Lontong kering from Siti Nurliyana Nasi Lemak

Siti Nurliyana Nasi Lemak is presumably Siti Nur Liyana Nasi Lemak with an updated signage and name. The stall's unit number the same as the last time. Here's a lontong kering from them - paru and hot dog were add ons. Tasted much like it looked and I didn't mean it in a bad way. That being said, it was also not as tasty as the ones from Ming Ang and Nura & Tara. 

Daeng M.Y., Redhill

Lontong from Daeng M.Y. (80 Eating House, 80 Redhill Lane). This stall's in the same coffeeshop as Penang Handmade Pau. Crowd here can be pretty intense in the weekend because the queue never seems to go away during the morning hours. Gravy's fairly lemak. Serunding has to be requested for - seems these guys don't provide them by default. Not bad. And yes, those were paru.

Revisiting Pu3

Been some years since we last ate at Pu3. Came back recently for a plate of deliciousness which had (anticlockwise from 11-ish) begedil, assam pedas ikan pari, sambal goreng and lemak turi. Assam pedas packed more heat than I was expecting and was pretty peppery. 👍🏼 Love the savoury richness from the lemak turi too. Very satisfying plate washed down with a sweet creamy teh tarik.

I thought these were fried bananas but turned out to be plantains.

Dapo’ Khaleeda, Taman Abad, Johor Bahru

Big breakfast at Dapo’ Khaleeda (102, Jalan Dato Sulaiman, Taman Abad, 80250 Johor Bahru, tel : +60 18-776 6853).

This place serves breakfast/lunch and sells frozen cooked products.

A few items are on self service. Like their nasi lemak which one can help themselves with before heading to the counter for payment. Got one with paru belado, fried egg, fried chicken and some serunding daging. The last item's beef floss. Rice looked like basmati. Pretty tasty in an old school-ish way.

Lontong's also self service. Pretty lemak gravy there. This was topped with serunding daging as well. Not bad.

Satay can be ordered from their menu. That's chicken and maybe mutton. They're chunky and the meat on the skewer is alternated with chunks of fat. Gravy was deliciously thick and nutty with crushed peanuts.

One of they items they're known for is roti sarang burung. It's a variant of roti canai shaped like a bird's nest with a couple of eggs in the middle. One can get the regular version or with topping. This one's has sardines. Not bad tasting. Can't really make out what's that curry on the side.

Underwhelming teh tarik.

Nasi Lemak Strawberry by Zaza @ Banafee Express CIQ, Johor Bahru

There's a strawberry flavoured nasi lemak which we came across at Banafee Express CIQ (LOT A1 aras 3 bangunan, JB Sentral, Jln Jim Quee, Bukit Chagar, Johor Bahru 80300).

Certainly warranted a double take. We did. And more.

Not entirely sure how this worked. Tried the pink rice on its own and I wasn't quite sure what I was tasting. Maybe it was just a strawberry flavour I was imagining. The sambal was spicy and also a bit sweeter than usual. Don't know if the sweetness from the sambal brought out the strawberry flavour in the rice or that the sambal itself has strawberries.

In any case, there was a discernible strawberry flavour if you ate the nasi lemak with the sambal.

Ayam Gepok Anakmak, Ang Mo Kio

Learned of Ayam Gepok Anakmak (#01-877, 215 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 1, Ang Mo Kio Street 22) recently and came to try their ayam gepok. What got my attention was the gajus (cashew) sauce which I haven't been seeing around here.

There're a couple of options. One can get it with regular fried chicken and or ayam berempah. This one's the latter. 

Sadly their ayam berempah was lacklustre. The meat was dry-ish and a little stringy even. Remember that this was chicken thigh. The flavour of the berempah wasn't particularly great. Rice was lumpy. Aside from tofu and tempeh, there's also fried cabbage on the side which I haven't had before. Tasted toasty and bittersweet.

I mentioned interest for the gajus sauce. That's accompanied by sambal. One can choose level 0-4 for spiciness with 0 being not spicy at all. This was a 2. And it packed substantial heat. The sauce was akin to a coarse cashew butter - nutty and oily in a good way. Pretty good with the sambal because the sambal has the salt. Any spicier this level and I probably wouldn't have been able to taste much of the food.

Labrador Malay Food, Telok Blangah Crescent Food Centre

 

I'm pretty sure I've been to Labrador Villa Food Centre at least a couple of times before they were demolished back in 08. Might have noticed Labrador Malay Food from back then but I don't recall. They've presumably moved to their current spot (#01-105 Telok Blangah Crescent Market & Food Centre, 11 Telok Blangah Crescent) from that point and have been here since.

