For nasi briyani lovers who don’t feel like paying an arm and a leg to get a plate of these yummy rice from mamak chains, here’s definitely a place you should check out.
Located right within the heart of financial district at Lorong Bandar 13 just off Lebuh Pasar Besar is Warong Nasi Briyani Tajudin where you can still get a plate of nasi briyani for as low as RM 5. (that’s about the 2 teh ais at those “high class” mamak these days right?)
Nasi Briyani at Lorong Bandar 13
Since parking is a bitch at the area, we decided that take away was the best option. Luckily, even though the stall was plenty busy, they are well prepared for big number of tapao orders and we got our 5 packets of nasi briyani in less than 10 minutes.
There are some cozy tables at the lorong where this stall operates, so it is an option to dine in, though not a particularly great idea to do so during peak lunch hours.
chicken briyani and lamb briyani, yum yum
Chicken briyani is RM 5, lamb at RM 6. I had mine with lamb, and while the size of that one piece of lamb wasn’t exactly big (barely sufficient), it was rather tasty, and certainly worth the price we paid.
The rice was fragrant, and I love the extra couple packets of curry that comes with it, one being the normal curry and the other tasted almost like satey sauce, kinda interesting but it worked. There’s also a tiny portion of cucumber and onion, I guess you can call those vege?
Other than lamb & chicken, they also serve briyani burung puyuh (RM 7), briyani fish/sotong (RM 6), and plain rice with those ingredients.
Happy eating!
Address:
Nasi Briyani Lorong Bandar 13
Off Lebuh Pasar Besar
Kuala Lumpur
GPS: 3.146794, 101.696255
Tel: 012-265 3653 / 016-602 3737
Hours: 10am – 4pm
One of the best things about sharing my food adventures on this site is that I do get a lot of good recommendations from readers. From the previous post on the char kuih teow at Mei Sin kopitiam, missyblurkit commented that I should try their nian gao (kuih bakul, 炸年糕, or fried gold cake), and another reader, May, mentioned that I should try the Ipoh kai si hor fun.
A couple weeks later, I did just that.
fried nian gao at Restaurant Mei Sin
For those who aren’t familiar with nian gao, also known as Chinese New Year cake, it is prepared from glutinous rice and very generous amount of sugar. It is sweet and sticky, and most consumed during Chinese New Year as the name nian gao 年糕 sounds like 年高, which symbolizes a higher (better) next year.
I love it smacked between layers of sweet potato and yam, and deep fried in batter.
nian gao in between yam and sweet potato, superb with coffee
The end result is a lethal dose of calorie that is crispy on the outside, firm in between, and soft in the middle. This delicacy is best consumed piping hot, it is mainly sweet, and I think goes best with coffee (even better with Vietnamese coffee).
The same stall also offers other deep fried goodness such as sesame seed ball and banana.
I remember having this first time when I was a small kid back in Penang, from the then famous (or perhaps still) stall located right in front of Island Plaza (of course back then there was no Island Plaza) in Tanjung Tokong. This is the first time I had a good one in KL, any other places offering the same thing?
kai si hor fun at Mei Sin kopitiam
The nian gao was of course, the dessert. My main meal for the day was the Ipoh kai si hor fun, and as suggested, I tried the dry version.
It was a pretty simple dish, with hor fun (or kuih teow, if you like) served in some combination of dark/light soya sauce with bean sprout, smooth steamed chicken and plenty of fried garlic on top. It actually tasted good, and I bet would be even better if I ask for thigh next time. (mine came with chicken breast, I don’t like chicken breast)
Address:
Restaurant Mei Sin
No. 16, Jalan Melati
Off Jalan Imbi,
Kuala Lumpur
GPS: 3.14396, 101.714768
Portuguese grilled fish is a bit like chicken Maryland. If you head to wikipedia and search for Portuguese cuisine, there won’t be any dish described in there that is remotely close to what we are familiar with as Portuguese grilled fish. Similarly, I’ve been to Maryland a few times without ever encountering our version of this Western food chicken dish.
Nevertheless, along with such terms like Balinese cats that aren’t from Bali, we know what we’re getting into when we order Portuguese grilled fish, and we don’t expect it to be Cristiano Ronaldo’s favorite dish.
this stall has been around for decades
My very first experience with this version of grilled fish was actually at this famous stall at Petaling Street probably some 15 years ago when I was studying at Subang Jaya, and it wasn’t just a few weeks ago that I finally pay a return visit after all these while.
15 years ago, Petaling Street had no roof, the stall operators were mostly locals selling counterfeit products, and the Portuguese grill fish operation was a stall next to Hong Leong bank.
