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<b>Top</b> Spot <b>Seafood</b> Food Court @ <b><b>Kuching</b></b <b>...</b>


<b>Top</b> Spot <b>Seafood</b> Food Court @ <b><b>Kuching</b></b <b>...</b>

Posted: 27 Nov 2013 09:11 AM PST

In Kuching we are still fortunate to be able to enjoy very good seafood at relatively reasonable prices. Though the variety can't compare to Kota Kinabalu, the quality and freshness of what we do get is usually pretty peachy.

You can find seafood restaurants almost anywhere in Kuching, but if you are looking for Halal outlets then there are really only 2 options - Top Spot Food Court right in town centre - or Rock Road Seafood. Rock Road Seafood has been around for a very long time, and they haven't changed much except the decor has been incrementally upgraded over the years. This is one of the most popular restaurants with our local political class, especially during the State Legislative Assembly Seatings. 

The ground floor of the restaurant is like a mini wet market. Here you can select the seafood and other items that you want, and let them know how you want the items to be cooked. You can also get them to weigh the items so you know exactly how much you will be paying - instead of getting a sticker shock later.


 We ordered the usual - starting with stir-fried midin with garlic. It was very good.


The Sweet Corn Soup was one of the best we've had - very tasty and with chunks of fresh crab meat.

 The Oyster Omelette was pretty standard - and with lots of oysters.


Buttered Prawns with Egg Floss - nicely done, with the prawns still tender and sweet.


The main reason we went there - Crabs in "Satay Sauce". This is one of their signature dishes, and it never disappoints. I don't know why the sauce is called  "Satay Sauce" because it doesn't taste anything like its namesake, but is sure is tasty. We picked two of the largest crabs they had - and they were both excellent - with lots of fresh, sweet meat inside the gigantic claws.





The food at Rock Road Seafood has steadily improved over the years. Today I would say they are one of the best seafood places in town, but you will be paying a bit  more then most other establishments. However since you get to actually pick the seafood yourself, you are getting what you pay for.

HotelDealsWeekly.com >> Travel Guides » <b><b>Kuching</b></b> Travel <b>...</b>

Posted: 27 Nov 2013 01:31 AM PST

How Taib Family Built Huge Housing Wealth In The Name Of Kuching's Poor

This post is also available in: Iban, Malay

1/2 million ringgit price tags on CMS built homes in Bandar Samariang

1/2 million ringgit price tags on CMS built homes in Bandar Samariang

The Taib family company CMS proudly boasts of its "vast land bank" in its annual reports and has started selling off chunks for tens of millions in Kuching.

Commercial centres and grand housing estates are also being developed in two key areas, Bandar Samariang, where CMS has 5,200 acres, valued around half a billion ringgit, and of course on the Kuching Isthmus, where land is even more expensive.

But, how did CMS acquire all this property and who has benefitted?

Sarawak Report has acquired shocking information about the way Taib and his family members have profited from this land, which was forcibly taken (official term is 'alienated') from local people and state ownership.

We did it to help the poor

The story that the Chief Minister told from the start was that this was land that difficult and expensive to develop, but that his family company was kindly determined to provide housing for poor people.

Back in 2001, he even made out that CMS was doing this supposed favour in Bandar Samariang entirely "for the people's benefit" for "not much profit", because other developers didn't want to get involved in such a loss-making venture!

Sarawak Chief Minister Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud denied yesterday that the development projects implemented in the state had benefited him personally as alleged by some quarters. Stressing that the projects were for the people's benefit, he urged them to think rationally all allegations of nepotism and cronyism which were levelled at him before making any conclusion….he cited as an example the low-cost housing project in Rampangi, Semariang of which he was accused of benefiting personally. Taib.. said the project did not bring much profit to the developer Cahya Mata Sarawak Bhd due to the peat soil condition. Not many companies wanted to invest in the project because of the high cost involved to prepare the site for the project, he said. But in the interest of the people, the project had to be carried out to provide housing to the low income group, he said. "We do not want them to remain without houses and live far away from the city. That's why we continued with the project," he said.[Bernama Sunday, April 08, 2001]

Such a kind old fellow!

