Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Rumah Makan Minang









I was delighted when one of my "makan kakis" suggested that we go for Nasi Padang for lunch one Sunday. He told me there's this family run well-known place and I should try it.

We got there about 12.30pm and I was shocked to see such a looong queue. There were many Chinese, Malays, Peranakans and tourists. My friend joined the line and after I told him what I wanted, I "chopped" a table. I was also told that there's an air-conditioning area upstairs but it would be a pain if we were going to ask for seconds :P

After what seemed like a long wait, the food arrived. I tried the Asam Pedas Tenggiri. It was good, not too spicy and I love the daun kesum (thai basil). However, I suspected that there's a bit of tomato in this dish and that is more Malay than Padang. The Beef Rendang was tender and sauce was delicious, although slightly spicy for me. The Chilli Chicken dish was hot but tolerable, the chicken was fried and the pounded green and red chilli paste was spread all over the chicken. Drool material. The Sambal Paru (beef lungs) was standard and we had two plates of it because we generally like paru. Sambal Goreng (long beans and fried tofu) was average.

All in all, we enjoyed our meal as we polished off two plates of rice each :D. I think it's very good Nasi Padang for Singapore. Of course, you can't compare to the ones in Jakarta as those are unbeatable. I will definitely come again.

After the meal, we walked around feeling like tourists as my friend was snapping away with his new camera, capturing the sights of the charming Arab Street.

*Halal

Ratings:
Rendang: 9/10
Asam Pedas: 8/10
Chilli Chicken: 8.5/10
Sambal Paru: 7.5/10

Sambal Goreng: 6/10

Rumah Makan Minang

18 & 18A Kandahar Street
Near Arab Street, behind Sultan Mosque
Tel: 6294-4805

2 comments:

  1. hmmm... interesting, must try. Thing is, some proprietors take advantage of the fact that most locals (ahem!) cannot distinguish what is Padang, so much so that most locals assume that any 'Malay' food stall sells Nasi Padang (Padang dishes) when those are merely Nasi Campur ("semua tarok!"). Good to know that there is someone else who can tell the difference!!!

    How's the rendang? Close enough to Padang style or more to the sweet Javanese style, or to the currified Penang style? Actually, I don't mind any! Anyway, your photos are enough to make any normal warm-blooded(s) with taste buds want to lick their monitors...

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  2. Thank you very much for the comments :)

    The rendang was actually a cross between Javanese and Padang. Original Padang rendang is actually rather dry and it is very very dark. Taste wise for this rendang, it's very good. I think you would enjoy it.

    Thank you again for following my blog. Please feel free to let me know if you have any other suggestions. I hope to continue informing everyone on good places to makan :P

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