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Thanks, v. That's very interesting. Of course, Malay contains loads of borrow words from Sanskrit and other Indian languages, from the times when lands inhabited by Malays, like the Malay Peninsula and large parts of Sumatra, were ruled by Hindu or Hindu-Buddhist kingdoms that had such a deep effect on Malay culture. Nevertheless, today, jambu is the word used in Malay for various varieties of guavas. It's often the case that words no longer mean what they used to, when they pass from language to language and centuries and millenia intervene.

What's the fruit at the bottom right-hand corner? Looks like some kind of custard apple-like fruit. Did they have any mangosteen? Or star apples? The rose apple is the one on the far left about the middle of the plate, right? In front of the banana, with shiny bright pink skin? I think I need to go to Penang, just to eat fruit! I really miss being able to eat lots and lots of fruit. And I agree, KFC in Malaysia is really good! ← Yes on the rose apple, which is called jambu air (water[y] guava) in Malay. "Star apple" produces a wide variety of Google image search results, encompassing at least 3 different fruits, so I can't help there. What Filipinos call Chico is called Ciku (old spelling: Chiku) in Malay - almost the same word. I never loved ciku; I just thought it was OK. I do love jambu air! Kristin, your kids are beautiful! I hope to get back to Malaysia some time. Such beautiful, delicious food!

The short answer has been given to you: There are loads of good restaurants that are inexpensive to moderate in New York. But the crucial point is: What price will your companions accept? Answer that, and we'll be able to give you more useful help. I think Emily also gives you a good suggestion that might work, depending on what your relationship with your wife and friends is like.

me too. ← Loved it. ← I liked it, too. It was funny.

In case any of you are interested: On Tuesday evening, I was part of a party of 16 at Cantoon Garden for dinner. My brother ordered one of the Chinese-language banquet sets for $198, after the waiter explained what the dishes (some of them, it turned out) were, and one or two more fish courses were substituted for frog (which most of the people at the banquet didn't like). A few other dishes were also ordered. Everything was shared around two combined tables, and there were plenty of leftovers that were taken home at the end of the banquet, but we also ate a lot, and the party was happy. I will describe the dishes we had to the best of my ability: Wonderful, soothing, unfishy-tasting Fish Soup, a single small bowl per person to start the meal. The first of several highlights of the meal. Circle-cut large carp slice with sliced onions, braised in a wonderful garlicky sauce, brown in color, that I can't easily describe - this was another one of the highlights. Crispy fried chicken with garlic - called "House Special Chicken" at several other restaurants, this was the best version I've had so far in New York, another highlight. Conch, scallops, and fried tofu stuffed with fish, with Chinese yellow chives, ginger, etc. - this was delicious and the only thing wrong with it was one piece of conch that was just too hard and chewy. Very good dish. Sauteed lobster with ginger and scallions - good rendition, good lobster meat. Very cartilaginous, fatty fish with bok choy - I thought this was the only unsuccessful dish. It was hard to eat, the fish didn't have much meat, and I didn't get the point. Orange flavor beef - best rendition I've had in New York, or at least in ages. Had plenty of whole dried hot peppers, large pieces of tangerine peel, and just tasted great! Glazed walnut prawns - the usual Hong Kong-style dish with the mayonnaise sauce. People who like the dish said it was a very good rendition, but I hate the mayonnaise sauce and didn't try the dish. Ong Choy sauteed with garlic - the usual, classic green-vegetable dish. We also got the same preparation with Gai Lan. Double Mushroom Mustard Greens - I think I liked this more than many other people did. I like mustard greens and mushrooms. Fried Rice - excellent rendition. Lots of non-rice substance that tasted great: Shrimps, ham, pork, eggs. I don't think I'm forgetting anything. Service was good. I would encourage any large group of people to inquire about the Chinese-language banquet sets and consider ordering one of them. Do what my brother did: Ask the waiter to explain what dishes are on the menu for the set.

Just a quick note to say that if you were thinking about having the lunch prix fixe at Anthos, just go to Kefi, instead. I was part of a party of two at lunch at Anthos today. The food was fine but just OK, not memorable. I think I may have even had some better meals at Kefi, for less money. So while it's very possible that there is truly great food to be had at Anthos - I wouldn't know - I guess you may have to pay a lot of money for it. For the record, my first course was the chicken livers with smoked bacon, capers, etc; his was the green salad with feta and fennel. We both had hake at a $5 supplement for our second course; he sent his back for additional cooking because it was cold in the middle. It came with couscous and a very nice lemon sauce. My dessert was the yogurt mousse with a nice oaten crust; his was the chocolate pudding cake with olive ice cream (which he found weird but I liked). Like I said, the meal was fine, but it wasn't a bargain, and I don't plan on coming back but surely do plan on going to Kefi again. By the way, the hostess was very nice and the waiters were OK, so I have no complaints there, though my dining partner observed that our service was slow at times.

That whole meal looks delicious! But none of those vegetables look like kangkung to me. What I know as kangkung (aka kangkong - the old Malay spelling and the way the word is pronounced in Malaysia [or at least most of it], too) is usually called "water spinach" or "hollow vegetable" here. The Cantonese name for it is ong choy (I've also heard "kong choy").

Tandoori spiced I understand.

Tandoori spiced or Thai spiced? I think I would like that butternut sorbet.

