While most of us associates chicken rice with Hainan heritage, our neighbor North of the border offers a version that is just ever slightly different from the ones we get here. Thanks to “Bangkok Street Chicken” Khao Man Gai restaurant at Ara Damansara, now you get to experience it without having your passport stamped at the Thai border.
As it turns out, chicken rice may not even be the thing I love most about this place.
Bangkok Street Chicken rice @ Ara Damansara
Khao Man Gai is located just a stone’s throw away from its sister restaurant Jatujak Bangkok Street Food, parking is relatively painless, though the restaurant itself often spots a queue on weekend lunch sessions, an indication of its popularity.
The menu is fairly simple, there’s chicken rice (and porridge) with different options of chicken, and lava creamy egg rice with different toppings. Additionally, they also offers a selection of popular Thai side dishes such as chicken skin, stir fry kangkung, chicken feet, and even mango sticky rice (see menu below).
sumptuous lunch indeed, yummeh
We ordered a mixed chicken rice (RM 11.90 with deep fried and steamed chicken) and a lava creamy egg rice with seafood (RM 17.90) as main. For side dishes, we got us their chicken feet salad (RM 9.90) and fried chicken skin (RM 5.90). For dessert, we opted for tako, or coconut pudding (RM 5.90 for 2 pieces).
lava creamy egg rice, mixed chicken rice
The chicken rice was certainly competent, with oily flavorful rice and crispy chicken thigh that’s juicy, we also enjoyed the unique Thai chili sauce (3 types) that came with the dish. However, my favorite has got to be the lava creamy egg rice that was rich and packed with squid and prawns that was not overcooked. It was very delicious and out-shined their admittedly already pretty good chicken rice.
As for the side dishes, they were maybe too generous! Plenty of chicken feet in the salad, and more chicken skin than my doctor would probably allow.. I think perhaps next time I should tapao the chicken skin back home and enjoy it in front of the TV with a can of cold one.. hm…
The dessert was alright, a little bit like tepung pelita, but perhaps a bit expensive for what they were, perhaps we should try the mango sticky rice next round.
chicken feet salad, fried chicken skin, tako
Khao Man Gai is certainly worth visiting, but if you can, go on a weekday, or go early to avoid the crowd.
Address:
PJ Khao Man Gai
“Bangkok Street Chicken Rice”
B-G, 23, Jalan PJU 1a/3j,
Ara Damansara, 47301
Petaling Jaya, Selangor
GPS: 3.12039, 101.59016
Tel: 011-1191 8013
Hours: 10am to 3pm closed on Tuesdays