Jalan Tan Hiok Nee Heritage Street @ Johore Bahru (Near City Square) [Malaysia]

Jalan Tan Hiok Nee should be familiar to those who always travel to Johore Bahru in Malaysia but I guarantee that out of 100%, over 95% would know it simply as the street where you can buy banana cake from the Hiap Joo bakery! 

To be totally honest, I was part of the 95% before the day trip I took a few weeks ago. Taking its name from a Chinese merchant who was bestowed the title "Chinese major" and then datukship, Jalan Tan Hiok Nee has transformed into a heritage arena with trees lining up both sides of the about 250-meter long street. 

It's also the location of Roast & Coffee, where we had our first breakfast on foreign land after a hiatus of more than two years; no thanks to the pandemic! 

Most famous stall had to be Hiap Joo bakery. Aside from the queue, which only disappeared when the shop was closed / they had sold out, another telling sign was the irresistible aroma of its signature banana cake! 

Those who drive can consider parking at this area, which was just a few meters away from Hiap Joo bakery. I think only daytime parking though. 

With eateries converted from containers, I presume this place would come alive only at night, and likely the now-carpark area converted into alfresco, dining-under-the-stars seating. 

My elder sister, who was a monthly visitor to Johore Bahru before the pandemic, and has since visited Malaysia no less than five times since the borders reopened in April, told me that the wanton mee from the above eatery was good. Shall keep that in mind the next time I step in! 

Said to be the most famous building along the street, I guess it helps to have such a striking color! According to online search, it was supposed to be a place for arts and heritage. Capitalism wins though, with a Marrybrown signage. 

Unlike many heritage streets, which are likely taken over by cafes, restaurants, shops selling expensive souvenirs etc, some of the commercial entities here still retained businesses that catered to the basic needs of residents. Like the one above, with slippers, brooms, umbrellas for sale.

Such old school signage right?! Despite the shop name, I would have guessed this would be a repair shop for household electronics or where I could get second hand electronics. 

A nursery; if there's one industry that boomed due to the pandemic, it would have been the horticultural industry! A friend who resides in Bangkok earned quite a bit when Thailand went into lockdown. Even in Yishun, there were, at one time, about five plant nurseries just in small place like Chong Pang! 

Retro outlook but it's a modern fashion store. Sadly, traditional shops are no longer as popular and it's inevitable that new entrants would have to be admitted to inject new blood, so as to attract more crowds.

Interesting - mutton noodle soup! It's unfortunate that I don't quite crave for mutton, unless it's in the form of mutton satay or lamb steak. Furthermore, there were just too many eateries for me to choose from! 

Entry to Johor Bahru Chinese Heritage Museum! Those who are keen in knowing more about the history of the Chinese community in Johore can pay this a visit.

We were happy to be just goofing around. 

Restoran 80000 - newly opened in January this year, this two-floor cafe served brunch, meals, croffles, cakes and of course, coffee! As my elder sister needed to wait for her banana cake, Alex and I decided to just chill out in the cafe, and use their free WIFI! 

Scan for menu.

I would love to try their 80000 big breakfast and their croffles but I needed to save space! A cup of mocha first and I will definitely be back to check out the the rest of the food at Restoran 80000. p.s. superb service; after we were done with the coffee, the staff actually served us plain water. Most cafes in Singapore would have prayed for us to get out. 

How ancient is this wooden bench!? 

Such metal folding gates were common when I was a kid; nowadays, the more convenient roller shutters are the norm. In the past, the metal grilles can be pretty hard to pull although as a kid, I was more worried my fingers would get caught in between the grille. 

This kind was quite popular for home renovation but the practical me could never understand as it would be a magnet for dust once the novelty wears off! 

The iconic five-foot walkway that's prevalent in Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia. For a Singaporean, it's something we are accustomed to seeing. 

Wall murals; to me, Malaysia should be named the capital of wall murals. The first started in Penang and there's even one in the small town of Kluang! 

Queue outside Hiap Joo bakery!

Much longer than earlier! 

