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Pizza is many things to many people. But there is one thing it is often NOT -- healthy. Imagine thick, doughy crusts and greasy cheese with processed meat like pepperoni, sausage and ham. As much as I enjoy Italian thin crust pizzas, I love eating American pizzas, and so does rif (probably more than I do) -- despite the alarming amount of calories they come with. 
With the tagline “better ingredients, better pizzas”, we tried Papa John Pizza, with some anticipation. I said ‘some’ because I didn’t want to be terribly disappointed. A set meal for 2 (RM26.90) comes with 2 glasses of coke, breadsticks and a 9-inch pizza.
I found the breadsticks a bit dense and chewy; I like them lighter. I hope they didn’t microwave the breadsticks before serving, as that tends to make the bread rubbery. The pizza sauce was alright-- it was a bit bland for my liking. 
However, I thought the special garlic dipping sauce was interesting. Despite being slightly diluted than I like them to be, the garlicky sauce paired well with the breadsticks. I asked for two more helpings to dip my pizza crust in. 
The pepperonici peppers tasted like a tangy version of our pickled green chillies. I didn’t care much for them, as they didn’t really have much kick. 
Topped with mozzarella cheese, beef pepperoni, Italian beef sausage, chicken rolls, fresh mushrooms, green peppers, onions and black olives, the Super Papa’s pizza was quite good. Not fantastic, but it tasted better than Pizza Hut, Dominos and the bland blob of bread Canadian Pizza calls 'pizza'. The thick crust was soft and chewy, and crisply done on the outside. I enjoyed the crust more than I did for the toppings; they tasted delicious with the garlic sauce.
Being greedy, we ordered another 9-inch Hawaiian Papa (RM21.90). I didn’t like this as much as I liked the Super Papa’s. It tasted very ordinary – we should have gone for the Mexican Ole of Texas Heat instead.
Service was disjointed. The staff didn’t know how to handle the crowd, and mind you, we were there at 3.30pm. I cannot imagine how they would fare during peak hours. In general, the pizzas were quite decent, but not good enough for me to brave the traffic jam and increase my blood pressure JUST for that.Ambiance: 6/10
Price: 6/10
Food: 6/10 (halal)
Verdict: Pretty good pizzas and decent prices. I wouldn’t mind going there again if I’m within the area.
Ground Floor
Lot G 07-08
Berjaya Times Square
03 2141 7272
My first encounter with kim chi wasn’t a good one; I thought it looked awfully red, mushy and sloppy. That was more than 3 years ago, at a small Chinese supermarket in the UK. Then again, that supermarket didn’t exactly have the freshest items available. The kim chi was probably lying there for a while, like a few dusty cans of kaya (coconut jam) I saw on the shelf nearby.
With the number of Korean restaurants and mini marts mushrooming around Hartamas and Mon’t Kiara, I got to try fresh kim chi (by 'fresh' I mean kim chi that doesn't look like it's been there since the 80's), and loved it. I usually go to Little Korea when I crave Korean food, but rif suggested we try Bon Ga, located a few blocks away.
The menu isn’t as extensive as Little Korea’s, but they have the basic grilled items and soups. I noticed Bon Ga serves more seafood dishes than meat. Since it was just the two of us, we ordered a portion of Samgyeopsal (pork belly) and Kimchi Jeongol (kimchi soup) to share.
As usual, the meal came with some complimentary ban chan (side dishes), we got 13 of them. I liked most of the ban chan, but the ones that stood out were the kim chi, salted lettuce and green chilli in bean paste. 
Kimchi jeongol (RM35) is basically the same thing as kimchi jjigae. Only, it is served in a bigger pot. I reckon the pot was enough to feed 3 people. There was plenty of white tofu, chunky pork belly, kim chi and onion slices, and the soup had just the right amount of sourness, sweetness and spiciness. 
We were also offered a large packet of instant noodles to add to our soup. Despite being soaked in kimchi broth for more than 10 minutes, the noodles remained firm to the bite. I enjoyed this very much.
When it was placed on the hot grill to cook, the Samgyeopsal (RM25) looked and smelt very good. Grilled till it was slightly crisp on the outside, the 3-layered pork belly was incredibly tender. This tasted even better when dipped into some doenjang (soy bean paste) and wrapped with lettuce. 
