What can be better on Sunday than BBQ buffet and cold beer in your hand, just beside a rooftop swimming pool? Ok, enough bragging; here is our Hotel Stripes’ Sizzling Sundays BBQ review.

Man Tao Ambiance

Sizzling Sundays BBQ is served at the Man Tao Bar, which is a rooftop swimming pool bar with a canopy view with skyscrapers behind it. We can’t imagine a better BBQ place than beside the pool combined with great views. Sadly we don’t have any photo of it, due to the intense mid-day sun and time shortage. Next month we will stop in Kuala Lumpur again and make a morning shot just for you dear friend.

Anyway, let’s talk about Man Tao Bar. It’s a pleasant pool grill bar with a welcoming shade above your head. The ambiance is in sync with the hotel – brick-built, comfortable and snug. A long bar also serves as a part of a buffet table, when it comes to this delicious Sizzling Sundays BBQ.

Man Tao Drinks Menu

Based on the relaxed vibe we will start with the drinks, which are yours to add to the buffet if you wish to do so. First, is the honey-infused mocktail with lemon and ginger. Second, comes DIY sangria in three variants; red/white/rose, with fresh fruit additions. Third, is the Carlsberg bucket, to spruce up the Sizzling Sundays BBQ even more. Complimentary to the buffet is orange infused water which we really liked.

 Sizzling Sundays BBQ Review

Sizzling Sundays BBQ is a great way to enjoy a carefree day in this always busy city. Regarding the buffet, it starts at noon and ends at 3 PM, which doesn’t mean your fun time is over. You are welcome to enjoy your cocktail afterward and soak up the afternoon sun. Sadly, we were on the run to the airport, so we left the scene earlier. However, Sizzling Sundays BBQ filled our tummies for a whole day.

Cold Starters

Cold starters are stapling at every decent BBQ and here is no different. What can be better than a Greek salad or Cesar salad with crunchy crockets??? Both salads are seasoned perfect and fresh, which makes them a great starter. For an even better deal, you can add garlic bread.

Main Dishes

What is sizzling about this all you can eat buffet is all the mains, prepared on-site. The limited offer makes up for quality, fresh dishes that not only taste delicious but look great as well. For instance, the Hasselback potato topped with cream and chives or mini burgers is the love at first sight.

Both of us loved the tender meat in the middle of mini burgers and complimentary house-made sauces. My combination of New Orleans BBQ sauce, yellow mustard and brown sauce was spot on with roasted root vegetables.

Different types of sauces are the perfect solution to the BBQ feast and compliment even the paella. Honestly, we were more into the BBQ marinated beef short rib with crunchy garlic bread. Even so, the saffron rice went well with grill chicken brochettes. Neither of the dishes was overseasoned, which left room for outstanding Chimichurri sauce. This is a loose oil-based condiment with finely chopped garlic, parsley, chili, and oregano.

We also liked the premium quality chicken and beef rope sausages. Both were gently seasoned, with rosemary and pepper dominating in chicken sausage. I always love to see meaty pieces in sausage and I’m happy to report that this was the case in beef sausage.

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Desserts

Desserts are the only thing that disappoints at all in all delicious Sizzling Sundays BBQ. Ok, I love the buttery caramel popcorn idea, which is a great sweet snack, though. There are also doughnuts which are great BBQ dessert, but also very delicate. Doughnuts can be dry very quickly and heat with some warm breeze is a no ally here at all. Playfully presented doughnuts matched the mood perfectly, but dryness, unfortunately, spoils the joy.

On the other hand, they offer a great rescue – ice pops. Sad to say we are not fond of ice pops because of many reasons. Firstly, eating this is ridiculous. You are licking a plastic bag like a moron and thinking about how many people were touching this pack and where it was before. Then again, your hands will be sticky after this treat.

Anyway, here at Sizzling Sundays BBQ they serve two types of ice pops – Cendol and Nescafe. I served my Nescafe ice pop in the glass and had it as ice coffee instead. Nothing exciting in this iced treat – Nescafe powder in skimmed milk. This Sizzling Sundays BBQ would have much better finish with some homemade ice cream which can be served in scoops. Every Sunday two different flavors and no need in using plastic bags.

Critique and Conclusion

Sizzling Sundays BBQ is a great way to have casual lunch on hot KL Sundays. We loved the petite hamburgers, all meaty treats with condiments and easy-going vibe.

As mentioned before, the downside of this Sizzling Sundays BBQ is desserts. This could be executed better as we all know that the desserts are the pillar of every feast. A different serving of doughnuts or maybe a classic apple pie right beside the different ice-cream would make a huge difference. However, this flaw doesn’t mean you won’t enjoy this delicious BBQ.

