Jom Makan! American Burgers @ TGI Friday's, 1 Utama Shopping Centre. (October 2011)

Assalamualaikum Readers,

Welcome to another edition of Jom Makan! Remember that Deena is craving for some greasy, generous portion of definitely high in calorie in cholesterol American burger? Yup today we went to satisfy that craving (and will not eat, shall not, eat burgers for a long time I suppose). 

Please take note that you will be seeing a lot of Deena in this post, because apparently, according to her, her outfit matched the TGIF's theme red & white colours. Also she's having a good make-up day. As for me, I'm having a fat, unattractive looking everyday so I definitely cropped out all my photos hehe. =) 

Oh yes TGIF's definitely brings lots of memories to Deena since my parents held her 18th birthday party at one of the TGIF's and it was a really fun party there with her friends. Yes yes, birthday girl bullied to sing on the chair was definitely done, but Nana was more than happy to be the centre of attention as usual. =)

The Halloween promotion. We were not in costumes but we were indeed as famished as witches hunting for fresh blood of the young.

Check out the ambience which suits the Halloween mood. We went on the day of Halloween itself so all the waiters & waitresses were wearing creepy costumes & make-up to be in the mood.

Spiders, bats, cobwebs all over. I just couldn't help to think of the cleaning afterwards hahaha I'm so boring. =D

Ok before we order, please help yourselves with more Deena & Ummi. Alhamdulillah Ummi is on meds and recovering slowly but surely insha Allah. Her appetite is getting better only she prefers sour-ish food these days but she's still weak especially in the evenings, thus we can only go out for a short while only most of the time.

Finally! Let's order =) 

We don't feel like eating Mexican today, both of us are definitely going for their burgers. When I say both, it's that although Ummi's appetite is improving but she can never finish her food. She always shares of what we're having so it's so much better especially when the portion is huge like at TGIF's.

Green Apple Slush. RM 10.50

Since it's Halloween I just felt ordering a green beverage was the most suitable drink to order. =D It consists of green apple & lemon lime soda. It was tangy, refreshing, fizzy but nice. I love the look. I think it looks eerily pretty. Such paradox works for me. =)

Nana ordered Mango Juice. RM 9.50.

For starters we ordered Boneless Wings. RM 14.90.

Succulent crispy pieces of chicken breast basted in TGIF's traditional spicy buffalo sauce. I always like starters like these combined with celery sticks and dipping. Just like the starters we always order at Chili's.

Uhuh more Nana..

She just had to do this. It's Halloween people! =D

And now is the amazing (slightly embarrassing) time for..

 WOMEN VS FOOD!!!

ROUND 1 : My order was the TGIF's infamous specialty, the Tennessee Burger. RM 25.90

Expertly seasoned and fire grilled to order. TGIF's juicy 7-oz. (yes guilty as charged!) burger is glazed w Tennessee Sauce and stacked with 2 strips of crispy beef bacon and Jack cheese on a toasted bun. Served with a side of Tennessee Sauce, the classic fixings and crispy fries.

I dared to order this because previously my bestie Mira told me that this burger is awesome, and I tried it first time by sharing with her. I totally fell in love with the Tennessee Sauce (yes that black sauce) which tastes sweet but the sweetness is so subtle which makes the burger tastes perfect. I am the kind of gal that hates sweetness on food but dessert but this is just the right kind of complimentary sweetness to the burger. Another thing Nana & I noticed was, the crispy fries are real delish here at TGIF's. Ah yes, I tried to share this burger with Ummi & Nana, tried to eat slowly, but the last few bites, I surrendered. 

ROUND 1 : FOOD WON AGAINST WOMAN. 

ROUND 2 : Nana ordered Barbecue Burger. RM 22.90

It's down-home with a twist  - TGIF's chargrilled patty covered in melted Colby cheese, topped with thin Cajun-battered onion rings and served with Friday's barbecue sauce.

Uhum I think from the looks I might feel guiltier if I ordered this. =D 

I tasted some of this from Nana but it didn't bring any significant sensation to my taste buds. Probably because me too, is having such an incredible burger. However I think the onion rings add the extra crunch in this.

Now let's see the results of this second battle of WOMAN VS FOOD...

And it did happen! Tell the world that

DEENA WON AGAINST FOOD!!! 

It's a victory! Woohoo for women who love to eat like us!! =D

And we left TGIF's  happily, trying to put the guilt behind our minds but we felt greater because indeed we experienced AMAZING BURGERS & great service by the very attentive staff. See you again, but not too soon, TGI Friday's. =)

Jom Makan! Chinese Food @ Sakura Kristal Cafe & Restaurant, Taman Melawati, KL. (October 2011)

Assalamualaikum,

Howdy readers? =) 

It's been a truly long time since I last did lifestyle blogging (eat+travel+shop). I kept ranting about my pathetic far from my beloved boyfriend situations. Thee-hee. To sum up my life recently, I passed my Ethics Exam at first attempt alhamdulillah, Ummi had 3 surgeries and is currently visiting a number of doctors, I am taking leave from my chambering to accompany her at home and for doctors' appointments. Therefore currently I am just focusing on Rakan IJN, freelance make-up service, Abaya Suraya online boutique, also a new addition is Courier Service especially for Hajj pilgrims from Makkah al-Mukarramah, Saudi Arabia to any destination in Malaysia. =) Will update that in the future insha Allah. Nana is also back from Geelong, Australia for her Summer holidays, to accompany Ummi, so I am definitely having fun having her around. Always. As for my chambering, I might continue another 4 months or start all over again. I am not sure on that yet, but i am thankful for my rezk in business alhamdulillah. Oh yes my boyfriend has performed his Hajj this year, so alhamdulillah I am very happy for him. =)

