Johor Bahru Food Reviews

On Sunday, my spouse and I brought our twins to Johor Bahru (JB). The traffic jam started before Woodlands checkpoint. It took us almost 1½ hours from Woodlands to JB clearance. When we reached Aeon Tebrau City, we headed straight to Old Town Cafe for our lunch.

I had Old Town Asam Laksa (RM6.80). I found that the portion was a bit too little. I like the sour and spicy taste. I've always been a fan of Penang Assam Laksa. I remembered my Penang friend told me decades ago that she rarely know of any Singaporeans who likes Penang Assam Laksa. There was only one small piece of sardine. I finished up the soup as it was really tasty.
My spouse ordered the Hainanese Chickenchop & Rice (RM10.30). The piece of fried chicken was huge, though it was quite oily. Topped with crispy eggs, mixed vegetables and ketchup. Fragrant chicken rice was served. This set was really worth the price.
My youngest son ordered the Western Platter (RM8.50). It consisted of a ham sandwich, two sausages, baked beans, french fries and a fried egg. This was...ordinary.
After our grocery shopping, we had our afternoon snack at Lavender Bistro. Lavender produces very wonderful cakes, pastries and buns. The shop setup looks very elegant too.
My son ordered the Cappuccino (RM6.90). My daughter had the Jelly Bubble Tea (RM5.90), while my spouse and I shared a pot of Camomile Ginger Tea (RM8.90). The tea was really very refreshing. The ginger taste wasn't overpowering, rather, it was more of the camomile fragrant, with a hint of ginger.
I also ordered two cakes. An Earl Grey Chocolate cake and an Uji Macha cake. The Earl Grey Chocolate Slice (RM5.20) was layered with earl grey and chocolate mousse. Although the earl grey was mild, it was very fragrant and you can really feel it's presence in the mousse. The cake was light, not too rich or too intense. The mousse was very smooth and melts easily in the mouth.
The Uji Macha (RM5.20) has a soft chocolate sponge sandwiched with macha mousse and azuki beans. It was light and very pleasant to the palate. The nice feel about the cakes were, they were not tooth-aching sweet. The sweetness is just nice. The macha taste was rather strong, which suited me just fine. The Ondeh Ondeh (RM1.50), seen at the back of the cake, was a bit a too thick. There wasn't enough brown sugar to ooze out, even though it tasted rather good.
We also bought home a 10" Blackforest Cake (RM68.00) to celebrate my spouse's birthday. The sponge cake was really soft even though it wasn't airy. It sort of melted in the mouth with a very light taste. Three layers of chocolate sponge, with one layer of chocolate mousse and cherry, and another layer of cream with cherry syrup. The cake was decorated with big chunks of decorated chocolates, four halve strawberries and half a peach. It looked very presentable. The cake wasn't very sweet, and the cream wasn't extremely generous, which all of like.
As I've never tried a Mochi bread, I bought one Bamboo Charcoal Mochi Bread (RM2.90) to try. I thought it was very special. Since many bloggers are crazy over this mochi bread, and I'm very "mountain tortise", I thought I should at least try one to taste what the raves is about. The mochi bread was very chewy on the outside, and soft in the inside. The bamboo charcoal was a little like charcoal taste and many like black sesame taste. I felt in love with it instantly! I wondered what have I been missing all this while! I should have bought it long long time ago! You bet I'll be buying lots to eat the next time I visit JB again!
Overall, this cafe is value for money. You may consider visiting the bakery and bistro when you are in JB. I believe they have branches all over Malaysia.

Jusco Tebrau City
Old Town Cafe
Lavender Bistro
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Last week, my spouse and I went to Jusco Bukit Indah. We tried a chinese restauarant called Tang Shifu (汤师父). They seemed to use natural ingredients and lots of herbs in their preparation of foods. They served pickled guavas (RM2.00) as an appetiser. It was crunchy and sweet, and a good way to start your meal!

