Gee! I did not know that this, in fact, is the name of a song, an asli (traditional Malay) song…and that too is the name that the people at the Payung Cafe have chosen for their new outlet on the ground floor of the Orchid Hotel along Brooke Drive right here in Sibu – the Payung Mahkota.
It had its soft opening last week on the 24th of October and I did drop by a couple of days later to check it out.
This place is definitely a lot more spacious than the original – you can choose to sit outside…
…or inside, in air-conditioned comfort…
…or on a cool day or in the evening, perhaps, some may prefer to dine in the open air, under the payungs (umbrellas)…
…beside the fan palm trees…
I guess it is still not quite ready and they still have a lot of work to do on it. I was quite disappointed that the decor was quite minimal, to say the least. There is this payung (umbrella) picture on one of the walls…
…and these frangipani ones on another…
They have this quaint-looking triangular tower of drawers…
…and I love the lampshades…
…that look like birds’ nests to me. Maybe they can use those dried palm leaves, the ones they have at the old place…and they never failed to attract the attention of people that I brought there to eat, to cover the horrendous-looking metal awning above that really sticks out like a sore thumb. I missed those big water-filled pots with nicely-arranged flowers and also the bowls of fresh flowers on every table.
As it is, I would very much prefer the old place as the exotic decor that they have there gives a certain special feel to the place and contributes to the pleasant ambiance, making it a choice place to go and dine. But then again, this one has not been officially declared open so let’s give them a chance and wait and see if they would do anything to make the place a whole lot nicer than the way it is now.
As for the food, they have the Indonesian guy from the old place here and even when he was at the former location, he did a lot of the cooking there and even tried out some of his own original recipes sometimes…and since he is doing the cooking here, one can be assured that it would be just as nice, if not better.
That day when we dropped by, my missus had the tom yam prawns with rice (RM16.00), extra spicy…
…and she loved it very much.
I had the tom yam prawn spaghetti (RM16.00)…
…and I would say that it was simply perfect – sour enough, so fragrant with all the serai (lemon grass) and lengkuas (galangal) and very very spicy as we had requested.
I tried the soup that missus had but I think I prefer my concentrated one…
My friend, Huai Bin, had the belimbing prawn version before…and he loved it a lot too then.
For one thing, parking here is a whole lot easier and it is nearer, being in the town centre, and it would be more convenient if you do not have any transport to get around. The menu and the food would be the same, more or less…but if it is the ambiance, the exotic surroundings, the soothing music and the pleasant feel to the place that you want while you dine, then perhaps you should just head on back to the old place…
...STILL CRAZY AFTER ALL THESE YEARS! 
I love fusion pasta! Tom yam prawn sounds good!
Call me a kampung boy or whatever…but I love this a whole lot more than the authentic pastas. Extra spicy some more…yummmmm!!!!!
One thing I love about your blog, you discovered so many interesting places in my hometown (which I never knew there were existed). 😉 I am tempting to go home… counting days. Yippie!
You must drop by here or the main outlet (Lanang Road – behind Kingwood, new wing). The otak-otak or the belimbing prawns…rugi tak cuba!!!! The durian ice cream, the Mulu ice cream….the banana cake with ice cream…and the jelly pisang. Oooooo….all so sedap!
Love the alfresco setup!
They say it looks great at night with the lighting…but right now, they only open for breakfast and lunch. Still looking for the extra staff needed.
Good to see Payung’s doing so well. Very elegant decor! Same menu as the other location?
Yup…but I do wish they would try some new stuff more often…or have some other options besides the regular menu on their Today’s Special. I can’t be eating the same things all the time – wouldn’t have anything to blog about then. 😦
Good thing I don’t blog about food. I like to eat the same things every day.
LOL!!! That’s my problem… Can’t eat the things that I like again and again…or I will end up having nothing to blog about. 😦
Although Sibu is not my hometown, every post makes me wanna visit Sibu! 😀
Your in-laws are coming next year, they say… Make sure you tag along, eh? 😉
Of course! 😀
See you! 😉
I quite like the wall decor. And the tom yam prawn soup and tom yam prawn spaghetti do look delicious. I tried an extra spicy tom yam before and wow it really stings the tongue! I guess your missus is a fierce chili eater 🙂
Yes, I think her taste buds already numb…no chili, not spicy = not nice. She loved the tom yam here, very very spicy.
