This will be the last such post for the next little while.

Covid numbers are still climbing here in Sarawak. There were 21 new cases yesterday, bringing the total number of positive cases state-wide to 927. Yesterday saw bad news across the nation, in fact, bringing a record number of deaths in a single day (12), and taking Malaysia's cumulative death toll to 263.

More immediately, people we actually know are being affected, which brings it all that much closer. So we've decided to adopt a more cautious approach, and avoid eating out until such times as the numbers have stabilized.

This is very sad, as eating out is one of the little joys in our lives. And of course local places need our custom, as many are doing it tough.

We were saddened to discover last week that The Granary, which we've visited several times for lunch or a glass of wine, has rebranded itself as an event space and wedding venue, and is therefore no longer functioning as a restaurant. We'll miss them, but we wish them well.

Instead of lunching at The Granary, we tried Little Hainan@Padungan (whose exterior I featured here).

The environment is very pleasant:


And we were well pleased with our food. Below is the "mixed rice with three meats", which includes Hainan-style chicken, lou pork, and char siew, plus an egg, salad, rice, a bowl of curry, and a bowl of broth. Very tasty and substantial.


The Little Hainan tea (a mixture of tea and coffee) is also really good.

(And if you need a quick primer on the intricacies of Hainanese food in Malaysia, which is not necessarily the food of Hainan itself, see here. It's quintessential fusion food.)

Last week also saw us back again at La Boca Ria for second breakfast. Their croissants (pictured at the top) are delicious. They're Spanish-style croissants (as we found in Spain, these are more bread-like than their flaky French namesakes). LBR's croissants come hot from the grill, are served with butter and real marmalade, and are nicely chewy.

You can also buy Spanish charcuterie and cheese there, so we stocked up for a Spanish evening on Saturday: a bottle of Tempranillo from the supermarket, a platter of goodies from La Boca Ria, and a movie in Spanish (Family Law, a gentle, engaging study of father-son relationships from Argentina).

So hoping that we'll soon be over the worst, and these little expeditions can resume...