Ti Chen Saujana Golf & Country Club
After years as one of the premiere Sze Chuan and Cantonese restaurants in Kuala Lumpur,TiChenhas been closed for several weeks whilst the restaurant has undertaken a newfaceliftproject.
Located at theSaujana Golf & Country Club (the right turning before The Saujana Hotels main entrance) I must admit I have never heard of Ti Chen.
I was more familiar with The Restaurant, as there were some online coverage on blogs and my virginal visit to The Restaurant was just a few months back.
Then I have been to Senja on several occasions for events and launches. And I have heard of Kogetsu Japanese Restaurant. But Ti Chen? This was an absolute first.
Ti Chen reopened last week just in time for the Chinese New Year. I hopped in, lou-ed yee sang with luscious slices of salmon and had an overview of the Chefs prowess in Cantonese cuisine.
The requisite shark-fin soup was served right after our yee sang. Nor too thick or t! hin in c onsistency, this was well prepared. However, my preferance will always be for double-boiled soups; clear comsomme, easy to digest and healthier too.
Delightful crackly skin; yes that was the highlight of this fowl dish.
Deep Fried Prawns and Steamed Fish. Both seafood dishes were fresh and needed little work. The Chef has obviously chosen to stick to simple traditional methods of cooking. The seasoning was well absorbed and flavoured the prawns adequately. The fish was cooked to the right degree, retaining its soft flesh and flavour.
The greens. More sea cucumber, broccoli, black moss and dried oysters. I swear every set menu I have sampled so far in every restaurant and hotel this year served me this. Can there be no better alternative for the vege dish?
Well, the answer is no. Black moss, sea cucumber and dried oysters representauspicious symbolism to the Chinese New Year and thus is considered mandatory to complete the meal.
Glutinous Rice in Lotus Leaf. Soft, mushy and fragrant.
Simple sweet ending to the meal. Mochi filled with red bean paste.
Ti Chen: Ambiance and its interior after the renovation. Rich colours and oozes Chinese opulence.
Ti Chen
The Saujana Golf & Country Club (the right turning before The Saujana Hotels main entrance)
T: (603) 7843 1234 ext. 6031 F: (603) 7846 3008
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SekMeChoy
This no-frills eatery in Salak South is dishing out decent deals for the Chinese New Year season, feeding congregations of ten for RM324 nett (without tea).
Reserve a slot in SekMeChoy's air-conditioned section (which has as few as five tables _ less than a quarter of the outlet's capacity) & raise your chopsticks for the salmon-jellyfish yee sang.
SekMeChoy's signature bak kut teh is the centerpiece of this set, with refillable hot broth. Distinctively peppery, awash with plenty of meaty-fatty pork belly & tail & bouncy intestines.
Spicy steamed tilapia, fleshy & flaky, with tangy tomatoes, stinging cili padi & crunchy shallots.
Pork shank with dried oysters & mushrooms. Deliciously emblematic of ingredient-driven Oriental cooking, tha! nks to m eat & accompaniments braised to sumptuous succulence.
Prawns served cold with pineapple salad. Gorgeously presented & relatively healthy, but not the most pleasurable crustacean preparation. Steam them with rice wine or stir-fry them instead.
Pak choy with fish maw. Nothing wrong with this, but it probably won't be remembered by the time the Year of the Snake slithers in.
Bean curd skin with broccoli & cauliflower. Also more of a stomach-filler than a scene-stealer.
Lotus leaf fried rice with waxed sausages. Well-prepared, though the sausages are not as perfumed as the most intoxicating ones out there.
Lemongrass-laced jelly with lychee. A tropical herbal twist to the standard chilled dessert. Potentially an acquired taste, but! refresh ing all the same.
SekMeChoy,
195, Jalan Besar, Salak Selatan, Kuala Lumpur.
Tel: 03-7982-3132
From The Etymologicon
Not having given it that much contemplation I always assumed that Marvin Gaye was walking through a vineyard for his 1968 song. But apparently not. And, while I was aware that the word alcohol was Arabic in origin, I didnt know it was a kind of make-up al kuhul. As kohl is an extract and a dye, alcohol began to mean the pure essence of anything (the alcohol of an asss spleen anyone?) and only from the 1750s did (wine) alcohol become what it means today. Just two snippets from the amazing The Etymologicon that now resides in my Kindle ap.
