Kula, Kula Cakes!

This is by far the best place in Kuantan to go enjoy dessert.  We arrived at 6:15 PM and the place closed at 7PM. So, not very many choices left, but that doesn't matter.  Every dessert we've ever tried here has been out of this world delicious.


Tonight was Crème Brûlée and Mango Cheesecake

As mentioned in a previous blog, the Crème gets brûlée in front of you. Can you say fresh and hot?


But probably the best thing about Kula Cakes; the staff!


Yes, we have been here three times this trip and they recognize us. But the extra effort is that they are always smiles, come out to talk to us, and are just friendly.  Tonight we took the picture of two of them for the blog. Here they are:

Thumbs up for the hospitality and everyone that gets a chance, go check them out!


We are glad we went today, they are closed on Monday and we are heading out Tuesday.


Until next time, THANK YOU!

Sunday Night Dinner and Dessert

We are almost out of Kuantan.  We will travelling home on Tuesday.


For dinner tonight, we decided in a place that was rank high on our Kuantan Journey of Meals, The Black Pearl. A place well known for their pork (one of the few places in Kuantan that serves pork), their perfectly pour Guinness, and good food.  It did not disappointed.


The Elder has the Caesar salad and the Frenchman enjoyed the house specialty, the Normandy Pork Fillet.

For dessert, we decided to go to Kula Cake, the top rated Dessert Place in Kuantan. But this pace deserves a blog all to itself!

Santa and Santarina

We had the chance to see Santa and Santarina at the East Coast Mall.

We weren't sure who Santarina was, but we think that she is Santa's helper, sort of like an elf.

Here is what they look like. Notice that Santa is sitting and Santarina is standing next to him with a basket.

Friday's Lunch at Breeze Bar

Friday is the special lunch at Sunday Breeze Bar. This week was a delicious beef goulash with still the best fries in Kuantan. But the reason for this post is to once more share the view at Breeze Bar.

Enjoyable!

Animal Farm, Malaysian style

We drove to Ombok Surf Cafe today for lunch. The food was very good. We both had the rosemary chicken salad and we definitely enjoyed the meal and the area. Ombok means wave in Malay and the restaurant in close to the beach. Nice weather, good food. This was an enjoyable lunch.

Now, to the animal farm part of the trip.  We saw a cow and a goat freely walking around next to the main road and monkeys close to Ombok and Nutella (aka Sir Lancelot) at Ombok. The cat was there last and came by to visit us.

Be careful when walking

Walking and driving in Kuantan has been challenging, fun, scary, different.

Case in point, we were walking across the street to the mall. Of course, if you are not used to driving on the opposite side, this also applies to looking the correct way when crossing.  That can be challenging.

We pretty much have that part mastered.  Across the street we go, and then we are safely in the parking lot where cars are going slow and stop when you are crossing since there is a lot of traffic.

But today, the Frenchman was run over by a van and a driver busy not looking at the road.  The only thing that save him was quick thinking and cat-like jump over the hood of the van with a hand on the van as a pummel horse.  The driver was apologetic, but that teaches us a lesson that we need to be extra careful, even in the parking lot.

Another night, another movie - Jumanji

As mentioned before, for some reason, movies in Malaysia come to the theater days, if not weeks, before the official US opening date.


Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle was no exception. It opens in the US on December 21, 2017 and we saw it in Kuantan on December 15, 2017.

We didn't expect much from this movie, but we were pleasantly surprise.  The movie theater was packed, much more than Star Wars: The Last Jedi.  Come to find out, Malaysia really likes Dwayne "the Rock" Johnson.


The movie was funny, well played, light and dark at the same time, and the audience participation (laughter, oohs and aahs when the Rock appeared) made it even better.


Two thumbs up from the two AIK left here.


Go see it!

No Longer Under Construction

Last year, there was a building under construction not far from the hotel, just to the west of the East Coast Mall.

