Text Raina Ng | Photography Alvin Koh

In 2007, To Dine For was awarded the Best Halal Asian Restaurant in Kuala Lumpur for the year 2007/08 for its efficient services, strategic location, value for money and for keeping the halal guidelines. To Dine For is also one of the top ten recommended restaurants in Kuala Lumpur for tourists and business travellers. Belonging to the Sea Cuisine group of restaurants specialising in Thai cuisine; To Dine For offers patrons a range of Thai cuisine from various parts of Thailand.

Located at the city centre, To Dine For promises to offer not only a satisfying lunch treat to its corporate crowd, but a place suitable for company lunches and business meetings. It is quiet and offers its patrons enough privacy. The restaurant is filled often with well-made up girls in power suits and men dressed for success. Lipstick marks on the straws that were stuck in glasses of Thai coffee and teas were quite a common sight to the waiters and waitresses.

The three layered drink was quite a popular delight, the bottom layer of palm sugar is layered with milk coffee or tea and topped with a layer of milk. A company of three walked in, stressed and serious about the discussion they had going on the economy and financial markets. The waiter knowingly served them two cups of coffee, and a cup of tea. The lady in a red pencil skirt stirred her coffee while sipping to taste it, and with every layer of sugar she stirred in, she was careful not to spoil the taste by over-sweetening the drink. She stopped stirring and was careful to prevent the mixture from mixing any more when she was convinced that the drink was the exact sweetness she required.

I was immediately ambushed by questions of why I was late when I walked in on their intense argument over the best way to secure their next million. I rolled my eyes in boredom and had myself one of those three layered drinks. Disinterested in anything but the food before me, I tucked in to the pineapple fried rice. Chewing the mouthful of cashew nut, corn, carrots, chicken floss, and rice, I found the combination sealed together nicely with the sweet and sour pineapple flavour. I laughed at the sight of my well-groomed companion stuffing her face with bits and pieces from the platter of fish cakes, prawn cake, scallop and mushroom kebabs, moneybags, spring rolls, pandan leaf chicken, and
prawn wantons .

The deep fried garoupa was quite a delight to crunch on. Topped with garlic and Thai chilli sauce, it was a popular dish amongst patrons. The green curry was also a pleasure. Coupled with the fragrant rice, the sweetness and spiciness of the curry was emphasised by the creamy coconut cream base. The tom yam dishes provided just the kick we all needed that afternoon. The clear tom yam soup was filled with tiger prawns, squid and exuded the distinct taste of lemongrass. The red tom yam soup was not much different.

Tap tim krop, which is a water chestnut dessert, was the table’s favourite. We particularly enjoyed the chewy water chestnut that was wrapped in tapioca flour. The dessert contained a satisfactory amount of jackfruit, water chestnut and coconut milk and provided for a satisfying closure to a meal. The mango sticky rice is a Thai favourite and was a simple treat to finish the meal.

Just like its usual crowd, the restaurant provided for a safe and presentable meal that is consistentand i went away satisfied.

Restaurant: Coca Restaurant, Subang Parade, Selangor

We have been informed that Coca encourage healthy eating, hence they substitute coconut milk with yoghurt in their curry-based dishes, such as this Green Curry Chicken with Homemade Fish Balls (Gaeng Kew Wan Loke Chin Pla Kap Nuer Kai, RM 11.80). Overall, the dish looked exactly the same as the original version, only the gravy appeared to be slightly thicker. The chicken meat were, again, very tender and came in big chunks. Served together with aubergines and home made fish balls, I could taste that it was a bit different from the version cooked with coconut milk. If you’re not keen to have it cooked with yoghurt, you still can request them to cook it with coconut milk.

Restaurant: Coca Restaurant, Subang Parade, Selangor

I have heard about Coca Restaurant many years ago while I’m still residing in Ipoh e.g. through promotion leaflet distributed by Jusco. I also still remembers how I used to say, “All these eateries are in KL, it’s not that we can go.” Yeah, Ipoh is seriously deprived of some higher end eateries.

When I shifted here in KL, these memories seems to be sealed somewhere in my brain and it never came across my mind to try these places which once regarded as “too far” until I received an email from Coca’s Marketing Manager, Ms Andrea Chua few weeks back, inviting me over to their Subang outlet for a dinner for two.

