Monday 30 December 2013

Restaurant Sin Thean D @ Damansara Perdana, Petaling Jaya

Restaurant Sin Thean D is the most recently opened Chinese Restaurant in Bandar Damansara Perdana. They started their business sometime in November 2013 and have very rapidly developed a crowd of their own. This restaurant is mainly run by a husband and wife couple with the help of a few foreign helpers while all the cooking is done by the husband himself. 

Restaurant Sin Thean D in Damansara Perdana

Spacious and Well Ventilated Interior

The Kitchen
This restaurant is located at the end of Jalan PJU 8/5H, directly opposite the Public Mutual office. Being a corner lot, the restaurant tends to be quite breezy at night and this keeps the restaurant cool. This is definitely an advantage to them. The layout and design is quite similar to most neighbourhood Chinese restaurants.

The Menu

The Menu

The Menu

The Menu

The Menu

The Menu

The Menu
Their menu is a simple two sided laminated sheet of paper but it definitely offers a good variety of vegetable, meat, poultry and seafood and their prices too are very reasonable.

Single Dishes

Noodles and Single Meal Dishes

Noodles and Single Meal Dishes
The reverse side of their menu lists a number of noodle varieties, fried rice and single dish meals . This gives a good alternative for someone who is looking at having a very simple meal and it is great that they have thought of including this option too. Once we finished browsing the menu, we had decided upon the dishes to have for tonight. Ordering was a breeze and it was the lady boss that took the orders. It is good that she speaks good English and she was able to explain our orders very clearly.

Chinese Tea @ RM 0.50

Peanut and Vegetable Soup

Better Look at the Peanuts and Vegetables
Immediately after serving the drinks, the waitress served us the above soup. At first we were stunned as we did not order that dish but only then did we realised that this soup was served to all the tables and this was provided complimentary to all customers. Usually, anything that is provided complimentary is just above average and sometimes can be bad but to my surprise, this soup was nice and very well flavoured.In fact, it was a much better Peanut and Vegetable Soup compared to the ones that I had paid for in some restaurants. I would rate the above soup at 8.5/10 .

Stewed Tofu with Shenmiji in Abalone Sauce @ RM 13.00

Closer Look at the Dish
The above Stewed Tofu with Shenmiji in Abolone Sauce was definitely a very well prepared dish. The Tofu itself was extremely fresh and the Shenmiji along with the vegetables were also very fresh. It has been a long time that I had a dish that served very fresh ingredients like this. The Tofu was very deliciously prepared and the freshness of the vegetables were so evident that they tasted sweet with every bite despite the slightly salty base sauce. Overall an excellent dish. I would rate the above dish at 9/10.

Steamed Minced Pork with Pickled Vegetables @ RM 12.00

Closer Look
This was truly a marvelous dish. I just loved the way the minced pork was steamed with the pickled vegetables and slices of garlic along with some soy sauce on the base. The juices from the pork, pickled vegetables and garlic were intact in the dish and the soy sauce added a great flavour to it. Definitely a highly recommended dish. I would rate this dish at 9.5/10.

Steamed Talapia Fish with Bean paste and Chili Padi @ RM 30.00

Better Look at the Paste
This dish was a little disappointing. It was not that the taste was bad but simply because the paste was a little too thick and limited and with that, it was insufficient to cover the whole fish. After finishing two thirds of the fish, you would find that there is no more paste and you would have to eat the steamed fish without the paste which invariably tastes quite bland. I would only rate this at 6/10.

Buttermilk Chicken @ RM 15.00

Delicious Chunks of Chicken
The Buttermilk Chicken was another well prepared dish. It tasted quite similar to the Buttermilk Prawns except that the meat used here is chicken. It had a good blend of sweetness with a spicy aftertaste to it and the chicken chunks were fried to perfection. I would rate this dish at 9/10.

On the whole, the food served here is quite good and I am very happy with the prices charged. They definitely are quite reasonable compared to the other players here in Damansara Perdana and the food quality too meets expectations and in some dishes, surpasses it. Definitely a highly recommended restaurant.

Address: No. 1-1, Jalan PJU 8/5H, Damansara Perdana, 47820 Petaling Jaya, Selangor.

Telephone: +6012 3900 418 (Amelin) & +6018 2522 633  (Charles)

Opening Hours: 1100 - 1500 & 1730 - 2300 Daily

Saturday 28 December 2013

Shell Out Seafood Restaurant @ Kota Damansara, Petaling Jaya

Shell Out is a first of it's kind Seafood Restaurant in Kota Damansara that had opened it's doors in June 2013. They offer a unique dining experience along with very fresh seafood that will get you all messy and crave for more.This restaurant is located quite close to Sunway Giza. I have heard about this restaurant and wanted to come here for some months now but just did not get the right company. Today, since my brother and father were in town, I decided to bring them over as I knew for a fact that they would love the food and the environment here. 