To know more about my day trip to Johore Bahru, the first since border closure in April 2020, click here!

Roast & Coffee - No Pork, No Lard @ Johore Bahru [Malaysia]

After a hiatus of more than two years, I finally stepped foot on foreign land and the first thing we sought after clearing Malaysian immigration at Johore Bahru, was breakfast!

Singaporeans' favorite Hua Mui was too crowded and we decided to check out Roast & Coffee, which appeared new and located very near to the famous Hiap Joo bakery (signature: banana cake).

With such a nice, retro facade, I was expected an over-the-top heritage interior design within but it was pretty sparse with non-fanciful tables and chairs that served a basic, practical need.

I am a traditional at heart and the Hainanese breakfast, popular in both Malaysia and Singapore, is the kind that I would crave from time to time, especially when I am overseas! 

Order made! 

Payment after you are done. 

 

Kopi Gao Siew Dai - what makes a good cup of nanyang style coffee? The enticing aroma, a flavor that was strong yet not to the extent of being overly bitter, and a muted sweetness. That's for me by the way and this sure didn't disappoint, and was a positive sign to the start of the day! 

Double Butter Kaya - as the name suggest, this is double butter, not double kaya; latter of which would be preferred personally. The butter-kaya combination was tasty; only issue was the toasted bread. While it was crispy (I should have loved it honestly) but it didn't have that nice, bready fragrance. 

Kampong Egg - eggs to me are really just eggs, even though there were hypes about 1st born egg, eggs with added carotene etc. In this case, the eggs were kampong eggs, which I assumed eggs were from free roaming kampong chicken. Active hens equate to better, healthier eggs I guess.

The soft-boiled level was just right and with the pepper and soy sauce; this is yet again another classic breakfast that Malaysian / Singaporeans enjoy! Of course, the lazy bug and the clumsy monster in me would have liked it more if the operator breaks the eggs for me. 

Salted Egg French Toast - frankly, I wasn't very keen to order this but out of the 10 top best reviewed dishes, this was the only one that appealed more to me that day as the majority of the rest seemed to incur a huge calories intake. 

I wasn't that enthusiastic as the last time I had something similar, at Chau Kee Dim Sum in Hong Kong, it overwhelmed my taste buds, in a manner that was overly cloying. 

This, however, was surprisingly good!  The French toast was pan-fried perfectly, with a nice, crisp eggy exterior but more importantly was the salted egg sauce hidden within. It had that delicious flavor from salted egg crabs / prawns, not insanely sweet and with familiar bits of chili padi and curry leaves!

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A satisfactory first meal for my first overseas trip in over two years! 

Shall give the toast a miss in the future as there are nine other dishes on the top ten reviewed list that I had yet to check out. Maybe salted egg kampong chicken rice next time? 

Address

62&63, Jalan Tan Hiok Nee, Bandar Johor Bahru, 

80000 Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia

Map

As above.

Facebook Page

https://www.facebook.com/roastandcoffee/

Pricing

Kopi Gao Siew Dai - RM 2.60

Double Butter Kaya - RM 3.20

Kampong Egg - RM 3.00

Salted Egg French Toast - RM 8.90

(Subject to Tax) 

To know more about my day trip to Johore Bahru, the first since border closure in April 2020, click here! 

Koh Grill & Sushi Bar in 2022 @ Wisma Atria along Orchard Road [Singapore]

My last visit to Koh Grill & Sushi Bar was almost five years ago and I remember I waited quite a while in the queue before my family finally secured a table! This time round, the Great Kon and us got smart; arriving at a little past 3.00pm, way past lunch hours.

Even then, there wasn't an available table and we had to make do with the counter seats, which wasn't such a bad idea given that there were just three of us, and we can still catch snippets of the kitchen actions! 

Our order! We didn't order a lot since it was supposed to be a feast-filled day with the Great Kon, and both Alex and I were not prepared to go home with tummies that were about to burst. At our age, that's torturing.

