It’s always sad to see your favourite eateries close down.
Some of my favourite restaurants in the past had closed down simply because business wasn’t good enough.
Even when I had the chance to dine at those restaurants, I didn’t see many customers around. It’s almost as if I was the only person in the whole of Kuching who appreciates their good food. Everyone else just prefers to eat at the same old few places.
Among the unfortunate casualties were Mambo King at Travillion and A-ha at Ban Hock (now renamed De Crimson, also known as the place where they serve potato wages)
I reckon that’s a bloody shame really. Because good food should be celebrated, not avoided!
There are plenty of restaurants out there in the same scenario. One thing I noticed is that their chef never fails to churn out good food, but somehow they can’t seem to put enough asses on their chairs.
One ass from me ain’t gonna be enough to keep them afloat.
I love these restaurants and I wanna be eating their good food from them for a long time. But judging by the emptiness of their tables everytime I go there, it’s a matter of time before they’re in danger of closing down.
Unless we act now. FAST!
Which is why for my own selfish reasons, I’m gonna shamelessly plug these restaurants here.
Apologies in advance if I incorrectly assumed that these restaurants aren’t doing well, since the only thing I could based that claim on is my personal observation. 🙂
But nonetheless, kennysia.com presents to you, Kuching’s Top 4 Most Under-Rated and Unappreciated Eateries.
1. Bella Italia at RH Plaza BDC
With the exception of maybe Restaurant Beccari at Merdeka Palace, there seems to be a notable absence of goodItalian food in Kuching.
That is, until I stumbled across Bella Italia secretly stashed away at the backlot of RH Plaza BDC.
Apparently they’ve been around for a while but god knows why I had only just discovered them recently.
I came here twice and on both occasions, we were the only customers there. Maybe it’s their quiet location, but this cosy little restaurant is so devoid of customers it’s Italian tragedy. I am dumbstruck as to why because everything they did here is almost perfect.
Their risotto is delicious, their marinara soup is super-tasty and their pasta rivals the best in KL. At RM15 to RM20 for mains, price-wise they are also quite reasonable.
And I am absolutely head over heels in love with their bruschetta bread.
2. Pizza Junction at Jalan Song
I walked into this restaurant one afternoon and their bored staff jolted up from their seats like they’ve just seen their first customer since The Stone Age.
It’s a pity to see such a nice restaurant so empty and bare.
Pizza Junction is a local homegrown fast-food chain restaurant similar to Pizza Hut. But unlike the international franchise, Pizza Junction serves darn good pizzas at prices much lower than the Hut‘s offerings.
As a comparison, RM21 gets you only one regular pizza at the Hut, but you can get that plus two soups and drinks at the Junction. They even have some dessert pizzas with a local twist, like the Banana Kaya Delight.
I tried their fusili pasta which was decent, but it was their Chicken Delight Pizza absolutely rocks my socks.
Personally I think Pizza Junction tastes a lot better than Pizza Hut. But do try it out and support our local brand.
3. Korean Da Om BBQ House at Jalan Song
Quite possibly, the best authentic Korean restaurant in town.
Here’s the deal. You order one main course and they’ll give you 3 side dish for free. The great thing about Da Om’s side dish is, when you finish them you can ask for a refill an unlimited amount of times.
So technically speaking, you can go to Da Om with ten friends, then you just order one main course and let your ten friends eat the side dish until full.
Just don’t tell them you learn this trick from kennysia.com one hor! 😛
My only complaint with Da Om is that all their spicy dishes are really, really, REALLY spicy! Those stuff should come with titanium metal to reinforce your tongue, because they are so damn spicy it’s not funny.
Seriously, their kimchee is so freaking hot, I think they made it out of a mixture of chilli padi and gunpowder.
My recommendation is to stay safe and stick to the non-spicy dishes.
My favourites here are the Korean marinated beef served with fresh lettuce, Bi Bim Bap (Korean Fried Rice) and the Sam Gye Theng (Korean Ginseng Chicken Soup).
Some say there are better Korean restaurants out there in Kuching, but I disagree.
I say, Da Om is Da Bomb!
4. Sin Chiew Chicken Rice at Point One, Travilion Mall
Actually this chicken rice stall is quite popular already. The only reason I put it on my ‘endangered’ list is because… it is too cheap!
It’s so cheap I wonder how they could even make a profit.
Sin Chiew is good, although I won’t say it is the best-tasting chicken rice in Kuching.
