Motormouth From Ipoh – Malaysian Food & Travel

There used to be this roti canai stall (Gerai Sheikh Usman) along Argyll Road in Penang that impressed me upon the very first visit. Their rendition of a dense “Malaysian pancake” filled with an omelette wrapped within an extremely thin (almost filo-like) crispy layer of dough (I had their roti telur), and paired with a tremendous beef curry was second to none.

At this roti canai stall along Transfer Road; the speed of churning out the flatbreads is a delight to watch

Then that stall moved to a shop and seemingly (from word-of-mouth, not 1st hand experience), the quality dwindles.

A recent sojourn to Penang led us to this other stall along Transfer Road; within a stone’s throw away from the aforementioned stall on Argyll Road. Difference is that; this by-the-sidewalk stall can seat an astounding capacity crowd of easily 50 or more.  Read the rest of this entry »

This … is my “Lazy Song”

You know those gorgeous days when you wake up to a drizzling weather; raindrops pitter-pattering outside of your windows and the sun barely stealing a glance over from the horizon even though the time was nigh for a sunny jog?

Ahhh … the blissful thought of a homecooked, heartwarming breakfast (or brunch) to kickstart the day with.

Sorry, not for me.

I for one, will never stay in bed for hours even on rainy weekends; wasting precious minutes on idling around while there are golden opportunities out there to eat, eat and eat without the hassle of jostling with the usual weekend mornings’ ‘yum cha’ crowd, the ones hogging the seats after a “morning walk” (so-called, just so they can gorge on sinful plethora of dim sum and what-nots!) and eardrum-blasting yells of kids dragged out of bed by eager parents.

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Nasi Lemak with Sambal Sotong (RM3.50/USD1.20) – From Wak Nasi Lemak, stall no 51 @ Medan Selera Stadium Ipoh

Medan Selera Stadium; that row of stalls beside Stadium Ipoh houses an impressive range of hawker fares; from the fan favourites of wanton mee stalls (one in the morning, and one at night) to freshly steamed rice rolls; aptly named Hong Kong Chee Cheong Fun, and a bean sprouts chicken stall that proves to have a stellar following (Michelle Yeoh’s preference, supposedly) as well as the banana leaf rice stall(s) in the afternoon.

Fuad Roti Canai (Stall no 54) has been on my list of to-eat since I was still THE Motormouth in Ipoh. Now I am this immigrant in the lost city of skyscrapers and bumper-to-bumper vehicles.

But what I have missed in the previous reviews are the last row (from the roundabout, towards the public swimming pool’s direction) of gems featuring various Malay food stalls. Most glaring omission? Fuad Roti Canai (Stall No 54) and Wak Nasi Lemak (Stall No 51).

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An arranged chaos. You can literally dive in with manners out the windows (or in this case, the lack thereof), OR you can utilize the shiny cutlery and scoop mouthfuls of rice showered in the golden mahogany curries, with interesting clash of textures of being crispy (papadom crackers), crunchy (pickled cucumber) and chewy (mutton varuval – dry curry mutton)

Tell me about banana leaf curry rice, and I’ll sit up and pay attention. Not sure where the allure actually lies; maybe the fragrance from the leaf where your food is served? The sheer appeasing of your innermost glutton by topping up excessive portions of rice and vegetables (of course, the curry too)? Or the desire to dig in in your most barbaric manner; sans any fork or spoon, and create a mess out of the culinary experience?

Raju, off Jalan Gasing in PJ is probably legendary; a name renowned … almost synonymous with good (yet pricey) roti canai (Indian flatbread). But this was my FIRST visit after many trials and tribulations. Why? Read on for the revelation …. Read the rest of this entry »

An old favourite of many in Taiping, and from places beyond …. Bismillah Restoran on Main Road (Jalan Taming Sari) should be enlisted as a UNESCO World Heritage Building!

Midweek Blues anyone? Or plain reeling from the late night footie matches on the telly, or down at your favourite watering hole? Here’s something to sober you up …..

A perfectly simple, MALAYSIAN breakfast at one of the coolest town (in every sense of the word) in Malaysia; Taiping.

Daging Itam (a type of dark, fiery and robust spiced Beef dish) RM2.50/USD0.70 per portion.

Bismillah Restoran in Taiping is a century’s old establishment, and has been around at this same building for close to 80 years now. Yes, count them, EIGHT DECADES of legacy.

Famous for their Roti Canai, and also serving Roti Telur, Thosai, Nasi Briyani, and the usual ‘mamak’ (Indian-Muslim) fares, this charming eatery should not be mistaken for that famous Bismillah Cendol on Jalan Barrack, although they are sharing the same name … Read the rest of this entry »

Darting across the jam-packed restaurant spanning a few lots, this ‘macha’ clearly threw all caution to the wind, oblivious to the snapping camera, daggering stares, and erm ….. matter of hygiene.

Since I was ranting on a strong contender for Ipoh’s best chapati in my previous post, kindly allow me to follow up with this restaurant tucked in the midst of a residential area in Pandamaran of Klang. I.V. Restaurant is the name of the restaurant, and there is no doubt as to what they’re famous for.

The words ‘Roti Canai Pandamaran‘ was emblazoned on the apple green signboard, proudly/patriotically flagged (literally) with our beloved Malaysia’s and the state of Selangor’s flags in an alternating manner.

Good thing was, the Teh Tarik (Frothy Pulled Milk Tea – A Malaysia’s favourite beverage) was never earth-shatteringly sweet nor reeking of condensed milk. Rather, all the beverages at I.V. Restaurant were of reasonable level of sweetness. Possibly thanks to the largely Chinese clienteles?

I first read about this comparatively-obscure Halal Indian restaurant from Criz Lai’s blog. I did not think much of it, but after a good many extravagant Klang Bak Kut Teh meal for breakfasts, one can’t help but to seek for a simpler, fuss-free (preferably meat-less) breakfast.

And was I grateful enough for reading that post from Criz …. !! Read the rest of this entry »

IF you have to vote for ONE particular Malaysian breakfast of choice, to be eaten everyday of the week, and to represent the concept of 1Malaysia-ness, which would it be?

A sinful, creamy and spicy bowl of curry noodles (in this case, it was “kuey teow”, but unlike Ipoh’s “sar hor fun”, the noodles resembled Thai’s version of rice noodles), cockles, chicken, bean sprouts and potatoes.

A fluffy, thick, yet crispy at the sides with slight charring piece de resistance of Roti Canai. Served with the ingenious combination of sambal sardin, dhal curry, and curry gravy.

OR a dainty portion (so you can wallop more than one pack?) of meticulously wrapped Nasi Lemak in banana leaf, with a dollop of anchovies with sambal, a not-so-conventional piece of salted fish, and half a boiled egg.

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