The Good Old Days - my memory of Palm Grove Restaurant

Living in one of the most expensive cities in the world, I can’t help but to recall the good old days when I was living in a small town called Klang in Malaysia where everyday life was simple and inexpensive. I can still remember that it was a norm for friends to invite each other for a meal and have a lengthy chat about simple things in life, nothing complicated and nothing pretentious. Of course, things have changed over the years where crime has increased, things have become expensive and trust is no longer taken for granted. Below is a “feel good” story that took place many years ago and it is hard to imagine that it can ever happen today.

Palm Grove Restaurant

When I was a young boy, it was common for the family to eat out every weekend, especially on Sundays. It was also very common for my father to invite friends or relatives to join us in our meals. I remembered there was a time where my family together with some friends had lunch in one of Klang’s then famous restaurant called “Palm Grove Restaurant”. It was one of the few restaurants that had air conditioning system at that time. Palm Grove Restaurant started by operating in a small corner shop lot without air conditioning. As it was then a rather new restaurant, many people from surrounding areas came and tasted its food including us. I remembered my mum took me there to order some take-aways. As my brother was very fond of “Hainanese Chicken Chop”, my mum decided to order that dish. The lady who took the order informed my mum that the Cook didn’t know how to cook “Hainanese Chicken Chop”. My mum remarked, “How can that be possible? It is such an easy dish to prepare”. My mum gave some simple instructions like frying the chicken, potatoes, tomatoes and preparing the sauce. Surprisingly, the lady listened carefully and went back to the kitchen and later returned to say that the Cook will do it. The “Hainanese Chicken Chop” ala Palm Grove Restaurant style turned out to be pretty good in spite that the Cook had never eaten or tasted it before! The Cook just merely took instructions and prepared the dish to your liking without any issues. The funny thing was that they didn’t know how much to charge, so they said please pay whatever you wish for the “Hainanese Chicken Chop”.  I can never imagine this happening today - the restaurant workers will probably ask you to “#$@&%” out of the restaurant should you insist on a dish which is not in the menu. Those were the days where people were very obliging and patient in spite how busy they were.

I can still remember vividly another incident that took place in Palm Grove Restaurant. This  time Palm Grove Restaurant had moved to bigger premises with air conditioners. The restaurant was famous for its “Pah Poh Ark” (braised stuffed duck). At that time, Palm Grove Restaurant was the only restaurant that served “Pah Poh Ark” and it became its specialty dish. The restaurant was also famous for its Teo Chiew steam fish and “Cantonese-style fried kway teow” (rice noodle). I remember my father ordered about 8 dishes for a group of about 10 people or so. While we were eating, my father met an old friend in the restaurant who was going to take away a packet of fried noodles. While waiting for his food, this friend caught up with my dad. He only excused himself when his food was ready. We continued our lunch until it was time to pay the bill. When my father asked for the bill, the waiter came and informed that the bill had already been paid. The waiter informed that my dad’s friend had paid for our lunch. My dad’s friend was only there to take away a packet of noodles but then proceeded to pay for our lunch which perhaps cost 10 times more than his takeaway meal. But that was how life was at that time where very often friends will pay for another friend’s meal especially if they have not seen each other for a long time. Today, it appears that it is no longer possible as the cost of things have gone up and eating out is more of a treat rather than a change in eating routine. Paying for one’s meal is now a norm though personally, I still find it uncomfortable as I was brought up in an environment where everyone helps each other out. But such is life and if truth be told, I would still love to pay for a good friend’s meal but alas, the downturn of economy makes the decision much more selective and challenging. For now, we just have to settle for a cup of coffee!

Thank you, Azli

Azli and me

Over the years, I have been very fortunate to receive all of kinds of souvenirs from the event organisers for giving talks, speeches and conducting workshops. Some of the souvenirs that I have received are plaques, a hand crafted piece of glass, framed poster of the event, pen, USB thumb drive, paper weight and a mouse pad. Most recently, I received food vouchers for my participation in a conference. According to the event organiser, food vouchers are better than tangible gifts as the speakers have probably too many plaques and pens in their house or office anyway. For me, personally, I would prefer a plaque or something that I can keep to remind me of the event which I participated and contributed.

Anyway, I was given two food vouchers to be used in a restaurant called “Flavors” at the Swiss Garden Hotel. I decided to utilise the vouchers on a Saturday evening. Jennifer and I brought along Ashley and Douglas to the restaurant. The adults would eat for free while for the children, we only need to pay half price. We were at the restaurant, “Flavors” rather early and therefore, we had an early start of the buffet dinner. Except for the grilled food, the buffet was just average, nothing to shout about. The grilled food was done on the spot. You just need to select whatever you want - prawns, crab, beef, chicken, clams and the chef will cook it or grill it for you right then and there. To complement the grilled food, there were a variety of sauces to choose ranging from  “assam pedas” (hot and sour sauce), chilli sauce, tomato sauce, mustard, sambal belacan (hot prawn paste) and chilly with soy sauce.

At Flavors, I met a rather hard working waiter by the name of Azli. He was a rather attentive waiter. When I helped myself to a cup of coffee, he immediately came to me and checked if the coffee was warm enough to my liking. He would ensure that our glasses were filled with water whenever the level in our glasses go down. As the food wasn’t that great for our kids, we decided to leave after a short while. There were a number of well dressed staff (in suits) in Flavors but to be frank, I don’t really know what are their duties. When I approached one of them at the payment counter, he immediately summoned Azli to come to the payment counter to prepare the bill and to take care of me. So, Azli was not only a waiter but a cashier as well! This waiter definitely had his hands full! When I gave my vouchers to Azli and informed him that I would be paying for my kids’ meals, Azli told me I couldn’t use the complimentary vouchers given by the event organiser. Apparently, the food vouchers given by the event organiser have a lower value and can only be utilised during weeknights. As I was about to reach for my wallet, Azli quickly added that since we have already eaten, he asked me not to worry about it. I thanked Azli for his great service and very kind gesture. I must say that it is people like Azli that help me to shape my idea of good and courteous service in a restaurant. All we need are good waiters rather than well dressed people who walked around and giving instructions.