The tomyam looks good.
Arthur,pls email me ur address & hp…….will bring some nice goodies for u when I am back to Medan in Dec.
email to shia88@hotmail.com.
Ok, will drop you a message on Facebook… I will be away in December though, back just before Christmas.
the prawns look huge! tom yam spaghetti sounds yummy… maybe I ll try and cook this… 🙂
Go ahead! Very nice…and good luck! 😉
So they opened another branch… good business eh… I like the belimbing prawns too… something different, nothing like that here in Ipoh, too bad..
Good, good. At least there will be things for you to enjoy when you come here. No point coming if you can only get to eat things you can easily find back home.
Nice place to dine. Certainly we need payung now that its raining cats & dogs haha.
We do get quite a bit of rain here too but it is ok – not all the time and at least, the weather is nice and cool. Good for me. 🙂
Love the first picture – postcard-perfect! Ahh… blue skies! How lovely..
The quaint-looking triangular tower of drawers is interesting indeed! Very artistic! Looks kinda lonely standing there on its own.
Sibu’s like that…except maybe during the hot season around the middle of the year with the open burning in Kalimantan – we do get quite bad haze here too. Ya…I thought that thing looked quite pathetic on its own too….sticking out like a sore thumb. Let’s hope they do something and improve on the decor.
oooh, congratulations to the boss for opening another outlet!! this must be result of the Mayor of Sibu promoting the restaurant and bring all people around the world to patronize the restaurant?? hahahaha.. they should present you with the honorary payong ambassador award lah..
Hahahaha!!!! No lah… What I do is something like community service – I do not expect anything in return. 🙂
but i think their “HQ” has nicer and more authentic decoration.. it seems this one in the city has all the payong and flower turned into pictures hung on the wall, can’t really feel that ambiance like what the old shop has, agree??
Yup, not quite ready…still very bare…so hopefully, they will do something about it. Otherwise, I would rather go to the old place to dine…
oooh, and everyone was having prawns that day?? haha.. was the boss there and gave you something new to try for free??
Nope, the boss was not around…but even the Indon worker knows – I get my iced water, big glass free…normally RM1.00, I think…or 50 sen at some places…and one place, even RM2.00. Tsk! Tsk!
Aikss….how can they forget to invite you to their soft opening. VIP!!!
They said they would…for the official opening. The soft opening, I saw the photos…old, old folks…family members, relatives of the boss.
Hey this place looks very nice especially at the outdoors. I’m sure if the weather is not too hot, it’ll be very nice to dine outside.
Yup…or at night. I hear it is very nice with the effect of the lights they have. Haven’t seen that myself though…
Settings & decor looks very unique in their own way. Love the rottan chair (2nd pix) and the lampshades. Yes, big water-filled pots with nicely-arranged flowers & fresh flowers on every table would definitely make the ambiance looks more pleasant. The extra spicy tom yam prawns looks good with a bowl of hot piping rice.
Ya, still some work needed to brighten up the place…
the place looks so spacious. can occupy more diners. Good la since food is the same quality. Ya the belimbing prawn was nice.
You can try their tom yam next time – just as nice, maybe even nicer. Yum! Yum!
Seems like payung is a very nice outlet to makan makan. I like the tom yam spaghetti. The prawns looks big enough.
It certainly is! Not cheap though. Good for bringing friends and visitors to town…or on special occasions.
wah, quite cool that they incorporate the payung theme into their decor, with the furniture and wall paintings too. maybe they could put some miniature paper umbrellas into their food and drinks as well … poke a tiny payung on top of some roast chicken, or plop it into a mocktail glass! 😀
Yup! They do that at a number of places. Well, as long as they do not transfer the cost of those tiny umbrellas into the prices of the food and drinks, I don’t mind… LOL!!! 😀
ooo your new franchise already open? wink wink …
If only…if only!!! 😦
You’re fast, already visited the new branch.
Orkid hotel? Hmmmm..is it the one opposite Ngui Kee? Familiar name, but cannot recall where is that orkid hotel.
Love the outdoor deco and also that quaint-looking triangular tower of drawers, very unique.
Your pasta look very good…yummy!! Is the food price same or slight higher?
Yup…right next to Ngiu Kee building, at that corner. Prices the same – in fact they use the same menu…but they have a different one for breakfast. Nothing much though, the breakfast sets – mostly to cater to the hotel guests, I suppose.
