Berry's vs RT

Bought croissants from 2 different bakeries for comparison. The smaller one is from RT Pastry and the bigger one is from Berry's.

Both tastes almost similar. 

The one at the back is polo bun with yam filling. Tastes so-so only.

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Good Morning Kopitiam

[Below] Rat tail noodles with minced pork, spam and fried egg. The fuchuk (deep fried beancurd skin) in the soup is provided with the noodles by default, meanwhile the curry potatoes is an add-on item for RM1 only.

There are 4 pieces of potatoes in the curry gravy.

Total price: RM9.80 + RM1 curry potatoes = RM10.80

The curry gravy is Chinese style curry, not spicy and similar to those Chinese style curry noodles.

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BrewMaster

I had chicken chop 'lunch promo' from BrewMaster again.

They ran out of bun hence substitute it with fries.

Soup was also included with the lunch promo.

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Secret Recipe

Bought a pack of 3 Hokkaido's cheese tarts from Secret Recipe for the price of RM16.50 (promo).

The black one is Oreo, which costs an additional RM1, hence totaled RM17.50

Years ago, these cheese tarts used to be a 'craze' with outlets like Tokyo Secret, Uncle Tetsu and Pablo mushrooming everywhere.

Things just go crazy then cooled-off....similar fate to coffee bun, donuts, thick egg tarts.

I wonder what's the latest craze these days? is it still beef roti or something else?

Evening walk in the neighbourhood

An evening walk in the neighbourhood Costa del Este.

Used to stay here, some 2 years ago. The rental per 1000sqft unit can fetch up to 2k USD (back then).

These newer apartment costs even higher.

It is a clean, peaceful, safe and quiet neighborhood with a mix of local and expat residents.

I wonder why I don't walk around the neighborhood that often last time. It's common to see residents out for an evening walk/jog, while bringing their pets along.

This time I stayed in a hotel which is located in the same neighborhood but nearer to the sea.

Despite that, there's no beach but a muddy land which dries up during the hot season.

[Below] Evening sunset view of the Pacific Ocean and a glimpse of Panama City on the right. The city center is located some 9km away from this neighborhood.

There are lots of birds flocking around during dusk.

The town council has set up a mini recreation park along the seaside (elevated platform above the muddy ground) where the residents can enjoy bird watching and do light exercise.

Across the road, there is a 'Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf' located next to a luxury apartment tower facing the sea....

I should 'lepak' here more often next time....not the CBTL but the mini park😂

My favorite mall, the 'Town Center mall' is located nearby too. It's an ordinary size mall with cinema, foodcourt, restaurants and is quite happening.

Here you can greet stranger on the street without fear of being labelled 'crazy'😂

Most infrastructure are well-maintained, and the streets are clean, hardly see any trash nor broken/vandalized items. 

Definitely an 'atas' neighborhood, hence I think the people here have high civic awareness.

Dinner at Chee Seong Restaurant

[Throwback] Family dinner at the neighborhood Chinese restaurant.

We prefer this place than Happy Garden Mun Kee restaurant because this place is indoor with air condition, much comfortable for dine-in during the hot weather.

We ordered the ordinary dishes, nothing fancy, just a decent weekend dinner.

Sweet & sour pork

Assam steamed tilapia

Stir-fried potato leaves

Claypot tofu with assorted veggies

Let's dig in....

Overall, a good meal, the dishes were done perfectly, except for the stir-fried potato leaves which is slightly old & tough to chew....but we still managed to finish it.

Total price for 5 pax is RM158.80 nett.

Lunch at Brewmaster

Lunch promo in Brewmaster restaurant/bar.

I had the signature chicken chop.

which comes with mushroom soup and a bun. There's a portable light on every table, which is meant for the night bar. 

The bill came to RM19.50 nett after service charge & tax. Quite worth it considering the portion that was served.

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Colorful Japanese umbrella decorating the wall outside Mitasu restaurant.

Nice!

This place is usually crowded on weekends...and it isn't cheap. Somewhere RM145 per adult.

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Mitasu is too pricey for me....i can only afford pan mee soup from the neighborhood kopitiam.

This bowl of noodle costs RM9....

20 years ago a simple bowl of pan mee like this costs only RM3😐

Inflation has jacked up the price 3-fold!

