Catching up with friends is great. Catching up with busy friends is Great!!

For the first time in months I was able to have a sit down dinner with a couple friend and Robert met them for the first time.
My girlfriend is Japanese and her husband is American. Robert is Dutch so it was quite an international night.

We gathered at our favourite Japanese restaurant in Desa Sri hartamas called Rakuzen where my friend works as a head chef.
He is such a sweet man and so he decided to put the boys on test.

Hardcore Japanese night indeed.

We ordered omakase, which is a chef’s recommendation. We leave it totally up to him and he serves whatever is freshest and in season.

What we had was:
Mizuna and Salmon roe salad
Sashimi platter
Ankimo (Monkfish Liver pate)
Shirako (fish testis) Gratin
Grilled Hatahata (Sailfin sandsifh)
Loads of sushi and LOADS of SAKE

Yes, it is full of fish. And most of them very rare that even in Japan they are hard to come by.
I guess it is not hard to imagine that we had to do a bit of persuation to get the boys to eat, especially the fish testis.
But how, they loved it! I think the gratin did the job. It is difficult to ignore the allure of creamy sauce and crunchy cheese melted on top.
Since Robert loved it so much, I thought I could get him to eat something that he is not so fond of: Oysters.
This recipe is so simple as well that one could cook after work or house chores.

So I had;

200g of Penne (for 2 people)
Tin of smoked Oysters
Large Onion, halved and sliced, separated
Aubergine, sliced
Milk
Flour
Parsley
Parmesan and Mozzarella cheese, or any kind
Coriander, black pepper and salt to taste

I put half of onion and aubergine into the oven after drizzling some oil from the oyster tin and let them grill for about 30 minutes, while cooking the pasta and making the white sauce. When the pasta is cooked, I place the other half of onion on the bottom of the strainer so onion could be steamed by the pasta water. I made the white sauce without butter because Christmas is coming do I have to watch my weight. Simple heat the milk, off the heat and mix the flour into it. at the end, throw some parsley and coriander, black pepper and salt in. When that was done, I combined the sauce and the pasta and tumbled them on the grilled vegetables. Then place the smoked oysters on top, grate generous amount of cheeses and Grill it for 20-30 minutes.

This was exceptionally good and as a result, we had to fight for oysters. I learnt something today. Sometimes it is good to like something the partner dislikes to maintain harmony. I hope he still thinks fresh oysters are yucky.

Pinnacle of fine dining I think is fusion French and fusion Japanese. But often these are quite similar.
I am not so good at enjoying rich, cream-full dishes but I do not have to worry about that with fusion French.

Today, Robert decided to surprise me with the restaurant we have never been. It is The Third Room at Marriott Hotel Kuala Lumpur.
I have been here for business dinner but needless to say, that is different from having a romantic dinner with your partner.

Since we are in a place new, we decided to try a new wine. Chateau Labecorce Marcoux.

What I thought was interesting this night was that many things were new to us. I have never had creamy scallop. It was fluffy and creamy and gorgeous, but certainly recreatable at home. I suspect it’s a simple blended scallops with beaten yoke and well mixed fresh creme. Wonderful castle of tongue melting dreams.

Yes, the season has come, the truffle.
On this petite risotto is the generously sprinkled truffle, making a quick but tight friendship with our liquid counterpart.
Some may say it’s strange but I am crazy about black pepper. Only the fresh, strong one will do the job, and I like to always overdo with it a bit.
Black pepper here was excellent. I would like to come back to this restaurant just because of this.

I told you in the beginning that fusion French and Japanese have some similarities. Well, after all, that is why they are fusion.
On top of this huge slice of Salmon is the popular and old school thing called Yukari, which is a dried Perilla frutescens or Shiso. As a kid I used to sprinkle this on rice. I wonder how the French found this really old school thing that even most of us Japanese forgot, but this sweet-sour basil-like herb on fatty salmon is a smart combination, I got to say.

The main course of the day was Cod, but it was so good that we swallowed it before I could reach to the camera, so I took a shot of these gorgeous chocolate cake with chocolate ice cream. How rich. I really prefer to look at them than eat it.

I know that I should stay up for at least 3 hours or even 4 hours for heavy meal like this, but after having almost all of the wine to myself, Robert had to carry me home…

Robert and I both love crustacean and thank God, we always somehow crave for it at the same time.

You should never eat crabs just with your partner, not because you want to deviate attention and hide your unsightly greasy fingers, but simply because you want to order many dishes!

We have a perfect friend for this so we grabbed him and off we go to the infamous crab joint Fatty Crab.

I would normally run away from fried chicken but the waiter said that they are exceptionally good so we decided to skip the calorie count and ordered it as an appetizer.

Appearance aside, they are actually really good. Underneath crunchy skin is the tender tender meat. Quite addictive.

Then we have the crabs with chili and Satay. Crabs were tiny but wonderfully succulent. Its kicking flavours encourages you to have another sip of beer. They are the golden complementary products of all. Satay is chicken or beef skewers, very Malaysian and much loved locally and globally (except by me, they are horrendously greasy for my liking). You have to try the peanut sauce (left on pic) and rice cake (next to Satay) that come with it though.  extraordinary flavour, extraordinary texture.

