Motormouth From Ipoh – Asian Food & Travel Blog

A bountiful serving of Surprise Me Regular Salad with simple green + 8 choice toppings + 2 premium toppings (cashew nut was one of them) for MYR15.00

It could be our culture or how we were brought up believing that salads are appetizers and can never be a proper replacement for a satisfying, protein and carb-laden feast. Hence, we found ourselves at the constant mercy of nasi lemak mak cik’s, nasi kandar sellers and occasionally, succumbing to temptation (and to some extent, convenience) of fast food outlets whenever we want a quick lunch within walking distance from the office.

Salad bars were almost unheard of in the Klang Valley, let alone in Ipoh. But few years back, I was introduced to The Salad Bar in Damansara Uptown, a daring plea to change the way the corporate lunch crowd think and do something about healthy eating.

It was going in the right direction, where the place was not only packed during lunch, but still see a healthy (pardon the pun) dinner crowd on weekdays. Although there’s a change in the management team behind the brand (the previous owners sold the business off, in pursuing different goals in life possibly … but they did make an impression with TSB, no less), traffic was still healthy the last I checked.

With more than 40 items available at the salad counter, it will be good to name the ingredients to speed up the process

Now, let’s move closer to Ipoh. Although salads have been featured as starters in almost all of the Western eateries (rarely beyond the Caesar or Nicoise varieties), there has not been a dedicated salad bar until recently. Basileou Salad is located in Greentown Business Centre, pretty strategic and easy to find (same row as Astro service centre), focusing on healthy eating and sustainable lifestyle, with fair trade coffee offered in the mix. Read the rest of this entry »

Thumb’s Cafe – A refurbished premise in the compound of Kompleks Badan Khidmat Islam Perak (BAKIP), this building used to the hostel for the orphanage under BAKIP.

It’s not easy finding a Halal cafe for hangout with Muslim friends in Ipoh. There are several pork-free joints in town, no doubt, yet one that’s operated by a Muslim is almost non-existent. Thanks to some heads-up from a reader; I came to the knowledge of a few new outlets in Ipoh; and Thumb’s Cafe in Greentown being one of those.

Benefiting from the owner, Elias Yahaya’s extensive travel experience over the last decade during his stint in the tourism industry, Thumb’s Cafe has become one exciting marriage of traditional Malay cuisine with modern Western fares. And this was also evident in the ambience of the cafe; imagine a bar top (that serves NO alcohol, of course) at one corner complete with high stools and a barista churning out frothy ‘teh tarik’, and plush settee with colourful cushions set against a backdrop of nostalgic window panes and curtains ala ‘kampung’ style.

In short, this could be a photographer’s dream come true. Read on to discover more about this rustic cafe housed in the middle of a bustling business district.  Read the rest of this entry »

Tandoor Grill @ Greentown, Ipoh – A mega structure of a restaurant redefining North Indian cuisine in Ipoh

Almost two months in business now, Tandoor Grill has trail-blazed the Ipoh F&B scene & setting wagging tongues on fire; appeasing the ever-demanding appetites for a taste of real North Indian cuisine. The restaurant occupies the spacious lot in Greentown, Ipoh; directly opposite of MP Steamboat.

The Nine Elephants from Thailand welcoming you as you walk into the elegantly-designed restaurant

One thing I can attest to, aside from the delicious spread of North Indian cuisine is that the ambience at Tandoor Grill was a startling contrast to what I imagined it would be from the external facade. In a very positive way, I might add. Especially the design of the private dining rooms, and the overall elegance of the dining environment.

Read on to discover more about Tandoor Grill …. Read the rest of this entry »

Gossip Jazz’s “The Best Sang Har Mein” (RM25/USD8) (no, it’s really named as such) comprises of deep fried wantan noodles (egg noodles) and two large freshwater prawns.

Have you heard of this new place named Gossip Jazz in Greentown? A wine bar coming to life with live jazz performances every Thursday to Saturday night, and relaxing jazz and blues music playing over the background at other times.

Psst. Let me drop you another hint; they don’t joke when they claim that their Sang Har Mein (Freshwater Prawn Noodles) is the best in town.

Read the rest of this entry »

If you’re one who have not heard of Snowflakes before, then you have my deepest sympathy.

Either the rock you’ve been under had been so sturdy and ginormous it kept you from the shrills, thrills and chills of the famous Taiwanese dessert specialist over in the Klang Valley, OR you hate anything with shaved ice.

Or you lost your sweet tooth when you went pass adolescence.

Pity, pity soul.

But wait, lest you thought this Motormouth suffered another bout of raging confusion at work today, the title DID read SnowDREAM. Not Snowflakes.

Huh?! What gives?  Read the rest of this entry »

Tiger Prawns Aglio-Olio (RM38/USD13) featuring four gargantuan tiger prawns pan-fried to an irresistible crunch; served on top of a bed of pretty sloppy serving of pasta cooked in either carbonara, aglio-olio or tomato concasse (if I am not mistaken) sauce. 

The weather’s burning hot. And we’re still supposed to do 10,000 steps a day. I can’t imagine how our counterparts over in the other countries could manage 20k on a daily basis. That, or they could be plain cheating.

No, not a sore loser … just growing green with envy. I guess we might be able draft a foolproof gameplan of reaching those kind of mileage IF we are not tasked to sit through ordeals of endless meetings all day.

And it doesn’t help that the notebook’s running at an incredibly slow rate today; possibly already in its terminal stage of critical illness; after a good 6 years (!) of surviving the relentless assault. Especially the past 4 years when this foodie/blogger with a penchant for eating on a reckless/continuous basis kept on tapping nonchalantly on the keyboard on an everyday basis.

Read the rest of this entry »

Organic Pork Spare Ribs (RM36/USD12) @ Healy Mac’s, Greentown Ipoh – A stack of tender spare ribs falling off the bones; lightly basked in a sweetish marinade infused with the goodness of … Guinness.

Barely two weeks in operation, and rumour has it that Healy Mac’s in Greentown has taken over Berlin’s Bier Houz as THE watering hole of choice within the vicinity; possibly only second to the equally new Overtime on Brewster Road. If you’re getting a faint inkling of ‘just-another-fad’, I don’t blame you though. I had the same thought; what more with Airport @ De Garden closing down late last year, and pubs in Ipoh Garden East closing and new ones opening like how cineplexes rotate their movies.

But wait a minute. The name Healy Mac’s may sound unfamiliar, but the Irish bar and restaurant can boast of the legacy traced back to their roots in Ireland (story here); setting foot in Kuala Lumpur back in 2009 and now with outlets in Klang Valley, Penang and Perak. Read the rest of this entry »