Rumah Makan Apeng Kwetiauw Medan

Makanan Medan di Surabaya? Nggak masalah!

Malam Minggu gue akhirnya berwarna. Yang biasanya hanya gue habiskan di depan laptop, nontonin video-videonya BuzzFeed di YouTube, kali ini gue jalan-jalan keliling Surabaya bersama salah satu sahabat gue sedari SMP dan beberapa teman baru. Kami berempat, ada gue, Sally, Cacha, dan Icha. Kami menempati jejeran bangku di depan sebuah restoran, yang kabarnya makanannya enak banget, dan kami memegang nomor antrian ke-12. Padahal waktu itu udah hampir pukul sembilan malam, yang artinya waktu makan malam udah jauh lewat, tapi restoran ini masih penuh oleh warga Surabaya menikmati hidangan oriental di dalamnya.

Mari kemari yang lapar malam-malam!

Rumah Makan Apeng Kwetiauw Medan adalah salah satu restoran di Surabaya yang digemari masyarakat sekitar, begitu juga dengan pendatang-pendatang dari luar kota. Dari luar, restorannya nggak terlalu kelihatan besar, tapi pas masuk ternyata luas dan lebarnya ke dalam bukan ke samping. Sally yang hanya beberapa kali dinas ke Surabaya aja udah duluan nyobain hidangan dari RM. Apeng, padahal gue udah tinggal di Kota Pahlawan ini hampir setengah tahun lamanya. 

Menu 1

Menu 2

Kami harus mengantri cukup lama karena padatnya pengunjung malam itu. Sekitar setengah jam dan satu piring kue lobak seharga Rp10.000,00 kemudian kami dipanggil oleh salah satu pelayan yang memakai seragam layaknya taruna IPDN. 

Tampilan dalam restorannya sangat sederhana, hanya meja, kursi, dan dapur tempat memasak makanan. Kami diarahkan ke meja kami yang letaknya agak di bagian belakang restorannya. Kami hanya butuh 5 menit untuk menentukan makanan dan minuman apa yang mau kami pesan, kemudian penantian kembali dimulai. 

Kue Lobak yang hasil fotonya agak buram. 

Kelihatannya proses pemasakannya cukup cepat meskipun tamu lagi ramai-ramainya. Kurang dari setengah jam kemudian, pesanan kami dihidangkan semua di meja: 3 porsi mie keriting goreng, 15 buah pangsit goreng, satu kaleng susu kacang, satu botol air mineral, satu gelas teh manis hangat, dan satu gelas teh tawar hangat. Kedengerannya memang biasa aja, tapi ini mewah banget. 

Karena sebelumnya gue baru aja melahap satu porsi salad buatan Crunch Haus sendiri, dan setelah dari Apeng kami berencana untuk mampir ke Holy Wings, gue memutuskan untuk berbagi Mie Keriting Goreng dengan Chacha. Porsinya cukup untuk satu orang, tapi kalau kalian datang ke sini dengan keadaan lagi lapar-laparnya, gue rekomendasi kalian untuk memesan satu setengah porsi. 

Mie Keriting Goreng

Ternyata Mie Keriting Goreng ini adalah campuran mie goreng dan bihun goreng yang dimasak dengan telur orak-arik, potongan bakso ikan, lembaran sawi dan tauge yang nggak begitu banyak, dan lapchiong. Tampilannya berantakan banget, seperti habis di aduk-aduk sembarangan di penggorengan, tapi itulah yang membuat gue cukup nggak sabar untuk menyantap meskipun waktu itu keadaan lambung gue udah hampir penuh. 

Gurih dan enak. Telur orak-arik yang tercampur dalam untaian mie dan bihunnya mengingatkan gue akan mie goreng tek-tek abang-abang yang biasa dijual di gerobakan. Asinnya cukup, tauge dan sawinya berhasil memberikan jeda dari gurihnya keseluruhan santapannya. Yang paling gue demen dari semua lauk yang ada di piring itu adalah potongan lapchiongnya yang sedikit terlalu tipis untuk gue. Manis, gurih, babi, dan nendang banget! Gue nggak kecewa dengan Mie Keriting Goreng buatan Apeng ini, tapi mungkin gue udah menetapkan standar yang terlau tinggi karena Sally dan kawan-kawan yang lainnya sangat semangat ketika merekomendasikan gue hidangan ini, jadi di suapan pertama gue udah keburu kecewa duluan. Nggak ada faktor “wow”-nya, tapi bukannya nggak enak. 

