Pakeeza’s North Indian Cuisine @ Ipoh
November 11, 2010 | 20,552 viewsStill in the spirits of Deepavali (What? Cannot syok sendiri ah?), I’ll continue writing on Indian eateries in Ipoh. Kalai Curry House did not manage to sustain their top notch quality from back then, lacking in the public relations department (customer service, naturally) and a generally lackadaisical attitude towards pleasing the customers.
Especially those not of the same ethnic group. A big no-no, sorry …
The newly reopened Pakeeza, after some major refurbishing works. Very classy now, though the place actually seats less patrons than before.
Thankfully, one old-timer named Pakeeza Restaurant manages to maintain the influx of customers after so many years. I remember vividly how we first dined here back in the 90’s. Or maybe late 80’s, can’t be sure. But I was head over heels in love with their Palak paneer, a North Indian delight mixing mashed spinach and cottage cheese. And boy oh boy …. I STILL am.
Recently Pakeeza underwent a major renovation, and they reopened not too long ago. Since we were seeking for a Halal (or at least, pork free) restaurant for lunch, we chose Pakeeza today ….
Palak Paneer (RM6/USD2) – A classic Indian dish of spinach and cheese.
Stepping into the restaurant took a considerable amount of effort. Or at least, a slap back to reality. So different is Pakeeza now from its original self (you can read about my review of the restaurant back in 2008) that we waltzed in with a sense of awe, admiring the intricate design of the interior; assuring the diners of a comfortable, bright yet not too cramped ambience. But take note that the restaurant is not as spacious as before, and we even encountered some problems being ushered to another table at the end of our meal; just so that the larger group of customers could sit together.
Garlic Naan (RM4.20/USD1.40) – One of Pakeeza’s forte happens to be their naan. Fluffy flatbread baked in oven, with different fillings/toppings.
And here we had THREE more varieties of Naan/Roti from Pakeeza. Better to be shared, do not go for more than one piece each! Small as the 8″ bread might be, but very filling when eaten with the side dishes.
Service was prompt, pleasant and without a hitch. We were ushered to a table for 6 (there were six of us) and given the menus to ponder upon. And surprise, surprise! The prices of the food are still maintained even after the recent facelift.
Pakeeza’s famous for their breads; the Naan to be exact. Priced at about RM4-5 (USD1.30-1.60) each, each bread is sliced into fours, and highly advisable that you’re sharing yours with the other companions. So that you can taste different varieties and won’t get bored of having to finish one type on your own. The Garlic and Kashmiri still remain as my favourites, while the Cheese was a little too greasy.
Buttered Boneless Chicken (RM9.50/USD3 per portion, in this picture we had two)
You can either choose to have their Biryani Rice with a choice of meat (about RM10/USD3.20 per portion) or you can opt for the Naans and various dishes. Amongst the six of us, we had four dishes and four Naans, with one portion of plain Biryani Rice (RM3.90/USD1.30).
Mutton Vindaloo (RM8/USD2.60 per portion, here we had two as well)
The food arrived after about 10 minutes of wait, considerably rapid seeing that the place was not exactly empty. And while we were busy tucking in, the restaurant was filled to the brim in mere minutes! So better to reserve a table if you’re coming in a larger group.
They have smaller tables (for 4-6 pax) and larger ones for 10 pax and above.
Aloo Gobi Masala (RM5.50/USD1.80) – A curry of potatoes and cauliflowers.
The Buttered Chicken was punchy, owing to the pungent flavour from the black pepper and a creamy gravy of piquant curry and cream/butter. The deboned chicken thigh was marinated and grilled prior to the cooking, a Tandoori style chicken in fact. Hence the already tasty meat before being doused in the creamy gravy. Almond flakes were strewn on top as garnishing, while the addition of tangy tomatoes added some zest to foil the richness of the dish.
Mutton Vindaloo is a type of dry curry mutton, with a distinctive taste from the spices like turmeric and cardamom, though Pakeeza’s version was slightly oily. And some lamented about the cuts of fatty mutton, though some might argue that the fats give the mutton the characteristic gamey taste.
Aloo Gobi Masala was a mild dish, with cauliflower and potatoes cooked in a thick, dhall-based sauce. The Palak Paneer once again, was ordered as that’s the dish I can relate to time and again …. when it comes to North Indian cuisines. Not as sinfully creamy nor decadent as I had fond memories of, but still good enough to warrant a portion or two.
Plain Biryani Rice – Notice that the grains of rice look much longer than the usual? Is this the superior Basmati rice?
Various juices and lassi (yoghurt drinks) @ Pakeeza
Kashmiri Tea (RM4.50/USD1.50) – Their signature blend of spiced tea with milk, and almonds.
Needless to say, the feast was well-received. Positive comments from all corners, even the picky eater in the group (hehe) attested to this. The meal came to about RM16/USD5.20 per person. We definitely ordered more than enough for six, but at least I made my rounds there before embarking on my journey away from good old Ipoh.
“These, would be the Sweeter Times in our Working Lives …”
PAKEEZA RESTAURANT & CATERING (HALAL)
15-17, Jalan Dato Seri Ahmad Said,
30450 Ipoh, Perak, Malaysia.
Telephone : 605-241 4243.