I insist that title still goes to Good Thumb (ex-Big Mouth). But the problem with Good Thumb is that their portion is so pathetic, you have to buy two meals to fill up your stomach. Another good chicken rice place in Kuching is Ah Suan, but they can be expensive and parking around that area is a bitch.
That’s why I think Sin Chiew has the best value chicken rice in Kuching. I asked for one plate of chicken rice with a portion of boob meat, one vegie dish, minus the soup and the grand total comes up to just RM4!
How can I not love this place!?
On top of that, Ah Ming the boss is a nice polite guy who will smile and greet at you when you come, and say bye-bye when you leave.
Yes, I know they smile and greet you too at Coffee Bean. But that one you have to pay 10% service charge for it.
It’s great that opera-singing mobile phone salesman Paul Potts won the final Britain’s Got Talent.
Imagine. Instead of buying mobile phones from him, people can now download his singing as a caller ringtone!
yummy
RM 4 chicken rice? geez why must i live in jb and flew over to melbourne for studies? 🙁
sure is delicious =Pp
Bella Italia and Pizza Junction looks nice and yummy !
Better try it out when im back to KUCHING!
Thx for adding some food in my list…
Kuching sure had the cheap and the delicious food.
Im from Kuching!
oops, 1st comment of this blog.
Im ur ‘junior’ of CHMS1 and Curtin Perth someday.
hehe
Marinara not supposed to be served in soup.
SCRUMPTIOUS!!!
drooollll
yr post makes me hungry
this post is so cruel to a malaysian stuck in india!!!
Man, wish could get such cheap and nice food in Singapore. 🙁
Got to save our clubs and pubs too Kenny.
Have you visited the new pub in town called FEVER yet? Operateb my friend – a young boy like you but he is taller and much more handsome. No offend.
Darn Kenny, I will make sure I visit every single one of them when I come back for the music festival this July.
i’ve been to bella italia and da om.. agree wif u absolutely.. i simply love da om and they are closing?! nooooo man.. i loveeee their food.. bi bim bap is reli reli nice! hehehe…i hav to agree wif u those places reli rock!!
Obviously you’ve never been to Kota Kinabalu’s (K.K) Little Italy, situated at Hotel Capital for their Italian food. I’ve never tasted such good Italian food, not even in K.L. Nothing can compare.
As for Korean BBQ, the Korean BBQ House in SS2 here in P.J. rocks. The owner’s Korean, and he’s very generous XD
taking down notes for kuching trip…
i love to eat good food……….
yummy yummy….
=P
can ask pizza junction to open a branch in kuala lumpur ? hehehe.
Too bad… i think there are lot more of good restaurants that not yet being discover before it close down… OMG~!! and that chicken rice set only cost RM 4~!!!!!!!!!!!!
I’ve tried Da Om. Still think that Koreana (opp Hilton) is the best.
Agree with u that Pizza Junction serves good pizzas.
i agree with u that the closing down of some of these good eateries is a tragedy really…two of my fav that have closed down are “it’s kitchen steamboat” at petanak (very clean place with quality ingredients…lack of biz prob due to bad location) and “teng ren desserts” (only one of it’s kind that i know of in kch).
pizza junction: agree that they definitely serve better pizzas than pizza hut…my fav are beef supreme and chicken mayo supreme…and they’re generous with their toppings too!
bella italia: im guessing their lack of biz is prob due to their bad location…coz they really do serve good and affordable italian food…they should probably relocate to the front part…
da om: oh my fav! really hope they can survive! i love their bbq stuff, bibimbap, kimchi jjigae and jap chae! maybe we should let all those girls out there know that the owner has 2 handsome sons to attract them to go there lol…of coz the main thing is the good food but eye-candy is definitely a bonus lol
sin chiew: wow that’s alot of “boob” meat…perfect for a “boob”-meat-loving-carnivore like me hehe!
kenny: i always get 4-5 side dishes when i go to da om 🙂
jj: koreana’s food tastes more authentic i would say but i think da om serves better bbq
maybe Kuching needs some Japanese maid cafes?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PjNGX-jQS94
Kenny ah, your server clock faster 1 hour ler….
when you come to kl again, try restaurant paradiso in taman danau desa. fantastic italian food. the seafood marinara soup is to die for.
Malacca got 2.50 chicken rice oh xD
nway nice entry 😀
wow kenny, you never fail to make me salivate… and entertain me.. 🙂
if you’re around in kl this friday.. bet u know abt the intel dance thingy… come support me 🙂 would love to meet u someday.
woot!! rm4 for chicken rice!! i can hardly get 50% of that portion for that price in my kiam siap school.