Pangsit Goreng

Kenikmatan pangsit gorengnya melebihi pangsit goreng buatan Bakmi GM. Mungkin karena diisi daging babi kali, ya, jadi di lidah gue rasanya enak banget. Ada pilihan daging lain, kok, buat kalian yang nggak makan, atau nggak doyan, babi. Saus celupannya juga mirip dengan yang ada di Bakmi GM, berwarna merah pekat dengan sentuhan merah jambu, kental, dan manis. Tapi, gue masih lebih suka saus pangsit gorengnya Bakmi GM ketimbang ini. 

Nggak butuh waktu lama bagi gue untuk menghabiskan makan malam kedua gue. Setelah makan, gue tutup dengan sekaleng susu kacang yang manis dan sebatang rokok. Nikmat dunia.

P.S. Kalau kalian kedapetan nomor antrian yang cukup jauh, di depan restoran ada etalase besar kepunyaan restoran itu juga yang menjual berbagai macam kudapan khas Medan, jadi kalian bisa nunggu sambil nyemil. Jajanan pasarnya cukup terjangkau, mulai dari Rp10.000,00 sampai Rp30.000,00. Kue-kue juga ada. Tapi, jangan banyak-banyak makannya, nanti keburu kenyang duluan sebelum makan di restorannya. 

Bermacam-macam jajanan asal Medan di depan restoran.

Banyak pilihannya, monggo dipilih.

Jangan dilihatin, tok, sambil dibeli, 

Rumah Makan Apeng Kwetiauw Medan

Jl. Kedungdoro No. 267, Wonorejo

Tegalsari, Kota Surabaya

Jawa Timur 60251

Opening Hours: 

MON - SUN: 8.30AM - 11PM

Contact:

+(62)31 534 5778

Mantao, Bao, and Pork

I’ve been eating baos at Dynasty Paradise for almost half a year now and never for once I tasted its’ salted egg bao. So, this afternoon, I made my way back to my favorite Chinese restaurant in Surabaya and dig in. Of course I didn’t just ordered the Steamed Salted Egg Yolk Buns. I also got me a piece of a samcan filled mantao and a plate of thai char pork, which is basically grilled sliced pork cheek. 

Although it was passed lunch hour, as I was eating at around three in the afternoon, the restaurant was still jammed with locals indulging on rice and noodles. I always go for the outdoor seating so that I can smoke. It’s a good thing there were a few seats left. It took a while for my food to be served, as well as my simple warm tea in a glass, but all was well. 

First, came a bamboo steamer filled with three of my Steamed Salted Egg Yolk Buns. They looked very different from the salted egg buns I had before as they were black in color and shaped rather small. Their sizes were only half of my fist! The buns felt very firm and solid, yet soft as well. I poked a hole on one of those buns and squirted the fillings out like those viral video of Gudetama buns spilling their fillings from their bums a few years ago. It was very amusing, yet torturing because I couldn’t wait any longer to taste the buns. 

Paradise Dynasty went for a sweet approach for its’ salted egg bao. Each bao, despite its’ rather small size, contained just enough amount of salted egg fillings. It was not too much, but I could feel the splash of salted egg on my first bite. It tasted grainy on my tongue, which was not bad, and it had bits of the salted egg yolk inside the mustard-colored lava. The sweetness was okay. There was no bad, nor stinky, aftertaste after I swallow it. 

I think this one is probably the best salted egg bao I have ever eaten, yet! I’m sorry Pao Pao. 

Moving on to the samcan-filled mantao, with samcan being a slice of braised pork belly. I was expecting a warm food, yet I got a room temperature mantao on a plate. Maybe I left it too long since it was served because I was busy taking pictures and videos of my food. 

