Eats of Padang, Indonesia

What's a trip without good local food. A recent trip to Padang brought us to try their local food, some familiar and some a little weird.

Definitely not to missed, Padang where Nasi Padang originated from. The curry chicken have always been really good. We had their Daging Dendeng which was cooked til really dry and hard but is fragrant. This is not my cup of tea although it is supposed to be famous.

Nasi Padang is served in a concept that we were quite new to. Rice will be served and plates and plates of dishes will be be brought out on the table. Just eat whatever dishes that you want to eat and you will be charged accordingly. Those which you did not touch, will not be charged.

An Array of Dishes (Nasi Padang)

Pork Satay is the best highlight in Padang for me. Available in Chinatown, this pork satay is excellent. The best in fact. The meat is lean but yet very tender and juicy. Marinated so well that no sauce is required. It comes with an appetizing serving of pickled cucumbers which is sweet and sour. We loved it so much that we had this twice during the whole trip.

Succulent Pork Satay

Being curious of what is being written beverage section in the menu, Terung Tirus or literally translated to Pointed Brinjal which does not really mean as what it is literally translated. It is just juice small sour red fruit. In its juice form, it is a little sour and sweet. A little like pineapple juice but not as sour with sugar. Pretty refreshing.

Jus Terung Tirus

Terung Tirus

Chicken intestines! Yeap, this is what we tried while having some late dinner at this coffee shop. It's not my cup of tea though as I feel that it wasn't really fresh. It felt a little disgusting although it doesn't have much taste. The texture is just like poppadoms that are not too fresh.

Deep Fried Chicken Intestines

Another delicious juice. Avocado juice or locally called Alpokat is definitely delicious and it is cheap here. The juice is creamy and thick but we do not feel that it is too cloying. A long drizzle of chocolate syrup really made this drink delicious.

Jus Alpokat

Grilled fish or Ikan Bakar was really good. The fish is really grilled and smoked with black charcoal unlike what we normally have in Malaysia where the it is normally fried on a flat pan. The seasoning coating the fish was thick and spicy compared to the grilled fish ala Malaysia. The initial plan to have this grilled fish at another stall was thwarted as it was close. This was just second best and even then, it is really good.

Ikan Bakar

Was a little surprised at how we can find good pork satay here in Padang. In fact the best ever. Satay is really popular here and we tried their beef satay but we didn't really like the yellow colour sauce that covered it. The fresh fruit juice is also very cheap here.

Kong Sai @ Paramount Garden

Was introduced to this Chinese restaurant by an old friend. I am sure that it should be good as this friend of mine normally don't really have much opinion about restaurants but he mentioned that this one is not bad.

Their signature dish would be the Steamed Free Range Chicken which was served with a sauce that contains spring onion oil and garlic. The chicken is pretty succulent and smooth but I ain't a fan of steamed chicken. The spring onion oil lends a fragrant taste when the chicken is dipped into it.

Steam White Chicken

Spring Onion Oil Dip

Next was the Pepper Pig Stomach Soup which was really good. Always a fan of spicy peppery soup and it is served in a claypot to retain the heat. Definitely good during a cold rainy day.

Pig Stomach Pepper Soup

The Stuffed Tofu Puff is another one of their signature dish. The stuffing of minced pork meat is mixed with chives and if not mistaken, some fish paste as well. It is a little bit different but not one of my favourite compared to the pig stomach soup.

Stuffed Tofu Puff

Needed a plate of green vegetables to balance out the meatiness of the meal, we had the simple Garlic Stir Fried Lettuce which was really light and refreshing. It is quite a normal dish but it was good.

Garlic Stir Fry Lettuce

Wouldn't mind coming here again to try their other dishes.

Address:

39, Jalan 20/16,

Taman Paramount,

Petaling Jaya,

Selangor.

Tel: +6019-384 2922/ +6012-298 4038

Reflections of 2011

2012 and it's time again for reflections.

Revisited Tenggol Island and just got now Advanced certification. Now I can do deep dives up to 30 meters and see more. It was a crazy trip and really fun. Too many funny incidents like runaway buddy, getting tricked by our instructor, being stopped by marine police and had a super foodie meal along the way before and after the trip. Met some new diver friends as well. The sea was a little rough and there was one dive where I was holding on to the sausage line and the wind practically blew us away and I scraped my new suit on the rocks!

Calm Tenggol

Visited Thailand for the first time and twice this year. Once to Bangkok and another time to the idyllic Krabi. Had some super shopping and massage madness time in Bangkok. Thai food is indeed delicious!

Grand Palace

Krabi's Emeralds

Rode on ATV for the first time in the Malaysian rainforest and I enjoyed it so much. There were muddy slopes, puddles of water, fallen bamboo obstacles but best of all, breathtaking view of our natural greenery. This was at the Kampung Kemensah.

Pandas will not go hungry here

Our Guide on his ATV

Had my first overseas dive trip and stepped into Indonesian land for the first time. Saw a different variations of marine life like lobsters, cleaner shrimp, octopus, crabs, jelly fish, two 2 meter long nurse sharks next to each other and had fun trying to spot the flounder or sole in the sand which is like hide and seek :) Swam to a deserted island and sat on dead coconuts as chairs eating packed Nasi Padang.

Beautiful Soft Coral

Tried surfing for the first time and it was so damn fun! And got sunburnt really bad as it was too fun during the surf that I didn't realise that I was being burnt. Probably the last time when I got burnt so badly was when I was around like 5.

Inundated with Water

2011 has its own bitter sweet moments. 2012 will be better ;)

J Tean's Kitchen @ SSTwo Mall

Bought the Bak Kut Teh deal at one of those coupon things and a good chance for me to try the Bak Kut Teh at this place called J Tean Kitchen. It offers fusion food and they serve pork! :)

Citron Tea

We love out ribs and thus, for Bak Kut Teh choice of meat, it would be ribs. The portion came with three long pieces of ribs. Although it is just three pieces, the amount of meat on it is pretty substantial. The soup was a little on the milder side and it could help if it was a little stronger on the herbs. It was not oily and definitely a plus point for me. The meat was tender enough and not too soft until the meat just falls off the bone.

Ribs and Blanched Vegetables

Ordered another the Jujube tea which is not part of the deal which was utterly delicious. I never knew how delicious and refreshing the jujube tea is until I tried it this time round. The problem with drinks nowadays is that they are too sweet. This jujube just have the right amount of sugar in it.

Ordered an extra serving of blanched lettuce which was really healthy but really nothing to shout about. Service was good and prompt :)

Address:

G-58 Ground Floor,

SSTwo Mall,

No 40, Jalan SS2/72,

Petaling Jaya,

Selangor.

Tel: +603-7954 0819