Elsewhere there is also a superb explanation of why George Washingtons plantation is named after British Admiral Edward Vernon, who, incidentally led a 1739 British assault on Porto Bello in Panama and how, to the west of London a farm was named in honour of the attacks success. The road to the, long vanished farm, is now home to Portobello antiques market. Old Vernons nickname (from his thick coat made from grogram) also came to mean the watered down rum he served to the seamen (grog) and lent, eventually, to how alcohol makes you groggy. I mean, you just got to love this stuff!
To avoid being groggy perhaps make today and tomorrow a non-drink day. For these, according to the latest edition of When Wine Tastes Best (a biodynamic calendar for wine drinkers), these are Root days and not good for wine tasting. Not good also, for celebrating todays Chinese New Year although Burns night on the 25th is a Flower day they thus recommend substituting wine for the traditional whisky!
Vodka, whisky [aqua vitae water of life], aquavit, balderdash [wine mixed with beer or water that could be sold cheap] and rum are just enough to make the sort of punch that will knock you out. Only just, mind you, because punch comes from the Hindi word for five: panch. Thats because, technically, a punch should contain five different ingredients: spiri! ts, wate r, lemon juice, sugar and spice. Thats also the reason that the area of India that contains five rivers is called the Punjab
The Etymologicon: A Circular Stroll through the Hidden Connections of the English Language is available in book form from Amazon for 7.99 and as a Kindle download for 1.99.
The booklet When Wine Tastes Best: 2012 is available from Amazon for 2.99.
Spittoon.biz - A UK Wine Blog - We Spit... So You Can Swallow
The All-New Toyota Avanza is officially launched!
A friend of mine (Nigel aka flyguy) drove a Toyota Avanza. Knowing his boisterous ways & highly opinated self, I would have heard all about the car on FB, twitter or his blog if the Avanza was problematic.
The fact that I have yet to hear any complains must have meant something. 
2 weeks back UMW Toyota Motor unveiled the all new Toyota Avanza, the 2nd generation of the popular 7 seater MPV.
Improved and refined in numerous areas, the all new Toyota Avanza isretains the practical, yet familiar design of a small MPV.
Exterior -wise it looked much sleeker, probably due to the curvier lines on the body. The older Avanza was boxier to me.
Yes, there was a pronounced rounded corners at both the front and back for this model. The trunk however, is stil! l wide a nd squarish but functional.
Inside, I would say its spacious, comfortable and functional. As how a MPV should be.
As expected, the back row could be folded down for expanded space.
The all new Toyota Avanza also comes with a selection of recommended accessories that include reverse sensors, body stripes, luggage tray, bag hook, emergency kit and scuff plates on the door sills. Customers can also order their vehicles with a sporty aerokit and standard solar film.
The dashboard.
Not as complicated as some cars I have seen within the same week/day (Check out my BMW/Volvo/Jaguar/Honda Insight posts). 
Below: The engine and the car doors.
And of course, I sat in the drivers seat to get a feel of MPV.
Hhhmm.. apparently the New Avanza has better fuel consumption capabilities too. Well, this can only be put into test during an actual drive.
The new Avanza is available in 4 variants with the following OTR prices in Peninsular Malaysia:
Toyota Avanza 1.5S Automatic RM 79,590
Toyota Avanza 1.5G Automatic RM 77,290
Toyota Avanza 1.5E Automatic RM 72,590
Toyota Avanza 1.3E Manual RM 64,590
All vehicles come with three years or 100,000 kilometer warranty, whichever comes first.
Since it was open for booking in early December 2011, UMW Toyota Motor has received more than 710 orders and Toyota has set a target of selling 8,800 units of the MPV this year.Currently the all new Toyota Avanza is available at all Toyota showrooms throughout Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak .
From left: En.Ismet Suki, Mr Takashi Hibi, Mr Kaoru Hosokawa at the launch.
I ddnt walk away with an Avanza but I got a Toyota key nonetheless! Im adding this to my expanding collection of thumbdrives! Thanks Toyota! 
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