Launching of new Malaysia notes

Today got an unusual crowd in Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) in JB branch.
People are queuing up to purchase the new RM notes in today's launching date for collection purposes.

New launch notes are RM 1, 5, ,10 and 20 and 100 (50 got no new design. Stick to old design).
Most special one is the new RM 20 notes as it has been many years that the RM 20 notes is already missing from market.

Available package for collection is 3 package. But I only know 2 of the 3 package comes with
1) RM 1 & 5 sell at RM 15.
2) RM 1, 5, 10, 20, 50 & 100 packed in a box selling at RM 300
That's all I can share in my knowledge.

Go get a bits should you are a currency collector.

Enjoy and cheers!

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Location:Bank Negara Malaysia Johor bahru

Are you really purchasing a property that is affordable?

Dear Fellow Johorean,

it has been 2 month of worrying month for those property owner and investor in johor in view of the europe financial crisis. Well i am working in the property line for the past 7 years.
For the past 2 year Johor property is now experiencing a price rise that hasn't been experienced before since 1997. In my opinion, Property pricing escalated is due to a few reason.

1. Increase of the construction cost since 2008. since the cost of building is increased it will definitely directly have its effect on the selling price in order to cover the rising cost from the developers. 
2. Feel good factor in view of the investment from the IDR (Iskandar Development Region) project such as Financial hub in Taman Molek, EduCity in Sri Alam, Legoland and Educity in East Ledang. 
3. Completion of infrastructure such as Bakar Batu - Pasir Gudang Highway, Ulu Tiram - Desaru Highway, Ulu tiram - Kulai Highway, and the Latest one is Danga Bay-Perling bridge. 

Of Course there are many more factor for the increasing favor in the JB property. 

Is also has started to create a property grabbing frenzy here, it has been the talk of the town how property price increases for the past few years and how many investor are benefiting from its. I think it is always good when there are some speculation of property in JB so that the market is active and it can attract some other region player to this region. 

One thing that i am worried is some middle low income earner are starting to get worried. Worried that they will not be able to own their dream house in future if they dont buy now. they strongly believe that the property price will keep on escalating till the end of the world. 

I am worried because these has already blinded by the property speculation pricing. They went overboard by purchasing a property that they hardly can afford to. Developers are luring these un-sensitive buyer with all sort of bait such as

• Free Legal Cost & Stamp Duty
• RM 1000 downpayment (such as 10% discount for early bird)
• Developers Interest Bearing Scheme
• Rental Guarantee Return Scheme
• 100% loan 

All sort of these package could indirectly create a false sense that they could afford to service this property when they actually cant! (I strictly meant only those people without finance knowledge) 

Economy in Johor is highly dependent on singapore, Most of the people living here is working in Singapore. so this is one fact that we know as a johorean. when Singapore economy dropped so does Johor (but not other states in Malaysia). where in the recent years it has been a roller-coaster on singapore economy.

Simple novice advise, Before you wanted to buy a property you must understand a few thing.

• purpose of your purchase. Investment or Own Occupation? 
• What is your budget for installment before choosing property (not the otherwise, normally people will ask what is the Installment after choosing the property they like) - by doing this you will most likely not to over your budget. pls ensure that your budget also taken in consideration such as 
• Renovation 
• monthly maintenance fees of your property such as electricity, quit rent assessment etc
• repair fees 
• Look into surrounding area, is there a better deal around? there might be a cheaper house around such as second hand, or nearby Taman etc. pricing difference sometimes can be up to 30% difference! 
• Where to look for better deal? look for websites such as iProperties.com, call an real estate Agent. Auction listing from newspaper or Real Estate Agent. ETC. 

Pls take good precaution before you buy a house, it is not easy to maintain a house as you had planned. do your budget of installment at only 1/3 of your income. not more than that because you will have a lots more other spending to worry about. House is always the last thing that we wanted to lose in the event of cashflow problem. 

Good luck and happy buying!

