Lot 9, Ground Floor, Light Industry Shoplot,
Towering Industrial Centre, 88300 Penampang.
Tel: 013-8733188/016-8801683
We were invited to dinner by one of our faithful reader Mr. Lam at a new and still little known (but not for long) humble restaurant at Towering opposite Bintang Ramai. Tonight we are also joined by fellow bloggers, Daniel from (www.ahbing.com) and Joey (http://beautygossipologyst.blogspot.com/)
Aged 45, Chef Kong born in Ipoh has been in this industry for more than 20 years in West Malaysia, moving from Ipoh, Johor, Pahang, etc and finally finding his home in KK in 1997. He was one of the first few Chef who started Pan Pacific Hotel's (now known as Sutera Pacific) chinese restaurant. He remained with that hotel for 10 years before moving on to Ocean, Portview and Atlantis. He has also had a couple of years of experience working in Melbourne for the famous Flower Drum restaurant there. For those who are a regular to Jesselton Point, you might had tried Chef Kong's cooking before as he used to owned and was the chef at Asian Cuisine. Currently apart from Popular Cuisine restaurant, he is also food consultant for Star City Conference Event Centre.
Signature's Tofu
This is the restaurant's signature tofu with mince pork and pork floss in special sauce. The tofu itself is made using soy milk and undergoes a tedious process to give you crispy exterior and a creamy tender texture on the inside. At RM12 per plate, it's a definite must try.
Kam Sa Ha
Next is 'Kam Sa Ha' or loosely translated as Golden Sand Prawn. The huge Tiger Prawn is firstly deep fried then stir-fried in salted duck's egg yolk. Curry leaves are added just to give it a tang of fragrance. At RM18 per prawn, Chef Kong will serve you any amount you desire, even if you are alone and wanting just 1 prawn. Again, Chef Kong's experience is gracefully presented in this dish. 
Mango Chicken
This is mango chicken, which is deep fried chicken dipped in special sweet a-la thai sauce with a side portion of young mango. I strongly suggest to eat this first because the soury taste of the mango will definitely liven up your appetite. And don't leave out the skin, because these crispy and thin bits are to die for. This dish will cost you RM12.00
Assam Fish Head
Any self respecting seafood chef must have a specialty fish dish up their sleeve, and Chef Kong dug deep and magically transforms a bland fish head into fragrant, and tasty Assam Fish Head Nyonya style. The gravy will get all your taste bud working overtime to decipher all the different spices that Chef Kong uses. The fish is the 7-star grouper variant and will cost you RM6.00 per 100gm. 
Hot and Sour Crabs
The star for the evening's show is this masterpiece of a crab. Steamed then stir fried in spicy sour sauce, which you definitely can't easily find elsewhere, this crab will bring you to your knees. Well, maybe not, but I was pretty darn close. The reason why you can't find this style of preparation is simply because its hard to pull off. Yet again, Chef Kong's experience makes it look easy. This dish comes with toasted bread so you can wipe the sauce off the plate in a more civilized manner, instead of using your fingers or, er, tongue. The crabs cost RM26.00/kilo. It's a little bit pricey but the quality of the crabs are guarantee to be good (meaty with crab roe).P/S: Crab's lovers do take note that during the 15th-20th in the Chinese Lunar Calender, the quality of the crabs will deteriorate.
Daniel from (www.ahbing.com)
What are you waiting for?
No seriously, what are you waiting for. Come on down to popular cuisine at Towering for a great dinner you won't regret.
1 comments:
I decided to try out this restaurant after reading your review :) Great food? Yes. Good service from the ordinary staff? Yes. Warm, nice and friendly welcome + service from the short haired AUNTIE? Oh hell to the NO. It saddens me to see how rude and unfriendly the short haired lady who usually take the customer's orders. My family and I often come to this restaurant for dinner. The food is what keeps us coming back. Not forgetting the delicious dumplings. I saw how the short haired auntie treats her other customers when she's taking their orders. She would roll her eyes, speak in a loud voice (as if we are deaf) and is very impatient. I know I'm not imagining things or am I alone with this opinion. My friends who had been to this restaurant also said the same things. Pity how even after eating such a nice meal at the restaurant, the service from that particular person would leave a bad taste in your mouth.
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