Got a plate of nasi padang - from top right and clockwise, tapioca leaves in masak lemak, sambal hard boiled, paru goreng and a bunch of...shellfish. I'm pretty sure some looked like cockles. Then there were some that tasted like clams and some others, mussels. Anyways, they were all cooked in sambal with petai. Not much petai in there though. All pretty good tasting. 

Kreta Lembu, People's Park Centre

Kreta Lembu (#03-48 People's Park Centre, 101B Upper Cross Street) was one of those eateries which we've walked past numerous times and wondered if they were good. They're located just beside the bridge that links People's Park Centre to Chinatown Point.

Got a nasi minyak today with gulai lemak pucuk ubi (curried tapioca/cassava leaves), sambal telur and a dish of cubed paru with shrimps - a combination which I've never encountered before in a creamy sweet and slightly spicy gravy. Nice. Love the tender tapioca leaves in the lemak gravy and the buttery rice with raisins and sliced almonds. 

Nora's Kitchen, Amoy Street Food Centre

Happened by Nora's Kitchen (#02-91 Amoy Street Food Centre, 7 Maxwell Road) by chance and decided to try their lontong. Those brown stuff on the side were fried paru.

Not bad after the sambal and serunding have been swirled into the gravy. Decent lemak level with savoury sweetness and some heat. Their paru was pretty good - they looked like they might be hard but the insides were relatively tender and chewy.

Nasi Padang Beach Road, Smith Street Food Centre

This stall (Blue Zone, #02-225 Chinatown Complex Market and Food Centre, 335 Smith Street) is located at where Babas Peranakan used to be. Not bad tasting. Wouldn't be fair to compare them with  shops like Hajah Maimunah for the variety or quality so I won't. 😂 I think I also like the Babas Peranakan better. 

But...it's a decent eat. This plate had paru goreng, sayur lodeh and some achar. That and the gravy from the curried vegetables and a some sambal belachan which made it go down the hatch with ease. Don't mind coming back. Note to self: their sambal belachan doesn't pack much heat.

Revisiting Hameediyah Multi Concept Dining

How did we get here? Probably craving for nasi kandar.

To the uninitiated, both plates look similar. Rice drenched with curries/sauces with colourful toppings. To the initiated, it probably also looks the same. 😂 We got a bunch of stuff that we did from the last visit - like fish roe, curried squid roe, cabbage, mutton korma.

Carrot susu here's not bad. Thicker than the one from Pudu Pasar Wanton Mee.

Nasi lemak from Aziz Jaffar Muslim Food

Decent quality nasi lemak from Aziz Jaffar Muslim Food. Sweet and spicy sambal as per usual and savoury coconut rice which was adequately salted for flavour. Didn't find anything else particularly outstanding but I'd say they're an viable option for Malay styled nasi lemak at Chinatown's food centre if one has a hankering for a plate.

Hajah Maimunah Mini, Hawkers' Street @ Clementi Mall

The last time we ate at Hajah Maimunah Mini in Clementi Mall, the food court was Boleh Boleh!. It's now Hawkers' Street and Hajah Maimunah Mini ended up being located in the same spot as they did previously. Anyways we got a plate with some favourites -  ayam goreng, sotong hitam, quail eggs sambal and sambal goreng. Still as delicious. Am pretty sure the food quality's better at the flagship but we took what we could get here.

Aziz Jaffar Muslim Food, Smith Street Food Centre

Came across this stall (Green Zone, #02-070 Chinatown Complex Market and Food Centre, 335 Smith Street) recently. We saw people getting their lontong which I thought looked good. Came over for a weekend breakfast. Not bad tasting lontong. It's less lemak than what I normally prefer but also tasty enough that I wouldn't mind coming back. Unexpected find in Chinatown. Too bad their ketupat's not fragrant. 

Haji Lane Food Corner, Haji Lane X North Bridge Road

Came across Haji Lane Food Corner (674 North Bridge Road) recently.

There's an outpost of Haig Road Putu Piring here. There seem to be more flavours these days. We got ourselves an order of the one with gula melaka for nostalgia; that and because it's probably the best tasting flavour anyway.

There's a Bon Bon Matcha with something called iced coconut matcha cold foam. Refreshing. So good that we got seconds. Also because the cup was kinda small.