When my sister-in-law was in town, I took her here…
…at a little past 10.00 a.m. but we were too early. There was nobody around, none of the dishes were out yet so we went some place else.
They’ve just started this mixed rice or what we call chap fan in Chinese or nasi campur in Malay…
…and of course, I could not wait to drop by and try the irresistible ethnic delights.
The following day, I went again around the same time and yes, most of the dishes were ready. There was the babi pansoh, pork cooked in bamboo…
…and they had chicken too but it was this that caught my attention – their kacang ma chicken with their two-year-old tuak (the ethnic rice wine)…
As for the vegetable dishes, only the daun ubi/bandong, tapioca leaves…
…the mixed vegetables with midin (wild jungle fern) in it – I didn’t take a photograph of that – and this bottle gourd (I think that’s what it was) in sambal…
…were ready.
There were others choices such as what looked like fried chicken, salted eggs and so on but these were my picks…
The kacang ma chicken was so very good – I loved it to bits and the tapioca leaves were very good too. I also chose the fish – oops…somehow, I missed snapping a shot of that as well – but I think mine would be nicer – with or without the terung Dayak (Dayak brinjal), a little stronger with the kunyit (turmeric) and with serai (lemon grass) added. It seemed that their terung was not sour at all. That is often the case these days so usually, I would add a few pieces of asam keping (dried tamarind) for that coveted sourish taste.
I also asked for a bowl of the babi pansoh (RM2.50)…
…to share and it was so very good, nicer than when we had it freshly-cooked those times when we dropped by here in the evenings. Maybe it had been cooked longer so it was a lot more flavourful and the meat was very much more tender…and we absolutely enjoyed it!
While we were eating, I noticed a few more dishes coming out of the kitchen like this dabai (local black olives) fried rice…
…and long beans…
…and pork curry with pineapples…
This was on the house…
…for me to try, something I had never eaten before – the buah keluak (nuts from the Pangium edule or Kepayang tree) and rubber seeds with cincaluk (fermented shrimps). Ooooo…it was so very nice! I certainly would want to order that the next time we drop by here again.
Without doubt, it was the most satisfying and very delightful lunch and you can be pretty sure that we would be back again soon, very very soon!
...STILL CRAZY AFTER ALL THESE YEARS! 
That pork cooked in bamboo looks very enticing.
Everything’s good here, went again the next day…can’t wait to go again!
I love how they serve the food in the metal plate. So authentic, must be good and tasty.
Yes, I liked that too, not everything dumped on the rice. The mum cooks everything, the daughter and the son-in-law and everybody else just help.
My favourite, the kacangma dish is to die for. Pork curry with pineapple combo looks very appetising. I can forgo the rest & have this 2 dishes only. Yummsss!!!!
The curry is nice, I tried it the following day but I think I would prefer prawns cooked this way. The pansuh babi is so nice, can ask for the lean, say you do not want the fat.
Soooooo good! I like the kacangma a lot but since I like to eat, I wonder if I could have a bit of most things.
So hard to decide what I wanted – would have to limit to a few…and then go again another day.
Wow, those dishes are very different from what you would get at a typical chap fan stall. Very nice! And I love that tray with many compartments. That was how it was like at the university hostel. But those were plastic ones and I like having those compartments to take many dishes hee..hee..
I am quite wary about hot food on plastic – I am glad they are not using those plastic plates like most chap fan or nasi campur places. I don’t mind all the food dumped on top of the rice – some people do not like that…but this way, there will not be any such problem. Indeed, this is very different and more to my taste and the Malay nasi campur comes second – never really into most of the Chinese chap fan places, nothing to get really excited about.
I always like when the economy rice stall put up the price clearly stated on the board.
Yes, at least you know what you’re in for – and have the choice to eat or to leave. Very straightforward.
Don’t know how to appreciate buah keluak (heavily used in Nyonya food), too exotic for me
The irony of it all. To think that Penang is one of the two centres of nyonya cuisine in the country. I’ve tried keluak chicken in Malacca seeing how so many people seem to praise it to the skies like it is something not to be missed – maybe I did not go to the right one but I was not impressed, not at all. This one was good but maybe it was the cincaluk that won the day – I love that!
pork, i love everything pork.. and here’s they look and sound rather exotic. 🙂
Ethnic cuisine, currently the only place in town where one can go to enjoy these exclusive delights. Love it!
I was attracted by the babi pansoh, hehe…
I am pretty sure you can’t get it there! Loved it! Yum yummmm!!!
Love chicken buah keluak. My mother used to make it. On another note, the dabai fried rice looks interesting.
I’ve yet to try that. Must make it a point to go a little later. Was back there again today but it came out of the kitchen after we had finished eating. 😦
Better to go when the dishes are just coming out… fresh, hot and free from many hands’ meddling.. hahaha… The dishes all look good especially the pork curry and pineapples… By the way, how did you manage to take the photos? Or you took the photos first before taking your choices?
I know the people very well…so I just push open the mosquito-netting sliding doors to take the photographs. Take first while still untouched, then order…and sit down to wait to be served. No self-service here, not like at the Malay stalls – they will take for you like at most of the Chinese chap fan places.
Oh like that one… order and then wait to be served… over here, we queue up and the vendor will scoop whatever we want and then like self service, we take our own plate and look for table… but in some places, we can scoop the dishes ourselves, I prefer the latter so that the customers do not meddle with the food… some like to korek korek and find their favourite pieces.. you know what I mean? 🙂
We do have those here too but mostly at the Malay stalls, take what you want and eat and they will come and calculate and charge you once you are done. Not at the Chinese chap fan stalls – you queue, you point, they take and dump everything on a plate of rice, you pay…and you take the fork and spoon and go to your table all by yourself.
We go very early here, dunno if they will still serve to your table, come lunchtime when there would probably by a lot more customers.
ooo babi pasoh .. i like!! And buah keluak is like black opium ya.. super addictive! love it in nyonya food hahaha ! Great choice..
You’ll love it here, I’m sure then. I love it – more to come as I keep going back again and again! 😀
I would love to have chap fan once a while, can pick whatever I like, usually I request for very little of rice, and more on dishes 😉
Yes, my missus would pass me her rice but I noticed when I went yesterday, they did not give so much anymore, they probably used a smaller bowl to scoop – that is good, we do not take that much rice either.