CRIZ BON APPETITE

Under the artistic and creative helm of Ixora Hotel Penang’s Executive Chef Ong, the hotel has launched an exclusive cake collection of delicious and premium cakes for any occasion. Options include cake slices as displayed at the chiller next to Straits Café & Lounge as well as 1/2kg whole cake which requires an advance order of 3 days. Do drop by to make your order or call in +604-382 8888 for more enquiries.

Currently, there are 8 options, namely Rose Truffle, Gorgeous Lavender, Carrot & Walnut Torte, Pick Me Up Tiramisu, Miracle Berries Chilled Cheese, Mangolicious Cheese Cake, Lecious Banana and Cioccolato, as shown in the slides below.

My verdict? Every single cake mentioned were delicious, especially the Miracle Berries Chilled Cheese, Mangolicious Cheese Cake, and Cioccolato, which remained my favorite. On the other hand, the Rose Truffle and Gorgeous Lavender had quality floral extracts being used and they could be acquired flavors for some.

Getting to the Straits Café & Lounge @ Ixora Hotel won’t be hard as it’s just located next to the Megamall Shopping Complex at Bandar Perai Jaya. If you are coming from the island via the 1st Penang Bridge, just look out for the second exit on your left upon reaching the mainland. Drive all the way via Jalan Baru until you reach the 1st traffic lights. Turn left into Jalan Perai Jaya 1 and you can see Ixora Hotel at the junction of Jalan Baru/Jalan Perai Jaya 1. Drive straight for about 10m and you can see the basement car park on your left. Park your car and go up Level 1 and you can see the café & lounge there.

Name: IXORA HOTEL PENANG
Address: Jalan Baru, Bandar Perai Jaya, 13600 Perai, Penang, Malaysia.
Contact: 604-382 8888
Business Hours: 6.00am-10.00am (breakfast), 12.00pm-2.30pm (Lunch), 6.00pm-10.00pm (Dinner)
GPS: 5.378357, 100.398322

RATING:
Ambience: 8/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 classy)
Food Choices: 8/10 (1-4 limited, 5-7 average, 8-10 many choices)
Taste: 8.5/10 (1-4 tasteless, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)
Pricing: 8/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 expensive)
Service: 8/10 (1-4 bad, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)

For those who had travelled to Taipei, Taiwan and visited the Danshui Old Street (淡水老街) in search of great food, the aromatic scent of the freshly baked old school style egg sponge cake (Ji Dan Gao/雞蛋糕) from one specific shop might still be in your memory vividly. That would indeed be the reminiscence of our childhood days when we enjoyed the fragrance and flavorful egg cake in its most basic form before the pastry industry had gone through years of creative evolutions. Penangites would be in luck now as one such shop by the name on Tam Sui Old Taste Cake of Taiwan (淡水現烤古早味雞蛋糕) had set its foot on the shore of Penang with its maiden operation today.

Unlike many of the bakeries out there, the shop utilized the basic concept of open kitchen where all the processes of cakes can be seen and each of the freshly baked cake would be immediately cut in a thick slab of 4”x8” pieces and sold right in front of your eyes.

Compared to those sold in Taipei, the bakery here has 3 different flavors available, namely Original (原味古早味雞蛋糕 – RM14nett), Cheese (雙層芝士古早味雞蛋糕 – RM18nett) and Chocolate (暴漿朱古力古早味雞蛋糕 – RM20 – only available effectively 1 April 2017 onwards at 12.00noon and 6.00pm daily except on closed days on Tuesdays).

As this is another new outlet opening in Penang, you would expect to encounter huge crowds forming and queueing within and outside the shop. Since everyone would be anxiously waiting to pick up their fresh bakes during each round of the baking time, do spend some time after paying your bills to indulge in their fresh coffee brews. There will be some tables setup to cater to your needs. I’ve tried their Hot Latte (RM8.90nett) and found it to have the right bitterness and creaminess to my liking.

Overall, the texture of this old school style egg sponge cake was not as cottony as what you would find in the Japanese style cheese sponge cake but it’s firmer, heavier with more bites. Personally, I quite like their signature cheese version with double layers of oozing cheese complemented well with the mild sweetness of the original eggy flavors.

For those who are from outstation, finding the road leading to the shop can be a bit tricky. Though the shop is located just along the service road of Jalan Mesjid Negeri, it would be quite tough especially when you are at the other side of the main road. If you are travelling via Jalan Mesjid Negeri towards Penang Bridge, immediately after you see the Petronas petrol kiosk, turn left into Lebuhraya Batu Lanchang. Drive on and keep to your right until you reach the traffic lights (KFC Batu Lanchang is on your left). Turn right into the road and drive on. Turn right at the second junction before the playground (Batu Green). Drive until the end and you can see the shop at the left corner unit.

