Panera Bread

It has been a long long week. I had ups and downs throughout the week. First, I screwed my first data structures quiz, then my girlfriend had a melt down, and thirdly, I caught a cold. I'm not sure if it's caused by emotional stress or too much coffee which means insufficient water. Doesn't correlate does it?  D: Anyhoo on the upside, I finally jogged! I managed to Zumba for one hour and did cardio for another 30 minutes. I'm pretty happy bout that. And tonight, I'm gonna have dinner with my boyfriend's mother and sister! Will talk about Sakagura in MidTown Manhattan in another post. This is a picture of one of my closest friends in school. As you can see, he loves monster! Here's to you, Ben for all the good reasons!

Picture taken using my Samsung Infuse 4G. There, I gave away my phone model. Droid ftw! Clarity baby!

Okay, so here comes the yummy part of this blog. Panera Bread Company! Basically, Panera is some kind of pastry and baked goods bakery. What's amazing about this place is that it offers a variety of choices from soups to salads and signature Panera sandwiches. My first try of Panera was last fall and ever since, my boyfriend and I would dine in this restaurant every other two weeks or so. 

The Wide Variety of Pastries for you to choose from Panera Bakery

Cookies, Cakes and Muffins

The pictures above are basically the "tea and breakfast" foods you could ever crave for. From Chocolate Duet with Walnuts Cookies, Cinnamon Crunch, Pumpkin Muffin and Cherry Pies to Ham and Swiss Baked Egg Sandwiches, they are all freshly baked from the oven! With such a vast variety, it's convenient that they place them right on the counter! That morning, I ordered a Cobblestone Muffin and it was absolutely delicious! 

Cobblestone Muffin

That's a cobblestone muffin at its finest! Doesn't it make your mouth water? It looks intensely appetizing and it is the perfect oomph you need to kick start the day! Basically, the muffin has a sweet cinnamon flavor to it. It's glazed with white sugar and streusel that makes it more savory. The muffin consists of apple slices and raisins that gives it the additional touch to the sweet roll. When you bite into the muffin, the juice and flavors of the fruits bursts into you mouth that creates a wonderful and savory sourness plus sweetness that is captivating enough to wheedle you for another scrumptious bite. Enough about pastries. Let's talk bout New York's first breakfast choice. Bagels!

Asiago Cheese

This is what my friend got! I took one bite from the bagel. What I can say is that the hard, strong taste of cheese is surprisingly not overwhelming. It's perfect with the grilled bagel. It's not too salty even though the cheese is overflowing! I have to say that Panera isn't too stingy in giving a pretty handsome proportion. Most of the time, me and my boyfriend would get the pick 2 from the signature dishes. The deal comes with half or a full sandwich and a choice of an apple or a bun. The smoothie is pretty good too. Overall, the customer service is impeccable as they are really helpful and friendly. Try Panera folks and let me know what you think!

Have a great weekend!

Shake Shack and Frozen Yogurts

I'd read somewhere that writing for a good solid 30 mins every single day (even gibberish) can brush up your writing skills. The article spoke of a man that writes whatever that comes to mind on a blank sheet of paper. He would just write anything that pops in his head. This method of writing is known as free writing. This article is fascinating because first of all, I'm a lousy writer! Secondly, I find myself rephrasing a sentence over and over again, and even after that, I cannot decide which sentence sounds better! Have you ever gotten that? It's annoying isn't it? D: From this paragraph, I'm pretty sure you can tell that I'm a person who isn't really particular about grammar. I'm more of a "nice to read, nice to hear" writer. So whatever it is, I hope this blog can rescue my failure in writing good English!

To those who had a bad day: Hope this will cheer you up!

Anyway, since a year ago, I've been a keen person in trying new food in Manhattan. I guess the commute from Hoboken to the city isn't really that miserable. Sometimes, when people back at home ask me where I live in the States, I would immediately reply Manhattan instead of Hoboken. I guess it is the subconscious belief implanted in my head that people do not really know where Hoboken is. Contradictorily, you can actually see their (friends and relatives) faces light up when you name a place that they know so well of. "New York City! The city that never sleeps" What a rush! *Turbulence by Steve Aoki stuck in my head* :D 

Okay, so back to my purpose for today. There are a few eating spots in the city that operate under the same brand name known to have the best burgers in town. To those of you living in the city, can you guess where that is yet? *Da Dum Da Dum* It's Shake Shack! So, I know this place because one of my very few Malaysian friends who works in the city brought me to Shake Shack located on 8th Avenue between 44th and 43rd Street. Here's the link! Shake Shack Google Map. There are a few location in the city so Yelp it up! Yelp Shake Shack.

Double ShackBurger

The burger is absolutely yummylicious! Why? First off, the buns are extremely soft and fluffy. It's like squishing a soft sponge! As for the beef patty, the first bite often induces the appetite for a second, third and exponential growth bites! I'm not sure how they could have made the patties so delicious but I can take a rough guess that they have been tenderized and seasoned before grilling. The patties are extremely tender and juicy. You can taste the saltiness and smell the cheesy fragrance of the butter which is heavenly. Between the fluffy buns are two slices of cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, and Shack Sauce. Shack Sauce makes the burger more tasty, juicy, salty, cheesy and creamy. Obviously, the Shack Sauce is a guarded secret and only known to the high chefs. But what I can say is that it is  mayonnaise based. Mayonnaise is already so delectable to be eaten without any other dressings let alone combine it into a mix of other flavorful condiments. People, you have to try Shake Shack! To those of you who did tried Shake Shack, try it again! :D Keep in mind though that the queue can be quite a bum. So as in my previous blog, whip out your iphones, ipads, itouch, nook and whatever that is entertaining as you wait for the line to inch forward, closer to your first delicious bite!

