MakanMakan Food Hunt at 1 Utama

One of the perks of being a blogger is never getting a shortage of good food to enjoy. And believe me there are just so many heavenly and delicious dishes to savour so that you can share with your friends and readers. I must admit that even if I wasn't a hard core food blogger, going around to some of these lovely food outlets, cafes or restaurants can be pretty fun and there is just so much to discover...and so much photos to take.. 

Recently I was blessed to be one of the 25 selected bloggers who were there at 1 Utama to join in the #Makan Makan Food Hunt fun that was being organised for us bloggers...

Each and every blogger that attended was given a #MakanMakan Food Hunt passport and grouped together in a group of 5. We were then required to visit  ten participating F&B outlets within a 5 hours given duration .

 The outlets that were given to us included Little Fat Duck, Moo Cow, Betjeman & Barton, Quiznos, Nana’s Green Tea, CoCo Curry House Ichibanya, O Banh Mi, MyeongDong, Library Coffee Bar and Bisou...

It was pretty fun, just like a treasure hunt as we tried to figure out where the food outlets were located and how we were to go around as well as how long we were going to spend at the outlets since we had only 5 hours to cover 10 different outlets...

The first outlet we visited was Quiznos.

Some background:  Quiznos is a little sub shop that began over 30

 years ago in Denver, Colorado in USA   

Quiznos believe that your food should taste great and they 

offer unique, chef-inspired submarine sandwiches, soups and salads

 in a simple and comfortable ambience, 

The ordering counter was just to your right when entering the 

outlet and the menu options were clearly shown for your own 

selection. 

All you have to do is order what type of sandwich you want, 

 followed by 6, 9, or 12-inch subs and your preferred type of bread.

 There are three different types... white, wheat and rosemary 

parmesan

Quiznos carefully craft their delicious subs using butcher-quality

 meats, all-natural cheeses, special signature sauces and toasted 

artisan bread.

We were served the Chicken Ranch & Swiss which consisted of chicken slices, Swiss cheese, sliced tomato, shredded lettuce, sliced onions and ranch dressing...RM13,80

And also the Honey Mustard Chicken Subs which consisted of chicken slices, beef bacon, Swiss cheese, shredded lettuce, 

tomatoes, onions, and honey mustard dressing on wheat bread. 

Price RM15.80

We also got to try out their Baja Chicken Pizza RM10.80 (smoky 

beef bacon, cheddar cheese, onions, and dressed with Baja 

sauce and Chipotle mayonnaise) and Chicken Carbonara Pizza 

RM12.80 (Chicken, smoky beef bacon, mozzarella cheese, sautéed 

mushrooms, and alfredo sauce )

We also were given the chance to try out their Cheese Bites and 

Criss Crossed Fries...

 Lot G202, Ground Floor

(Old Wing; opposite Papparich & same row as TGI Friday's)

Our second stop was at Nana's Green Tea. I have always heard about it but never got around visiting it yet until today...

Everyone knows that matcha or green powdered tea is great for being healthy.  Nana’s Green Tea is a Japanese Café offering healthy green tea related desserts in the forms of hot and cold drink, parfait, slushy and jellies 

For your info...Nana's Green Tea serves uniquely blended quality matcha green tea and regular green tea as well. Their agar sweets are painstakingly crafted every day using gelidiaceae/ red algae and the same goes for their handmade warabimochi using traditional processes..

Anyway, when we got there to Nana's Green Tea, we were told we could order a parfait each.. imagine our excitement... but perhaps we got a little carried away...

Among some of the parfaits we ordered, were the.....

Matcha “Nama Chocolate” Parfait(RM23.10) 

Matcha Shiratama Parfait (RM21.90) 

Matcha “Gateaux Chocolat” Parfait (RM23.10) 

Hoji "Gateaux Chocolat" Parfait (RM23.10)

Hoji “Warabimochi” Parfait (RM23.10)

The parfait here are artisan desserts starting with more or less a layer of Kanten jelly and Matcha or Hoji syrup then topped with soft serve vanilla ice cream, generous layer of corn flakes and garnished with a vanilla ice cream, Hoji bean paste, jelly made of bracken starch dipped in Kinako, whipped cream and a drizzle of  Matcha or Hoji Syrup with some extras like the Gateaux Chocolate Cake, warabimoshi or so...

One parfait can be shared between 2-3 people... so you can imagine we could not finish our parfait as delicious as it was....

 LG355, Lower Ground Floor Rainforest

After Nana's Green Tea, we continued to Coco Ichibanya, said to be the largest Japanese curry restaurant chain in the world.