Name: TAM SUI OLD TASTE CAKE OF TAIWAN (淡水現烤古早味雞蛋糕)
Address: 539 Jalan Mesjid Negeri, 11600 Penang, Malaysia.
Contact: +604-655 2242
Business Hours: 10.00am-8.00pm (Closed on Tuesdays)
GPS: 5.386796, 100.304940

Kulim HQ:
Address: 3287 Lorong Selasih 2a/1, Taman Selasih,09000 Kulim, Kedah.
Contact: +604- 491 3287
Business Hours: 6.00am-8.00pm
GPS: 5.376238, 100.537829

RATING:
Ambience: 7/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 classy)
Food Choices: 7/10 (1-4 limited, 5-7 average, 8-10 many choices)
Taste: 7.5/10 (1-4 tasteless, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)
Pricing: 7/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 expensive)
Service: 8/10 (1-4 bad, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)

Bird’s Nest to the East is treasured just like caviar to the West. That’s why it has also being known as the “Caviar of the East”. For tens of centuries, bird’s nest has been used in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) as popular tonic to promote cell regeneration, anti-aging, lung health and more. Though little research has been found on the mysterious healing powers of the bird’s nest, the cooling effect (yin) of the bird’s nest (especially when double-boiled in soup form) somehow managed to balance off the heat effect (yang) of the body. Even celebrity chef, Chef Gordon Ramsey, had his curiosity stirred up and flew to Tawau, Sabah, to experience his first hand pick on one of the world’s most expensive delicacies and to find out that the best edible swiftlet nests were just double-boiled in water and rock sugar. However, 92 Armenian, located within the George Town UNESCO World Heritage Site (core zone), has changed the perception towards bird’s nest with their skillfully and healthily concocted delicacies. Most importantly, their creations have been priced affordably for the general public’s consumption.

Stepping into the premises of the heritage building reminded me of the gingerbread house from the fairy tale, Hansel and Gretel, where fresh bakes filled up every nooks and corners of the house. However, 92 Armenian was a bit different with delicate yet sophisticated interiors from the Baba and Nyonya days plus boxes of premium quality bird’s nest, systematically arranged everywhere. The best part was the aroma of the fresh bakes lingering in the air which managed to capture my attention. My senses led me to the kitchen with a tray of freshly baked egg tarts in the oven. The Bird’s Nest Egg Tart (RM8/piece) had richly buttered short crust pastry with silky soft egg filling and topped with a generous portion of bird’s nest. It was so heavenly delicious with just the right amount of sweetness that I gobbled up a few without any hesitation. Compared to the madness of queuing up for the latest craze of the Japanese Baked Cheese Tart, I would rather go for these bakes as it more nutritious for my intake.

Their Bird’s Nest Pineapple Tart (RM20 for 5 pieces) was also something to yearn for as each tart was filled with their freshly made pineapple jam with some bird’s nest dressed on it. Each bite would lead to more bites and eventually all would be gone before you realized it.

We also tried out their Bird’s Nest Rice Dumpling (RM 25/bowl) with a mix and match of freshly made pumpkin glutinous rice balls filled with bird’s nest and grounded black sesame, served with a bowl of fresh soy milk with additional bird’s nest. Everything about this hot dessert was about the freshness which you would not find from other commercialized eateries.

For those cake lovers, you should try out their Bird’s Nest Cake (RM25/slice). Who would have thought of incorporating bird’s nest onto a mango cake? It was something simple and yet irresistible that caught me calculating the amount of calories I’m going to put into my body. However, upon biting onto a small mouthful, I threw my calorie calculator away. I was at Cloud 9 by then. Each bite was filled with the light sponge cake filled with layers of chunky mangoes in mango fresh cream. Though the bird’s nest was overpowered by the sweetness of the mango dessert, it was still a great cake to sink your teeth into.

Next on the list was their Bird’s Nest Jelly (RM15/serving) with goji berries and topped with a generous amount of bird’s nest. The texture of the jelly was just nice for it to melt in the mouth and the mild sweetness was just right for my taste bud. Somehow, I personally felt that it lacked some identity to boost up the overall flavors. I would think that a little boost of ginseng in the flavors of the jelly plus a little drizzle of diluted Manuka honey would pep up the flavors even more.

For savory indulgence, you could always order their Bird’s Nest Porridge (RM30/bowl). From the taste of the broth alone minus the toppings of bird’s nest, shredded chicken and fried garlic, you would have tasted the rich sweetness from some added dried scallops within. It was a hearty yet comforting bowl of goodies filled with rich nutrients to rejuvenate the body and soul. It would be great too if the kitchen would just sprinkle some chopped spring onions to pep up the colors and flavors.

On top of all the above delicacies, the kitchen would occasionally pep up more delicious items to cater to your needs. You could preorder Bird’s Nest with Ginseng, Fruit Platters with Bird’s Nest, Hot Pumpkin/Taro Soup with Bird’s Nest & Ginkgo Nuts and more. No matter what, the delicacies served here are of lower sugar content for a healthier lifestyle. After all, they are utilizing natural cane sugar to sweeten the desserts up.

