Rakshee @ Kota Damansara

Last week, we visited Rakshee after the better half had heard about it through a review. This is the first place I know of in town to serve bakso (which is a type of Indonesian meatball) and we'd never tried it before so we figured we could give it a try.

Rakshee

The dishes must have been prepared much earlier as they plated barely five minutes after we'd ordered and sat down. 

Pasta Carbonara (RM11.90)

The Pasta Carbonara was only okay. It wasn't exactly the most flavourful carbonara out there but for that price, I guess it's passable.

Lasagna (RM16.90)

The Lasagna was filled with plenty of minced beef but was a tad salty and the ton of cheese on top was a little overwhelming. Again, I've definitely had better.

Bakso Nuggets (RM10.90)

The Bakso Nuggets was the highlight of the night. Crisp and crunchy on the outside, nice and chewy on the inside, these nuggets were yummy especially with the chilli and cheese dips!

Bakso Soup (RM1.90)

Somehow, the first three dishes weren't enough to fill our tummies so we decided to try the Bakso Soup, which we'd seen a couple have at least six bowls of. This bowl comes with two bakso balls and some glass noodles. The soup was tasty but didn't really have the oomph factor. 

I can't say the food here's amazing but it isn't all bad given the reasonable prices. If you're one for meatballs then a try wouldn't hurt.

Where:

13G, The Strand,

Jalan PJU 5/20A,

Kota Damansara

Jay Fai @ Bangkok

Bangkok has always been a haven of shopping and food, and on every trip we'd frequent the restaurants my uncle discovered when he was based there years ago. This year, we went back to this restaurant we first visited last year but did not have the stomach space to really enjoy the dishes to the fullest.

Named after the chef, Jay Fai is a one-woman (rather, grandmother) show with an elderly lady at the helm of the woks. Everything here is cooked over charcoal, which adds even more zing to the dishes. Jay Fai wears goggles to shield her eyes from the smoke, first time I've seen this on a chef!

Jay Fai whipping up the famous crab omelette over charcoal fire.

We were clever this time, ordering the bare minimum of dishes to savour every bit of flavour. Of course, the Crab Omelette was a must.

Jay Fai's famous Crab Omelette.

Swimming in a pool of oil, the omelette was superbly done with a perfectly crisp outer layer wrapping a generous amount of fresh and thick crab pieces. Two thumbs up!!

At 1000 Baht, this omelette doesn't come cheap but it's worth every penny.

Then, there's the Glass Noodles with Prawns in a claypot. I cannot tell you how tasty this was. The flavour was beyond imagination, and the huge prawns were extremely fresh, juicy and succulent.

Glass noodles with prawns.

Finally, the Drunken Noodles aka Fried Kuey Teow with Seafood. This dish was excellent on so many levels. First of all, the kuey teow was cooked al dente. Second, it was mixed with prawns, squid and crab - all so very fresh and well cooked. Lastly, this was all very well complemented by the secret mix of Jay Fai's sauces. If there was a food heaven, this dish would most definitely make the cut. 

Why is it called drunken noodles though? Well, they say that one day a man who's had quite a few drinks visited a hawker in the wee hours of the morning, looking for food. So, they whipped up this dish with the available ingredients.

Drunken Noodles.

The menu here is in both Thai and English so it's easily accessible for tourists. Even Martha Stewart is a fan!

Jay Fai with Martha Stewart.

If you're ever in Bangkok, do try this place out. Highly recommended! Plus your taste buds will thank you.

Where:
327 Maha Chai Rd,
Khwaeng Samran Rat,
Khet Phra Nakhon,
Krung Thep Maha Nakhon,
10200 Thailand.