habanna charbroil steakhouse old — Restaurant in Petaling Jaya

Had high hopes for this restaurant since it is supposedly long-established in Malacca, but my first visit today will be my last. We had the most popular dish, pork belly with apple as well as a pork burger.

The waitress didn't recommend anything, but when my pork belly came, most of the fat wasn't rendered (still solid and tough) so it was impossible to eat it. I then informed the owner and his immediate response was, "Oh you should have ordered the Duroc cut instead if you want something more tender. Didn't my daughter suggest this to you?"

Umm, this is not a suitable response at all. Firstly, belly cut can be perfectly tender IF you cook the fat slowly and properly, which is the chef's responsibility. Secondly, no one told me about this other cut (it's not listed on the menu) so what's the point of bringing it up now? Moreover, he's just looking for someone else to blame, including the customer.

So i just politely asked him to please cook it longer for me and he took it back to the kitchen. After about 15 minutes, he gave me a new serving, which isn't what I expected. But he said, "Not to worry, I won't charge you for the earlier piece. Hope you enjoy this Duroc cut" which was confusing cuz I never asked him to change the type of cut and he never told me what cut this was? But I was hungry so I ate it, assuming he would maintain the same price.

Guess what? Shock #1 is that the second belly was only slightly less chewy and undercooked than the first. Sigh, I wanted to complain again but we were running late. So I just cut off the fat (which is my fave part if cooked well) and ate what I could.

But Shock #2 came when we paid. The original dish I ordered was RM19.90 and yet I was charged RM29.90 without being informed at all. It's only when I checked the bill against the menu price and I asked the waitress, then she casually says, "Oh the Duroc is a more expensive cut".

How is this acceptable? They have a responsibility to inform me about a change in price and only if I agree can they then give me a pricier piece. Otherwise just cook the original piece as intended.

Such a lousy place, don't waste your time here. Oh, and the pork burger was dry and much smaller...

My Go-to Western Food (by default)

If I were to write on Habanna everytime I visited this steakhouse located in Paramount Garden in PJ, I would have bored you with the details already. Still, a post once in a while reminds me on how good the foods are here.

A closed wine group of us consider Habanna as our default canteen for a good piece of meat to pair with our wines. With good hospitality and equally good food in air-conditioned dining environment, they have been doing good business for a long time.

◾starters - garlic bread and fries ◾Pancetta Garden Salad - for health conscious diner who's not that health-conscious after all 🤣 especially with bacon. ◾Aglio e Olio "Spicy - diced garlic, olive oil and chilly flakes. Simple pasta done right with its flavours. ◾Beef rib-eye and lamb steak - the sonny who wanted to enjoy two types of meat on the same plate. Everything nicely executed. ◾Rack of Lamb special - Marinated with special Austrian rub, this plate is good enough to serve 6 pax and above. The flavour was on point, meat was done medium and most importantly brought out the better flavours in our wines. ◾Iberico Black Mama - I simply love how the prized iberico meat was done - slightly charred with the smoky flavour plus that melt-in-the-mouth distinctive iberico taste. ◾The Three Amigos - our group's default order everytime.. 3 pieces of tender boneless chicken thigh with slightly spicy BBQ sauce. ◾Meishan pork chop - another prized pork meat from a special breed in China, they have limited servings per day (at the time of visit). Quite good on the palate I must say.

Consider them as a good ol' steakhouse where you can get old-fashioned steak, lamb, chicken, burgers, pasta and even pork chop! Perfect for me who don't eat beef.

They used to be located in another part of Paramount before tenancy issue forced them to relocate to their current location. Not a problem because their loyal fans including me...

Absolutely the best value for steak and western in PJ. They have something for everyone. Full range of meats, steak, pork and ribs, chicken, lamb and even fish. There's also pasta and burgers for those who prefer those.

It's one of the few places where I order medium rare steak and I get it done exactly right. Very tender as well with only black pepper and salt on the meat, the way it should be. None of that mushroom or black pepper sauce that you get in other places that claims to offer steak. It's becomes grilled beef if you put those on your steak. Their mustard based spice rub is put on the side for you to put as much or as little as you want. Do try it with your steak. It's excellent.

As for the other meats, it's great value for the price. Other places may give you 1 or maybe 2 pieces for that price. Here I got 3 cuts of pork chops for under $30. Small eaters can easily order 1 plate and share between 2.

Their pancetta salad came full of big bacon slices and under $20. None of that tiny bacon bits ripoff. Also the potatoes served with the main meals are excellent as well. I could eat those by themselves if they ever offered those separately.

Save your money and skip the other fancy overpriced steakhouse. Definitely run away from that serves marinated grilled beef with the usual sauces and pass that off as steak! Habanna is the place to go for PJ folks looking for a great place that gets all 3 PLC right. (Pheng, Leng, Chieng or great...