Chief Executive and key shareholder at the time, Taib brother Onn Mahmud

Chief Executive and key shareholder at the time, Taib brother Onn Mahmud

Interestingly no mention has ever been made again of these poor soil conditions by CMS.  This is probably, not least, because in every other country in the world, developing tropical peat soil has been banned, because of the severe environmental consequences.

To gain a sense of the value of this land handed to CMS in the guise of helping the poor, consider the recent news that the company has decided to sell on a parcel of 500 acres for over RM45million to Sentoria Group to build a theme park.

Suddenly, another developer has been found willing not only to take on the job of developing the land, but to pay big money for the plot.

However, this time of course the money has gone to CMS, not the government or the people from whom the area was 'alienated'.

At the time CMS got this land for free it was largely owned and run by Taib's brother Onn Mahmud, who shortly after passed on his shares to Taib's wife, with the remainder being largely in the hands of the Chief Minister's four children.

No nepotism at all then!

Sucking money out of pensions too

Robert Geneid, the Head of CMS Property Development and husband of Taib's sister Raziah Mahmud.

Robert Geneid, the Head of CMS Property Development and husband of Taib's sister Raziah Mahmud.

But, of course, the Taibs didn't really want to invest their own money in this mission to assist the poor with 'quality low cost housing'.

Far better to use their influence to encourage the government controlled Employee Provident Fund (EPF) to put in the money instead.

After all, this fat milk cow has been used to pour vast sums of money into endless pet projects to benefit BN politicians, meaning public employees can look forward to far lower pensions, despite being forced to pay a quarter of their salaries into the obligatory savings fund controlled by the government.

EPF therefore was dragged into a joint venture with CMS and the investment in the "low cost housing" in Bandar Samariang began.

But, in fact, low cost housing was only ever planned to form a small part of the project from the very start.  The original terms of agreement, as explained in CMS's own annual reports, made clear just 1/3 of the area was to be housing for the less well-off.

Housing for the poor?

Housing for the poor?

The rest of the huge site was to be developed as an ambitious commercial enterprise.

CMS's 1997 Annual Report was certainly not bashful about the profit-driven nature of CMS's latest housing project or the ambitions of its new Property Development Division, headed by the new husband of Taib's sister Raziah, the Lebanese Australian, Robert Geneid.

It also reveals that, thanks to Taib's ability to pull the strings, that the State Housing & Development Commission had already been tasked with buying whatever 'quality low cost housing' CMS Property produced on the site, ensuring a guaranteed profit.

1997 Annual Report

Property Development

"This is a new growth area for the Group, and CMS Properties Sdn Bhd has been set up to develop and manage the Group's vast land bank, with the long-term objective of becoming Sarawak's principal property developer and a major player throughout Malaysia and the ASEAN region. The Group's strategy is based on using the natural synergy between the infrastructure, finance and property divisions….

Bandar Baru Samariang is a joint venture with the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) and will be the largest low-cost housing project ever undertaken in Sarawak, and the first housing development project undertaken by the Group. 

The 13,500 low cost houses (approximately 36 percent of the project) will be sold to the Housing & Development Commission……The remaining 64 percent of the project will comprise medium-cost homes, commercial centres and ancillary buildings, providing a total of 42,200 housing units on the vast 5,200 acre site just 15 km from Kuching. Phase 1 of the township is currently being implemented, to provide over 4,000 units of low-cost housing, as well as hundreds of other residential and commercial properties."[Ann Rpt 1997]

So, in fact, a mere 4,000 units of the token low cost housing have been included in the first phase of the project, all promoted in the beginning in a blaze of positive publicity, before CMS moved speedily to the much more lucrative "medium cost" housing, where units are currently being sold for the very fancy prices of anything up to half a million ringgit!

Bandar Samariang Phase I Plan

Phase 1 - including 4,000 low cost housing units guaranteed to be purchased by the Housing Committee

Phase 1 – including 4,000 low cost housing units guaranteed to be purchased by the Housing Committee

Of course, the fact that the state has ploughed in major infrastructure, in terms of roads and amenities into the area, has made the development potential of this project ever more lucrative.  Yet, the Chief Minister is still justifying his handing of it all to his family in the name of charity for Kuching's poor!

