Neighbourwood

Review Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (Recommended)

Address: 3427, Jln Kulim, Taman Bukit Mas, 14000 Bukit Mertajam, Pulau Pinang, Malaysia
Google Map Link: https://maps.app.goo.gl/NknQ51PLFDrEBTuTA
(Please refer to the Timings provided in the Google Map Link for the Operating Hours.)

🐔 Half Chicken 秘制烤鸡 = RM39.00
🍰 Anniversary (Cake) = RM25.00
☕ Long Black Coffee (Cold) = RM9.00

Service Charge = RM4.38

 Here is the Full Menu of the Eatery/Restaurant.
Prices are Accurate as of the Date of the Post.

Before I even entered the Restaurant I could see that this is a Modern Upper Class sort of Restaurant. 🤔 This is also the 1st time I've had someone open and hold the Door for me as I enter. Classy. 😅 And they do this for Every Customer whether entering or leaving the Restaurant.

The Interior of the Place was renovated in a Chic Modern Style as you can see. Nicely Airconditioned with relatively few customers on a Thursday Afternoon at around 12.00pm. ❄️😌 All the Staffs here were very Courteous and Polite and every Movement, every Action they did specifically focused on Customer Service. 👍

The Brother and Sister Team: Shawn and Jess 👨👩

The Whole Place appeared to be run by a Brother and Sister Team. Jess 👩 was like a Maitre'd (Head Service Staff) and Shawn 👨 was the Head Chef of this Place. Both of them looked very young in their Early 30s. Jess was the one that warmly introduced me and answered all of my enquiries nicely. ❤️

Although she wasn't into Cooking/Baking, we still had a very Enjoyable Conversation. While waiting for my Food, she even brought me for a Mini Tour to their 2nd Level where she showed me their Artisanal Bakery section. 🥖🍞  No kidding, 1st Floor was their Restaurant, 2nd Floor is their Bakery.

During the Mini Tour, we met Shawn her Brother who is the Head Chef. 👨‍🍳 Really Friendly Young Man, Shawn was Soft Spoken, but Very Knowledgeable and Passionate about the Culinary Arts. ❤️ So apparently he has been working in Various Hotel Restaurants for Many Years under Various Famous Chefs in the Past and decided to strike out on his own and opened this Neighbourwood Restaurant in 2020, and in just 2 Years was awarded the Michelin Bib Gourmand award. 🏆

When I say Shawn is Very Knowledgeable, he is REALLY VERY Knowledgeable. 👍 Every Single Dish that was served up, he would give a Very Detailed Explaination, the Type of Ingredients down to the Minute Details! 😳 I am someone who enjoys and appreciates the Culinary Arts and even I was overwhelmed by how detailed and dedicated he was. 😅 I guess this is how a Real Fine Dining Chef behaves? 👨‍🍳🤔

And it didn't sound like he was Bullsh*ting. This Guy REALLY knows his stuffs. (or is it? I'll touch upon this later) 🤔 Because this is a Higher-End Restaurant, I did my usual test that I usually do and requested for ALL of the Dishes to be served up at the same time, and I'm glad that they were able to do so. 👍 It took about 10 Mins for ALL of them to be served up together. Excellent. 👍

🐔 Half Chicken 秘制烤鸡 = RM39.00

In Google Reviews of this Place, this was one of the Most Highly Raved Dishes that got the Most Praises. 🐔🤔 Michelin even listed this as one of the 3 Signature Dishes in this place, the other 2 being a Berkshire Pork Loin 🐷 and a Fish en Papillote. 🐟 (Source: Michelin Guide)

Beautifully Presented, it is Half a Chicken, not Spring Chicken I might add, that is Completely Deboned 🐔 (save for 1 Wing Bone for Presentation Purpose) and the Whole thing was resting on what I initially thought was Cheese, but its actually a Yellow Gravy that I'd describe Almost Taste like Mayo but Very Much More Complex. 🍯🤔 This Gravy was Intensely Salty in a Good Way and has a Very Atas Taste to it. 🍯😋 It tasted like there was Alot of Work being done to it. The Menu mentioned "Pickled Garlic Miso / Au Jus" so I reckon that is probably what it is. 👍

The First Bite of this Chicken was its Beautiful Crispy Skin that crackles Crisp in the Mouth with a Slight Roasted Caramelized Taste. 🐔😋 Meat is Superbly Tender and Soft and this is the First Time I've eaten a Chicken that tastes like the Whole Chicken is Made out of Thigh Meat! 🐔😅 Even the Breast Meat tasted like Thigh Meat. 😅 Thats how Soft, Tender and Juicy it was.