Overall, I love the compilation of the by-products skillfully concocted in the kitchen of 92 Armenian. Not only were those delicacies some great items to tempt your craving for something unique on your palate, they were prepared ingeniously to keep your health at par by utilizing fresh ingredients to further boost up your immune system. The bird’s nest might be bland in taste, but they do have many mysterious health benefits that even science today have yet to prove them all. However, there’s a small glitch in consuming bird’s nest for those suffering from anaphylaxis, a rare condition where a sufferer would have some allergy reactions towards natural antigens. As a hard-hit sufferer of fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) with 100+ unexplained symptoms and without any cure from any Western medications, the bird’s nest slowly but surely helped boost up my immune system by enabling its unique proteins and nutrients within to treat my chronic illness. Not only was I relieved of the constant blows of fatigue, my appetite, complexion, digestion, respiratory systems, bowel movements, energy and body resistance towards other common illnesses got better too. However, there are some secrets in consuming the bird’s nest soup for better results. It should be consumed right before sleep on an empty stomach as your body’s cell division would work about 8 times faster than normal hours, between 11.00pm to 2.00am, when your mind is in its subconscious state. Depending on each individual, it might take around 1-6 months to see the prominent effects. As for my personal experiences, it took me almost 3 months on moderate consumptions, on alternate days and with proper rest, to be rejuvenated mentally and physically to continue my work with more alertness. That’s why it’s really important to buy your bird’s nest from a trustworthy brand to benefit from all the positive effects for your well being.

92 Armenian is located just a stone’s throw away from the famous Yap Kongsi Temple along the heritage trail of the George Town UNESCO World Heritage Site (core zone). Parking space could be rather limited here, so I would advise you to find some available ones along Lebuh Carnarvon or even Lorong Carnarvon and take a light stroll to the café.

Name: 92 ARMENIAN
Address: 92 Lebuh Armenian, 10200 Penang, Malaysia.
Contact: +604-251 9712
Business Hours: 10.00am-7.00pm
GPS: 5.415689, 100.336730

RATING:
Ambience: 8/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 classy)
Food Choices: 8/10 (1-4 limited, 5-7 average, 8-10 many choices)
Taste: 8/10 (1-4 tasteless, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)
Pricing: 8/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 expensive)
Service: 8/10 (1-4 bad, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)

Shangri-La’s Rasa Sayang Resort & Spa’s F.I.P. (Fun, Interactive & Play) Lounge celebrated its first anniversary recently. Other than serving us with lots of canapés, cakes and pastries, they concurrently also introduced some new items for the year, especially for their weekend Coffee and Cakes Buffet. The buffet would be served from 3.00pm until 6.00pm on all weekends (Saturday & Sunday) for RM47nett (adult) and RM24nett (child: 6-11 years old). You would get to try out some of the Executive Pastry Chef, Chef Dino Wan and his creative pastry team’s best of cakes and pastries within the chic and comfortable lounge.

Here are some peeps at the delicious spread served during the celebration night which included a variety of homemade cakes such as Apple Crumble Cake, Chocolate Orange Cake, Blueberry Cheese Cake, Chocolate Chiffon Cake, Red Velvet Cake, finger snacks and mini glass desserts such as Mini Macaroon, Recette de Madeleines à l’orange et au Chocolat, Pistachio Crème Brulee, Mini Pecan Tart, Mini, Lemon Tart, Mini Fruit Tart, Berries Financier, Mini Scone with Strawberries and Cream, Cake Pop, Chocolate Éclair, Mini Carrot Cake, Mini Cup Cakes (Chocolate, Poppy Seed & Charcoal), Strawberry Chocolate Dip, Fruit Mousse In Glass, Vanilla Panna Cotta and more savory items such as Assorted Sandwich with Smoked Chicken and Cheese, Mini Sundried Tomato Bread with Goat Cheese and Rocket Lettuce .

To get to the F.I.P Lounge, just park your car at the furthest right wing of the hotel upon entering the hotel premises. Walk through the main lobby and you can see the entrance to the lounge.

Name: FIP LOUNGE @ RASA SAYANG RESORT & SPA
Address: Batu Feringgi Beach, 11100 Penang, Malaysia.
Contact: 604-888 8888, 604-888 8788 (C&C Buffet Reservation)
GPS: 5.478365, 100.253709

RATING:
Ambience: 8/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 classy)
Food Choices: 7/10 (1-4 limited, 5-7 average, 8-10 many choices)
Taste: 7.5/10 (1-4 tasteless, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)
Pricing: 7/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 expensive)
Service: 8/10 (1-4 bad, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)

You may have tried many hi-tea options in Penang, whether it’s by the beach, in heritage buildings or even in some cafes but are you aware that you can now have it at 59Sixty Dining Room & Lounge @ The Top, Penang, right up at the 59th floor of the iconic KOMTAR (Kompleks Tun Abdul Razak) Tower? It’s priced at 68nett for 2 pax or RM38nett/pax with a pot of your selected tea from 3.00pm until 5.00pm daily. Do make prior reservation so that you won’t have to wait too long for your freshly prepared items. The best part of the deal is that you would get to have a great 360° panoramic view of Penang. Who knows, you might even spot your house from the high angles~ 🙂

Let’s have a look at what would be served for the 2 pax set. Firstly, you would get to choose your pot of tea (Sri Lanka’s Dilmah tea brand) from 4 options, namely English Breakfast Tea, Earl Grey, Green Tea with Jasmine and Pure Peppermint Leaves. There would be more options available in the near future. For the English Breakfast Tea and Earl Grey, you would get additional herbs and spices to infuse your tea with more flavors such as mint leaves, lemongrass, honey, lemon slices, cherries and cinnamon barks.

As for the English style Hi-Tea, you would expect to get a 3-tier serving portion for two. The first tier would consist of items such as fruit mousse, cheesecakes and chocolate fruit tartlets. The second tier would consist of club sandwiches, muffins and cookies whereas the bottom tier would consist of 2 types of scones served with strawberry jam and clotted cream.

