Dining - A place where time stand still

A place where time stand still

TIME literally come to a stop when dining at the Tree Monkey in Teluk Bahang. The ambience is so tranquil and relaxed that one can simply leave all the stresses of the day behind and just enjoy the moment in the warm embrace of Mother Nature.

This open concept ‘gigantic treehouse’ restaurant is perched some 30 feet above sea level, evoking the feeling of being on top of the lush centuries old rain trees that provide a shady canopy.

Drawing inspiration from traditional Balinese aesthetics, the outlet is decked out with imported hardwood tables and chairs complemented by an attap-covered gazebo and lounge.

The rustic and laid back charm can be enjoyed throughout the day from 9am to 11pm. Feel a sense of total peacefulness as the rustling leaves above serenade while streaks of sunlight stream through the trees and the cool sea breeze gently caresses.

Do not be surprised to see Dusky Leaf monkeys, squirrels and even flying foxes roaming freely among the branches mere metres away on most evenings. Truly serenity at its best!

This is exactly the concept that owners Patt Khor and Wisakha Nomthangthum wanted to introduce to the world when they started Tree Monkey three years ago. The restaurant is all about providing a unique dining experience in the heart of nature.

And to complete this idyllic environment are authentic Thai cuisine and innovative beverages that a foreign diner aptly described on Trip Adviser as “never had before tasty treats.”

Emphasis is also placed on the Thai and Asian tapas, a wide variety of finger food that are ideal for sharing and for diners to sample many items at one shot. The tapas is also great as a starter and to go with a drink or two.

Among the Thai tapas selections are massaman samosa, sambal chicken, mussel salsa and Darling crab (stuffed with minced seafood) while the Asian tapas includes yum mamoung (Thai mango salad), satay, prawn tamarind and Son In Law egg (deep fried boiled egg topped with tamarind sauce).

Thai favourites consist of crispy kang kung, otak-otak (steamed curried seafood paste in banana leaf), namtok (beef salad with shallot, mint leaves, spring onion, grounded rice, dried chili powder and lime juice) and crispy herb snapper.

New creations are the sizzling dishes of Weeping Tiger (marinated beef with black pepper sauce), sweet & sour prawn (with onion, pineapple, capsicum and tomato sauce) and spice & herb seafood (with garlic, peppercorn, finger root and basil leaves).

There are also Western food such as fish and chips, calamari (golden fried squid and onion ring with tartar sauce), spaghetti pomodoro (with basil leaves and tomato sauce) and French fries.

Dessert comprise of Thai coconut ice cream, thub thim krob (water chestnut in coconut milk), fruit salad as well as mango and sticky rice.

For breakfast, diners can choose from light dishes including belacan fried rice, pineapple fried rice, phad Thai (fried noodle with prawns, egg, dried shrimp, shallots and bean sprout) and Thai laksa.

The dishes here are prepared with the freshest herbs and spices, with some of the ingredients grown in the adjacent Tropical Spice Garden. The menu also listed the benefits of the herbs used in the cooking so diners would know exactly what they are eating.

As for the invigorating concoctions, chill out with mocktails such as sabai tomyam (lemongrass, lime juice, chili and kaffir lime leaves), monkey juice (mango, banana, pineapple, orange and basil leaves) and virgin monkey (pineapple, lime juice, soda and basil).

The spice and herb cocktails like monkey mojito (white rum, lime juice, soda, lemongrass, chili and kaffir lime leaves), Malibu monkey (Malibu, pineapple juice, soda and basil) and tomyam martini are also must try.

For reservations, kindly contact 04-8813493/4 or log on to www.treemonkey.com.my

~News courtesy of The Star~

Botanic Gardens: Restored and blooming again

Restored and blooming again

The long-forgotten Sunken Garden in its former state has been restored and replaced with a beautiful tiered rock pool.

THE Penang Botanic Gardens’ long-forgotten Sunken Garden has been restored to its former glory.

In place of the thick undergrowth is now a beautiful tiered rock pool.

Work to clear, upgrade and beautify the area started last October and was completed in two months.

Located near the Formal Garden, the Sun-ken Garden is on lower ground — hence its name.

It was earlier reported that the Sunken Garden, conceived during the tenure of the Gardens’ first Malaysian curator Cheang Kok Choy, had been abandoned for some 40 years.

State Botanic Gardens department assistant director Salasiah Yusop said they were currently doing the landscaping and maintenance works.

“It’s done. The public can visit anytime.

“We’ve never closed the Sunken Garden but now when you visit, you can actually sit and relax there as the upgrading work has finished,” she said yesterday.

