Teatime in KL @Cube Coffee Kepong Caltex

Our best friend Victor claims Cube Coffee is the best coffee in town. Let's go and find out how true this statement is!

This cafe is located in a makeshift container that's in a striking yellow. It's small but fully air-conditioned and the air is infused with the aroma of coffee beans. The interior decoration is creative, making use of simple materials yet appearing cute and stylish.

Watching the barista make coffee is enough to make one falling head over heels for the coffee. It just smells amazing! The coffee here has the ability to drive away all the stress and fatigue.

One sip of the hot cappuccino immediately wakes up the senses. So invigorating and rich in flavor. The blend of coffee bean used here goes in smoothly, leaving a slightly bitter aftertaste.

The cold latte, on the other hand, still tastes stronger than the usual latte. The milk they use is creamy and complement the latte very well.

The only downside is there's not much space for you to enjoy coffee in the cube.

We highly recommend visiting Cube Coffee. Taste it and you won't forget it. We rate it 8.5/10!

Breakfast/lunch @Jess cafe starcity kuantan

Started as a cafe that sells stuffed tofu, Jess cafe has come a long way. It's a popular place for the old and young alike. People flock there for weekend breakfast and brunch. Students hang out there after school.

The interior is comfortable with half of the tables air-conditioned. But the place is always full of people.

The signature dish is their curry noodles. I love my noodles dry and other ingredients in curry soup. One portion comes with a gigantic stuffed beancurd, brinjal, bitter gourd and tofu puffs. This is the biggest 酿料 I have ever had. Each almost a fist size.

Their curry is a very inviting colour of red with a very sinful layer of chilli oil. Alternatively, one can choose to have clear soup or different ingredients. The one in the photo here had chicken and fish cakes.

This is my first time trying their fried pork drizzled in a generous amount of cream sauce. Very appetizing! Meat is cripsy and just coated with a thin layer of flour.

Food here is definitely tasty and of good quality but the price tag is also a tad higher, generally about RM2 more expensive than similar dishes elsewhere. But it's worth it. Therefore, we rate it 7.5/10!

Breakfast and brunch in Kluang @ Tangkak beef and RailCoffee

It's been 2 months since we last visited my hometown. Time flies. A huge foodie himself, hubby is always so eager to explore yummy eateries.

I'm not exaggerating when I say Tangkak beef has the best beef noodles we have ever had, not just the best in town! It originated from Tangkak, Johore but has become so famous in Kluang as well.

Look at the variety of beef dishes they serve. Hoping to return and try their beef kut teh.

Look at this glorious bowl of beef noodles. We ordered 濑粉 (a type of pasta made from rice flour) just because this is the most traditional way to have beef noodles.The soup, is sweet and not too overpowered by the beef taste.

And beef brisket is the best cut to go with it. It's braised so perfectly that it just dissolves in the mouth, releasing the rich flavor of the piece of meat.

Dipped the beef pieces in their special chilli sauce that tastes a bit soury to further enhance the flavor.

The soup is topped with this secret shallot based condiment.

It's such a disappointment that they weren't serving beef balls and raw beef slices on the day though.

On the other hand, Coffee lovers like us can never miss out starting the day with a cuppa at RailCoffee Kluang. It's just located in the railway station itself. Be ready to fight for seats because this place is always full.

This cup of Kopi C has come a long way. The bitter and aromatic coffee is the favourite of many.

Since 1938, this shop has been serving the locals and travelers their signature coffee and charcoal toasted bread. Now, people from in and out of the country flock to this spot everyday to reminisce this traditional breakfast. Simple yet elegant.

Their round toasted bun sandwiches a thick slice of melting butter and kaya (coconut and screwpine spread) that's the breakfast to have in Malaysia.

We rate these two must trys 8/10!

Seafood feasting at Ana Ikan Bakar

If you haven't had seafood here, you haven't been to kuantan. And Ana Ikan Bakar Petai is one of the favorite hangout places. From a small shoplot until triple its size, one should not be surprised at how good the food here is. Even though there are easily twenty similar outlets around the Tanjung Lumpur area, this restaurant is always crowded.

From baked fish, fried sotong to Satar, they also sell all-time favorite like keropok lekor and tomyum. Look at the amount of fresh seafood you can choose from-- fish, prawns, squid, shellfish (by the time we reached at 6.30pm, half of the seafood was already gone! That's how popular it is)

I like how their baby chair is made from stainless steel. So easy to clean. It's also one of the cleanest baby chair I have ever seen outside. They also have a on-site playground. At least baby Bing had fun running up and down the slides instead of clinging onto mommy during dinner. But that also means mommy and daddy have to play tag team.

Their signature baked fish. The fish was wrapped in banana leaves and baked till it's slightly charred on the skin but still juicy inside. The fish was also coated in fragrant sambal petai before baking. There are 3 unique dipping sauce -- lime, Birdseye chilli with soy sauce and chilli belacan which brings out the flavor even more.

