Madam Kwan's @ Vivo, Malaysia famous nasi lemak

We were looking for a good place for dinner last weekend, and walked past Madam Kwan's. 

Boy, what a blessing! 

The restaurant hails from Malaysia (heard the queues can get very crazy, not sure if they can fight with the Hello Kitty ones though ..) 

Spritly Madam Kwan helms the kitchen, but we didn't get to meet her that day.

In we went, and I daresay every item we ordered was delicious.

Must tries are: Otak otak, Fried Chicken, Ikan Bilis Sambal

1. Otak otak ( $15.90)

The serving looked deceivingly small, but we realised each bite was packed densely with fish, spices and juice, so we were very satisfied.

2. Sambal Belachan Kangkong ($10.90)

Fresh, tasty, sweet but there was a tad too much belachan. In fact, the vegetable was almost drowning in it, making it too salty and wet. Alas, this dish would have been perfect if not for belachan overload.

3. Crispy fried chicken drumstick ($7.90)

This was a favourite at the table, with a juicy meat underneath well marinated crispy skin, each bite savoury and deliciously crunchy. It is a tad salty though, so be sure to eat it with lots of rice.

4. Curry chicken ($8.00)

A thick looking sauce covered two fat pieces of breast meat, and I was fooled into thinking that this might be a gelat dish. Upon spooning the gravy into my mouth, I realised it was a rather thin but very tasty sauce, with a fragrant coconut aftertaste that was not overpowering. Good for those who like subtle flavours, I'd say.

5. Curry Laksa ($11.90)

A bit too much curry on the table eh? Greedy us decided to have this soupy dish that was already decadent on its own, as it was filled with chicken meat, taupok and beansprouts. It was a good laksa, with a flavourful milky soup, but best to order it as a main dish though!

6. Sambal ikan bilis ($3.90)

Spicy, tangy, savoury and simply... good on its own. A great accompaniment to the coconut rice! 

7. Coconut rice ($1.00)

It looked plain, but I could smell its fragrance when it was nearing the table, and the rice was grainy and fluffy. Won me over with its lightness as I thought it might overpower the dishes, but it complemented them instead. 

8. Chendol with gula melaka ($4.90)

This was the final act of greed. We were very stuffed by the end of the meal, but when the next table finished this chendol and the WHOLE pot of gula melaka, we had to try it for ourselves. But it turned out so-so, with a pretty normal combination of shaved ice, red beans and green jelly noodles. The gula melaka was very aromatic I must say, and that was the saving grace for the dessert. 

How ouir meal looked like:

Overall, we all left belly happy, although wallet empty. 

Head down soon if you like nasi lemak and want to stuff your face :p

Madam Kwan's

Vivocity

#01-152/154

Tel: 62719989

Opening hours: Daily 1000hrs - 2200hrs

World Street Food Congress

So we headed down to the F1 Pit again, several Sundays ago, this time for the WSFC. (Previously Savour, which we much prefer!)

Food was pretty decent with stalls mainly frm Mexico, Vietnam, Europe, USA, Bangkok and we spent about $60 on everything in total (",)"

This was a more chill type of food festival organised by KC Seetoh, aka the guy behind Makansutra. Sadly, ambience was lacking and there was not much crowd nor activities to do.

No choice.

J.u.s.t.f.o.c.u.s.o.n.fo.o.d.

We had:

1) A Vietnamese dessert of banana wrapped in grilled glutinious rice, coated with a milky sauce. I thought it might be too gelat.. it turned out to be one of my fave dish! The grilled texture of the rice formed a great juxtaposition with the softness of banana, with a very fragrant milky coconut sauce.

2) A Mexican seafood appetiser which cost a bomb... imagine a $10 pile of mushy looking things piled on top of a tortilla chip, but it turned out pretty awesome as the ingredients were superbly fresh and flavourful with food like squid, prawns and avocado.

3) Bangkok orh jian. A must have for both of us, and it did not disappoint! (We stuffed our face with 2 servings as we wanted to try the seafood version as well, no self control at all. Sigh.)

4) Bangkok mixed grill of sticky rice, pork & chix, with spicy salted egg salad. The meat were nicely marinated and frankly, oh so yum. This was most value for money, as it was more than enough for 2 persons, and the tantalising salad sure made me very happy. 

5) Tandoori Chicken from India, well marinated with fragrant spices.. but it didn't impress me much. $8 for 3 pieces somemore. A was happy so ok la, I close one eye.

6) Malacca Assam Laksa and chendol, and I preferred the former as it was refreshing with bits of sardine fish and mango strips, combined with a tangy sauce. Chendol was pretty meh, and I thought the calories were used in vain :'( 

But we had a good time at the event, despite leaving with bursting bellies and empty wallets, so no regrets!