24/7-365…

When my NZ friend came to Sibu last year, she bought some instant noodles to take home. Actually, they can get them very easily over there but I guess they would cost a bit more. My missus slipped into her suitcase two packets of the made-in-Sibu Mee Daddy – chicken and curry flavour, each containing 5 of these…

*My NZ friend’s photo from her Facebook album*

Of course she was not in the least excited about them at the time but when she got home and cooked one – the curry flavour…

*My NZ friend‘s Mee Daddy curry flavour (taken from her Facebook album)*

…she went wild and fell head over heels in love with it.

She did not even know then that it was made in Sibu and was quite annoyed when I told her that. She said had she known about it then, she would have gone to the factory and bought in bulk. But then again, since she had not tried it at the time, even if I had told her that it was made in Sibu, she probably would not give two hoots about it.

Actually, when they first started producing the noodles here in Sibu, my brother and his family loved the chicken-flavoured version a lot and every time they came back, they would bring one whole big carton home. I do not see them doing that lately – probably they have grown tired of it or they have found better brands over there, I wouldn’t know…or perhaps it is because it can be such a hassle bringing food into New Zealand and any egg product (e.g. noodles) is not allowed…but they may be a bit lenient if something is factory-made and packed and all.

I bought some for Quay Po too the other day and I noticed that the curry-flavoured ones now come in a colourful brand new packaging…

…and yes, it is indicated on the pack that the noodles are made in Sibu…

I bought them for RM3.20 so that would work out to 65 sen a packet which is cheaper than what they used to cost but is still more expensive than some the brands available here.

Yes, they may taste a bit better…but there are others that come pretty close and are cheaper (less than 60 sen each) so more often than not, I would just go for those brands. Frankly, I just can’t understand why they are manufactured right here in Sibu itself and they would not need to worry about packaging and freight charges and all that so by right, they should be cheaper. If it had been so, then perhaps some people would consider eating that 365 days a year – hari-hari kari…

…but unfortunately, that is not the case.