Besides mild and their signature original flavour, Coco Ichibanya in Malaysia offers five levels of spiciness for their Japanese curry, from level one’s medium hot to level five’s crazy hot.

Coco Ichibanya has an impressive 1,396 restaurants worldwide, including 1,255 in its home country.

This Non-Halal is not somewhere I would normally go, but my other team members were all Chinese, so I went in side the  to check it out as well, but rest assured I did not eat any pork, even though they did serve pork...

I however did find the ambience in this restaurant charming. It was pretty bright and came with contemporary modern decor.

This restaurant offers its customers an impressive selection of more than 30 meat and seafood options such as chicken, beef, pork, prawn and clam, with a variety of toppings such as egg, corn, bacon, croquette, cheese, mushroom and eggplant. 

Coco Ichibanya’s signature dishes are many. This includes their Lightly Crisped Chicken Curry, Black Pepper Chicken Curry, Grilled Garlic Prawn Curry, Salmon Teriyaki Curry, Salmon Cream Croquette Curry, Seafood Omelette Curry and Grilled Spinach, Bacon and Corn Curry.

There are also non-spicy options such as seafood spaghetti, soups and salads.

Anyway we had the smoked salmon salad served with goma/shoyu dressing,  crispy chicken, seafood curry level 2, pork cutlet , beef yakiniku and squid mayo served on our table...I loved the taste of the curry...and can relate to how this restaurant can be so well liked...

 LG333A, Lower Ground, New Wing

We continued on from Coco Ichibanya to MyeongDong Topokki...this time to taste Korean snacks.

 Myeong Dong is a well known shopping area in South Korea and famous for its street food of which one of them is topokki (also known as tteokbokki) - rice cakes.....

We were delighted to be served these Korean canned drinks... which were actually pretty yummy with the fruit bits and barley bits in them...

We were served with the Myeong Dong Station Set (RM17.80), consisting of a bowl of Topokki and a plate of Kimali. 

Kimali is a fried seaweed role with Korean glass noodle in it. Crunchy and crispy and best dipped in the Korean chilli sauce in the bowl of Topokki. You should try it as it is one of the best sellers here...

Yours truly could not resist this Tempura Squid as well (RM10.50) which was very crispy and fresh....nice dipped in chilli sauce....I love squid and so I loved this...

There was also a bowl of Odeng (RM7.80), Korean fishcakes on skewers in a bowl of soup . This was surprisingly pretty yummy....and oh, a tuna, vege, cheese Kimbab (RM13.00), a Korean version of the Japanese California Roll...or at least something similar... huhuhu

O Banh Mi is a Non -Halal Vietnamese sandwich shop for those of you wanting something light, healthy and delicious. I have it on good faith it is yummy as while I have been searching for some background on it, I can see many people swearing by it...

The outlet in 1 Utama is simple, contemporary and very cosy.

It specialises in banh mi , which in case you do not know,is the name for the baguette-style Vietnamese bread, a little lighter than a traditional baguette. Simplicity and taste are the keywords here. here are freshly baked daily. You can select from a plain or charcoal banh mi here.

We were served lemongrass ginger tea and the Pork and Prawn Roll (RM9.50) which comes with a brown creamy dipping sauce . It definitely looked nice but I did not eat it as there is pork, so I cannot tell you how it really taste like.. 

These are however hand made and rolled upon order...

There was also a bahn mi served which flavor I can't quite recall but I remember the waiter saying something like original...

LG 328, 1 Utama Shopping Complex (New Wing)

The Library Coffee Bar was our next stop, now one of the problems we encountered during this #Makan Makan Food Hunt which we did not quite take into accountability was time, We were given 5 hours to cover 10 food outlets/ restaurants/cafes and we had imagine it was ample time, but this was not the case. 

We were delayed in almost all of the outlets/restaurants/cafes because of the waiting time / cooking and preparation time..and we had to waste more time on food photography as well...being bloggers and social media influencers... so since I could not eat at O Banh Mi, I went on ahead to the Library Coffee Bar and placed our order.....

The Library Coffee Bar is a pretty laid back, cosy haven where you, me, anyone sit back, and let yummy drinks, books and laptops blend perfectly in cafe harmony. You really have to try their signature expresso shakes (RM16 each) especially the Insanely Scrummy and Mokalicious.... I cannot decide which one was better... and I loved both of it...

You can also expect a refreshing, flavourful & delicious cup of tea to pair with the selection of books found here! We got the Chamomile Tea which was just a huge delight... as well as the English Morning (RM9 each) which comes served on a wooden tray with a strainer and a butter cookie... 

The strainer is there because they put fresh tea leaves/flowers into the pot...