After all, you came here for BBQ, right? And this is flawless, making it a delicious Sunday lunch! Taking the price into consideration this is a great mini buffet or rather Sizzling BBQ. If you are staying at Hotel Stripes Kuala Lumpur, try to fetch this mini-feast on Sundays. Warmly recommended!

 Sizzling Sundays BBQ Review Card

• 8.9/10
  ATMOSPHERE – 8.9/10
• 8.8/10
  FOOD OFFER – 8.8/10
• 8.9/10
  PRESENTATION – 8.9/10
• 9.3/10
  SERVICE – 9.3/10
• 8.8/10
  FOOD TASTE – 8.8/10
• 9.5/10
  VALUE – 9.5/10

Price and Location

Sizzling Sundays BBQ comes about 25 USD for two persons, which is a bargain or rather a fantastic value for BBQ. In a case, you would like to try it out, here is a link to a location for easy-peasy navigation.

The post Sizzling Sundays BBQ @ Man Tao, Hotel Stripes appeared first on Wild 'n' Free Diary.

Merlion

Here, in Singapore, the community of foreigners is strong and they have some meetings, barbeques, and other socializing activities. This time, there was a barbeque party which was hosted by a Slovenian guy Luka, who is living with his German girlfriend here in Singapore. There were around 20-25 people and luckily, we were among them. The weather was great until 6 PM when the rain started pouring out of nowhere. This shower was actually a good thing. We gathered together under two smaller roofs and the mingling was engaged with 100%. We were introduced to Daan and Lala. A Dutch guy and a Russian girl who grew up in Eastern Germany. They were passionate scuba divers and we have already arranged our scuba diving school in the future. Be prepared, WNFdiary will discover places even under water in the future. They are both experienced travelers, so the discussion really took off.

BBQ by the pool

We also meet a couple from London. He has Malay origins. When he heard we were preparing to visit Malaysia, he was thrilled about it. He is a passionate foodie and our notepad was quickly full of new ideas for food to try in this country. I must admit, he initiated a desire for some unknown Malayan cuisine and we are already looking forward to new food and experiences which are coming upon us.

Satay

There was also a Bosnian girl who migrated to the USA and is working for the US embassy here in Singapore. She was excited to hear the story of our traveling to Bosnia and the food we ate there. Well, she was with an American guy. There was another interesting couple. She was German and he was an Indian guy named Siddhartha – how cool is that. To be honest, his appearance was more related to one of the Middle Eastern guys than to stereotypical Indians. Anyway, their stories were also amazing, and I will never forget the joke he told us. Well, I complained about the security here in Singapore, how they gave me a random check on the subway. It must be because of my beard. And Sidd was looking at me with his big brown eyes and said: “Welcome to my world, friend”. Later, he made it clear, that he was getting those random checks on a regular basis and now he is well used to having those extra checks on the border. Funny and sad at the same time. Just because of a stereotype and American media…

Prison

Well, there was also a French-Slovenian couple and many others who made the two of us totally dull. We made some new friendships and connections, which is amazing and this is one of many reasons why we are traveling. To explore something new and exciting. Those people with their stories are amazing and we are glad we had the opportunity to get to know them.

Oh, of course, it was a poolside barbeque party. Well, Luka did his best to make sure the guest had an amazing time and he ordered a catering service. They were grilling pork with sweet and spicy marinade, chicken wings, beef, incredible delicious ribs, shrimps and even mushrooms. There was also otak otak fish in banana leaf and bunch of salads with brahmin rice and very tasty bread. The choice of drinks was also huge. There was an ice-cold beer, cider, red and white wine from all over the world. Even Veuve Clicquot champagne was pouring into glasses. I don’t need to mention that the security had a lot of work with us because we were loud until the morning hours.

BBQ

Thank you again for this great barbeque and opportunity to meet new people. We really appreciate that and wish you all the best and the best of luck.

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Leskovac is worth visiting also for more than a century-old hydroelectric power plant. The power plant is still operational! Djordje Stanojevic, a friend of Nikola Tesla, was intimately involved in this project and made Leskovac one of the first cities in Europe illuminated by hydroelectric power. The Vucje power plant sure is a special one. That is why it’s included in the World heritage of technology. Vucjak canyon is located 9 miles south of Leskovac and when you get there you are surrounded by nature. Hydroelectric power plant still works with their original motors from 1903. Around the plant, there is an amazing hiking route. Ian wanted to record some scenes with a drone, but he got attacked by Serbian eagle. Three or four were circling around his drone, so he aborted the operation after ten minutes. The weather was a bit too harsh for some stunning photography as well, so this place still owes us photo reportage next time.

To summarize, the city itself is not a big attraction. However, their residents, with their hospitality manners and amazingly good food, are outstanding. And believe me, my friends it’s totally worth to visit this place, just to try specialties and relax in a judgment-free zone. This article is written as a tribute to our Leskovac friends. I love you all!