We ordered the Abalone Mee Suah Chicken Soup Set (RM14.90) each. This set comes with the mee suah, topped with some sauce which I thought it tasted like XO sauce sans chilli. The chicken soup was very tasty and the chicken meat was very fresh. The soup didn't even have a layer of oil. The mee suah was very tasty. I'm very much a mee suah person. The condiments were marinated black beans and pork chunks. The pork chunks were a bit hard and dry although it was fragrant from the marination.
We also ordered the Spinach with Wolfberries (RM8.90). The spinach was soaked in a pool of chicken stock, which made it very tasty. The wolfberries added to the sweetness of the spinach. I finished up the chicken stock too!
Finally, we had Herbal Jelly (Gui ling gao). My spouse had the normal jelly (RM6.90) while I had the Pearl Jelly (RM8.90). It wasn't very bitter, and it tasted good without much honey. The honey used wasn't thick, it was watery. I can't really taste the pearl powder though. The texture of the jelly was just soft enough to eat and swallow.
I felt very healthy after a hearty meal, even though I wasn't very filled. It was just enough for me to last through the afternoon. I like this place, and will visit it again if I go to Bukit Indah again.

Jusco Bukit Indah
Tang Shifu

22 comments:

Bakericious said...
October 5, 2010 at 10:00 PM

Jane, good review, I will know what to look for when go JB for grocery shopping :),

Angel @ Cook.Bake.Love said...
October 5, 2010 at 10:34 PM

Very detail review, keep it up!

I was at Jusco Bukit Indah on Saturday, if u were there on Saturday we may bang into each other without knowing. haha.

I passed by Tang Shifu a few times but I tot this restaurant only served herbal soups, so I gave it a miss. Ok, I shall give it a try next time I am there after reading ur review.

Angel @ Cook.Bake.Love said...
October 5, 2010 at 10:35 PM

Oh ya...u may be able to recognize Lucius...hehe

Angel @ Cook.Bake.Love said...
October 5, 2010 at 10:36 PM

Btw, I was also having the same birthday cake last year, yummy!

Pei-Lin said...
October 6, 2010 at 12:17 AM

I think you've caught on Pei-Lin bug of long-windedness ... HAHA! Now, that's a LONG review!

In fact, I've not heard Singaporeans talking much about Penang assam laksa! Is that it's less popular/common there? I dunno ... I grew up with this dish and love it to bits ... though I always end up with tears and runny nose after eating the dish. HAHA!

Shop more in MY! YAY! Haha! Hope to see you guys in the future! Come to KL lar ...

Small Small Baker said...
October 6, 2010 at 11:55 AM

Wah, you are now writing about JB food already! Though JB is near, I rarely go there. The cakes at Lavender Bistro look really delicious. I also "suaku", never tasted Mochi Bread or bakes with charcoal. :)

Bakertan said...
October 6, 2010 at 6:15 PM

hey Jane,

Your food review even includes food from across the causeway, thats cool. I've been to Jusco Tebrau only once but I will be back there again. The place is quite big and they have tons of stuff. I miss the ice cream at Baskin Bobbins. Its good! Another thing I like is I can get reese peanut butter cups at good prices there, and these arent easily available in SG, sad to say =]

Apart from the varied range of food, we can even get good deals on books at Harris bookstore there, haha =]. Great place to stop by in JB.

ReeseKitchen said...
October 6, 2010 at 9:42 PM

Oooo Oldtown...this is my favourite cafe. I'll have my breakfast at least 3 times at Oldtown..haha! I like to hang around there, online while having a cup of Oldtown White Coffee and a plate of their nasi lemak..;p Fattening horr...but I like them all..heehee!

Kitchen Corner said...
October 7, 2010 at 10:54 AM

Hi Jane,
WOW! You've been through many food hunting hur! Old town is one of my favorite place to eat. I like asam laksa very much too but it's not many nice one in Spore. Did you try out the old town rendang nasi lemak, it's quite nice too!