Overall, I quite like the concept of having hi-tea with panoramic view of the whole Penang. The price of RM68 for 2 pax is reasonable with a quality pot of tea, especially with Earl Grey and English Breakfast Tea which would come with additional addons of herbs and spices. However, I do find the items served to be a bit out of balance as the whole set consisted of more sweet items rather than a good ratio of sweetness versus saltiness. It was at 9:1 ratio. It will be great if the pastry kitchen can come out with a 7:3 or even 3:2 ratio of items. Instead of just the 3-tier “club sandwich” as the sole savory item, it would be great to replace it with 3 other smaller items such as cucumber & cheese sandwiches, mini egg croissants, vol-au-vents with tuna/turkey/chicken filling or even simple mini dinner rolls with salmon/turkey ham rolls. At least the diners would not feel too surfeit over too much sweetness.

59SIXTY DINING ROOM & LOUNGE AT A GLANCE:

Buffet Lunch (Monday-Friday): 12.00pm-2.30pm: RM88nett/pax
Brunch (Saturday, Sunday & Public Holidays): 11.30am-3.30pm: RM98nett/pax
Buffet Dinner (Daily): 6.30pm-10.00pm: RM168nett/pax
English Hi-Tea (Daily): 3.00pm-5.00pm: RM38nett per pax or RM68nett for 2 pax
Sixty Lounge (Daily): 4.00pm-2.00am: (Happy Hours: 4.00pm-8.00pm/In-House Band (Wednesday- Saturday): House rules of No Slippers, No Shorts, No Singlet/Vest and Above 18 years old apply.
Note: Senior Citizens (60 years old & above) and Children (3-7 years old) are entitled to 50% discount. Child below 3 years old is FOC.

The 59Sixty @ The Top, Penang can be accessible through the information counter next to Maybank Komtar @ Lebuh Tek Soon. Please make prior reservation prior to your dining there as it’s a restricted access area and only the authorized ushers could lead you up to the top of the building. To get there, you have to drive along Jalan Dr Lim Chwee Leong into Jalan Ria and then turn right into Lebuh Tek Soon. It’ll easier if you were to park nearby there. There are 3 car parks available here – Ground Floor Komtar (after Pos Malaysia Komtar), Komtar Multi-Storey Car Park (on your right), Open Space Car Park (after the Komtar Multi-Storey Car Park on your right via a small lane/exit for the car park). However, if you are dining until late, it’s advisable to park at other more brightly lighted car parks such as the Prangin Mall Car Park (1400 car lots), 1st Avenue Car Park (170 car lots) or even the Open Space Car Park opposite Hotel Jen/next to St Giles Wembley Hotel Penang (100 car lots) and walk over to the entrance as some car parks adjacent to Komtar will be closed as early as between 9.00pm and 10.30pm. For those visiting the Sixty Lounge until late, you can park at the Open Space Car Park (after the Komtar Multi-Storey Car Park on your right via a small lane/exit for the car park). However, if you are staying up until the wee hours of the day, please travel at least in pairs to the car park as it’s not so brightly lighted up. The Komtar area is currently under revitalization process, thus please give it some time to refurbish the conditions of all the surrounding car parks.

Name: 59SIXTY DINING ROOM & LOUNGE @ THE TOP, PENANG
Address: Level 59 & 60 Komtar, Jalan Penang, 10000 Penang, Malaysia.
Contact: +604-262 5960/+6017-289 0255
Business Hours:
Buffet Lunch (Monday-Friday): 12.00pm-2.30pm
Brunch (Saturday, Sunday & Public Holidays): 11.30am-3.30pm
Buffet Dinner (Daily): 6.30pm-10.00pm
English Hi-Tea (Daily): 3.00pm-5.00pm
Sixty Lounge (Daily): 4.00pm-2.00am (Happy Hours: 4.00pm-8.00pm/In-House Band (Wednesday- Saturday)
GPS: 5.414995, 100.329913
FaceBook: http://www.facebook.com/onlyworldgroup

RATING:
Ambience: 9/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 classy)
Food Choices: 7/10 (1-4 limited, 5-7 average, 8-10 many choices)
Taste: 8/10 (1-4 tasteless, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)
Pricing: 7/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 expensive)
Service: 8/10 (1-4 bad, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)

Many of you are aware that St Giles Wembley Hotel, Penang, is offering great spreads of buffet at their Wembley Café but are you aware that they do also have Cake & Coffee Promotion right at their Lobby Lounge? Currently, their Lobby Lounge is offering its Cake & Coffee Promotion from 2.00pm until 6.00pm daily right until the end of August 2015. For every piece of cake you order at RM23nett each, you would have a choice of in-house coffee or tea brew on the house. At the moment, they have 3 options such as their Raspberry Red Velvet Cake, Chocolate Banana Cake and Durian Cheese Cake.

If you are in need of a comfortable and quiet spot for a short meeting or even chill out with your friends or family members, this is the ideal venue. There are many secluded areas too for your total privacy. Other than just cakes and coffee, they do also have an extensive spread of main meals, snacks and beverages.