The portions were generous -- I reckon the food above can easily feed three. However, there were some minor gripes. So far, the Korean restaurants I’ve patronised serve their diners a bowl of sikhae (Korean sweet rice punch) after the meal. Bon Ga didn’t. After eating the grilled pork belly and spicy kim chi soup, it would be nice to have something cooling.
I also felt very thirsty after the meal -- they probably went overboard with the MSG. I didn’t try the other grilled items, but based on what I ate, I reckon Little Korea is still better. And I didn’t feel thirsty after eating there! Ambiance: 5.5/10
Price: 6.5/10
Food: 6.5/10 (non-halal)
Verdict: While the food was decent, I’d still go back to Little Korea whenever I crave for Korean food.
No 2-2-2,
3A-2 Block E,
Jln Solaris 3,
Mont Kiara,
Kuala Lumpur
03 6204 0012
After a disappointing dinner at Sanbanto, we weren’t too keen on trying their desserts. Since there was a new dessert place next door, Nomad and I decided to take our chances and try their tong suis. Tong sui is a form of sweet warm/cold soup served as a dessert at the end of a meal. 
My favourite tong sui is the peanut soup, also known as Fa Sang Wu in Cantonese. A good peanut soup should be thick, creamy and fragrant from the ground peanuts. Dessert House's version (RM3) lacked aroma and it was diluted; it tasted as though they bought a powder mix and added hot water into it. 
We also tried the walnut + peanut soup (RM3.50) -- this was dreadful. The walnut soup tasted plastic, and it added further damage to the flavour of the peanut soup.
I thought the Snow Mountain and Pomelo & Sago in Mango Sweet Soup (RM8.50) was just as bad. The green tea ice cream tasted artificial, and the mango sweet soup could pass off as a mango cordial. While the pomelo was an attempt to be creative, it was terribly bitter, and took the dessert straight to the dumps. 
The Black Glutinous Rice with Mango Coconut Milk (RM8) fared better, but it was still nowhere near good. I liked the combination, but some parts of the glutinous rice were not cooked properly. Still, it was better than the first 3 desserts we had. 
We tried the Mango Rolls (RM12) out of curiousity, and immediately regretted our spontaneous decision. This was a mango and coconut pudding shaped to look like a chee cheong fun; I thought it tasted weird. Come to think of it, everything tasted artificial. These were probably the worst tong suis I’ve tried, and I wouldn't torture myself by going back. Ambiance: 5/10
Price: 5/10
Food: 1/10
Verdict: Forget about trying this. Just go to KTZ a few doors away.
Here’s the address if you STILL want to try it for yourself:
36, Ground Floor,
Jalan SS2/63,
47300, PJ
With the tagline “better ingredients, better pizzas”, we tried Papa John Pizza, with some anticipation. I said ‘some’ because I didn’t want to be terribly disappointed. A set meal for 2 (RM26.90) comes with 2 glasses of coke, breadsticks and a 9-inch pizza.
I found the breadsticks a bit dense and chewy; I like them lighter. I hope they didn’t microwave the breadsticks before serving, as that tends to make the bread rubbery. The pizza sauce was alright-- it was a bit bland for my liking. 
However, I thought the special garlic dipping sauce was interesting. Despite being slightly diluted than I like them to be, the garlicky sauce paired well with the breadsticks. I asked for two more helpings to dip my pizza crust in. 
The pepperonici peppers tasted like a tangy version of our pickled green chillies. I didn’t care much for them, as they didn’t really have much kick. 
Topped with mozzarella cheese, beef pepperoni, Italian beef sausage, chicken rolls, fresh mushrooms, green peppers, onions and black olives, the Super Papa’s pizza was quite good. Not fantastic, but it tasted better than Pizza Hut, Dominos and the bland blob of bread Canadian Pizza calls 'pizza'. The thick crust was soft and chewy, and crisply done on the outside. I enjoyed the crust more than I did for the toppings; they tasted delicious with the garlic sauce.
Being greedy, we ordered another 9-inch Hawaiian Papa (RM21.90). I didn’t like this as much as I liked the Super Papa’s. It tasted very ordinary – we should have gone for the Mexican Ole of Texas Heat instead. 
