Zestful One

I’ve always had fond memories of Pizza Hut, even back when I was in East Malaysia. I had this friend who would pour cheese all over her pizza and even into the soup! I think she would have gone to Pizza Hut a lot last year because as you may remember, last year they introduced the Ultimate Cheesy 7 pizza with Romano, Monterey Jack, Parmesan, Provolone, Mozzarella and Cheddar cheese topped with balls of Philadelphia Cream Cheese.

Well this year, due to popular demand from the fans, its coming back! And it promises to be even better! How? Well, firstly, a few bloggers and I were invited to a Cheesy 7 Sneak Peak at Pizza Hut Kota Damansara recently.

We were greeted at the door with “Red Carpet” goodie bags and there was wifi (and its password was clearly shown at the tables – ‘eatlaughshare’ which coincidently is their current slogan).

After some introduction, we were told there would be a twitter contest (hence the TV in the pic on the top right showing all our tweets) to see who would get the most RTs of a certain phrase. Mr Yusof Ishak, Marketing Manager of Pizza Hut also expressed his excitement in introducing the new Cheesy 7 pizzas (there are 4 in total) and thanked us for coming.

Now, I expect it to be the usual food tasting session, but no, we were all surprised to find that we had to be BLINDFOLDED before eating our pizza. The team went around giving thick ribbons as blindfolds and then they directed us by telling us verbally the pizza was in front of us and moving our hands to touch the crust.

[p/s: I am of the belief that pizzas should always be eaten by hand and not cutlery. Thoughts?]

So we got to try out 4 pizzas and were later given this ‘Tasting Sheet’ to write down our ratings of Aroma, Flavour, Texture, What we thought the ingredients were and how we rated it over all. So I’ll try and describe what I thought of the pizzas :

• PIZZA 1– Was quite meaty, had BBQ chicken, minced beef, onions and some peppers (red or green. possibly the former). It was a tomatoish base.
  Aroma = 3, Flavour = 4, Texture =3
  
• PIZZA 2 – This is the seafood one. It had Crab sticks, squid (surprisingly not dry or too rubbery), pineapple. Creamyish sauce. It was gooey but to be honest, I’ve never been a fan of seafood pizzas. Not one of my favourites.
  Aroma = 2, Flavor = 2, Texture = 1
  
• PIZZA 3 – This was possibly an all-beef one. Minced beef, onions, pineapple.
  Aroma = 3, Flavor = 3, Texture = 3
  
• PIZZA 3 – This was my favourite, next to Pizza 1. This one had minced beef but it also had an interesting creamy topping, I think cream cheese. Very good.
  Aroma = 4, Flavor = 4, Texture = 3

We were also treated to the ‘Favourites Platter’ a combo of the Chicken & Cheese rolls, Criss cut fries (fav!) and the New Orleans Drummets with carrot and cucumber sticks. It has been a while since I’ve been to Pizza Hut so I was surprised to find they had stuff like Tempura Prawn Garlic Rice and quite a huge selection of pastas as well. Is this making you hungry yet?

I actually can’t wait to find out what are the flavours available for the new Cheesy 7 Pizzas. So do check out their Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/pages/Pizza-Hut-Malaysia/27673314653) on 11 Oct to find out!

We all went home with a bag of goodies, and tummies full of pizza. Thank you Pizza Hut for the good meal and the taste test!

I like to go for massages.  The hours hunched in front of the computer always gives me back and neck aches so it’s a relief when someone kneads your muscles and unknots all the “kinks”. Unfortunately one does not have the time, or the money, to go all the time for massages because massage spas close early and I used to get off work quite late.

However, I recently got the opportunity to try out Tiger Balm’s new product that was specially formulated to provide relief for neck and shoulder pains. No, its not the balm in glass pots and metal cover that many moms (especially Chinese ones) have in their arsenal.

But this is the new Tiger Balm Neck and Shoulder Rub, as below. Firstly, it doesn’t come in glass pots that are challenging to transport. They come in 50g flat tubes that are small and flight friendly (<100ml) as well as easy to squeeze out.

There are two variants – the Neck & Shoulder Rub (aka the ‘normal’ one) and the Neck & Shoulder Rub Boost. The normal one comes with a soothing lavendar fragrance that provides lasting pain relief for neck and shoulder aches while the Boost has a refreshing scent that invigorates as well as provides extra strength pain relief for severe, over-stressed, tired and stiff muscles in the neck and shoulder areas.

I tested out both in the past week and also gave them to my parents to try out. What I like about it is that its super easy to be absorbed into the skin. It feels like a lotion but not oily or greasy. My parents also liked the scent of it. The normal one smells like camphor/menthol with a very slight lavendar fragrance while the Boost has a fresher smell. The Boost however is more “pedas”/heaty hence more effective.