Was the butternut sorbet savory? Also, as a person who's somewhat familiar with Thai cuisine, I'd like to know what "Thai spiced" means.

I'd highly recommend a tasting menu of fantastic modern tapas at Degustation, which is well within your budget for the meal, but they, too, seem to be closed on Sunday.

Thanks, Doddie. I'll try to remember these new (to me) Filipino terms.

I was wondering whether the women in kerchiefs in your street photo were nuns or Muslims. It sounds like they were probably nuns. When you get a chance, please explain or remind us what pasalubong and ensaimada are. (I know what empanadas are, from experience with Mexican food, and I know what adobo is.)

"My mother and I had halo halo, and my tita had a kind of candy (pudding?) made with carabao’s milk." Carabao. That must be the same as Malay "kerbau": Waterbuffalo. Yes, I know all about Italian mozzarella di bufala and so forth, but European "buffalo" are not the same as Asian waterbuffalo, and I never knew anyone did anything with waterbuffalo milk. As far as I know, in Malaysia, the only thing that was ever done with waterbuffalo was to eat the meat, which is something like beef but leaner and has to be boiled for a long time because it's so tough. You asked what people do with cow hoofs other than make stock. Jamaicans make cowfoot soup, which I quite like. I'll bet they're good in stews, too.

Thank you. If you didn't exist, some inspired one would have to create you! I look forward to the rest of this report. It's interesting how many different influences Korean food has assimilated. Ketchup, I'm guessing, is a legacy of American troops? And cole slaw, too? Mayonnaise? Which items come from Germany, other than beer? Potato salad, perhaps, or was that introduced by Midwestern American troops?

It's white bean and chili pepper puree and lemon juice, and some herbs. I was in there last Thursday and asked! ← Did you have the 10-course tasting menu?

meh. Not worth the lunchtime supplement IMO. ← Totally agreed. Good but not worth a supplement.

Peter, you posted about "main lobster." Is that Maine lobster? That buffet was an interesting and in some ways incongruous mixture of different styles. Very interesting. I hope you stay well, and I look forward to the next installment!

You went to McDonalds, didn't you?

Make sure you never go to Malaysian restaurants, because when my brother made the mistake of inviting a woman who's deathly allergic to shrimp to Skyway, it turned out that almost their entire menu had belacan (shrimp paste) among the ingredients, even when you would have no particular reason to suspect that.

The old "emperor's new clothes" theory. BTW, didn't everyone love Artichoke Pizza at one time? Haven't heard about it in months. ← I've never loved it, but if you want to "hear about it," go to Chowhound. They still talk about it plenty over there.

Well, Red Egg hasn't been mentioned yet in this thread. I haven't been there yet, but there's been a lot of talk about it on Chowhound: Has anyone been to "red egg" in chinatown Dim Sum this Sunday, Chinatown (long thread that includes more recent discussion of Red Egg, among other places)

Boo, Kefi is on Columbus between 84th and 85th Sts., and is now open for lunch as well as dinner. I love it. They serve Greek food of incredibly consistent high quality. You'd need reservations for dinner, especially on a weekend, but perhaps lunch would be fine as walk-ins; I don't know, because I've only ever had dinner there. Children are welcome there. You'll enjoy Balthazar. Spotted Pig, the one time I went maybe 3 or so years ago, was super-crowded (half hour wait at least, I think) and the food was kind of pricey for what it was, and unimpressive. I understand that what my cousin and I ordered wasn't what I've since found out is their forte, but neither our drinks nor our food were more than just solid, slightly fancified ordinary food to us, and I'm having trouble even remembering what they were. The noise level was very high, too. I wonder whether it's a really suitable place for a child. You're staying in Soho, so why aren't you planning any trips to Chinatown? P.S. I think you're the first person I've seen or heard giving a wholehearted compliment to the creperie on Ludlow St. Ever since I asked someone carrying a crepe from there how it was, and they said it was "OK," in a deprecating tone, I've continued to pass the place by without buying anything. Do any other eGullet members like that place, and if so, which crepes have you had there?

I struggle with that. I consider them in the neighborhood, but I also acknowledge Eastern Parkway to be the boundary. That would put them in whatever neighborhood is on the other side of Eastern Parkway. Some people used to call the several-block stretch in which they're located its own neighborhood, called Institution Park, but that seems lame. In any event, I'm happy to claim them. ← I suppose that other neighborhood is Crown Heights, which is where both my parents (my mother spent her entire childhood near the Botanic Gardens) would situate the museum and everything else past Grand Army Plaza. For whatever that's worth.

eternal, I hope that some of our KL-area members see this post and reply soon, but just in case no-one gets to it in time, keep in mind that aside from public transportation, there are plenty of taxis in KL, so you really aren't very limited. I even stayed in Petaling Jaya (outside of KL) and took taxis back to the hotel late at night, when the LRT had stopped running. All that said, if you want to be in an area where there are a lot of stalls, you probably want to be in or near Chinatown, which centers around Jalan Petaling, or the Masjid India area. Bukit Bintang is interesting, too, but at least as I remember it from my last trip in 2003, not really a neighborhood with so many stalls; instead, there are many hotels, restaurants, and night clubs on Jalan Bukit Bintang and environs. People who live in or are more current on KL, please correct any mistakes in my post and add useful information.