Dr Strange: A strange kaleidoscope journey

Dr Strange is not one of my favourite character in Marvel Universe. He seems so.. unreal. Even though the mystic characters were my initial introduction to Marvel (Ghost Rider, Spirit of Vengeance, Blaze, Nightstalker, Darkhold), somehow Strange did not appeal at that time. However, there is a new reason to catch Dr Strange in the silver screen: Benedict Cumberbatch.



Ever since Sherlock, Cumberbatch had been one of Lyn and my favourite actors around. As much as we like to watch him showcase his intelligient alongside Watson, his American venture had not been my favourite. His portrayal of Khan merely raise Star Trek to an average watch. So, again, I entered into the cinema with such a high hope, but at the same time, some reservation on Marvel recent efforts.


The formula had been recycle for so many times in so many super heroes origin movie that it had became stale. Heroes with high potential but flawed in personality (nearly ALL superheroes). Heroes met with great tragedy (also ALL superheroes). Heroes rise up and beat the baddie (need I repeat?). Heroes with moustache (so much similarities with Robert Downey Jr's Ironman). Here, Stephen Strange is an arrogant neurosurgeon who experienced the lowest point in life when he met with and accident leaving him with nerve damage over the hand. Crippled, and lost without a purpose, he seek unconventional help to recover his skill, which landed him to Nepal, and learn the power of the mystic and supernatural. Of course, there is always a deviant former student which hunger for power who tried to destroy the world to achieve eternal life from some dark dimensional world. No spoiler there to guess that Strange manage to beat the villain to emerge as the new sorcere supreme.



So, what lift Strange above the rest? Nothing, I feared. Cumberbatch is cast perfectly as Strange. Even as weird as it felt, but Tilda Swinton felt comfortable as the Ancient One, despite having to change the ethnicity of the original character. The script is written nicely, with nuggets of philosophical wisdown thrown in and adequate humour in between. One of the main problems is the villain by Mads Mikkelsen is not menacing enough. He is much much more scary in Hannibal. The ultimate threat seems OK but not threatening enough. Having the last demon appearing is rather cartoonish, it exactly the same with the appearance of Galactus in Fantastic Four Rise of Silver Surfer movie. The biggest problem is the plot idea had been recycled so many times, it actually felt stale. That is why Deadpool brought some fresh air to the superheroes movies earlier.

Does it mean Strange failed? Far from it, it is one of the better ones lately. The action is mind bending and out of this world. That itself is worth the ticket admission. Yes, probably we had seen it in Inception (cant blame me for spoiler, but the battle scene is portrayed in the trailer), but the way it was ulitized in the battle scenes is really exciting.

My advice? Do not miss it for the action.

ratings: 3 half poink~!
comments: definitely one of the better origin movies by Marvel. I hope by Strange, there will be more movies on these stories and reboot Ghost Rider.

Boat Noodle: tiny portion, maximum taste

Lyn and me had been wanting to try Boat Noodle for a very long time since it first opened in Aeon Klebang Ipoh. Many times we had to turned away due to the long waiting queue. Finally we decided to come early after so many months, keen on finding out what is the whole hoo-hah is all about.

It was a surprise that the diner, which is situated at the top floor of Aeon Klebang beside the food court, is relatively empty on a fine Thursday evening. A smaller crowd would be preferred so that I could ask the waitress for the description of the choices and also her recommendations. The main highlight would be, as the name suggest, Thai noodle. There are decision between rice noodle and egg noodle. The noodle is average; it failed to impress me. The rice noodle felt like a soggy version of kueitiao while the egg noodle essentially is nice, but still steps behind the egg version of wantan noodle. The choices of soup are between sour spicy dark soy based pathumtani and  herbal ayutthaya version. Lyn prefers the pathumtani which felt authentically Thai with a full experience of spices. The ayutthaya soup, on the other hand, tasted more like Thai version of bakuteh, albeit not as strong as our local Klang delicacy. Costing only RM1.90 per bowl, I initially thought the price is incredibly economical. However, when the bowls of noodle arrived, I finally understand why. The portion is tiny, minute, or even smurf-sized. There is only 2 spoonful of noodle, which I can easily finished in one bite. For dinner, one may eat at least 3-4 bowl to fully fill the stomach. However, this may not be a bad thing, since there are more opportunity to try different noodle in different soup base or to try the side dishes. Talking about side dishes, the Thai popeye tempura (RM6.90) definitely outshine the noodle. The tempura is tasty enough, but the Thai spicy, nutty dip is so full of flavour that it is the perfect combination with the tempura. Impressive, I must say. The Thai iced tea (RM6.90), felt bit of letdown, since it just tasted like any other milk tea but premium priced.