We didn't realize it and would have missed it if one of the operators at the plant hadn't asked us if we had been to the new Kuantan City Mall.  The building was finished and opened in late October, 2017. It's a mall! About 50 meter from the other mall!

View of the new KCM with the Zenith Hotel behind, from Zam Zam

This is a new mall and not all the shops have been opened yet. So, we have to reserve judgment for the next time we come back, if there is a next time.  Currently, it's missing Christmas decorations.  The lone Christmas tree by the front door cannot compare to the Christmas opulence of the East Coast Mall with lights, decoration, Christmas music piped in, the Christmas shows and visits from Santa and Santarina.  We are not sure who Santarina is but we may be able to go see her on Saturday when she is at the East Coast Mall. We'll let you know.

Funny anecdote about the new mall:

As we are walking through the mall for the first time, we see new stores and new restaurants. One particular one is Johnny's, a hot pot restaurant. When we saw it, we weren't sure what type of food it was since we had never seen it before. We approach and figure out what it was and go on our merry way. We weren't in the mood for hot pot.

The next day, we are walking around the East Coast Mall as we have done hundreds of times by now, and the Elder points, laugh and says: "There is a Johnny's here too!"  We must have walked past it dozens of times if not more and never realized what it was, not made the connection when we were at the new mall!

Power of observance may not be our strong suit!

Jaya Grocer in the basement is a top of the line grocery store with a wide variety of fares, including US favorites. So, if you crave a particular brand of tomato sauce, peanut butter or pasta. You are sure to find it there.  It also has an entire area dedicated to organic food.  The price is a bit more as you would expect and is worth it for a piece of home.

Other notable stores are:

• Yubiso - A dollar store type of store with many trinkets good for stocking stuffers
• Mineyo Korea House - Another dollar store type store
• Brand Outlet and F.O.S - Inexpensive t-shirts and clothing

Dinner at an old favorite

Before enjoying the new Star Wars:The Last of the Jedi movie, we went to Zam Zam, a Middle-Eastern restaurant that was one of our favorites last year.

The food didn't disappoint, nor did the price.

We enjoyed falafel with hummus as a shared appetizer, a chicken shawarma for the Elder and a beef shawarma for the Frenchman.  Accompanied with a side salad and french fries, the meal was delicious and more than enough.

Adding two bottle waters, the grand total was 37 ringgit (that's $9.25!).

The Elder, Falafel & Hummus

SWTLJ

Yes, you had to open this blog to figure out what I am talking about.

One advantage of Malaysia is that we get to go see movies a few days ahead of the release date in the US!

Last night, the Elder and the Frenchman went to see the latest chapter of Star Wars: The Last Jedi (SWTLJ), two days before the US release date. CJ should be seeing it tonight while on vacation.

We would rank the movie two thumbs up. For a 2 1/2 hour movie, the time went by quickly, the story line was engaging, a few predictability that were not to be, plot twists, unexpected turns, cute animals (look out for them at a toys store near you - what would Star Wars be without a few commercial items) and leaving you with wanting more in Episode IX.

Here are the must have items of the 2017 Christmas season

the Porg

the Vulptex aka Crystal Fox

Gift Exchange?

CJ left us yesterday but not before getting the Elder and the Frenchman so delicious Hokkaido cheese and chocolate tarts.

Meanwhile, the Elder and the Frenchman gave CJ a t-shirt (Anti-social Social Club) and cards and dice set.  Please note the name of the set and the instructions found on the back.

In case you can't read what it says:

• Do not use play methods other than the cards themselves.
• Do not use uncivil methods such as throwing off the cards arbitrarily as this may injury eyes, bodies or cause accidents.

Sweet Sorrow

To quote Shakespeare "Parting is such sweet sorrow that I shall say goodnight till it be morrow"

One of the AIK started his vacation and the Elder and the Frenchmen had to leave him at the airport for him to be on his way:

Group hug!

Until Next Time!

This is the last time all three of us will be together in 2017.  With the changes coming up with our company (our division is being sold by the end of the year), who knows when the next time we will travel together again.

