Vivo: western done right

Me and Lyn had been a great fan of Vivo, ever since trying the shop out in The Curve, PJ. Imagine our excitement when we get to know that Vivo is opening in Ipoh. Although we did not doubt the quality of food here, but a few question remains. Would Vivo remains relevant here in Ipoh, given that the food scene is different from Klang Valley? Would the taste remains the same despite different location? (my cousin swear until today that a certain branch of Nandos taste better than the rest)





Located on the ground floor of Aeon Station 18, among the whole row of eateries, it is easy to spot the blue signboard. The deco is modern, simple and minimalist, to my liking. The staff are attentive and polite. All these up to the standard of any other restaurant.

The menu is essentially western. It would be a choice of meat, pasta, cheese baked selection, pizza or sandwiches/ panini. We had visited Vivo many times to try out quite a number of selection and most of them are quite impressive. For the Ipoh outlet, we tried the grilled fish panini which remains one of Lyn's favourite. The fish fillet was grilled to perfection without being dry while the bread complemented the fish nicely. The use of parmesan and oregano on the panini lifted the taste of the whole dining experience. The spicy lemon chicken chop, is also one of the better dish. The chicken was grilled perfectly while retaining the juicy part. The subtle use of spice is a genius touch with the taste linger in the mouth even after swallowing the meat. The use of the sauce, which is similar to the bolognese sauce, on the other hand, did not do the meat justice. My own selection would always come from the cheese baked page. The cheese bake rice is definitely one of the better ones I tasted, therefore today I chose the baked meatball spaghetti instead. The chicken meatball was good, the use of cheese was generous, but the bolognese sauce was too watery in the end. Compare to cheese baked rice selection, this may not be my top choice. Still, it is one of the better ones out there.


The question remains, would it be relevant here in Ipoh. I never doubted the food here. The taste of the western selection is definitely up to par and one can't go wrong coming here. However, with so many other great restaurant out there, and offering similar prices, it remains to be seen whether Vivo would thrive in the silver state.

Ratings: 3 half poink~!
comments: I still recommend selection from the panini page and the cheese bake page. Do note that the cheese baked selection may differ bit from the HK chachanteng style of oriental baked dish.

Vivo @ Ipoh Station 18
Lot G52, Aeon Ipoh Station 18.

Kim Gary Station 18: a better HK style delicacies

There use to be a time when HongKong style cha-chan-teng style food is the "in" thing. Kim Gary probably is one of the first to pioneer, promoting cheese bake rice as the main dish. I can still remember those days when cheese baked rice can only be found in HK style restaurant. Nowadays, it is a norm in any kopitiam or fusion-western joints. So, the question remains, is Kim Gary still relevant?

Cheese baked beef curry (RM 14.90)

Well, yes, to a certain extent. It is still a solid restaurant, unlike some other similar HK style restaurant. Some of them are still famous enough, but some resorted to inviting famous HK stars as spoke person (and probably the money are spent in hiring the spoke-persons rather than hiring real cooks and chefs). After disappointing outings in another similar joint, I was bit skeptical about Kim Gary.

Kim Gary Station 18,  however, really did not disappoint. The busy line waiting to be seated is a prove while the few restaurant across was rather quiet comparatively. Far from being spacious, this is a typical restaurant in a shopping complex. Still do not know where it is? 1st floor of Aeon Station 18, somewhere near the centre court. Although it is really really busy, the staffs are still friendly and obliging. They really make us feel welcome.

black pepper pork (RM 10.50)

Ah, the menu. As expected, the usual Hong Kong inspired food, probably with a bit of fusion locally. The usual rice, cheese dominated dishes, soup noodle and lots lots of bread varieties. Also think about the Macau style pork chop bun. The verdict? I had "super" beef curry with rice (RM14.90). The curry is hot enough, leaning towards Indian type of spicy rather than the Chinese style of mild curry or the Malay variant of "lemak" curry. It is rather nice to eat with rice. The bake potato is superb, mixing well with the curry. The beef itself is  not that chewy (it is not easy) but not marinated well. Good, but not memorable. Baked with cheese, but the cheese is totally sunk by the curry. Colleen had spaghetti with fish fillet with twin sauce (RM 16.50). The fish is one of the better one though. Yes, you can still taste the generic fish fillet from the fridge but somehow, it is rather nice. The sauce although mixed with the red and white sauce, is neither here nor there. Not tasty enough for the red sauce and neither creamy enough for the white sauce. The best of the lot is mother-in-law's pork chop in black pepper sauce with rice (RM10.50). The pork is the usual pork slice. The sauce is really good. I am not  a black pepper lover but this sauce blended nicely, just enough of the taste of the black pepper but not too much as to overflow the whole dish. Nice.

fish fillet in twin sauce (RM 16.50)

Now, despite my critical comment, I actually enjoyed the dinner here. Probably the setting, the welcoming staff or the not so bad food. Compare it to similar restaurants, this definitely stand out as one of the better HK style eateries. But would I drive all the way here to Station 18 for a taste of it? Probably not that crazy, but if I am hungry while watching a movie here, definitely this will be on my mind.

ratings: 3 half poink!
comments: extra for the really obliging staffs. They really made the wait bearable.

Kim Gary Station 18
Lot 573, Aeon Station 18,
2, Susuran Station 18,
Ipoh.
 05-3219408

Papa John's Pizza: still generic pizza

While waiting for movie, there is always time for a good dinner. While walking around Aeon Station 18, we decided to try out Papa John's Pizza for a change.

