MY VILLAGE BAROK: AYAM PENYET ACROSS THE RIVER

Jolynn and I took a road trip across the river to a restaurant. If you've been through the bridge you'll see the awesome scenery of the riverside, especially at night. It's a great view.

Outside the restaurant is where they barbeque the poultry and seafood. It actually looks like a long house, packed with customers and on the inside is where people sit and eat on the floor on the mats. It is actually authentic malay food with the environs as well. You would also get to wash your hands before you eat, in the Malay culture, using a teapot and a small basin.

The ayam penyet was served with a top notch spicy sweet chilli sauce. I cannot tell you how spicy it is. I have to admit my spiciness level isn't pretty high so maybe to others it's totally fine. But well for me I needed some of milk to douse the flames.

Chicken, just barbequed, charred on the top, with some cool vegetables and rice. We also ordered some umai. Umai is made from raw fish but with some citruses in it, chilli and shallots. Sarawak's local delicacy. I'm sure there's more to it but there was so much flavour in it, I'm not sure what else is in there.

Also, the lamb penyet, with its stunning flavours, was still tender and juicy. Of course, not forgetting the really spicy level in each bite.

Village Barok also serves dishes found in Seafood restaurants such as this bidin stir-fried with shrimp paste, also known as belachan. They also stir-fried this dish with big onions to add that extra flavour.

Tom Yam soup was rather cooked in Malay cuisine style, where you can get those mixed vegetables like carrots, corns, cabbage all in one bowl. Squids, prawns and slices of chicken were also added. It has an interesting tom yam flavour to it, I would say a rather localised taste. But not such a good idea to order this spicy soup as a compliment to go with the other really spicy dishes.

Grilled seafood was a specialty here as well. There were scallops, mussells and shrimps being grilled non stop at the pit. This was the griiled scallop. It was topped with a brown sauce and a good dose of sambal. The heat from the chillies was also as much as from the ayam penyet. However the sauce went really well with the soft and juicy scallops. They also tasted really fresh.

I really recommend you guys coming over to get some ayam penyet. If you're looking to experience a real Malay culture in Sarawak as authentic as possible, this is the place to go. It's a huge wooden structure at the end of the road, you won't miss it. If it's not authentic already enough for you, you can choose to take a scenic route across on the sampan. Just take it towards the food court across Waterfront.

It's open everyday from 6pm to 11pm and it's full with people at night. So it's better to get in there early or if you don't mind the wait. There's also a satay shop just outside it, if you don't mind.


My Village Barok
7, Jalan Brooke, 
Kampung Boyan, 
93050 Kuching, 
Sarawak, Malaysia.




Until next time. This is Sharon signing off, stay tune every week for more:)

Seafood Episodes- The Venue

My dad is really into seafood. He knows, to my knowledge, never been wrong about anything with marine biology. So he takes his seafood related dishes seriously. So my family has been going to this nearby restaurant for a long time now, to the point where our orders are memorised by the head waitress. She knows how my dad wants the fish he got cooked, and what we like. 

I’ve been missing the food of The Venue for a long while now. I believe it is called teo chew seafood. We ordered as usual the midin, stir fried with garlic. We also had oysters cooked with oyster pancakes. There’s a lot of ways oysters are usually cooked in chinese cuisine, one of my favourites are usually with egg or they make a sort of pancake with the oysters. 

The oyster with pancake, which means it is made our of flour with the oyster, and then fried. It comes out usually crispy and served with soy sauce and pepper. The pancake is dipped in the sauce and we will eat immediately while it is hot and crispy. Any longer and it will not be. 

The next will be the midin. It has always been my favourite dish in teo chew seafood. It is just stir fried with garlic and seasoned well. Midin is mostly found near the seaside, and sold on the road side on wooden vendors. It is very common in this region of Malaysia and cooked frequently as a delicacy with other type of sauces. 

My father had ordered steam fish and deep fried fish. Both of them delicious. They had used a sort of sauce with it, I think fish sauce and steamed the fish in it. I also believe they fried shallots and garlic, earning a sweet to the savoury dish. The deep fried fish, with the fish mixed with a batter and fried till crisp. The inside is soft and not all overcooked., but the meat delicious when dipped with dark soya sauce. 

Most of the dishes are simple, but that usually is the best in this sort of food. The fish, the vegetable, the seafood is often the star of the dish. It is never overcomplicated or left with an over powering taste. 

The Venue is a family favourite among the locals in the area. It is often packed with people in the weekends. I really recommend this place but I think that wouldn’t be necessary as it is famous enough with it’s regulars. 

 Address:RH Plaza Commercial Centre, Off Jalan Airport, Lorong Lapangan Terbang 1, Kuching, 93250, Kuching, Sarawak, 93250, Malaysia

This is Sharon signing off this week's post. Stay tune every week for more.

CITY CAFE : KOLO MEE EPISODES

Good food is often found at popular spots, spots in which many would come to know of and can be seen just as you pass by the streets. Spots in which food can be commonly found as well. However, good food can also be found at the most unexpected areas, areas one would not go to for a satisfying meal. Sometimes, food served at these hidden gems can also taste better than well known spots in the city. Today, an adventure to one of the hidden places selling Sarawak's favourite, the kolo mee. In fact, it's located in a very old shopping mall, now mostly known for computer related gadgets, electronics and handphones. It's City Cafe located at the basement of this shopping mall, Wisma Saberkas.

This basement floor at Wisma Saberkas is surrounded with a few cafes just next to each other, with tables and chairs scattered along the walkway. During lunch hours, the whole place would be packed with the majority of the crowd from offices nearby. A popular cafe here is City Cafe, selling a tasty bowl of kolo mee.

