Choon Yien Restaurant

Char siu (Chinese: 叉烧), also known as char sau or Chinese barbecued pork, is a Cantonese cuisine using barbecued pork.

Char siu is usually made with long strips of boneless pork, typically pork shoulder. The distinctive feature of char siu is its coating of seasonings which turn the meat dark red, or occasionally burnt and black during cooking. The seasoning mixture for char siu usually includes sugar or honey, five-spice powder, soy sauce, red food colouring (optional) and sherry or rice wine (optional).

Before you start salivating away, let me introduce a place for you to get some really good char siu. The place mentioned is Choon Yien Restaurant, which is tucked deep in a corner of section 17, PJ ... a place called Happy Mansion. When I first heard about this place, I was like .. is there a place named Happy Mansion in PJ ? Apparently there is ... it's the name of the flats in that area. If you refer to my previous article on 6 to 10 Grill and Food Foundry, that's exactly where Choon Yien is. But worry not, I'll provide the map to go there down below.

A word of caution though ... this is a restaurant ala coffee shop i.e. not air-conditioned and it's pretty much open-aired. But somehow that doesn't stop me from going back there again ... and again ... and again ... and again ..... ok, ok .. I am sure you would've gotten my message by now. Anyway, back to the topic ... Choon Yien do serve very good char siu, if not the best. I never asked the name of the chef (I think he's the chef ... i.e. he's the moustache guy who does all the chopping on the chopping board) but I usually make my orders through James 'Ayam'. First impression of him ... very cocky (he's a little loud) but once you're familiar with him, he's ok.

Everything seemed quite process oriented here ... from the moment you take your seat. James or some other guy would approach you to take your order and usually they would know how much you 'can' eat i.e. the portion of meat served would be just nice.


There really isn'y much option to choose from ... char siu and chicken. And maybe some boiled vegetables.

I think ....

I don't recall any other dishes from there. Anyway ... orders were taken swiftly and your food is served promptly. Hmm... that came out like a tagline eh ... wonder if I can recommend this tagline to them.

Alright, now over to the char siu. Your first experience with it will be memorable....

Everything turns quiet as you grab your fork ... thrust it forward and sink the pointed edge into the meat.
You lift it up ... and move it towards you ... and as it approaches, you can already smell the perfectly barbequed pork. The effort, the passion of a chef in creating this beautiful piece of work ...

And finally, the moment comes when you sink your teeth onto it ... your first time .... feels ... juicy .... tender .... sweet ... and finally just slides down your throat ....

. . . . .
. . . . .
. . . . .

And you're ready to order some more ! Please don't forget about the rice ... it's equally good. The rice and the char siu ... it's like bread and butter ... has to be accompanied.


But before you start making your rush out the door to get there, please allow me to remind you that the precious char siu is very limited. Please go early if you want to get your share of it. Better still, call James 'Ayam' and drop your order with him before going there. Else, you will end up with a plate of chicken and probably some vegetables ... which would be a equally suffice for a simple lunch. Then again, we are not traveling all the way there, braving the heat and traffic to just have a 'simple lunch' ... are we ?


Well ... words are spoken, I let your imagination run wild .... while I present my reviews to you.


Contact Details
Restaurant Choon Yien
Happy Mansions, Jalan 17/13
Section 17, Petaling Jaya

Ratings
OVERALL RATINGs : * * * * (Yes, I am biased when it comes to rating, but I'd give anything for another piece of that char siu ... !!! And I couldn't care less if I have to sweat it out ...)
Environment Ratings : * * (I can't help you much here, James ... the truth is the truth)
Food Ratings : * * * * (Only selective ones are good)
Service Ratings : * * (Inconsistent, I do get different comments)
Value Ratings : * * * (Average pricing for a cuty restaurant)

Operation Details
Average Price : Pay RM10 to be a happier person
Business Hrs : Lunch hours only (please be early). Close on Sundays.
Accepted Cards: Oh come on, you're asking too much !

