Palsaik Korean BBQ – #Porkgasm in Johor

Palsaik Samgyupsal

Palsaik Samgyupsal Korean BBQ in Johor Bahru is a Pork Belly centric Korean BBQ restaurant. Palsaik means eight colour and samgyupsal means pork belly. So, it means eight colour pork bellies. For those from Singapore, this is the same concept as Eight Korean BBQ in Singapore.

Palsaik Samgyupsal Korean BBQ - Johor Bahru

The first Palsaik open its door in South Korea in 2007. It started to open other branches in South Korea and begin its overseas franchise expansion in 2011 in Los Angeles, California. In 2012, Palsaik opens its first branch in Melbourne, Australia followed with Mount Kiara and Scott Garden, Malaysia in 2014. The JB branch is open in April 2015.

Palsaik Outlet

A quick search on Uncle Google for the best Korean BBQ in Johor Bahru, Palsaik pop up as one of the highest rating, so we decided to give it a try when we were in JB.

Part of the Dining Area - 2nd Floor

We ordered Palsaik Hansang, Executive 8 Colour Set (RM128). This consist of 8 flavours / marinate of Pork Belly (Ginseng, Wine, Pine Leaves, Garlic, Herb, Curry, Miso Paste, Hot Pepper); Vegetables, Salad, Ssamjang (Special house sauce and cucumber) and Soup. For the soup, we choose Seafood Soybean paste soup, instead of Clear Clam Soup and Kimchi Soup.

8 type of marinate

Vegetables

Salad, Ssamjang (Special house sauce and cucumber) 

Once the order is placed the service staff brought out a long wooden plank with the 8 type of pork belly on it. The BBQ chef will then come to your table and start cooking your food.

The Table

First to the grill is the kimchi (mixed between cabbage and beansprout), followed with the mushrooms and pork bellies. The first four flavours that went in are ginseng, wine, pine leaves and garlic.

The Start - Kimchi and mushrooms

Ginseng, Wine, Pine Leaves and Garlic Pork Bellies on the hot plate

Once cooked, the pork bellies have a slightly charred exterior. When you bite on it, it has the right balance between the fats and meat, that will open up your appetite. Although it is yummy, it is missing the melt in your mouth feeling. When I asked the service staff about the origin of the pork belly, they told us that they use Malaysian pork. But for Malaysian pork, we can say that the standard are still good.

Second part - Almost cooked and cut

Pork Belly Cooked

For the ginseng marinate, the flavour of the ginseng is very subtle. The wine marinate is bolder, as you can smell the aromatic wine flavour before you bite the meat and it absorb thoroughly in the flesh.  For the pine leaves marination, it has a slightly bitter taste to balance the fats, while the garlic actually tastes sweet, not pungent.

8 Flavours of the Pork Bellies

Ginseng, Wine, Pine Leaves and Garlic Pork Bellies

The second wave of pork belly cooked are herb, curry, miso paste and hot pepper. The herb marinate is very flavourful filled with mixed dried seasoning. The curry marinate taste like German sausage curry, which is dreadful. The miso pork belly is good, but it can do with more generous miso seasoning and finally, the hot pepper pork belly, tasted like marinated in sweet chilli sauce.

Herb, Curry, Miso paste and Hot pepper Pork Bellies

Our choice of the eight types of marinates are wine, miso, pine leaves and garlic. Kudos to the staff who did the BBQ, our pork belly are awesome and done perfectly.

For the seafood soybean paste soup, it was rather bland and disappointing. The vegetables are overcooked and almost tasteless. We suggest that once it is cooked, give it a good stir, have a taste and ask them to add the soybean paste if you find it under seasoned.

Seafood Soybean Paste Soup

We had also ordered Mul Naengmyeon (RM18) – Buckwheat Noodles in Chilled Broth. It actually taste better than expected. The clear broth is robust and with a good touch of vinegar. The noodle is springy and the iced chilled broth make this dish so refreshing. A must order dish here.

Mul Naengmyeon

Mul Naengmyeon

The restaurant is spacious, complement with a mix of brick and black wall decoration. The vibe of this restaurant is fun and friendly, and this is also reflected in the attitude of their service staff.

Part of Dining Area - 1st Floor

Overall, Palsaik Samgyupsal Korean BBQ is definitely one of the place to consider for Korean BBQ in Johor Bahru. Best part, the price is only a fraction compared to the similar Pork Belly Centric Korean BBQ in Singapore. Geonbae!! Cheers!!

Food & Drink: 7.75/10

Value: 9.5/10  

Service: 8/10

Ambiance: 7.5/10

Budget per Person: S$26- S$50 (RM75 – RM150)

Palsaik Korean BBQ

51, Jalan Sutera Tanjung 8/2

Taman Sutera Utama

Skudai 81300

Johor, MALAYSIA

T: +60 7 556 3833

W: http://www.palsaik.my/

F: https://www.facebook.com/MYPalsaik-Korean-BBQ-867827956612855/

IG: @Palsaik_Malaysia

OH:

Mon – Fri: 11.30 – 22.30

Sat & Sun: 11.30 – 23.30

Restoran Chua Kee – Remarkable Seafood Zi Char

Signature Kwey Teow with Seafood @ Restoran Chua Kee

Gelang Patah in Johor is an industrial town where you hardly take notice unless you have a business interest there. Most of the time, you only glance through its name on the signboard when driving through second link towards the Senai Airport or connecting to E2.

