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Noon time was lunch time (obviously). This time around, it was a date with a few friends at New Paris Restaurant in SS2, Petaling Jaya. Since I’ve neither been to the place before this nor heard of it, I really didn’t know what to expect. Plus with a name like ‘New Paris’, I thought it might be some fancy shmancy cafe type place. Just to be on the safe side, I asked my friend whether lunch was going to blow my budget out of the water (I had exactly RM5.00 to my name). He told me that it wasn’t going to be one of those cheapo RM5.00 lunches. Gee, that dashed my hopes real quick.

I later found out that the restaurant was one of those red table cloth Chinese restaurants where you ordered dishes with rice. Located in a busy district of Petaling Jaya, it occupied three shop lots and was packed with tables and people. Although it was crowded, the tables were placed in such a way that it didn’t feel cramped.

It wasn’t too difficult to find a parking space out back. Don’t bother waiting for one in front of the restaurant itself cause you’re going to wind up waiting a very long time. Instead, head towards the area behind the restaurant where there’s a small parking lot. Five of us met up at the restaurant proper and sat down for a Chinese New Year lunch at 1.00pm.

Grazer and Charmaine had arrived some 10 minutes earlier and already ordered the dishes:

• Thai Chicken (I think): RM15.00
• Fried Japanese Tofu: RM9.00
• Fried Vegetables: RM6.00
• Fried Egg: RM6.00

We also had Yee Sang prior to lunch. That was the fifth time for me this year. The yee sang wasn’t too bad, although I’ve tasted better. I think we had 0.5 ‘mai’ for RM22.50, which is a little on the pricey side.

Anyway, it didn’t take long after for the food to arrive. The chicken was the best dish. It was deep fried and smothered in sweet and spicy gravy. The chicken skin was crispy and tasted damn good. There is nothing much to say about the tofu and the egg, as they are both standard dishes and what I expected. However, the vegetables (both the dish and the vegetable they used to line the other dishes) left much to be desired. It looked as though it had been left in storage for much too long. The leaves were withered and old.

Towards the end of the meal, I got a call and went out to pick it up. As I was outside, I saw a truck delivering the vegetables. They all looked slightly withered. So I suppose it wasn’t fully restaurant’s fault. It was also their supplier’s fault for sending them lousy stock. But then again, the restaurant should have rejected it to begin with. Maybe its just the Chinese New Year season. I’ll give them the benefit of doubt.

In terms of portion, it was sufficient for the five of us (read: we didn’t have to rush and fight for the food like a bunch of raving hyenas over a dead carcass) The rice was served in a large serving bowl. They charge RM1.00 per person for the rice but I think you can have as much of it as you like.

Overall, including drinks (RM4.40), rice (RM5.00) and tax (RM3.00), the meal cost the five of us RM71.10 (RM14.22 per head). The yee sang probably inflated the cost by quite a bit. Otherwise, it would have turned out to be less than RM10.00 per person. Pretty reasonable for lunch and freshly cooked dishes.

I suppose it is safe to say that I enjoyed the meal. The company probably had something to do with it but the food wasn’t too bad (aside from the bad vegetables). I recommend it if you’re in the area and you’re stumped on what to have for lunch (or you’re craving to have rice with freshly cooked Chinese dishes). Otherwise, I wouldn’t really go out of my way to have lunch there (like today).

I heard that the place was usually pretty crowded during peak hours. From the looks of things while I was there, I believe what I heard. That being the case, I suggest calling ahead to make reservations or going early if you plan to have lunch or dinner.

Update (10-02-2006 9:15pm):
I just drove by the restaurant on my way home from work today (9.00pm) and was quite surprised by the crowd that had gathered. Cars were parked along both sides of the road making it difficult to pass. Outside the restaurant, people were milling around and waiting for a table. From outside, it looked like a crowd waiting to get into a theatre to watch a show! Since I found the food to be OK only (nothing to shout about), the crowd must know something that I don’t.

Also for those who are interested but don’t know how to find the place, it is located towards the far end (depending on your orientation) of the shop lots across the street from Mungo Jerry (surely you know where THAT is).

New Paris Restaurant
No. 62, 64, 66, Jalan SS2/72,
47300, Petaling Jaya, Selangor.

Tel: +603-7955 9180/0186

Operation Hours:
Breakfast/Lunch: 10.30am - 3.30pm (if I remember correctly)
Dinner: 5.30pm - 10.30pm