Ikan siakap masak tiga rasa. The fish was deep fried to extreme crispiness and golden color before drizzled with sweet and spicy sauce. It's very appetizing when all these flavors combine.

Deep fried tempura squid. The squid was fried with just the right duration until the flour turns into a pale yellow color while the inside is just cooked.

Accompany all these with a cup of refreshing coconut shake topped with vanilla icecream.

All these goodness for RM140 only. Fairly cheap for kuantan standard yet taste amazing. Worth trying if it's your first time in kuantan.

Our verdict 7/10!

All-time favorite curry noodles at Aman Kopitiam

One glance at the exterior, one may just dismiss the shop as being old and unattractive. But it's unusually crowded during breakfast and weekend. So we went to find out the secret behind the long queues.

Aman Kopitiam is located opposite to KCDC private hospital. We were early on a Saturday morning so it wasn't crowded yet.

There's a good variety of stuffed tofu, vegetables and other ingredients made fresh to go with the yummy noodles. They use conventional yellow noodles here.

So what do we think about the food?

The noodles mixed with caramel sauce tasted rich and springy. The noodles in the curry gravy, on the other hand, went really harmoniously with the other ingredients.

The curry itself, on the other hand, was not overpowering or overly oily. But it just brought the whole noodle dish into a wholesome experience. The plain noodle soup was disappointing though-- soup was fairly bland.

Malaysians love having their food with chilli or sauces. The sambal here on the right of the photo was absolutely amazing. Not too spicy yet adding into the richness of the curry soup. The blended chilli was ethereally equally powerful in waking up the senses.

Definitely coming back for more in the future. Our verdict 6.5/10.

Happy dim sum treats

When we have nothing planned, the best thing is to eat our hearts out! Having wonderful dim sums is definitely a good option. I have tried these 3 places recently and find their food worth having.

Elegant inn Hong Kong cuisine

Now this is what we call the ultimate dim sum place. It's one of the best dim sums we have ever had in our lives- gold standard being Tim Ho Wan in Hong Kong. 

Smooth and springy cheong fan filled with juicy char siew. Stir fry carrot cake with crunchy bean sprouts which always smell amazing. Liu sha bun that really explodes and release all these great salty egg paste to saturate the taste buds. Their buns and pumpkin soup with sago are equally refreshing.

Other guides for yum cha places in Hong Kong

Kong Mah restaurant

Located in kampung sungai buloh, it's in the midst of the hustle bustle of various Chinese eateries in the area. They serve food at god speed. Everything is steamy hot. We feel a bit overwhelmed with the wide choices. Their dim sum is very fresh and definitely not the 'ready made frozen types'.

 Our favorite is the prawn dumplings with skin so springy and prawns so crunchy. But baby Bing's favourite is cheong fan which I thought was a tad too soft and squishy. They also recently upgraded to air-conditioned dining area.

Yong Xiang restaurant

We enjoy dining here because the environment is cosy, decoration modern and food fairly tasty. I'll say there are not many dim sum places in kuantan and this is one of the most decent ones.

The selection of dim sum is not as wide but they are full of flavor and order to make. Besides that, one can also order char siew, wanton, roast pork, as well as other rice and noodle dishes. I really recommend the butter chicken which is so fragrant and creamy with the scent of curry leaves.

If you crave for some good and delicate teatime, do try out one of these outlets and let me know what you think about them. Enjoy!

Healthy snacking with signature market

Welcome back to the healthy eating series. As a breastfeeding mother, I'm constantly hungry. I'm sure those who breastfeed or have friends who breastfeed will understand. So I need lots of snacks. 

It's very easy to fall into the trap of taking unhealthy snacks such as chocolates, cookies, doughnuts and cakes because they give instant gratification. So, what snacks are healthy?

 Ingredients- low sugar, low salt, low calories, high minerals and vitamins, high fibre

 Way of cooking-Choose baked instead of fried

 Examples will be nuts and grains, yoghurt, vegetables and fruits, occasional dark chocolate is ok.

So one may argue it takes too much effort to prepare these snacks and they may be less tasty than our conventional bread and Kueh (which have high GI index) 

It's not easy to find instant snacks that fit the above criteria after a while. I chanced upon signature market while googling one fine day. It's based in Malaysia but also has products imported from the US.

 It's so easy to get organic products using signature market at a fraction of the price. Look at the varieties they offer. Not only can I get adult snacks, I can also get snacks for baby Bing! Signature market also has some household products.

 Got my parcel a week later. Full of yummy goodness. Very neatly packed.

 Baby Bing was also excited to open the parcel. Items received in perfect condition.