Shell Out in Dataran Sunway, Kota Damansara

Entrance to the Restaurant

Lunch Promotions

Interior of the Restaurant

Interior of the Restaurant

Interior of the Restaurant
As you walk in, you would immediately be attracted by the nautical ornamentation of fishing nest, lifebuoys and shellfish themed art work that would clearly suggest that it is all seafood here. You would also observe that there are no plates or cutlery here and that everyone eats with their hands and the food is served on the table. Shell Out practices a peculiar concept where they lay large waxed brown papers on the table and you eat off it. Well for me, it was definitely an interesting way to eat and I felt that that is how you should enjoy seafood....by getting all messy. Do note that they do not have the Halal status as beer is served on their menu but I believe that our Muslim friends should be rather comfortable as they serve nothing but seafood here. The reception here is also very good and they are very quick to attend to you.

The Menu

The Menu

The Menu

The Menu
Their menu offers a variety of both imported and local seafood. You would have to choose the type of seafood, the quantity and then the flavours that you want them to be cooked in. They have five different flavours, Lemon Pepper, Butter Garlic, Curry Curry, Black Pepper and Shell Bang which is a combination of all the previous four in a single dish. To me, the prices seem very decent bearing in mind that these are all fresh and mostly imported stuffs. Besides seafood, they also offer some sides like vegetables, fries and garlic bread. 

Our Table

Seems That Even The Lamps Were Not Spared

All Set and Waiting
It was interesting to read all the lines that customers have penned on the furniture, walls and even the lamps and they all seemed appreciative of the food here. From the above photo, you can see that the waxed paper had already been laid out on our table and we were waiting for the dishes to arrive. Since it was the holiday season, the restaurant was full house and it took them roughly 30 minutes to send the food over. 

Fanta Orange @ RM 3.90

Coca Cola @ RM 3.90

Sky Juice @ RM 1.00
The drinks came fairly quickly but was slightly on the pricey side.

Food Delivered
This is how all the dishes were served.... in a plastic bag. Most people would just empty the bags onto the table and some of them would just rip it open and kinda have it from there. Very unconventional way of serving but hey, it was fun. 

Half Shell Scallop 250g cooked in Lemon Pepper Flavour @ RM 18.90

Closer Look at the Half Shell Scallops
Time to get the hands dirty. These half shell scallops were absolutely delicious. The Lemon Pepper sauce went perfectly well and it was really addictive. We choose for all the dishes to be medium spicy and the moment the bags were ripped open, the aroma was fantastic. I would rate this dish at 10/10. 

King Prawns (300g) in Butter Garlic Sauce @ RM 29.90 + Add Potatoes @ RM 1.50

Closer Look at The King Prawns and Potato
The King Prawns was another fantastic preparation. To add to the taste, we had asked them to add potatoes and that came at a small price but took the taste to different heights. The Butter Garlic Sauce was definitely the right choice to go with these King Prawns. Excellent dish. I would once again rate this at 10/10.

2 Indonesian Crabs in Shell Bang Sauce @ RM 28.00

Better Look at the Crabs
They were running a promotion for the crabs. Today it was 2 Indonesian Crabs at RM 28.00 and it was a good deal. Based on the recommendation from the owners, we went for the Shell Bang flavours which is a combination of all the available flavours and it was really good. My brother being a crab lover definitely had an enjoyable time with this dish. Mallets are also provided to break the shells. Once again, this dish deserves nothing less than 10/10.

Us Enjoying Our Meal

Meal in Progress
We all just enjoyed ourselves tonight as the food was really great. There was not a single dish that had disappointed us. 

Getting Messy

The Mess That We Left Behind
Overall, this is definitely a highly recommended place. On weekends and holiday seasons, do check out their Facebook page as they usually update any available promotions there. During the said days, it is also advisable to come early as they tend to get full house and food can take slightly longer to be served but the wait is definitely worth it. I would definitely return here soon for another seafood feast!

Address: 16-1, Jalan PJU 5/15, Dataran Sunway, Kota Damansara,
                47810 Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia.

Telephone: +603 7497 1137 & +6014 229 4286

Opening Hours: Mon - Thurs 1130 - 2200
                            Fri & Sat 1130 - 2300
                            Sunday 1700 - 2200