There are hits and miss among the dishes, but the portion of their noodle still amazes me. There is still option of ordering rice dishes or other noodle based side dishes (which looks more decently sized compare to boat noodle) which I felt would be more satisfying. The overall taste is good, with a nice blend of spices, but somehow, I felt there are better Thai option around in Ipoh.

ratings: 2 half poink~!
comments: for those who have tiny appetite or small bites/ finger food while chatting.



Boat Noodle
Lot S-03, second floor,
Aeon Klebang, Ipoh.

Fresco: ready to eat option in midst of shopping

choosing from the menu

Had it been that long since I last written an entry? Yup, it has been a lazy 2 months. And probably I did not eat out as frequent as I used to. When I do, I ended up eating in the familiar places. And finally after so many months procrastinating, me and Lyn decided to try Fresco. 

different ready-to-eat dishes

bake maccaroni cheese

The new Ipoh Parade do boast a totally new uplifted clean and sleek image. To replace the old Cold Storage is the new Fresco Grocerant. The price of the grocery there is marginally higher in view Fresco focus on imported item instead of the local produce. The higher end spending is also reflected in the small diner inside the grocer. Yup, for those who actually still haven't heard of Fresco (which means you are living under a coconut shell/ tempurung): there is a diner inside the grocer. This is not a brand new idea, there are some Giant/ Tesco with small dining place inside the hypermart. However, what makes Fresco stands among the rest is that it functions as a real western restaurant. There are a whole list of options to choose from, and there is even option of buying fresh produce from the grocer to be cooked there. And as I said, the higher end crowd it caters to is reflected on the price. It is not cheap, but the price is not astronomical as some fine dining in Ipoh (ahem... those who knows me would know which of the few diners I frequently refers to)

the roast chicken

roast chicken

I had noticed as well, with time, there are more and more ready-to-eat options available which are relatively economically priced compare to the higher end ala carte dishes. And it did not disappoint at all. The list is still mainly western but there are options of the ever popular local nasi lemak. Lyn ordered a quarter roast chicken, served with mashed potato (RM17.90). The chicken meat, although may not be freshly roasted, is nice without being too dry. The gravy, on the other hand, is impressively done, with adequate taste of herbs. I chose the bake maccaroni cheese served with ice lemon tea (RM14.90). The maccaroni is obviously pre-cooked and reheated from the microwave oven, but the cheese blended well with the pasta after the initially baking. If it is eaten fresh, it could have been perfect. 

I am not sure how the ala carte dishes would fare, but the ready to eat ones are satisfying in the taste department. Do not expect the dishes to be fresh, since it is ready-to-eat, but it did not disappoint at all. With its consistent taste, we would definitely come back for the freshly cook ala carte dishes. 

ratings: 3 half poink~!

comments: one of the better choice of dinner while shopping in Ipoh Parade

Fresco Gorcerant

Lot B01A, Basement 1, 

Ipoh Parade, 

105, Jalan Sultan Abdul Jalil

Greentown, Ipoh

MIlk Cow Ipoh: very milky dessert

I was wondering what is the hoo hah regarding Milk Cow. I love ice cream, and I would love to try something new. After trying froyo and gelato, I would still prefer the good old ice cream. With many positive reviews on Milk Cow, I decided to give it a try since I was in the area.

Milk Cow Ipoh is situated in Old Town, in the same row as Plan B. There are quite a number of boutique café in the area, so just follow the crowd and you would not be lost.

The deco is nice, simple and sweet, with cow as the theme. There are different desserts here, but since I did not try it since my main aim was the ice cream. The basic milky ice cream starts at RM8.50 with many choices going from RM11.50 onwards. There are plenty of choices, with many interesting names to go with it. Oreos, honey, red bean are some of the choices available.

