Friday, May 23, 2008

Oriental Spoon At Sooka Sentral

Godma instructed me one morning over breakfast, "get your food blogger friends over to Sooka Sentral to try out Ming Lee's new restaurant". Note, "instructed".

Anyway, being the obedient, filial unofficial godson that I am, who's hoping to get into a wealthy woman's will, I meekly and mildly proceed to carry out that with which I am instructed. After checking with the Empress of the Food Blogging Realm, Lyrical Lemongrass, (who is only less influential than the OTHER Empress, Masak Masak, but she's perpetually busy, unlike Lyrical who doesn't have much of a social life to brag about), and getting a date where she could grace us with her regal presence, I send out an invite to a few others.

The place, Oriental Spoon At Sooka Sentral, but I already said that in the title. Sooka Sentral is a kinda annex to all the office buildings which houses several restaurants, including Zen, Centro, Chilli Expresso, etc etc... and is popular with the office crowds. Owned by the same owners as Bangsar Seafood Village, the cuisine is HALAL, and for lunch, they offer a wide array of dim sum.

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Finally, a date is set, and we were even supposed to be graced with some imports, as some Aussie food blogger was to join us, thanks to Lemongrass, along with two other guests. In the process, the inimitable Jackson Kah, whom I invited, had to be disinvited, as I didn't want the table to be too full, as the old adage goes, less men more share. Alas, it was a no show by the imported blogger, due to some infection or something. Three extra seats..... hmm, a lot more food.

After apologising profusely to the very amiable Boss for the last minute absentees, we start munching on the steamed peanuts, while waiting for the rest of our party to arrive. Nipple Joe and Lemongrass were there, and Unkaleong and I walked in at the same time, me bearing two bottles of the nectar of the gods. Nothing like some plonk to break the ice. Not that there was any ice that needed breaking, we were among familiar company. Godma and daughter, (organiser of the event) showed up shortly after, and for the finale, the grand entrance by the master bakers, Allan and Nigel.

Feeling ravenous, after a recently introduced 10 minute workout, by Unkaleong, I wanted to dig into these gorgeous yam puffs immediately, but I forgot about the shooters with their heavy equipment. In contrast to Organiser's camera, which battery died after one shot. I should mention that the place doesn't usually serve dim sum for dinner, but the Boss made special arrangement for the Dim Sum chef to stay back and give us a generous sampling.

Of course, Mr Put Foot In Mouth, Nipple Joe, said, "Oh, restaurants probably dont serve dim sum at night because not fresh". Boss picked up on it, and smiled sweetly and assured him these were fresh. GUFFAW.


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Gorgeous Yam Puffs

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The interior of the yam puff. The yam was light and fluffy, and the filling was delicious as well.

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The chicken charsiu paus
These were alright. I found it too have too much bread, not enough filling.

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Succulent luscious prawn dumplings, fresh springy prawns.

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Aren't these the cutest black sesame dumplings you have ever met?

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Isn't Henry the Hedgeohog simply adorable!!! How can a person in clear conscience gobble this up?

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The art of eating life forms.



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Glutinous Rice Balls.
I thought these were quite nice, but I was also getting full on all the other stuff, and the rice seemed to take up unnecessary stomach space, especially when we knew there was more to come.

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Fried Radish Cake
Very flavourful, containing something inside that I can't quite put my finger on, but gave it that extra body and texture.

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Lamb Pai Kuat On A Steamed Radish Soup
This was a great hit. Lots of oohing and aahing. A worthy substitute for its porky cousin.

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Prawn Cheong Fun
Silken smooth rice noodle, I thought this dish was excellent. The sauce was perfect, not too salty, and the chilli paste complemented the dish. Again, so smooth it could just slide down your throat.

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Lotus Root Shaped Pastries
This HAS to be MY personal favourite of the night. Light, flaky buttery pastry, that crumbles and melt in your mouth, with a savoury meat filling. Absolutely divine. Just looking at it makes me want to catch the LRT to Sentral right now and take away some. Apparently it's a new creation by the chef, so it might not be on the menu as yet. Saliva dripping.