Restoran Chua Kee

Well, next time you are passing by Second Link, you might want to stop by at Gelang Patah to visit Restoran Chua Kee (‘CK’). Located in close proximity to the Gelang Patah Second Link exit, it is known to serve delicious Seafood Zi Char dishes.

We have visited this CK a few times and the following are several dishes that are worth the detour:

Kwey Teow with Seafood (S-RM25/ M-RM35 / L-RM45). CK signature dish, plated with beautiful mussels in flower shape. The rice noodle is well infused with “wok hei”, topped with robust seafood flavoured gravy and vegetables. The prawns are fresh and they are generous with it as well. So far, we always order this dish when we are in CK because it is just so Yummy and a good carbo option.

Signature Kwey Teow with Seafood

Check out the size of the prawn

Signature Black Pepper Crab (Market price, around RM132 for 2 crabs). CK uses a big size mud crab, stir-fried with signature wet black pepper sauce. The crab is fresh and meaty, absorbs the flavour of black pepper nicely. The black pepper sauce just sticks to your fingers, so when you are putting the crab meat in your mouth, the sauce will stick to the flesh. This will add additional pepper kick to sweet flesh. A delicious black pepper crab.

Signature Black Pepper Crab

Signature Black Pepper Crab

Volcano BeanCurd (S-RM35 / L-RM45). Easily mistaken for Yam ring, CK uses the same method for their homemade beancurd. It has a crispy texture, followed with the hard version of the traditional beancurd. The stir-fry seafood on top, add to the complexity of flavour in this dish.

Volcano BeanCurd

Volcano BeanCurd

Steam catfish (Market Price). We will normally ask them to steam it in Teochew style and it never disappoints. The fish is fresh and steamed to perfection. The meat from the catfish is velvety soft and the combination of sweet and sour in the gravy just perks up your palate.

Steam Catfish - Teochew Style

Butter Pork Cubes (S-RM12/ M-RM18 / L-RM25). More like popcorn pork cubes. Aromatic, crispy and well coated with umami butter sauce. As it was deep-fried, some of the pork can taste hard, but definitely good to eat with white rice or on its own.

Butter Pork Cubes

Salted Egg Crayfish (Special Menu). Not a permanent item on the menu, as the supply of the crayfish, are limited. The flesh of the crayfish is tender and springy, provided a good canvas for the dry salted egg sauce.

Salted Egg Crayfish

They also served Salted Egg Crab, however, it does not give you the WOW effect, compares to the black pepper sauce.

Salted Egg Crab

We have ordered other dishes as well and they are pretty decent. 

Stir-Fried Vegetables

Restoran Chua Kee setting is a traditional non-airconditioned eating house in small town in Malaysia. In modern term, you can call this al-fresco dining in Kampong style. Service is efficient.

Menu Part 1

Menu Part 2

During the weekend, this place will be crowded during the meal time.  For peak period during weekend dinner, you will be limited to only order one style of crab per table. We suggest you come early during the weekend or after 8 PM, as the second delivery of crab only arrive around that time. Payment term is Cash only.

Menu Part 3

Menu Part 4

Overall, Restoran Chua Kee is one of the best Seafood Zi Char restaurants that we ever tried around Johor area. The dishes are generally very good and you can say it is worth the queue. So, give this place a try if you passing by Second Link. Cheers!!

Food & Drink: 8/10

Value: 8.75/10

Service: 6.5/10

Ambiance: 6/10

Budget per Person: $11- $25

Restoran Chua Kee

No. 67, Jalan Kacang Panjang

Gelang Patah, Johor Bahru, Johor.

Malaysia 81550

(GPS: N 1° 26' 48.7''  E 103° 35' 16.3'' / N 1.44685° E 103.58786°)

T: +60 7 510 3198

     +60 12 761 0529

     +60 12 762 8255

OH:

Daily 11.30 – 23.00

Closed Alternate Wednesday.

Wa Zen Izakaya – A Quality Japanese Restaurant in JB

A quick search of a Japanese restaurant in Melaka, Wa Zen Japanese Restaurant will come out top of the recommended list. Reasons being it served good quality Japanese food at half of the price in Singapore. During the weekend and holiday seasons, this place is flocked by tourists you can forget about getting a seat without a reservation.

Table Setting

At the end of 2014, Wa Zen opened a branch in Johor Bahru. It is a good news for us, giving us another dining option during our short trip to JB. It will take you less than 20 minutes drive after you pass the Malaysia customs.

The Sushi Bar

LD and I visited Wa Zen regularly in JB and we found some of the dishes here are worth the trip. Sashimi Sakura (RM115). It consists of the freshest sashimi on that day. Common item such as Salmon, Tuna, Swordfish, Yellowtail, Sweet Prawn, Octopus and Salmon roe. One of the specialities here is actually White Tuna (Shiro Maguro Sashimi). It has a creamy soft texture, almost like a combination of salmon with scallops.

Sashimi Sakura