On the environmentally friendly bamboo appreciation centre that is being constructed at the nearby bambusetum, Salasiah said it would be ready by the end of this month.

Both the Sunken Garden and the nearby bamboo appreciation centre were awarded to local contractors and scheduled for completion last December.

“A termite problem and delay in the delivery of bamboos caused the completion date of the centre to drag on a little.

“The bamboos from Indonesia only arrived here last month,” she said.

The structure, perched on higher ground and overlooking the bambusetum, is built entirely out of bamboo and will also house a souvenir shop.

The cost of the projects is funded by the state government.

The bambusetum, featuring 36 bamboo species from Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and China, is part of the Tourism Ministry’s RM7mil Botanic Gardens expansion project which also comprised a new visitors’ pavilion, facade and eco-stream walkway.

On the Historic Economic Crop Garden, originally slated for completion in November last year, Salasiah said there has been a slight delay.

The new attraction located between the Penang Rifle Club and Quarry Garden was cleared in early October, and planted with a myriad of some 100 commodity crops like coffee, rubber, cocoa, oil palm and coconut.

The objective is for the younger generation to see first hand the crops that contributed to the nation’s development.

“We’ve planted the trees but they are not growing as well as we had hoped because there are granite rocks underground.

“The rocks will be removed soon to make sure that the trees flourish,” she said, adding that work to convert the department’s cen-tury-old office inside the Botanic Gardens into a herbarium-cum-museum was underway.

“The department moved into the pavilion on Jan 23 and upgrading work on our former premises is being done.

“I would like to thank our new consultant curator Stewart James Henchie and Penang Botanic Gardens controlling officer Mohamed Akbar Mustapha who have been such a big help since they came on board three months ago,” she said.

Henchie is the former president of the Kew Guild – an organisation for past and present staff of London’s Kew Gardens.

An official launching ceremony for the bambusetum, Sunken Garden, Historic Economic Crop Garden and herbarium-cum-museum will be held sometime this year.

~News courtesy of The Star~

Old-world Hainanese favourites

Old-world Hainanese favourites

RELISH the old-time ambience at the charming Yeng Keng Café Bar nestled in the heart of George Town, Penang.

Part of the acclaimed Yeng Keng Hotel, a boutique heritage establishment along Chulia Street, the outlet has been garnering rave reviews and a good following for authentic Hainanese-styled cuisine.

Executive chef Tan Jee Yong was born in Hainan, China, before emigrating to Malaya as a child with his father after the war years.

Upon finishing school, he took up work in a kitchen, learnt his trade from a Hainanese master chef, and has been a proponent of his native cuisine ever since.

“Real Hainanese cuisine can be hard to find nowadays, thus I hope my dishes can give guests an authentic taste. If they leave happy and keep returning, I’m proud,” said Tan, now in his late 60s.

Favourites here include the Ark Or (yam duck), which is a flavourful, stew infused with bean paste, ginger, yam and waterfowl, slowly boiled for over an hour.

The signature Spinach Lamb Roll has shoulder meat stuffed with cartoon character Popeye’s favourite vegetable and garlic, then slow-cooked for over two hours, resulting in succulent meat.

But his Choon Piah (spring rolls), packed with shredded crabmeat, mushroom, prawns, chicken, mengkuang and carrots, is the undoubted best seller.

Guests who try it usually order additional servings, Tan pointed out.

Also acclaimed are his Hainan Mee, Chicken Pie, Yeng Keng Chicken Chop, Macaroni Pie, and Hainanese Chicken Rice, which comes as whole chicken, to lock in meat juices.

Hotel manager Jacky Chung pointed out that Penang’s Hainanese cuisine invariably bears some English influences because the Hainan folk who came over to Penang usually ended up working in colonial kitchens.

Hence there are offerings like the delicious Crab Mornay which has chunky crabmeat, mushrooms, cream and cheese baked till golden brown in hollowed out crustacean shells.

The Bomb Alaska, another house specialty rarely found nowadays, is as much a treat for the eyes as it is for the sweet tooth. The butter cake, ice cream and mixed fruits covered with beaten egg whites are quite a spectacle when flambéed with brandy tableside.

The café also offers Traditional Hainanese Course Dinners, priced at RM530++ onwards per table of 10. Guests can customise their dish choices from a preset menu.

Private events can also be hosted at the well-equipped function room upstairs, with capacity for 40 pax.

The pork-free café is open from 7am to midnight daily, and also serves breakfast. Last call for the kitchen is at 9.30pm. After meals, adjourn to the hotel’s spacious courtyard for a few rounds of drinks.

