[Penang] Avatar Secret Garden 阿凡达神秘花园

• Ticket price: RM5 for parking, free entrance

• Highlights: LED lighting tree

• Location: 336, Jalan Tokong Thai Pak Koong, Tanjung Tokong, Penang

• Nearby bus stop: Bus route 102

• Opening hour: 8:00AM - 12:00AM

• Watch-outs: Rude parking attendants 

The Avatar Secret Garden is the recent place of interest in Penang. Previously this place is a local neighborhood temple. After being decorated with beautiful LED lights, this place became a viral hotspot in Penang. The photos are spectacular and being able to see it in real life is breath-taking. 

The garden takes about 15 minutes for a walkabout. It's a small place, but the lighting may take a long pit stop for photos. The main attraction is just a tree decorated with elongated strings of LED lights that changes its colors.

There are plenty of steps and to maintain the beauty of the lights, the place is kept in low lighting. No doubt it is a romantic place, it is not an ideal place for the elders, wheelchair & baby pram.

The biggest turn-off for the trip is the rude parking attendants. You can spot them as your turn into the village. Some of them are not locals, merely hitching on the opportunity to earn some quick bucks. Our best advice is to drive straight ahead until you see the purple tower. Parking there gives you an ease of mind. If you're a stranger to the place, the best option is to park at Tesco Tanjung Tokong and get a GrabCar or Uber.

The best time to visit the garden is around 6:00PM where you can watch the sunset at the beach. Slowly climb your way up to the Avatar Secret Garden around 6:30PM to wait for the lights to turn on. When you're done strolling in the garden, you can enjoy fresh seafood at the bottom of the hill right next to the seaside.

[Melaka] Christmas Deco in Portuguese Settlement

Christmas at Portuguese Settlement used to be a family affair. The old folks waited for their family's homecoming to enjoy homecooked family dinner. It was a sweet and simple gathering. Not until recently, the village is open to the public to enjoy their beautifully decorated home, and some houses warmly welcome strangers into their home to view the Christmas decoration.

Christmas spirit is in full swing just before Christmas day. The best time to visit this place is from 20th December up to the actual Christmas day. Besides viewing the Christmas decoration from outside, you can also enjoy some local snacks sold at the Portuguese Square. A few villagers dress up as Santa Claus for an opportunity to be photographed with visitors.

A simple trip like this cost you close to nothing. So, if you decided to pay a visit, be sure to bring back your own rubbish so that the villagers don't have to pick it up after you.

Waze for "Portuguese Settlement Ujong Pasir". Best time to visit is after dinner. Parking is limited and may be a big hassle. We recommend to park in the city and take a GrabCar. 

[Melaka] Hajjah Mona Asam Pedas

• Rating: 2 out of 5

• Price range: Average RM10 and above per meal

• Halal

• Ambiance: Hawker

• Style of cooking: Malay

• Address: 6, Jalan Laksamana 2, Taman Kota Laksamana, Melaka

• Business hour: Daily 5:00PM - 5:00AM; Sunday 9:00AM - 7:00PM

Many years ago, I visited the Hajjah Mona Asam Pedas and it quickly became one of the usual places I bring my Malay friends. Asam pedas is one of the famous dish in Melaka and it is said that your trip to Melaka won't be complete without savoring some asam pedas. But during my recent trip, the experience was quite disappointing. 

The fish pieces were very small, about one third the size of a palm. And the taste of the gravy was too salty. It wasn't spicy and the gravy is diluted. It didn't taste anything like how I remember it used to be. 

Typically, the asam pedas comes with a plate of rice with bean sprout and salted egg. The bean sprout didn't cooked well. Perhaps, the best dish is the salted egg. In Melaka, all asam pedas dishes come with salted egg. This is how the locals eat. 

We ditched the white rice and went for Chinese fried rice. The fried rice was too salty as well. 

You can find packages of nasi lemak on the table. Nasi lemak and asam pedas aren't the best combo, but if eaten by itself, the nasi lemak is too good to resist.

Overall, I think Hajjah Mona Asam Pedas is overrated. It isn't as good as how it used to be. The price is a bit too high for a humble dish. However, this place is still one of the local favourite. 

If you know any good halal asam pedas in Melaka, do recommend to us by commenting below.

[Melaka] Seri Nyonya Peranakan Restaurant Relaunches Exciting New Menu

Residents, hotel guests and foodies alike will be delighted in the refreshing flavours and tantalizing dishes from Seri Nyonya Peranakan Restaurant at Hotel Equatorial Melaka, with the relaunch of its exciting new menu. Showcasing over 18 brand new dishes that feature only the freshest and best seasonal ingredients the restaurant has to offer, Seri Nyonya Peranakan Restaurant, one of Melaka's favouring dining destinations, is set to please with mouth-watering sharing plates, a unique mix of typical Melaka Nyonya's classic favourites and innovative traditional dishes.

