15

April
2009

The Oberoi, Lombok

category: travelling
by Yun, 7 Comments »

In early 2005, A and I went to Lombok – Bali’s kid sister – and stayed in two different places: Sheraton and Oberoi. Sheraton is located in Senggigi beach, a much more touristy area compared to Oberoi, which is on an isolated area but an utterly gorgeous, a very peaceful and tranquil property. I instantly fell in love with Oberoi the first time A and I stayed there.

romantic moment

By good luck, in late 2008, we had the chance to revisit Lombok after our Gili Trawangan trip. Without a doubt, we chose to stay at Oberoi again. Reservation and a boat transfer from Gili Trawangan to Medana Beach (i.e., Oberoi’s private beach) was already confirmed a month in advance. The speed boat ride from Gili Trawangan to Medana Beach only took twenty minutes. Upon on arrival we were greeted with refreshing ginger lime ice cocktails, slices of cake and Frangipani Leis. Then we checked into our pavilion. The pavilion’s terrace has a great view of beautiful lush gardens and endless blue sea. The high-ceiling room is expansive and comes with various amenities. Its separate shower and sunken bath overlooking a private garden patio makes our stay even more enjoyable. The only downside is the bulky outdated tube television at the corner of the room. I expected to have a nice LCD TV when it comes to a five-star hotel like Oberoi.

sunset1

After resting for a while, we directly went to the hotel’s beach. The beach is not spectacular but very private and secluded. We then went snorkeling around the hotel’s jetty. Within only one minute of snorkeling, I sensed something very wrong. I felt very itchy around my arms and legs, then we realized that there were many jellyfish around us. Ahhh… We abruptly ended our snorkeling. We then took advantage of the hotel’s jellyfish-free pool. We spent the rest of the afternoon swimming and lying down by the infinity pool.

afternoon-tea

The hotel offered afternoon tea for the guests in the hotel’s bale bengong. They served banana, raisin, walnut cake and a traditional local finger food called surabi (made from rice flour, palm sugar, and shredded coconut). Regular black tea and traditional home-made ginger tea with honey were also provided. We enjoyed our tea and finger food with a view of an endless sea and a fantastic sunset over Mount Agung. It was a perfect afternoon!

dinner

As for the night, candlelight dinner tables were neatly arranged around the pool. Each of the four gazebos at the corners of the pool was also used for a private dinner. The hotel guests can also have a private romantic dinner on the beach or by the cliff overlooking the ocean. The food was remarkable, but it was a bit pricey. During dinner, an old man who had been lingering around the pool for some time suddenly approached us and casually asked a question in Chinese. He thought that we came from China. After revealing our Indonesian nationality, he was so surprised. He said that, in September, not many Indonesians usually stayed at the hotel. Maybe September is not a holiday season for most Indonesians. Well, it’s true! At that time, we were the only Indonesian guests. Hehehe… After dinner, we returned to our pavilion for a good night sleep.

oberoi-at-night

The next morning we had a la carte breakfast served in the beachfront cafe with a beautiful scenery of the blue sea. The breakfast was delicious. A selection of continental breakfast included assorted croissants and breads combined with homemade jam and tropical fruits. The pancakes and omelets that we ordered were presented beautifully by the chef. We all treasured our time with a long leisure chat at the gorgeous beachside cafe. What a memorable moment…

breakfast-oberoi

Noticing us taking pictures, the old man with whom we had a conversation before during dinner greeted us and posed himself next to my sister. We then took a picture of him together with my sister. After that, we had a little chat with one of the waitresses. She indicated that the old man was actually the owner of the Oberoi Lombok. Wow! By looking at his outer appearance, we really couldn’t guess that he was the hotel owner. Unlike many other business owners, he dressed too casually and relaxedly, wearing only flip flops, a worn-out looking t-shirt, and “sarung” (a traditional local cloth). The waitress even told us that some of the hotel employees had even advised the owner several times to dress up more appropriately, but he simply didn’t care. Hahaha… funny. Just like an old saying: “Don’t judge a book by its cover.”

traditional-market

We took a complimentary “cidomo” ride to a traditional market and a local village nearby. At first glance, the traditional market appeared to be a bewildering and disorganized mess, with no clear arrangement of the stalls. Many traders simply placed their goods on the ground and sold them in the middle of the sidewalks, causing traffic congestion. And yes, like many other traditional Indonesian markets, the market was dirty with garbage and rats in plain sight. Hygienic efforts were minimal, yet care was taken to keep food items clean. The items sold at the market are in numerous kinds, such as meat, fish, fruit, vegetables, spices, clothes and household items. We have been to many traditional markets in Java, but we thought the market at Lombok was the most traditional among all. From the time we arrived to the time we left, we were the center of attention. Many of the sellers and the buyers kept staring at us and sometimes they talked about us (in a good way), not knowing that we actually understood what they were talking about. It made me feel very uncomfortable.