Set Lunch at Mami Porridge

Mami Porridge

Was craving for spaghetti but unwilling to spend much on that....so I went to the neighborhood porridge shop and ordered a minced pork bolognaise spaghetti from their Set Lunch menu.

This shop offers a variety of rice and noodles apart from their specialty - porridge.

The spaghetti is Chinese style, something from tomato sauce (like those sweet & sour pork sauce). But ok-la, passable if you're not fussy.

This set lunch came with a glass of barley drink (hot/cold). I had a cold one, refreshing especially during the scorching hot noon.

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Ho Chiak Mixed Rice

I seldom take chapfan, but I was very hungry today, hence went to Ho Chiak.

My plate of chapfan with bittergourd, preserved mustard stem (zha chai), braised tofu and a piece of pork - all for RM9.80 with free flow soup and Chinese tea.

 

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Ahmad Muzakin Claypot Rice

My favorite claypot rice shop has other items in their menu too apart from their specialty claypot chicken rice.

They have simple dishes like steamed fish (in various sauces), omelette, deep fried shrimps & squids, blanched veggies, tofu etc.

Posting this for my own reference in case I don't feel like eating claypot rice.

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Merdeka 118

In conjunction with President Xi's visit, the Merdeka 118 tower is lit up with the colors of China flag. Several road closure between 15-17, but well, all for the sake of this VIP who has influences to the world's economy.

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My itchy mouth wanted to munch something, so I bought Tong Garden snack.

This packet of broad beans is on sale for RM5.80

I also bought a piece of flat croissant with chocolate coating (and tiny bits of nuts) from RT Bakery (RM6.50)

To eat this, take a bite at each end, in order to get a balance flavor of chocolate coating and the crispy croissant.

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The blue Takis that i bought from Panama...yes, it is spicy. Can only take a few sticks on each time. I wonder when i can finish this packet.

SIN-AMS-PTY

SIN-AMS

The flight to Amsterdam departs at 1:40am from Changi airport. Before that, I had my early dinner in KLIA1 Starbucks and supper at Popeye's fastfood in Terminal 3 Changi.

The below meal was served mid-flight...I'm not sure what is this categorized as....late supper perhaps? It was somewhere 4am MY/SG time.

Rice, with chicken, egg, blanched veggies. On the top is salad and brownie (with nuts, if i remember correctly...)

I had red wine and they gave it in entire bottle with a plastic cup. Manage to sleep for 3 hours then woke up somewhere above Kabul (Afghanistan) based on their interactive real time map😅

I went on to scroll to the other continent just to 'refresh' my geography knowledge😂

Now, this is the breakfast....which was served 2 hours before landing.

Nothing fancy....just some pancakes, plain bun, fruits and yogurt.

Had a brief transit in Schiphol airport before the next flight to Panama.

Checked-in the lounge which was pre-booked earlier to get my 2nd breakfast and to refresh myself.

Here's my second breakfast - meatballs, bacons, hashbrown, baked beans, sauteed mushrooms, scrambled eggs and pumpkin soup with croutons. Also took an apple to bring into the plane (it's OK to bring apples into Panama, you won't get penalty).

[Below] The view....

This is the Crown Lounge.

I don't have much time to walk around the airport. After done eating, I headed straight to the boarding gate.

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AMS-PTY

Lunch was served somewhere 2 hours after take-off.

I had meatballs again😂

The sides are pickles - quite sourish!

Teatime - lemon cupcake with tea

Nowadays modern plane doesn't have window lid. The shade is controlled by this button. Press the grey button for darker shade.

Mid-flight snack - Sandwich

Another meal, 2 hours before landing....

Pizza, with cold pasta salad and chocolate cake.

It was noon time at the Atlantic ocean....and the plane just entered the Caribbean sea

Taste just so so....Decent meal to fill the stomach. KLM foods are often bland.

Hours later: Already reached but the plane lingered around and then made a U-turn when the landing slot is available.

Touching down...clear blue skies at around 5pm local time (=MY/SG time 6am, +1day)

Checked in hotel. Glad that my suitcase reached safely, not for my colleague whose luggage got re-routed due to change in connecting flight in Paris.

Ah, i needed the washroom so badly....didn't shower for long!

to be continued....