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Braised Beef Brisket
I love beef brisket, and the flavour of this one was superb, but the brisket could have done with a bit more braising. It was unanimously agreed that this would taste even better the next day.

We thought the dim sum would cause us to explode, when along came the A la Carte food. Their signature starter, Bamboo Fungus Roll, Sotong Ball and Chicken Floss and Venison In Bird's Nest. The bird's nest was also lovely and flaky.

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Fish: Arrrrgh, I can't breathe!!!!
Us: Tough luck!

Deep Fried Garoupa With Flavoured Meat Sauce

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Two Combination Prawns, Lychee Prawns and Prawn Salad
The pairing of lychee and prawn is rather nice. The prawns were fresh and succulent.

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Stir Fried Lotus Root With Celery and Almond Flakes
You can't really go wrong with this dish. I love the glorious array of colors, and the different textures of the vegetables. The rubbery wood ears, the crunch of the lotus root, and the crispiness of the almonds.

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Food Bloggers With Their Large Equipment

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Crab in Salted Egg Yolk
This dish should come with a health warning. The wonderfully rich sauce married with the sweet flesh of the mud crab.....its like romances made in heaven. Eat too much of this, and you might actually end up there. (in heaven....or hell, depending on who you are)

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Durian Puffs, or whatever these are called, purchased by Lemongrass from that Gardens place everyone's been blogging about. In there somewhere, like a booby trap, were one or two that were laced with cempedak instead of durian. It was then I found out what a banana Unkaleong is, he doesn't eat EITHER of our local king and queen of fruits.

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My Homemade Pear and Ginger Upside Down Pudding

This is now my 4th time making this. In my haste, I forgot to add in my glaced ginger, which is a tweaking of the recipe. It's always stressful bringing cake when the baker boys are around, but they were polite with their verdict. Actually made it for godma.

Anyway, it was an enjoyable relaxing night. Faces were a bit sanguine from the Savignon Blancs, and stomachs were full to the brim. Thanks so much to Boss of Oriental Spoon, for having us, and for making Dim Sum chef stay back, and thanks to Jade for organising and putting this together.

Note: Car Parking is also very easy. Although they currently close at 8pm, if you came for dinner at 7.30pm, or make prior reservations, they will stay open for you....apparently.

39 comments:

"Joe" who is constantly craving said...

wahahaha..u knw..i think it has to be a "must" to taste my feet everytime we meet..

yes, agreed the food was good, the company greater and the wine the greatest!..shit so was the cake, durian puffs and equipment?

Precious Pea said...

*BANGING MY HEAD AGAINST THE WALL*

UnkaLeong said...

Hey...I eat bananas :) Was fun meeting Aunty Pat, Jade and Meng Lee. The food was great! Will definitely re-visit with the Family.

jade said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Anonymous said...

=) yes, nice meeting all of u too.
nice photos fbb. especially the yam one. yummy..

-jade-

fatboybakes said...

ooops, paper gal, i repasted your comment omitting my real name. i'm very shy mah, and very low profile blogger, under cloak of anonymity, no one knows who i am. thanks again for org.

unkaleong, hmmph...

precious pea, bengkak or not?

nipples, excuse me, there are prim and proper adults reading this post ya know... HAHAHAH, language boy!

Babe_KL said...

now u made me wanna take the lrt to sentral for the dimsum but then its too late for dimsim haha

hmm joe looked like put on some pounds on his face or it's bcos the pic was taken on his side profile?

Anonymous said...

Considering Nipples has perfected the art of placing feet in open mouths, shouldn't he place Henry the Hedgehog in his mouth feet-first? :P

HairyBerry said...

is it a trend now to eat halal dim sum ar? seems like everyone's going for the babiless version. delectable dishes, nonetheless...where's sooka btw? next to kl sentral?

and dun mind me. i'm just being a sourgrape...hehehe....

Anonymous said...

Wah, so much yummy food. Must try the durian puff next time when I'm back. My kids will run a 100 miles away from me. Should see them when I open a box of frozen D24! Aye, they run out from the house. Do they only sell when durian in season?

