dish, but not great. then again, I’m not even a fan of our malaysian murtabak so who am I to judge, eh?

 

* * *

 

after the light supper we took a ride to dubai creek and took some pictures by the sleeping dows and arab abras. the late night sky looks amazing. and purple!

 

my mr khairul by the dubai old souq station for water-taxi

 

me~

 

..and we caught a midnight movie at ibn battuta mall right before heading home. it was a simple outing of light supper, jalan-jalan on his bike and movie – such normal outings for a lot of other couples out there with nanny, maid and opah to take care of the cucu – but to us, such precious once-in-awhile moments to treasure.