We also got to try out their Humming Ham (RM15). It is a fluffy and flaky puff pastry pizza on which you have helpings of olives, chicken, cheese and freshly sliced lettuce...Pretty scrumptious it can get you humming too..

Then there was the Tuna Arrabiata spaghetti, Berries Waffle (RM13) that came with a generous scoop of ice cream and berries sprinkled on it...

 Then we had the Bee-Licious Chick sandwich (RM14), a combination of chicken, chicken slice, swiss cheese, shredded lettuce, sliced tomatoes, sliced onions, and a dollop of honey mustard dressing all in a neat Panini bread... lip smacking good to see and to eat.. it comes served with lovely fresh cherry tomatoes...

I will definitely be headed back here for more...

After lamenting being unable to really sit back and enjoy our time at the Library Coffee Bar and vowing to be back, we rushed off to Bisou Bake Shop...

To Bisou Bake Shop (Bisou means “kiss” in French), making cupcakes is a form of art. The delectable frosting and sprinkles are all added to the taste and look of the cupcakes.  Bisou strongly believes that a good cake should be enjoyed anytime. This is why they serve a wide range of cupcakes everyday that would suit each and every taste buds. 

We were given the August Special Red Velvet Rainbow cake (RM13)...Now to be absolutely honest, I do not like cheesecake that much, I find them too rich, but when I gingerly first took a little piece off this cake, I did not find it too cheesy but actually quite light with a hint of chocolate. It was not too sweet either and tasted pretty nice...and I would definitely be going back for another one....

Our third last stop was at the Moo Cow froyo outlet

Moo Cow has been constantly been serving Malaysia’s health conscious dessert aficionados with tasty frozen yogurts for a while now. 

I always find it funny when you pass by the outlet and the cow will sometimes just moo at you...

Moo Cow distinct frozen yogurts are freshly made from natural ingredients and flavours, to ensure that only the best frozen yogurts of high quality will delight Moo Cow lovers’ taste buds. 

Here we got our original yogurt drink (RM3.50) and an original yogurt (RM9.90) with two toppings in which I chose to have strawberry jam and crushed waffle cones..... and it was lip smacking good... a great choice of healthy dessert...

I can't help be tickled pink by the pretty blue cow with long lashes and a boy in red holding on to her as well in the outlet...

Little Fat Duck was one of many food trucks that has popped up across the Klang Valley in the past year. Offering cheap eats on wheels, rumour has it the truck is quite often swamped with customers.

Now Little Fat Duck is also running a small outlet at the lower ground floor of 1 Utama Shopping Centre, near where the old Arena food court use to be..

We ordered the Spaghetti Bolognaise (RM6), and the two main dishes on the menu: Chicken confit and grilled fish (RM 13 each). 

Our food was served in their printed lunchbox-sized cardboard boxes whether you were eating there or choosing to take out...

So if you are looking for budget pricing food that is good, you should check this out...

LGK102A-LGK103, LG, 1 Utama Shopping Centre

This is Paris-based Betjeman & Barton,  first Malaysian outlet.  Betjeman & Barton is quite like TWG and carries more than a hundred green, black, white, oolong, puerh and rooibos teas – sourced from China, Japan, India and Ceylon, including the superior quality Japon Gyokyro. 

The staff there are trained and can recommend a tea (full bodied, light, smoked or scented) to suit your mood at any time....

We were welcomed by comfy looking red-cushioned chairs that surrounded the small tables, and shelves full of tea in tin cannisters and drop down lamps with softly striped wall paper. 

For our tea, we were given a selection of four tea in which I chose  the Malesherbes Green Tea (RM27 per pot) which is very aromatic and fresh tasting....

We were served this amazingly pretty cakes as well... the Jardin Rouge Gateau on the left (RM13.90) and the Chocolate Orange Cake (RM13) They were pretty good to indulge with...moist and sweet...

We also got to enjoy some Vanilla macaroons (RM4.50 each), some Hazelnut chocolate (RM4 each) which is an absolute must if you are a praline or chocolate lover. I really loved this and their Tiramisu RM13)

Lot G220, Ground Floor,

 (Old Wing)

We managed to complete all our task in the nick of time and check back in with the awesome 1 Utama staff. I swear that I was so stuffed I felt like a python who had just devoured a goat....

Anyway, it had been an amazing experience, getting to meet some new blogger friends, have some fun with regular blogger pals as well as indulge, indulge and indulge...

Our team....the Makan Queen . Photo credit to 1 Utama FB page... pls vote us also yaaa

Thank you 1 Utama for organizing this, and to all the outlets/restaurants and cafes that have hosted us and put up with our presence and dramas ... Truly a priceless experience I won't be forgetting any time soon.....