I have the answer and it worth multi million dollar.
If the food is really good, people will queue up no matter how isolated the place is. So maybe you got weird tastes? 😛
make me hungry now…zzzzz
will try it next time i back kch lol
Hey Kenny,
The problem with Kuching’s restaurant scene is that the locals are spoilt by the abundance of cheap local food. Anything that is trendy or ethnic is viewed as expansive and not to the local taste. So these type of restaurant can’t expect to do well servicing the niche market or the expat community (unlike lets say a big city like Singapore).
fuiyo.. u’re making me hungry..
WTF is with secrecy?!?
OMFG!! Rm4??????!!!! I am sooo jealous right now..! Not only do I have to pay no less than 8 dollars for a plate of chicken rice, but on top of that its in $AUD! Gosh, how I miss going home.
being stuck in perth isn’t helping!! 😛
Economy is not getting any better,and with the looks of the restaurant looking a little high class,normal earning men and women will take dining there as luxury and will try to avoid.so cant really blame the lack of support for good food.
butrm4 chicken rice?! omg! here in kl,chicken rice’s price is getting more and more expensive,seriously you will rather rear a chicken and pluck the bulu urself and kill it urself, and cook it and eat it.definately cheaper.
nice post btw! 🙂
wow..nice review yea…din noe this food stalls exsist in kuching..lol
Gotta agree with Suzu, blog posts on food are really a torture for msians in overseas…haha
Kenny, love your last comment..hahaha:)
it looks so good that I wanna fly over to Kuching to try those dishes!
I miss Kuching!! By the way, if anyone caught a cold, Da Om BBQ House’s have a drink to cure that fast. Some sort of ginger tea or something, I can’t remember. But it does the work well! Pizza Junction tastes better than Pizza Hut too.
I am takin notes and will drop by to some of the rest there when I’m in Kch in August! Thanks for that.
good food is hard to come by …
we’ll suppport u all da way !
W0w good food there, its definately on my to try list the next time I go Kuching, ho ho maybe can meet up with you also lar Kenny……it’ll be really nice……
However if you say that the restaurants mentioned above is way better then the ones in KL then of course that is debatable……its obvious that you have not tried the most of KL restaurants, Cuz there are so many here that people just simply go to the bigger names, but bigger names does not nesessery mean better food, it just means that the food are eatable.
Try going to smaller restaurants for Italian, Japanaese, Korean, heck even African food. you will find it totally different from the ones you tried at lest say Italianies….-__-”
I reserve comments on the bottom ‘endangered’ places. As Italian food lover, I think Bella Italia is true good. Value for money. Sadly, Pizza Junction is too bad to compete. Low price doesnt mean good food. They’re just not in the competition, unless they improve their recipes. Hope they will make a ‘U’ Turn from the junction. 😉
Hi Kenny!
always enjoy reading your blog!
Hmm… just like to point out that Bi bim bap is more like korean mixed rice, not fried rice.. see pic at this link.
http://www.benoa.net/korea/seoul/pages/IMG_6104.html
Keep churning out great entries!
Cheers!
Woww….. kuching has changed since I left. I had a good 4 years in Kuching with my logdian friends….
These restaurants – except the Chicken Rice stall – are endangered because there are TOO MANY kopi tiam in Kuching. I guess, It’s just Kuching’s laid back culture that I found out interesting. Most people especially those apeks, uncles and aunties would prefer to sit at kopi tiam than those resto.
BTW the RM4 Chicken Rice !!!! Wow .. nice
Kennysia, i think you are such a kind-hearted guy lorr..
Keep up the good work yea?!
Aiyo, with so many good places. Now ecconomy so bad lah ! Someone have to give places. I would like to go eat there one of this day. But flight ticket also expensive. Airasia ? No, no lah..always delay. RM15 to RM20 per plate of Pizza ? Aiyo I have to pay income tax, not not much balance for me to spent. All my work hard bonus goes to Income Tax. One more thing, now adays Police very efficient in summoned. Aiya, all that bcos of pay hike lah. Have to collect revenue before July, the new pay increase.
