#Candy Gets Hungry #7: Best affordable Churros in KL - A Street Churros food review

As seen on the title, today’s post is all about being crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside. I’ve never been to Paris but a fact for sure is that I’ve never had a good piece of churro until I’ve stumbled across this gem in town call Street Churros. I’ve first came across Street Churros at 1 Utama but too bad my busy schedule forbids me to try it *sobs* Lucky for me, I got an invitation the other day to review their churros and drinks at their latest branch at Berjaya Times Square!

I got to Times Square around 3PM and our review session started with the owner of Street Churros, Dato’ Joe Tan giving us a brief introduction on Street Churros. During the introduction, he had also shared with us the process of making the magic happen as well as introducing us to Street Churro’s best sellers.

 A glimpse of their menu

 First to be introduced would be their churros. Because, Street Churros, right? On the tray is their cinnamon, chocolate & cheese churro along with various dipping sauces. Dipping sauces available are chocolate, cream cheese, butter scotch, and blueberry. Their churros are selling for RM4.90 each while their dipping sauces are RM1.50 each.

One thing you guys need to know is that Street Churros only serves fresh churros to their customers at an affordable cost! The machines and ingredients used are also imported :) It was quite fun seeing the machine produce fresh dough for the churro. They have two machines to produce two shapes of churros - one is for the standard horseshoe churros, while the other is for filling churros. Once the produced dough meets the quality check for the perfect size & shape, they will be deep fried to a golden shade.

After frying, the churros will be set aside on a tray to cool for a short while before going through the coating station. Churros will be coated either in cinnamon/chocolate/cheese flavoured powder.

Here we have the drinks station where they brew their handcrafted beverages. Soon you’ll find out my favourite drink and churro from them! ;)

Original cinnamon churro with plain soft serve ice cream (RM7.90) Churros already tasted great especially when it’s warm. When you fuze a hot and cold dessert treat together, it just becomes the perfect duo.

The Ice Cream Churros are also available in a variety of toppings to choose from namely - plain (RM7.90), mango, choco choco, and choco berry (RM8.90).

Next to be introduced was their Shakes. On the left we have O’My Coconut and on the right we have O’My Mango. Both RM9.90 each.

 Fruit Ade (RM7.90) - Available in Lemon, Passionfruit, and Korean citron

A short history for those that are new to Street Churros like me haha

Soon later we were given a paper to fill in the food and drinks we were interested to try. Trust me, I was really tempted to order EVERYTHING on the menu ok. Without any further ado, let’s see what I ordered! 

From left to right we have their Cinnamon, chocolate, & cheese churro! (RM4.90 ea) These churros are shaped as a horseshoe because it is believed that horseshoes bring good luck to you! So cute to think of that right! Plus for RM4.90 each I think it’s a pretty fair price.

All their churros has the identical ‘crunchy on the outside, soft on the inside’ requirement checked. However, in terms of flavour, I find that their cinnamon sugar churro was the best. The balance of sugar and cinnamon ratio was just right for the perfect balance of sweetness.

The Cheese Churro simply screamed childhood in my mind. You know our favourite cheesy childhood snack Cheezels? Now imagine that yummy cheesy goodness all over a warm piece of churro. Personally, this wasn’t my fav but I wouldn’t say that it’s a bad flavour either, so if you’re a fan of Cheezels, I guarantee you’ll love this.

Their Chocolate Churro’s flavour was an interesting one. The typical chocolate churro will be coated in just basic chocolate powder & sugar but Street Churro elevates it with a touch of cinnamon flavour to it. I’m not sure if there is cinnamon in it but I do taste a faint cinnamon flavouring to it which does give off a refreshing vibe. I guess you could say this churro tasted like Christmas? :p Next up let’s welcome the filling churros.

Filling churros are selling for RM7.90 each, available in three flavours to choose from. (Chocolate, cream cheese, and custard) I’ve decided to try two out of the three - Chocolate & Cream Cheese. The photo above is their Cream Cheese Filling Churro. Because the churro is warm, the cream cheese was pretty messy to eat so just a heads up to get some tissues on hand if you’re planning to try this. If I wasn’t mistaken, the cream cheese churro is coated with cinnamon and sugar around it which surprisingly is quite a good match for the cream cheese filling.