Passionate About Baking said...
October 7, 2010 at 1:25 PM

Hi Jess,
There are lots of other good foods in JB. Do share if you visit anyone of them. :)

Hi Angel,
Oh, you were at Indah on Saturday? I usually go on Sundays. Maybe we should arrange someday to meet there. I want to see Lucius!! You must try Tang Shifu. It's really a healthy soup place. They also serve brown rice in replacement of mee suahs. They have dishes for you to order too! I'm sure you'll like it.
Wasn't the cake nice? You already had it last year? Haha...I'm a year later. :p

Passionate About Baking said...
October 7, 2010 at 1:29 PM

Hi Pei Lin,
Haha... I just got carried away with good and cheap foods in JB!
Penang laksa is not popular in Singapore, mainly because most Singaporeans are still loyal to their laksas. For me, I love it because I like the spicy and sour assam taste. Long long time ago, there used to be a food court in Scotts which sells good Penang Laksa. If it was told to me by a Penang friend, it had to be good right? Unfortunately, it closed down, and I don't know where else to find one now...
Oh yes, I must find time to go KL one day. I'll contact you if I go, that's for sure!

Passionate About Baking said...
October 7, 2010 at 1:35 PM

Hi SSB,
I didn't go JB until lately when we found that the salad veg and the tomatoes are so fresh and good! Mostly importantly, it's nicer to spend in there. We only buy the necessary actually. Ya, I've also not tried Mochi bread till my last visit! If you have the time, and someone willing to drive in, you should just go there for a day and experience yourself. You'll probably get hooked like me. :p

Hi Bakertan,
Oh you've been there too? I like Tebrau City too! It's so huge and can occupy you for the whole day right? It is Baskin Robbins? I thought it is Ben & Jerry's? Oh yes, I also took advantage of the cheaper books in Harris, plus we get 10% disc with our Popular card too! Where did you buy the Reese Peanut Butter cups? :p

Passionate About Baking said...
October 7, 2010 at 1:38 PM

Hi Reese,
Ya, you should the popularity of Old Town in Sgp now. Not kidding? You go there so often? Such an enjoyment hor? I love their nasi lemak too! My spouse loves the hainanese chicken rice.

Hi Grace,
You also like Assam Laksa? Yummy. Yes, no good food joints in Sgp right? What a disappointment! I've not tried the rendang rice at Old Town. But I was told it was good. :) I will try it next time, when I feel like having carbo.

Angel @ Cook.Bake.Love said...
October 8, 2010 at 12:44 AM

Hi Jane,

Sure sure....but I only travel to JB on Saturday (hardly go on Sunday because next day is working day).

Bakertan said...
October 8, 2010 at 11:33 AM

Hey Jane,

Ya I'm positive its baskin robbins I tried, not sure if they have ben & jerry's there.

I got the reese peanut butter cups at the chocolate section at the supermrket. It sells at about 2.80RM per bar if I am not wrong. In singapore, you can get it hershey's world (Tampines mall or Resort World) at a much higher price. I think candy empire also has it (ex also).

Passionate About Baking said...
October 8, 2010 at 1:39 PM

Thanks Bakertan. So now I know where to buy Reese peanut butter cups. There're just too many shops, I thought it was B&J. BR is equally good too! Thanks for your confirmation. :)

Anonymous said...
December 22, 2010 at 6:21 PM

Il semble que vous soyez un expert dans ce domaine, vos remarques sont tres interessantes, merci.

- Daniel

Anonymous said...
January 27, 2011 at 10:36 PM

Hey, I am checking this blog using the phone and this appears to be kind of odd. Thought you'd wish to know. This is a great write-up nevertheless, did not mess that up.

- David

Passionate About Baking said...
May 19, 2011 at 5:53 PM

Thanks Bakertan. So now I know where to buy Reese peanut butter cups. There're just too many shops, I thought it was B&J. BR is equally good too! Thanks for your confirmation. :)

Cook.Bake.Love said...
May 19, 2011 at 5:53 PM

Hi Jane,

Sure sure....but I only travel to JB on Saturday (hardly go on Sunday because next day is working day).

ReeseKitchen said...
May 19, 2011 at 5:53 PM

Oooo Oldtown...this is my favourite cafe. I'll have my breakfast at least 3 times at Oldtown..haha! I like to hang around there, online while having a cup of Oldtown White Coffee and a plate of their nasi lemak..;p Fattening horr...but I like them all..heehee!

Cook.Bake.Love said...
May 19, 2011 at 5:53 PM

Oh ya...u may be able to recognize Lucius...hehe

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