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Showing posts with label Tze Char. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tze Char. Show all posts

Second Visit to Pelangi City 彩虹城 (Tze Char) in Taman Serene Food Centre in Johor Bahru, Malaysia

After my first post on Pelangi City 彩虹城, my friend Kumes kept reminding me that I must try their signature fried sotong, curry fish head, fried prawns and ku lou yok (sweet and sour pork).

So, four of us went to Pelangi City last night to try out these signature dishes.


The fried sotong was unique and delicious, indeed.


MR Choong first deep fried the sotong which were cut into rings.
 

After straining off the oil, MR Choong stir fried and tossed the deep fried sotong rings in his special sauce and in his trademark super heated style. 
 

The resulting fried sotong was unlike any other I have tasted before. The sotong rings were crispy outside and still retained a little bit of bounciness inside. The gravy was savoury and the most striking thing about Pelangi City's fried sotong was their wok hei taste which was distinctive.


It tasted almost like BBQed sotong with that subtle charred flavour which complemented the savoury gravy very well. This fried sotong is definitely a Must Try.


Pelangi City's curry fish was another winner. We wanted to order curry fish head but MR Choong told us that he couldn't get good fresh fish heads that day, so he suggested that we try his curry with fresh grass fish instead. So, to borrow the Tesco tagline, now we know that MR Choong chooses the best ingredients for us so that we don't have to :)

Again, the taste and flavour of Pelangi City's curry was unique and highly likable. The curry was thick, smooth and creamy, and was a complex blend of sour, sweet, spicy hot and savoury. It was like a curried stew of brinjal (egg plant), lady fingers, dried chili peppers, assam, and lots of other good things. But this was not a stew; this curry was yet another magical creation that comes out whenever MR Choong throws all the stuff he got from the market into his magic wok. 


Kumes said that this was the best ku lou yok (sweet and sour pork) he had tasted anywhere. Again, Pelangi's City's ku lou yok had that signature super heated treatment, so the outside was crispy and the pork inside was tender, and nice and easy to chew.


This reminded me of the lovely ku lou yok at Loke Tien Yuen in Mersing, which in turn reminded me of my unforgettable first taste of ku lou yok in 1960s Toa Payoh in Singapore. 
 

The fresh prawns fried in savoury umani sauce. The shells were seared so well that they felt glassy brittle and crispy even when coated with that tacky, wet gravy.
 

Needless to say, the prawn flesh was still juicy and had that subtle freshness inside. I ate the whole prawn except for the head and that little bit at the tail end. 

This sumptuous 4 dish meal with steamed rice and herbal drinks for all, came to RM82.00.

Again, Pelangi City impressed - it's the little stall that can!


Restaurant name: Gerai Makanan Pelangi City 彩虹城
Address: Stall no. 11, Taman Serene Food Centre, Jalan Biru (opposite the famous San Low seafood restaurant)
Map: http://goo.gl/maps/ZuvjP
GPS: 1.472193,103.774613
Hours: 6:00pm to midnight
Non Halal

Date visited: 15 Nov 2012
After my first post on Pelangi City 彩虹城, my friend Kumes kept reminding me that I must try their signature fried sotong, curry fish head, fried prawns and ku lou yok (sweet and sour pork).

So, four of us went to Pelangi City last night to try out these signature dishes.


The fried sotong was unique and delicious, indeed.


MR Choong first deep fried the sotong which were cut into rings.
 

After straining off the oil, MR Choong stir fried and tossed the deep fried sotong rings in his special sauce and in his trademark super heated style. 
 

The resulting fried sotong was unlike any other I have tasted before. The sotong rings were crispy outside and still retained a little bit of bounciness inside. The gravy was savoury and the most striking thing about Pelangi City's fried sotong was their wok hei taste which was distinctive.


It tasted almost like BBQed sotong with that subtle charred flavour which complemented the savoury gravy very well. This fried sotong is definitely a Must Try.