Overall, if you are a dessert lover and like to chill out at a comfortable spot away from all those overcrowded cafes, you would find that the Lobby Lounge is the ideal place to indulge in your dessert with a calm peace of mind. After all, the pricing for a set of cake and coffee would not be as exorbitant as some of those cafes out there.

To get to the Lobby Lounge, just walk into the main entrance of the hotel and head to your right. You would see a bunch of friendly staff at your service.

Name: LOBBY LOUNGE @ ST GILES WEMBLEY HOTEL
Address: 183, Jalan Magazine, 13000 Penang, Malaysia.
Contact: 604-259 8000
Business Hours: 12.00pm–12:00am (Sundays–Thursdays), 12.00pm–1.00am (Fridays & Saturdays)
GPS: 5.413164, 100.330428

RATING:
Ambience: 8/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 classy)
Food Choices: 8/10 (1-4 limited, 5-7 average, 8-10 many choices)
Taste: 7.5/10 (1-4 tasteless, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)
Pricing: 7/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 expensive)
Service: 8/10 (1-4 bad, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)

Are you aware that there’s a fun spot within Shangri-La’s Rasa Sayang Resort & Spa premises named F.I.P. (Fun, Interactive & Play) Lounge? It’s a real cool spot to chill out and have frothing good fun with your friends and besties. Regardless your age, you would always feel young-at-heart while you are here. Currently, FIP Lounge is offering its Coffee & Cakes Buffet from 3.00pm until 6.00pm on all weekends (Saturday & Sunday) for RM47nett (adult) and RM24nett (child: 6-11 years old). You would expect to get at least 10 variety of cakes, scones, cake pops and more with free flow of in-house coffee and tea brews. Thanks to the hotel’s seasoned cake maven cum Executive Pastry Chef, Chef Dino Wan and his creative pastry team, you would get to savor the best of cakes and pastries right in the comfort of the lounge.

The variety of cakes might be different from day to day. Let’s have a look at what would be on display on a typical Coffee & Cakes Buffet weekend. Here were the 10 cakes I have tried out with 4 as my personal favorites.

Of course my first choice would be their Signature Baked Cheese Cake. It was moist and had that unique cheesy flavor from the best Kraft’s Philadelphia Soft Cream Cheese with some hint of yoghurt and lemon juice. It was heavenly over a cup of hot tea.

Next on my list was the Strawberry Short Cake. What I loved about this cake was the strawberry mousse-like cream with some mild sweetness which made my guilt of consuming sweet desserts at its lowest level~ 😛

The Carrot Cake was amazing tasty. In fact this cake was the favorite amongst many of us. The cake was rich and moist with some tasty bites on the nutrients packed finely shredded carrots.

Since the invention in the 30’s until today, the Red Velvet Cake is something that will not go out of style. It’s not the striking red color that attracted me but the nice zesty frosting that caught my attention. The baker did quite a great job here by maintaining the moist and fluffiness of the cake while having a nice balance between the zesty and sweet buttermilk cream. It complemented the cake real well.

They also do serve some great Popsicle (Pop) Cakes with flavors ranging from Chocolate Moist, Orange Poppy Seeds, Red Velvet and Cheese Cake. These are actually cakes rolled into a ball with popsicle sticks and coated with either white or dark chocolates. Of course, my favorite amongst the 4 options was the Cheese Cake Pop. It really felt young having one pop cake slowly melting into the mouth~ 😛

There were also two versions of Cupcakes (Chocolate Moist & Orange Poppy Seeds) and Scones available at the buffet. Though the cupcakes were moist, flavorful and beautiful, I’m not a fan of so much of butter cream on the cupcakes. They tend to be surfeit after a bite or two to my liking. However, the scones were quite good except I would prefer mine to be slightly heated up before serving. You can have some scones with fresh cream and strawberries. On top of that, they do also serve 3 different flavors of mini jars gluten-free Bonne Maman fruit preserves. Just as its name, it’s how your granny would serve you with all natural ingredients. Bonne Maman has no preservatives, no additives, no corn syrup, sulfite-free and non-GMO.

Of course, you can get high with as much Coffee & Tea as you like here. The beverages are all in-house brews with accompanied sugar and milk.

If you are not into the Coffee & Cakes Buffet, you can still order a thing or two from their normal day menu. Well, the menu would be rather unique as it would come in the shape of a long forgotten childhood origami shaped flower. Flip & Flap and you would let fate decide your destiny – food wise~ LOL~ 😛

At the F.I.P Lounge, it’s all about letting your hair down, stay young at heart, have all the fun you have missed and doing what you Momma would discourage you to do – “Eat nicely and stop playing with your food!” Shhh… Don’t tell my Momma about what I did and I won’t tell yours~ LOL~ 😛

Firstly, they have the Tic-Tac-Toe Macarons (RM41nett). They would serve 5 pieces each of two different macaron flavors with a Tic-Tac-Toe board. Just make sure you don’t gobble up the macarons before the start of at least a game~ 🙂

Next, they have the Checkers Platter (RM42nett). You would be given a board with 12 pieces each of Crab Cake and Chicken Bourdin. Now the game would get to be real interesting as you can eat each other’s food.

They do serve Churros (RM30nett) too with salted caramel and chocolate sauce.

If you love fondue, you can always order their Dark Chocolate Fondue (RM53nett) with bananas, strawberries, marshmallows and dried apricots.