local-people

Before heading back to the hotel, the cidomo driver took us to see a nearby village. The villagers nicely greeted us with enthusiastic shouts of “Hello Mister!” and friendly waves. The small village carry on life as they have for centuries – simple life styles centered around farming, communal living and traditional handycrafts. Regardless what we felt about the market, the “cidomo” ride was worth a trip. To be there meeting local people and seeing how their daily simple life looked like gave us a unique cultural experience.

fisherman

If you want to see how Bali looked like twenty years ago, go to Lombok and explore its countryside. You’ll understand why Lombok has been promoted as an “unspoiled Bali”. Lombok is a lot less crowded than Bali, and its nature is still in pristine condition. The beaches are far better than those in Bali. The people and culture of Lombok differ from Bali. Some of my American friends who have been to both islands like Lombok better than Bali. They think that Bali is too dense and touristy, not offering the true feeling of a tropical island.

The Oberoi Lombok is an ideal place for those seeking a romantic getaway or a peaceful seclusion. It was indeed a perfect place for us to end our vacation.

31

March
2009

Nadi, Fiji

category: travelling
by Yun, 6 Comments »

safron

Returning from Qamea, we had a half day to explore Nadi before our flight back to Los Angeles. Our minds were still into the beach. Sadly, there was no beautiful beach around Nadi area. Not sure where to go, we looked around the airport and stopped by at Jack’s handicraft, the biggest souvenir’s shop in Nadi. Due to the small size of Jack’s store in the airport, I asked the shop assistant how big the downtown’s store was, compared to the one in the airport. And surprisingly, she offered us a round-trip shuttle service to the downtown’s store. Wow, what a coincidence… Ahh, I was thankful! Why?…First, to go to downtown Nadi without paying taxi fare. Second, to enable us to buy some souvenirs for my families with a lot of different choices. Third, to visit Saffron for a dinner, which is located next to Jack’s and belongs to the same owner of Jack’s (we visited Saffron before).

nadi-market

On the way to Jack’s, we stopped by at local market to buy fresh mangoes. The market was very small and unorganized. Fresh fruits, vegetables and also kava root could be found at the market. After buying mangoes, we were directly headed to downtown Nadi. Arriving at Jack’s we found that so many handy crafts were originally from Papua or Indonesia, not only their wood carvings but also the t-shirts and sulu.

jacks

Finished with shopping, we walked around the neighborhood for killing time while waiting Saffron’s Tandori Restaurant to open.

The second biggest population in Fiji after the Native Fijian is Indian. So it’s not surprising that there are plenty Indian restaurants in Fiji. According to the local people, one of the best Indian restaurants is Saffron Tandori Restaurant. Indeed, Saffron is lovely. We left Saffron pleased and full. Heading off to the airport with a complimentary taxi provided by Jack’s, we concluded our holiday. With no choice, we had to fly back to Los Angeles and back to the real world. So sad… hiks…

fiji

22

March
2009

Coconut Pudding with Pandan Leaves

category: recipes
by Yun, 6 Comments »

Coconut pudding with pandan leaves

During my childhood, pudding is a common selection for dessert. I still remember vividly that I love pudding with layers of coconut meat, which I couldn’t find anywhere in my hometown. The pudding could only be found in a town several hundreds miles away from my city.

Coconut pudding

Nothing beats my childhood memory. When you are far away from your hometown, you will certainly miss your childhood’s food. It is exactly what I have been feeling for years after living in United States. Coconut pudding was always in my wish list when I was in sixth grade. Then I learned how to make it. It was not as intricate as I thought. After more than one decade, my desire to make coconut pudding was suddenly rekindled.

So I made this pudding for a hanami potluck gathering. And to my surprise, many of my Japanese friends also commended it. On the other hand, they questioned about the ingredients of the pudding, worrying if I used some unwholesome items.

“It was just an assortment of agar-agar, sugar, coconut milk and coconut meat” I replied. I could tell that they were relieved knowing that it was made of natural and healthy ingredients.

coconut pudding

You need:

1 pack of agar-agar powder (white)

1 pack of agar-agar powder (green color)

800 cc coconut milk

800 cc water

240 gr sugar

1 whole fresh young coconut, shred the meat

2 pieces pandan leaves

Directions:

