vkeong loves good food, travel and photography!
Snack / Dessert
Inexpensive yet satisfying titbits
Sate Zainah Ismail Best Satay In Town @ Jalan Keramat, KL
Aug 14th
As you might already know I am desperately looking for a satay in Klang Valley that could rival, and perhaps even better than those that I had in Singapore which I hate to admit is still the best I ever had to date. So when two of my fellow readers recommended Sate Zainah Ismail at Kampung Datuk Keramat, I immediately went looking for it.
For a first time visitor, Dato Keramat could be confusing to navigate but thanks to my GPS device we found the restaurant with relative ease. Zainah Ismail could be easily identified by the smoke and satay fragrance constantly oozing out of one of the wooden restaurant.
Five satay grills are used here and the satays are actually grilled by stages. The satays do not stay on one grill from raw to cooked. Instead, they are transferred to the next grill once a particular ‘doneness’ is achieved.
The innermost grill you see manned by an elderly uncle is where the raw, marinated skewers are barbecued first then made sure fully cooked at the foremost grill. There are only two types of satay here: beef and chicken priced at RM0.70 each.
Ketayap (Kuih Tayap) @ Chowrasta Market, George Town
Jul 30th
For a common kuih, Kuih Tayap has many names. Whether called Ketayap, Kuih Ketayap, Kuih Dadar or Kuih Gulung, they all refer to the same thing. This traditional Malaysian snack is actually a rolled crepe filled typically with shredded coconut and palm sugar. Because of its popularity the recipe has been adopted by all races and modified accordingly.
While the Malays and Nyonya alike would prepare the crepe in pandan flavor and use gula Melaka for the sweet taste, a Chinese stall in Chowrasta market, more specifically in front of shop No.3 along Jalan Kuala Kangsar has been preparing the crepe plain filled with white sugar and crushed peanuts instead.
Seafood Popiah @ Gerai Gerai Padang Brown (Dato Keramat Stalls)
Jul 4th
I believe the Seafood Popiah at Gerai Gerai Padang Brown (or also known as Dato Keramat Stalls) is one of the oldest in Penang with a history of over 60 years, even older than the food court which was opened back in 1966. Currently run by uncle Ong, it could might as well be the only popiah stall in town that include real crab meat as one of the ingredients.
Two pieces are the minimum order priced at RM2.80. As you can see the popiah is done the wet way, drowned in the ‘bangkuang char’ (stir-fried turnip/radish) gravy.
Firstly, a quick glaze of Hoisin and chili sauce on the paper thin crepe for the basic flavors.
Then a leaf of lettuce is laid on top of the crepe and followed by the remaining fillings of shredded omelette, a scoop of ‘bangkuang char’, a handful of crab meat and a sprinkle of fried shallots. Some fillings that can be found in the other popiah stalls like the sinful lard, crushed peanuts, bean sprouts and sliced meat are not included here.
Apom Chooi 老字号 Apong @ Jalan Burma, Penang
Jul 2nd
Apong has got to be one of the perfect snacks to go when you are breaking for tea. And if you are a Penangite you would have known that there are 2 pushcart Apong (or Apom) stalls along Burma Road – the first stall is Apom Chooi and about 20-30m away is Apong Guan. Both stalls even have the same pricing for their apong. Kinda ironic eh? But do you also know they are also real life brothers? I didn’t until I read the article displayed in front of Apom Chooi’s stall.
It is undeniable that Apong Guan is the more popular one and has been receiving the limelight more than Apom Chooi due to his good PR skills. Guan has always been the funnier and cheerful one while Chooi is seen as a quieter and more serious person.
Anyway, Chooi is the first person to setup his stall at Burma Road in the 1960s – selling banana fritters initially then decided to sell apong later on. A while later he also persuaded his younger brother Guan to shift his banana fritter stall from somewhere else next to him. As to why Guan also switched to sell apong too and why they aren’t on talking terms now, I do know a little but I won’t make any conclusions. I believe only the two of them know the best themselves.
