Retro dining spots in Kuala Lumpur

Yut Kee (Est. 1928) is probably the oldest surviving Hainanese eatery of its kind in Kuala Lumpur. As famous for its coffee as for its interesting selection of Hainanese breakfast & lunch staples, any meal at Yut Kee is guaranteed to be a trip down memory lane.

Some of the most popular items include the Roti Babi, a Hainanese take on the French croque Monsieur - but with its own unique filling: a mixture of Chinese sausages, minced pork, julienned turnips, onions, mushrooms & eggs.

Another popular dish is the fried Hainanese noodles, with pork, shrimp, cabbage & eggs - piquant & absolutely delicious!

White Rabbit, Singapore

Finally decided to check out White Rabbit at Harding Road, the restaurant which seemed to be on everyone's lips nowadays.

One thing which White Rabbit's got to its advantage is the beautiful setting - the former Ebenezer chapel offers high ceiling & Gothic windows. The food is hit-and-miss though. I had the laksa-flavored prawn bisque soup - the soup was topped with eggwhite which was baked till golden-brown. Very fresh slivers of prawns in the soup, but otherwise a bit too watery & bland.

My entree was the much-vaunted White Rabbit Mac-and-Cheese. Again, I found the dish pretty bland & tasteless. I can't taste the truffle sauce at all, and the black truffles scattered around the dish was totally scentless! Overall, quite disappointed with the dish - S$28 for something which I can cook (even better) at home.

The three of us decided to share 2 desserts. We ordered the Mars Bar souffle and the Blackforest cake. The Mars Bar souffle turned out to be quite average - we fail to see its connection to the famous confectionary of the same name. We loved the Blackforest cake though - it's a deconstructed version - a cylidrical tube of chocolate parfait resting on chocolate-cookie crumbs, accompanied by whipped vanilla & chocolate creme, and very nice liqueuer cherries.

China House, Bangkok

China House at the Oriental Bangkok is one of the most seductively beautiful Chinese restaurants I've ever dined in. Esconced in an grand old mansion with soaring 2-storey high ceilings, it's filled with Art-Deco furniture, recreating 1930s Shanghai.




China House's Peking duck is probably the best in Bangkok! The other dishes were exquisite: steamed xiao long bao served in tiny individual steaming baskets, perfectly-fried Yangzhou fried rice, Chiuchow-style pork & shrimp dumplings, and drunken chicken topped with shaved ice made of Shaoxing wine. If the food reminded one of Whampoa Club, Shanghai - that's because China House' consultant-chef is none other than Jereme Leung himself. The HK chef de cuisine, Kong Khai Meng, is one of Jereme Leung's proteges.

Le Normandie, Bangkok

I finally went back to Le Normandie Bangkok after a 14-year hiatus. They still require jackets for men, but have relaxed on the tie ruling. The view from Le Normandie's main dining room on the 5th floor of the Oriental, of the glittering Chao Phraya River , with illuminated dinner cruise ships & barges floating by, was enchanting.



However, the food hasn't improved much from the last time I was there (Dusit Thani's D'Sens was much more inventive & memorable).

My starter: golden sauteed frog's legs, mild eggplant confit & vegetables with sage was a very generous portion of 4 pairs of frog's legs!

The main course: Home-made egg noodles with Parmesan cheese, grilled vegetables with olive oil & tomato savory jus, was plated at the table.


As always, service at Le Normandie (as in anywhere within the Oriental Hotel) is faultless. Only complaint: the astronomical prices - THB8500 for two persons.

Time to Savour SEVVA

Sevva (we're told to pronounce it "Savour") opened in HK amidst much fanfare early this year. Owned by fashionista Bonnie Gokson (sis of HK style icon, Joyce Ma), Sevva has been attracting its fair share of tai-tais & gourmets from Day One.

What's unique about Sevva is that it serves anything & everything which Bonnie describes as reflective of HK's multi-cultural, colonial past. So you get dishes like Shanghainese dumplings in chicken broth, Indian dosas with curried fillings, crisp organic salads & steaks, all served side by side.

It's a beautiful restaurant, filled with quirky furniture, a whole wall of live ferns, and delicious artworks from London's Fine Art Gallery. The views outside, atop the 23-storey Prince's Building, is spectacular.