Anonymous said...

I feel soooo out of it... Sooka?? Where is it? What kind of name is that??

Nice presentation, esp the lotus root with the leaves and twines. The carvings are whimsical and cute too. And Henry looks like my hamster.

I'm guessing most patrons don't get to bring their own desserts unless they are dining with the boss?

fatboybakes said...

kat, only how many days to go before we re-educate you? isnt henry absolutely adorable. (omigod, it just occured to me, HENRY YEO, if you read this, i wasn't thinking of you when i christened the verdant hedgehog your namesake). eh, kat, in KL usually can bring your own dessert one la. except for DELICIOUS where they charge CAKE-AGE. Outrageous.

myfoodsafari, aiyo, i thought that it runs in the veins of every true blooeded asian, regardless of their caucasian upbringing. you must reprogram their taste buds. durians are ALMOST available fresh all year round these days.

hairy berry, ssssh, i also have an unspoken errr.... aversion is too strong, help me out,... i'm partial to Wilburless dim sum, but living in a country such as ours, i guess some give and take is necessary to make food a unifying factor. and if it doesnt compromise too much on taste, ah what the heck.

kenny, aww, what a cute idea...alas, henry had no feet...

babe, i dunno when you last saw nipple joe, but since i see him every so often, i cant really tell if he has piled the pounds or not. unkaleong, on the other hand, seems to have gone even more anorexic. ah, i really MUST go and have that lotus root shaped pastry again. SO SO GOOD!

msiagirl said...

What! Didn't save a piece of that pear upside down gorgeous-ity for me???

LianneK said...

still have no idea where did sooka place is though. the meals looked lovely as usual, and your photo's looking better too! new camera?

fatboybakes said...

hiya, ms lianne, so many things for you to do before you leave our sunny shores hor. new camera? no la, quite old liao, a cheapo lumix from amazon.com, USD138 only. takes decent macros, but otherwise, quite lousy. nothing compared to those large protrusions that nipples, lemongrass and others carry around. then again, lemongrass who gets 1000 over hits per day, needs to maintain a certain standard i guess.

msiagirl, thankie soo much for the 72% G&B orgasmics...oops, organics. i asked bumble if u ate durian, wanted to make u a small durian cake, but she couldnt reply me.

Rarebeet said...

DAAAANNNNGGGGGGG

I curse my boyfriend who got Indiana Jones tickets at the unsociable hour of 7pm!!! Whyyyyyyy

Love that carving of the leaping mouse. How unusual but also a little unsavoury since it seems to be dancing around the dish. Hmmm. The gravy for the salted egg yolk looks very creamy unlike the usual yummy clumps of egg yolk. Dim sum at night? Nice meh? Can you tell I'm like soooo sour like grapes like that... Harrumph...

JadeD said...

Hi there! Been stalking your blog for a while now, enjoyed your witty postings that made me snigger at inapproriate times in the office :P (oops ... guilty as charged!) Incidentally I passed by Spoon yesterday and wondered if it is any good. Now, thanks to your blog entry, I will definitely go try. btw... linked your blog to our makan blog, if any objections, let me know.

Anonymous said...

jaded, thanks for dropping by. have also linked u, hope no objections. your banner picture is absolutely awesome. glad that can contribute a giggle or two while at office.

paprika, oh well, i guess oriental spoon will always be there, and money CAN buy that moment, whereas, to be at the premier of Indiana Jones with your loved one, now that's something money cant buy. (hahahahah, i almost puke as i write that mush..evil cackle)

Argus Lou said...

Oh, please, please, please say you guys will take me there to eat the har gau, glutinous balls and the rest of the extremely yummy-looking dishes. I'm readying my tum for Aug 23.

"Joe" who is constantly craving said...

hav i really gained weight ar? yes sadly i have..sigh..how m i goin to continue this kinda eating rampage?

Henry Yeo said...

ouch! got a hedgehog with my name on it. You owe me dim sum! (after dim sum, you will be forgiven)

Personalized service, I bet Nipples has yet to receive that special treatment.