Calvin got to tag along and since I’ve read about Coca from other bloggers’ experience, we were not expecting for steamboat. True enough, as soon as we met Andrea, we were told that they have prepared a la carte dishes for us. We got to choose our drinks; I had the Roselle Juice while Calvin opted for fresh coconut. Good to perk up an appetite as the Roselle juice was sourish, yet refreshing and sugar free.

The first appetizer to arrive to our table was the Coca Stuffed Prawns (RM 9.00). The meat of these two large prawns (longer than my palm!) were removed, minced and mixed with onion, mushroom and some other ingredients and stuffed back into the prawns before being deep fried. Lipsmackingly delicious, the stuffing were juicy despite being deep fried and not greasy at all. Definitely a good start to the meal.

Next, was the famous Pandan Chicken (Kai Haw Bai Toey, RM 8.80). We both loved this a lot! Almost as big as my fist, the meat were well marinated, tender, succulent and exudes a lovely pandan fragrance.

We have been informed that Coca encourage healthy eating, hence they substitute coconut milk with yoghurt in their curry-based dishes, such as this Green Curry Chicken with Homemade Fish Balls (Gaeng Kew Wan Loke Chin Pla Kap Nuer Kai, RM 11.80). Overall, the dish looked exactly the same as the original version, only the gravy appeared to be slightly thicker. The chicken meat were, again, very tender and came in big chunks. Served together with aubergines and home made fish balls, I could taste that it was a bit different from the version cooked with coconut milk. If you’re not keen to have it cooked with yoghurt, you still can request them to cook it with coconut milk.

The Steamed Siakap in Thai Style was another hit. Prettily garnished with chopped scallion, cili padi, garlic, coriander, ginger and lime sauce, the flesh were fresh and firm but not overcooked. I just can’t stop to “bathe” the meat with the tangy and spicy lime sauce before putting it into my mouth. Absolutely delish.

Usually come drenched with gravy in Chinese restaurants, the Thai Butter Prawn was prepared the opposite way. The large prawns were prefectly cooked with a savoury butter “crust”, elevated with curry leaves and other spices. We polished the plate clean.

Calvin doesn’t fancy Tom Yam, hence I had all the Seafood Tom Yam (RM 13.80) to myself, except the prawns. Not too oily and brimming with oyster mushroom, squid, onion and large prawns, I just love the taste as soon as the spiciness started to kick in. I even drenched my bowl of rice with it.

The Pattaya BBQ Chicken (Kai Yang Pattaya, RM 11.80) might seem burnt and dry but do not let it fool you. Similar to the Pandan Chicken, the chicken thigh was grilled to perfection; slightly crispy skin while the meat remain tender and juicy. The marinade were sufficient, with a little smoky flavour.

And finally, the last dish of the night. A new item, as claimed by Andrea herself; the Steamed Live Crab with Beer! A gigantic Phillippines crab was chose for this dish, where the crab was steamed with beer, ginger and basil leaves. Do not worry about the alcohol content as alcohol will evaporate once exposed to heat. The crab absorbed much of the beer essence, which was quite refreshing. Definitely something new to try especially if you’re a crustacean fan (hint hint to Precious Pea).

Both of us were literally stuffed but Andrea insist that we must have dessert. One of Thailand’s popular dessert, Red Ruby or Tub Tim Krob (RM 7.50) and Honeydew Sago in Coconut Milk (RM 7.50) were presented before us and we found out that, resistance is futile. I like Coca’s version of Red Ruby as it served with jackfruit and not cloyingly sweet or lemak. The honeydew sago however, was quite lemak as it came with a thick layer of sinful coconut milk. It was certainly a fun dining experience at Coca. The service was good, polite and friendly, although they might be slow in clearing the table during peak hour. The prices were a bit on the high side but we were amazed by the freshness of the seafood and the vast choice of a la carte dishes available. Coca is currently running these promotions: 1. Live oyster – RM 32++ for 1/2 dozen. Add another RM 7 for a glass of white wine. Promotion runs till end of December 2008. 2. Steamboat with buffet spread (appetizer and desserts only) at RM 68++ per person on Friday – Sunday. *We truly thank you, Andrea for the invitation!