Best of all throughout the Entire Time I was eating this Chicken, I never once felt Jelak. 😋 I never once thought it tasted Overly Chickeny at all especially when eating with that Beautiful Yellow Sauce. 🍯😋 I ate and ate and ate non-stop, and never felt a Single Sense of Jelak even till the last bite. Absolutely Amazing! ❤️

I really want to give Special Note to how Expertly Deboned this Half Chicken was. 🐔👍 Other than that Single Wing Bone, there was not a Single Piece of Bone in this Whole Chicken at all. 👍 This is actually not easy to do because it actually takes effort to really remove EVERY BONE, especially the Drummy and still have the Drummy maintain a Nice Looking Shape. 🍗👍

🍰 Anniversary (Cake) = RM25.00

There is a Very Interesting Story behind this Cake. So this is actually NOT on their Menu if you notice, more like a Special Secret Menu Item. 📜👍 As you can see, there are Several Layers in this Cake and while I forgot what each Layer consists of. 🍰😅 Shawn tells me that each Layer on this Cake is a Layer with Ingredients that either He or his Wife enjoys. So they decided to combine whatever they liked into this Cake and call it "Anniversary" because it was their Wedding Anniversary iirc. 🤵‍♂️👰‍♀️ Awww!!!

And the Amusing Thing is, after they combined all the Layers, they realized this Cake actually tasted like Ferrero Rocher hahaha! 🍰😅 And it really does taste like it. Not only the Taste, but the Texture is tastes just like Ferrero Rocher in a Cake Form. 🍰🍫 It is Slightly Less Sweet than a Ferrero Rocher though and I thought tasted very nice. 😋

The Little Dollop of Cream on the Side is not just Simple Whipped Cream with Sugar. It has an Intense Rich Milky Atas taste to it. 🥛😋 That said I don't feel it adds or take anything to the Cake. Not Something I can eat often obviously, I can probably eat this like maybe Once a Year? Hahaha. 🍰😅

☕ Long Black Coffee (Cold, No Sugar) = RM9.00

I must say this Coffee really surprised me. I had expected this to taste like a Typical Americano but its not. ☕🤔 Tasted Very Smooth and doesn't have a Siap Siap Aftertaste. 😋 This is also quite a Strong Coffee that can certainly wake you up. When I asked them about it, they say its a "Arabica Beans Medium Dark Roast". 🫘👍

Hahaha Ok, I think i've finally found an Ang Mo Coffee that I actually like now. ☕😋 Next time I'm in a Dedicated Coffee House, I will be ordering this "Arabica Beans Medium Dark Roast" to try. 🫘😋

Why did this Place not get my Highest Top Score?

Ok, Ok, so I wrote this Review until So Impressive, until like machiam Got Dragon Got Tiger 有龍有虎 🐲🐯 but why did this place not get my Highest Top Score? 🤔 Unfortunately, that is because as Excellent as the Food and the Service was, they committed One Major Critical Mistake. 🤔

The Original Cake I ordered was actually their Flourless Chocolate Cake 比利时巧克力蛋糕 (RM22.00) 🍰🤔 because as I am into Keto Cooking/Baking nowadays, I wanted to taste what a Michelin Restaurant would use to substitute for Flour because obviously Flour is the Most Basic Fundamental Component that you need to bake a Cake. 🤔 Without letting me know in advance that it was actually not available, they took their own initiative, and switched it for the Anniversary Cake instead! 🍰😳

