Lani M. and Old Penang

About this gig I was talking about in my earlier post, turns out I can finally say who the celebrity was. It was no other than Asia's Nightingale Lani Misalucha(!!!!). We fed the production crew and her entire cast. Yay joy!  They loved the food and the service.  Whew.  Now I can finally breathe and move on.

I've always admired her for her incredible vocal range and her comedic flair.  Her Celine Dion and Tina Turner impersonations were dead-on last night. I got such a kick out of her skits.  I was able to watch almost the whole concert. Such a treat! Oh and The Newport Performing Arts Theater was simply gorgeous! The awesome lighting and high-tech screens added so much class and depth to her song numbers. Unfortunately I've no pictures to show as proof.  I wasn't allowed to take pictures back stage and inside the theater.  They tell me it's for security reasons. *sigh*  At least I'm absolutely certain that I didn't dream up this whole thing because my eye bags tell me otherwise. They haven't completely disappeared yet.

Oh but I do have this!

I know I'm raving like a ninny here but it takes very little to make me happy. Going to UP Diliman for fish balls is sometimes the highlight of my day. So imagine how I've been feeling since after the concert. I'm (to say the least) bouncing-off-the-walls-crazy-happy!  I have to thank a friend for this amazing opportunity.  You know who you are. :)

Lani Misalucha performed with the Resorts World European Dance Troupe. Most of whom looked like they walked out of a Chippendale show (to Yuri's dismay). Har har.  Yuri had nothing to worry about though.  Their ruffly neon costumes and fishnet shirts were too icky to garner THAT sort of reaction from me.  I'm not sure if that was what Lani M. had in mind for her back-up dancers. Hmmm.

The show was delayed and started at 9PM so Yuri and I had time to grab a quick bite. You know me, my idea of a good dinner is 500 bucks or less. I get such thrill from finding a good deals; meaning, affordable and really tasty meals.  Since we were at the upscale Newport Mall, dining with Metro Manila's high-rollers, my 500 peso requirement quickly whittled down our choices to about 4 restaurants;  Mcdonald's, Stackers, Kopi Roti, and Old Penang. I didn't even look at Mcdonald's since we'd been living on Mcdonald drive-throughs for a few days now.  I've been to Stackers too so that was out of the question.  Kopi Roti just had nothing special to offer (that I know of) aside from their coffee bun.  Old Penang it was.  The fact that I'm a nut for Malaysian cuisine kinda swayed me in their favor anyways.

The tipping point was this dish right here.

Char Keoy Teow Php 220.00

Char Koay Teow or stir-fried rice noodles.  It's been a while since I tasted a decent version of this.  It definitely isn't the best plate of char koay teow in the Philippines (recommendations anyone?) but it did manage to satisfy my craving for it.  To their credit, they used good-sized fresh prawns and the bean sprouts were quite crisp.  They also added their own twist to the dish by adding chorizo (chinese sausage) to the mix.  I wish the noodles were a bit more charred though.  

Fried Rice Special Php 245.00

The Char Keoy Teow was on the spicy side so it was a good thing we ordered their Fried Rice Special to go with our noodles (not that anything is ever too spicy for Yuri).

Their fried rice was a winner!   I am a rice monster.  Ask anyone close to me.  I can decimate at least 4 cups of rice per meal on a good day.  I know what I'm talking about.  Their fried rice was simple yet well-executed.  Not too oily and just the right amount of seasoning.  Also, I'm pretty sure they went light on the MSG because I didn't get a headache after the meal.

The main ingredients were prawns (which we substituted to chicken because of Yuri's allergies), barbecue pork, and chorizo.  They finished it off with a nice helping of fried shallots on top. Yum!  Fried shallots are ridiculously tasty.  They add so much flavor and texture to fried rice.  In fact, I cook my sinangag (Filipino-style fried rice) with fried garlic and shallots.  I picked up this obsession of mine with fried shallots from my uber long visits to Indonesia when I was a kid.  Fried shallots bring back all those good childhood memories. :)

Old Penang still tried to keep the " hawker" feel in the resto with the staff uniforms, tables, and stools.  I'm sure that was a bit challenging what with the luxurious feel of the Newport Mall.

Our verdict:

We finished three-fourths of the Char Keoy Teow and completely wiped out the fried rice.  I'm giving Old Penang 3.5 stars (out of 5).  I'd give them another shot since I've only tried two dishes.  I'd like to try their Hainanese Chicken Rice and their Laksa the next time I'm there.  Hopefully I'll be at the Newport Mall a lot. :)