Mr. Bala's Deepavali Open House @ Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur.

Assalamualaikum wbt,

The day before Ummi was admitted again, for her Lumbar Puncture procedure (I realized that lately most of my blog entry openings must have something to do with Ummi's hospitalization). My mentor at Rakan IJN which I regard as my own father, Mr. Bala invited Ummi & I for his Deepavali Open House.

Recalling our previous conversation in the past years;

Me : "Mr. B, so how was your Deepavali celebration today?"

Him : "What lah celebrate. I went to the temple to pray, then relaxed at home ate biscuits." (-__-)

Yes Mr. Bala is pretty strict with his diet, I remember recording his daily readings of sugar & blood pressure levels. =)

So I was pretty surprised that this year he wanted to throw an Open House. So after visiting Aunty Ana at Putrajaya since Ummi wanted to have a chat with her bestfriend prior to her hospital stay, we later on went to Bangsar for Mr. Bala's. I always teased me that Mr. B is Jovian Mandagie's neighbour since his boutique is only across the road from his house, while he never had any idea how famous he is as a fashion designer though he always notices that flashy cars always parked in front of his boutique. Yes lucky people. =D

When I arrived at his place, little did I know that it would be a pretty big affair with pink and white scalloped canopies and balloons! Hahaha! I really looked like a mess at that time I wished I dressed up a bit more to respect the occassion. Mr. B and Mrs. B were delighted to see me and when I asked him didn't expect such an occasion he responded that he hasn't thrown an open house for many years hence this kind of celebration. I noticed some familiar faces from Rakan IJN, as well as some unfamiliar ones, mostly Indians, Chinese and Sikhs. Ummi and I were the only Malays there and typical me clad in an Abaya I realized the photographers were excited to snap my photos maybe because "Ahhhh now we see a Malay here ." =D It felt truly a Malaysian celebration I was pretty excited. And of course, Mr. Bala just had to introduce me as his girlfriend to his friends and family there haha typical Mr. Bala. =D

Oh of course we have to check out the buffet line. =) Mr. Bala hired an Indian catering company serving Indian food but they divided 2 separate areas where one you can have all the chicken and lamb, whereas another area was for Vegetarians which would be suitable for Muslims as well. Cool thing was they still prepared chicken for the Vegetarians or Vegans, but they were all organic, which I know are made from Tofu.

I had these the most. Shrimps!

Putu Mayam & Prata bread as well as Bryani rice.

Organic Satay. Yes, believe it. =D

My favourites of the night were definitely the Sambal Udang (Shrimps in Chili Paste) and the Papadoms. The prawns were amazing.

As for the Organic Satay they were pretty good, of course taste like Chicken-ish tofu but it was pretty good.

Ok tried to capture those sharing my table, not a good photo here but the women and kids really dressed up here. =)

And there was a cake.

I could not recall whether they just wanted to cut a cake to celebrate the event or it was their anniversary, but I don't reckon on the latter. Anyways I loved this part because I felt like I was in a Din Teksi or Lat's comic strip (now when was the last time you heard of Din Teksi? =D ) where you could see all races of Malaysians in it. When everyone teased Mr. B to feed the cake to Mrs. B first (those two aren't very romantic) they all insisted to feed the children first and said "Always feed the children first." Awwwww. =')

I am glad I could make it to this occasion, before more days to check in at the hospital. I truly love this couple of husband and wife, both are like my sister's and my own parents. From another race, from another religion. I pray for them to be blessed always in this world and in the HereAfter, insha Allah. =')

Thanks for reading. =)

XOXO,

Sue

PS* Just a random pic of Boboy and a plate of Bubur Cha-Cha before I left for Mr. B's.

Jom Makan! Dark Cherry Cake @ Decanter Setiabakti, Bukit Damansara, Kuala Lumpur.

Assalamualaikum wbt,

This evening I had a meeting with a bunch of ladies at Decanter. Never heard of it because Bukit Damansara is not really my familiar vicinity, so this is my first time trying out the food they offer.  Apparently there are a few branches of this restaurant and this one is located at Jalan Setiabakti, Bukit Damansara hence it is called Decanter Setiabakti.

I was welcomed by a friendly waiter clad in the typical black and white uniform. It appears to me that Decanter reminds me of Hillside Corner, Bukit Antarabangsa as a neighbourhood restaurant/cafe that offers Western & Local delights except that Decanter presents a slightly more posh image with its interior decor and it also serves liquor.

Diners can choose to seat on the black chairs or orange booths which are both comfortable.

The Menu. "We try harder..." What a tagline. =)

Decanter here serves English breakfast sets such as Eggs Benedict, a variety of Omelette, Muffins, Scones, Sausages and Bacon together with Coffee at very reasonable prices where you can get the sets at RM 16.90 the highest. Others you may get them lower than that and for individual orders are below RM 10.

As for Malaysian and Asian delights mostly are below RM 15 and below RM 10.  Not to forget for Western lunch or dinner main courses from Steaks to Pasta are mostly below RM 30 or below RM 20. I opine the prices are reasonable and the food are good maybe from the number of customers they have for that day, and most of them,  I assume they are regular customers.


Since I ate a heavy lunch at the hospital, I just ordered drinks and shared a piece of cake with Kak Linda.

Kak Linda ordered Teh Tarik - RM 6.50

Mine was Lime Sour Sop Smoothie - RM 9

The taste was definitely refreshing, definitely filling.

Dark Cherry Cake - Missed the price but I think it was below RM 10
Huge portion. Very rich cherry taste. It was too strong for Kak Linda so I finished the most of it though she was the one who ordered this. I feel it tastes pretty ok since the taste was soften with the whipped cream. Presentation wise, I like. =)

Oh yes nice thing about Decanter, Senior Citizens above 60 years old get a 10% discount for eat-in food (not tapau) and non-alcoholic drinks. I laughed when I read that youthful looking seniors are asked to remind the staff about the discount. How witty, and flattering. =D

Ahh, saw this hung nearby the bathroom. A gift from the Children with Down Syndrome Foundation for Decanter. Perhaps Decanter did something charitable for them - Thank you for touching our hearts. Awwwww~ =)

So yes, insha Allah will come to Decanter again with my family to try their lunch or dinner even breakfast maybe. Friendly staff and service was fast too. =)

Thank you for reading!

XOXO,

Sue