My sweet favorite would always be the Black Forest Mini Dessert Pizza (RM24nett) with chocolate cherry brownie cake base, served with dark chocolate, cherry syrup, icing sugar and a large scoop of their homemade vanilla ice cream. This item is truly heavenly.

For coffee and tea lovers, you can have other options such as Cappuccino (RM13nett), Irish Coffee (RM31nett – alcoholic), Hot Chocolate (RM13nett), Café Latte (RM13nett), Chamomile Tea (RM16nett/pot) and more. Some of the coffee might come with 2D or 3D latte art.

In case you need a beer on a humid day, there do also have Beer in Ice Mug. The price may vary from brand to brand such as Guinness & Carlsberg (RM27nett/mug), Asahi & Heineken (RM30nett/mug) plus Victoria Bitter, Budweiser & Corona (RM33nett/mug).

Overall, if you are a dessert lover, you would find that the F.I.P. Lounge’s Coffee & Cakes Buffet is worth every penny as you can gobble down all the cakes you love with some of their nice brews. Moreover, you can have all the fun you want with all the facilities they have in the lounge.

To get to the F.I.P Lounge, just park your car at the furthest right wing of the hotel upon entering the hotel premises. Walk through the main lobby and you can see the entrance to the lounge.

Name: FIP LOUNGE @ RASA SAYANG RESORT & SPA
Address: Batu Feringgi Beach, 11100 Penang, Malaysia.
Contact: 604-888 8888, 604-888 8788 (C&C Buffet Reservation)
GPS: 5.478365, 100.253709

RATING:
Ambience: 8/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 classy)
Food Choices: 7/10 (1-4 limited, 5-7 average, 8-10 many choices)
Taste: 7.5/10 (1-4 tasteless, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)
Pricing: 7/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 expensive)
Service: 8/10 (1-4 bad, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)

Do check out what Christmas Goodies 2014 will be available at Eastern & Oriental Hotel (E&O Hotel)’s Sarkier Corner this coming festive season. Items are available from 2-25 December 2014 while stocks last. To avoid disappointment, it’s best to preorder your choices at least 3 days in advance.

From the Pastry/Bakery, there will be Assorted Christmas Cookies, Christmas Mince Mini Pies, Dundee Cake, Christmas Pie, Chestnuts Tart, Christmas Pudding, Christmas Stollen, Ginger Bread House, Christmas Yule Log, Chocolate Truffle Cake, Hazelnut Crunchy, Cherry-Raspberry Cake, Mont Blanc (Chestnut-Blueberry) Cake, Christmas Chocolate ‘Bell’, Christmas Chocolate Santa, Ginger Bread Man and more.

You can also order some savoury sets from Executive Chef, Chef Martin Becquart’s Western Main Kitchen such as Whole Roast Turkey Set (RM385.00++/per set – 4kg up) accompanied with Wild Rice Stuffing, Brussel Sprouts, Roasted Baby Potatoes, Baby Carrots & Giblet Gravy, Whole Roast Prime Rib of Beef Set (RM485.00++/per set – 6.5kg up) accompanied with Brussel Sprouts, Roasted Baby Potatoes, Baby Carrots & Mixed Herb ‘Jus’ or even the Salmon en Croute Set (RM425.00++/per set Baked Salmon Fillet wrapped with Puff Pastry) accompanied with Brussel Sprouts, Roasted Baby Potatoes, Baby Carrots & Basil Cream Sauce.

* Note: The above items will need a minimum order time frame of 3 days prior to pick up. A RM50 surcharge for delivery will be applicable.

For more information on the items, please click to enlarge the order form below for a clearer view.

Eastern & Oriental Hotel, Penang (next to Penang Bowl) is located along Lebuh Farquhar. If you are coming from Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah towards Weld Quay, keep to your left immediately after passing by CitiBank. When you see the Penang Bowl building on your left (opposite UMW Toyota), please slow down. Turn left immediately after the Penang Bowl entrance. The E&O Hotel car park is situated just inside the Victory Annexe building. Parking charges would be a maximum of RM6 (weekdays: Monday-Thursday) and RM12 (weekends: Friday- Sunday)

Name: SARKIES CORNER @ EASTERN & ORIENTAL HOTEL
Address: 10 Lebuh Farquhar, 10200 Penang, Malaysia.
Contact: 604-222 2000
GPS: 5.423624, 100.334988

RATING:
Ambience: 8.5/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 classy)
Food Choices: 8/10 (1-4 limited, 5-7 average, 8-10 many choices)
Taste: 8/10 (1-4 tasteless, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)
Pricing: 8/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 expensive)
Service: 8/10 (1-4 bad, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)

The Mid Autumn Festival is traditionally celebrated on the 15th day of the 8th lunisolar month and this year it would fall on 8 September 2014. It’s the 2nd most important festival after the Chinese New Year (Spring Festival) to the Chinese as family members and friends from all over the world would gather once again to celebrate this auspicious day over some goodies, while admiring the brightest and fullest moon of the month. It’s also a day associated with reunions, mooncakes, fruits, children, lanterns, Chinese opera, fire dragon dance and more. This year, Gurney Paragon Mall made the tradition even more livelier by not only showcasing exquisite selections of mooncakes in baked skin and snow skin from their in-house restaurants and shops but also from many other external brands, located at St. Jo (Level 1) and “Penang On 6” (Level 6). The promotion will be ongoing from 16 August 2014 until 8 September 2014. Shoppers with a minimum spending of RM 200 and above, in a single receipt, at any of their shopping outlets, can redeem a complimentary Leong Yin pastry’s mooncake (only valid from 5-7 September 2014).