I use it before I go to bed. I personally like the smell of the normal one so not only does it calm me to sleep but also works to soothe my muscles. I have a slight pain on the small of my back so I rub a tiny bit there too. Because of its small size (50g in a flat tube and flight friendly), I also took it with me toPerthrecently and used it there as well.

As you can see, it can be applied anytime and anywhere – at home, at work, while you’re out and about – basically whenever you need a “massage on the go” to rejuvenate and relieve tensed and aching muscles. What a convenient way to get relief without having to make a reservation and drive out to the spa.

In short, I like the Tiger Balm Neck & Shoulder Rub and I think if you’re like me previously, stressed out and always in front of the computer, you should try this out.

List of ingredients are at the back of the boxes.

My opinions (shallow and ignorant as they are) below:

1) Being rational - I think people can’t talk rationally about subjects like politics and religion. I can never have a point of view that differs yours. eg: My choice to NOT discuss politics makes me "stupid, ignorant, unpatriotic, etc"

2) Couch activism - Often we complain, and discuss things the state of the nation while sitting comfortably on our couches in our cozy homes. Or, another (simpler) example, we talk about how the less fortunate are so "kesian" but we don’t lift a finger to help, get on the ground, talk to them about it. Its much easier to be couch activists – posting on social media about how we want to change the world, or transferring money to the charity of our choice.

3) Unconvinced - At the (tender) age of 27, I am not registered to vote. I haven’t found it convincing enough why I should. I’m told "at least its a change" (from whatever thats currently happening) – which is a good point. but still….

Perhaps it’s because I feel that it “doesn’t affect me” or this “tak apa” attitude though I know it actually does affect my life in subtle (or perhaps not so subtle) ways. Maybe if something big happens and affects me then I’d make it a point to be interested, i don’t know

Anyway, you may disagree with what I’m saying above, or perhaps even give me a different perspective that could change my view. Or perhaps call me names. I did say I was ignorant. Lol!

I wasn’t exactly sure what the difference is between Mexican and Tex-Mex so I turned to wikipedia which said “"Tex-Mex" (combination of Texan and Mexican) is a term describing a regional American cuisine that blends food products available in the United States and the culinary creations of Mexican-Americans influenced by Mexican cuisine.” Alright, bring on the tacos, meat, beans and cheese!

Anyway, one of my favourite places to eat Tex-Mex food is Frontera Sol Of Mexico in Jaya One, Petaling Jaya. I particularly like their Taco Tuesday promotions (all you can eat tacos for one price) and they are also known for their Margaritas (if you’re the drinking type).

** This is a pic heavy post. Possible side effects : Hunger and drooling **

Thus, I was quite pleased to be invited last Saturday to sample the Ramadhan Tex-Mex Buffet menu that will be ongoing from Monday, 24 July until 18 August.

As the flyer/menu on the left says, the Ramadhan buffet offers everyone a choice of 12 starters with one main course, 6 desserts and free flow ice lemon tea.

Now on to more food pics!

The “style” of this buffet is that you chose one main meal from the menu (there are 18 selections) while the starters and desserts are a buffet.

Starter Buffet

With the starters you get a combination of 12 of the following :

BBQ Chicken Wings, Taquitos de Pollo, soup of the day, 2 types of mini tacos, 2 types of mini tostadas (chips!), 2 types of bruschettas, rice (either mexican rice or cilantro & lime rice), potatoes (mashed or baked) and a Salad station with 2 types of dressing & 2 types of toppings and more.

Clockwise from top left : Mushroom bruschetta, chicken bruschetta, BBQ wings, Taquitos de Pollo and (I think) vege bruschetta.

Taquitos de Pollo is chicken/beef mixed with cheese and some stuff then rolled in a flour tortila and the whole thing is fried. Oh so fattening but oh sooo good. Wings were smothered in yummy BBQ sauce and bruschetta is well, mushroom/chicken on slices of bread with cheese on top.

Left pic – Clockwise from top left : Mashed potatoes, fish tacos and Mexican Rice. Right pic – Chicken tacos.

Well I skipped the mash and rice this round because I wanted more space for the taquitos main meals. The tacos come in the soft shell which I think is better for buffets as the hard shells can get a bit soggy.

Salad bar – Mixed greens with Bacon bits (not in pic), cheese (the yellow stuff), crispy tortilla strips and 3 dressings.

Salad. Can’t go wrong with this one. Its basic garden salad with assorted toppings. Interestingly they had Salsa Verde+ sour cream as a topping. Salsa Verde is a green version of salsa which is less sourish (in my opinion) than its redder counterpart. I found this a nice combo on top of the salad.