The post What to do in Leskovac – Serbia appeared first on Wild 'n' Free Diary.

Cevapcici

The road to Leskovac wasn’t short, but it was totally worth it. We arrived in Leskovac in the morning and our first move was hitting the search button to get closer to some good cevapcici. The task wasn’t hard. There is a bunch of restaurants, inns or just food stalls with this meat specialty. The first bite cleared up those rumors: they were absolutely true. Cevapcici were very tasteful and juicy BBQ meat rolls. We both agreed that the ones we ate in Slovenia were only a shadow of the real thing. The best thing was that they weren’t too salty, nor over seasoned, so we got a clear taste of meat mixture. The texture was firmed and not rubbery like those we came across in Slovenia.

Besides meat, they serve their fresh cheese “kaymak”, which is something that impressed me the most. Not only because I’m a cheese fan, but because this cheese is fatty and only one step away from butter. And we all know – fatty means tasty. The other thing you will get beside cevapcici is local flatbread similar to Arabian bread or pita. This bread is spongy and a good match for that protein.

Plate

The other thing we got familiar with was a combination of grilled goodness, or, as the locals call it, “leskovacki voz”. That could be translated into Leskovac carriage. The concept is that the waiter brings you all the Serbian specialties one by one and stops only when you are full and can’t put a single bite in your mouth anymore. The other “vehicle” you’ll need is probably an ambulance, because all that good food keeps on coming, and your fragile character doesn’t allow you to say stop – what can go wrong, right?

Our degustation destination number two was 300 miles away – Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. When we came there, we got winter scenery with a lot of snow. To find the best cevapcici, we drove into the old bazaar and the historical and cultural center of the city called Bascarsija. There are around 100 places with this delicate BBQ meat rolls. We tried our luck in four restaurants, known for good cevapcici. The specialty here is different, because the meat is mostly beef and lamb, while in Leskovac it was pork and beef. The taste is maybe even better than in Serbia, but we can’t decide on the clear winner. Both are really extraordinary. However, one thing is clear! Both are light years ahead of Slovenian ones. Beside this treat, you will get only onion and in some places, they have also kaymak. However, don’t expect it to be as good as it’s in Serbia. The big disadvantage is their plates. They serve food on dull metal plates, and the feeling is not pleasant when you eat from that. Anyway, if you are in Sarajevo, try these delicious rolls, and also “burek”, a family of baked filled pastries made of thin flaky dough, filled with meat, vegetable, or cheese and even fruit. In their culture is original burek only with meat and other versions have a different name, like “sirnica” for cheese burek. But don’t worry they will understand you just fine. The sad thing for me is the fact that they don’t have tasty desserts. In principle, they are more or less like baklavas, or rahatlokum varieties which are too sweet and dry for my taste.

Sarajevo

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Vivi on the deckchair

It was clear that this was going to be a classy party when we saw the cocktail bar and felt the heat of the Green Egg as it was warming up. The appetizers were also ready on display, so we started photographing them. Canapés with prosciutto and local handmade cheese, octopus’ salad, shrimp with cream served in a polka dot glasses and, by the end, my mouth was full of expectation. Even before we finished taking photos of the appetizers, some guests refreshed themselves in a pool. Summer was saying goodbye and they did their best to get the last dose of the vitamin D

Superstars of the evening – a team of chefs came to introduce themselves and produced some delicious freshly made gnocchi on pumpkin cream compared with reduced balsamic vinegar and sprinkled with baked parmesan. We didn’t expect to come across that much of delicious food so we took turns in photographing the event. I learned by now that no matter where you are, it is your own fault if you miss a delicious bite. The cocktail bar was fully booked even though the supporters of the real men beverages switched to the beer. Alcoholic beverages were very well covered and, at first, we were confused why there is so much of them. The later it was, the clearer we understood why –  S@#t just got real yo.

comfort food

To keep the summer alive and guests’ bellies grounded, the chef served “buzara mussels”. This is actually a traditional dish of the neighboring country Croatia and it definitely has to reach further than Slovenia. Actually, it’s very simple. You’ve heard it before… Keep it simple, less is more… All is true! For this dish, all you need is olive oil, semi-dry white wine, and mussels. At the end, you just have to add fresh parsley. You will lick your fingers dry!

scallops ala buzara

scallops ala buzara

Next on the menu was a 100% raspberry ice cream, prepared with nitrogen. The single additive was vanilla from Madagascar, which rounded the taste of fresh raspberries.

Cooking with nitrogen

At dusk, they set up the buffet table and the feast continued at night. It was a celebration in order to satisfy the pickiest guests. The hosts really did their best for everyone to enjoy a gourmet experience and have a good time. The food was so good that we wanted to stay in touch with the team who prepared it. We also got it and now we know that the team of “Okusni dogodki” or in translation “Tasty events” was responsible for every bite.

Cooking with nitrogen

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