NICE POST! RM4 CHICKEN RICE IS WHAT THAT INTERESTED ME MOST! HOW ABOUT DOING POST ON VALUE FOR MONEY FOOD IN KUCHING.WITH ECONOMY SO BAD ONLY RICH PEOPLE CAN AFFORD SOME OF THE FOOD U REVIEW.HAVE A NICE DAY.
you’re right kenny. feel bad for the restaurants sometimes.
i lost my favourite recently. fusion at padungan. the best chinese food in my opinion. boo hoo
the chicken rice in Point One is cheap and tasty. The taukeh ah Ming, he’s a very nice person who greets customers from front til end of shop just to say hallo and byebye. some pple complain the beverages in Point ONe are too expensive. Being a little observant myself, i compared the prices with other coffee shops. They’re expensive in term of cents for goodness sake. Now dont tell me you can afford to pay that extra few cents if you wanna enjoy little bit above average kopitiam atmosphere together with the GOOD and under-priced chicken rice. I can even pick up those extra cents from ground everywhere in kuching.
Those shops that sell their food cheap (usually nice ones) will close down in no time… There is one Mamak shop in Kajang, selling super-licious nasi lemak served with one type of vege of your choice (exclude cucumber), chicken / beef / mutton / fish and fried egg and only cost RM3.50! But it closed down barely after 4months operated. Probably because they are losing money becuase they are selling wayyyyyy too cheap. Sad case. There goes one of my favourite nasi lemak~
The pasta and korean food pics dont look that great. Think the only one that looks good is the chicken rice…
I’ve been to Kuching last Nov, guess its half year ago. My aunts invited me to dine at Da Om. I feel good with tat place, at least environmental friendly.
Somehow, i noticed, it was lunch time, and there were only 2 table of customers, that was ours and another were the korean friends of the owner.
Its quite pity if they are closing down due to no customers?, as they serve good food, big portion, reasonable price for “korean food” and the most important their good service.
I still can recall, that we ordered a plate of Sushi, it was not “wrap” nicely, still it taste good. But the lady boss insist to make a new plate for us. That’s what we say, professional and good service. Serve the best to the customers.
Kenny, hopefully yr blog can bring more business to them. I wish someday when i move to Kuching, i still have the chance to visit all the above mention restaurants.
Good luck!
fuyoh… RM4 niah. Damn JB food is expensive, that set of chicken rice alone can make up to RM10 – RM15. Sumore tasted like plastic.
nice post…write more stuff bout kch…
hope this post promote their biz too….
i like the chicken rice at point 1…
but owes finis very fast….
hungry d… haha.
Surprise surprise…
I’d been to all the places you’d said…
and while reading this.. i was having the same thought too….
Thanks for bringing this topic up…
Most of the times, its about locations. You may have the best tasting food around but if the location is sleazy/inaccessible/remote, its still hard to attract people over on a frequent basis..
One way to help the is by exposure which kennysia.com is doing but ultimately if the location is bad, it’d put people off.
You might go once or twice without feeling anything but after a while it’d be a hassle to travel, say 5km, just to have a korean noodles when 5min instant korean noodles is readily available in ur kitchen cabinet…
Yummy. Looks so nais for eating. I’m currently residing in Melbourne now, and unable to try the good food back in Malaysia. Things here are very ang moh style, and not like back in Malaysia where you can get cheap + nice food. Chicken rice da bomb!
Reading this post just before my lunch… hungry~~
Reading this post just before my lunch… hungry~~
Sometimes its because nowadays people prefer to hang out in cafes which exemplify lifestyles. Morever, most people will go to the most famous store or most occupied. In the F&B line, brandin is getting more and more important. =/ It is no longer so much about the food as before
nice..
makes me hungry u siao kenny.. ahha
Wow, you advertise for them ar?
how much you get paid for this blog?
oh im a korean food lover coz i hv been living with korean for 1 yr but there is a korean restaurant in Taipan USJ (opposite McD) serves ubiquitious authenthic korean dishes and u can get 10 SIDE DISHES for FREE with unlimited refills! do try the bbq n hot pot. the price is almost the same as in Sydney, plus the taste is real. In sydney, you can get unlimited refill on around 6 side dishes in every korean restaurant, n the food is superb.
sugar buns have to improve themselves too! what, they replaced chilli sauce with satay sauce?
i prefer their old chicken burger to da new one(uglier).
Yes we must support our homegrown food! dun let foreign ones come in so fast and so many. I hope tesco, carrefour, giant & walmart wont come in so soon.
Many better local varieties. Ever wonder why you can only find good food near by the roadside in penang? Even rich uncle and untie don’t mind dining by the roadside.
Anybody knows where to get slurping good CHILLI pan mee? besides restoran kin kin in KL…..
glad that you did a post on this, kenny. makes me wonder too sometimes, places that serves darn good food somehow does not seem to attract any customers. floggers like me definitely appreciate this 🙂
kenny!!!!!are you kidding????RM4 for all that stuff??????? wa lau…….in sibu i think RM4 is not enough to pay for your boob meat………..imagine if buy RM10…..the taukeh sure will give whole chicken…..ha ha ha…yum yum
Hi Kenny.
