Raya Break 2009

Dates: 21 - 22 September 2009, Monday - Tuesday
Venue: Sepang Goldcoast, Chilli's Grill & Bar @ 1 Utama, & Jin Xuan Hong Kong Restaurant @ DJ
Occasion: Raya break chill-out!


Raya Day 2
Aaron was down in KL for a few days, so I decided to show him our nearest-to-KL's West Coast beach i.e. Sepang Goldcoast. No doubt, Sepang Goldcoast is a far cry from the lovely Teluk Cempedak beach back in Kuantan where Aaron grew up. To him, TC, as what Teluk Cempedak is known to the locals, is the benchmark for all the beaches in Peninsular! *lol* I truly can't deny that TC is a beauty :)

We took a slow drive there after brunch (yeah, didn't wake up early just for a beach outing :P) & arrived at Sepang Goldcoast around lunch time. Surprisingly, there were many Chinese families on the beach! The previous time I was there, most of the families were Malays (perhaps the Chinese didn't really know about this place before it was popularized by the government) & the place wasn't really called Sepang Goldcoast yet - it was known as Bagan Lalang. Most Malay families would have "balik kampung" for the Hari Raya celebration as well & would only return to the city after Day 2 or 3 :)

There were loads of small crabs on the beach!

We just spent an hour plus walking on the extremely low-tide 'sea bed', which is more like a 'swamp-bed' since the sand was an entirely even (flat land) stretch, & sitting under the shade of trees at the somewhat crowded beach to enjoy the sea breeze...one could not do much at the beach apart from having a picnic, lazing, making sand castles & flying a kite :P

Aaron & I under the scorching sun at the so-called beach

I was fascinated by these - doggies at the beach! So cute!!

Chilling under the shade of trees

Home was calling out to us & rest was just very much needed after my past few days in S'pore & the few hours at the sunny beach. Dinner, as planned, was at Chilli's Grill & Bar @ 1 Utama Shopping Centre :D *yums* I haven't eaten at Chill's for a long time & it was high time that I dine there this time :) Aaron was looking forward to some good steak for his 1st dining experience at Chilli's (you can't find Chilli's in Kuantan yet...)! We had a nice dinner with Aaron's aunt at Chilli's, though we were quite surprised that the portion of food was rather small (but adequate to keep you full- just nice).

Kickin' Jack Nachos
"Our kicked-up nachos with beans and queso with a hint of seasoned beef with jalapeño Jack cheese and Margarita spice. Served with house-made pico de gallo and sour cream." This tasted a 'lil bit like a thin crust pizza. I found it very tasty :)

Lamb Shank
The lamb was surprisingly tender & doesn't have that strong smell of lamb (what Chinese will call as "sou"). The mash potatoes were quite nice, though it's not the best, & what makes this dish really good was the sauce :)

Honey-Barbecued Ribs
*drools* Tender, juicy ribs, smothered with fragrant BBQ sauce with a touch of honey sweetness. I thought that this was really good, except for the fact that the portion is rather small from what I have expected...

Raya Day 3
Aaron's aunt woke us up a 'lil before 8a.m. She nicely knocked at his room door to wake him up for a dim sum breakfast, but he told her to wake me up first just to check if I'm interested *sweat* I heard the knock on my room door, but thought that I was dreaming. The knock was heard yet another time & this time, I was certain that it wasn't a dream! *lol* With a "morning-look", I opened the door & his bubbly aunt exclaimed, "Let's go for dim sum breakfast!! Come come...wash up & go!"

Being awaken from a nice, slumber sleep was not a very nice feeling. However, to be greeted by a bubbly, much awake aunt makes it just too challenging to decline her offer. Hahahaha...I agreed to her enthusiasm, but went back for a short snooze, with the worry that she will wake me up again...*lol*

We went to http://perutbesi.blogspot.com/2009/02/good-dim-sum-at-damansara-jaya.html for a dim sum meal together with Mike, another friend of our's. The restaurant was as usual packed to the brim & we had to take a number to get our table. Thankfully, the wait wasn't too long :) We had a satisfying breakfast with a table of warm fellowship & laughter ;)

Note: Prices of dim sum that we ordered ranges from RM3.00/serving - RM8.00/serving

Deep-Fried Yam Balls with Shrimp
A rather interesting innovation from the humble yam ball ("wu kok" in Cantonese). One of the nicest dish from our selection of dim sum for the day :)

Steamed Beancurd ("Fu-Chok") Roll with Fish Paste

Steamed Prawn Dumpling ("Ha Kau")
Shrimps were very fresh & has a 'springy' feel!

Steamed Meat Dumplings ("Siu Mai")
Authentic meat & not a "ball of pork fats"

Deep-Fried Prawn Balls with Croutons
Yet another interesting innovation. It's nothing VERY wow in taste, but looks rather appetizing & "kid-friendly"

Fried Brinjal with Fish Paste
Aaron just can't resist brinjals :P

Steamed Fried Beancurd Pockets with Minced Pork & Fish Paste
I didn't eat this dim sum, so I've no idea how it actually tastes

Seaweed Rolls

Deep-Fried Prawn Dumpling/Wantan
It wasn't crispy enough :(

Fried Radish Cake
I'm not sure if the quality is always like this day's but I wouldn't want to order this another time. It was way too oily & the texture of the radish cake was way too soft (too much flour).

Steamed BBQ Pork Pau ("Char Siew Pau")
Quite nice - the pau wasn't too dry, & the char siew tasted just nice; not too sweet, not too salty, not too dry, nor too wet.

Steamed Fish Paste

Steamed 'Dragon Dumplings' ("Xiu Long Bao")
I didn't like this although I like xiu long bao. The skin was too thick, stuck to the corner of the small plate, tore, & out rushed the soup that's supposed to be contained within the thin layer of skin. Fail. Expensive & not nice. I had to eat the skin & the meat separately. *sigh* What a waste.

The Raya break chill-out was certainly a good one. After so many days out of office, I was just too reluctant to drive back to Cyberjaya again for work the next day. Hahaha. Life goes on, & so does its adventures! :D *woots!*


- Ruth