I love the mantao very much. It was thin and soft, but also chewy and it had a slight sweetness in every bite. It went well with the braised pork belly, but not with the lettuce slice, so I had to take it away from my sandwich. The pork belly was very flavorful and dominated by sweetness. It wasn’t my favorite because the meat was not that tender and it had lots of layers of fat in it, which I don’t like. I managed to finish the pork belly first, leaving some mantao behind. Then, things got interesting from there. 

Remember that I also ordered a plate of pork cheek? Okay. So, I grabbed a few slices of the pork cheek, stuffed them in between the leftover mantao, and I dug in. It tasted so much better! 

The sliced pork cheek was very very crispy. The meat part, the fat park, and the skin part, all of them were very crispy and savory, and it had an intense level of umami in it. Slightly oily, but was still okay to munch on. The flavor combination of the soft and sweet mantao with the savory and crispy pork cheek deserved a standing ovation. I really really recommend all you guys to order this dish and indulge yourselves in it. You won’t regret a single thing! 

I ate, and I ate, and I ate. I had me a warm tea with no sugar to end my late lunch. Didn’t manage to finish all the food, so I took it home with me for later at night when I feel like munching something. 

Paradise Dynasty

Mall Ciputra World, 3rd Floor

Jl. Mayjen Sungkono, No. 87-89

Gunungsari, Kota Surabaya

Jawa Timur 60224

Opening Hours:

SUN - THU: 10AM - 10PM

FRI - SAT: 10 AM - 12AM

Contact:

(+62) 31 5120 0155

Pao Pao & Phong Through Huji

I want to introduce you to my two new favorite spots to eat and drink, where one serves authentic Korean food along with the whole bottled Soju and karaoke place for a night of singing with your coworkers on the weekdays, and the other one that serves booz and Chinese dumpling and baos as well as some DJ performances during the weekends to pump up that wild child side of yours.

Ladies and gentleman, I present you Chicken Phoong: Chicken and Huf and Pao Pao: Liquor Bar & Dimsum Parlour. 

Pao Pao: Liquor Bar & Dimsum Parlour

Jl. Senopati, No. 16

Senopati, Jakarta Selatan

5 PM - 1 AM (opening hours may varies depends on day of visit)

I went to Pao Pao on a Saturday night with my friend, Gavin, when my craving for good bao was at its’ peak. I’ve been craving for its’ Salted Egg Bao for two weeks and my friends, who became the victims of my continuous chatter about how I want to go to Pao Pao so bad, had to have the assumption of me wanting to go to Pao Pao to get wasted.

“Why do you want to go to Pao Pao? Are you planning on getting drunk,” one asked. 

“Woo girl, you tryna’ get some action in there. Nice,” one judged.

“Kin, I don’t even have money to buy food and you’re asking me to drink,” one sobbed. Who invited you on the first place anyway? I was just saying that I want to go to Pao Pao.

And, no, people. I don’t want to go to Pao Pao to drink (that particular night that is). I was craving for a good steamy bao!

I arrived at the dimsum parlour at five, approximately at the time when they were supposed to be opened. I entered the dark restaurant and was welcomed with confused gazes of the staf, who were sitting together making a circle on the back of the restaurant. “Excuse me,” I said, “it’s five. You guys are open, right?” Unashamed.

One of the staff came to me and apologized about how the restaurant was actually serving, but all the staffs were having a pre-work briefing, so they were all still on idle, meaning they can’t serve yet. “But, I’d be happy to take your order. And, you may sit as you wait. Although, we have a two hours slot policy per table that require you to finish your meal at seven because you come at five. Would that be okay,” she added. As long as I don’t get kicked out, I’m fine. 

Half and hour later, our table was decorated with plates and bamboo steamer. We ordered a lot of food! Salted Egg Bao, Deep Fried Mantao with Condensed Milk, Chicken Wings, Deep Fried Spiced Chicken Roll, and our drink was Iced Coffee Late and Hot Oolong Tea. You may think that those weren’t exactly a lot, but it sure was for me and Gavin who happen to have such short intestines. 

Let me start with the Salted Egg Bao. Each portion of this Chinese delicacy contains of three fluffy buns and it costed Rp39.000,00. The presentation of the bao was very plain and simple, yet it made me very curious on how they would taste like. I tried to rip one of the bao in half, so that I can take pictures of the salted egg fillings, but instead of being cut into two I accidentally poked a big hole on the center and the salted egg filling just oozed out like a molten lava cake. It shocked the heck out of me. That’s when I realized that those steamed buns were very soft and that they didn’t have this hard bao skin as they were easily crackable. 

I took a big bite and, oh God, my mouth was filled with oozing sweet and creamy salted egg filling. The texture of the bao was so soft and fluffy, slightly chewing, and they were still warm which added a plus point. I love love love the salted egg filling. For me, it had a balanced sweet and savory flavor, and it didn’t make me feel like vomiting when I ate a lot of it. A bit grainy here and there, I assume it was from the salted egg itself, and it didn’t have a stinky aftertaste. Enjoyable all the way. 

The fried mantao was my second favorite, first being the Salted Egg Bao. Deep fried to perfection, golden brown in color, cracked skin, and very solid outer shell yet squishy when poked with a finger. Served with a small plate of condensed milk, although I believe it doesn’t contain anything other than sugar in it, each portion of these mantao was Rp35.000,00 in price and consisted of four mini fried buns. Good deal indeed. 

Mantao with condensed milk is never wrong. Sure, you can have it your way by dipping it into chilly oil and chilly flakes, but I do my mantao sweet y’all. The inner part of the mantao was pipping hot. The fluffy savory, and slightly oily, bun blended perfectly with the super sweet and thick condensed milk. It didn’t take long for me to finish one. 

Gavin ordered a plate of Chicken Wings to share. I was a bit disappointed when it was served on our table. Pretty and seemed well-fried, but there weren’t any wings in it. I love chicken wings for the wing part and what was served on the table was chicken thighs. Why would Pao Pao named it Chicken Wings and not Chicken Thighs if they are going to serve chicken thighs? 

Despite my disappointment, I still had a bite of the chicken thighs just to try what it tasted like. Crispy, savory, not at all oily. It had a dash of white powder on the surface of the chicken, probably the remaining flour as coating. It was served with a plate of sambal kecap, which is an Indonesian traditional condiment consisted of sweet soy sauce and slices of chilly. A very nice match. But, still a big let down.

Last, but not least, was the Deep Fried Spiced Chicken Roll. Boy, such a long title for food it should probably be a subtitle instead of a title. The whole name explained the food itself on what it made out of, so I don’t have to bust my ass stating the obvious, right? 

Crispy bean curd filled with minced chicken that had the same texture as an ebi, or prawn. I was shocked at my first bite because I thought I ordered the chicken one instead of the prawn one - because Gavin is allergic to prawns and he can have a severe allergic reaction if he consume it. I munch the whole dish and didn’t taste any prawn at all, so what I thought was eating turned out wrong. Chef, you fooled me for thinking a chicken as a prawn. Kudos to you! 

All of the food that we ate that night was amazing. And because our slot was almost finished, me and Gavin immediately cleansed any remaining crumbs on the table, pay for our meal, and hopped to another cafe for dessert. As it got darker and darker, Pao Pao’s signature red neon light was lit and people were starting to pack the restaurant. In hours, the bar will dominate the parlor and the people will dance their worries and heartbreak away. 

Pao Pao is, and will always be, my favorite dimsum parlour. Its’ Salted Egg Bao deserves a standing ovation for its’ balance of flavor and great bao texture. Those buns that I ate at home can go screw themselves. 

Chicken Phong: Chicken and Huf

Ruko Wijaya Grand Center Lt. 2

Jl. Dharmawangsa VI, Blok F No. 41-48

 Kebayoran Baru, Jakarta Selatan

5 PM - 1 AM (opening hours may varies depends on day of visit)

The next day, I went to Phong with my cousins, Nuning and Adji, and his girlfriend, Nadja. Nadja was actually the one who mentioned Chicken Phong and how she was craving for the fried chickens. At the same time, me and Nuning were craving for some good chicken wings as well. So, we all decided to head out for dinner at Chicken Phong, then after that we get Nadja, who slept over at my house the night before, back home.

Located at Ruko Wijaya Grand Center, the same block with Kaca Mata Restaurant and Nasi Campur Kenanga, Chicken Phong was at the inner part of the block and its’ surrounding was as dark as a stray alley. I wouldn’t go there if it weren’t for Nadja’s recommendation of good chicken. The plate looked like one of those bad places where you can get kidnapped and raped by a drunk ahjussi (the Korean term for Indonesia’s oom-oom). This is me being honest from the bottom of my heart.

A building with a simple door, with a modest plank nailed just on top of the door’s upper border, was there. We got in and was welcomed with a staff sitting on this counter at the corner of the small room. “Four persons,” I said. Which was replied with a, “Please proceed to our second floor.” On my left was a big fridge filled with bottles of various kinds of beers. I took the stairs that leaded me to the second floor, and it was very disturbing as the walls surrounding the stairs had this red splurge pattern on it. “It’s like a murder scene in here,” said Nuning. 

As we arrived on the second floor, there was a big fridge filled with beers again on our left just before the entrance door to a dark room with very little light in it. It was, in fact, the dining area. It has this karaoke place vibe to it, with all the blue, red, and green light surrounding the dark room. There were nobody there that greeted us, or leaded us to our table, so we sat ourselves on the chair that was close to the Tv. Trot music (a specific genre of Korean music, similar to a dangdut in our country) was played and boomed through out the entire room. 

A minute later, a waiter came to our table and handed us the menu. Chicken, chicken, chicken, tteokbokki, chicken, vegetable, chicken, soju, and more chicken. That was the whole menu.

We settled with two plates of half a chicken, one was the Hot Spicy Seasoning Chicken and the other one was the Hot Spicy Chicken. I also ordered a plate of Toppoki to share and Adji got us beer for drink, which had a buy 3 get 1 promo at that time. 

The Toppoki, or tteok-bokki, came first after around 15 minutes of waiting. It was the most beautiful tteokI have ever seen (I once ate this plater of tteok at a cheap Korean restaurant named Mujigae and it tasted awful), the gochujang sauce was flooding the plate, drowning all the dishes used on that plate. There were plenty of lettuce, leek, tteok (rice cake), odeng (fish cake), and eggs, enough as the appetizer for the four of us. 

Mid eating, our first set of chicken came. It was the Hot Spicy Seasoning Chicken. Nothing extravagant, only a pile of deep-fried chicken overflowing with dark red seasoning sauce that looked totally tantalizing and made me drool as I see them being served on my table. There were wings and chest parts, which are my favorite part of a chicken, and I immediately tagged them to be devoured. They were still super hot as they just got out from the wok, but I took one of the wings I had tagged nonetheless. 

I tore the wing just to release the hot steam that was trapped inside the juicy meat. I wait a minute before I bite into it so that I won’t burn myself. 

By the grace of God, this chicken is amazing. It’s the best deep fried Korean chicken I have ever had. Despite the fact that those deep fried chicken, that was battered in flour mixture before being fried, was glazed with thick and spicy seasoned sauce, the skin was still crispy as a motherfvcker. They were not soggy at all! I was so happy to be able to enjoy such delicious and crispy goodness. I didn’t talk, nor engage in most of the conversations the others were making, while I ate as I was THAT busy savoring the amazing chicken wings. 

A minute later, came the Hot Spicy Chicken Wings that were golden in color. It was served with some salad on the side, consisted of shredded carrot, shredded cucumber, and slices of lettuce, along with some mayonnaise and ketchup. Most of the parts served were wings and I couldn’t be happier. 

After I finished with my seasoned glazed wings, I decided to try the other chicken dish. I took the medium sized one, tear it into two, and waited for it to cool down a bit. Then, munch~

Very crispy skin, yet tender meat. A wave of savory and umami smacked me in the cheek and I was lost for words. The chicken wings were so damned good I bullshit you not! This is the best one, yet! Eating this particular wing made me let out a series of crunch and crisps and splash (the splash being my saliva dripped mid munching). I like this one better than the previous one.

Okay, compared to the Hot Spicy Seasoning Chicken Wings, the Hot Spicy Chicken Wings didn’t have that much seasoning on it, but it was full of its’ own flavor of umami. I love this one better because they were dry and clean. The chicken wings that I had before had too much sauce glaze on it, which is great for some people, but not for me who don’t like slobbery food. They both tasted great, but I love this one more. My trick was to dip the Hot Spicy Chicken Wings into the Toppoki’s gochujang sauce. Instant flavor level up!

The four of us finished the whole plate clean. We stayed at the restaurant for another half an hour, waiting for the food to go down so that we won’t be trippy on our way to the car. All in all, we spent around Rp500,000,00 for dinner. Not bad at all. 

P.S. All photos were taken by an application named Huji (effortless retro on the go). And, one more plus point is that both of these restaurants allow smokers to smoke indoor, yaay! 

The Wedding Cake

As I was browsing through google and Instagram on where to eat at KLIA2, this particular article had my full attention. A small Chinese cake shop named Mr. Siew Bao is located on the second floor of KLIA2 mall, serving a wide varieties of traditional Chinese pastries and cakes, one of them being the Wedding Cake, or as the local like to call it Xi Bing.

I was very very curious about this so called wedding cake. What is it made of? What does it taste like? Why is it named "wedding cake"? What's the story behind it? Not having any second thought, I bought a piece, the one with the pink pastry and a lotus filling, that costed me 6.50RM.

I searched the answers to all of the questions I have regarding the Wedding Cake on the internet and, thank God, I found this article that explains everything in very much detail. I shall put the link here so that you can read it, but I'm going to tell you the whole explanation in my own words as well.

So, this wedding cake named Xi Bing is one of the many traditional Chinese pastries that holds a big part in a Chinese wedding. The cake itself is basically pastries with fillings. What kind of fillings, you may ask. Well, that depends on the bride's family's ancestry. The surface of the cake will then be stamped with a Chinese character, which is basically a wish for the bride and groom, along with the whole family. The one that I bought had a 囍 on it, which means "double happiness".

It is the groom who will bring the Xi Bing to the bride's family, as a symbol of gratitude towards the bride's parents for taking care of her the past years before she is married. The Xi Bing will then be eaten by the bride's family; her father, her mother, her aunty, her grandma, every single one of them, but not for the bride herself as the old folks believe that the bride will have a failed marriage if she eats the Xi Bing. It's merely a superstition, but some of us Asians do believe in those kind of things, right? If she feel like having a Xi Bing, she has to buy one for herself at any store that sells the particular traditional pastry.

With hesitation (because I didn't know the story behind the cake back then. I was afraid that I might get cursed for not eating the Xi Bing at my own wedding, resulting in a series of mishaps along my journey of finding my true love), I cracked open my share of Xi Bing. The lotus filling was very unappealing as it was greenish yellow in color. The pastry was very flaky and crumbly.

I had a bite and all I could taste was the dryness of the dough and the powder-like butter from the pastry itself. The lotus filling was sweet, but I didn't like it. It is actually a great snack to munch on, but I think it would taste better with chocolate filling instead of lotus filling. The whole cake reminds me a lot of Bali's Pia Legong.


P.S. Do correct me if there's anything wrong with what I write regarding the history of the Xi Bing. #newbiealert

Mr. Siew Bao

Kuala Lumpur International Airport

Arrival Lane, 6400

Sepang, Selangor

Paradise Dynasty at Ciputra World, Surabaya

I've been a regular customer of Paradise Dynasty ever since my first months staying in Surabaya. I usually eat at this particular Chinese restaurant whenever I have money. If not, I probably stayed at home and fried some tempeh. The thing about Paradise Dynasty is that they serve very very delicious and flavorful Chinese cuisine, and the fact that we are allowed to smoke if we sit on the outer part of the restaurant adds a plus point.

