Wednesday, March 18, 2009

There's Malay food, and then there's MALAY food...

One of the things I miss most these days is good nasi campur. This is a warehouse/factory area, and food joints are limited to roadside MPPJ stalls, fast food, a few shops in the surrounding area, and expensive stuff in Jaya One & Jaya 33. Section 14 market - food not bad but hygiene sucks. I'm not very particular, but I think ANYONE would draw the line at watching roaches scurry accross tabletops while you're trying to eat. Maybe it's psychological, but I always feel queasy after eating food bought there. The stall where we usually buy from has pretty good local fare, but I always find it too heavy and greasy. Even the soups are ultra salty and a little oily. I needed a change.
After a shoot today, I decided I could afford to go and get better food instead of settling for the usual substandard stuff. So I detoured to Damansara Jaya and am SO glad I did! The open air food court, located outside Atria, (Lotus restaurant side) is simple and clean. Have been there often enough to know which stalls are the best.
My all time favourite stall is Gerai Ramah, a corner unit next to Uncle Ali's shop. The food is simple - sayur kampung and lauk kampung. No funny2 pretentious food here. Just simple things like sulur keladi, gulai lemak pucuk paku, gulai pucuk ubi, ikan pari masak asam pedas, jantung pisang, ikan goreng, ikan bakar, kerabu perut and the like. Their sambals are really good. Price - pretty competitive. Plus the uncle kenal my face oredy. Have been going there since I started work 12 years ago. And the drinks stall next door offers air mata kucing and asam boi. Yum! Was so happy I even tapaued some for dinner. Ha ha.
Another stall I like is on the other side of Atria, near the Post Office. Also a corner shop, the abang makes the best Cantonese kuetiaw in the area. The cook is a Malay guy, but makes good chinese food. Have heard rumours that they're going to tear down Atria and build a high-rise complex in its place. If they do, my favourite stalls may either have to relocate or shut down.. Oh no! With the current economic climate, it seems that the plans have been put on hold. Would be sorry to lose my favourite Malay lunch place if the project takes off... Wish there were more good, cheap eating spots in our area lah.

1 comment:

~CovertOperations78~ said...

I love the traditional stuff you can get at bazaar ramadhan, like rebung, siput sedut etc. My fave place to eat on the weekends is Sri Ayu at Taman Seri Gombak. Over 50 types of Pantai Timur dishes, all unpretentious, all authentic. Will try the stalls you mentioned if I happen to be around on weekday afternoons. The Atria one I've tried before, but it's always so crowded at lunch hour. Their begedil is lovely, though.