Presiding over his family's vast profitable land venture.

Presiding over his family's vast profitable land venture.

However, this mother of all land grabs from the Sarawak people is just the start of the story of how the Taib family set about enriching themselves from this project.

In 'Phase 2′ of our investigation we will be looking at how individual members of the Taib inner family circle, set about using the massive housing project to develop profitable businesses for themselves, with disastrous consequences for the very poor people in whose name the Bandar Samariang land grab was executed.

"The new township boasts a myriad of vibrant features such as improved road connectivity between central and South Kuching" Borneo Post

"The new township boasts a myriad of vibrant features such as improved road connectivity between central and South Kuching" Borneo Post

Anyone out there looking to move to <b>Kuching</b> in the... - Come Sarawak

Posted: 26 Nov 2013 01:24 AM PST

Rooftop dining is not uncommon for fine dining restaurants and bars. But what about seafood in a hawker setting? Well, in Kuching there's this place called Top Spot Food Court where half a dozen of restaurants – mostly serving seafood (halal options available) operate on the roof of a 6 storey car park.

TopSpot

Top-Spot-Seafood-Kuching

The environment is dim but airy and always buzzing with activity. If you are staying in the hotels along the Kuching Waterfront, Top Spot is reachable on foot within minutes.

Topspot-Seafood-Kuching
Fresh-Fish

Although you could sit down and order the dishes off the menu, it is more recommended that you browse and pick the seafood yourself – provided if you know how to judge a fresh fish. But from what we saw, the seafood variety here is good and more importantly fresh. So the tastiness pretty much depends on the chef's skills. Anyway, we chose Ling Loong Seafood among the available options simply because the name sounded nice.

Lobster-Prawns

The star dish of the night has to be the Grilled Spiny Lobsters, which were wrongfully listed as prawns in the menu. So you could imagine our surprise when these meaty lobsters arrived on our table. They were cooked perfectly, as the chunky sized lobster flesh was sweet, juicy and succulent.


Curry-Powder-Bamboo-Clams

2nd best goes to the Fried Bamboo Clams in Curry Powder, a delicacy that has a special place in the heart of Kuchingians. Compared to a few other renditions I've had, Ling Loong's could be considered one of the best because the clams were very fresh and did not have any weird taste. And freshness is the main thing to look for in clams, because biting into a watery and foul tasting one is the last thing you want to do. I have experienced that before first-hand and I can tell you, it's really nasty.

Midin-Sambal-Belacan

Midin is a must try in Sarawak. These wriggly yet crunchy jungle ferns are versatile enough to be enjoyed in many ways but sambal belacan style is our personal favorite.

Steamed-Fish

Steamed Sea Bass – we could not find any fault in this common dish.

Fried-Oyster

Ikan-Bakar

Unfortunately it was all downhill from here, as both the oyster pancake (more like a oyster cracker) and ikan bakar were quite terrible. You could take my word for it and skip these two. The oysters were overly deep fried which led to a dry and rubbery taste.
The ikan bakar on the other hand tasted like it was not marinated at all and I think the spice paste was applied separately after the fish was grilled. The only good thing about the ikan bakar was the stingray that tasted exceptionally fresh. So it's a real shame that the preparation was not up to the standard.

Muslim-Seafood-Top-Spot-Kuching

Overall it was still a pleasant meal and I only got myself to blame for the oyster pancake because I knew they were not going to taste fantastic just by the looks of it. The food's still good for most of the standard items like grilled lobster, steamed fish, curry bambooo clams and sambal belacan midin.
These common dishes are pretty hard to screw up. Price wise it was unexpectedly affordable since we paid a little more than RM200 for all of the above including a seafood tofu which I did not show, two cups of sugar cane juice, a large bottle of beer and rice.

Picking-Mud-Crab
Fresh-Vegetables
Top-Spot-Seafood-Center-Kuching

Top Spot Food Court (Taman Kereta Food Court)
Jalan Padungan, Kuching
GPS Coordinates: N1 33.367 E110 21.145

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Rooftop dining is not uncommon for fine dining restaurants and bars. But what about seafood in a hawker setting? Well, in Kuching there's this place called Top Spot Food Court where half a dozen of restaurants – mostly serving seafood (halal options available) operate on the roof of a 6 storey car park.