Restaurant Hwa Mei Bak Kut Teh, 40 yrs of taste 华美肉骨茶

Restaurant Hwa Mei

There are so many Good taste BKT in Johor, but a few fit my taste bud. Hwa Mei is one of the few that managed to keep my mind on him every time that i was in JB town in the morning. Now the name of the restaurant is confusing. I would think that it should be called Hwa Mei, instead of Mei Hwa. as Old chinese word reading is always from right to left (reverse when compare to english reading). I am confusing is because searching in internet most of the netizen called this restaurant as Hwa mei. Anyway we are referring to the same restaurant.

Hwa Mei already has more than 40 yrs of running business and is still here. although they had changed the "management team" (I actually mean the cashier), original tau keh nio (Lady Boss) has already passed away due to cancer (My condolence). But the chef uncle always with a white singlet (Bruce Lee style) is still there healthy and cooking. So rest assure that as per my title Original taste for 40 yrs is still here.

Environment in this restaurant is always cosy, this shop is located under a big old tree and windy spot, so you can imagine you don't need air-cond to keep yourself cosy in this place.
Its BKT is cooked using charcoal, and the whole restaurant is filled with mild aromatic smell of charcoal.
In terms of service it has actually gotten better since changes of management, it is now managed by their relative on the cashier and service side.
I would rate a 'B' on its cleanliness. The staff working there is also very friendly :)

It is a bowl type BKT, they managed to keep the tenderness of the pork and you can which part of the pork that you like.
It has a very tasty broth - strong sauce taste, but not heavy taste. taste Best when you are having your "Brunch"

Remember to always order a pot of hot tea when having BKT, Tea is said to be helpful on lowering your blood cholesterol. as BKT is consider high cholesterol food. eg: eating satay with cucumber.

Restaurant Hwa Mei 华美肉骨茶
146, Jalan Lumba Kuda
80300, Johor Bahru 
Johor
Operating hour: 10-2pm

Off days : unknown but open on weekend

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Google maps Location as per below. I cant pin point the exact location. you might need to ask the locals there if you cant locate the shop. Good luck! 

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Poh Kee Wan ton Mee (葆记云吞面）well known Pandan Wanton Mee

Sunday Morning,  

Today will be a good day with festive mood, Sun was warm and welcoming temperature breeze. So me and my wife has decided to go for a sumptuous breakfast at Desa Tebrau. That is our traditional favorite breakfast meal Wanton Mee.

There is a plenty of delicious Wanton Mee in JB area. Some selling in the night as a supper and some as breakfast & lunch. so as a malaysian chinese, we can eat wanton mee at anytime of the day whether as breakfast, lunch or supper, but not Dinner (Not enough to full my starving stomach in my opinion).

Poh Kee Wanton Mee

One of the Tebrau area famous wanton mee is at Pandan, it is located behind a chinese temple and since 20 yrs ago there is always 2 stall selling wanton mee in the same place. anyway both also selling very nice wanton mee. but i am not writing this 2 stall, i will be writing this Poh Kee Wanton Mee that is located in Desa Tebrau. it is then 2nd generation that is passed down from 1 of the 2 store that is located in Pandan. I personally prefer this new branch is due to it's quality food (in my opinion it is more tasty than the old shop), cleanliness and ambiance.

Nice Ambiance 

it also come with Music

I love its mee as it has a nice springy biting feel, they are using black sauce for the Mee, which is different from singapore Wanton Mee (Singaporean prefer eating using red sauce), it also give us a sweet taste as it should be, but it's Wanton (meat that is wrapped with a thin skin of flour) it quite normal taste.
Furthermore, apart from its wanton mee, you must also order their Yong Tau Fu, their Yong tau fu is as tasty as it looks. i Particularly love its Taufu and its Eggplant. Must order buddy,

Wanton Mee

Yong Tau Fu (Green Chili)

Tau Ki / Fu Chuk 

Tau fu

Egg Plant

Apart from tasty food, I always thinks that sauce used to dip a food is also very crucial for my option. eating wanton mee must have side dish / Sauce, Green Chili dipped with vinegar to increase our appetite for food, and Chili sauce used to dip yong tau fu. perfect food + perfect side dish = A very happy morning!

