NEW YEAR RIDE : Johor Baru & Melaka (Part 1)

Happy New Year!!

I had a great kick start to 2012. Rocker57 & I started our ride to JB (Johor Baru) at about 7.15am. By 8.30am, we were having breakfast at the Air Keroh R&R. A cuppa each & a plate of nasi lemak(shared as we were on an eating spree) and then we were off to JB. Made two pit stops before checking in to New York hotel. Rooms not ready, no problem! We went to visit our dear old family friend Low & his wife Jacklin. After a quick chit-chat, we went in search for lunch (about noon). I wanted to savour my favourite beggar's chicken in Sentosa. Along the way, we got distracted & decided to have beef ball noodle instead. I'd not eaten here in years and long to taste it. Low & Rocker57 concurred and yes, thankfully the shop was open.  

The proprietor was resting, drinking coffee while reading the papers. Time must have stood still since I last patronized her outlet as the owner still looks the same, ditto to the outlet too! Now, it was her daughter who served us. I ordered vermicelli (dried version). It was served with 8 springy, beefy mouth-watering beef balls minus the beefy smell. I was on cloud 9!! The taste, texture and size of the beef-balls has remained unchanged! However, the price has risen in tandem with inflation, obviously. 

My fav beefball noodles in J

After the initial bite, I know I've really missed the beef balls! It was RM8 for my portion, worth every sen! In comparison to the ones I have in Quin, Kepayang Square in Seremban and King's in Seremban town, Hock Heng's beef balls are more springy and has less beefy smell. They are bigger is size too. For the price we paid - Awesome to the max!!
Back to Low's house for catching up on family and relatives. By 3pm...we were in search for tea-time. What better way to cool down in the hot weather then to eat my favourite tahu bakar (toasted bean curd stuffed with rojak sauce and bean sprouts) and a bowl of Ice Kacang. It was a stone throw away from Low's house.

Tahu bakar, Ice Kacang & Rojak Specialist

I had to have my tahu bakar but could only have 1 because I need to have space for my ice kacang. Jacklin said that they are also known for their rojak & Ice kacang. So we had to have that too. Apparently, this is the daughter of the stall that was situated near Wisma Persekutuan where I used to patronize decades ago. The crowd was maddening and we had to wait to be seated. Patience, patience....


Ahhh....first came the tahu bakar. Then the ice kacang and then the rojak. 

tahu bakar - 7 Heaven!!!

Ice Kacang - Superb!

The tahu bakar was splendid. Piping hot, crunchy, savoury and tasty to the last bite. A rush of nostalgia overcame me. Sent me reminiscing of my years in JB. 
The Ice Kacang was unique as it was served with an over-generous serving of melted chocolate. Makes the Ice Kacang so palatable as it wasn't sweet especially for me & Rocker57. An ardent red bean fan, the dessert would have been Class A had they tossed in more red beans for me. But, it was the perfect dessert to sooth away the afternoon heat. The rojak? Hah! you thought I had forgotten, eh? NO WAY.

The best thing I like of the rojak is the toasted "Yew Char Kueh" or chinese crullers. It adds a special chewy yet crunchy bite to the crullers. Again lavish serving of crushed peanuts. But, I must say, I still very much prefer the rojak in Bayu Timor; Taman Megah, PJ. Having said that, I must add that almost every table has the signature rojak. Well, perhaps they have yet to taste something better? Or perhaps that's what the locals like. Oh well....one man's meat is another man's poison.
It was only 4pm when we went back to Low's house to collect our bike & to finally check in. 
Check out the next blog to find out what was in-store for us.....patience, patience....