Melaka Restaurant Tips by bpacker Top 5 Page for this destination

Sun May Hiong Satay House: Dang! Where's my pork satay?? Local food Review

Now, way before the big Melaka VT meet, I dreamt of eating the pork satay in Melaka. It was reputed to be good and they were known to serve unmentionables like intestines to go with it. So armed with an old address I went and attempted to lead a group to find it. We set off, confident in the knowledge that it was at the end of old Jonker street. And by the time we walked there, hot and tired and bothered, it wasn't there! It was only a couple of days later, that I found out from Chin where it was. Apparently, it was so bloody hidden that only the locals knew where it was. Just listen to the directions..go to donald and lily's laksa shop. Look across the street. You'll see a row of shophouses. Walk there. You'll see the shop with one lone stove and a really old uncle. Confused? I don't blame you if you are. I have a rough idea where it is though and I will write a full review when I am done testing. In the meantime, just take it from my friend Chin, that the satay is not bad. You'll be piled with a big plate of satay the moment you sit down and payment will be dependent on the number of sticks counted in the end!

Other helpful tips:
-There's a teensy weensy sign at Heeren House
-It's somewhere behind Heeren House ( beyound a huge car park)
-Don't bother calling the satay house, they are better selling satay than giving directions
-Go to Orang utan Gallery ( the place with the picture of a big monkey) and sit down at shop beside it called eha! . Sip a drink while you curse at the bad weather. After your sanity has returned, ask the owner where to find the damm satay shop.

All pictures are taken by my friend, Chin

Address: 50/50A Jalan Kota Laksamana

Directions: Ask the shop owner of Eha! where the damm shop is...

Rating: 0

Theme: Local

Restoran Peranakan: Eating in an Antiquated Peranakan Restaurant

Now, down in the narrow, twisted lane of Melaka, there is a cavernous, antiquated restaurant with lots of quirky features. The sink is a case in point. Just look at the goldfish taps with the big gaping mouths! Yes, water will flow out from the mouth of the goldfish when you wash your hands. Guess that will make washing up before dinner a fun event. And before I forget, the food at this place is also good, though a tad pricey.

Favorite Dish: Well, if there is a VTer who is gonna do an introduction to Peranankan Food, I guess it has to be me since my ancestors were from Melaka.

Peranankan Food 101:

AYAM BUAH KELUAK (Chicken Curry) - This is the creme de la creme of all Peranakan dishes. It's essentially a thick chicken curry flavoured by a strange, midnight-black paste from an Indonesian nut called buah keluak. Though it looks like crap, the taste of the paste is unforgettable. It's rich, buttery and bitter , a little like brazilian nut if it's mashed to a paste. One taste and you might get addicted for life.

Beef Rendang - More of a Malay dish but the Peranakan version is sweeter and less spicy. It's nothing more than another take of the Indian rogan josh. Tender juicy beef in rich, thick coconut gravy embroiled with an aromatic blend of spices.

Address: 107, Jalan Tun Tan Cheng Lock.

Comparison: more expensive than average

Phone: 06-284 5001

Price: US$11-20

Rating: 5

Theme: Local

Makeshift Stalls at the Weekend Night Bazaar: Melaccan Street Food : Kuih Lobak

The best, most authentic and delicious food in Melaka is not found in some fancy restaurant but on the narrow streets of Jonker Walk every weekend...

Update: It's confirmed the best kueh lobak in town is fried by this chap with the baseball cap. He does his fabulous dish every Sat night in the weekend bazaar. His kueh lobak has a distinct smokey flavour and he has little tables and chairs for his customers.

Favorite Dish: "Kuih Lobak" or fried radish cake. Steamed, white radish is mixed with black soya sauce, chilli and egg and fried to an unholy mess. But the result is delicious!!!! The eggy omelette is sweet, crispy and savoury, all at the same time. Eat it while it is piping hot.

Where
Jonker Street Night Bazaar happens every weekend. Roads are closed to traffic.

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Comparison: least expensive

Price: less than US$10

Rating: 5

Theme: Local

Tan Kim Hock: The Famous Durian Chendol at Tan Kim Hock

Now, if you're a foodie around these region, you would have heard the famous Durian Chendol at Tan Kim Hock. Though we felt that it was a tad pricey at RM3, gluttony ol' me and friends decided to have a taste to see whether it passed our litmus test. We promptly went to Tan Kim Hock, paid RM3 for a tiny coupon to exchange for a ladelled bowl of chendol.

Favorite Dish: Hmm, despite the smiles you see in this picture, the chendol failed the test. First, we could barely taste the durian. Not surprising, since there was only a nano-speck of it on top of the ice. Secondly, the ice was way too coarse for liking. The visible specks of ice refused to melt and jarred the taste of the dessert, ugh.

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Address: 153, Jalan Laksamana Cheng Ho

Comparison: more expensive than average

Price: less than US$10

Rating: 1

Theme: Local

Makeshift Stall in Jonker Street, Melaka: Delicious Local Cakes: Putu Piring

A hawker works feverishly, making cottony soft "Putu Piring" or traditional Malay rice cakes on conical cup steamers in Jonker St, Melaka.