On top of all the tasty food that they are providing, they also provide us reasonable pricing for the food!

Pandan Wanton Mee has a long history, i has been eating it for the past 20 yrs. it is a must recommend food for you all.

Enjoy!

Address

52,  

Jalan Harmonium 23/13 

Taman Desa Tebrau 

81100 Johor Bahru 

Operating hours 

to be update (Daily)

lost passion while struggling to meet the so called "Target"

Good Morning Johor!

Today Sunday Morning, it is good day, we are nearing to a festive season, all Johorean & Malaysian will have the same feeling with me. coming on Hari Raya for Muslim on 30th and 31st of August, it also falls on the same day with our National Day on 31st of August. so Malaysian holidays is from 30th of August till 1st of september (Tuesday to Thursday!).

so it is a very long long holiday for all of us especially Muslim Malaysian. Most of my office muslim already started their leave on 29th of August, continued with 2nd of September you will get your perfect 1 week holiday with only 2 days leave taken. Cheers buddy!

I had myself notice that my blog has been unable to keep up with my initial target of 1 post per week due to my busy schedule for the past 2 month. i still manage to find a lots of nice food but the problem is i am unable to continue to write a nice blog. most of the time when i update my blog it will be only some information and without some feeling touch in it. Eventually i stopped to blog it for another 1 month.. the reason is it has break my purpose of blogging. the real purpose of blogging is to share my feeling and also to promote anything happening that catches my attention in Johor. but because of the struggle of keeping the routine of the blogging it almost ruined my blogging mood.

Luckily, after watching a movie Called "Californication" with Hank Moody (Starred by David Duchnovy more well known as actor in X-file) as a writer in this movie has enlighten me that writing is a thing that should be write with feeling or emotion instead of just information.

so today, started a new chapter with my blog hopefully. i have decided that in order to keep my passion for sharing, it is more important to keep quality in order than to keep quantity in order. Cheers again!

Lastly i would like to take this chance to wish All Muslim a Very Happy Hari Raya Aidilfitri and All Malaysian a Happy Merdeka Day! not to forget to wish Singaporean a Happy Holiday Too! 

Tua Thow Kueh Teow Soup (大头果条烫）

Kueh Teow Soup from Tua Thow (Big Head) in hokkien.
Is another kind of soup broth that is cooked with various type of seafood. Here this Kueh Teow Soup is a bit different from my last blog Ah Hwa Kueh Teow Soup.
here their signature is their Seafood. Fresh Fish Meat, Fish Maw, Fresh clam thats why when you are eating here. Always ask for the Medium or Large size of the Kueh Tiao. The bigger size not only big on the quantity of kueh teow but it also give you more variety of dishes in the soup.

though this is not my favorite, i would give it 3.5 star for the taste of it. it is still a nice lunch you could have. the only flaw is their shop drinks service is bad (not enough waiter cos 1 person working only) and it's hot enviroment. do try to go there only on cooler weather. else i bet you will get yourself wet on a hot sunny day!

The Damage

Ingredient

Restaurant Tua Thow

corner lot beside Mobil Petrol station

Jalan Tun Abdul Razak

Johor Bahru 

Operating hour: 7.30am to 2.30pm 

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2nd generation of Delicious Rojak from Penang (Johor Jaya Jalan Seroja 12)

Mr Goh's Rojaks 

This small stall under the shades of tree is selling one of Malaysia's all time favorite's Tea time Desserts. ROJAK. but it will be eye catching in the afternoon with the continuous patron over the stall. The patrons will more often buy more than 1 packets of rojaks. Of course to bring it back to office to share with colleague (good Malaysian Culture)

Rojak is a desserts with mixture of many small pieces variety of fruits and in addition of Special 'Hei Koh' (Black prawn paste) give a touch of perfection to this dessert.
Local will always heard of rojak joke such as Bahasa Rojak, Rojak knowledge. Rojak in this kind of event will be defined as 'Mixed; Variety'. So you can now imagine that how Rojak is Mixture of variety fruits.