Last Lunch with CJ

CJ has a vacation scheduled starting this afternoon, so one of the AIK will be leaving us.

The weather was outstanding, perfect for a quick lunch trip to the Sunday Breeze Bar. The breeze, the blue sky, the sound of crashing waves on the shore... Who wants to go back to work?

CJ and the Frenchman had Beef Merguez with fries, while the Elder chose the Croquet Monster (Croque Monsieur).  While the merguez hotdogs were very good, the Elder was disappointed with his food.  He won't chose that next time we go back.

Good last lunch for the three AIK.

Merguez Hotdog and Croque Monsieur

Mission Accomplished

Since last year's Forrest Whitaker sighting, Eric has been obsessed to get his picture with him.

Forest declined the request last year. When we saw him again this year, we had to be a little tricky. I had to use my super duper extra long zoom lens in my best impersonation of a paparazzi.  The results are a little fuzzy, but I think it's unmistakable; Forest Whitaker in the flesh in Kuantan

Driving in Malaysia

Malaysia is a country that drives on the opposite side of the road from the US. That's not too bad to get used to, especially since the cars are constructed with the driver on the right side.

It does get confusing for a few days when driving to go to the correct side of the car to enter and drive.

But sometimes the signs can be confusing...

If I ask you, the reader, what does a red octagonal street sign with a white border indicate, most would say. "that's easy, it's a STOP sign"  But not in Kuantan, at least not inside the plant.

Here is the sign:

It is quite difficult to only SLOW at the sign, rather than STOP.

When we get back to the US, do you think that if I showed a policeman this sign he would understand why I only SLOWed at the STOP sign?

Three Thumbs Up Movie

Sunday evening rolled around and we decided to go see Thor: Ragnarok

This was a great movie.  We agree with Rotten Tomatoes very high 92% rating.

Even though the Elder did not see any of the previous Thor movies, there was nothing necessary in the other movies to follow the story line.  I did have to explain a few things that referenced older movies, but this did not distract from enjoying the movie.

Last time we were in Kuantan, we saw Dr. Strange. Thor: Ragnarok has the post credit clip that we saw then toward the beginning of the movie. That was a nice tie in.

Some of the favorite lines:

"He's a friend from work!"

"Welcome Dr. Banner, strongest Avenger!"

Brunch at La Casa

We headed to La Casa for the Sunday brunch but decide to order regular food.  CJ had the spaghetti meatballs, the Elder the eggplant and the Frenchman duck pasta.

The food was good but not awesome. CJ did have a question about his meatball and we talked to the owner, Thomas, about that.  He thanked us for the comment and went back to the kitchen.  He returned and told that he scrapped the meatballs and they are making a new batch.  He also comped us three Crème Brulée.

Another issue was that the appetizer, the beef tartare, showed up after the meal were coming out. We returned the main meal and asked them to keep them warm so we could enjoy the appetizer first.

This seems to be an issue in Kuantan.  The definition is as follows:

appetizer

noun

•  a small dish of food or a drink taken before a meal or the main course of a meal to stimulate one's appetite.

I think there is a disconnect with that definition in Malay.  Here is how to say it in Malay:

pembuka selera

I think we need to learn how to say that

Final Note about La Casa

#1 Restaurant and #1 Dessert place

Last night dinner cemented Def Leapard (aka Bayleaf Steakhouse) as the Top of the Top Tier restaurant in Kuantan, hands down.

The service was great, the food awesome again, and we didn't have just the steak which we previously ranked as best in Kuantan. The Elder had the Salmon Spinach Cheese, and CJ had the Rack of lamb.  The Frenchman had the tenderloin steak cooked blue.  We also had a side of Chinese rice. All cooked to perfection.

The appetizer actually showed up as the appetizer, the meals were served together. Service is top notch. The Elder spoke with the chef and owner to give him our compliments.

And Kula Cakes, excuse the pun, takes the cake!

