As much as I stuffed myself with all sorts of food (and some days junk food), I try to keep a balance with healthy food. Healthy food that doesn't mean plain old fruits and vegetables. Organic food is a regular feature in my meals especially breakfast and snacks. And of course when we dine out and wanna be consciously healthy. Contrary to the general perception that organic is vegetarian, these days organic has amazing offerings just as interesting as any other makan place. Over the weekend it was brunch at Opika the latest organic restaurant to hit town in One Utama ex old wing which has undergone a brilliant transformation.

The soups arrive first. Brilliant idea as I love something warm in my stomach on rainy days. Both the Pumpkin Soup and Mushroom Soup actually taste better than they look. Both are cream free except for garnishing purposes.

The pumpkin soup is hearty and sweet. Opika uses only the pumpkins which are in season and this time of the year its Japanese pumpkins Kabocha which are naturally sweet and even sweeter than butternut squash. Its cream free except for the garnish part and this soup is simply satisfying and hearty. There are some bites of roasted capsicum giving this soup an additional bite and flavour.If you love earthy Mushroom Soups, then Opika's version will be your fave haunting spot. The mixed mushrooms are blended together. Not too smooth so you can still get little bits of mushroom and of course some sliced mushrooms as well.I love quinoa. On its own, quinoa is an adorable fluffy seed with a slight nutty flavour to it and is very rich in protein. Opika's Quinoa Salad. Its refreshingly tangy and sweetened with Nipah syrup (similar to maple syrup). In the middle of this delightful bed of quinoa is some lovely sweet mangoes and creamy avocado. The prawns have a good bite and complements this salad well. I must add that the cherry tomatoes is something new to me. Sweet and fragrant as it is infused with vanilla. Opika goes back to basics and uses vanilla pods.Another ingredient that I love most is scallops. Nothing beats a juicy and tender scallop. The Scallops with Mango Wasabi Sauce is absolutely seductive. Coated with a blend of sesame seeds, house spices bread crumbs and I believe some secret concoction. Check it out and let me know if you can figure out what it isThe Linguine with Pinenut Pesto and House Spiced Pan Seared Salmon has the same coating as the Scallop with Mango Wasabi. Pesto lovers will relish this dish which has such a generous serving of pesto. Do remember to inform your waitress if you prefer you pasta al dente. Craving meatballs? Then the Swedish Style Meatball with Mash Potato is the solution. Each meatball is packed with flavours. Made with lamb, chicken and beef, this Swedish meatball served with some lingonberry is about the best I have had for quite some time. Mashed potatoes are yummy and if you realise its green, that's simply because its a magic mix of mashed potato and green peas. Amazing idea that will have kids and picky eaters eat their peas. Brilliant idea!Carbonara Fettucine with Grilled Fungi and Grilled Chicken is one creamy pasta. Comforting pasta in a creamy base. My fave part of this dish is the grilled chicken that has been marinated in Opika's blend of herbs.I am not much of a rice eater but I have a weak spot for nasi ulam. The Nasi Ulam with Percik Chicken is recommended. Lots of yummy ulam with a very flavourful chicken percik. And best of all...free range salted egg! The food here is not fried and is cooked using healthy red palm oil (which I also use at home ~ and if you like it, the oil is available in Opika). So you can happily eat yummy food that is seriously healthy.

Stay tuned as I check out the desserts and juices soon...

The Kim Gary franchise has been around for quite some years. And these days they seemed to have pretty much mushroomed everywhere although a few closed e.g. Avenue K. I have not stepped into one since my Japanese lessons days some 9 or 10 years back. But one blue day, I missed my late classmate Grace whom I used to eat with before classes that I decided that I wanted to eat at the Sungai Wang branch.

The place was still as packed as those days. Its still as loud as those days. The waiters and waitress were still young and still on some sugar rush mode I wondered if everything stays the same or pretty much the same?

For starters, the Hong Kong milk tea was still good. Tasty tea with creamy milk. And this fits me well since I don't have a sweet tooth and I merely add the sugar according to my preference. Brilliant!The Borsch soup was also still good. Still filled with chunky but soft vegetables in a tangy tomato broth. Comfort food! Oh...it comes with some of the set meals.The Hong Kong Cheese Baked Rice with Pork tasted the same. Nothing to shout about but it was decently good compared to many of the new eateries that are offering this dish. It was cheesy and had enough gravyOne other gripe...the menu has expanded and its quite confusing. Pop in one day and you'll be faced with the regular menus, promotion menus, members only menu and when it comes to ordering...have fun figuring out which form you should use. LOL. Caution...the website www.kimgary.com.my is much simpler than their physical menu

My nostalgic visit was a culture shock for husbter who is pretty much stepping into Kim Gary for teh second time of his entire life. The one in Avenue K being his first and 3 years later in Sungai Wang. The poor man could not figure out the menu nor did the menu help him decide what to eat and drink. So the usual works..."Inky pinky ponky, father bought a donkey. Donkey died. Father cried. Inky pinky ponky"

...and the hubster ends up with some Mango thingy with some aloe vera like cubes inside. Certainly mango like and very sweetFor food, he ended up with Roasted Honey Spare Ribs with Shanghai Style Vegetable Rice. The corn was certainly yummy! I wouldn't complain much of the ribs. It was tasty but a tad dry. fast food style...I suppose.This place is a place of weird hits and misses but certainly it has lasted quite well in Malaysia which speaks well of its formula. But if at all a must have when one visits Kim Gary by choice or curiosity or no choice, then its has to be the milk tea, the borsch soup and of course the luncheon meat sandwich (and I actually returned for this combination 2 days back in Taman Maluri when client was late for our appointment)Simple easy to make but yummy luncheon meat sandwichThe luncheon meat is tasty rather than than the cheap flour like ones that many places serve.