Pelangi City's curry fish was another winner. We wanted to order curry fish head but MR Choong told us that he couldn't get good fresh fish heads that day, so he suggested that we try his curry with fresh grass fish instead. So, to borrow the Tesco tagline, now we know that MR Choong chooses the best ingredients for us so that we don't have to :)

Again, the taste and flavour of Pelangi City's curry was unique and highly likable. The curry was thick, smooth and creamy, and was a complex blend of sour, sweet, spicy hot and savoury. It was like a curried stew of brinjal (egg plant), lady fingers, dried chili peppers, assam, and lots of other good things. But this was not a stew; this curry was yet another magical creation that comes out whenever MR Choong throws all the stuff he got from the market into his magic wok. 


Kumes said that this was the best ku lou yok (sweet and sour pork) he had tasted anywhere. Again, Pelangi's City's ku lou yok had that signature super heated treatment, so the outside was crispy and the pork inside was tender, and nice and easy to chew.


This reminded me of the lovely ku lou yok at Loke Tien Yuen in Mersing, which in turn reminded me of my unforgettable first taste of ku lou yok in 1960s Toa Payoh in Singapore. 
 

The fresh prawns fried in savoury umani sauce. The shells were seared so well that they felt glassy brittle and crispy even when coated with that tacky, wet gravy.
 

Needless to say, the prawn flesh was still juicy and had that subtle freshness inside. I ate the whole prawn except for the head and that little bit at the tail end. 

This sumptuous 4 dish meal with steamed rice and herbal drinks for all, came to RM82.00.

Again, Pelangi City impressed - it's the little stall that can!


Restaurant name: Gerai Makanan Pelangi City 彩虹城
Address: Stall no. 11, Taman Serene Food Centre, Jalan Biru (opposite the famous San Low seafood restaurant)
Map: http://goo.gl/maps/ZuvjP
GPS: 1.472193,103.774613
Hours: 6:00pm to midnight
Non Halal

Date visited: 15 Nov 2012
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Tze Char at Pelangi City 彩虹城 in Taman Serene Food Centre in Johor Bahru, Malaysia

 
I've heard a lot about this tiny tze char (literally "cook and fry" in Hokkien) stall called Pelangi City 彩虹城 in Taman Serene food centre. Pelangi City may be a tiny tze char stall in a small food centre in a quieter part of JB, but it has a huge reputation. My Johor foodie friends raved about Pelangi City tze char and KF Seetoh of Makansutra featured it in his popular "Food Surprise" television series.

The owner MR Choong who is originally from Ipoh had been running tze char stalls for over twenty years. MR Choong is very warm and humble, and is genuinely interested in customer feedback, even though his tze char is already one of the best in JB. Even though he was very busy running the crammed kitchen alone, he observed and paid attention to how customers were receiving his food. With MR Choong's passion for continuous improvement, I am sure that Pelangi City's already very good tze char will be getting ever better all the time.

Pelangi City's clientele is an interesting mix. I saw many young workers who worked in Singapore, swinging by in their motorbikes to pick up their dinner on their way home after a long, tiring day. At the same time, there were customers who pulled over in their luxury German sedans and sat down on those cheap plastic stools at Taman Serene food centre to enjoy Pelangi City's tze char.

 The menu board and price list at Pelangi City

There are many tze char dishes on Pelangi City's menu, including MR Choong's famous curry fish head. As I was alone, I requested for MR Choong's fried Hokkien mee.
 

MR Choong graciously allowed me to photograph him in action in the busy kitchen. The riotous action was fast, furious and super heated. There were leaping flames and tongues of fire - an impressive display of wok hei or literally wok breath in Cantonese. And, it wasn't a show put up for the camera. I was already in awe, watching the balls of fire and how MR Choong danced between the fiery woks and pots while I sat outside, and before uttering my first word to MR Choong.
 

This Hokkien mee was super piping hot. After I snapped my usual photographs, I took the first mouthful and it was still so hot that it burned the roof of my mouth! (My makan kakis know how I always took my time to make sure I got the best photos. Usually taking long enough for the food to turn cold, to their dismay.)
 

MR Choong's Hokkien mee was savoury and tasty, and also wetter and sweeter than the famed KL variety.
 
Simple ingredients - pork slices, shrimps, cabbage and noodles

MR Choong's which is the style of Hokkien mee found in JB, also does not have the thick lard and lard crackles found in the KL version. I liked both the JB and KL versions.
 

The gracious MR Choong made me this fried grass fish for me to try. The deep fried grass fish was partially buried under a heap of fried preserved vegetables (tong chai).

