Food & Tea Restaurants (欢喜地茶餐厅)

Hong Kong themed restaurants are pretty much a dime a dozen nowadays. From "Char Chan Teng" to "Kei Tak Sek" and there's even a coffee shop in Bandar Sungai Long with the name "Wan Chai". As much as I enjoyed the food in these establishments, I don't know how close they are to the "real" Hong Kong food ... because I've never stepped foot on the shores of Hong Kong. If then, who am I to comment on the food since I've never tasted real HK food? Rest assured ... I do seek 3rd party critics and advices. Those who've actually been to HK or lived there ... and better still, actually love HK.

Anyway, our story today brings us to another HK themed restaurant, Food & Tea Restaurants (doesn't score much creativity point in the restaurant naming dept eh?) ... in Berjaya Times Square, KL. 欢喜地茶餐厅 reads (Fun Hei Tei Char Chan Teng) should directly be translated as Happy Land/Ground Coffee House. There are a couple of other outlets, one in Cheras and 2 others in JB. We'll discuss about the one in BTC since I've only been to this one. The outlet is located adjacent to the GSC cinema - in fact, right next to it. The owner must be real smart, choosing such a strategic location. Cinema goers would probably drop by for a quick bite before going to the movies. The restaurant has pretty decent setups, I noted 3 different types of seatings ... my favourite are the bright red ones. Generally, the deco exerts a very strong modern feel ... but then again .. isn't it typical among the HK restaurants and cafes?

Fortunately, we don't need to fill up some forms to order our food although I might add that the restaurant's probably shorthanded. I sat there for almost a good 10 minutes and no one is aware of my presence. A little irritated at first, I finally managed to put in my orders ... and waited for my food to arrive, which is surprisingly fast!

Food and drinks in this joint are quite interesting, especially the desserts. This is what I ordered, for me and my partner... I had Roasted Honey Spare Ribs Rice, Fresh Lemon Honey drink and Mango & Yam "Tong Sui" while my partner got the Pork Chop Black Pepper Spaghetti and the Mango "Tong Sui". As I said, I particularly like the "Tong Sui" presentation ... and it taste pretty good as well. As for the foods, Roasted Honey Spare Ribs Rice was good - the meat is tender and juicy ... The Pork Chop Black Pepper Spaghetti is a little dry but other than that .. it tasted quite decent. Overall, I would say that the place is quite commendable ... only if they improve their service a little.

Now for the ratings :

Contact Details

Food & Tea Hong Kong (BTS)
3rd Floor (Postel No. 03-108)
Times Square, Kuala Lumpur
Tel/Fax : 603-21452518

Cheras Branch
67, Jalan Manis 4,
Taman Segar, Cheras,
Kuala Lumpur.
Tel/Fax : 603-91325488

Johor Branches
2nd Floor (Lot 5.74)
AEON Tebrau City Shopping Centre, JB.
Tel/Fax : 607-3513488

Ground Floor (Lot G05)
Jusco Permas Jaya Shopping Compleks, JB.
Tel/Fax : 607-3070948


Ratings

OVERALL RATING : * * * * (good food, fair priced)
Environment Rating : * * * * (nice setups, comfy)
Food Rating : * * * * (commendable)
Service Rating : * * (need improvement)
Value Rating : * * * * (affordable)

Operation Details

Average Price : RM 12 - 15 per person
Business Hrs: Daily, 11am - 10pm
Accepted Cards: : Master Card . Visa Card .

Miscellaneous Details

Halal : No
Dining Method : Dine-In . Takeaway
Food/Cuisine : Hong Kong
Ambience/Features : Cosy . Family . Air Conditioned .
Reservations : Accepted

Vietnam Kitchen

This is my second visit to a Vietnamese restaurant, and coincidentally both times to the same restaurant ... Vietnam Kitchen. Vietnam Kitchen now has 5 outlets, – besides 1 Utama and Leisure Mall it is also in Taipan USJ, OUG in Jalan Klang Lama, Kuala Lumpur and also in Sungei Wang Plaza. Vietnam Kitchen offers authentic Vietnamese cuisine as their Executive Chef Hiep used to work for The Equatorial in Ho Chi Minh City for 15 years.

If you are new to Vietnamese food, and don’t know how to order, I would recommend a very special combination set of Banh Hoi Thap Cam, which is a DIY spring roll with rice paper, pork, chicken and vermicelli, fried spring rolls, minced shrimp on sugarcane and pork balls. These make a good introduction to this delicate cuisine. The rice paper is specially flown in from Vietnam, so expect a fragile texture. Served on a platter, matted by banana leaves, it comes with fish sauce and sweet sauce, both of which are used as dips. As the platter serves up to four people, it can either be an appetiser or eaten as a full-course meal. For less than RM25, it definitely is worth a bite.

There are also the broken rice dishes, using fragrant rice from Vietnam. You could have rice with lemon grass-flavoured chicken and pork chop and egg, or rice served with beef in tomato sauce. It doesn’t burn a hole in your pocket eating at Vietnam Kitchen. The huge bowl of Special Beef Rice Noodles is RM9.90; Mixed Vietnamese Ham, RM8; Flat Rice Rolls with Minced Pork, RM6.90; Soursop Milkshake, RM4.90; and the combination set RM21.90.

Vietnam Kitchen Outlet List
39, 41 & 43 Jalan USJ 9/55 Subang Business Centre UEP, 47610 Subang Jaya (Tel: 03-8024 8475)
34, Jalan SS2/66, 47300 Petaling Jaya, Selangor (Tel:7873 5624)
Lot G12, Ground Floor, Citrus Park, Plaza OUG, Jalan Klang Lama, 58200, Kuala Lumpur, Wilayah Persekutuan (Tel:79803970)
Lot S 312, 2nd Floor, 1 Utama Shopping Centre (New Wing), Lebuh Bandar Utama, Bandar Utama, PJ (Tel:7724-1336).

Ratings

OVERALL RATING : * * * *
Environment Rating : * * * * (average setup, varies between outlets)
Food Rating : * * * (average)
Service Rating : * * * (average)
Value Rating : * * * * (not too expensive)

Operation Details

Average Price : RM15 - RM25

Operating Hours : 11am to 3.30pm and 6pm to 9.30pm

Accepted Cards: : Cash, Visa, MasterCard

Miscellaneous Details

Halal : Non-halal

Dining Method : Dine-In Takeaway

Food/Cuisine : Prawns cooked in a coconut, Combination of vermicelli, Beef carrot stew (French influenced),
Special beef noodle soup, Pork ribs in caramel sauce, Braised pork in coconut juice, Assam fish fillet (a recent addition to suit the Malaysian taste), Vietnamese seafood salad, Vietnamese grilled chicken with preserved, bean curd Prawn wantan (fresh and sweet prawns marinated and wrapped in wantan skin, then deep fried to perfection and served with a special sauce)

Ambience/Features : Family . Air Conditioned . Business Friendly.

Reservations : Accepted