24 Jan 2009
We've got all we wanted and it was time to head back to join the family for the annual reunion dinner before the Lunar New Year. The flight back was uneventful but the light refreshments was quite tasty. The little snack box contained a bottle of water, a sweet bun, roast beef sandwich, and a feta cheese and tomato salad. The salad and sandwich were really well-flavoured, and the portion was rather big considering this is supposed to be a snack box. I wouldn't mind flying with them again... since I still get miles. :D
21 Jan 2009
I think I've come to really like the food at Benhil as the food there has not disappointed me. This time we were craving seafood and I thought of trying the food from the business that operated just beside the street (maybe the fumes from the exhaust adds a unique flavour?). When mom was here with me the last time, we tried the food from the restaurant just beside this, and I was considering popping in for some of their Otak. However, at this location, once you take a seat, a plate of Otak arrives with some of their special dipping sauce. These weren't as peppery as the restaurant's, but it made me just as happy.
Another plus point to this location is the live entertainment they have. We were just in time to sit down for our dinner and enjoy their music, playing for any tips. Judging by the amount of tips they get, they're really appreciated at the place, even if you can't really hear them too well over the chatter.
Dinner this time was barbecue fish, deep fried squid, sambal prawns and chap chye. Accompanied by their fresh chilli dip and sambal, it was just simply satisfying.
Another plus point to this location is the live entertainment they have. We were just in time to sit down for our dinner and enjoy their music, playing for any tips. Judging by the amount of tips they get, they're really appreciated at the place, even if you can't really hear them too well over the chatter.
Dinner this time was barbecue fish, deep fried squid, sambal prawns and chap chye. Accompanied by their fresh chilli dip and sambal, it was just simply satisfying.
20 Jan 2009
Another place we found on the internet was the Museum Tekstile which holds classes for the one thing we were really hoping to do while in Indonesia, Batik. Since it isn't open on Mondays, we opted for the next best day, Tuesday of course! Starting the day slightly later than planned, we decided to have lunch at the restaurant just below the apartments.
Imp had to go for Ayam Penyet, while I opted for noodles instead. I wouldn't say that the food there is the best when you have really good stuff for less than $2 on the street, but if you aren't adventurous or just can't afford to ruin you holiday, then this place could be a good choice.
Once we finally got our bellies full, we got a cab to take us to the museum, which was a chore, since the driver didn't seem to know where the place was. After rounding the city centre a few times, we finally got to the museum and paid to take a look inside. Seriously, unless you're really nuts over fabrics, I don't see a point in going into the museum as almost everything is in Bahasa Indonesia, and there isn't much to look at. Just tell the guy at the counter that you want to learn to do some Batik, choose the size of the masterpiece you're about to create, then pay for it and head to the last building to get waxing.
Once in the little Batik school, you're told to choose a design, copy it onto the fabric, and then they'll show you how to start applying the wax layer with all the technical details. Well, it's not really that hard, all you have to do is keep your wax flowing, and your canting (that wax filled pen-like instrument) at a 45 degree angle. Easy peasy, until you actually start doing it and make big giant drops on your cloth!
So once you've done both sides of the cloth and added in all the details, you hand your masterpiece too the guy who will magically turn your plain white cloth into a really beautiful colour of your choice (though limited), and the wax layer just stands out looking like gold. He then boils the cloth to remove the wax and it should then be dried.
We didn't have the time to allow it to dry at the museum and just brought it back to the apartment. With the cloth being so thing and small, it dried by the time we returned from dinner.
Imp had to go for Ayam Penyet, while I opted for noodles instead. I wouldn't say that the food there is the best when you have really good stuff for less than $2 on the street, but if you aren't adventurous or just can't afford to ruin you holiday, then this place could be a good choice.