When this Anniversary Cake was served to me, I had thought it was the Flourless Chocolate Cake I ordered. 🍰🤔 Only when we discussed about it, did Shawn mention that this is actually their Anniversary Cake instead. And he was quite a Smooth Talker, 一笔带过 casually mentioned because the Cake I wanted wasn't available, they thought I would enjoy this one too. 🍰🤔

Don't get me wrong. I did enjoy the Anniversary Cake and it did felt special because this was a Secret Item that was not on their Menu, 🍰📜 but it still didn't hide the fact that it was NOT the Cake I ordered at all. 🤔 I'll be honest, I was actually slightly displeased that I wasn't told in advance that the Original Cake that I ordered wasn't available in the 1st place. 🤔 I'm not the type that will kick up a fuss however, and it was a Friendly Conversation between us, so I didn't bring it up further. 🤔 But had it been a Fiercer more Demanding Customer, who knows how Ugly the Situation could have been? 🤔

This 一笔带过 that Shawn did, did not sit well with me. 🤔 It also sowed Seeds of Doubts if all that he discussed with me was just Smooth Talking after all? 🤔 This One Major Critical Mistake was the one that prevented me from giving them my Highest Top Score. 🤔 Such a Pity.

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Conclusion and Closing Thoughts

At a Total Combined Price of RM77.38 (S$24.00), this is No Doubt much more Expensive than Usual. 💵🤔 But Personally I feel the Price is definitely worth the Taste. Customer Service here is also really good and especially for Jess 👩 whom I felt went out of the way to make my Visit a Very Enjoyable One. 👍

Lets break down the Price of Each Dish and see if they are worth the Money shall we? 🤔

🐔 Half Chicken 秘制烤鸡 = RM39.00 (S$12.00)

Despite costing S$12.00, I feel this is worth the Money. This is not some anyhow suka suka Simple Roasted Chicken. 🐔😅 As you bite into this Chicken, you can feel that there is ALOT of Work being done to this. 👍

Everything from the Process of Deboning, 🦴 to the Seasoning, 🌿 to the Roasting, 🔥 the Gravy Mixing. 🍯 You are not only tasting just a Dish, you are tasting the the Hard Work and Effort that goes into this. 👍 This is not some Cheap Pasar Malam Fried Chicken is what I'm saying. 😅

🍰 Anniversary (Cake) = RM25.00 (S$7.50)

Pretty much the price of a Cafe Styled Cake that is sold in Singapore. 🍰🤔 Like I mentioned, this tastes Almost Exactly like Ferrero Rocher in a Cake Form. 🍰😅 If you are someone who enjoy Ferrero Rocher, you will almost certainly enjoy this one. But that is it, it is a Cake and nothing more. 🍰🤔

While I liked the Backstory of how it was conceived, and there is also obviously lots of Work that goes into it, ultimately I feel this is still just a Standard Cafe-Styled Cake. A Good Tasting Delicious Cake, but still, a Cake. 🍰🤔 If you don't like Cakes or don't feel like Dessert, feel free to skip this one.

☕ Long Black Coffee (Cold) = RM9.00 (S$2.80)

Expensive Cup of Coffee, but I liked this. In fact I'm happy to finally find the type of AngMo styled Coffee that I enjoyed. ☕👍 I look forward to explore more of this "Arabica Beans Medium Dark Roast" hahaha!




It was really a Shame that I cannot give this place my Highest Score due to that Major Critical Mistake. 🤔 Had it been a More Demanding Customer, who knows what would have happened? Such a Pity, because everything else was so good, only to have them stumble at this incident. 😞

Paying Sub-S$25.00 for everything here for me is worth the Money. 💵👍 I reckon it will probably be impossible to enjoy such Good Quality Foods and Service in a Similar Restaurant in Singapore. 🇸🇬😅

If you would like to enjoy an Affordable Michelin Awarded High End Atas Fine Dining here in Bukit Mertajam, I can totally recommend this place. 👍 Just make sure to Double-Check and Double-Confirm that they served you exactly what you ordered. 😅