Here’s the Chocolate Filling Churro. The churro on its own has the exact same crunch and coating as the chocolate flavoured horseshoe churros. Though with the addition of the chocolate filling, I personally find this combination a little too sweet for my liking. Though comparing this and the cream cheese one, I actually prefer this better haha!

Now we have our last churro treat of the day, Ice Cream Churro! Their ice cream churros are available in 4 flavours - plain (RM7.90 ea), mango, choco choco, and choco berry (RM8.90 ea). Being a chocolate fan, of course I chose to try Choco Choco Ice Cream Churro. The horseshoe churro was their cinnamon flavoured one which I think went well with this combination. This was one of the last churros served so at this point I was already very very full. Thankfully, the ice cream was a nice and light one. It had a very faint milk flavour to it and it wasn’t too sweet either so we managed to finish it despite being very full!

Now that we have covered all the churros I’ve tried, of course we can’t miss out on the drinks, right? The one above is one of their top sellers - Iced Green Tea Latte (RM8.90 iced / RM7.90 hot) On such a hot day, I’ve opted for the iced cold option. Before I talk about the drink itself, can we take a moment to appreciate the cup? The blue Street Churro logo label around the cup is SUPER THICK and I find that super useful because you know when it comes to cold drinks, it gets pretty cold when you’re walking around the mall with it. If I’m walking around the mall with a cup of cold drink, I /have/ to wrap it with tissue and sometimes when you’re rushing also wrap until not pretty la haha. So basically in my opinion, this thick blue label (whatever you call it haha) looks great! + functionality on point.

As for the green tea latte itself, I’ll say that the matcha taste is just right though personally I find the beverage a little too sweet. I’ll definitely grab one of these again but keep in mind to tell them to make a less sweet one instead. For RM8.90, I wouldn’t say it’s a very cheap beverage but looking from the point where it’s a decent size drink plus it’s an iced green tea latte I think RM8.90 for it is considered cheap in the market.

 Caramel Macchiato. RM8.90 for hot and RM9.90 iced. This drink was not my cup of ‘latte’ as I personally find it a bit too sweet and too bitter for me.

O’My Coconut - selling for RM9.90, this too was one of their best selling beverages and I can see why. As Malaysians we all love a nice and chunky ice blended coconut shake to quench our thirst on a hot and sunny day. I really love this drink as you could actually taste the coconut in it, only thing was as it got to the bottom it tasted a little too sweet because I didn’t stir the caramel on top haha.

This drink was by far the most special drink I’ve had on the day. This is their Spanish latte - RM8.90 for hot / RM9.90 for iced. Two words to describe this: My Favourite. First things first, this is my first ever cup of Spanish latte so I have nothing in mind to compare this to but for a coffee beverage in general, this has a balance bittersweet taste to it. Not too sweet, not too bitter, just nice. Plus, this coffee beverage has cinnamon in it! Which really makes it stand out because I’ve personally never drank any latte with cinnamon in it. On the side note, I’m actually really glad that Street Churros is in 1 Utama because I know that I won’t have to go all the way to Times Square just to have another cup of Spanish Latte haha! (shows how much I love this drink ok)

Overall it was a great food tasting session. I really love the idea of a “made to order churro store” with affordable prices. My personal favourites have got to be their Cinnamon horseshoe churro and their Spanish latte. So highly recommend these to all first timers like me! Street Churros is actually still very new in Malaysia and is looking forward to expand their branches. I’m happy that they’re at 1 Utama, but if you guys want them nearer to you, just go over to their fb page and hint them! *wink wink*

I was so full that I got myself a little paper bag to bring home any leftovers for my sister to try! (don’t waste food ok!!) Surprisingly after a few hours, the churros were still crunchy! Plus points ok.

 Thanks for the invitation Street Churros and I hope this review comes in handy for those planning to try Street Churros or are simply hunting for a yummy piece of churro that isn’t going to make your wallet cry! Don't forget to share this out to all your churro-kakis! 

Oh and, Happy Chinese New Year! 

Street Churros Berjaya Times Square

 Lot LG-36

 Imbi, 55100 Kuala Lumpur, 

Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur, 

Malaysia

* This was an invited food tasting event coverage but the review above is my honest opinion*

Candy Gets Hungry #6: Everything is Popssible - A Magi Planet Popcorn Studio review

Work is starting to pile up these few days, which is actually a good thing for me since I personally like how it keeps me occupied. Though I must admit, staring at the computer screen for long hours does drain my energy and give me constant headaches @_@ Anyways, to those reading this post, I just wanted to pop in and give a short review on these yummy popcorns that has been keeping me and my colleagues at work company as a yummy addictive office snack. :p

Before I begin, I would like to thank All Young/Magi Planet for sending these popcorns to me to try. I won’t dwell in much about Magi Planet but you know there’s always that one store at shopping malls giving out free popcorn samples? I’m not sure if there are other brands out there that does the same, but the ones I always see giving out free samples generously are from Magi Planet (formerly known as Planet Popcorn) And when knowing that Magi Planet was rebranded from Planet Popcorn, I already knew that it’ll be good!

So, as I’ve mentioned earlier, Magi Planet has sent me a bundle of 8 packets of popcorn to try (https://goo.gl/cqoepL), 4 flavours in total. Namely, Chili Cheese, Crystal Salted Caramel, Takoyaki, and Corn Soup. Their popcorns are available in two sizes, 1 regular size pack as well as a handy “travel pack”. To identify which packet was which flavour, I had to look at the back where there is a label with the flavour, grammage, ingredients etc listed on it. However, a quick recommendation for the brand would be to include an English label for those who does not read mandarin. Now moving on~ Let’s find out which flavour did I love the best and the least :o Also I have rated the popcorns below next to the name with the highest being 5 ♡s

Chili Cheese ♡♡♡♡♡

This was by far my favourite! I’m not a fan of spicy food but there’s just something about this flavour that draws me in so much! This flavour has a sweet and salty taste to it. All the popcorns had a fluffy crunch which was pretty nice because it doesn’t stick to my teeth even though they were both soft and crunchy and the same time!! Though for those that would prefer a solid crunch when it comes to their popcorns, keep this in mind alright? As for those that isn’t into spicy flavours like me, I would  recommend this to you guys because it has a nice cheesy flavour to it with just a touch of spice. I did wish that this was a little less sweet though!

Corn Soup ♡♡

I’m surprised that this flavour really lived to its name! In fact, it was the only flavour that truly wow-ed me because it felt like something I’ve never tried before. I loved the corn flavour in it but wasn’t so big of a pepper fan. The pepper wasn’t spicy or hot but rather I personally dislike strong pepper flavouring in my food. Apart from that I did find this flavour slightly sweeter than I personally wanted it to be. Some of my colleagues really loved it though!!

Takoyaki ♡♡♡

To me this didn’t really taste like takoyaki but rather those sweet-savoury Japanese biscuits with seaweed on them? Yup! I think that’s the best way I could describe this flavour. Although it doesn’t taste like what it’s called, I’d say it’s close? Overall taste of this is pretty tasty :)

Crystal Salted Caramel ♡♡♡♡

This is by far the most popcorn-like flavour a popcorn could ever get. This flavour will bring you back to the basics but I highly recommend it to those who finds the typical caramel popcorns too sweet because in my opinion this was actually the least sweet out of the bunch I’ve tried. If you’re concerned about the saltiness from the Himalaya salt used, fret not because only a touch of salt was added and it actually gave a great flavouring to it :)

Overall, I think these flavours tasted great. Although when it comes to flavours, I do believe that it is a hit and miss sort of thing for everyone depending on our individual preferences. But one thing for sure is that these flavours really do live up to its given name, so good job on that Magi Planet!

If you’re interested in getting your hands on these popcorns, I have a promo code for you guys! Just key in CANDACELOVEPOPCORN for RM10 off your purchase upon checking out :) Just remember, everything is popssible!!

Until next time! 

*** Although these popcorns were sent to me, the review above is based on my honest opinions ***

Candy Gets Hungry #5: Cheese wheel pasta in Petaling Jaya @ Jekyll & Hyde, Empire Damansara

I haven't done a 'Candy Gets Hungry' post in a pretty long time! So here's another fancy one to share with you guys!

Couple weeks back I was at Empire Damansara attending Cure's media event in which you could read about it HERE :) I remember about a week before the event, I watched one of Buzz Feed's "worth it" videos featuring pasta. That's when the cravings started to kick in but!!! I fought it!....Until the next day I came across a facebook ad on Jekyll & Hyde's cheese wheel pasta and gave into temptation. So since I knew that I was gonna be at Empire Damansara til 5, I might as well stay for dinner so I've decided to share that post to my boyfie. Thus, he had became my calorific partner in crime. 

