Kuantan City Mall - August 2015 (part 5)

As if the improved East Coast Mall was not enough for us Kuantan folk, I am getting increasingly excited by the prospect of Kuantan City Mall to be built right beside EC Mall.

Construction is in progress and I was on hand to snap some photos through the gaps in the fences. Tons of earth has been removed and is currently piled high around the perimeter as the foundations are prepared.

Check out these pictures taken in August 2015:

Kuantan City Mall construction progress August 2015

Kuantan City Mall construction progress August 2015

Kuantan City Mall construction progress August 2015

Kuantan City Mall construction progress August 2015

Kuantan City Mall construction progress August 2015

The Manhattan Fish Market, East Coast Mall, Kuantan

The Manhattan Fish Market is one of a number of new restaurants lining the main entrance of East Coast Mall in Kuantan.

Inside The Manhattan Fish Market at EC Mall, Kuantan

I miss fish and chips back home in England. Nothing in Malaysia can come close to matching the fat and juicy chips of an English fish and chips shop. But the fish at The Manhattan Fish Market is the closest I've tasted to really good fish.

Just a couple of the menu pages at The Manhattan Fish Market, EC Mall, Kuantan

A drink and mashed potato at The Manhattan Fish Market, EC Mall, Kuantan

Fie and I ordered two sets of fish and chips. One of each of the two different types of fish, and shared a piece each. The fish was crispy on the outside and oh so soft and delicious on the inside, just the way it should be! The sauce covering the fish is to die for. We requested more of it and they readily brought along another small bowl of it.

Fish and chips at The Manhattan Fish Market, EC Mall, Kuantan

There are some delicious-looking desserts on offer at The Manhattan Fish Market too, but that will be for another day.

East Coast Mall new look

We've been watching East Coast Mall go through big changes for the last year or so, both inside and out. Rearrangement of lots, new shops and architectural changes are in progress. It's all actually scheduled to be completed by this month, being November, 2014. Obviously, the work needs to be done before the annual monsoon season arrives anywhere from mid-November through January.

New developments in progress near the main entrance of East Coast Mall

The Manhattan Fish Market will be a new addition to East Coast Mall, located right at the entrance

Jelly Bunny shop is now at East Coast Mall

Toys R Us store

L'Occitane En Provence store at East Coast Mall

In the coming weeks we are looking forward to see what other new shopping opportunities await us in Kuantan at the new-look East Coast Mall!

Kuantan City Mall, November 2014 (part 1)

The notice of construction is up for a brand new shopping mall opposite East Coast Mall in Kuantan, which will be named Kuantan City Mall.

This is an area which has experienced unbelievable growth since I moved here. The whole area used to be an empty patch of land which I once walked across to get to Berjaya Megamall.

Now it has The Zenith Hotel, SAS Convention Centre, Menara Zenith, East Coast Mall, Putra Square and rows of shoplots. 

Kuantan City Mall will be the next addition in this area.

Here is the plot of land where Kuantan City Mall will be built opposite East Coast Mall in Kuantan

To the right of the picture is a brand new mosque (white with black dome) which I'm guessing will replace the old mosque in the centre (green and red roof) to make way for Kuantan City Mall

Close-up of the early construction progress of Kuantan City Mall. Machinery is in place as work begins on the foundations. Took this photo from the roof of East Coast Mall

There will be a sub-basement and 6 floors to Kuantan City Mall, so it is looking to be a lot larger than the current East Coast Mall!

A view through the fence to the plot of land where construction has begun for Kuantan City Mall

Check back to The Kuantan Blog often - I'll be keeping up-to-date with the construction progress as often as possible!

Slake & Bite restaurant, EC Mall, Kuantan

Slake & Bite is a western styled restaurant located on the new-look 3rd floor at East Coast Mall beside the 3rd floor car park. You can't miss it if you come up the elevator as it's the first thing you'll see when the doors open.

Slake & Bite next to the exit to the 3rd floor car park ( to the left, out of picture) and opposite the elevators (just around the corner to the right)

There is a small seating area to the right of the restaurant. The far right wall is actually a glassboard and I asked the worker if I could write a message on it. She readily agreed and passed me a black pen. I wrote a little message and left my blog address there!

Had some really lovely chocolate and milo shakes

Multi-coloured wall decoration. Leah enjoys the drinks while waiting for the food

Fidelia ordered spaghetti and enjoyed it a lot

The girls had french fries with a sausage each

I tried out the sandwich burger at the recommendation of the waitress. The chilli sauce was rather sweet, which was good for me. The burger is quite similar to the Ramly burgers in Malaysia.

This was a nice meal, nothing special or unique, but well done and reasonably filling. Worth giving Slake & Bite a try if you need a light lunch.

Christmas Performance at East Coast Mall

We were doing a spot of Christmas shopping at East Coast Mall and happened upon this Christmas performance at the Ground Floor. So we stopped to watch and of course, the children were glued to it. There were plenty of Christmas songs, colourful costumes, and the appearance of Santa Claus.

Kuantan at night on a 30-second shutter speed

The streaks of light from car headlamps race along Jalan Dato' Lim Hoe Lek, Kuantan

This is the junction in Kuantan intersecting East Coast Mall and Stadium Darul Makmur, including Jalan Dato' Lim Hoe Lek and Jalan Bukit Sekilau. These roads are very busy, particularly on holidays, as people flock to East Coast Mall for shopping.

I shot this image from the 18th floor of The Zenith Hotel during our recent stay there for my birthday. Must admit, I felt kind of like a sniper as I set up my tripod and programmed my equipment to shoot at a 30-second shutter speed, allowing the lens to capture all the movement of the vehicle headlamps.

Even with a tripod, I had to be immaculately delicate pressing the shutter button so as to avoid any type of blur. It was a worthwhile and stimulating experiment!

East Coast Mall 2 rumoured to be in progress

Kuantan has experienced a lot of growth right on my doorstep including The Zenith Hotel, East Coast Mall and Putra Square. An old block of flats have recently been demolished to make way for the rumoured construction of East Coast Mall #2.

Work is going on along the side of East Coast Mall

In the following photos taken in October 2013, you can see that work is ongoing all along the side of East Coast Mall facing the now empty plot of land where an old block of flats once stood:

And here is the plot of land just opposite East Coast Mall:

This plot of land used to occupy a few blocks of flats. They have now been demolished and the ground levelled off ready for construction

Looking through a gap in the fence to the empty land which may hold East Coast Mall #2