Friendly service. The girl that brulee the creme at the previous visit, came out of the back to say hello to us.  Our choices that night was the coconut cake for the Elder and CJ and the Pavlova for the Frenchman.  The coconut cake was awesome and the Pavlova with its light cream filling and meringue crust was delicious.  As an aside, CJ ordered a bread pudding to take back to the hotel and have for breakfast. It was also outstanding.

The consistency of the quality and taste of the food along with the outstanding service earned Bayleaf #1 restaurant and Kula Cakes #1 Dessert place in Kuantan from the AIK!

Congratulations!

A day at the movies

We had a few minutes to spare after work and before bed and decided to walk to the theater at the East Coast Mall and enjoy a movie:  Justice League was the choice.

A definitely plus of movies in Kuantan is the price; 45 ringgit for the three AIKs ($3.75/person for assigned sitting)

A definitely minus of movies in Kuantan is the total lack  of movie etiquette; they were several small children sitting around us and, at times, we felt we were at the play ground. Children were running around, screaming, crying, jumping.  This is not the first time that we reviewed movies in Kuantan and lack of control (Movies in Kuantan)

Now to the movie review.

Rotten Tomatoes gives Justice League a 40% and My Little Pony a 46%

That pretty much sums up the movies.  Not DC best effort.  Wonder Woman was much better. 

Justice League is slow moving, inconsistent, and lack luster.  Wait for it on DVD, Netflix, Red Box, etc. if you have to pay full American movie theater prices.

Another day, another lunch

We thought we would try a newly opened restaurant at the mall across the way from the hotel, Seoul Garden.  CJ had tried it previously because it open after the two older AIKs left last year.  But this is a first for the Elder and the Frenchman.

In the tier level, Seoul Garden ranks as a middle tier.  The food was decent, the service pretty good. We sat outside. The weather was perfect for us, raining but we sat in a covered area. The inside was very cold because of the air conditioner

The Pros:

• They give you a glove to eat the hot wings.

 The Cons:

• They didn't have all the food that we wanted
• No Mandu
• No cream of chicken soup

We would return as a quick place for lunch that is convenient to the hotel.

Christmas at the East Coast Mall

Kuantan doesn’t mind wishing everyone a Merry Christmas. In song and dance, in decoration and spirit.

There was a little Christmas show at the mall:

Eric the Elder was so enthralled by the girls in the Christmas show that he had to have his picture taken with them.  I'm not sure what his BR girlfriend is going to say about that.  The girls were taking pictures with children at the mall and when Eric approached them, they were a little surprised, but they obliged, reluctantly.

There were no sexual harassment filed, even though the Elder had his hands on them.  Maybe it's his Santa belly and hair that made him innocuous.

 Merry Christmas from Kuantan!

Friday's Lunch

Today is Friday, the day that Sunday Breeze Bar has their special hot lunch.  We headed out in the rain and, thanks to Thomas, we got a ride to the front of plant, to Gate 2.

Remember we are not able to drive in the plant because of Captain Eo and it's monsoon season.

A quick 10 minutes drive to Sunday Breeze Bar and we enjoy a chicken Schnitzel with potatoes.  It was delicious. Actually better than the schnitzel we had Cherating Steak House and a lot cheaper.  For the three of us, the special and a drink was 75 ringgit. That's $18! $6 a person!

And the view is still grand, even in the rain.

I talked to the owner. He is from Paris, France. What a change of scenery for him!

It was nice talking to a fellow Frenchman.

A little too much Jingle Bells

This morning, we were waiting in the hotel's lobby for Eric the Elder to finish a business conference call.  Jingle Bells was playing on the speakers throughout the hotel.

Once the lovely song finish in a crescendo of  "in a one horse open sleigh", a slight pause and the song repeated.  Surely, this was a fluke.

30 minutes later and 8 repeats of the same Jingle Bells, it was time to intervene.  We walked up to the front desk and ask for them to put a stop to the misery. Jingle Bells will never sound the same again.