Miscellaneous Details
Halal : HA HA HA .. you think ?
Dining Method : You can dine anyhow and anywhere ... I doubt they care as long as you pay.
Food/Cuisine : CHAR SIU ..... chicken (who cares) ...vege ....
Ambience/Features : The only luxury would be a shade from the sun.
Reservations : Only for food. Bring collapsible table and chair la .. if no more seats.

Restaurant Capacity
I think I can estimate around 40 pax ?

Here's some recipes on making char siu :

Lily Wai Sek Hong
Recipeland

Padi House Cyberjaya

During my last visit to the Old Town Kopitiam in Prima Avenue, Cyberjaya .. I spotted a cafe next to the Kopitiam. Eventually I found out the cafe name ... Padi House. Pretty interesting and creative name, I would say. So I decided to schedule one of my Friday lunches there .. which is today.

I guess Padi House did score some plus points for being so close to my office. That means I don't have to travel more than 10 kilometres to the nearest "mixed rice" source.

Arriving Padi House, I encountered my first problem ... the parking lots are not accessible ... apparently you can only access it using a smartcard or something. Guess what I did next, there was a huge gap beside the carpark exit barrier .. I drive right past it and parked my car. I know, I know ...I shouldn't do that ... but for some reasons, I did.


The cafe has an open-air concept, pretty much like any coffee shop but the seats are quite comfy. We sat right next to a landscaped fish pond, with the fishes swimming right next to you while you enjoy your course of salmon fish....

Ordering process, unfortunately ... is via pencil and form, here we go again ... with the tickings. And I guess the form was too small, the waiter brought us a large piece of A4 paper to write our orders, ourselves!!! Anyway, to cut the story short, we got our orders in and waited. And waited. We were the first few to arrive. By the time the restaurant filled up, we were still waiting.

Then eventually they brought our drinks and then the snacks that we ordered. The first to arrive were the Onion Rings and then the Deep Fried Sweet Potatoes. The Crispy Duck Noodle was considerably alright. The noodle tasted very much like instant noodle probably because it is one but fortunately the duck meat was very good, though! Soft, fat-free, very tasty without any of that sou mei (overly strong meaty taste).

One of the item found in the western favourites section is the Chicken Chop Rice. This, apparently is a fusion of western (Chicken Chop) and oriental (rice) and happens to be the favourite among the patrons. Another item from the western section is the Grilled Lamb Chop, which is also a favourite order. You can choose between the black pepper or the mushroom sauce but I personally like the black pepper sauce as it brings out the taste of the lamb, with a slight touch of spicyness although some commented that the sauce is a little salty. That aside, the lambs are as tender and juicy as it can be.

Those who would like to try something different can opt to order the Grilled Salmon Fish Rice. Topped with black pepper sauce, this item should have scored high on the chart but unfortunately the Salmon is a little dry. I had to request for extra black pepper sauce for the salmon dressing.

Here's our bill for the day ...
Drinks - RM2.50 - RM2.90
Chicken Chop Rice - RM5.90
BBQ Chicken Noodle - RM6.90
Crispy Duck Noodle - RM6.90
Mushroom Soup - RM3.90
Onion Rings - RM6.90
Deep Fried Sweet Potato - RM5.90
Grilled Lamb Chop RM14.90
BBQ Honey Chicken Rice - RM5.90
Grilled Salmon Fish Rice - RM8.90


Contact Details

Padi House
Block 3503, Jalan Teknokrat 5,
63000 Cyberjaya, Selangor D.E.

Ratings

OVERALL RATINGs : * * (Average food ... average everything)
Environment Ratings : * * * (Open-aired - plus point for the pond with fishes)
Food Ratings : * * (there's a lot of room for improvements)
Service Ratings : * * (I got pissed, what do you think?)
Value Ratings : * * * (affordable for 2-3 visits a week)

Operation Details

Average Price : RM10 could get you a good square meal
Business Hrs :
Accepted Cards: not sure

Miscellaneous Details

Halal : Yes
Dining Method : Dine-In . Takeaway
Food/Cuisine : Local / Western
Ambience/Features : Open-aired Coffeeshop concept
Reservations : Accepted (I still don't have the phone number ....)