It's funny how I identify the restaurants by their locations instead of names. If you ask me to go to Imbi Palace, I'd give you a blank stare. But say Wisma LYL and it makes sense. Also probably why my father gets annoyed whenever I double confirm the venue.
Stewed peanuts. Love it when they have been cooked long enough until they are no longer crunchy.
However, these little suckers are really for suckers because they cost like RM 5 or 6 per plate.
Admittedly, this place is one of the nicer dim sum joints around. So, their food do look better. Taste nicer as well though some may say it's about the same. With
har gao or shrimp dumpling, the idea is to have a
whole juicy prawn inside instead of prawn paste. You should also be able to see the folds on the skin.
Steamed sweet roast pork should be dainty. The bread shouldn't stick to your teeth or gum and the pork marinated well. I hate it when they has the Chinese parsley taste but some like it that way.
Steamed fried fish ball. Wait, what? Steamed
and fried? Yes, that's what it is. The best ones don't have the fishy taste. Some comes with a hint of chili which is a good twist.
Steamed beef ball. Not much to comment here as I don't particularly like/eat this. No particular reason.
Phoenix claw as a direct translation from its Cantonese name. Steamed chicken feet with black bean sauce. Also another dish that I don't take. It just feels uncomfortable but my mother does like this. I wanted to say disgusting but that's probably just me.
Steamed rice noodle sheet with sweet roast pork. The best ones are where it's thin enough to see through so that you don't get a mouthful of dough with each bite. Some may disagree but the chili oil (not pictured here) plays a pivotal role in making this dish more savory.
How can one go for
dim sum (or
yum cha down under) without ordering the steamed glutinous rice? My father's favorite, I usually take the rice only as everything else has a mushy texture which is quite a turn off. My good version would be one where the rice isn't too sticky and still holds itself well while the rest of the ingredients e.g. meat are tender without being overly so. It's not a tall order but seldom done so.
Not a traditional
dim sum offering, fried carrot cake is quite popular these days. Night markets would have at least one stall selling this. The breakfast version is usually mild (no chili) with lots of bean sprout and chopped spring onion. I prefer this one on the spicy side. When they are fried until slightly crispy outside, that's when you know you've hit the jackpot. Otherwise, enjoy the bits of fried egg.
Wantan mee with
siew yok. I'm quite particular with this type of noodle. Most of those you get in
kopitiams are the thick type and if you're unfortunate, it has a slight chemical taste or
kan sui as they call it in Cantonese. My ideal
wantan mee would be thin with a hint of oil so that they don't stick together. If they can get the texture right, I would be quite forgiving of its taste.
The roast pork also quite subjective. The skin should be crispy. A perfect balance between the fat and lean meat. Again, not something you can easily get outside.
Malay kou or steamed Malay cake. It's getting rarer to see these getting served like this. Most restaurants now resort to making them into individual cupcakes. I think this way is the best as you get more and it feels more ... traditional? As a child, my objective during
dim sum breakfast was to get the sunflower seed off the cakes, much to my parents' chagrin because, you know how disgusting the cake looks after you've peeled the seeds off? 😛
That's why, they are happier to indulge me in egg tarts as I like them whole. Some brats have the audacity to eat them as puddings, scooping the fillings out, leaving the crispy crust behind. It looked like some miserable tart that has no feelings.
It's sad that economy is getting worse so to make ends meet, restaurants don't increase the price but they reduce the filling which in turn hurts my feelings. 😫
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