THE GASTRONOMIC ADVENTURE IN BENUT, PONTIAN

   9TH AUGUST 2026    ~ The gastronomic adventure today took place a bit further, in Benut, Pontian. The eating place was located in a village area, in the compound of someone's house actually.

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One could choose to sit either in the open area under the trees or the shelter of the zink/canvas tents.

Even though it was situated further away from the city, this place was popular by looking at the number of diners when we were there. We arrived quite late for lunch at about 3:00 p.m. but there were others who came even later than us.

The signature cuisine: Cendol. Since we had travelled quite far, so we opted for the most expensive one: Blackthorn Durian Cendol.

My friend had Nasi Ayam Penyet while I chose the Barramundi fish. Unfortunately, the sambal [mashed chili] of the dish did not taste like the original version and I was somewhat confused whether I had got the correct order.

We were glad we went there, and this was our first gastronomic adventure in Pontian. We should be looking for other places in this district for our next trip.

THERE IS ALWAYS A FIRST TIME AT UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI MARA, PASIR GUDANG

Puan Norhamiza, a staff of Jabatan Kebajikan Masyarakat, and I went to Universiti Teknologi Mara [UiTM] Pasir Gudang. The reason was to discuss with the officers for the upcoming Pasukan Kebajikan Kanak-Kanak [Children's Welfare Group] with the university's Islamic Centre this October.

The discussion was a brief one and then we went to see the venue where the programme will be carried out.

I finally set foot in the campus of UiTM Pasir Gudang which was not far away from home. Hopefully things will go smoothly according to plan and I will be back in October.

THE UPM TESL POST WEDDING RECEPTION MINI REUNION AT QBISTRO DAMANSARA

8TH AUGUST 2026 ~ After attending the wedding the night before, a mini reunion with a few people of UPM TESL Class of 1993 was held. The chosen venue was QBistro Restaurant in Damansara, located at Lotus's Damansara.

The participants of the gathering were seven old friends and three of their spouses.

It was only a short stay at the rebranded Mamak. Four of them had to make their way home to Kuantan right after [the shopping slot at the mall next door]. Guess I will have to wait for another wedding so that I could meet them again after this.

THE JKM PROGRAMME AT SMK PERMAS JAYA

The second school chosen by Pasukan Kebajikan Kanak-kanak [Children's Welfare Team] of Jabatan Kebajikan Masyarakat [Welfare Department] was SMK Permas Jaya. This was the second school visited this year.

There were series of talks delivered by the staff of the Department and a police officer.

I was there for the closing ceremony [and to enjoy the refreshments served after the event].

It is always a pleasure to be in the school compound again and to be in the environment I used to work in once upon a time. There will be more similar sessions after this, the soonest next week and this means I will be visiting schools again.

GOING JAPANESE AT EMPIRE MALL IN SUBANG JAYA

   8TH AUGUST 2026    ~ The instant reaction when seeing the Halal logo outside the Japanese restaurant in Empire, Subang Jaya, was of happiness and excitement. I had to take my gastronomic adventure buddy in Kuala Lumpur, Mr. Norazman, for dinner at Marutama Ramen.

There were not many people in the dining area at 6:00 p.m. so we could enjoy our food with piece of minds.

I loved my Ramen as it had similar taste to our local dish and my friend also liked his rice. I would love to make a return trip to this place when I am in Subang Jaya again.

THE GASTRONOMIC ADVENTURE IN PEDAS, NEGERI SEMBILAN

   7TH AUGUST 2026    ~ The only planned gastronomic adventure during the Shah Alam road trip was to have lunch at Selera Grobok Salai at Pedas, Negeri Sembilan. The specialty of this place was everything "Masak Lemak" - food with spicy coconut milk gravy.

There were not many customers dining in when we arrived that afternoon. We managed to get a parking space near the restaurant and there was no queue at the entrance. The place was a huge one which could accommodate more than one hundred people at one time.

I decided to try the Mackerel Eggs while my friend opted for the Catfish.

There was a small shop inside the restaurant, selling dessert, cookies and local snacks and delicacies.

Lunch was good and my tummy was happy, and I was glad to stop by at this famous eating place. We were so ready to continue driving up north to Shah Alam right after that.