Hot Green Tea - we even prepared by ordering green tea, which was refillable, and known to aid in digestion. It's interesting how age transforms the way we eat. In the past, I would have opted for ice cold drinks anytime. 

Pitan Tofu - cold yet appetizing, with bursts of saltiness coming from the fish roes. I should really try making this myself as it was said to be incredibly fool-proof, and way cheaper than in restaurants. 

The Shiok!!! Maki in Koh Grill & Sushi Bar is easily the most popular dish; to the extent the operator came out with a generation 2 version! It caught our interest and we decided to order both Generations 1 and 2! 

Shiok!!! Maki (1st Gen) - shiok in our local lingua actually refers to something so amazing; it's literally countless thumbs-up! And that's how I remember my first take on the maki when I had it a few years ago! 

Everything came together so perfectly and I can't help recalling the creaminess from the avocado and the enticing aroma from the flamed salmon. A must order for both first timers, and regulars. 

Shiok!!! Maki (2nd Gen) - when an equipment advances into a second or even later generation, chances are high you would be more impressed with the latest technology. The same can't be said for the food.

While the visual appeal didn't lose out the 1st generation, this paled in comparison on the taste ladder. Using prawns instead of unagi, it didn't excite my taste buds as much. The palatable creamy sauce did make it shiok but not to the extent I would give it three exclamation marks. 

Aburi Chirashi - the standard I demanded for chirashi has to be aligned with either Waa Cow / Omote. Although outlook wise, the seared sashimi was in larger pieces, instead of being diced-sized; we ordered simply because there was a 'recommended' logo beside the dish on the online menu.

It was delightful - with fresh seafood, having them seared give them the irresistible aroma of charred smokiness that elevates the flavor to the point that I just had to clean up the entire bowl, with an expression full of joy! 

Although I love diced sized seafood in chirashi, having them in large pieces do have an advantage; the unparalleled satisfaction! 

Buta Maki Grilled Skewers - interestingly, we didn't request for chicken grilled skewer which would have been the basic skewer to have in any Japanese restaurant. 

On this plate were pork belly skewers; one with enoki mushrooms, one with cherry tomatoes and last with asparagus. How do you think they fare?

Honestly, they were okay tasting; not bad, maybe a bit too dry. Just that at our age, we prefer something that would wow us more so that it's more worth the calorie intake. 

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Address

435, Orchard Road, #04-02/14, 

Wisma Atria, Singapore 238877 

(Connected to Orchard MRT Station)

Operating Hours

11.30am to 9.45pm

Online Menu

As above.

Pricing

Hot Green Tea - S$1.00 each

Pitan Tofu -  S$5.00

Shiok!!! Maki (1st Gen) - S$18.80

Shiok!!! Maki (2nd Gen) - S$18.80

Aburi Chirashi - S$19.00

Buta Maki Grilled Skewers - S$12.00

(Subject to GST, No Service Charge)

Additional Information

All guests have to be present before you are allowed into the restaurant. 

Radish to Clean BBQ Grease and Stains?

I am naturally a curious person and during my recent day trip to Johore Bahru (Malaysia); I was halfway through a Korean BBQ meal when I noticed something in a small saucer. 

First thought; am I supposed to eat this? It was a piece of radish stabbed with a wooden stick. While the brain was wondering what to do with it, I decided to not waste my brain juice, and just asked the friendly service staff who was from Nepal. 

Turned out it was used to clean the grease and stains from the BBQ grill pan! Now, I have a Ninja Foodi Grill at home and removing the stubborn grill stains is the most irritating chore! Of course I had to give it a try! 

Voila! It really did work! How did this manage to evade my radar for so long!? And I don't remember seeing it being used in other Korean BBQ restaurants as well; most would just go with waxed / baking paper.

Even my elder sister was in awe; and had to confirm it herself. 

The area she scrapped using the radish was quite clean right?

Although the mystery was solved, my mind got curious again. Some BBQ restaurants would use pork lard to oil the pan and you can actually eat the pork lard after that, once all the oil were expressed out. Do you think the radish can be eaten once it has performed its duty?