Then there is the prawns. Actually I did not really enjoy the vibe at this restaurant as they have very limited selection (with no vegetables at all) and snobbish attitude, but these prawns absolutely blew my mind. I believe they are simply deep-fried prawns but  there is something about the oil… possibly something addictive. We had to order another one.

I have to say this restaurant is very unique (especially with the attitude). No vegetable, no fruits and no alcoholic beverage apart from beer. But most striking thing to me was that they serve toasts with the crabs! I didn’t buy the idea at first but one should try before she speaks; it was awesome.

When I asked the boys to decorate the table for a photo, they thought it would be a nice idea to brighten it up with bread.

……. You be the judge…

I do not work on Fridays.

This statement sometimes ends up being a wishful one rather than a declaration, but I truly believe that the luxury of time contributes to our quality of life hugely, so I try to do some serious lazing around. I encourage Robert to do the same but he is glued to the laptop. But oh my, wouldn’t you prefer to fall asleep with this warm fluffy thing on your tummy instead of working your butt off wishing it was Saturday already?

When I have time, I love to spend time in the kitchen but we have a big weekend ahead of us so I decided to eat lazy as well. Loads of leafy lettuce and two kinds of ham sandwich. If all of these ingredients are fresh, I guarantee you that it tastes ridiculously good.

The crunchy crispy lettuce is so addictive and there is nothing more peaceful than soft, fresh bread. It is extremely simple and restoring.

I wonder why life has become so complicated as I grew up. I had no worries when I was in University and uncertainty was a thrill, not an anxiety.
Sitting on the couch munching the sandwich I was proud of myself for taking this Friday easy.
Also, I am so blessed I have come to this realisation and I am even happier that I attain this realisation through a simple sandwich.

In contrast to light and lazy lunch, we decided to go to the country of hospitality for dinner; Thailand.

Of course we did not fly to Thailand and we did not even go out to Thai restaurant… We just went downstairs since there is a nice Thai joint downstairs in the mall.

I am so  lucky that Robert, although we come from different continents, have very compatible palettes. He loves vegetables, Sashimi, crustaceans and spicy food and he hardly ever eats meat. He must be a boy made in heaven.

Since the sandwich was very soft and mellow, I wantedintensity of heat. And I wanted to eat big. So Tom Yam Soup with Vermicelli works best.

And of course,  one could not resist refreshing Thai coconuts and crab fried rice…

Tomorrow I will try making something new; Samosas. I have a big preparation ahead of me so we have to snuggle up in bed now…

There are two things I would like to thank at this moment.

First is my healthy body, thanks to my parents. Second one is my taste butts, which goes back to the first one as well.

They both give me great appetite, sometimes so big it seems I never replete and this is why I am called ‘the food monster’.

I am thankful because I grew up to really believe soy and celery taste the best, not chips and mayonnaise.

But not every one agrees what I eat are healthy, some may even be put off by the things I put in my mouth, such as ‘Natto’, the good old fermented soy beans!

It’s awfully good for you because nattokinase in Natto prevents blood clotting which causes all sorts of horrifying diseases like heart attack and brain tumour. Also rich in it is Vitamin K. Vitamin K helps formulate calcium in your body. so in a nutshell, it’s critical to people’s health, young and old.

I have tried to convince Robert with this argument at many occasions but so far no luck.

It’s the smell! and it’s stringy and sticky! definitely not the prettiest sight.

Typically Natto is consumed with some cut spring onion, although in truth you are much better off eating it with finely chopped onion as that boosts the blood unclotting effect. But at restaurant where things are presented more fancy, you get it like this.

So there is some diced Maguro (Tuna), Seaweed and Quail egg. Tuna is a good choice as it gets rid of fatigues.

Most importantly, the rule of thumb is the more you stir the healthier is it for you. you should, if you have the time, stir and leave it in the fridge for 15 minutes, or even over night.

Now, enough about Natto, I believe that whatever one’s belief or religious or dietary reasons may be, one should eat what they bloody well want.

I like Japanese food the best. I like all kinds of food but this one is by far my choice.

At newly opened Pavillion, there are a few Japanese restaurant but skeptic me says “go safe” so we knocked the door of Kampachi, one of the oldest Japanese restaurants in Malaysia. The first one that I know of is in Equatorial Hotel in KL and was one of the few restaurants that has always been good.

I particularly liked this new branch of Kampachi at Pavillion because it specialises in Japanese teas and Soba (buckwheat noodles), amongst other things.

We tried tea with GOLD from Kaga city, Ishikawa prefecture, where there are many beautiful hotspring spots, meaning water there is good. good water, good food and good looking girls.

Beautiful golden flakes…. famous as an Egyptian queen and one of the most beautiful women ever existed on the planet earth was said to have implanted strings of gold under her skin to induce collagen production. This is what I call the hardcore surgery.

Robert and I, we love to eat so much. He has the ability to control how much he eats. But I, no, never heard of that.

So I tend to go for low calories (hopefully none) and bulky foods, such as Tofu, Salads, Soups, etc. These are exceptionally healthy yet satisfying meals. But the fall is, I over eat and feel positively sick after.

Ah well, “Life is a sum of all your choices”; my favourite line.