They must be doing well to open another outlet.
Obviously. They’re catering the breakfast for the hotel guests here and the management said there would be at least 600 guests a month…so I guess there isn’t any risk involved in opening an outlet at this new place. Anything else that they make would be considered as extras already…
I really enjoy al fresco dining. This looks like a lovely spot to sit outside.
I would need at least a fan… Can’t stand the heat around here!
Wow! I will definitely drop by there…and what a coincidence! I had tom yam with pasta just a few days ago. yum yum…
Well, the food is definitely better than that other place where we wanted to go and it was closed…and I bumped into you and the guys a few nights later. That one, I don’t bother to go anymore.
wow the design was pretty awesome i love those wall designs most especially that first one
Ya, the one with the umbrellas is nice. Wish they have more…
I prefer their outdoor seat (not the one under a pathetic payung – looks very hot!), more “royalty” feel, hehehehe! The decoration inside the restaurant is quite disappointing, or maybe I expect something as nice as the original payung HQ?
I’m craving for tomyam now, a hot and spicy one is good enough to beat off the coldness due to the rain now.
I would sit inside…or if I choose to sit outside, I would find a place right under a fan…turning at full speed. We’ll just wait and see – they say they will put more effort into decorating the place to make it a whole lot nicer…like the existing one.
Wow, this restaurant looks really classic! But to me, it doesn’t really matter if that place is old, most importantly, the food and the price 😉
The place isn’t old. Looks pretty ok to me…just that the decor is very minimal…but they say they will do something about that… Should be a lot nicer when it’s time for the official opening.
Oh the outdoors is so nice. I certainly won’t mind dining outside if the weather is not hot and sticky. And the Sibu municipality allows for total hogging of the sidewalk? Agree with you that the inside decor was too minimalistic.
+Ant+
What sidewalk? Look again! The sidewalk starts after the fan palms. The whole dining area outside is all within the hotel compound and inside, it is within the hotel building. No encroaching into public areas… Tsk! Tsk!
Nice! It’s good to see the new Payung Mahkota – a very well written review buddy! 🙂
Yeah, I agree, I would have prefered their original concept – it was part of the appeal.
The al fresco dining experience at the original Payung will be somewhat reduced by dining indoors I reckon, but such is progress.
I’m still keen to check it out. Cheers mate!
Ya, will see what they will do in the meantime. I love the old place – has a nice, relaxing, comfortable feel to it, may be even a bit romantic, sort of…and even though it is not air-conditioned, it is so open and with the fans, it is not hot at all, just nice. Well, we can always go back to the old place, no problem at all, if we don’t like it here…
oh wow.. very nice place to chilll~!!!! it really makes me feel like im living in ‘PARAMESWARA’ Zone…Love their ‘malay style’ settings… and your picture quality! It’s so clear and enticing! It actually makes the food looks better ..Hahaha! ;D *drool drool*
Wah!!! You’re so imaginative. Why Parameswara? I thought he was a Palembang prince…or was it Acheh? Indonesian? The original Payung has hints of Bali – this present one, dunno yet. Will have to wait till it is completely ready. The food is really very nice… Everyone who has tried loves it…a lot!
he he he, luckilly common sparrows didn’t make nest on the nest like structure….lol
They will probably have to hang cd’s like what I’ve done at my house to keep the birds away…but I guess once the lights are on, it would be too hot for comfort…
wow, such relaxing ambiance, gosh…i’m craving for Tom Yum soup… haven’t eaten any Tom Yum since i’ve came back =x
Shouldn’t be a problem getting very nice authentic ones where you are, very near to our neighbour in the north – I saw posts on some very fierce ones – so very pedas.
The place looks really nice and classy woh…. Nice to lepak for hours there or not? And be lovey dovey and have a nice date? ^^
The original Payung is a perfect place for that. Dunno about this one…yet to go there at night. Wink! Wink! LOL!!!! 😀
The alfresco looks great but very hot leh! I’ll melt!
You? So skinny??? On my part, of course, I would go to the air-conditioned section…or find a nice spot right under a fan. 😉
Nice place to dine and the food look delicious too. The tomyam certainly look appetizing. Love the prawns, never get tired of eating…..LOL
Have a nice week ahead.
It certainly is. The original one’s my favourite in town. Nice food, nice ambiance, nice people…everything nice. 🙂