I love the old Malay lady’s mee goreng special, that goes without saying. I would say it is my favourite in town and there is none that I have had elsewhere that comes anywhere close. I did try her kway teow goreng once and even though it was quite nice, it paled in comparison.
I remember her nasi lemak was not anything to shout about as far as the lemak-ness went. Yes, with everything that came with it in a plate, I did enjoy it but the rice was like most of the others around here, not that lemak at all. I do recall that the last time I had it six years ago, I was pissed off about something – looking at my blogpost now, it looked like I was kind of upset because I asked for the special and was not given one fried egg with it. She must have heard me wrongly or missed something that day because she collected RM5.00 from me only – the special should be around RM6.00 at that time, now it has gone up to RM6.50. That was why there was no fried egg.
Anyway, I dropped by again one morning last week and much as I wanted to order the fried noodles, I forced myself to go for the nasi lemak special…
…instead to see if it was any better now, the same more or less or worse than before.
Well, my worst fears were confirmed – it was not lemak! Maybe there was a very remote hint of the santan in it, so remote that one could hardly feel its presence, that was all. Thankfully, the rice was not dry and hard like some nasi lemak around here so with all the add-on’s, I did enjoy it to some extent.
There was the very nice masak hitam beef…
…and the delightful fried chicken wing…
…and no, she did not forget the egg this time, fried traditionally in a wok so there was this delightful golden fringe all around…
…with the yolk still runny, exactly the way I would like it.
The sambal was a different shade of red, more like orange, I would say…
…but it tasted more or less like the regular nasi lemak sambal, plus it was very spicy for which I would give my double thumbs up!
There were those few slices of cucumber as well but wait a minute!!! Where were the peanuts and the fried ikan bilis (dried anchovies)? Those are the very basic ingredients a nasi lemak should have so there is no excuse at all for her to omit them completely like that. Even the RM1.50 a packet nasi lemak that I buy from my neighbourhood shop has TWO peanuts and a few of those tiny anchovies!!!
Thankfully, the complimentary soup was VERY nice, very flavourful, very tasty…unlike what one would get at the Chinese stalls and shops so at the end of the day, give and take a little bit here and a little bit there, I would say that I did enjoy eating what I was served that morning but no, I don’t think I shall go for it again especially when I find that I do enjoy the old lady’s mee goreng special a lot more.
Perhaps the next time I come by this way, I would give the kampua mee from the stall next to the old lady’s in the shop…
…a try. I’ve seen a lot of customers going for it and yes, it looked quite good. They also have fried kampua mee on their menu, something I have never tried before. Perhaps it is time for me to do that.
Incidentally, do I see any raised eyebrows? Yes, make no mistake about it! We do have this all over town – a non-halal Chinese stall right beside a Muslim one in the same coffee shop. I was told by some West Malaysian (blogger) friends when they came to town that this is something quite unheard of in the peninsula. Thankfully, we are more liberal here, more understanding and we know our boundaries…so we will always respect one another and live together harmoniously, making sure at all times that we do not violate any of their beliefs and practices.
FAST CAFE (2.319100, 111.832213)…
…is located among the shops opposite the RTM station in Sibu in the Sungai Antu area. At the end of Jalan Kpg Nangka, just before its roundabout with Jalan Tun Abg Hj Openg, you turn left into Jalan Tapang Timur and go straight ahead – it is the first shop in the last block on the left.
...STILL CRAZY AFTER ALL THESE YEARS! 
Haha.. 😊😊 you have not given up looking for the best nasi lemak with the lemak-ness in the rice. Yay, I like those masak hitam beef and also the fried egg with the golden fringe. However, I never like the fried fish from the Malay chap fan place. Always fried till very hard like tree bark..😂. Almost forgotten I still have a tub of Liza’s masak hitam paste in the pantry.
Liza’s. It’s good! A Malay friend told me they all use it at the Malay shops and stalls. Tried another nasi lemak yesterday, another disappointment. Blog post on it in two days’ time. So far I have no complaint about their fish. Maybe it was tongkol ( tuna).
It is true, over here there is no such thing as a non-halal and halal stall operating next to each other or at the same premises. The level of muhibbah that you have over in Sabah and Sarawak is admirable. I used to have friends from your side when I was at UKM and what I have to say about Sabahans and Sarawakians is that you people are so down to earth, warm and friendly. Sadly I have lost touch with many of my friends.
Happens to the best of us, hardly in touch with many from my school and college days, maybe just a few.
We certainly hope that this muhibbah spirit is here to stay – these days, there is quite a bit of influence from the peninsula and things may not be as nice as before. Sad, very sad.
A plate of nasi lemak with fried chicken wing and beef costing RM6.50 is very cheap. I don’t think we can get it at this price. Over here, some non-halal food courts do have a stall selling satay and they will use disposable plates.
I know one hawker centre here – there was a satay stall surrounded by all the non-halal stalls. Anyone can order the satay but it will be served in polysterene containers – one divided into two, half for the satay and half for the peanut sauce, thrown away after use. The hawker centre is under renovation, dunno which stalls are still in business at the temporary site.
Oh no, it’s such a disappointment to see restaurants look quality over time.
Somehow I feel they do not stress on quality control so much these days. As long as they can get the dishes out and the money comes pouring in, they are happy. Sad that something at one place may be great one day and not so nice the next. Some say it is because there are a lot of chefs in one kitchen these days and it depends on who gets to cook your orders.