Main course meal isn't complete without dessert isn't it? So, let me make comparisons between my favorite Frozen Yogurt places located on the East of the world and another in the West! 

Red Mango

 Tutti Frutti

Just so you know, I love frozen yogurt! I was so obsessed with it once that I used to get froyo a few times a week to keep me bubbly and satisfied! :D It tastes like ice-cream yet fat free! Get my drift? *Grins widely* :D Okay, so Red Mango is my favorite froyo place in America while Tutti Frutti is "Numba 1" in Malaysia. The ironic part about this is that Tutti Frutti is a frozen yogurt company established in America. Weird right? I can't seem to find Tutti Frutti in the city! To do a comparison can be quite tough as they both offer a great range of yogurt flavors. The only sole difference is the toppings provided for choice to their customers. In Asia, they have tropical fruits! That is why you can see the tiny dragon fruit slice to the bottom right on the second picture. However, Red Mango offers sweeter berries! East or West, both satisfies my sweet tooth and big appetite! :D Nom nom away! (:

Cheerio to a good start tomorrow!

Charcoal Char Koay Teow

Okay honestly, I'm not a very linguistic person. Just because I am totally clueless on how to title my blogs, I have decided to title all of them with the food that I'm gonna write about. Heh, I'm making things so much more simpler and sift easy. *Oh yeah, oh yeah. Clears throat* Right. Let's get down to business. So I went back to my hometown Penang, Malaysia for the second half of summer. You can imagine my excitement. I'd literally waddle in my spot in the midst of waiting for the green light to disembark the aircraft. Okay. So, my best friend whom we had known for 3 years travelled to Penang from Kuala Lumpur which is 5 hours away to have a small gathering before I head back to the States.

This is her and me!

Penang is known as a Food Haven amongst Malaysians. It is the place where you can find good food in every turn of a corner on the street. It's is the best place to devour any kind of cuisine imaginable. From the East to the West, I'm pretty sure Penang has it all. One of the best kind of food that most people dare not miss while in Penang is the street food. Here on this page, I highly recommend you to try the best Char Koay Teow (Fried Koay Teow Noodles) in Penang! 

Tadaa! Does this "uncle" seem familiar to you? Okay, before I tell you more bout the food, I need to make a point that Malaysians refer to anyone elder/ older "uncle or aunty" regardless of any blood relation. Haha! Okay, so this Char Koay Teow is on Jalan Siam (Siam Road), Penang. For those who doesn't know where Siam Road is, here is the URL on google map. Siam Road Google Map. He starts his business from 5pm onwards. 

Char Koay Teow w. Chili 

So what makes this Char Koay Teow so special? First off, most vendors use regular gas to fry the Koay Teow. However, this uncle retains the traditional method of frying koay teow using charcoal! Amazingly, he uses one hand to fan the charcoal and another to fry the koay teow. This amazing uncle, holds a traditional bamboo fan in one hand and a cooking spade in another! :O When he uses charcoal, it adds to the additional smoky flavor to the koay teow. The heat from the charcoal fire enables the koay teow to be fried evenly throughout. Secondly, the uncle fries the koay teow one plate at a time. Imagine the attention given to make one perfect plate of Char Koay Teow! Simply amazing! But, here comes the catch. The more attention given, the longer it takes to perfect a plate of koay teow. So bring a kindle, ipod, ipad, smartphone, psp or whatever nots so that you'll not bore yourself to sleep!

What's good about the flavor of this Char Koay Teow is that the taste isn't too overwhelming. It has a smoky, salty finish to every bite. It has a subtle garlic flavor to it yet you can't really tell if you gobble down it fast. Even with Chili, it's not too spicy. It's just right for my boyfriend which is a relief. If you like seafood, there are a handful of cockles and shrimp that enhance the flavor. Look at the picture closely enough. There are a few slices of chinese sausages, juicy bean sprouts, spring onions and deep fried pork lard to further balance out the flavors. Can you imagine crunchy pork lard in your mouth? The most delicious thing in the world yet so bad for you! *Mouth waters. Gasps. Shakes head. Sighs* Anyways, the blend of flavors of all the ingredients put together plus the attention given creates a handsome amount yet delicious Char Koay Teow serving every time. Hungry yet? I know I am!

Let the huntings begin!

A year ago, I had the idea to start up a food blog but it never came to pass. Kudos to my procrastination D: So after much deliberation, I finally decided that I need to create a food blog. For the simple fact that I love food, having a simple food blog is quite essential to recollect the every delights and amazing flavors that fills my mouth every time I take on a savory bite. Here I will tell you my experiences of the restaurants that I have visited thus far. Hopefully it will be detailed enough to mimic the escapade and as you read my every sentence, you will be in for a delicious imagination on your own! 

Mama Dinosaur

Chicken Special

So that was me, a year ago. The top picture is me holding a Mama Dinosaur Orange Juice and below, a gigantic size of the Chicken Special Ask Me Burger in Bayan Baru, Penang, Malaysia. By now, I've gained a few pounds here and there thanks to my ginormous appetite. But who cares? As my boyfriend says, there's more to love which means I'm full of love! :D Of course, it's important to keep things in perspective. With a great appetite, comes a great work out session after but that's beyond the point. The point is that I've got to keep eating! Psstt, my boyfriend is in for a great eating experience too. But he doesn't know that. Shhhh :P So, here's to an amazing eating experience!

This is a picture taken when we were in Cha Chan Tang, China Town in Manhattan several months ago. He was having a Lychee Smoothie. He's so unbelievably adorable right? *Coughs at my enthusiasm* :D Let's test out the saying, "Through a man's heart, is through his stomach!" ((((: