Restoran Sri Titingan Univilla

Now when it comes to seafood, its been known that Tawau produces one of the freshest and somewhat less expensive (although these days I beg to differ) variety there is in Malaysia. I'm not exaggerating either, since the dude from that Jalan-Jalan Cari Makan show also mention about this when he visited Kota Kinabalu recently. But to avoid all those tourist traps (because believe me, certain restaurants will hiked the prices if they found out that you're not local), I would like to suggest this place to you. So seafood lovers, rejoice!

While I'm not exactly a fan of seafood (I'm allergic to most sea life except fish - poor old me), my family members however did not have any problems with it and will gladly go to a seafood restaurant without me in a heartbeat. And trust me, that happens a lot these days. So usually when you go to a seafood restaurant, the non-seafood dishes (such as fried rice, fried mee etc) are not as good as their main priority but I'm happy to report that I finally found a place in this restaurant. I've ordered their Nasi Goreng Lalap Ayam (one of the local fave) and their version of the meal was not only unique, it's also pretty good as well. We also had Ikan Masak 3 Rasa, Mix Vegetables, Ayam Masak Mangga Thai (really tangy) and my mom's Nasi Goreng Thai (with fried prawns). A definite thumbs up for their sambal. And according to my family (I'm taking their word for it since I'll switch to itchy mode should I ever try seafood) their seafood dishes (especially the fish) are also lovely. For a reasonable big fish, the price is pretty cheap. My mom (the ever 'price conscious lady') is raving about it as well. And I'm just warning you, you'll be seeing A LOT of Mixed Vegetable dish in my reviews since mom has made it her life long quest to find the No.1 dish in that category.

Although I do not have a problem with their waiters since they're attentive enough, I'm still baffled at the lack of waiters employed. It's probably the owner's way to cut costs but come on, only 2 waiters at such a huge venue (imagine your typical industrial rental that was originally designed to be a workshop - or some other industrial stuff) should be a crime. And I refuse to believe that such a successful place (people flocked to the place almost every day) did not want to spend some money on... say, a TV because the place is so bare and unappealing in appearance. I just hope that the branch somewhere at Batu 2 Jalan Apas (Jalan Tawau Lama to be precise) is better looking than this one. You'll find this version at the shop lots on Taman Univilla. You just drive through the main road near the housing estate, you can't missed it.

** Current status - Has been closed (as of December 2014)

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Kedai Kopi Jafre Mee Tauhu

Aha! So if you thought that I don't do breakfast, then think again folks. Today I'm focusing on what makes us cranky in the wee mornings (okay maybe besides having to get up to go to work), that is breakfast! And this is the place to go if you're ever going to Tawau just to have breakfast. It's where almost everyone in Tawau are heading to when they thought of mee tauhu to eat. And yup, in case you're wondering mee tauhu (fried mee + a variety of tofu) is definitely the numero uno breakfast meal for the people of Tawau. Heck, we should probably make it our official breakfast food already!

Okay so enough with my unnecessary-yet-I'm-still-doing-it intros. The place is situated at the most unlikely place.. wait for it... an industrial site at Batu 2 1/2 Jalan Apas. Over 90% of the shops in the area are related in some way to vehicles so you really need to go deeper into the area to find the shop (and I really do mean deeper). There's also a branch at Jalan Sin Onn (very near to the police headquarters at Jalan Air Panas) if you can't find this one but with a little dedication (and circling the place like a shark) I'm sure you'll be able to find it. So what's so special about this place? I mean, there must be some other places that also sell mee tauhu right? Well for one, you can pretty much summed up their entire menu in one breath. And I'm not being sarcastic here either. Their menu consist of Mee Tauhu, Mee Ikan and Nasi Kuning. Yup, all breakfast items only. But eventhough they might be focusing on these 3 meals, they at least made sure that each and every item are delicious. The sauces for their tauhu are well seasoned (unlike some places that are usually bland and even tasteless) and my personal favourite the Ikan Masak Merah (believe me, you would want to try it with their fried mee - pretty awesome!) is just right when it comes to its taste. Although for some reason, the amount of fried mee had been reduced in the recent years, it is still a simple yet yummy meal. They also have a simple bulls eye egg to go with the plain fried mee (should you have a very limited budget, since this place has been listed in the 1Malaysia sites) that's as delicious when you tried it with their sambal.

Do come to the shop a bit early thought since they're only opened for half a day (they closes around 12-1pm) and the place are almost always packed with people during their peak hours (around 9-10am).

** Current status - Has relocated to the Batu 3 Jalan Apas area, same row as Bentol Mini Market (as of Sept 2016)

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Usrah Hub Cafe & Butik

I've actually wanted to write a review about this particular place for sometime now but for some reason, I usually overlooked them in my to do list. I got caught up doing other reviews that I normally forgot the places that I've been to days before that. So after whipping myself up (lazy lazy lazy), finally here we are! The cafe is situated at Perdana Jaya (yup, I finally figure out the name of the buildings that surrounded Giant Hypermarket) and it's right beside a popular indo cafe (review coming soon near you) and yes, it is also a boutique for muslim women's fashion (but that's on the first floor of the property, we'll just focus our attention on the ground level). Since it is geared towards muslim women in particular, the decor is obviously very feminine and cosy. Very homey as well. Oh and they also have magazine racks nearby for your viewing pleasure and an interesting collection of Coca Cola tin cans from around the world on display (not sure if that has got anything to do with the overall concept but hey, I'm not complaining).