Anonymous said...

unspoken cathodic polarity? ;)

yupe, what the heck as long as it tastes good, right? yeah, i was just being aceto balsamico...haha!

will spoon, i mean, check spoon out when i am able to locate sooka. wonder if it's a glamourized "suka", which rhymes with cuka :P..lol!

Kenneth said...

wow! :)

the FOOD looks amazing and will be trying a few of your recipes! :) yummers! i'm still only 1/4 through your blog.

Bernsy said...

with all this kinda foods, how not to gain weight ? I got the answer to it, follow FBB to gym.. hahahaha

Anonymous said...

a bit skeptical on this sooka place though..its like a dead city at night..only good for lunch haha

Anonymous said...

Me wonders how Nipples will response to Henry (not the hedgehog). Heh.

And "eating rampage"? Nipples, you got gamma-rayed and turn into the Incredible Bulk ar?

*runs and hide*

wmw said...

This place is quiet at night. There should be more publicity for the restaurants here in Sooka. Perhaps the operation hours will be lengthen in time when more people patronize this area? Chilling at Centro is nice though without a crowd.

Anonymous said...

Oh gosh your group's frequent gastronomic adventures are really making me consider moving to KL heh. Perhaps now with the cheap air fares to KL, I can visit some of those places that you guys wrote about.

Just Heavenly said...

Hello....where got kind...we were too busy scoffing that cake down le!! It was GOOD...yumm!! hehehe...no worries la...we love eating...and your cakes are GOOD!!! hugs mate.

Simon Seow said...

unkaleong a banana? he only likes KFC Chicken Rice. :P

fatboybakes said...

simon seow, exactly right, KFC is american wat...

nigel, hugs back. awww....(tearing)

sam, is your last post still from january? come la to KL, we'll bring you around. you're malaysian right?

wmw, yeah, the building management needs to do something about attracting a night crowd. any suggestions?

edamame, (i love edamame by the way), checked out your blog, its all in japanese!!!! i cant understand it!!!! hahahaah. thanks for dropping by and thanks for your support.

kenny mah, haha, not everyone is blessed with your svelte physique, so dont laugh at the portly.

kgboycitygal, yup, you're right, its deader than mother teresa at night.

bernsy, hahaha, are you being sarky? i am hardly FF's poster boy for weight loss ya know. i exercise so i can eat without going from OBESE in my BMI to JABBA THE HUTT.

kenneth, welcome here young man. do let us know if you try the recipes and how it turned out.

hairy berry, yup, cathodic polarity to oink free dim sum. oooh, you can go spoon with lemongrass.

henry (not the hedgehog), what personalised service?

nipples, as i said, i wouldnt know since i see you quite regularly.

argus, of course woman, we'll be your food tourist guide. (pointing at lemongrass)

Anonymous said...

Wah u promoting my services ar? Food tourist guide can lar...the spooning is extra charge, btw.

Kenneth said...

FBB! My cousin and aunt know you! OMG! SMALL WORLD!

fatboybakes said...

aiya, kenneth, i just found out you are the famous master baker's cousin. i shy la, you read my puny recipes compared with the glorious creations from heavenly...;) but i'm dying to know who your cousin (i presume you are not referring to nigel, coz that's obvious as day) and aunt are.
and who's ms redd?

lemongrass, what are the rates like? (for the benefit of the general public)....

Kenneth said...

ha ha .... fbb - msredd is my other cousin on my father's side. nigel's on my mom's side. my aunt who knows you is irene ;) ring a bell?

fatboybakes said...

which irene ah? gosh, how mysterious. and how come msredd knows me?

Kenneth said...

irene lim & msredd is her daughter. ;) as small as this world is, i've read my cousin nigel's blog forever, but have yet to meet him in real life. have chatted a little over FB. gawd - we're too dependent on technology! :)

fatboybakes said...

jacskon, you can blame lemongrass for that...and the blogger who FFK .... some more she was supposed to come with two other friends, so that was 3 seats wasted.

Kenneth said...

fbb - the brownies were YUMMY! :D thanks for the simple and concise recipe! :D ha ha ha.

pics on my site. muahahaha