 
 
The white flesh of the fish was thick. The flesh was firm and still soft inside with a little bit of moisture left, while the outside was a thin caramelised layer. The fried tong chai was crunchy, delicately sweet, salty and savoury. I ate this fish by itself and I am sure this fried fish with fried tong chai will go very well with porridge or steamed rice.


If you want to show your friends that you know your Johor food, and if you want to see how a small, one man operation in a tiny kitchen can churn out big restaurant quality dishes, come to Pelangi City.

I shall be back for the curry fish head recommended by KF Seetoh and the fried baby sotong that my friend Kumes keeps telling me that I must try.
 

Restaurant name: Gerai Makanan Pelangi City 彩虹城
Address: Stall no. 11, Taman Serene Food Centre, Jalan Biru (opposite the famous San Low seafood restaurant)
Map: http://goo.gl/maps/ZuvjP
GPS: 1.472193,103.774613
Hours: 6:00pm to midnight
Non Halal

Date visited: 9 Oct 2012
 
I've heard a lot about this tiny tze char (literally "cook and fry" in Hokkien) stall called Pelangi City 彩虹城 in Taman Serene food centre. Pelangi City may be a tiny tze char stall in a small food centre in a quieter part of JB, but it has a huge reputation. My Johor foodie friends raved about Pelangi City tze char and KF Seetoh of Makansutra featured it in his popular "Food Surprise" television series.

The owner MR Choong who is originally from Ipoh had been running tze char stalls for over twenty years. MR Choong is very warm and humble, and is genuinely interested in customer feedback, even though his tze char is already one of the best in JB. Even though he was very busy running the crammed kitchen alone, he observed and paid attention to how customers were receiving his food. With MR Choong's passion for continuous improvement, I am sure that Pelangi City's already very good tze char will be getting ever better all the time.

Pelangi City's clientele is an interesting mix. I saw many young workers who worked in Singapore, swinging by in their motorbikes to pick up their dinner on their way home after a long, tiring day. At the same time, there were customers who pulled over in their luxury German sedans and sat down on those cheap plastic stools at Taman Serene food centre to enjoy Pelangi City's tze char.

 The menu board and price list at Pelangi City

There are many tze char dishes on Pelangi City's menu, including MR Choong's famous curry fish head. As I was alone, I requested for MR Choong's fried Hokkien mee.
 

MR Choong graciously allowed me to photograph him in action in the busy kitchen. The riotous action was fast, furious and super heated. There were leaping flames and tongues of fire - an impressive display of wok hei or literally wok breath in Cantonese. And, it wasn't a show put up for the camera. I was already in awe, watching the balls of fire and how MR Choong danced between the fiery woks and pots while I sat outside, and before uttering my first word to MR Choong.
 

This Hokkien mee was super piping hot. After I snapped my usual photographs, I took the first mouthful and it was still so hot that it burned the roof of my mouth! (My makan kakis know how I always took my time to make sure I got the best photos. Usually taking long enough for the food to turn cold, to their dismay.)
 

MR Choong's Hokkien mee was savoury and tasty, and also wetter and sweeter than the famed KL variety.
 
Simple ingredients - pork slices, shrimps, cabbage and noodles

MR Choong's which is the style of Hokkien mee found in JB, also does not have the thick lard and lard crackles found in the KL version. I liked both the JB and KL versions.
 

The gracious MR Choong made me this fried grass fish for me to try. The deep fried grass fish was partially buried under a heap of fried preserved vegetables (tong chai).

 
 
The white flesh of the fish was thick. The flesh was firm and still soft inside with a little bit of moisture left, while the outside was a thin caramelised layer. The fried tong chai was crunchy, delicately sweet, salty and savoury. I ate this fish by itself and I am sure this fried fish with fried tong chai will go very well with porridge or steamed rice.


If you want to show your friends that you know your Johor food, and if you want to see how a small, one man operation in a tiny kitchen can churn out big restaurant quality dishes, come to Pelangi City.

I shall be back for the curry fish head recommended by KF Seetoh and the fried baby sotong that my friend Kumes keeps telling me that I must try.
 

