Sam Hadramawt Groupon Review - 5-Course Authentic Arabian Meal

This is a review of the Groupon deal for Sam Hadramawt's 5-course Authentic Arabian Meal in Kelana Jaya, at RM 16 per pax, inclusive of bottomless blackcurrant drinks.

[Up to 75% Off] 5-Course Authentic Arabian Meal + Free Flow of Drinks at Sam Hadramawt for 2 (RM32) / 4 (RM58) People. From RM14.50 per person. Halal.

Where you spend RM 32 to save RM 50!

I wanted middle eastern food but was almost broke. And you can't beat RM 16 per pax for a 5 course meal. It's equivalent to the price of 3 large meals at a hawker centre, except everything is middle-eastern!

Hummus

One should always order hummus when eating in a middle-eastern restaurant. It's something that's quite different and unique to middle eastern cuisine. Sam Hadramawt's hummus had an overpowering olive/sesame oil taste which I didn't quite like, but was still good nonetheless.

Hummus - blend of chick peas with tahini sauce (RM 16 of value)

Naan to go with the hummus.

Vegetables

Would have gladly traded in the watery concoction of Salad and Mixed Vegetables for more hummus. I think both vegetable dishes were made from the same ingredients, except that one was put into a blender.

Mixed Salad of Japanese Cucumbers, Parsley, and Tomatoes (RM 16 of value)

Mixed Vegetables (RM 12 of value) - the dry chunky version of the above watery version.

Main Course

I dig Sam Hadramawt's rice. I nom'ed 1/3 of my rice without any sides just to savour the fragrant spices in each spoonful of rice. Lightly coloured, soft and fluffy, middle eastern rice is awesome as usual. Why do we eat plain unflavoured white rice when there are much better alternatives out there, like nasi briyani, saffron rice, middle-eastern rice, nasi lemak and chicken rice?
Although oily, the lamb was much better than the chicken, which was just meh. I too can make chicken that looks meh and tastes totally meh, so I probably don't want meh chicken at a middle-eastern restaurant.

Would have liked my chicken on a skewer, ala Kebab style that is boneless and easier to eat compared to a winged drumstick, but the waiter skipped the Kebab option from the Main Course choices.

In my opinion, if a Groupon deal says you have a choice of lamb or chicken meat in Kebab, Haneeth or Mandy style, then you should be asked if you want lamb or chicken in Kebab, Haneeth or Mandy style. We ended up with 1 chicken and 1 lamb, which I'm still not sure prepared in what way. However all is forgiven since were given a RM 10 voucher afterwards.

Dessert

I did not expect dessert to be served in a plastic container. This custard tasted like a close cousin of instant jelly, masquerading as custard. Can you believe it is supposed to be RM 10 of value? I can't. Creme brulee, a slice of cheese cake, an ice-cream chocolate brownie, or a souffle can be RM 10 of value. This doesn't even make the RM 5 cut. Being a big fan of dessert in general, I was disappointed with the effort put into making the dessert.

Custard with milk and blackcurrant toppings (RM 10 of value)

Overall verdict : If you can afford it, I'd recommend that you pay full price to have a proper main course meal and the hummus, then skip the rest. Your tummy will be full by the time you're halfway through nomming the main course anyway, especially with middle-eastern serving portions. But if you're almost broke like I was (and still am), don't pass up the opportunity to eat a meal with this much variety at such a price. Despite my nitpicks, it was a steal.

Visited on 25th November, 2012.

Eat insects, save the world - Locusts @ Highway 4

Locusts are pests that harm crops. A restaurant in Vietnam, Highway 4, has gotten it right by putting them on the restaurant's menu and serving them, roasted, to patrons.

Crunchy roasted locusts.

Locusts are really grasshoppers that have decided to misbehave. They become destructive by congregating into migratory, voracious, ravenous swarms with out-of-control breeding, while feeding on our crops. These invertebrates are grasshoppers mobbed together, and morphed into locusts. Even among insects, mob mentality is as dangerous as shoppers on boxing day.

Woman removing the thorny legs from locusts in Hanoi's wet market.

The UN Food and Agriculture Organization runs a comprehensive Locust Watch site to give updates of the whereabouts of locust swarms. Losses in agriculture caused by locust plagues can amount to billions per year if left uncontrolled. Which is why we should nom down hard on locusts - as their population needs to be controlled.

Locusts in Hanoi, Vietnam

As with most insects, a locust not contaminated with pesticide is high in protein, and low in fat. There are also adequate amounts of iodine, phosphorus, ion, thiamin, calcium, magnesium and selenium.

Getting ready to eat my roasted locusts.

These crunchy, delectable insects are roasted with lemon leaves, onions, pork lard and served with vietnamese dipping sauce. Making every bite and crunch a memorable experience . And not forgetting all those times they stole my food and gave me sores. (Price : 65k Dong / USD 3.10 / RM 10).