Whats makes this rojak so special?

1. it's well prepared Hei Koh sauce has strong sweet prawn smell. 
2. 'chef' is a good fruits picker. it's fruits is sweet and fresh. 
3. a good variety of fruits. one of my enjoying moment is guessing types of fruit by using my tongue. it is unusual for a rojaks to use too many types fruit. they had use cempedak, jambu air, pineapple, timun, guava and a hell lot more that i cant possibly remember all. it is so enjoyable like opening gift box on birthday. No joke man! 

not sure when is their off day. but they seldom failed my wish. they are always open on afternoon and even on weekend.

They are now on their second generation of selling rojaks. we need to give more support to them for them to stay survive by eating more rojaks. such good authentic food is now very very hard to find anymore. as it is not lucrative as opening shops. 

Seroja 12 Rojak (Stall) 

Jalan Seroja 12

Taman Johor Jaya

81100 Johor Bahru 
Operating hour: Unknown Afternoon Daily
Off days : unknown but open on weekend

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Google maps Location as per below 

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Ah Hua Kueh Teow Soup (Tmn Century Branch)

So sorry for not updating my blog for the past 1 month. mainly is due to i am busy for my biggest day of my life (Wedding). after 1 month of busy now life has goes back to normal. now can start back to my Spicy Johor Sharing site. Cheers!

Okay back to the main title, this Ah Hua Kueh Teow is a new branch in Tmn Century nearby KSL City. its old shop is located in plentong. a lots of JB ppl had eaten before in this old shop. I happen to found it while looking for food after shopping in KSL City. Ah Hua is an family business. this shop is opened by another sibling of their family business. Better ambiance from the old shop, temperature is Better (Old shop is just too hot sometimes when we are having lunch).

Their main dish is selling Kueh Teow soup with pork and with port liver, and pork skin. So what is so special?

• 1st thing that is special is it's smooth and tasty Kueh Teow. Kueh teow soup must come with tasty Kueh Teow right!? well they have it. 
• Soup - Tasty soup that is strong with sweet pork bone taste. 1 thing that i am surprisingly disappoint is it's soup is not as hot as it should be. of course it is a hot soup. i would personally prefer it is VERY hot type with lots of smoke coming out of it. 
•  Pork Liver - They had the skill to cook the Liver to perfection. A overcooked liver will be too Powdery.. it feels like you are biting a wet cookies. an undercooked liver will taste too bloodied.. but a perfectly cooked liver will taste juicy and tasty! I must say that not many people has the skill to do that. Bravo!
• others such as pork meat, pork skin is good too. 

Lastly you will need to know how to eat. you must try their Dry Kueh Teow - then ask them to add vinegar and their red sweet spicy paste. that will do the job you will definitely be happy with your meal! Cheers! 

Layout of the Shop. opposite of KSL City

Kueh Teow Soup

Dry Kueh Teow with vinegar and spicy paste

soup for the Dry Kueh Teow

Ah Hua Kueh Teow 

Jalan Serigala

Taman Abad / Taman Century

80250 Johor Bahru 
Operating hour: 9am to 3pm & 6pm to 9pm(Daily)

Off days on Monday Night Only

Old Shop Address:  

Jalan Rotan Bakau, 

Off Jalan Masai, Masai

81750 Masai

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Restorant CM Fried Fish 亚明潮式鱼头鱼汤 Must Try!

Restaurant CM

This is One of my Top number 1 Favorite Restaurant in Johor Bahru. Restaurant CM is a Teo Chew Style food restaurant that is Specializing in Cooking Fish gourmet. Not sure how many years this restaurant has been in business. At least 10 years, this shop has been always packed with local fish lovers for food.

