Tapas and Silencio, por favor, Pedro's Place, Desa Sri Hartamas

I had my eye set firmly on Pedro's Place since I read from Eat Drink KL a very distant September last year. Took me this long to get around to it, because I'm tragic like that.

Nevertheless, food blogs continue to compel me to eat and live better, albeit at a languid pace. Life seriously is waayyy too short to eat bad food or drink bad wine. Oh and not take care of our bodies too. Moderation moderation, yada yada. We arrived on a weekday night when all was quiet and impulses were under control.

We started with complimentary tortilla chips and salsa on the house. These were just what we needed to ply us through until we had the third member of the party in place.

More compliments from Pedro's - fresh bread dipped in a functional but perfectly forgettable oil and vinegar dressing. Service was enthusiastic for at any one time, one of the three floor staff would check in on us.

Pedro's has a separate menu for tapas from its mains, and we decided that we'd go that route.

Pickled anchovies in ginger and lemon. Crazy salty on its own but worked beautifully with bread.

Black olive pate, served with toasted bread. At this point, bread started to seem omnipresent so we refused a top-up indignantly. I was a fan of the pate - smooth and pungent, and the slightly grainy texture kept things interesting.

We also ordered the Stuffed mushrooms, with crab, on account of my bovine intolerance. We were extremely happy that said crab stuffing did not materialise as canned or crabstick. The fresh crabmeat was subtle and buttery, gorgeous with a squirt of lemon.

Jalapenos stuffed with three cheeses - Cheddar, Mozzarella, Leicester - battered and deep-fried. Didn't touch these but other members of the party were practically moaning in ecstasy.

Another dish I couldn't bring myself to partake in was the trio of Camembert parcels, served with fruit sauce and honey. They sounded stranger than they really were.

I couldn't do without the Flamenca Egg after I'd read about them on Sean's blog. Once we scraped the burnt edges clean, we discussed how easily we could emulate this in our own humble kitchens.

Nett nett, we loved Pedro's Place, for all its homeliness and comfort, both in food and service. However we didn't like the acoustics much, for one loud party basically kills it for anyone else in the restaurant remotely interested in conversation. We recommend basic insulation for Pedro's to contain the jarring echoes. We carried on to nearby Hartamas Square so we could carry on chatting after dinner.

Otherwise, I would totally go back for the Chimichangas. Oh and a pint of something something. Pedro's has a respectable beverages menu including some very alluring Happy Hour prices for Stout and Strongbow cider. Check it!

Faux Mexican, Blue Diamond Cafe, Chulia St

The other evening, we decided to swing by Blue Diamond Cafe on Chulia Street to try out the Mexican stall.

We were accosted by the drinks' lady from the word go, whose primary purpose was to get us to purchase tons of bottled beer. We went for iced lemon tea, much to her chagrin. The drinks arrived while we were perusing the menus, and it was horrible, obviously having been prepared with some disgusting, expired powder mix.

The menu consisted of a few Mexican staples in name, i.e. enchiladas, nachos, quesadillas, burritos, all available with beef, chicken or vegetarian. The place has a weird ordering system. Despite being laid out like a regular kopitiam, the drinks lady', obviously from a separate operation as the Mexican stall dude, takes our order and informs the latter, situated no more than 2 metres away from our table. I believe she gets a cut from the food purchase, probably because she speaks better English, for the benefit of the largely backpacker clientele.

I went for the Chicken Quesadilla while MS went for the El Monterey Enchilada. What ensued was an order cock-up, thanks to the lady who either forgot or chose not to relay one of our orders to the dude. So I got my quesadilla and was almost done before MS got her enchilada. Not good.Chicken Quesadilla (RM8). I really didn't mind this, apart from the sogginess of the bread at the bottom. It was a just-nice portion, with plenty of chicken and peppers. It just didn't taste Mexican.

Some time later, the El Monterey Enchilada (RM9) arrived. It looked like a right mess from the start, the entire plate drenched with an unidentified heavy sauce and topped with a sunny side up with clearly burnt edges.

A closer look at the enchilada filling... basically the same chicken filling I got in my quesadilla, in a messier presentation. Needless to say, on top of the order mess and delay, MS didn't enjoy total mess.

Although the quesadilla was a step up from the disaster that was the enchilada, I wouldn't come back. That pushy drinks' lady alone sets my off my rage-o-meter.

Pambazos at the Mexican Maya Company, Ponsonby International Foodcourt, Auckland

By the time I thought to document the Pambazos, I was halfway through my meal - this was the first time I'd tried it. We had to wait an extra long time so I paid no mind when I dug in, the pambazos' 'buns' are deep-fried with potatoes and salsa in the middle, accompanied by salad, salsa and rice. All for the grand sum of NZ$10.51. I mention this because I've often thought the Mexican place to be a bit on the steep side, this dish totally disproved that though.

Close-up of deep-fried bun with sour cream and fresh chopped coriander. Beware the flash glareifying

And in between the buns, yummy potatoey, cheesy, lettucey.

Pyramid of rice drizzled with sour cream and garnished with coriander.

My friend, Beans, finishing up an identical order. Note the empty plates, a good sign of a good meal.

Dinner at Northam Beach Cafe#2

Mama Chow and Papa Cow. Below is Ikan Panggang - grilled stingray.
Nachos from Cantina Mexicana - it wasn't quite Tex-Mex, it wasn't quite authentic. I think he was swaying towards the authentic and I understand it might be an uphill battle to produce authentic nachos for under 10 ringgit - we were left somewhat confused. We liked the fresh veges but ultimately, the flavours didn't quite deliver.
Mama Chow digging into a pot pie while Papa Cow stares ahead, disinterested.
More food love: Taka & Mag devouring Fried Tang Hoon and German Sausages & Mash. Everyone rated the German fare. Not pictured was the excellent poh piah and top favourite Hokkien prawn noodle. Our total tally for the night was nine types of dishes: eleven servings between four. Even I felt like I needed to start an exercise regime. But because I don't know what exercise is supposed to be, it didn't really go nowhere.