Jekyll & Hyde at Empire Damansara has two sections. Hyde is a gastropub + cafe and Jekyll has a classier fine dining sort of setting. This is actually my second visit to Jekyll & Hyde. My first visit there was an impromptu one with Kirstin. We had their pork bolognese spaghetti lunch set that comes with a glass of bottomless ice lemon tea for RM15. The meal size was a decent portion, however if you're a big eater, it might not be filling enough. Personally I haven't came across many places that serves pork bolognese and the only other place besides of Jekyll & Hyde that I know of is J&D Espresso. Both places served pretty good pork bolognese but I personally think Jekyll & Hyde's lunch set was the more "value for the buck" option! 

Without delaying any further, let's hop back into our main topic! So me and my boyfriend was there for dinner because the cheese wheel pasta is only available from 6PM-10:30PM on weekdays and 11AM to 10:30PM on weekends. When we got there, we enquired about their cheese wheel pasta and the waiter then led us to their posh looking section, Jekyll. The interior looked fancy, a complete opposite of their gastropub cafe next door (which is the one I had my lunch set at previously) Once seated, we were each given a menu and that's when I've started deducting a couple marks from the place. This isn't coming from a design perspective but rather a customer's perspective. I flip through a menu to decide what I want based on my cravings + financial capability. The pasta/carbs & soup section was very uninformative. If the cheese wheel pasta was a permanent menu item available at those hours, I'd suggest having that on the menu with the price listed unless you're telling me that the prices varies every day. 

The soup of the day - Potato Bacon soup (RM18) Taste wise of this soup was alright but I would've liked it better if the soup was strained because it wasn't as smooth as I wanted it to be.

I'm not sure if it's just me but if the two menu items I want to order does not have a pricing on the menu and I'm already seated in a fancy interior restaurant, I'll start to panic thinking if I could actually afford the meal or I'll have to walk out. So since their menu wasn't very helpful, we had to ask what soup and pasta was available and also the price. Which did irritate me a little. Thankfully, both menu items were within our budget la haha.

Next and the only "main" dish we ordered was their cheese wheel pasta with bacon bits and prawns. (RM42) The portion was large enough for the two of us because the cheesy cream sauce is pretty filling. But Yhang told me he could actually finish the whole plate hahaha! Too bad they didn't have any other pastas available because I only had cravings for pasta and if we were to order two cheese wheel pasta, it would've been too much for us. On the side note, I actually appreciate the waitress for letting us know that one plate of cheese wheel pasta was enough for the two of us. Because after finishing the soup and pasta, we had just enough room in our stomach for a glass of butterscotch milk from Harajucube.

 The pasta was delicious so this was definitely my "mood saver" of the night. When the soup didn't wow me, I was praying so hard that the pasta will. The prepping session of our meal was rather interesting to watch as they've precooked the pasta in the kitchen and began tossing the pasta, prawns and bacon on the block of cheese to evenly coat the pasta. 

and viola. Cheesie goodness. 

Would I come back for the pasta? Definitely. It's not everywhere you'll find Cheese Wheel pasta in Malaysia and I think paying RM42 for it was a fair price. In fact for the ingredients given, four big prawns + bacon bits, and also because not many places offers this dish in Malaysia, it's worth your RM42! So lets say you're planning to try their cheese wheel pasta with a friend, you can just split the bill and it'll be RM21 a person. Ok la, it's still on the pricier side for a meal but I think it's a standard cafe/restaurant price for pastas in shopping malls and most non-halal western dining places. Plus, you're paying for the atmosphere too! As for the soup, I think I'll make a past unless they're serving a different soup on my next visit. 

||Ratings||

Taste: 7/10 (Pasta was good, but the soup would've been better if it was smoother)

Price: 6/10 (It's the standard cafe/restaurant price but it's still considered pricey for an everyday meal)

Service: 8/10 (Waiters there were pretty friendly :) )

Plating: 5/10 (My soup wasn't instagram-worthy) 

Would I revisit? Yes. 

Suggestions: Update the menu more variety of available pasta[s] with the prices please :)