My share of Deep-fried Prawn with Salted Egg Yolk

During my first visit, I was having such a stressful day. I decided to head out to a nice mall and treat myself to a movie and good food. Paradise Dynasty was the restaurant I chose to binge at. It took a while for me to scan the whole menu because they offer various kinds of dishes. Thank God the locals in Surabaya are mostly Chinese, so pork is available on the menu.

One of the dishes that caught my attention was this Baymax Red Bean Bun. I immediately ordered myself one set, consisting of three palm-sized Baymax, that costed me Rp32.000,00. Not a single regret. Then, I got myself this cold dish named Chilled Sliced Pork in Minced Garlic and Soya Sauce, which I don't need to explain what that is judging from the name of the dish itself. And, last but not least, was a plate of Deep-fried Prawn with Salted Egg Yolk. They all looked amazing on the menu, I couldn't help myself!

I love Baymax!

The Baymax buns really cheered me up that night. I love how the buns were so soft and fluffy, yet chewy when you bite it. The red bean filling was very generous and it was stuffed inside Baymax's tummy. I enjoyed every bite even though I was hesitant to eat it at first because it was just so adorable! I mean, look at that face and that fluffy tummy!

This was a very nice appetizer, despite that those Baymax buns suit more as a dessert.

Then I had the chilled pork. One of the waitress took the liberty to enlighten me about the dish being cold. Maybe she was afraid that I didn't know, hence complaining about why the food is not hot. The reason why I ordered this dish is because I was just curious about how it would taste.

Turns out, it tasted fine, but I had come to a realization that cold pork is just not my thing. The pork was savory (and cold. I need to say it over and over again because of how odd it is being cold.) while the cucumber wrapped inside it was just fresh and juicy. I like how the chilly sauce gave another flavor into the dish. The garlic was very distinguish, as if it was saying "Bro, I'm here. Enjoy my presence!". I'm not complaining, but in my opinion, the flavor would be a lot more balanced if they put less garlic. I couldn't taste the soya though. Or, maybe it was there, but I'm not quite familiar with how soya sauce tasted like.

The sight of the Chilled Sliced Pork in Minced Garlic and Soya Sauce.

Look at them adorable faces!

The final dish was the Deep-fried Prawn with Salted Egg Yolk. Needless to say that the dish was very delicious. The prawns were deep-fried to perfection and they were coated with a generous amount of salted egg yolk. Very crispy, very flavorful, and it had a kick in every bite. The salted egg didn't dominate the flavor of the prawn, every ingredients combined work well with one another, making it deserved a standing ovation.

But, I do have to say that the dish was very heavy and it upset my stomach when I over eat it. One portion of the prawn contained lots of prawns, I bullshit you not. I would recommend if you share this dish with another two people just so that it wouldn't go to waste. I couldn't finish it, so I requested one of the waitress to wrap it up for me to take home with. Nonetheless, it was still very enjoyable.

You may think that I'm currently sitting on my bed as I'm writing this blog post. No! You are definitely wrong. I, in fact, am updating my blog at Paradise Dynasty. Plot twist!

I was from the gym, survived a session of upper hand training my personal trainer. I was going to watch a movie at the mall where my gym is located after my work out, but to my surprise the cinema is closed for good. I quickly decided to head to Ciputra World, so that I can enjoy a nice cinema for my quality time with the Nun and got me some good food before the movie.

I was so hungry (again), I ordered another three dishes for myself: the Xiao Long Bao Dynasty, a set of Pan-fried Shanghai Pork Bun, and some Stir-fried French Bean with Minced Pork. Praise the Lord!

I've been wanting to try the Xiao Long Bao Dynasty because I was attracted to their rainbow colored dumplings. One set, that costed Rp88.000,00, is filled with eight kinds of dumplings, each has different colors and filled with different fillings. It didn't take long for my order to be served on the table, and the first dish that arrived was this babies.

Xiao Long Bao is the Chinese term for dumplings.

A simple, yet breathtaking, presentation of the dumplings.

As I waited for my other dishes to be serve, I occupied myself with them rainbow dumplings. I studied all the different colors and their fillings, then devour them one by one in less than ten minutes. Pardon the beast inside my belly.