It's a shame that for some reason, the cafe is not as popular as their rival beside them. Again I think it hurt them a bit in terms of customer counts because they have to compete with said indo cafe but then again, that's business! And I firmly believe that if you have a stable menu, people will still flock to your place. But is their food really good? Hmmm.. I say it's so so. Me and my partner ordered their Chicken Tom Yam Soup, Ayam Masak Pedas and Ikan Masak 3 Rasa.  I actually think that their menu is pretty good and the way the food was cooked was really nice and quite tasty (my favourite word) but it's unfortunate that their food supply are not freshly stocked. I think that because of the number of customers per day are not that many, they tend to store the food in the fridge for a couple of days. Hence the not so fresh finishing product. I've eaten a fried chicken from the same joint (mind you, this is not my first rodeo here) and the insides of the meal is still pretty raw and just not fresh. Such a shame cause they do have yummy desserts. They also provide an awesome line of Hari Raya biscuits in their stores.

If I'm not mistaken, they also had a branch up at Eastern Plaza, but under a slightly different name (I meant the cafe, not the boutique - they also have a branch of their boutique on a different floor at EP) cause I noticed that they have almost identical menus & desserts. Even the magazine & book racks are very similar (I felt like a genius for figuring this one out, hehehe...). And the name of the place is also not a typo okay, it does spelt like that.

** Current status - Has been closed (as of August 2015)

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Indocorner

I don't know about other places outside of Tawau, Sabah but here we have what I called the 'indo food frenzy'. There's quite a number of 'indo cafes' mushrooming around the district in the past couple of years. And what the heck is this indo cafes you ask? I guess since we're the nearest to Indonesia (via Tarakan - google them people) there's bound to be influences from that particular neighbouring country. And there's nothing wrong with that since I'm a true believer of good food and if these food originated from Indonesia, then I say bring it on! Indonesian food are synonymous to strong spices, sweetness and bright colours to which I'm a die hard fan of. And their sambal (if done right of course) is still the best in the world by far!

So moving on before I ramble about other semi-unrelated things. A natural gift, I know.. Huhuhuhu.. Among all of the indo cafes, this is one of the newest. Well, at least I think it is since I've only recently discover it by cruising along Kubota Square. Situated just beside the Maybank office, the cafe is previously a different other cafe that I can't seem to remember the name. Sigh! I'm definitely lapsing in the memory department. Their decor is a simple yet eye-catching place with a relaxed atmosphere. I also needed to mention the friendly and somewhat very eager-to-please waiters working dedicatedly at the cafe. It may be due to the fact that there isn't that many patrons around during the time (which was a shame since their 'rival' across the street is fairing much better). Anyway, the most important thing to focus here are the food. I've ordered their Nasi Lemak with Chicken Curry and... well, I really tried to bring myself to say that I loved it but I just can't lie. The chicken curry is okay, maybe average and the sambal is tasty but I have a problem with the rice. It's hard to chew and swallow, the same goes for their anchovies. But I've also ordered their Fried Banana with Cheese (which is the staple item for any indo cafes) and I can't help but compare them with the other indo cafes. While it is not bad, I have to say that I've had better ones. Although do not worry since my partner in crime tried their Grilled Chicken with Blackpepper Mushroom Soup (okay, this is quite new to me since I can't remember any other indo cafes serving western dishes in their menu) and he says that it's lovely. And I'm still rooting for them to improved their tastes since the place has potential (and the fact that I really like the people working there, even the owner is smiley)

** Current status - Still in operation (as of October 2013)

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Restoran Rasa Sedap

Well, I did mention before that I'm half Chinese right? No? Never mind then... I grew up eating my mom's cooking so I have develop a taste for Chinese cuisines. But don't get me wrong, I'm still a huge tempe (yes, that tempe) loving lady in my regular diet. So among the few places that I would go to have myself some good old Chinese gourmet cooking is this place, the Rasa Sedap Restaurant. Almost always full during weekends and major holidays, this pretty popular place is situated in Fajar Complex, right next to the Richbaby (if I'm not mistaken - I'm not a clubber so my mind doesn't keep track of the latest hangouts) pub.

So what's so special about this place? Well, for one thing.. your orders landed on your table pretty swiftly. This is definitely a plus since like I've mention above, it's packed with customers during the weekends. But does the quality of the food have to be sacrificed? I'm happy to report that that's a no! One of their dishes that I can't seem to get out of my head (and of course, my little ol' stomach) is their Special Fragrance Fried Bee Hoon (seen below). They have manage to combine the 2 things that I loved, bee hoon and dried prawns in one dish. Oh and also some crunchy fried onions (another munchy, weird fave). Yeah yeah.. I was a big sceptic when the captain of the waitresses recommended me this dish but after only one I-don't-know-if-this-is-a-good-idea try, I was hooked! Mannn.. It makes my mouth water every time I thought about it. My dad's favorite is definitely their Butter Prawn (not among the pictures though since it's girls-night-out when I took them) and mom always ordered their Spicy Chicken and Sweet & Sour Sliced Fish.The decor has somewhat a regular Chinese restaurant feel to it, but to be honest it's a similar design to those of its previous owners/tenants. Yup, just goes to show just how long I have been coming to the place to notice such things. Meaning, there isn't much renovation going on for maybe.. the past 5-6 years beginning from it's predecessors. Oh, and it's worth mentioning that they also have the 'no pork' policy.

** Current status - Has been closed (as of July 2020)

Updated on 12/01/2014 - They had recently added a newly renovated floor right above the vicinity, as seen below. I've also added some new food pictures from my current visit, which includes the Butter Prawn, Stir Fried Vegetables, Mango Chicken and Fried Rice

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