A cut above the rest…

I guess many/some of you would know by now that I am not into franchises, not even our own Sarawak ones like this one, for instance…

…as usually the food is good, not great and a little bit more expensive generally. At such places, one would have to go to the counter…

…and order what one wants and pay for it/them and everything would be placed in a tray after which, one would have to do some kind of balancing act to take everything to a table…

*Note that there is a very nice seating area on the 1st/mezzanine floor too!*

…to sit down eat. At times, when the food would not be ready that fast, they would give you a number and you can take that to your table with the drinks you have ordered and you sit there and wait to be served.

This particular outlet has been around for quite sometime now but I never stopped by to check it out – I guess you’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all but my missus was telling me about the fish dishes that she and my girl had a couple of times (at other outlets, not here) and they were very good. That was why last Friday, we went to this one and I certainly was amazed as to how different this one is…

…compared to the rest. The fittings and the decor all look expensive, not quite typical of a fast food restaurant, much less a franchise.

This seating area…

*Note the pizza counter on the other side, a collaboration with the Singapore franchise.*

…sure looks comfortable, two here and if you turn left and go down the corridor, there will be more inside…and I guess one can sit here and relax and enjoy the free WIFI and their tea or coffee…

…which certainly seems cheaper than those coffee places in town, not that I’ve been to any, except maybe…one.

They even have this place outside…

…for those who would like a breath of fresh air.

It’s the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan right now so they have these promotional offers…

…at the moment but no, I was there for the fish so fish it was.

I ordered the sambal eco-fish (RM15.60)…

…for myself and yes, it was very nice. A friend said that the sambal…

…was nice but no, I beg to disagree. It tasted like the ones you get in cans or bottles and those are not to my liking, that’s for sure. However, the soy sauce dip was surprisingly very nice. It looked like just soy sauce and chili but it tasted like there was calamansi lime juice and whatever else in it. I sure enjoyed it very much.

My missus had the claypot assam fish (RM12.20)…

…and it was absolutely delicious. The sauce was simply out of this world and I could not refrain from helping myself to it and enjoying it with my rice. For one thing, this dish would come with one fish head and there isn’t all that much to eat when it comes to the head of the tilapia; I wonder what happens to the rest of the fish, the body.

The service here was excellent, very cordial and prompt too and I was particularly impressed by how they could speak perfect English which is more than what I could say about those waiting staff at some/many of those wannabe western and fusion cafes and restaurants in town.

Well, we certainly enjoyed both our orders and yes, we would love to drop by again sometime. It may be a bit far for those staying around the town centre but I guess the location is ideal for students at the university and also the college and international school a short distance up the road and those staying in the housing areas in that part of town.

SUGARBUN & PEZZO SG MERAH PETRONAS STATION (2.333595, 111.840638) is located at the side of the petrol station along Jalan Teng Chin Hua, going in the direction of the University College of Technology Sarawak (UCTS) just after Island Club and the Sibu Benevolent Society Old Folks’ Home.