I sometimes kid myself about not carbo loading with rice. Then I end up ordering something that I will still carbo load. Say hello to bread. To be precise...chinese bread.

Stewed Pork Belly served with Lotus Bun is highly recommended when you hop into Paradise Inn. The stewed pork belly is also commonly known as "kao yok". Good to eat on its own with its rich tender melt in the mouth meat or make a Chinese sandwich.Soft fluffy bunsSinful melt in your mouth goodnessSandwich the meat, a little lettuce and lots of gravy...yummeh!

And what's any meal without dessert or a good drink to wash it all down? Here the desserts, hot or cold is a just have after your meal.

My favourites are the Double-boiled Hasma with Red Dates and Longan. I must admit that was impressed that the hasma was properly cleaned (quite a tedious task actually) and the tongsui (sweet syrup) wasn't overly sweet and has a delightful red dates flavour to it. Red dates and hasma are good for our skin and this is something I definitely need with my recent bout of breakouts.If one has over eaten and need something to soothe the palates and stomach, then the Chilled Lemongrass Jelly with Lemonade would be your solution. Mango Sago has creamy real mangoes making this a healthy dessert with a thick rich mango puree with bits of sweet delightful pomelo.I have yet to try a lot more on the desserts menu, so I should be returning real soon

A continuation from my earlier post

Good to eat on its own and perhaps highly recommended when you have children dining with you would be the Crisp-Fried Fish with Preserved Bean Paste. Generally we're accustomed to this bean paste preparations with meats. The use of bean paste with fish is interesting and makes an interesting dish to get kids to start eating fish. Crispy and flavourful on the outside while the inside were tender fish.It does seem that coffee pork ribs is becoming quite a popular dish at many eateries these days. The Coffee Pork Ribs had a very light hint of coffee. Each piece of rib is coated generously with the sweet sauce that makes you want to have yet another piece. We had 2 types of prawns. I preferred the Crisp-Fried Crystal Prawns with Salted Egg Yolk. I loved the idea that the prawns were shelled and as such every bite was coated with the richness of the creamy salted egg. The Crisp-Fried Crystal Prawns in Wasabi Mayo Sauce for last so that it does not overwhelm our taste buds with the wasabi. A light hint of wasabi with creamy mayonnaise this dish was tad plain for my taste buds since I love my wasabi to be fieryThe Braised Vermicelli with Pork Trotters was amazing. Hubster enjoyed this dish when he was invited for the opening of Paradise Inn. And when I tasted it, it was simply awesome. Juicy tender pork trotters braised in soya sauce. The vermicelli soaks up the goodness of the meat juices and sauce making one totally forget what plain vermicelli actually taste like.Paradise Inn dishes out an amazing Supreme Seafood Fried Rice. Looks can be deceiving This plain looking fried rice was cooked with enough "wk hei" necessary in bringing out even the plainest fried rice. Coupled with a generous mix of tobiko (fish roe), scallop and prawns, this is quite a luxurious rice with amazing flavours.

The dinner at Paradise Inn at Sunway Pyramid came timely as I knew I would be deprived of good Chinese food during my Bali getaway. Interestingly, Paradise Inn isn't just another Chinese restaurant in town. Its a restaurant, a tea house and a dessert house under one roof. And i just have to add...finally Paradise Inn in in Malaysia.

I arrived 20 minutes earlier and spent some time absorbing the elegant decors of Paradise Inn while enjoying my pot of tea. Hubster dined here last December and has been telling me about the wonderful tea offerings on the menu. It was a good selection of teas. I have to admit that I was a wee lost as to what to choose. I wanted to try something hot and because it was a warm day, I wanted something cold too.As usual I resorted to one f my fave childhood ryhmes "Inky pinky ponky, father bought a donkey. Donkey died. Father cried. Inky pinky ponky" My choice was jasmine, Osmanthus, Dried Longan and Chrysanthemum. Apparently this tea nourishes the heart and spleen, improves eyesight and immune system. It was a soothing drink to sip before dinner. It was equally soothing and enjoyable when I stayed back to chat with some of the girlfriends whom I have not seen for a few weeks.And since I wanted something cold, I took some of Andrew's Very Berries Iced Tea. Tangy and refreshing, its a good drink to wake one up and to work out an appetite.The dishes at Paradise Inn weren't overly salty. Thus there wasn't a need for white rice if not for the gorgeous gravy accompanying some of the dishes.

Crisp-Fried Shrimp Paste Chicken is also another children friendly (and I reckon adults too) dish that should be ordered while we decide what dishes to order from the menu. The fried chicken is marinated with a special prawn paste imported from Hong Kong rather than the local prawn paste or belacan that many places use. I've always loved ducks. Paradise Inn's Sliced Tea Smoked Duck was absolutely brilliant. Rather addictive to be eaten non its own or with a mouthful of rice. Every bite was an alluring mix of tender meat with flavourful fats. Poached Chinese Spinach with Egg Trio and Minced Pork in Superior Broth was certainly one of my fave dishes for the night. It wasn't because spinach is one of my fave vegetables. Every mouthful was soft spinach with a generous accompaniment of salted egg and century eggIf you hate eggplants, then the Stewed Eggplant with Minced Pork and Salted Fish in Claypot will probably change your mind about eggplants. The eggplant is soft and absolutely flavourful with the aromatic salted fish and little bites of minced porkTofu is one of my fave comfort and health food. However this is only of the tofu is rich and beany. The Braised Tofu with Crystal Prawns is made in house. Each piece of tofu is eggy smooth and silky with a rich soya bean taste.