Alright I'll stop it right there about my life. Who cares really right? =D Now let's proceed with a Jom Makan! entry. I warn you, if I am in the mood to blog enough, there will be more ok? =)

Well recently, it was our monthly eat out with Ayah. Haha sometimes we have 2-3 meals per month ok it's not like only 12 times a year excluding Eid. =D Eating out with Ayah is always fun, I always look forward to having them. As for Deena, she's so looking forward to eating some sort of American Burger at Delicious, Dua Residency but somehow rather, Ayah had already chose the venue for us and apparently already set his mind of the dishes he liked to order. =)

Ayah chose Sakura Kristal, Taman Melawati which is very nearby to home. This restaurant has been there for years but believe us, this was the first time for Nana & I trying out this place. We had tried the Sakura Kristal at AEON Setiawangsa, but at the main branch, it's our first time.

The address : No.301, Jalan Bandar 11, Taman Melawati, 53100 Kuala Lumpur.

Tel: 03-4108 5897

The selections. Mainly they sell Asian especially local Chinese/Nyonya food, Western and Fusion.

It's cosy and clean. Great for hang outs with friends and family. It's open air atmosphere thus very convenient for you smokers to smoke a ciggie or two.

Ok obviously I got the first few pics from their website. =D Here's a bird's eye view of the whole place. The place is huge, and I noted some familiar faces from my school, SMK Taman Melawati.

Ayah sensed that Nana was not quite in the mood because she was hoping for Delicious. (Well who doesn't love Delicious right? =)) Ayah said "Here! This is your Delicious Nana!" Ouch hehe Nana made a face. =D Ayah trying to coax Nana, tried his best to convince that he knew the best dishes on the menu. He wanted to order the dumplings but it was finished. Ayah even made a funny response knowing that there was no dumpling. Oh Ayah. =D

Ok now let's start with the food review. Let's start with the drinks.

Honey Sour Plum Calamansi. RM 5.00
Tangy. Subtle sweetness. Balanced. Awesomely refreshing!
I am so going to order it again. =)

Nana ordered Oreo Milk Shake. RM 9.00

Creamy, crunchy and super yummy!

Yup since there was no way for us to try Ayah's favourite Fried Dumplings, we ordered Crispy Wanton instead. RM 10
The pastry was light and crispy, while the insides were so hot and so tender. Yum.

Ayah decided for us to eat plain rice with several Chinese dishes.

Claypot Beancurd Deluxe. RM 15

My most favourite dish of the night! It's so hot, and when the warm liquid goes down my throat, it felt so soothing. The texture of the egg tofu was very tender due to the hot gravy. I also like the vegetables in the soup.

Crispy Lemon Chicken. RM 16

Option is to choose Mango Sauce instead of Lemon Sauce. 

Seafood Nyonya Squid. RM 20

Tasty. The sauce was the typical sauce simmering the Portuguese Grilled Fish. I tasted familiar because it reminded me the sauce strangely used on each and every dish at the Sekinchan Ikan Bakar. Weird experience there. Not to mention the shockingly over-priced menu there.

Sakura Butter Sauce Prawns (Market Price/ In our bill it was RM 33)

The most generous garnishing of fried, grated butter on a Butter Prawn dish I have ever tried in any restaurant. The butter was perfectly fried till it's so light, fluffy and crispy. The golden colour was a delight to the eyes and the size of the prawns were acceptable, 5-6 pieces of them in a plate. Too bad Ummi wasn't there with us because she was the one who was craving for this. Ayah wanted to order another set for us to take away for her, but we decided it's much better for her to enjoy them hot at the restaurant some other time insha Allah.

My plate. And I haven't eaten rice for a few days and now it's ruined. Guilty as charged. Oh it's a guilty pleasure anyways. =D

As for the dessert, I am not much of a sweet tooth but Ayah always orders dessert to complete every eat out. Ayah can't eat sweets much so mostly it's for Deena to enjoy it. =) 

Banana Split.  RM 8

A happy gal with her dessert. =)

Service Rate : Good service. The particular young waiter whom attended our table was very polite, fast and efficient. A good experience. Will definitely come again. =)

Dari Dapur Deenalicious! Seafood Aglio Olio Spaghetti ala Deena (October 2011)

Assalamualaikum Readers,

Can you believe it? After an incredible long hiatus on food & recipes, I am sharing a recipe again. =D

Actually my sister is back so she's like the cook in our family. She loves to cook more than I do, and she's more like the expert for Western food in our family since she lives in Australia.

Today we cooked 

Seafood Aglio Olio Spaghetti Ala Deena.

Ingredients :

3 stalks of Angel Hair Spaghetti

2 tablespoons of Olive Oil

6 Bird's Eye Chili (Us Malays will always need Cili Padi to spice things up!)

 4 cloves of Garlic (chopped)

1 Red & 1 Green Capsicums (sliced)

Seafood according to preference

Black Pepper 

Basil Flakes

Grated Parmesan Cheese

Methods : 

1. Pound the Bird's Eye Chili with some salt.

2. At the same time boil the spaghetti until it is nicely cooked.

3. Heat up the Olive Oil.

4. Stir fry the Bird's Eye Chili & chopped Garlic until they become brownish.

5. Stir fry the seafood, as shown here we chose to have squids and prawns.

6. Put in the capsicums and mix them well. 

7. Then stir fry the already boiled spaghetti.

8. To add more flavour, add Black Pepper & Basil Flakes.

9. Serve them hot, add grated Parmesan Cheese on top of it.

Now it's ready to be eaten & enjoyed. =)