Today, the street has a shiny roof, stalls are manned by Banglas & Nepalis selling the same counterfeit products, and nothing has changed to the Portuguese grill fish stall.
medium portion with squid, lala, and sting ray
A portion of grilled fish starts at RM 5 (kembung) & RM 7 (stingray, tilapia, chicken fish) and comes with one serving of rice. The version we ordered had string ray, lala, and squid in medium portion and cost an affordable RM 15.
Other than fish, you can order prawns, squid, bamboo shoots, and chicken wings, and the combination of them.
The preparation method seems fairly straight forward – the ingredients are chucked into aluminum foil, and then cooked over charcoal fire. Waiting time is usually at least 25-35 minutes because everything is cooked from its raw form.
still as good as when I had it for the first time more than 10 yrs ago
While the rice we had that day was a little too wet, the grilled seafood was a blast. Their super spicy sambal is still as addictive as I remember, and there was just no way one could realistically finish the paste without suffering permanent damage to the stomach lining, but we couldn’t stopped ourselves from having just one. more. spoon.
It was another good meal, the old fashion way, and next time, I’m gonna order them with petai. 
Address:
Ikan Panggang Portugis Istimewa
by Hong Leong Bank, Petaling Street
50000 Kuala Lumpur
GPS: 3.144501, 101.697725
Tel: 019 315 9448
Ask anyone from Penang, and chances are char kuih teow is in the list of their favorite hawker dishes. So for those Penangites living in Klang Valley, there’s always a constant urge to find a good plate of char kuih teow.
So when a colleague who was also from Penang talked about this CKT place at Imbi, I knew that we will surely have to try this over lunch time, even thought it meant a good 1km+ walk under the sun.
Mei Sin kopitiam Char Kueh Teow stall
Mei Sin eating shop is a kopitiam just off Jalan Imbi, and just like another famous kopitiam nearby – Win Heng Seng, this one is usually packed with white, blue, and no collar workers during lunch hours.
glorious char kuih teow, just need even bigger prawns actually
We went there by around 12 p.m. and the crowd was just building up. The char kuih teow we ordered (of course I ordered in Penang Hokkien, always as a litmus test) took just 15 minutes or so to arrive.
The plate of RM 4.50 goodness came with lightly cooked cockles, prawns (medium size), egg, kuih teow, bean sprouts, and of course, chives. It was lovely, spicy, full of “wok hei”, and positively delicious.
I would rate this place a little better than the CKT stall at Win Heng Seng a stone’s throw away.
Sheng loves the CKT, and do try the fresh yao char kuai too
When you are at Mei Sin kopitiam, don’t miss out on the yao char kuai too. The freshly deep fried yao char kuai I had was very crispy and had just the right amount of saltiness with it. I wished there were some bak kut teh soup to go with, but I guess kopi-o wouldn’t be a bad substitute either. The yao char kuai place seems to be off on Thursdays.
Address:
Restaurant Mei Sin
No. 16, Jalan Melati
Off Jalan Imbi,
Kuala Lumpur
GPS: 3.14396, 101.714768
Every once in a while, usually on Fridays, we drive out from the enclave of Bukit Bintang to eat at a land far away. For example, Ah Koong Eating House (亚坤纯正西刀鱼丸) at a grand total of 2 kilometers away from the office.
Ah Koong Eating House, Imbi, plenty to choose from
Ah Koong Eating House has quite an extensive menu of various fishball noodle with different choices of fish, oyster, fish cake, yong tau foo, and more. It is in essence, similar to the likes of B & Best Seafood Noodle and 60s Teow Chew Fishball Noodle, but with even more varieties on offer.
The good thing about Ah Koong though, is that the shop is airconditioned too.
some deep fried goodness as side dishes
Ordering at Ah Koong is simple, you proceed to the front of the “stall” pick your choice of noodle/rice/porridge/kuih teow etc to go with your choice of different fish meat, fishball, oyster, and more. There’s also a choice of different soup to go with – dry, tomyam, curry, and clear soup.
curry mee, dried noodle, soup noodle, and oysters
We ordered some deep fried fish cake and yong tau foo items to share, and I had the fishball kuih teow soup with oysters (RM 14 + YTF price per item), and it was actually quite delightful. A colleague had their curry mee, and another elected to go with dried lou she fun, and each gave pretty decent feedbacks to their dishes.
While the place might have a reputation of being expensive, I found that the price is pretty much in line with other shops that serves similar type of food. Parking at Imbi area can be a drag, but if you’re looking for a bowl of good fishball soup with choices of other goodies to add in, this would be a place to go in KL.
p/s: if you want those with pork lard, head to B & Best instead.
Address:
Ah Koong Eating Place
Ground Floor No.172,
Jln Changkat Tambi Dollah,
Off Jalan Pudu,
55100 Kuala Lumpur
GPS: 3.140039,101.712858
Tel: 03-2143 3477
