Taiwan Croissants 台湾正宗牛角面包

As far as I know, speaking of croissants, people will certainly think of France. But do you know that there are famous yet delicious croissants in Taiwan too?!

My friends just came back to Penang after spending a month's holiday in Taiwan. They brought me a huge box of Taiwan original croissants.

Above are the logos of the original Taiwan homemade croissants. I couldn't believe that the heavy box that I was holding actually originated from Taiwan. Even though the box was sealed, I could still smell the aroma of those fresh croissants.

All of the croissants were homemade. They have different flavours and generous selections of Taiwan croissants.

[from left] Taiwan raisin croissant, Taiwan red date croissant

I was shocked when I saw the red croissant. Actually it was made up of red dates, that's why its colour is so unique.

[from left] Original Taiwan Croissant, Taiwan Croissant with Peanut

[from left] Brown Sugar Taiwan Croissant, Garlic Taiwan Croissant
Among so many of Taiwan Croissants, I love the one with garlic the most. It had the best smell. I could smell the garlic when I put it into the microwave. But one thing, it was damn oily ~

[from left] Chocolate Taiwan Croissant, Coffee Taiwan Croissant
I had a funny feeling when I was eating the chocolate croissant. I felt that I was eating donut when I saw the layer of chocolate on top of it.....Anyway, it was good!

Yam Taiwan Croissant
Another weird-coloured croissant. Nothing special about this one. I just found the colour strange. That's all!

Original Taiwan Croissant

Address:

台北樹林總店:
台北縣樹林市保安街一段287-6號(樹林分局旁)
Tel: (02)2675-0989
Fax: (02)2683-8875

高雄九如分店:
高雄市三民區九如一路361號
Tel: (07)387-7396

Website: http://www.jiao.com.tw/

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Dim Sum @ Taipan Fins, Northam Hotel

Since it is school holiday now, my friend brought her kids back to Penang for vacation three days ago. To me, little kids are hard to manage, they often run around, screaming, shouting. Therefore, hawker food is totally out from my breakfast's list.

In the end, we decided to go to Northam Hotel for dim sum. Usually having dim sum in such a nice hotel will certainly burn a hole in your pocket, but not at Northam Hotel. You get a 50% discount for the dim sum with Citibank and HSBC card. How can I afford to let go such a great privilege.

[*only on selected dishes]

Northam Hotel was indeed a good choice. Upon arriving, the kids were already playing hide-and-seek at the lobby.

Taipan Fins Restaurant is on the 1st floor of Northam Hotel. You just need to climb some stairs if you are coming in from the main entrance. Of course, you can always use the elevator!


Mini Egg Custard Tarts 迷你鲜蛋挞
These were delicious yet not too oily. A must if you are bringing kids along, these can help to shut their mouth for a few minutes!! :P

Panfried Turnip Cake 腊味萝卜糕
Shouldn't miss turnip cake during "yum cha time". I had been craving for turnip cake weeks ago. I was very happy when these arrived on the table. I gobbled most of them up...haha!

Deepfried Sesame Balls 花生煎堆仔
Hey~don't you think that this small cute-looking balls look like Ferrero Roucher. A must to order too. The filling inside was hot and creamy. Nice!!

Steamed Bacon Rolls with Assorted Meat 蚝皇竹卷

Fish Maw Seafood Rolls 鱼鳔海鲜卷
I don't really like this dish. The fillings in it had a weird taste. I actually wanted to order another dish of Siew Mai but I accidentaly ticked the wrong box and it ended up like this~~~

Rice Flour Rolls with Barbeque Meat 叉烧滑肠粉
This one was not bad. The "skin" is very smooth and slippery. Maybe next time I have to order the rice flour rolls with shrimps. I bet it will be better.

Steamed King Prawn Dumplings 龙皇鲜虾饺
The chef was generous. I found big fresh prawns in the dumplings. Totally worth it~~

Steamed Siew Mai with Crab Rolls 蟹皇蒸烧卖
I will never miss siew mai. I love siew mai a lot. I ordered two dishes of this cause the kids were fighting over these too. Too bad I just managed to get one as they won the fight!