Brotzeit Midvalley - The Ultimate Pork Feast

Weary of food deals? Don't be! This is a review of Brotzeit's Ultimate Pork Feast on LivingSocial :

Ultimate Pork Feast (4-5 Pax) + 4 Paulaner Beer Mixes @ Brotzeit German Bier Bar & Restaurant (Mid Valley & Sunway Pyramid)

Where you spend RM 198 to save RM 280.
Oh yes, I love how these deals make you spend money to save more money. Guilt free expenditure on experiences one wouldn't normally splurge on. Afterall mother always says, little drops make an ocean. With RM 280 saved, I'm well on my way to buying my own private jet plane and an airstrip field in every continent. Goodbye 3-hours-to-45-minutes-annoying-airport-check-ins, hello destination anywhere & anytime at my convenience! As with all things, there are usually gotchas to such awesome deals on groupon / livingsocial / dealmates / milkadeal etc.

Funny pork ad (... and if you can't pork the one you love, pork the one you're with)

Reservations

Honouring a deal like the above means restaurants need to make sure they can accommodate anyone who walks into their establishment. If you've watched an episode of Hell's kitchen, preparation for dinner begins as early as 10am with the chopping, grinding, peeling, and marinating. Having a rough estimate of how many pork knuckles need roasting helps a lot with pre-dinner preparations.

But that also means planning is required on your part before your party can enjoy the deal. In case of unforseable circumstances like the flu, the tsunami, or a drunken night out where you threw up after drinking 7 pints of beer and 7 shots of tequila in record 3 minutes time (an exaggeration but true story nontheless), you would still need to show up and try to eat pork cooked in 7 different ways.

For really popular deals, reservations for the "hot slot" (which is the weekend slot) can require up to 1 month booking ahead. This can be gauged by checking the deal's "Total Purchased" count.

Quality

It is said that God created man in his own image. With 7 billion poeple on earth and amongst them, psycopaths, serial killers, paedophiles, rapists, child-molesting-priests, corrupt politicians, terrorists etc. - mass production is clearly not one of God's strong suits.

Quality is always inversely proportional to quantity. At Brotzeit, my Pork Knuckle wasn't piping hot when I took a bite - either the result of pre-cooked, heated back pork knuckle, or food photography that went on for too long.

My only other complaint : the flies. I'd hope a place like this would have no-fly zones in the entire restaurant. Unfortunately that was not the case.

More Pork!

Expectations

What you see is what you will get, right down to the position of the little brown Brotzeit toothpick flag poked into the Pork Knuckle. This work of art was worth the price, and a great opportunity to sample 7 of the many different types of pork dishes available at Brotzeit. Leftovers from this feast is still sitting in my freezer.

With so many choices of pork, everyone will have a favourite. We nomed:
Pork Knuckle (Schweinshaxn) - Yummy
Grilled Pork Sausages (Nürnberger Würstchen) - Ok
Garlic Pork Sausages (Knoblauchwurst) - Very Yummy
Smoked Pork Sausages (Bockwurst) - Very Yummy
Gipsy Pork Belly (Bauchspeck "Zigeuner Art")
Meat Loaf (Leberkäse) - Very Yummy
Pork Roast (Schweinebraten)

The Ultimate Pork Feast!

Dessert

For dessert, worth mentioning is the Schokoladen Mousse - White chocolate mousse with forest berry sauce. Melts in your mouth but not before you have savoured the fluffy, light, smooth, creaminess of the mousse. (RM 19) Apfelstrudel / Apple Strudel - Traditional homemade Apple Strudel filled with sliced apples, chopped walnuts, rum and raisins, flavoured with cinnamon & lemon, served with vanilla ice cream. There were too many things in this strudel ... (RM 22). Tasted like some variation of fruit cake, and I do not like fruit cakes. Visited on 11 August, 2012.

Chicken Rice with Roast Pork @ Tim Kee Lama, Taman Equine

You can rarely go wrong with chicken, but not all chicken rice sellers get the chicken rice and accompanying condiments just right. Tim Kee's chicken rice is one of the better ones. You can smell the aroma of chicken broth in the rice, infused with garlic and other spices, making it fluffy and yellow in colour. Some chicken rice makes you really thirsty and sleepy after you've eaten them, but not this one.

Since everything is chicken and more chicken in chicken rice, I always add Roast Pork (Siew yok) because the crispy skin gives your taste buds something different amidst all that chicken. My only pet peeve is that their roast pork can sometimes be on the saltier side.

Price wise, compared to other Chicken Rice shops, Tim Kee's roast pork costs 1 ringgit more. I can't imagine having chicken rice without their roast pork though. This shop also sells free-range chicken and economy mixed rice, which I have not tried. For a fast and hassle free breakfast or lunch, go with Chicken Rice + Roast Pork.

Total Cost: RM 6.50.

Shop Name: Nasi Kedai Ayam Tim Kee Lama
Bigger branches available in Sri Petaling and Cheras.

My Chicken Rice + Roast Pork, takeaway (Da Bao).

Siew Yok - check out the layers - so lovely!

This uncle always asks me for my order in Cantonese, to which I have to respond in my broken Cantonese.