E-mail : pakeeza(at)streamyx.com
Business hours : 11am – 3pm, 6pm-10pm.
GPS Coordinates : E101 5′ 13.9″ N4 35′ 59.9″
Google Map to Pakeeza
man ipoh food is seriously dirt cheap, one cant find a palak paneer for rm6 in KL and in australia? not even 6 aud! but the sprinkling of fried shallots doesnt seem too indian, does it?
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J2Kfm Reply:
November 12th, 2010 at 5:20 pm
Strange enough, last time the palak paneer only had a criss-cross of cottage cheese on top. No fried shallots. But even then, I merely pushed them aside. As fried shallots and mashed spinach …. erm, not so well together eh?
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Wah. The place looks so nice and classy yet the prices are reasonable…. 🙂
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J2Kfm Reply:
November 12th, 2010 at 5:21 pm
Yup, even after renovation, the price stays. Though for some, a meal here’s considered ‘pricey’
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I’m used to paying RM15-25 for a serving of Palak Paneer. When you said RM6, I thought it was a typo error! LOL. =P
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J2Kfm Reply:
November 12th, 2010 at 5:23 pm
Not typo. 🙂
But smaller portion lah, sufficient for two. But then again, this gives ample opportunities to try out more dishes from their rather extensive menu.
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Such cheap indian FOOD! I’m salivating already considering now being the lunch hour. Almost!
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phew, the food doesn’t look (or sound) too spicy … which is perfect for someone like me whose digestive system has problems coping with chili! 😀
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J2Kfm Reply:
November 12th, 2010 at 5:27 pm
Only the buttered chicken got some breaking into sweat. From the black pepper, not from the spicy curry paste. The others were toned down considerably.
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ya pakeeza’s food is not bad. i love palak paneer as well. as for the 2nd food pic, initially i thought that was almond naan before i read your description. it does look like thinly sliced almond. haha…and the rice shape very special. never see before.
seems like you are posting everyday now. trying to eat as much as u can before going to kl huh….lol…
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J2Kfm Reply:
November 12th, 2010 at 5:29 pm
Yeah, those were almond on top of the garlic naan. To give the bread some bites, I guess. But nice.
The rice had this very long shape, yeah.
I try to tie all the loose ends before moving on … 🙂
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I thought prices might be steep in such posh restaurant~ The dishes look not bad even I’m not really into indian cuisines 🙂
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hmmm….
I think the price have increase abit compare to Iast year I visit.
Sorry dude.. I’m quite sensative with $$$$$$$ coz need bullets to shoot up many foods….. :p
anyway will pay a visit near future… Since you remind me the food there is good.
Thanks J.
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J2Kfm Reply:
November 12th, 2010 at 5:30 pm
Really? Coz they still using the same old white paper menu. Just laminated and inserted into new folders. Or maybe I got things wrong.
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Butter Chicken and Palak Paneer served here seems to be their own recepie,since I havent tasted anything like that in India ( I am from Delhi,the place where butter chicken was invented).
The nan looks and tastes like arabian Khubz …Indian naans are generally thinner and taste better. The practice of giving a liquid tomato based gravy item (as is served here) free with naans is not observed in traditional Indian restaurants… appears to be malaysian touch!
For good authentic Indian food like Palak paneer,Paneer makhani ,butter chicken and all sorts of naans and Kulchas, I found Chennai Curry House in Sungai Petani to be excellent (cooks are from India) also Jassal Resturant in KL (opposite KL central) in Brickfield
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Hi there,
I just tried their food. Their food is very localised taste. Palak Paneer is actually cottage cheese with spinach. Not supposed to be cream cheese in their case. Those paneer is something like tofu in terms of taste and texture. Their palak paneer is without the real paneer. They cook with cream cheese… Disappointed. I thought that I will be able to taste authentic North Indian food.
Additional to that, their butter chicken doesn’t taste like the one I had back in India. Butter chicken supposed to be creamy with tomato flavour. Pakeeza is using tandoori chicken in this case. Cannot blame me to think that they actually recycle their unsold Tandoori chicken for this dish.
I came back from New Delhi 2 years ago and really craving back for the aunthentic Indian dishes. Do you have any suggestion… 🙂
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saleem Reply:
July 6th, 2014 at 12:52 pm
better to try Tandoor Grill restaurant in ipoh which is really really good in taste but they are slightly expensive
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Damnnn…. pakeeza restaurant food quality is getting worst now and the same time the restaurant management increased the prices of every thing.. like the price of just a plain naaan previously was 2.5 RM which i now increased to 5 RM. That is really very expensive in the area of ipoh, the same time size of that naan becomes smaller too. Its not only naan but other recipes too, so from now onwards i ‘ll think couple of times before going to this quality less restaurant.
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marion Reply:
September 28th, 2016 at 12:27 pm
damn.. pakeeza now i go, its too expensive. ridiculous. last saturday, my cousin wedding use pakeeza catering, omg seriously its tasteless. everyone keep complaining about the food until today. its really disappointed. catering service is very bad. pity my cousin. they wish to have perfect wedding night, but food becoming the big issue at that night. pls improve your service!
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