You like to talk about food huh? Anyway, I love Mambo King as well. It is the first nice-decorated-restaurant (or cafe?) that I’ve been to in Kuching. I went there to celebrate my friend’ birhtday party. I didnt know that they have change the name or something.
Talk about spicy. I think all Kuching food which say “spicy” are not spicy at all. I like spicy food. And the only food that is spicy enough for me is the Mala Mien at Full House. Have you been there?
CORRECTO!
bella italia~~ mamamia! the place serves damn good food! anyone that’s going there for a meal should try the lagsana…..or the risotto…..or everything lah! XD same goes for korean da om. they have wicked “sitr-fry” beef. ;P
i hope they’re still around when im back in kuching in december @@!! *fingers crossed*
It’s only ppl like you who says that this is cheap and that is cheap and the next thing you know, the price increased. For better tasting and eqally ‘reasonable priced’ chic rice, try Chicking Rice (next to kaya n toast) in Jln Petanak. Much better than the one in travillion.
Quality of Ah Suan chic rice has gone down the drain. Even SCR taste better than Ah Suan.
with the amount of readers you have, i am sure you will give some positive impact on the amount of ppl going to the restaurants..just dont start saying its not good..confirm can close shop d..
how to save this shop while i stay at kl . >
Unless they put a paypal button at kennysia.com , then we as reader can donate to them .. or they can deliver to KL
chicken wing at pizza juction is much nicer that pizzahut . (my own opnion)
thanks kenny! will visit those places when i go to kuching in august. chicken rice looks good. rm4 for such a big serving, excellent!
I love Pizza Junction! Their pizzas are good.
That comment on the kimchi being hot just made Da Om sound a whole lot better. 김치를 너무 좋아해요!
You obviously haven’t seen Da Om during their busy days.
But you don’t have to worry about any of those restaurants closing down now that you’ve blogged about it.
kenny you so kind hearted…then chia us eat larrrr, then sure these places wont closed down. lets be realistic larrrr…not everyone can afford the way you eat…..this is kuching lar..if got money you think people wont go for those places??
p/s: try go the Bella Italia at lunch time, esp wednesday/ friday…then you will see the place is full…most korean working here like this place.
i’ll pass through jalan song everyday when i go back home but never feel like trying out the pizza junction…now after u intro i guess i shall go and take a look. those restaurant owners must hv loooovvveeee you to bits.
actually, at a real-real Korean restaurant.. they give you at least eight different side dishes and every Korean or mostly do. It’s part of their culture.
Kenny, please be a Santa Claus and bring us to this nice restaurant.
Heya.
I have to ask, what were the “dishes” you posted photos of? Other than the picture of pretty awesome chicken rice – OMG only RM4! – I didn’t recognize any. The first one really looked like poo in pale yellow noodle in red sauce 🙁 heh
i went to Kuching recently and my friend brought us to pizza junction. honestly, the pizzas are just so-so. not that nice……
u know y these restaurants are dying? i think so most ppl in kch still think that these restaurants are too high class, only for those richies… and the price is too high, why pays more for a meal which u can eat somewhere cheap yet affordable? i think tats the concept of ppl in kch lor… but really, those who go to these restaurants are couples, those bfs who wana bring their gfs to romantica italia restaurant for the “feel”, doesnt even bother if they spend hundreds as long as the gf is happy…
oh yeah chicken rice I remember constantly eating there during our college lunch breaks as the store is in walking distance. yes the tauke is friendly.
Hey, I agreed with u 100% regarding Bella Italia and Da Om.. The last time i went to Bella, it was a stormy night, the place was full packed with ppl (esp foreigners). I was there with my ex colleagues celebrating nothing.. just a gathering. The pizzas were amazing and i think the owner or the chef is an Italian rite?
Jalan Song however is another food heaven in Kch. U wont find urself starving from morning to nite. Tried Da Om n sure enough there were lots of side dishes. But i tried one of its Korean mee which tasted exactly like the instant Korean mee i had. Haha..
