A Rose By Any Other Name

My awesome rose tea from that mee tarik place. I am not much of a tea drinker but it looks like some dried rose buds or rose hips were used. The spoon was to stir the little sugar added and not to eat the buds, I think. It should be labelled as rose bud drink and not rose tea. Smells as sweet.

#meetarik #rosetea #rose

That Mee Tarik Place

I saw this restaurant when looking for a budget Hotel in the Gombak and Setapak area. It is a few doors down from Ong Tak Kim Supermarket and is called the Mee Tarik Orient Palace.

It is run by a few mamak staff who dont speak much. They were upset when I wanted ice for my rose tea. I think they were afraid the flavour may not emanate from the the dried rose flower buds without hot water. Their waiter couldn’t express that. There goes my plans to ask him about the mee tarik.

From what I know, the signature Lamian or pulled and twisted noodles originated from China. It is also popular in Central Asian countries such as Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and is the national dish of the Uyghur people.

Hence, it was no coincidence and a pleasant surprise to find this restaurant also serving a variety of Chinese Muslim dishes. Unfortunately, all the pulled noodles available were of the soupy types that I didn’t like.

I ordered beef fried with onions and noodles. There is something special about eating fried crunchy onions with sauteed beef, Wonderful stuff. I think the noodles used were spaghetti. Loved it. Yumz.

Mee Tarik Orient Palace at 341 Jernai 3, Off Jalan Gombak Batu 5, Medan Idaman, Gombak.

Laksa Johor

Here is another view of Johore Laksa as served on the table at Warong Mak Tim. That is before we cleared the garnishing and lifted the noodles to uncover it for photography. See earlier pic and post titled Women’s Day Treat.

As legend has it, the then Johor ruler, Sultan Abu Bakar, also the first Malay ruler to visit Europe in 1866, instructed his royal chefs to use spaghetti instead of the traditional rice noodles. The royal recipe caught on.

Panasonic Lumix GM-1, ISO 500, f3, 1/60 sec.

#localfood #malayfood #johorfood #johor #laksa #spaghetti #noodles #warung #maktim #setiawangsa #muar

Nasi Tomato Ayam Masak Merah

I love tomato rice. At Warong Mak Tim, I ordered a plate of Nasi Tomato Ayam Masak Merah (with red cooked chicken). Not sure if it is of Johor origin but it is nice that they used long grain Basmati rice. Mak Tim also serves Nasi Beriani Gam and they most likely use the same long grain.

Mak Tim, comes from a family of cooks and is now 75 years young. She started the business in the late 1970s to cater to weddings and corporate functions. She still oversees the business, albeit from home. Picture of Mak Tim (inset) sent by her daughter. The area I know as Setiawangsa is Taman Desa Keramat, it seems.

On Facebook, their address is given as 23 Jalan AU1A/2B Taman Keramat, 54200 Kuala Lumpur. Tel: 016 226 5939

Panasonic Lumix GM-1, ISO 200, f4, 1/80 sec.

#localfood #malayfood #johorfood #johor #warung #maktim #setiawangsa #muar #rice #nasitomato #ayammasakmerah #tomato #tomatorice #red

Women’s Day Treat

It is International Women’s Day and a nice woman took me out for lunch at a woman’s place. When I was lamenting recently about friends letting me down when I needed help to go run errands, Elizabeth Chong, was one few empathetic people who contacted me to tell me she can help when necessary. It cheered me up greatly, on that day. Since we have not met in person, I suggested we meet up for a “trial run” in the form of a meal or drink.

She suggested the Johorean place Warong Mak Tim, operated by the mother of her former colleague at The Star. I like Muar and Johorean food and it was a wonderful suggestion. It bills itself as “Sajian Asli Warisan Johor” (original Johor heritage fare). Picture is of the famous ‘Johore Laksa’ that Elizabeth had today. Incidentally, Elizabeth is from Muar and can attest to the authenticity of the food at Mak Tim, whose family also originates from Muar.

Mak Tim is now at Setiawangsa and not, where it used to be, in Jalan AU2C Taman Desa Keramat, three months ago.

Panasonic Lumix GM-1, ISO 200, f5, 1/200 sec.

#localfood #malayfood #johorfood #johor #warung #maktim #setiawangsa #muar