Jingle Bells

Dashing through the snow
On a one horse open sleigh
O'er the fields we go,
Laughing all the way
Bells on bob tail ring,
making spirits bright
What fun it is to laugh and sing
A sleighing song tonight

Oh, jingle bells, jingle bells
Jingle all the way
Oh, what fun it is to ride
In a one horse open sleigh
Jingle bells, jingle bells
Jingle all the way
Oh, what fun it is to ride
In a one horse open sleigh

A day or two ago,
I thought I'd take a ride,
And soon Miss Fanny Bright
Was seated by my side;
The horse was lean and lank
Misfortune seemed his lot
We got into a drifted bank,
And then we got upsot.

Oh, jingle bells, jingle bells
Jingle all the way
Oh, what fun it is to ride
In a one horse open sleigh
Jingle bells, jingle bells
Jingle all the way
Oh, what fun it is to ride
In a one horse open sleigh

Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells,
Jingle all the way!
Oh, What fun it is to ride
In a one horse open sleigh.
Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells,
Jingle all the way!
Oh, What fun it is to ride
In a one horse open sleigh.

Now the ground is white
Go it while you're young
Take the girls tonight
And sing this sleighing song
Just get a bob tailed bay
two-forty as his speed
Hitch him to an open sleigh
And crack! you'll take the lead

Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells,
Jingle all the way!
Oh, What fun it is to ride
In a one horse open sleigh.
Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells,
Jingle all the way!
Oh, What fun it is to ride
In a one horse open sleigh.

The Good, the Bad, the Ugly

Back to Cherating Steak House and Kula Cakes reviews.

Kula Cakes rose a step higher after today.  As we entered the small shop, the shelves were filled with all sorts of sweets.  We decided on the Cadbury cheesecake, the peanut butter one and the crème brûlée.  The two cheesecake were delicious, and we really enjoyed seeing the crème being brûlée right in front of us.  The staff was friendly and communicated with us on a personal level, i.e. they laughed at our jokes. THE GOOD

Cherating Steak House’s food is still top notch, but we had enough issues with the service that it has to drop from a top tier restaurant to a near top tier.  We ordered an appetizer that showed up after we finished our meal, risotto that showed up after the main meal and appetizer, the soup and the main meal arrived at the same.  And it all started with having to call the waiter over to get our order after waiting about 10 minutes. THE BAD

Traffic, drivers, road condition. It seems that everyone is out on the road every time we go out no matter what time it is. It’s near impossible to drive across the road to the side that we need to be on, motorcycle come up to you from the left, from the right, people backing up almost hitting us. THE UGLY

Sad News in Kuantan

We were heading to dinner to MYNY and as we arrived at the location, we couldn’t find it.  We found out that all MYNY in Kuantan had shut down.  That was a disappointment because the best pizza in town is no more.

We headed to Cherating Steak House instead.  More on this in the next blog.

After dinner, we were looking for dessert and remember how much we enjoyed Krim.  Looking for it on Google Map, we noticed that it had moved location, but unfortunately, we noticed that Google Map showed that it was permanently closed. Disappointment # 2 for the night.  I’m not sure Eric the Elder is going to be able to handle much more of this.

Instead, we headed to Hula Hoops, better known as Kula cakes, to enjoy dessert. More on that on the next blog.

Trouble in BPC Lemongrass

We arrived at the plant this morning and lo and behold, rules changed.  Nothing unusual about that after a year, but the rules seemed to have changed within an afternoon.

In the past, we have driven in the plant to the control room or the lab.  The control room is about half a mile from the gate.

Today, we were told that the policy is that the only way to have a permit to bring a car in the plant is to have heavy tools or to have a BPC rented car.  Mind you that we are not allowed to work in the plant, so we can’t bring heavy tools in the plant and we have to be BPC employee to have a rental car from BPC.

This is a no win situation for us.

And apparently the car permit to go in the plant was approved as of yesterday, but by the time we made it to the plant, the policy changed. We have Captain Eo to thank for that. His motto: We Are Here to Change the World... One rule at a time!