The refreshing menu embraces the warmer seasons by incorporating freshly picked vegetables, poultry, seafood, and fresh herbs, and aims to let the natural flavours of the ingredients speak for themselves. The new re-launched menu takes guests on a culinary Peranakan tour with traditional dishes inspired from its primes and ingredients sourced carefully to ensure that the tastes are authentic. New dishes such as prawn salad, Pie Tee with Prawns, Sambal Belimbing Acar Nenas, Sop Ketam Berempag, Ayam Cili Padi and Seri Nyonya Steamed Chicken are great examples of dishes cooked the traditional way by one of the many experienced Nyonya Chefs.

The Seri Nyonya's dramatic desserts have also received a seasonal upgrade, with the famed Nyonya Cendol and Sago Gula Melaka served with homemade brown sugar. Long-standing favourites are still on the menu, including the famous Otak-otak Nyonya, Sop Hee Peow, Ikan Gerang Asam, Ayam Buah Keluak and Telur Dadar Cincaluk.

Sup Ketam Berempah

Kerabu mangga

Homemade tofu with sauce

Ayam cili padi

Kerabu jantung pisang

Udang gerang asam

Ikan sambal tumis

Bayam sambal belacan

Cendol

Florence giving her comments on the dishes as the chefs taking notes

Hotel General Manager Dato Syed A Rahman Alkaff comments: "The new menu showcases the exceptional range of authentic, traditional cuisine on offer at Seri Nyonya Peranakan Restaurant. The highlight of this menu is not only its innovative use of great, fresh flavours, but also its commitment to seasonality and responding to the growing trends and demands of out diners." While enjoying the delights of the menu, guests can relax to the soothing tunes of the Keroncong being played during lunch and dinner and its idyllic restaurant decoration.

For reservations and enquiry, please call +606 631 3109, ext. 3331 / 3380.

[Melaka] Cibo Italian Food and Coffee

• Rating: 3.5 out of 5

• Price range: Average RM20 and above per meal

• Pork free

• Ambiance: Restaurant

• Style of cooking: Western

• Address: No.925, Jalan Merdeka, Taman Melaka Raya, 75000 Melaka

• URL: https://web.facebook.com/cibomelakaraya/

• Business hour: 10:00AM - 10:30PM; Closed on Tuesday

Cibo - pronounced as Si-Bo, means food in Italian. This establishment is a new restaurant in the popular area, Melaka Raya. However, its reputation for good food is not a new in Melaka. The first Cibo is a cafe located at Ujong Pasir. Both the places are managed by the Sunflower Hotel management. 

Overall, the restaurant gives a romantic vibe with the yellow lighting. With its open kitchen concept and a mixture of industrial and nature-inspired design, this place mimics those casual restaurants in Australia. This setting is really apt for a romantic dinner, family celebration or special occasion. The restaurant is big enough to hold a small event. 

On the menu, the food isn't 100% Italian. It is more of a Western with a hint of Italian selections such as pasta & pizza, which is pretty generic.

The Buffalo Wings has a BBQ marination. We were expecting the classic sour spicy taste. Although the taste was a surprise, it wasn't bad, just average. 

The Chicken Au Gratin is not what we've expected as well. An original Italian Au Gratin is baked in cheese and has a tomato based sauce inside. The photo showed the disappointed chicken au gratin that simply fried and placed with a slice of square cheese on top. To be fair, the taste isn't bad. It is just not cooked in the classic Italian way.

The most descent order we had was the Salmon Steak. The skin is crispy and thin and it is served with a generous portion of fish. It tastes as good as how it looks. 

If you are expecting a traditional Italian food, this might not be the best place. For some, this may be offensive. However, if you don't mind it and just want a nice place with good food, this can be a very nice place to hangout. 

[Melaka] Warung Yusuf Kampung Durian Daun

• Rating: 4.5 out of 5

• Price range: RM3 - RM12

• Halal

• Ambiance: Hawker

• Style of cooking: Local Malay

• Address: Google map: Surau Kampung Solok Berangan

In a humble kampong, located far away from the Melaka town, there is a  classic warung (food stall) that serves modest local Malay food. Don't mind the non-airconditioned alfresco seating, the food is unpretentious, cooked to order and serves fresh.

Whatever you see on the menu is not all that they have. Just call out any popular Malay dishes and they'll be able to cook it for you off-menu.

Simple dishes such as kuey teow goreng (fried flat noodles) and bihun goreng (fried vermicelli) are among the popular order here during brunch. Although don't look appetizing, the medley of noodles, vegetables and chicken are fried in a fragrant black sauce that brings out the aroma like no other.

We were thrilled to find Lempeng on the menu. This is a genuine traditional Malay breakfast, which has been modified into the commercialized roti canai. Lempeng is just a simple pancake made of flour dough. The lempeng served with a plate of sambal ikan bilis (anchovies chilli paste).

To complete the meal, ask for a hot local coffee and sarbat. Sarbat is a drink influenced by the Arabic traders and it isn't popular anymore. Mixture of herbs are blended in the milk to make the drink. It is quite surprising for us to see it here.


The Warung Yusuf is quite hard to locate if you are not familiar with Alor Gajah area. From AMJ, turn into the Lendu intersection heading towards the Pusat Memandu Zapcity. At the end of the road, turn right towards Masjid Tanah. Use geolocation coordinate 2°21'13.2"N 102°08'02.9"E to look for the exact location.