Steamed Fish Balls 爽口滑鱼圆
This dish was actually another thing to keep the small ones under control. Seeing them pocking the fish balls with their chopsticks was something hilarious. When a ball dropped on the floor, they started playing "football" around.

Mixed Barbeque Pork Buns 麻香叉烧包
I recommend their pork buns. The buns were full with barbeque pork and the pork was not as salty and oily as the ones found in coffee shops.

Personally, I think taking dim sum at Northam Hotel is not a really good choice if you don't have Citibank and HSBC card. Make sure you bring either one card along or else you will have to pay for ordinary dishes at a very high price.

Taipan Fins @ Northam Hotel

Address:
55, Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah
10050 Penang.

Tel: 04-370 1111

Fax: 04-370 2222

Email:
northam@po.jaring.my

Website:
http://www.northam-hotel.com.my/

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Wan Ton Mee @ Tai Wah Coffee Shop, Argyll Road

Upon arriving at my friend's office, she decided that she was going to give me a treat on a famous Wan Ton Mee in town. Finally, we ended up at Tai Wah Coffee Shop.


I had been here before, but never had a chance to try out their famous Wan Ton Mee. The owner of the stall told me that everything was sold out before i got a chance to find a car park. Too bad :(

I am having my "revenge" today!

I always love the Wan Ton Mee from the Jelutong market. And I think that this one is quite good. At least, one of the famous ones in town. Any recommendations for delicious Wan Ton Mee in Penang? Please feel free to tell me, as a Wan-Ton-Mee-addict, there will never be full-stop.


This Wan Ton Mee stall is located at Argyll Road, an old brand in Penang. You may find the coffee shop "full house" whenever you arrive. So, it is advisable to arrive there earlier or else you might have to share your table with others or even miss your affair with the Wan Ton Mee.


The making of Wan Ton Mee by the skilfull stall owner.


A glass of hot almond drink


Prickled Green Chili and Sambal
Most Wan Ton Mee were served with prickled green chilies with soy sauce. I was surprised when they served my Wan Ton Mee with sambal. However, I always enjoy the orginal flavour of my Wan Ton.



Wan Ton Mee
Covered with dark soy sauce, big pieces of "Red Char Siew" and huge Wan Ton. The owner of the stall was generous enough to wrap so much minced meat in the Wan Ton, ordinary ones only have a little bit of meat in a big piece of Wan Ton "skin".

By the way, have you tried the Wan Ton Mee at Bangkok Lane? If compare with this Argyll Road Wan Ton Mee, which one do you prefer?
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Minah Restaurant @ Gelugor

As Hari Raya Aidilfitri is just around the corner, I suddenly had the desire of savouring Malay Food. I don't take Malay Food that often, but I have to admit that they are Malaysia's specialties that will certainly quench your desire for delectable dishes.


So, I started my hunt. While driving along Gelugor, my friend's recommendation of Minah Restaurant came into my mind. Without hesitating, I drove and parked my car in front of the restaurant in no time. I thought that I was quite early that day as I could only see a few tables occupied. Soon, I noticed that I was totally wrong, the kitchen of the restaurant was crowded with customers. I was shocked.

Well, I did know that this restaurant was (still is) quite famous at that area, but I never imagined that there would be such an endless stream of customers. The kitchen was full with the aroma of food. Check out what they had~~~


An overcrowded kitchen table full with various kinds of vege, "rempah" and some of their dishes.

Pasembur

Mixed Vege (Sayur campur)

Fried Chicken
Certainly not the KFC style. Fried with different kinds of rempah. Ranks among one of my and the restaurant's list. Tastes a little sour when you take your first bite, you will be looking forward for another piece of this....I am sure!

Fried Ladies' Finger

Gulai Fish
This one really burns your lips, but it tastes extremely good. Must try!

Chicken soup (Sup Ayam)
This might looks a bit oily with the thin layer of oil floating around. Bear in mind, you cannot afford to miss a bowl of this. This is one of their specialties.

Fried Fish (Ikan Goreng)
This reminds me of my grand's homecook fish. They look alike.