Located in the ground floor of Aeon Station 18, there are other branched elsewhere in other shopping complex. I bet the taste should be the same irregardless. The seating is really spacious, too spacious for my liking in fact.

The menu is basically pizza. Although there are other western dishes such as pasta, but basically the staple food here is pizza. We decided to order the set dinner for 2 which come with a deep fried platter (RM33; RM38.30 after tax). The platter is a bit of a let down. Oily, the deep fried sotong with fries felt they are soggy with oil. The chicken wing is the saving grace, with a tinge of spiciness.

The pizza...the mexican ole pizza served with chicken and pepper (jalapeno?). It tasted rather ok. Love the tinge of spiciness there, but the taste is rather generic. Probably tasted more toward Domino type of pizza. And still taste better than Pizza Hut though. The crust is thin, so at least would not feel so full after finishing the whole plate.

Overall, it is still a franchise pizza joint, and it correctly tasted as such. The taste is rather fair, with bit more exotic choice on the menu. However, if you love pizza, probably there are other better joints.

ratings: 3 poink!
comments: generic, generic

Nandos @ Ipoh: finally peri peri is here!

Me and wife are ardent fans of Nandos, but according to cousin, not all Nandos is the same. So, patiently we waited for the famous chicken to come to Ipoh. I just love the spicy
and hot roasted chicken, better than the next door Kenny Rogers. However, since Station 18 Aeon had opened 3 weeks ago, the first 2 visit was truly disappointing whereby they were unable to serve us due to technical problem.

So, finally we manage to patron Nandos today for dinner. The deco, is truly nice. It gave you the impression it is a small hut or house, complete with zinc rooftop but the interior design is modern minimalist. The waiter and waitress are so welcoming, and accommodating. It nearly made me feel that the over-the-top service charge was worth it. Nearly. Still not near enough.

The chicken, is simply tender (Rm16.90 for 1/4 chicken with side dishes). Spicy in the marinate, so.... peri-peri. The extra hot peri-peri chicken is simply amazing, spicy and hot enough to challenge the taste bud yet not too hot to numb the mouth. It really reminded us of our favourite Nandos joint in Atria, PJ. Simply amazing. The side dish was average though. However, I, trying to outdo myself in my adventure, ordered something different. I ordered Cataplana (Rm25.90). It is basically Nandos chicken strip cooked with Peri-peri tasted rice, with mushroom. I am not sure the last ingredient is grape or olives, but my hunch it was olives. The first few spoonfull is nice. But the later half of the dish was bit... odd. Somehow, the peri peri sauce with rice is too sour for my liking. It actually feel weird in my tummy as well. Somehow, overdose of the sauce in rice is not a good combo. I do not mind the sourness of tomyam but this, is different.

Anyway, do come and try the peri peri chicken. It is definitely worth the price. Other dishes on the menu.... probably may not excite you as much.

ratings: 4 poink for the peri peri chicken!

comments: trivia, peri peri is acutally chili originate from Africa...I always thought it was Mexican.

Nando's Chickenland Malaysia

Nando's Jusco Ipoh

Lot G-57, Aeon Ipoh Station 18

No2, Susuran Stesen 18, Station 18

31650, Ipoh

05-3235655, fax: 05-3235657

Pancake House International: decent, generic western outing

Eating in Aeon Station 18 this 1-2 weeks is rather frustrating affair, since most of the eating joints are rather new and not all the
item in the menu is in there. There was this one time we
enter the restaurant and to be told that the main item eg rice, noodle is not available, leaving just the dessert. As expected, we left. And we went to another roast chicken shop to be told that they could only be ready to serve customer at noon. Hmmm...

So, this I had to give it to Pancake House. It is in one of the shoplots on the ground floor of Aeon Station 18. The staff are friendly and helpful. Despite being new, the menu is readily available. Early in the morning, there are already few tables full. Definitely a good sign. Personally, I had never tried this franchise before, but browsing through their menu, it is not just pancakes only whereby they also serve western dishes. We decided to try the set lunch which look good on the menu.

First to come is the "Best Taco in Town" (set cost RM 12.29 with lemon tea), basically taco with chicken fillings. I am not a Mexican person, so could not say whether the tacos are up to par not. However, I do enjoy the crispy taco with the tasty fillings though I prefer more meat in there. I certainly tasted better tacos elsewhere but this do feel good. Next to come is my house burger (set cost RM 14.19) which is basically a beef patty burger with chicken strip and mushroom. It tasted like a Big Mac done right with a dash of bacon taste in there. Frankly, I could not taste the mushroom though. I do enjoy it, and the patty do remind me much of the ones in Big M. The dressing is bit plain though. Finally we added Mini Pancakes (Rm 0.99 with set) cause it will be ridiculous to come here without tasting the pancake. It is ok, rather nice to take with the given cream and syrup. Even though the pancake is rather good, it still taste rather generic. I prefer the consistency to have more substance though, then again, it is personal preference.

Overall, this is a decent outing. Some restaurant which one would consider while in the ground floor of Aeon Station 18.

Ratings: 2 half poink!

comments: decent, but generic.

Pancake House International

Lot G70, Aeon Station 18

2 Susuran Stesen 18, Station 18

31650, Perak.

05-3217382