TopSpot

Top-Spot-Seafood-Kuching

The environment is dim but airy and always buzzing with activity. If you are staying in the hotels along the Kuching Waterfront, Top Spot is reachable on foot within minutes.

Topspot-Seafood-Kuching
Fresh-Fish

Although you could sit down and order the dishes off the menu, it is more recommended that you browse and pick the seafood yourself – provided if you know how to judge a fresh fish. But from what we saw, the seafood variety here is good and more importantly fresh. So the tastiness pretty much depends on the chef's skills. Anyway, we chose Ling Loong Seafood among the available options simply because the name sounded nice.

Lobster-Prawns

The star dish of the night has to be the Grilled Spiny Lobsters, which were wrongfully listed as prawns in the menu. So you could imagine our surprise when these meaty lobsters arrived on our table. They were cooked perfectly, as the chunky sized lobster flesh was sweet, juicy and succulent.


Curry-Powder-Bamboo-Clams

2nd best goes to the Fried Bamboo Clams in Curry Powder, a delicacy that has a special place in the heart of Kuchingians. Compared to a few other renditions I've had, Ling Loong's could be considered one of the best because the clams were very fresh and did not have any weird taste. And freshness is the main thing to look for in clams, because biting into a watery and foul tasting one is the last thing you want to do. I have experienced that before first-hand and I can tell you, it's really nasty.

Midin-Sambal-Belacan

Midin is a must try in Sarawak. These wriggly yet crunchy jungle ferns are versatile enough to be enjoyed in many ways but sambal belacan style is our personal favorite.

Steamed-Fish

Steamed Sea Bass – we could not find any fault in this common dish.

Fried-Oyster

Ikan-Bakar

Unfortunately it was all downhill from here, as both the oyster pancake (more like a oyster cracker) and ikan bakar were quite terrible. You could take my word for it and skip these two. The oysters were overly deep fried which led to a dry and rubbery taste.
The ikan bakar on the other hand tasted like it was not marinated at all and I think the spice paste was applied separately after the fish was grilled. The only good thing about the ikan bakar was the stingray that tasted exceptionally fresh. So it's a real shame that the preparation was not up to the standard.

Muslim-Seafood-Top-Spot-Kuching

Overall it was still a pleasant meal and I only got myself to blame for the oyster pancake because I knew they were not going to taste fantastic just by the looks of it. The food's still good for most of the standard items like grilled lobster, steamed fish, curry bambooo clams and sambal belacan midin.
These common dishes are pretty hard to screw up. Price wise it was unexpectedly affordable since we paid a little more than RM200 for all of the above including a seafood tofu which I did not show, two cups of sugar cane juice, a large bottle of beer and rice.

Picking-Mud-Crab
Fresh-Vegetables
Top-Spot-Seafood-Center-Kuching

Top Spot Food Court (Taman Kereta Food Court)
Jalan Padungan, Kuching
GPS Coordinates: N1 33.367 E110 21.145

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<b>Kuching</b> Hotel - Come Sarawak - Come Sarawak

Posted: 26 Nov 2013 11:44 PM PST

<b>Kuching</b> Restaurants and <b>Hotel</b> � Active Boomer Adventures

Posted:

Our Kuching Restaurant: TopSpot. While in Kuching, we found some interesting and delicious food atop a parking garage. This isn't anything new to us as we ate at, and thoroughly enjoyed Miami Beach's Juvia last year.

HotelDealsWeekly.com &gt;&gt; Travel Guides � <b>Kuching</b> Travel Guide

Posted:

The capital and largest city of Malaysia's Sarawak state on the island of Borneo, Kuching (formerly called City of Sarawak) is the cleanest city in Malaysia. It is also referred to as the 'Cat City' by many locals. With people of thirty different ...

Study Diploma in <b>Hotel</b> Management in I-Systems College <b>Kuching</b> <b>...</b>

Posted:

Study Diploma in Hotel Management in I-Systems College Kuching. This entry was posted in Campuses Kolej I-Systems Kuching News & Events on November 14, 2013 by isysmin.