At the same time, do check out their Mid Autumn Festival Celebration to be held on Saturday, 6 September 2014 at “Penang On 6” from 2.00pm until 9.30pm. Bask in the glow of Mid Autumn atmosphere when “Penang On 6” would be transformed into a realm of celebration with heartwarming lightings and colorful lanterns. Family and friends are invited to enjoy a fun-filled day at Gurney Paragon Mall. Highlights would include Lantern DIY workshop, guessing Chinese riddles session, Photo session with Chinese Opera characters, interactive story-telling session, Chinese diablo, Chinese orchestra, wushu & acrobatic, traditional drum performance, singing performance, cultural dance and many more. The night would end with a Mid Autumn Lantern Walk. So, bring along your own lanterns and enjoy a walk under the moonlight with your family members and friends. In case, you do not have a lantern for your child, you can always purchase one at St. Jo at Level 1. You can also redeem a complimentary pot of tea from Jing-Si Books and Café (Level 6) when you spend RM50 and above in a single receipt at “Penang on 6” or Wei Shiang (Level 6) on 6 September 2014.

Here are some of the brands of mooncakes available in starting with some from their in-house restaurants and shops.

Dragon-I: http://www.dragon-i.com.my/promotion.asp
Recommended: Frosty Durian Musang King (RM28 for 2 pcs) & Organic Charcoal Skin with Coffee Paste (RM20/pc)
Note: If you are a durian lover, the Frosty Durian Musang King is a MUST HAVE mooncake. You can also dine in the group of restaurants serving wondrous Chinese cuisine – Dragon-I and Canton-I.

Purple Cane: http://www.purplecane.my/en/31-tea-mooncake
Recommended: Puer, Dang Gui, Chinese Wolfberry & Assorted Nuts Paste (RM11.30/pc), White Tea Purple Potato Lotus Paste (RM9.80/pc) & “No added Sugar” Date Paste (RM8.90/pc)
Note: HALAL & VEGETARIAN. If you are into a healthier diet with the taste for herbal fused flavors, the Puer, Dang Gui, Chinese Wolfberry & Assorted Nuts Paste is a MUST TRY mooncake. Other than that, you can purchase many varieties of tea leaves, flower tea or even green tea powder from all their outlets throughout Malaysia. Packaging can come in a box for one piece, 4 pieces and 6 pieces.

Some of the external brands of mooncakes available would include:

Casahana: http://www.hytfood.com/casahana/about.php
Recommended: Crimson Opera (RM18.90/pc)
Note: Beetroot juice infused baked crust with cheese and creamy white chocolate lotuis paste filling.

Fai Fong: http://www.faifong.com.my/
Recommended: Bamboo Charcoal Lotus Paste (RM14.50/pc) and Assorted Fruits, Nuts & Ham (RM16/pc)
Note: Simple as it may be but the Bamboo Charcoal Lotus Paste is filled with flavors.

Foh San: http://fohsan.com.my/
Recommended: Cappuccino Mooncake (RM14.60/pc) & Purple Rain Mooncake (RM14.60/pc)
Note: Foh San is no longer a new kid on the block as they have been in the food industry for decades, especially with the new premises in Ipoh, Perak, serving various types of delectable dim sum.

Kam Lun Tai: http://www.klt.com.my/welcome/
Recommended: Shanghai 1 Yolk (RM17.20/pc)
Note: HALAL. The flakiness of the pastry, combined with the smoothness of the lotus paste and saltiness of the duck egg yolk, made this mooncake perfect in every bite.

Leong Yin: http://www.leongyinpastry.com/
Recommended: Lunar Delight (RM17.50/pc), Intense Wheatgrass Jujubes Splendor (RM17.20/pc) & Ballad of the Moon (RM17.20/pc)
Note: HALAL & VEGETARIAN. All the 3 mooncakes mentioned above have its own unique flavors, especially the Lunar Delight which has a combination of aromatic white coffee and softness of durian cake.

Mei Xin: http://www.facebook.com/meixinmooncake
Recommended: Egg Custard Mooncake (RM50 for 4 pcs or RM98 for 8 pcs)
Note: From inside to outside, it’s savory and creamy with a delicate mind precious moments to remember. It tasted almost like the custardy steamed buns version but a bit more sandy in texture.

The Baker’s Cottage: http://www.thebakerscottage.com.my/mooncake.asp
Recommended: Avocado Mango Tango (RM16.80/pc)
Note: The Baker’s Cottage has been one of the main influencers in the food industry for being creative and innovative. You can check out more of their products at their website. As for the Avocado Mango Tango, you can taste the coconut buttery pastry skin with milky avocado lotus paste, mung beans and dried mango bits.

For more information, please visit Gurney Paragon Mall’s FaceBook Page.