Favorite Dish: When I think of Putu Piring, i think of a warm, circular disc encasing a heady dollop of grated coconut and gula melaka. This is heaven for a couple of Malaysian cents. The cakes here taste better than the ones found in Singapore as good Gula Melaka is more available here.

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Comparison: least expensive

Price: less than US$10

Rating: 5

Theme: Local

Dragon Deluxe Restaurant Sdn. Bhd.: Jelly from a Coconut

I have to admit though I'm not fond of Chinese restuarant desserts, this dish was highly anticipated since it was touted to be one of the best desserts in Melaka. Hmm, yes, coconut milk jelly chilled within a whole green coconut . It sounded delicious.

Favorite Dish: Our verdict was split on this while some like the smooth, cool and rich texture of the jelly, there were others like me who found it too sweet and cloying. One mouthful was enough for me.

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Address: No. 52-62 & A & B, Jalan Mutiara Melaka 2

Comparison: about average

Price: less than US$10

Rating: 3

Theme: Local

Stall 88 Jonker St Night Bazaar: The Best Ice Chendol in Melaka

A definition of good Chendol : A good chendol should have mounds of fine, snow-like shaved ice, drizzled with fresh coconut milk and thick, caramel-like gula melaka. Under the delicious ice you should be able to find a multitude of glutinous mung bean jelly, soft-boiled red beans and chewy attap seeds.

Favorite Dish: Ah, to find the best ice-chendol in Melaka. A noble but difficult quest, now, how do you suppose a yeow kwee would fulfill it? Well she could ...

1)Sample every available chendol
2)Ask the friendly locals for their recommendations
3)Refer to Lonely Planet, duh!
4)Ignore #3 and go for #2 and #1

So, what did the yeow kwee do? Let's just that I didn't do #3 instead I tried so many chendols that my tongue became like a frozen popsicle! But it was worth it...
The best chendol, dear readers, is at Stall 88, Jonker Street ! It fulfilled my criteria of a perfect chendol and more. The syrupy gula melaka was the best deal as it had the right consistency and brought out the flavour of the chendol. Yum...

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Comparison: least expensive

Price: less than US$10

Rating: 5

Theme: Local

Restoran Bibik Neo: Trying Peranankan Food in Melaka

Peranankan food is the original fusion food in South East Asia. The food is a delicious blend of both Chinese and Malay influences since both races inter-married in Melaka many years ago.

Favorite Dish: Eating Peranankan food is a must while you're in Melaka. Afterall, this is the birthplace of South East Asia's first fusion cuisine, right? Melaka is full of good Peranankan restaurants and here's one to begin with. This is what my friends and I ordered:

1)Fried Sotong Rings - Good, crispy but salty
2) Chicken Curry - Easily the best dish of the lot, the chicken was soft and tender and the gravy had a tinge of assam
3) Fried Chap Chai - Good and flavourful
4) Fried Fish - Nondescript
5) Chendol - Could have been better, serving was tiny and gula melaka was scanty

Open daily 11am-3pm and 6-10pm

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Address: No. 6, Ground Floor, Jalan Merdeka, Taman Melaka R

Comparison: about average

Directions: It's 1-2km away from Century Mahkota Hotel, just drive to the left of the hotel, towards the direction of the hospital.

Price: US$11-20

Rating: 4

Theme: Local

Makeshift Stall in Jonker St, Melaka: Delicious Local Cakes : Onde Onde

Trying the delicious assortment of kueh mueh (local cakes) in Melaka is a must, especially those flavoured with GULA MELAKA. Somehow, they taste better here than anywhere else as fresh gula melaka is easily available here. The green glutinous rice ball "Onde Onde" is a good case in point. You can buy these easily from any stall at Jonker Street, Melaka. They are usually sold for a couple of cents.

Favorite Dish: Soft and chewy glutinous rice ball covered with white dessicated coconut. Bite hard into one and a burst of sweet liquid gula melaka fills your mouth . Hmm, delicious.

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Comparison: least expensive

Price: less than US$10

Rating: 5

Theme: Local

Makeshift stall in Jonker St, Melaka: Melaccan Street Food : Steamed Pork Dumplings

In this picture, you see a lady pausing to pick her choice of steamed pork dumplings from a traditional bamboo steamer in Jonker Street, Melaka. It's a tough choice because each dumpling has its own distinct taste and skin texture.

Favorite Dish: Chinese meat dumplings have always been my favourite snacks on the go. These plump, juicy morsels of meat, water-chestnut, shrimp and mushroom are delicious and addictive,especially when it's eaten with a dollop of chilli sauce. Go for the thin-skinned pork dumpling (SHUI MAI) or the wheat-skin prawn dumpling(Ha Kow). Both are goooooood.

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Address: Jonker St, Melaka

Comparison: less expensive than average

Price: less than US$10

Rating: 5

Theme: Local