My verdict? The ice cream is very very creamy and milky. Not everyone’s favorite though. Some may not “tahan” the milky after taste, but for me, I simply adore it. It is very smooth and melts in my mouth. I would prefer the substance over Hello Elvis, but I had a problem with the price/ amount factor. It is not a cheap dessert. Yes, this is a franchise, and the ice cream is lovely. But I would think twice before coming here often, it is not pocket friendly. Everyone knows that I eat a lot so there are more economical choices around.

It is still a nice reward to myself once in a while. The ice cream here is nice, and the varieties of choices would entice me to come again.

Ratings: 2 half poink~!

Comments: ice cream for supper, who would say no?!

Milk Cow

1, Jalan Panglima, 

Ipoh

05-2414742

Open 1100-2000

Ming Kei 明记 Chu-cheong-fun: best to have it hot

When it comes to chu-cheong-fun, I am very particular. I was told that a good chu-cheong-fun do not require much sauce, it just need light soya sauce and oil to accompany the great dish. I could not agree more. I know that lots of people everywhere would beg to differ, some like it with fillings such as bangkuang/ turnip (Teluk Intan style), mushroom sauce (tend to see it more often in Klang valley), or the ever popular curry. I used to love it with sweet sour sauce and prawn sauce. However, whenever I wanted to taste the real noodle, I always have it with light soya sauce.





The only other chu-cheong-fun stall where I totally fell in love with is the one in Teluk Intan. Similarly, it is freshly made, right from the steamer. Here in Kampar, we have the chance for similar experience. Ming-Kei is situated in Aston Settlement, right next to Hong Chan estate. If still lost, just go around the area, and the area is not exactly that big. The shop is actually a house where they operated from the kitchen. It opens daily from 7am until they finish the noodle, so do come early. The cheaper version always get sold out early.

We have the options of the usual plain chu-cheong-fun or the ones with pieces of small prawns. There are no version with fillings (Teluk Intan version) which is a pity. The noodle is fresh from the steamer, smooth and with the perfect thickness when eaten hot. One need to order from the kitchen and then pick whatever accompanying meatballs or gravy outside. The choices are limited, the sauce is minimal but the star here is the noodle itself. If you wanted impressive curry to go along, I can suggest another stall in the vicinity, but I still would return here for the simplicity of the dish.

The family running the stall are very simple and humble people. There are few tables outside the house, which makes dining here possible. So many other shops selling chu-cheong-fun from generic factories/ shops so having it fresh from the kitchen, is an amazing dining experience itself.

ratings: 4 poink~!
comments: although I had high praises for the noodle, some may still prefer it less smooth, thicker, thinner... well, you cant please everyone, I guess.

Kubo and the Two String: It's Still a Western Kiddie Anime

Do not be tricked. As much as Kubo and the Two String is based on Japanese background, it does not have much anime feel to it. I decided to watched it for the impressive stop motion animation rather than anything else.







Kubo's story begin with introducing Kubo, a story teller who lives with his mother, who in turn feed him with amazing stories about his legendary samurai father, Hanzo who had passed away protecting them. In a sequence of event, malicious deities came hunting for him, which set him on an adventure to look for the legendary sword, armor and helmet in order to protect himself from the Moon King. Assisting him on his journey are monkey and beetle, who proved to be tangible help in time of need. Without spoiling the story, the "twist" can be seen very early on.



The animation is top notched. It is impressive to see stop motion technology coupled with computer capabilities. There are moments where the stop motion are obvious, you would see certain "lapse" but they can be totally neglected without affecting the show. The characters are likable, and the 3 leads are a joy to watch. Now, the down side. Strip away the Japanese background, and this will end up like any other American cartoon. Movie with a family moral story. It did not have the shonen anime feel to it, neither did it has much depth to it while dealing with serious subject (Spirited Away anyone?). I must applaud the team for dealing with heavy subject such as loss in a movie for younger audience, but it is done in a simpler superficial form, fit for the children. The humor while present, is very much American, and nothing feel Asian to it.


It is still an enjoyable film. But kindly do not expect to watch an anime (still most anime based movie/ OVA is not impressive either when compare to their original series) because this film is made with a western audience in mind.

ratings: 3 poink~!
comments: good details, but I still prefer Big Hero 6, which deals with similar theme.