Soup of the day was Chipotle Mushroom soup. It’s a clearish soup with a kick, reminds me of Rassam (the indian soup). I quite liked it but I think this is more of an acquired taste. Also I realized I forgot to take pics of the Tostadas (beef and tofu), so below is a pic I pau from “GluttonsSquare” (check out their review)

I must say that given the choices of the starters, I was quite tempted to forgo the main course straight away because it was so good! So yea, eat the starters in moderation.

Main Course

For the main course, you can choose ONE of the following :

Chilli Cheese Burger, Guacamole Bacon Burger, Texas BBQ Burger, Chicken Enchiladas, Enchiladas Nortena, Classic Cheese Enchiladas, “Lone Star” Burrito, Chicken Chimichanga, Beef Chimichanga, Prawn Chimichanga, BBQ Grilled Pineapple Chicken, Chicka Boom Boom, San Antonia Chicken, Fish and Chips, Spicy Prawn Diablo and Maple Glazed Salmon.

Yea it was quite difficult to make a decision especially with the weird names (Chimi-what?) but the waitress was quite helpful in explaining what the dish was. I’m told the burgers are nice but I decided to go for the Enchiladas Nortena which was cheese wrapped with tortilla with chili con carne (with minced chicken) poured over the top.

Mine was served with a side of refried beans but the feedback from a lot of bloggers (myself included) that the side dishes made the whole dish too filling (especially if you’ve eaten quite a bit of the starter buffet). Personally I must say this is a dish for the cheese lovers. The tortillas were generously stuffed with cheese so I’d only order this if I was super hungry.

The two dishes above was food from the other people around the table – Maple Glazed Salmon and BBQ Grilled Pineapple Chicken. I didn’t hear any complaints from them so I would assume that it was nice :P

The next time I go, I think I might want to try out the Chimichangas. It looks like tortilla stuffed and rolled like a popiah then baked. Here’s a pic from Malaysian Foodie (check out her review)

Dessert Buffet

For the sweet tooths, the dessert choices are : Mexican flan, brownies, fruit popsicles, fiesta de fruita, churros, tres leches cake & more

Mexican flan is something somewhat like crème caramel and tastes milky. Like condensed milk. Fruit popsicles are something you don’t see often in buffets – cut fruits frozen in cups. Fiesta de fruita is mixed fruit in cream.

The mexican flan is my favourite dessert of the night. I’m quite choosy about my desserts so the other stuff are just ok for me.

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Click image for more info

At RM50++ per (adult) head, I feel this buffet is quite worth it given the amount of food you get. Not to mention that Tex-Mex food is never cheap, especially when you consider the ingredients.

So, do call 03 7958 8515 to book a table as reservation is highly recommended.

I was invited to this review by Frontera and TableFour.Us, a reservation app (its FREE!) for iOS users which lets you reserve a table at the convinience of your finger tips.  Opinions expressed in this blog are my own.

I thought it was a bit unfair that only my blog readers got to win a Peri Platter, so I decided that my Twitter friends, followers and the occasional bot should have a chance too!

Also I’m on Twitter at odd hours so rather than the usual 9-5pm time that people seem to do twitter contests, I thought it was fair that people can win stuff out of working hours. True?

Ok so read the terms and conditions below and follow me on twitter @icednyior and also @nandosmalaysia and I’ll reveal the questions at 1am (my time) 17 July.

There is ONE (1) Peri Platter to be given away. And I’ll choose randomly from the first 10 people who reply me.

What’s in a Peri Platter? Four 1/4 chicken, 3 large sidelines, one bolo bread with butter & one Portuguese Salad (a mix of fresh rocket leaves, tomato wedges, romaine lettuce, onion, green coral, red coral and green olives with a drizzle of Portuguese vinaigrette).

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[Update: 1:15am]

Question is now up on my Twitter page – http://twitter.com/IcedNyior/status/224913436709097474 . I’ll wait till I get 10 answers then list them down here before choosing a random winner. Good luck guys!

[Update : 3:30pm 17 July]

Thank you everyone who participated! Winner is @exodes!

@MrKayMY – https://twitter.com/MrKayMY/status/224913771381014528
@sayaEM – https://twitter.com/sayaEM/status/224914087384072192
@jenkinyat – https://twitter.com/jenkinyat/status/224914358625509376
@avrilchan – https://twitter.com/avrilchan/status/224914430255828992
@exodes – https://twitter.com/eXodes/status/224914842232963072
@sir_munchy – https://twitter.com/Sir_Munchy/status/224915755668471808
@loqoe – https://twitter.com/Loqoe/status/224915870235897858
@tenoq – https://twitter.com/tenoq/status/224920989740441600
@ezralghazali – https://twitter.com/EzralGhazali/status/225045557280915456
@daudifah – https://twitter.com/daudifah/status/225079840527761408

Thank you everyone for participating and of course thank you Nandos for sponsoring the Peri Platter