Hey Kenny, talking bout Jln Song, u should go there at nite and try a stall translated as “China BBQ”. I think its at Lao Hang Jia, Jln Song if not mistaken. Try the BBQ brinjal. Oh boy, its really delicious. Only RM2 per brinjal wif special sauce and toppings. Oh, how i wish i am back in Kch.. Sob Sob..
pizza junction is crap. do not go there.
quite frankly. i wish more and more population saves enuff money juz to spend some time with friends/family around this Pizza junction/chicken rice stores or wadeva. they are very good.. serves good food but never have sufficient customers. im a sarawakian. of coz i support them. their foods are good. esp pizza junction has 2 branch la (satok,jalan song tabuan) so u must go there eat ba..any of u~~ and then eat at everywhere kennysia stated. dun miss ur chance. i ate pizza junction like 9-12 times now. and so long never try.. will try again lo~~ yea save our endangered restaurants. and let them stay stable..
RM4 cheap meh? Here can get RM3 le…. Not so much tauge la
kenny why did you ban me?
Kenny replies: I didn’t ban you. You’re here!
I beg to differ re: that Italian place – I thought the food was sloppy. I can’t say much about the Korean place either, but I don’t think anyone can pass up on $4 chicken rice!
i eat at sin chiew almost everydayy!
mentality of normal ppl. nobody or few ppl there, must be lousy, don’t go in or buy. if see many ppl buying or inside, ah.., must be good stuff.
hi, just wondering whether do the shops u mentioned in your blog pay you just to talk something nice bout their restaurants in ur blog? Must be very wise of them to have approached you for effective publicity…
Kenny replies: No they didn’t pay me, but yes you’re right, it would have been very wise of them to approach me for effective publicity. 🙂 Thanks!
Da-om is a good place… I think Seoul Garden @ 3rd Mile is not bad also.
BELLA ITALIA ROCKS… kenny have u tried Italiano? its located at Air Asia’s sales office area. The one in the city centre.. some where opposite the plot of empty land owned by Pan Global. Try it not bad too. Heard its an Italian operating it =D
I’ve tried Pizza Junction before. I think it’s not as delicious as you described. It’s quite stiff isn’t it? I’d still prefer Pizza Hui although it’s far more expensive.
Everytime I pass by Da-Om, it seems to be deserted all the time. LOL. I’ve not tried that place before though. Might want to try it out next time…
Hey dude, the owner of Pizza Junction and I went back back,we both went to the same Uni in CA. During our college days we sampled different types of Pizzas ranging from Franchized Pizza restaurant to independant operations with their own twist.
Being a foodie, Pizza Junction’s recipe is his own creation, not controlled by the HQ of franchise Pizza Hut, Roundtable…etc. (I also made some prep suggestion before he open the place …lah).
RM4 was dirt cheap. I can’t find that in Ipoh… never
first my pmc was blocked in the chatterbox, now my pmc2 is banned????
oh well time to move on…
If i was rich like you, of coz I would pay a visit to those places. You pig!
just a note: Italiano’s located opposite from RHB Bank near Sarawak Plaza came before Bella Italiana. Bella Italiana is something like their sister cafe. The food at Italiano’s got less interesting since Bella Italiana opened, i think it was because their chef was moved to handle Italiana’s or something.
That means Kuching will be in my list of places I must travel to. Haha~
I’m not from Kuching so there’s nothing I can do 😐
but if you like those kind of Korean food maybe you can try visit Ampang Point when you visit KL next time…there’s a whole lot of them all running by Korean + you can see Korean leng luis walking on the street + they give you ~10 side dishes + food there are very inexpensive! 🙂
i like Mambo King too n was shocked when they closed down…u know wat kenny, kuching ppl average earning couldnt afford us to go to these nice restaurants as much as we wanted. its sad that our salary is lower but the living cost is no way cheaper than w.malaysia (apart from those toll fee i guess), like me, i only go to these restauranct in special occassion (b’day etc),my dad say they cannot afford to wait for our next visit. ha! so u see Jln song is always full, that’s the typical eatery for kuching ppl, u r in different income level i guess…anyway, i agree w u about the pizza junction, me n my bf love their banana pizza. splendid!…for the rest, need to try out liao…with this post, i guess they can survive for quite some time again…ha ha!
i agree with you, there are some restaurant that serve much better pizza than Pizza Hut
the chicken rice looks so good … so cheap tooo!!! RM4 get u one box of chicken rice with very little meat in KL. May be even more than RM4.
omg kenny dat luuks so guud. but cuz dhey suxx N cloze down dheyr fud muzz oso suxx. aye noe dhey pai u a lot of monee for busyness, dunt u lie.
I may be in the minority, but I think Bella Italia’s food is not very authentic.
Maybe part of the reason the eateries do not last is that they more or less serve the same kind of food. Western dishes (“steak”, chicken chop etc etc) with some popular local fare. Most are just mediocre in taste, nothing to shout about.