Mix agar-agar (green), pandan leaves and 120 gr sugar into water and bring it to boil over medium heat. Stir once in a while until completely boiled and dissolved and then reduce the heat.
Mix agar-agar (white) and 120 gr sugar into coconut milk and bring it to boil over medium heat. Stir once in a while until completely boiled and dissolved and then reduce the heat.
Lightly drench the mold with cold water. Pour a mixture of green agar-agar to the mold up to two centimeters. Once the top part becomes firm, slowly pour a mixture of white agar-agar on the top of it. Let it stand again until the top part becomes firm.
Put the shredded coconut meat on the top of it and pour another batch of remaining green agar-agar. Wait until the top part is firm.
Lastly, pour the remaining white agar-agar. Set aside and let it cool in the fridge before served.

coconut pudding

17

March
2009

Newport Tan Cang Seafood

category: restaurants
by Yun, 7 Comments »

I do love seafood, especially when it comes to crabs, lobsters, clams, mussels, and shrimps. I have to admit that they are all high in cholesterol, but… too bad, I barely can say no for fresh seafood. Hehehe…

With a strong recommendation from my cousin, I went to Newport Tan Cang Seafood Restaurant (in San Gabriel, CA) two years ago for the first time. This restaurant receives very good reviews from Yelpers. Then I got the chance to revisit the restaurant during my trip to Los Angeles last December. Apparently, they just moved to a new place, which is cleaner, bigger and nicely decorated with modern Chinese ornaments. They also have a fancy waiting area with more capacities compared to the old place.

We arrived at the restaurant on Monday around 8.30 pm. The place was still completely packed with a lot of people, and we had to wait for more than thirty minutes. It was Monday! Amazing… It seems that the restaurant never runs slow. I’m wondering how the waiting time will be on weekend.

We were craving for fresh lobsters so much. We insisted to have a medium size of lobster (+/-6lbs per piece) regardless of our waiter saying that a small-sized lobster would be enough for three of us (with two additional dishes). Their house special lobster is truly a killer. It was definitely a better way to cook lobsters, compared to the American-style lemon butter lobsters. The lobster is fried in ginger, garlic, green onions, and with full of seasoning and spices that make it very appetizing.

Clams with basil leaves were very flavorful. The sauce was well-balanced, in a way that provided us with excellent taste and flavor. The combination of fresh clams, tangy sauce, and fresh basil leaves really gave the succulent taste and nice fragrant to the dish. After clams and lobster, we were served with a deep fried black sea-trout with house special sauce. I loved the crispiness of the fish, but I didn’t really like the sauce. The sauce tasted similar to any sweet and sour sauce, which unfortunately is my least favorite sauce. Don’t blame me if I would rather eat the fish itself without the sauce.

As mentioned above, I barely can say no for fresh seafood. Surely, I will be back to this restaurant for their delicious lobster and clams, when I have the chance to visit Los Angeles again.

Newport Tan Cang Seafood Restaurant

518 W. Las Tunas Dr

San Gabriel, CA 91776

08

March
2009

Guppy Tea House

category: restaurants
by Yun, 10 Comments »

I know… It’s been quite a while since I shared my latest story with you. Lately I have been busy doing errands. Hopefully it will be over soon so that I can move on and back to this place to write more often.

Knowing that I love dessert and sweet food, O took me to Guppy Tea House during my LA visit last December. He very much expected that I would love the toast at Guppy. We ordered a coconut brick toast and a pot of rose tea. Indeed, what he said was very true. I LOVEEEEE the coconut brick toast, which is a rich creamy butter coconut spread on homemade thick toast and slowly baked in the oven. It was sweet… maybe too sweet for some people but it is still worth trying even though you are not addicted to sweet tooth.

We visited Guppy three times in our five-day stay, only to eat their coconut brick toast and bubble tea. In my earlier blog, I mentioned that Joy Yee’s (Chicago) has the best bubble tea. Guppy’s bubble tea is slightly different from Joy Yee’s. Guppy provides more selections of teas but not the fresh fruit smoothies. They both just have their own signatures. I love Guppy’s jasmine green tea with boba. They use small boba. The boba is fresh and cooked to perfection. The jasmine green tea is also not too sweet, just perfect for a drink after “a sweet toast”.

While I love their coconut brick toast, A loves their popcorn chicken. Popcorn chicken is Chinese/Taiwanese-style spicy chicken nuggets. The taste is similar to “Ji Bai” sold at Shi Lin night market at Taipei, which is one of A’s favorite foods. Guppy is also famous for their shaved ice. Beware that their portion is HUGE… We didn’t order it because we were always full already every time we came to Guppy. So, we will save the shaved ice for our next visit.

Right now, O is visiting Columbus. It’s impossible to ask him to bring Guppy’s brick toast due to lenghty flying time. Savoring the brick toast is best when it is still hot and fresh from the oven so that you can really taste the coconut butter melt in your mouth. Otherwise, it doesn’t really make me craving.

Guppy Tea House

17188 Colima Rd Ste D

Hacienda Heights, CA 91745

626.965.7288

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