If you are driving into Farlim, Penang, via Lebuhraya Thean Teik, you would notice that there’s a premier lifestyle destination known as the All Seasons Place built by Belleview Group, where they promised that the whole family would get to enjoy the best shopping, dining and entertainment experiences all year round. I would say there are quite a number of eateries over there ranging from fruit tea, desserts to many overseas franchised cafes and restaurants. What caught my attention was the café named Who’s Bryan, which has another two outlets in Butterworth as well as in the heart of George Town, Penang. Food choices would range from breakfast/brunch, afternoon tea (1 pax: RM21+, 2 pax: RM38+ with 8 different types of cakes & snacks), salad, soup, chicken, fish, red meat, sandwiches, burger, croissant, tortilla wrap, pasta cheese bake, pizza, pasta, local cuisine and light bites.

To start off the meal, we had Pumpkin Cappuccino Soup (RM8.90+). Who said we can’t have pumpkin soup the cappuccino style? Of course, surely there won’t be any espresso added into the soup but it’s the frothing of the added milk as in cappuccino that had the soup named this way. The serving came with a deep fried mantou rather than croutons as shown in their menu. Frankly speaking, I would rather have some croutons in my soup than a quite dry and chewy mantou. Moreover, it would be great if they had garnished the soup with some chopped spring onions and/or toasted pumpkin seeds or pine nuts. Overall, the soup was reasonably nice to my liking.

Next we had their much recommended Who’s Crumbly Chicken. It was a piece of well marinated boneless chicken drumstick plus thigh coated with some batter and lots of cornflakes prior to deep frying. It came served with some fries, fresh greens salad and mushroom gravy. Taste wise, it was fine except that I personally felt that they used too thick a batter in order to get such a thick coat of cornflakes. Moreover, the cornflakes were a bit too hard to munch. They should consider another brand with thinner flakes.

They also do serve pasta. We tried out their Carbonara Seafood (4 choices: Vegetables–RM13.90+, Turkey Ham–RM15.90+, Chicken–RM15.90+, Beef Bacon–RM15.90+ and Seafood – RM16.90+). I guessed I made the right choice as they dish was remarkably delicious for the price paid. It was creamy and the seafood (scallop, mussel, fish, squids & octopus tentacles) was rather fresh and there was a large amount of added Parmesan cheese. Yummy! However, they only use carrots, onions and celery to sweeten the sauce. I would have expected some sprinkles of mixed herbs on the dish.

For lighter bites, you could always order their Mushroom Chicken Bruchetta (RM10+). The dish would come with 5 thin slices of toasted baguette, some fresh greens salad and a container of mushrooms and chicken chunks in cheesy sauce. I quite like the flavor of cheese. However, I found the sauce to be a bit too salty to my liking. Moreover, the sauce lacked the flavors from some black pepper and herbs.

Finally, it was dessert time. Currently, they have a promotion for two pieces of cakes from their chiller at only RM13+. The Green Tea Marble Cheese Cake (RM9.90+) looked impressive but it was one of the most disappointing cakes I ever had. How could they use sponge cake as the base? With such a heavy based cream cheese, the cake would have been squashed flat. Moreover, the moist within the cream was drained by the sponge cake until it was so dry and thus having the sandy texture from the green tea powder used. Whoever produced this cake was a total failure. The cake was not fit for consumption at all.

The second cake which I ordered was the Chocolate Banana Cake (RM10.90+). This was again another miserable product. I did not expect the banana used to be so limited and filled with sap taste from what I suspected to be unripe banana being used. On top of that, the cream was filled with an overpowering taste from added banana essence. The ganache was still fine but the decorated macaron was really soiled. This is another flopped dessert.

As for beverages, we had an Iced Peach Tea (RM6.50+) which was a bit overpriced for a sachet made version. However, I should give compliment to their Bee’s Latte (RM8.90+). It had added honey and the espresso flavor was really distinctive. It came served with a slice of biscotti which was just average tasting.

Overall, this café would still be a great place to hang out over some cups of coffee and some light snacks. They do have some in-house bands to entertain you but the music could be quite loud to the ears at times. However, from my point of view, the desserts were totally not presentable and not up to par if you are looking for something to tempt your sweet tooth. They were rather cheap looking but would come with a high price tag.

Who’s Bryan is located at the center span of All Seasons Place, Farlim, Penang. If you are coming from Penang Bridge along Jalan Mesjid Negeri, keep a look out for the traffic lights at the flyover next to Convent Green Lane. Turn left into Lorong Batu Lanchang and drive on while keeping left until you reach another traffic lights T-junction. Turn left into Lebuhraya Thean Teik and drive on for about 600m and you would see the mall on your left. The entrance to the mall would be near the Giant Supermarket. There would be ample parking space there, provided it’s not a weekend when shoppers would do their weekly groceries intake.

Name: WHO’S BRYAN @ ALL SEASONS PLACE
Address: 6H-1-1, All Seasons Place, Lebuhraya Thean Teik, 11500 Farlim, Penang, Malaysia.
Contact: 604-826 9951
Business Hours: 11.00am-11.00pm (Weekdays), 10.00am-11.00pm (Weekends)
GPS: 5.397044, 100.290785

RATING:
Ambience: 7/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 classy)
Food Choices: 8/10 (1-4 limited, 5-7 average, 8-10 many choices)
Taste: 6/10 (1-4 tasteless, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)
Pricing: 8/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 expensive)
Service: 7/10 (1-4 bad, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)