Just my two cents anyway.
Kenny Sia is the best, Kenny Sia beat the rest. Kenny Sia no 1. Kenny Sia best in Singapore, JB and NOT YET batam. Kenny Sia how wonderful if i can meet u face to face to talk about my depressed life and maybe you can blog about me. With the sad foto and my sad story. And we can ask for donation and you take 30% i take 70%. Than if it works in Asia, maybe we can introduce to Europe and USA. And than we can earn US and Pound dollar. And maybe one day we can stay in the same house together, and drive together a lambo and you ferrari. Kenny Sia no 1, Kenny Sia gogogo ! Kenny Sia fire in the hole, Kenny Sia Bang Bang !
Hey Kenny…
It is kinda rare to get people that like that 3 of the restuarant u mentioned (the bella italia, pizza junction and the korean bbq house) because I myself when in Kuching, that three restaurant is my all time favourites… the Pizzas that serve at pizza hut are of no compare to that of bella and pizza junction.. Havent try to sin chew chicken rice at point one, travallion but will sure give it a try when I get back to Kuching in September… Haha.. BTW, Kuching got plenty of nice chicken rice stalls but majorly are hainanese chicken rice
Yala…. we know the food for the restaurant u talk about it good, but their price for the food not very suitable for kuching peoples. The set the price for the good food same with kl and sg…..u think how many times kuching ppl will go? Askl them to adjust the price la if u love their food…
wahhhh….. i wan to go travallion point one tomorrow…
pizza junction sux. the LIAO in the pizza kanasai.
point one drinks sux. bloody expensive and unhygenic. but undoubtedly chicken rice nice tho. jz don order the drinks when u eat there..
i dono about da om but i received many bad comments about it…
Haiya Kenny, Coffee Bean 10% service charge for the poor staff and 5% for the Govt tax is ok bah. But, 50% for store rental, equipments, nice furniture and decoration. 30% nett profit 5% cost. I still prefer the local kopitiam loh. 😉
Dear Kenny,
I am a big fan of your blog. Will you please please blog an entry about the reality TV show ‘So you think you can dance’? It features the best dancers Malaysia can ever offer, and I think it is a highly exciting and entertaining show. Thank you.
Love,
Your loyal fan.
Da Om was the first dinner place my hubby and i went for a date.. i think the portion was so big that we both can’t finish… or because we were too busy attracting each other that we forgot to eat… hehehe… anyway the food there is good if u know how to order…
Love your blog, Kenny. Coz you do appreciate the little things in life. Keep posting!
another good spot for italian food is Magenta, but i doubt it lacks patronage. Bella Italia is just so-so imo, but maybe it’s cos i frequent there with my ang-mo colleagues quite often.
heyyy kenny .. ahaha wth a long post u got there… btw u guys shud check out this video made by our very own msian in nz.. http://youtube.com/watch?v=I3lmJ_mr0-o
iT’s funny and awesome az. haha.. have a good day!
nice one 🙂 .. yeaah save up the restaurants!.. but pity im in ipoh. cant help much :p ..
Hey, are you in Penang right now? because i think I saw you in Starbucks this morning! 😛 But I was too shy to say hi. I didn’t want to disturb you. Kind of a new reader too so I was a bit embarrassed of getting the wrong person!
Good luck for your Marathon!
Hi,if you are in Penang, a lot of good things especially food for you to explore. Hope to see
your exploration.
hav tried eatin at da om d korean restaurant
delicious…
must try!
I prefer Seol Garden at 3rd Mile Central Park than Da Om if you wanna mention Korean food. Koreana Restaurant opposite Hilton Hotel also good. Just my opinion anyway, everyone has their own favourite restaurant, what’s good to me may not be good to you, anyways, we can always try different food :E
haiz. gone are the days where such chicken rice costed RM2.50 or RM3.
during my brief absence ppl in kch suddenly can afford such high living std.
poor me.
how come ppl still complain about RM1.80 milo peng or RM0.05 for sky juice…
dear kuching, when i m home, i shall go for mama’s food.
I think it’s really great that you plug these restaurants on your blog! Never let good food die!! Sometimes food is good and they are just not good enough re: publicity so kick ass Kenny Sia! And I can’t wait to read your marathon story…
Are u like an ambassador of Kuching? I think i’m packing my weekend bag soon…
i like the sin chew chicken rice too and also the chili.. it taste nice and the boss ever their chili is special made. they learn from singapore!!!