Restaurant name: Gerai Makanan Pelangi City 彩虹城
Address: Stall no. 11, Taman Serene Food Centre, Jalan Biru (opposite the famous San Low seafood restaurant)
Map: http://goo.gl/maps/ZuvjP
GPS: 1.472193,103.774613
Hours: 6:00pm to midnight
Non Halal

Date visited: 9 Oct 2012
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8108 炒小吃 Stall in Kedai Makanan Yenn Sang 源香 in Taman Perling, Johor Bahru, Malaysia


Stumbled upon this little zhe char stall 8108 炒小吃 in Yenn Sang 源香 kopitiam while trying to grab a quick lunch before an appointment in Taman Perling.


What first caught my attention was the bellowing smoke and the sizzling sound of food on a hot wok.


As I turned around and approached, I saw the chef playing with the wok over a stove that was spitting fire. I stopped to watch the chef as I am always fascinated by darting, licking flames, energetic toss frying and the drool triggering sound of sizzle.


Chef and I started a conversation. In the middle of tossing and frying, the chef told me that he and his wife had previously worked in the famous Sin Leong restaurant in Marine Parade, Singapore. After many years, they returned back to Johor Bahru and started 8108 炒小吃.
 

This is 8108's oil smeared menu held with Scotch tape onto the glass showcase. Hand written with marker pen on yellow vanguard sheet. It's all very casual, practical and unpretentious.


Well, when unsure about what to order, the best thing to do is to ask the chef himself. The chef suggested that I try his kam hiong chicken - the top item on his menu.


I gladly took the chef's recommendation and it was good, of course - it was the chef's personal recommendation after all :P


The fresh chicken chunks were fried in intense heat in savoury, tangy and sweet gravy. The outer layer of the chicken pieces were slightly caramelised by the wok hei (intense radiated heat) while the insides were still moist and juicy.

I wonder where else can I enjoy a delicious hot RM5.50 lunch of substantial portion that was well executed by a former restaurant chef.


This was someone else's sambal squids. I shall try this next time :)



Restuarant name: 8108 炒小吃 stall in Kedai Makanan Yenn Sang 源香
Address: Jalan Persisiran Perling 1, Taman Perling, Johor Bahru
Map: http://goo.gl/maps/KH19g
GPS: 1.481192, 103.684871
Hours: 8:00am to 4:00pm (off on Friday)
Non Halal

Date visited: 17 July 2012


Stumbled upon this little zhe char stall 8108 炒小吃 in Yenn Sang 源香 kopitiam while trying to grab a quick lunch before an appointment in Taman Perling.


What first caught my attention was the bellowing smoke and the sizzling sound of food on a hot wok.


As I turned around and approached, I saw the chef playing with the wok over a stove that was spitting fire. I stopped to watch the chef as I am always fascinated by darting, licking flames, energetic toss frying and the drool triggering sound of sizzle.


Chef and I started a conversation. In the middle of tossing and frying, the chef told me that he and his wife had previously worked in the famous Sin Leong restaurant in Marine Parade, Singapore. After many years, they returned back to Johor Bahru and started 8108 炒小吃.
 

This is 8108's oil smeared menu held with Scotch tape onto the glass showcase. Hand written with marker pen on yellow vanguard sheet. It's all very casual, practical and unpretentious.


Well, when unsure about what to order, the best thing to do is to ask the chef himself. The chef suggested that I try his kam hiong chicken - the top item on his menu.


I gladly took the chef's recommendation and it was good, of course - it was the chef's personal recommendation after all :P


The fresh chicken chunks were fried in intense heat in savoury, tangy and sweet gravy. The outer layer of the chicken pieces were slightly caramelised by the wok hei (intense radiated heat) while the insides were still moist and juicy.

I wonder where else can I enjoy a delicious hot RM5.50 lunch of substantial portion that was well executed by a former restaurant chef.


This was someone else's sambal squids. I shall try this next time :)



Restuarant name: 8108 炒小吃 stall in Kedai Makanan Yenn Sang 源香
Address: Jalan Persisiran Perling 1, Taman Perling, Johor Bahru
Map: http://goo.gl/maps/KH19g
GPS: 1.481192, 103.684871
Hours: 8:00am to 4:00pm (off on Friday)
Non Halal

Date visited: 17 July 2012

reade more... Résuméabuiyad