Chicken with soy sauce (Ayam masak kicap)

Kerabu + Sambal
Sounds like Thai cuisine to me. Actually, this is a famous Malay kampung (means "village" in Bahasa Melayu) side dish.

Minah Restaurant has been basking in days of the dazzling sunshine and nights of tropical splendour in Penang. This 2nd generation family-run business serves great authentic Malay cuisine which makes it a perfect venue for a family treat.

Minah Restaurant (Restoran Minah)

Address:
362 S & T, Sungei Gelugor,
11700 Penang.

Tel:
04-658 1234

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Sin Kheang Aun @ Chulia Street

Sin Kheang Aun is a famous restaurant in Penang for its delicious Hainanese food and local dishes. Receiving a call from my friends, I drove down to meet them in town. Later, we headed to Sin Kheang Aun for lunch. This was my first visit to Sin Kheang Aun. I have been passing Sin Kheang Aun countless of times for many years, but never had the idea of trying it out.

We arrived at Sin Kheang Aun at noon. The restaurant was crowded with people and we had to wait for some customers to finish their meals before we could get our seats. The weather was rather hot that day, so we requested a standing fan by the side of our table. =]

Since there was only 3 of us, we didn't order much. Well....actually, the food was too much for us. We had to bring doggie bags home~~~

Loh Bak
3 rolls of loh bak, not too little nor too much. We managed to finish this dish. The loh bak tasted quite great except that they did not serve them with "loh" and chilli sauce, I was craving for "loh" desperately that day!

Fried tofu with prawns and leek
I could tell that the chef was very generous. He offered us a lot of big, fresh, juicy prawns.


Curry Pomfret
This is one of the restaurant's specialties. You can find them on nearly every table in that room. Not bad! The curry was "HOT" and the fish was fresh. Both of them will surely open your senses.


Asam Prawn
Another famous dish of Sin Kheang Aun. Juicy prawn but a bit too sour. And one more thing, they were very oily. I found a layer of oil floating around on the plate when we finish gobbling all the prawns.

Overall, I think the food at Sin Kheang Aun was at average level. They tasted like the dishes that I have at home everyday. I was hoping for something special. [Maybe I was too spoiled...haha] The other thing is, better get yourself prepared if you are going to Sin Kheang Aun on a hot day. You will end up soaking in wet T-shirt after your meal!!

Sin Kheang Aun

Address:
2, Lorong Chulia 10200 Penang.

Tel:
04-261 4786

Business Hours:
11am-2.30pm
5pm-8.30pm

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Ferringhi Garden Restaurant @ Batu Ferringhi

A lazy Saturday afternoon, having nothing to do at home, I decided to plan a trip out with my "girlfriends". Haha...we always call ourselves "The Malaysian Version Sex & The City"! Just as we were planning our hangout location, my friend suggested Ferringhi Garden which was not far from her house. She said that they serve great food with great ambience, so we decided to give it a try. I knew the main reason that she recommended this place was it was easier for her to get home after dinner. That was her main point~~~~

This was my first time to Ferringhi Garden, to my surprise, this place turned out to be much more better than I had expected. Words are kinda hard to explain all the joyness that we had from this picturesque restaurant. So, let the pictures tell you everything.

Filled with lots of tropical plants. Sink yourself into Malaysia's tropical rainforest now! It's time to please your eyes~~~

I could not hold back my lust for food for any longer. After I placed my order, I went around shooting photos with my camera. When I got back, the dishes were already served.


Mango juice & Mocha Frappe
The drinks were ordinary. But do you find anything abnormal about this photo? Take a closer look to the glasses. They were SLANT! Unique, right?!


Baked Garoupa


Spicy Snapper


Seafood Pasta WG


Baked Crab M'nay


Garlic bread

The night was getting darker....the atmosphere at night became more and more comfortable. Unquestionable, Ferringhi Garden Restaurant really offers a memorable dining experience.

Ferringhi Garden Restaurant

Address:
34C, Batu Ferringhi,
11100 Penang.

Tel:
04-811 1193

Fax:
04-811 1195

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