Comfort Home Cooked

Its been a while since I cooked for A and myself so we went over to a local food produce shop to get some beef patties.  You know what that means right?  Burger time!

In truth I'd usually make patties from scratch for a healthier version but we were quite eager to try a specialty store-bought variant.  The patties were quite thick, measuring almost 1.5cm.  Took it home and marinated it with black pepper, which A is crazy about (anyone know if there are any side effects to consuming too much of this spice?)

Sauteed in virgin coconut oil

Searing 7-minutes for each side without pressing down on the patty to retain its juices.  Simultaneously sauteing baby tomatoes, frying chips and boiled baby carrots for A's sides, while mine was a combo of  long beans and caramelized onions.  A dropped by a newly opened deli, Irrawady Fine Foods and got a tzatziki sauce and some emmental cheese as toppings.

A's burger with black pepper sprinkled everywhere

   Its hard to find burger buns, let alone quality ones here in Penang.  Many supermarkets carry dinner rolls or the mass produced Gardenia brand and I was just happy to have found them after the fourth try.  As you can see, my dearest A refuses to eat without utensils be it burgers, pizzas, even french fries.  If there's no utensils? Try tissues!

Yours truly, with addition of honey baked ham

I enjoy home-cooked meals.  Usually it tastes better with the extra heart and effort put in, hopefully it was in A's opinion!  Oh well, the effort was definitely there :)

Sri Ananda Bahwan Indian treats

'A' and I are both huge fans of Indian cuisine.  The blend of their spices, richness of the curries, exotic taste that tantalizes one's palates gets us on a food rush.  Not to mention the various breads like Naans and Parathas (both flat breads though Naan is predominantly oven-baked while Parathas are pan-fried with stuffing) to go with all sorts of delectable curries.

Ceiling lantern

Hut seats

One of our regular haunt is Sri Ananda Bahwan at their Tanjung Bunga branch.  Truth be told, they do have their off days and partial inconsistencies, but we usually walk away with honestly great meals.
 

Palak Paneer RM8

One of their must-haves is the Palak Paneer (spinach and cottage cheese).  On every Indian adventure, an order of this vegetarian heaven is never missed and we rate Ananda's as one of the best.  Slathering generously on the naan bread, every bite of the thick rich creamy puree is an explosion of aroma and taste.  And the inevitable "mouthgasm".

Tandoori station

Take your pick

 I mentioned sometimes experiencing their shortcomings and its usually the tandoori's (kebabs) for me.  The variety is wide but there have been occasions whereby the meat was either baked too long, re-baked again and again or the dreaded left overs.  One can differentiate especially when stale, neither should be pushed out but probably the biggest culprit is it not being fresh.

Malai Chicken Kebab RM7

 The Malai Chicken could have been more moist but the marination of yogurt and spices did enough to bring out the flavors and compensate for overcooking of the poultry.

Aloo Goobi RM6

No complaints for the Aloo Goobi (potatoes, cauliflower and blend of spices).  Had all the right balance of flavor, aroma and spices.

Awesome bread

Pudina Roti RM3 for two pieces

All these great curry dishes were enjoyed with the accompaniment of Roti Pudina (mint-flavored flat bread) which came with 3 non-spicy side dips, one seen with chick peas.  The softness of the bread inside and light browning on the outside adds to the favorable scent of the mint leaves.  Home run.  My overall rating for Sri Ananda Bahwan is 4/5. Till the next visit!  Darn, I feel hungry now....


Sri Ananda Bahwan Restaurant
14 Tanjung Bunga,
11200 Penang



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Daily 7am-12am

 

Giggles

Fish with a sense of humor

Paddington House of Expectations

A and I are breakfast lovers.  We could be on holiday anywhere and never missed it so far, no matter how late we slept.  The lure of hotel buffet breakfasts is simply and unconditionally too great to pass up.  So on weekends when we do have an earlier start we like to go in search for some morning treats.

Peppermint for hers and Boh for his

So our morning venture brought us to Paddington House of Pancakes or PHOP, a second branch just opened at the al fresco area of Gurney Plaza.  We got there slightly late for their breakfast so I settled for the brunch menu instead - Tummy Warmer, comes with a soup, baked beans and sunny side up egg on top of fried German potato pancakes.

Tummy Warmer

Sunny side up on kartofelpuffer

For the life of me I couldn't recall my soup but it was bland. Completely.  The black pepper was just a bystander and couldn't help add any flavor to save it.  The egg whites around the yolk of the sunny side up could have been more cooked as it was still in a clear gelatin state.  The kartofelpuffer - German for potato pancakes, didn't do the name justice, again settling for tasteless.

A chose from the a la carte menu, consisted of beef salami, sunny side up egg, baked beans, green pea mashed potatoes and vegetable garnish on a crepe (RM15.50).

The green pea mashed potato looked promising but sadly fell short.  There wasn't any inkling of the pea except for obvious color and the mash lacked seasoning.  As my look of disappointment was apparent, A as caring as always, shared half her portion with me.  To soften the blow....

Customized Tummy Warmer

We were definitely let down.  Though my selection is attractively priced, doesn't mean its taste has to be compromised.  A's dish fared slightly better but did not meet expectations.  I would rate our breakfast miss a 2 out of 5.  Though PHOP is known for their pancakes, and we honestly heart them, my rating is solely for their weaker category.  As in life, I always believed in second chances and hopefully to be proven wrong on our next visit. 

Paddington House of Pancakes
Gurney Plaza (170-G-41), 
Persiaran Gurney,
Penang 10250


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Healthy and hearty

Sawara Restaurant is a steamboat establishment known for their fish paste made from mackerel.  Located in the commercial and food district of Pulau Tikus, Sawara is popular with locals for their creamy soup used in the steamboat and noodle dishes with seafood, fish meat, fish paste or fish head.

We started off with the Fish Crackers.  Thoroughly enjoyable with its crispy crunch from the light coat of batter accompanied with Japanese mayonnaise.

Fish crackers RM6

I enjoyed my Pork Chop Noodles immensely though it was a tinge sweet from the dark soy sauce.  Generous portion of diced mushrooms, kai lan, fried lean pork chops with fat yellow noodles and spring onions.

Pork chop noodles RM7

Close up of the delectable white meat

We had a side order of stir fried Vegetables with Fish Fry.  The balance of flavors were there especially the crispy fish fries adding the aroma to the vegetables.

Khai lan with fish fry RM10

Another main dish we had was the Seafood Bee Hoon Soup.  The creamy thick broth was flavorful and consisted of prawn, fish meat, fish paste and generous amounts of vermicelli.  Definitely one to savor especially on a rainy day.

Seafood vermicelli RM12

Sawara is an eatery considered healthy to most.  Rarely are we able to synergize healthy and delicious in the same sentence for food but one can find it right here.

Sawara Restaurant
393 Jalan Burmah
10350 Penang

Tel : 04 2260516

Business Hours : Daily 11am – 10pm

An introduction

This blog was created to chronicle my experiences with food.  Everyone loves food.  Tell me someone who doesn't and I'll tell you they have an eating disorder.  Or worst.. but I digress, my love for food and contentment of a great meal will be my search.  Together, starring companion in-crime, A :)

Bonnie & Clyde, foodster-style