Tada! Resealable snack packs -white sesame energy squares, garlic bread cashew and cranberry super seeds trail mix. One can also choose different combinations of seeds and nuts if desired. Since our last try on ostricare yogurt pieces, baby Bing is in love. So there's more Happy Baby yoggis this time round.

The blueberry granola mix opens up just like a carton of milk. And can reseal on its own. Lots of GoNatural breakfast bars to last me during long clinic days. Otherwise I might just munch on cookies or cream filled bread which have way too much sugar and calories.

 Last but not least, pancake mix that will last us a few months. Signature market was also thoughtful because the eucalyptus laundry liquid was sealed separately in order to prevent leakage.

 Alright that's all for the post about healthy snacking because it's teatime! Here's my first yoghurt granola with cranraisin during teatime. Full of crunchy and fruity awesomeness :)

Eat clean for health featuring Mayter Lynn multigrain nutritious drink@Lazior

The obesity epidermic is getting rampant in Malaysia. Sadly, Malaysia is now the fattest country in South East Asia. This shouldn't be part of the Malaysia Boleh spirit. Sedentary lifestyle and unhealthy diet are the main culprits- sounds like a cliché.

How to have a healthy diet? This diagram is called suku suku separuh and tells us the portion of various major nutrients that should be on our plate each meal. Much easier to relate to than the classic pyramid. Of those, a good amount of carbohydrate and vegetables/fibers are recommended.

Carbohydrate is an essential part of a healthy diet. But are all carbohydrates good? That's where the concept of glycemic index comes in. This is particularly important in those who have diabetes because low glycemic index food causes less rise in blood sugar.

Mayter Lynn is a nutritious beverage that contains 20 types of ingredients. These are mainly grains and cereals that have been proven to promote health, particularly via  reduced risk of heart disease and creating a healthy digestive system.

In other words, these are carbohydrate with low glycemic index! But they are also low in calories and contains no trans fat which clogs up your blood vessels.

It is also sugar, preservative and artificial colouring free. Therefore, those who have diabetes can safely consume this product. Furthermore, children older than a year, expecting or breastfeeding mothers can also enjoy this nutritious drink. That's fairly impressive!

Something so nutritious also comes with a great taste as well. Even though there's no added sugar，it's very palatable.

Look how much I enjoy drinking Mayter Lynn for breakfast. Because of the low glycemic index, it makes one feel full longer. Therefore, it's great for those who wants to reduce their calorie intake.

Start eating clean today and take charge of your own health!

Redcups coffee paradigm mall launch on International Coffee Day

Since daddy is busy at the conference, instead of cooping in the hotel, mommy decided to bring baby Bing out for a lunch date at Redcups coffee launch during international coffee day!

Coffee lovers, this is the place to be! Relaxing atmosphere, homey decoration with a cup of strong coffee. 

Kenny and the team welcomed us with their signature dark roast blend. Nicely rich with a slightly bitter taste, but it goes down the throat smoothly.

This is my fragrant cup of chocolate cookies  latte. Smells like soothing vanilla.

This is how a great cup of coffee is being brewed. The mighty coffee machine in action. Double espresso shot!

Combine this with plenty of foamed fresh milk :) can't wait to try this already!

Look at the skillful barista in action! We had our chance to do some latte art and it really needs speed and good coordination! Not easy at all! Definitely need to practise more. Before we could fathom what was happening, the art was already perfectly done. 

This is the perfect latte art. Makes the coffee looks even more inviting.

We were also greeted with this huge breakfast platter :) this can easily feed 2 to 3 adults and I savoured it with my beloved baby Bing. The 8 inch sausage is the star here. Simply irresistible! Combined with a great selection of deli meats, scrambled eggs, baked beans and fresh salad; the ideal way to chase away Monday blues. What's even better is that Redcups before 8am so you can have a hearty breakfast before work :)

We were planning to have some pasta but was already too full for main so we moved onto dessert instead.

If you have a sweet tooth, Redcups has a good selection of cakes. Baby Bing's favorite is the rainbow marshmallow cake. So colorful and pleasing to the eyes and palate. Everything just melts in the mouth, so spongy and light. The coffee cake was topped with crunchy praline and hazelnuts. Just the right theme to go with your cuppa on a lazy afternoon. Their cheesecake was densed, topped with macadamia nuts drizzled with a generous amount of caramel sauce. Definitely the right choice if you are a fan of cheesecake and dessert!

Now my readers! How can I deprive you of such wonderful food? I have a RM10 voucher @Redcups to giveaway :) because sharing is caring. How to win?

1. Like my Facebook page www.facebook.com/yingzangel

2. Share this post, tag 5 friends and set it to public

3. Comment I love Redcups below the post.

4. Like Redcups coffee page
https://www.facebook.com/redcupscoffeemalaysia/

For Malaysia residents only. The winner will be announced on 31 October. Good luck!