Once we finally got our bellies full, we got a cab to take us to the museum, which was a chore, since the driver didn't seem to know where the place was. After rounding the city centre a few times, we finally got to the museum and paid to take a look inside. Seriously, unless you're really nuts over fabrics, I don't see a point in going into the museum as almost everything is in Bahasa Indonesia, and there isn't much to look at. Just tell the guy at the counter that you want to learn to do some Batik, choose the size of the masterpiece you're about to create, then pay for it and head to the last building to get waxing.
Once in the little Batik school, you're told to choose a design, copy it onto the fabric, and then they'll show you how to start applying the wax layer with all the technical details. Well, it's not really that hard, all you have to do is keep your wax flowing, and your canting (that wax filled pen-like instrument) at a 45 degree angle. Easy peasy, until you actually start doing it and make big giant drops on your cloth!
So once you've done both sides of the cloth and added in all the details, you hand your masterpiece too the guy who will magically turn your plain white cloth into a really beautiful colour of your choice (though limited), and the wax layer just stands out looking like gold. He then boils the cloth to remove the wax and it should then be dried.
My Monster Looks Like It's Salivating
We didn't have the time to allow it to dry at the museum and just brought it back to the apartment. With the cloth being so thing and small, it dried by the time we returned from dinner.
19 Jan 2009
Since dad had to work, and we didn't really feel like going anywhere, we decided to take a dip in the pool. Imp tried to get a tan, but with the clouds blocking out her precious rays, she finally gave up after an hour. But just before she jumped in, we decided to order a few cocktails and some chicken wings to get our mini pool party started.
Later when dad got off work, and we got back to our less prune-like figures, dad brought us to another restaurant called Tiga-Nonya. Again, as the name suggests, the place serves up Nonya, or Peranakan, food, albeit with a dash of Indonesian influence. One of my must-haves when it comes to Peranakan dishes is the Ayam Buah Keluak, and since the buah keluak is actually called the Indonesian Black Nut, I'd think that they'd know how to use it, wouldn't you?
So other than the Ayam Buah Keluak, we got Assam fish, Chap Chye, Otak Otak, crab cakes, and Udang Nanas to go with plain rice. The Otak Otak was one dish that was totally different from the kind I'm used to, a lot less spicier, much more chewy, and it comes with a peanut dipping sauce. A little like the one I've tried before at Bandhill, but with a lot more similarity in spices to the local version. Somehow, almost all the snacks and appetisers seem to come with their special peanut sauce, but if you're willing to try something new, you'll just open up your mind to a lot more food fireworks (as Remy put it in Ratatouille).
Finally, we opted to try two of their desserts, and got another one of their lovely drinks to end the meal. If you ever come here, try the drinks. Just read what each one is good for, and let your mind tell you which one you'll need. They did warn me that one of them was spicey, but I think it was exactly what I needed and made the meal that much better.
Later when dad got off work, and we got back to our less prune-like figures, dad brought us to another restaurant called Tiga-Nonya. Again, as the name suggests, the place serves up Nonya, or Peranakan, food, albeit with a dash of Indonesian influence. One of my must-haves when it comes to Peranakan dishes is the Ayam Buah Keluak, and since the buah keluak is actually called the Indonesian Black Nut, I'd think that they'd know how to use it, wouldn't you?
So other than the Ayam Buah Keluak, we got Assam fish, Chap Chye, Otak Otak, crab cakes, and Udang Nanas to go with plain rice. The Otak Otak was one dish that was totally different from the kind I'm used to, a lot less spicier, much more chewy, and it comes with a peanut dipping sauce. A little like the one I've tried before at Bandhill, but with a lot more similarity in spices to the local version. Somehow, almost all the snacks and appetisers seem to come with their special peanut sauce, but if you're willing to try something new, you'll just open up your mind to a lot more food fireworks (as Remy put it in Ratatouille).
Finally, we opted to try two of their desserts, and got another one of their lovely drinks to end the meal. If you ever come here, try the drinks. Just read what each one is good for, and let your mind tell you which one you'll need. They did warn me that one of them was spicey, but I think it was exactly what I needed and made the meal that much better.
BURP!
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