Although based its name in Chinese means fish head soup, but in my personal opinion it is not the best dish that we attracted us.

What is it’s Signature dish?

• Ranked No 1 Fried Fish (Head or body meat that you can choose). – this is a MUST TRY Dish, they fried the fish with dried chili, young ginger, chili but it is not a spicy dish. It is a very tasty not spicy dish. Eat it and you will thanks me for recommend this dish for you.
• Fish Head Soup – one of its signature dish
• Salted fish Steam Mince pork – another one of my favorite dish here. If you are a fans of salted fish. You should try this, I would boast that it has the best salted fish steam mince pork I had ever had!
• Any other Steam fish either teo chew style or spicy sour – this place is full of fresh fish. That is why those pro food lover’s lingers here!

Fried Fish 

Sour Spicy Steam grouper

Oh Gosh! my all time favourite

Restaurant CM 亚明潮式鱼头鱼汤 

Jalan Perang

Taman Pelangi

800400 Johor Bahru 
Operating hour: 9am to 4pm
Off days on sunday




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Embrace Wedding Gallery Jalan Serampang New opening

Embrace Wedding Gallery

Wedding Gallery in Johor Bahru is getting more and more competitive. there are so many top class standard gallery opened here in the recent years. They had attracted a lots of Local, those from KL, Ipoh or various part from Malaysia that are working in Singapore And also Singaporeans to take their wedding photo here. The photography standard, Make up Artist standard in Johor Bahru in compatible as international standards. Various International Photography awards is also won by these photographer in JB.  

Thus it is definitely a good news for those newly wed couple that are looking for a competitive price yet getting a Dream Wedding Album of a lifetime. 

Embrace Wedding Gallery, Newly opened on 2nd of May 2011. I happened to be a close friend of the owner of this gallery was honored to be invited to attend the opening of this wedding gallery. Embrace wedding team is currently lead by Gino (well known make up artist), Terry (Award winning Photographer). 

I am actually impressed with the artworks of Terry photography skill by viewing his sample album. Renovation of the shop is very comfy with nice ambiance. I would also recommend their wedding gown and dinner gown, Flashy, gorgeous, beautiful and most importantly it is New! 

I will recommend for those lovely couple who are in the planning of getting married to check on this gallery. They definitely charging a very competitive price in the market. 

Lets wish them to push this Wedding photography into another new level of standard. 

Cheers!  

Embrace Wedding Gallery

No 37, Jalan Serampang, 

Tmn Sri Tebrau 8005-

Working Hour: 10AM - 9PM
Contact No: 07-3339663

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Google map address 

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Restaurant See Hai 101 Grill Chicken Wing 新四海101海鲜楼串烧

Restaurant See Hai 101

 If you are looking for a place to have something light for dinner or Supper and Happen to be in JB. you should come here to try this! This Restoran See Hai 101 is one of the 2 very famous place to have Grill Chicken Wing. Another Famous Restaurant is just located next to it Restaurant Kimdo.

What is so special at this restaurant? Why is it so crowded? 

They are selling a very special type of grill food. especially their chicken wing. Instead of used the whole chicken wing like normal grilling does. They only used certain part of the wing which used the most delicate part of the wing. They also used their specially creation of spice together with the grill to perfection and deliver us a plate of delicous food at a very reasonable price of RM 1 per stick! 

What is Must Have? 

1.     Grilled Chicken Wing 

2.     Grilled Squid 

3.     Grilled Prawn 

4.     A Pot of Lou Shu Fan (老鼠粉）  

Best for eating Dinner or Supper. 

I Strongly recommend this to you. It is a must have food in Johor Bahru! 

Restaurant See Hai 101 新四海101海鲜楼串烧 

Jalan Sutera 

Taman Sentosa

80350 Johor Bahru Johor 

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