1st dumpling: Steamed Shanghai Black Truffle Pork Dumpling

The filling was a combination of black truffle and pork, which tasted mostly like pork but with a mushroom aftertaste. It was delicious and it was a good start for the rainbow dumpling. On to the remaining seven.

2nd dumpling:  Steamed Shanghai Foie Grass Pork Dumpling

I could taste a creamy substance mixed in the filling. There was definitely a flavor which I'm not familiar with and I'm guessing it was the foie grass. It tasted okay, but not my favorite. 

3rd dumpling: Steamed Shanghai Ginseng Pork Dumpling

Tasted a bit herby and sour, but still good. It was okay for me. 

4th dumpling: Steamed Shanghai Garlic Pork Dumpling

The garlic immediately kicked in on the first bite. Very savory and porky, and the amount of garlic was on point for my taste. 

This is what it looked like.

5th dumpling: Steamed Shanghai Crab Roe Pork Dumpling

Definitely one of my favorite among the seven. I could taste the crab roe bursting with fishy flavor (in a good way) as I chew the whole thing in one bite. 

6th dumpling: Steamed Shanghai Sechuan Pork Dumpling

I actually had a lot of expectation regarding this particular dumpling. I've been obsessing with whatever dish that has "sechuan" in its' name, including this one, merely because I watched Rick and Morty and I don't know how sechuan sauce tasted like (yes, that famous Mulan sechuan sauce). This dumpling was slightly spicy and had a kick of pepper in it. Delicious, but kind of a let down and definitely not my favorite.

7th dumpling: Steamed Shanghai Pork Dumpling

One word: basic

8th dumpling: Steamed Shanghai Cheese Dumpling

A cheese-filed dumpling? Never heard that one before! I saved the best (merely because it had cheese in it) for the last and I was not wrong. The pork filling was same like the other dumplings, very savory and delicious. But, the stretchy cheese made the dish tasted unique, but worked out well in the end. This is my favorite!

There was an instruction on how to indulge the xiao long bao. I followed the instruction thoroughly, even added the vinegar and ginger to add more flavor. True, it added a burst of flavor to the already well-flavored dumpling, but it was not meant for my tastebud because I'm not into ginger that much. The vinegar was okay, though.

All of the dumplings had a chewy and perfect skin: not too thick, yet not too thin as well. One bite into the dumpling and the juice squirted out immediately, dripping from my spoon to the table. Hell, I wasted lots of dumpling juice today, but it was okay since each dumplings had lots of juice in it.

After the dumplings were gone, I was left with my final two dishes: the Stir-fried French Bean with Minced Pork and the Pan-fried Shanghai Pork Bun.

Some veggies for your tummy.

The vegetable with minced meat was savory and slightly spicy. It had a lot of oil in it, which I don't like, but I managed to finished it. They sure used a lot of minced pork because I was left with some spoonful of it after I finish my beans.

Fluffy buns!

Nicely shaped, aren't they?

Last, but not least, the Pan-fried Shanghai Pork Bun which didn't exceed my expectation. One set had three buns filled with minced pork that costed me Rp35.000,00. The bottom part of the bun was fried, while the whole bun itself was steamed beforehand. I was expecting a crunchy and chewy texture, but I was wrong. The buns were just soft and chewy. That's it.

The sight of the buns' fillings.

The fillings, on the other hand, was not like how I expected it would be in a good way. Shaped in a ball and not sticking to the inner surface of the steamed bun, the fillings had a strong umami flavor and very juicy. I ripped open one bun and the juicy was just dripping down my hand I got a panic attack. Still delicious, but I was quite disappointed by the texture. Maybe I should get myself some Deep-fried Chinese Bun with Condensed Milk?


Paradise Dynasty
Mall Ciputra World, 3rd Floor
Jl. Mayjen Sungkono, No. 87-89
Gunungsari, Kota Surabaya
Jawa Timur 60224

Opening Hours:
SUN - THU: 10AM - 10PM
FRI - SAT: 10 AM - 12AM

Contact:
(+62) 31 5120 0155