I think the Korean restaurant at Central Park is better. Just my two cents
Sorry, can’t agree with you that Big Month deserved the best chicken rice title! The service is lousy, the boss, the wife (?) and sister are pretty rude, and the almost important thing is, come on la, their chicken rice ain’t the best, have you tried, just to name a few in town, the Hainan lady’s chicken rice at 3rd mile central park? The Chick King (if I get the name right) at Jln Petanak? Fu Li at Jln Ban Hock? They taste much better than the rude brother and sister chicken rice at ex-big month!
Pizza Junction is also located at Jalan Kulas (1st outlet). We discover it years ago and we loved the Banana Kaya Delight. BTW, you guys don’t know what great chicken rice taste like till you put the ones the aunty in my neighbourhood cooks into your mouth. Slurrpp! Delicious fluffy rice and tender aromatic chicken with really great tangy sweet sauce to match.
I am quite critical about food. I cant agree that all the establishments mentioned were of great quality. Its simply too expensive for what we get! For half the price, I can make it at home and eat in my pajamas.
I dont mind paying. But if I wanted to wine and dine, there are many other places which offer better ambiance and service, for a cheaper price.
Maybe the Kuching city councils can start an independent body to start rating restaurants e.g. our version of Michelin star… rating to include ambiance, quality of food and customer service. That would really help save well deserving restaurants.
If I am not mistaken, Bella Italia originates from Little Italy in KK. Pizza Junction is wayyyy cheaper than Pizza Hut and the food’s great. I love San Francisco’s Grill..especially because the pianist there is brilliant! FYI he’s blind and plays so damn well. You can even request songs and he will play it for you.
I just had the Davioli pizza at Bella Italia at 5pm today. My friend and I finished the whole pizza, but I had more lah. I live around that area and knew of Bella Italia when we patronised the Vietnamese restaurant (now closed already). After I discovered the thin-crust pizza in Hilton’s Waterfront and Bella Italia, I never ordered pizza from Pizza Hut again. I’ve not tried Pizza Junction tho. Watabout Wishing Well? I had a sirloin steak for RM25/++ Friday night. The steak was about 1cm thick only. And do you realise that most restaurants in Kuching serve salad with thousand island or mayonaise dressing? Can’t they be more creative?
The operator of Bella Italia is Bosnian. And if some of you opine that these outlets serve food that are just mediocre, think about what you are paying. If you want above mediocre, how much do you expect to pay? And if they are too authentic, do you think the locals will embrace it? Che!! Even the franchised Pizza Hut is localising their so-called Italian dishes! I’m against over-localising, but it’ll be unwise to strictly stick to authenticity just for the sake of authenticity.
maybe you can put a blog advertising nice vegetarian restaurants. I’m a vegetarian myself and somehow i noticed most of the vegetarian restaurants in my area don’t ‘survive’ long. I live in Penang. Maybe you can tell everyone and me if you’ve found any…nice vege foods…. “>
I guess some of you may not know about this one. Personally speaking, enjoy going there as they really emphasise on the quality. The food is above good and you had no idea that a chef from restaurante becarri (merdeka palace) tried thier food and admitted it’s good.
Don’t speculate, try and let your taste butt do the talking. Kenny said it’s good, so let’s try it.
I guess some of you may not know about this one. Personally speaking, i enjoy going there as they really emphasise on the quality. The food is above good and you had no idea that a chef from restaurante becarri (merdeka palace) tried thier food and admitted it’s good.
Don’t speculate, try and let your taste butt do the talking. Kenny said it’s good, so let’s try it.
rm4 for rice, breasts and veggie, that is SO cheap. does he buy breasts in bulk? lol
pizza junction still operating arrr….my fren worked there like two years ago. and she said it was really quiet. she left afta working a month. the manager was damn stingy……..hmmmmmmmmm.
wow…ur articles really made me homesick lar…really felt comfortable abit whenever i read wat u wrote about KCH.
They must be unite among the workers.
hai… i just wanna know that is that Korean Da Om BBQ House at Jalan Song is halal restaurant? well its kind difficult to me because im a muslim and i really want to try korean food. If they do… i will bring my sis to go there and try it……
BDC, Jalan Song? ok I go there now.
Delicious !
Its the 1st time i am on your site and i would like to congratulate you for the big effort you are doing to write such excellent posts.
2 out of 2 closed…Da Om and Sin Chiew (unless they move somewhere else), Pizza Junction is now at Flinder’s Station Song Plaza, same onwer I heard, you can order pizza there…Bella is my absolute favourite…their soup and their pasta is very authentic and delicious!