So, right now we are getting exercise; walking to and from the front gate.  Of course, on top of that, it’s monsoon season, so there is a good chance that we will get wet.

Where not to eat?

There are many side street, open-air restaurants around Kuantan.  We have tried a couple of them over time.  Sanitation is definitely not a high priority at those restaurants.  For example, today at lunch, we ask for bottled waters.

Side Note: Even though the faucet water is called potable, drinking water, AIK recommend that you do not drink it and avoid ice cubes.

One of the bottled water that was brought to the table had been already open and probably refilled from the sink.  Good thing Eric noticed. The owner was apologetic.

Here is another story that did not happened to us, but we heard from a reliable source, Manfred.

As he was sitting in the local Malay restaurant, a gecko was crawling on the wall, travelling to the ceiling. Once it reached the light fixture, the fixture was so greasy that the gecko could not hang on and took a plunge straight into an awaiting pot of food.  As the cook saw the splatter into the stew, he cheerfully and happily continued stirring.  His thoughts probably were, “I should charge more for this soup; it has a higher protein content.”

Morale of the story: When dining at open-air restaurants, be careful what you eat, it could have some extra special ingredients.

Does CJ remember the way?

Mayflower rental car did not have any cars available. So we rented from Avis. There are actually 7 different car rental choices in the small airport of Kuantan.

Sue at Avis was very friendly and let us know that if we have any issues to call the police.  Eric panicked!  We had to calm in down. He was doing fine until Sue shook our hand and wished us “Good Luck!” Panic mode again!

We are driving a very nice Honda Civic named Val.

She’s gets us where we need to go. CJ did very well remembering where the hotel was from the airport without the need of Google Map. After 7 months here in 2016, CJ feels this is his second home.

Zenith Hotel also has its Christmas clothes on. The rooms, garage with the ever present lady in the box, the lobby and the breakfast are the same.

Lady in the Box

Eric met up with Eddy’s cousin again. And the person that checked us in, Shah, is definitely related too, even though he denied it. Proof? When we asked if he was related to Eddy, he asked, “You mean the guy working in the restaurant as a cashier? No, no relation.” Then, how does he know who we were talking about?

It's good to be back

Our first day back has been great. There is no place like Kuantan home!

The East Coast Mall is in full Christmas mode: decorations, songs, festive atmosphere. Even Eric’s girlfriend at BR is in the holiday spirit.

Eric was excited to see her again. She still has a smile when she sees him.

For our first meal in Kuantan, we chose the #1 ranked AIK restaurant, Hyperbole.  It wasn’t disappointing.  The food, the mango lassi and the atmosphere was still awesome.  There was some personnel changes though.

Fuzzy’s contract ended and he chose not to renew it, so we now have Actif as our point of contact. His English leaves some to be desired, but low and behold, the old man that was there last year is still there. He remembered us, and his English was very good. He shaved his mustache and was wearing a baseball cap.  He looked much younger!

So, the young man formerly known as the old man took good care of us. Even introduces us to a new type of Gollum, white Gollum. The difference between the two gollums; the originally brown one is hot and the white Gollum is cold. Very good.

On the celebrity spotting in Kuantan front, we saw Colin Kaepermick (sorry no photos, he was shy) and Weird Al Yankovick at Hyperbole. 

We are hoping to be able to catch a glimpse and a picture of Forrest Whittaker when we go to the plant. We saw him several times last year, but he did not want proof that he was working undercover in Malaysia and refused a picture with Eric.

Another great update is that the Hokkaido Baked Cheese Tart place has additions!  You can now get chocolate tarts and special edition Matcha Tart. We should have invested in Hokkaido when we had a chance. Business is booming!

AIK are returning

After over a year sabbatical, the Americans in Kuantan are returning to Malaysia.

So far, CJ has had an adventure trying to get there. The eldest member, Eric, and the Frenchman are in LAX right now waiting for the 18 hour flight to Singapore, before once again embarking on our Kuantan journey.

Stay tune for more fun, more adventures, more non-sense, more blogging...