Yeng Keng Hotel, built circa 1850s, is among the oldest surviving buildings in the area, and was once a private residence that later became a gentleman’s club, and then a budget hotel.

Bought over in 2009, and extensively refurbished to its former glory by mid-2010, it is now a 20-room boutique establishment.

It has also garnered an impressive list of accolades, coming first in the small hotels category for Malaysia, in TripAdvisor’s Travellers’ Choice Awards 2013.

For more details, visit www.yengkenghotel.com. Call 04-263 3177 for café reservations.

~News courtesy of The Star~

Chap Goh Meh open house

Chap Goh Meh open house promises lots of excitement

GET ready to show off your best nyonya kebaya during the Penang Chap Goh Meh open house at the Esplanade in George Town on Feb 24.

The kebaya contest, open to those aged 12 and above, will be held at 8.30pm. Entry is free.

Contest coordinator Michael Cheah said participants would be asked a few questions when they parade on stage.

“The first prize winner will take home RM1,000, a bouquet and a tiara,” he told a press conference at the State Chinese (Penang) Association in Perak Road.

Cheah said the first and second runners-up would win RM600 and RM300 respectively and a bouquet each.

There will also be two consolation prizes of RM100 each.

He said entry forms could be obtained from the association’s office (Tel: 04-2269560) from 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday. Entries close on Monday.

Association president Datuk Tan Gin Soon said the contest was aimed at encouraging young people to understand the Baba and Nyonya culture.

“There will also be Baba and Nyonya dancing and singing performances at the open house,” he said.

He said a six-member group, The Main Wayang Company, which is Singapore’s first Peranakan cultural arts and theatre company, would be performing at the event.

Penang Tourism Development and Cultural Committee chairman Danny Law Heng Kiang said the Lions Club would be organising the orange tossing ritual at the open house and would be selling 3,500 oranges at RM1 each at the venue.

He said the programme for the open house to be held from 6pm to 11pm also included a giant snake dance, LED dragon dance, lion dance and Chingay performances.

Food lovers are in for a treat. Besides the free food which will be served from 8pm to 9.30pm, food stalls selling popular Penang hawker fare will be set up.

The open house, which is expected to draw 10,000 visitors, will culminate with a 10-minute fireworks display at 11pm.

For details, call the Penang Tourism Development and Culture Committee hotline at 016-4110000 or the office at 04-6505136.

~News courtesy of The Star~

Happy Chinese New Year

Chap Goh Meh merriment

Chap Goh Meh merriment

THE Chinese New Year period in Penang is set to end with a bang on Chap Goh Meh on Feb 24 at the Esplanade.

The state government will hold a Chap Goh Meh open house there from 6pm to 11pm. A 10-minute fireworks display will light up the sky at 11pm.

State Tourism Development and Culture Committee chairman Danny Law said there would be the customary tossing of mandarin oranges and a decorated bus ferrying a dondang sayang troupe.

“Guest can enjoy performances by four lion dance troupes on stilts and a Baba Nyonya group from Singapore.

“Last year’s celebration recorded a participation of about 15,000 people.

“We expect more than 20,000 people to attend this year’s open house,” he told a press conference in Komtar.

Law said there would also be chingay, dragon dance and cultural performances.

Besides free food which will be served from 8pm to 9.30pm, he said there would be more than 20 food stalls selling popular Penang haw-ker fare throughout the duration of the event.

He said the Penang Chinese Chamber of Commerce was sponsoring the fireworks display.

~News courtesy of The Star~

Snake temple bracing for huge turnout

Snake temple bracing for huge turnout

Thousands of visitors are expected to throng the snake temple in Bayan Lepas on the sixth day of the first Chinese lunar month to mark the birthday of the resident deity ‘Chor Soo Kong’.

“We expect more visitors for the second day of the Ban Ka Lan Snake Festival.

“There will be snake charmers, a snake dance, cultural dances, chingay and stilt walking,” said organising chairman Cheah Cheng Ean.

The two-day festival begins on Thursday.

The snake dance will feature a 15.5m ‘green serpent’.

Other highlights on Thursday include the Chiah Hoay (flame-watching ceremony) by various Chor Soo Kong temples, lion dance performances and fireworks.

“This is the first time a festival of this kind is being held in Penang,” said state Tourism Development and Cultural Committee chairman Danny Law Heng Kiang at press conference yesterday.

About 60 food stalls will also be set up during the two-day festival.

Proceeds will go to the Mount Miriam Cancer Hospital.

Entrance to the festival is free.

Call Tan Lye Hock at 012-4860211 or Cheah at 012-4331918 for information.

~News courtesy of The Star~