City Cafe's kolo mee stall sells other dishes as well besides the usual kolo mee. Here's the menu.

A plated filled with freshly fried yong tau foo can also be seen placed next to the cooking station. Some prefer to have their kolo mee along with some of these freshly made yong tau foo.

Their kolo mee comes with a small bowl of clear soup as well. It is a tradition to drink the soup at the end of every kolo mee meal, as a palate cleanser and a comforting way to end the meal.

This special bowl of kolo mee comes with fishballs, processed crab meat sticks, meatballs, pork belly, prawns and vegetables. The noodle was springy and the texture was just right. It was seasoned well, and was drenched in a generous amount of gravy, so each bite of noodles wouldn't feel dry and would be coated well in sauce.

In most kolo mee shops, the clear soups served are often known to be bland and filled with hints of raw flour taste to it from the process of cooking the noodles. However, the clear soup served here was really flavourful, tasty and indeed comforting.

It had a peppery taste to it, had the right amount of saltiness and served as a great palate cleanser at the end of the meal.


Now it's your turn to give this hidden gem a try.







City cafe opens daily except Tuesdays from 8pm to 6pm

LG21C, 

Wisma Saberkas, 

Jalan Tun Abang Haji Openg, 

93000 Kuching, Sarawak, 

Malaysia.

This is Jolynn signing off this week's episode on The Makan Post. Stay tuned for more.

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The Makan Post brings to you weekly food adventures, so be sure to catch us every week for new episodes and dont forget to subscribe to us. Just click on the Follow button below. Also, check out our instagram page @themakanpost. Cheers.

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LYN'S THANDOORI: INDIAN CUISINE

North Indian cuisine is a special delicacy for many in Kuching. Especially those that are more to fine dining concept. Just the thought of fresh hot naan with curries, gravy and dishes to go with it makes you crave for it. Here in Kuching, we have a few restaurants, offering fine north Indian cuisine, but of course, more towards the pricey side. One of them in which we will be talking about today, is none other than Lyn's Thandoori, located in the town area.

I have been eating north Indian cuisine here for quite some time, ever since i was still schooling. You could say I am their regular customer. This place is owned by a family, and the father of the family knows his regular customers well, and their order preferences too. He would also go around each table starting a conversation between his customers. Definitely something in which welcomes customers and considered as giving real good service too.

They started off by serving us a basket of papadam, accompanied with mango  chutney and freshly made mint gravy before the rest of the orders arrived.

These are all refillable upon request and yes, you can have as much papadam as you like.

Lassi, though always served as a dessert, was what we ordered here as a drink.

This has always been my favourite drink whenever dining here. Lassi is a yogurt based drink, blended with spices or fruits. Lassi also comes in a savoury form back in the traditional days and can also be found in their menu here too. Here we have 2 lassis, one which is a mango lassi and the other, banana lassi. Their mango lassi was rich and creamy, full of mango flavour and bits in it. It was not too sweet either, and serves as a nice compliment to your meal, or as a dessert after. The banana lassi too, gave the same experience in the taste buds. Both are just wonderful.

We ordered garlic butter naan. When it was brought to the table, you could already smell its buttery aroma. It had a nice crispy outer layer to it due to its cooking method in a tandoor, which is just what u want. The naan had a chewy and light texture to it which allows one to enjoy it with the other more stronger flavours from curries and dishes. The taste and flavour of the garlic was evident, but did not overpower the whole naan with a strong garlic taste.

Not forgetting our basmathi rice, to go with the piping hot curry. The basmathi rice was done perfectly and when tossed, the grains fell separately, none sticking to each other. It was fragrant as well and accompanied the other dishes perfectly.

Kaju Gobi is one of my usual dishes ordered here. It's basically cauliflower and cashew nuts in a rich masala gravy. Though the Kaju Gobi did not bring a sting to the tongue, the spice in it brings out a nice flavour. The cauliflower was cooked al dente, and the cashew nuts still had their crunch to it.

Butter chicken masala is also one interesting dish, more towards a curry, incorporating the usual spices found inside curry and the rich and creamy texture of butter.  The chicken was tender and moist, absorbing all the flavours from the masala. The gravy was delicious and was more towards the spicy side. The butter helped to balance out the spiciness of this dish.

The highlight was the fish curry. Here they have many different selections of fish masalas and curry. The one we decided to try was this one (shown above). This dish was packed full of flavour from the spices and chillies, and left the fish tender, coated with a rich layer of gravy. The fish was flaky and had all the flavours from the gravy of the curry in it. It was a perfect combination with the spices used in the gravy.

This was my favourite dish among the rest so it's definitely a must try.




One thing's for sure, Lyn's Thandoori offers great quality food and service. The next time you feel like having North Indian cuisine, fine dining style, give this place a try.

Lyn's thandoori opens daily, with the following times:

Monday to Saturday: 10am to 10pm
Sunday: 6pm to 10pm

Contact no: 082-234934


Adress:

Lyn's Thandoori
7, Lot 267, 
Jalan Song Thian Cheok, 
93100, Kuching, 
Sarawak, Malaysia.


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This is Jolynn signing off this week's episode on The Makan Post. Stay tuned for more episodes coming your way.

The Makan Post brings to you weekly food adventures, so be sure to catch us every week for new episodes and dont forget to subscribe to us. Just click on the Follow button below. Also, check out our instagram page @themakanpost. Cheers.

themakanpost@gmail.com

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