Singgah Selalu

There's makan place near our home in JB in Taman university. It wasn't there when we first moved in but soon after it opened, a lot of our neighbours were talking about it. But we all know that sometimes, what people say may end up not really being the same cup of tea for someone else. Am I right?

When my Mum and Dad visited with some friends, they returned with mixed feeling.
Well, I guess there was only one way to find out - visit for ourselves!

So the menu at Singgah Selalu actually offers quite a lot of stuff. Mostly Malay-Chinese-Thai style cuisine but that alone means that you can expect one particular dish (i.e. beef, fish, veggies etc) being cooked in a large number of styles (i.e. black pepper, tiga rasa etc).

Nasi Goreng Cina (RM9.00 for 3 pax)

The main dish was a toss-up between rice and noodles. We ended up settling on Nasi Goreng Cina.

We ordered it because it sounded like a really simple dish that would go well with the other dishes we were planning to order. What didn't expect was to get a dish that was pretty much filling on its own!

Firstly, the serving for 3 pax could easily feed 4-5 pax even without any side dishes.
And if that's not enough, this dish was PACKO with all kinds of goodies!
Chicken! Seafood like squid and prawns! Egg! Vegetables! Mushrooms! You really get your money's worth!

And if you're thinking that they're putting a lot of stuff to mask the lack of taste well you'd be wrong.
This was actually really really tasty if you ask me. I'm not sure how any other choices would have turned out but I think we struck a winner with this one!

Daging Rusa Lada Hitam (RM16.50)

So we thought we'd be a little extravagant and have some venison aka daging rusa.
It's not something we have very often for 2 reasons - 1) it's bloody expensive and 2) it's difficult to find a place that knows how to cook it well. And since we were in Malaysia, we decided to take a chance.

KWANG KWANG KWANG....
Sorry kiddies wrong choice here. From the pic above alone you can probably see how oily the dish is.
And the meat was really tough to chew! They serve it on a hotplate which probably overcooked the meat.
I's still eatable (after a lot or chewing) but we'd recommend you either order a different meat like chicken/beef or maybe try a different style of daging rusa instead of black pepper.

Sup Ekor Goreng (RM12.50 small)

Aha! At least there was a saving grace!

I'd actually only just had Buntut Goreng Special for the first time recently at IndoChili and was so impressed that I simply had to try it here and I was not disappointed at all! Meat and collagen oh my!

The meat was not as tender as at IndoChili but hey that's not too bad. This was actually really really tasty and that's a big deal because I'm the guy who didn't fancy Sup Ekor at all just a few weeks ago!
I didn't really care for the soup here though. It wasn't really tasty so I just whacked the meat!

But fair warning - this one packs a really spicy kick. You can see from the picture how generous they are with the chillies right? Chilli lovers rejoice! Everyone else - order more water!

Actually, this was the only dish my parents recommended after their visit and I can see why!

Telur Bistik (RM8.80 small)

We've gotta have an egg dish right? So I chose the Telur Bistik.
There's something about eggs and veggies coated in a sweet-spicy gravy am I right?

And it's not just eggs and veggies... More goodies like chicken await!
As you can probably guess, I ended up eating most of this one.

Asparagus Goreng Belachan (RM9.40 small)

For our vegetable dish, we chose another one that's not really considered normal I guess.

Asparagus??? Yes!! Memang sedap!
And you don't have to worry - the belachan taste is not overly strong. Just right and very tasty!
Definitely went well with the other dishes we ordered.

And how to prove the asparagus was yummy?
Well, my darling wife is so not the asparagus-lover kind of person and even she said it was tasty!
We have another winner I'd say.

Adam's Verdict:
Nasi Goreng Cina 3/5 -- Daging Rusa Lada Hitam 1/5 -- Sup Ekor Goreng 4.5/5
Telur Bistik 5/5 -- Asparagus Goreng Belachan 4/5

Maryah's Verdict:
Nasi Goreng Cina 4/5 -- Daging Rusa Lada Hitam 0.5/5 -- Sup Ekor Goreng 2.5/5
Telur Bistik 3/5 -- Asparagus Goreng Belachan 5/5
In case you were wondering, Singgah Selalu actually has a few different branches located in Danga Bay, Kip Mart, Kota Tinggi, Kotaraya and (this location) U Mall in Taman U. No idea if all of them cook at the same standards though...

I guess the reason we love eating in Malaysia because it's cheap and you have such a wide variety to choose from. When you find that place that rocks, you'll probably go back again. I guess there are a few things at Singgah Selalu I wouldn't mind going back for...

Singgah Selalu

U-Mall
Jalan Pulai, Taman U,
Skudai, Johor, Malaysia

Operating Hours:
11.00am til 10.00pm Daily

Larkin Bus Terminal: Cendol

You guys remember the time we had ABC from Gerai Pak Abu?
Well, we found something better...

Cendol (RM3.00)

Imagine having a nice cold bowl of Cendol on a really hot day.
And with the way the weather is nowadays, a hot day means pretty much almost every day lah.

Well if you're in the vicinity of Larkin, fret not - Pak Abu to the rescue!
Besides having his champion ABC, we found out that his Cendol is also THE BOMB!!!

Let us start by saying that he doesn't use that watered-down coconut milk nonsense.
His is the pure stuff. And by the taste of it, I'm even willing to be that the coconut milk he uses is probably hand-squeezed from grated coconut he probably gets from the market downstairs.

The gula melaka is just the right amount and the mix of flavours with the santan is superb.
And because the ingredients are top quality - the taste simply explodes in your mouth and you can't help it but to keep scooping it into your mouth.

The cendol itself was reason enough to applaude.
There' no overpowering pandan flavour which is a good thing.
And I know you're probably thinking that the colour is really dull but that just means that there's little or no artificial colouring added to the cendol.

Adam's Verdict:
Cendol 5/5

Maryah's Verdict:
Cendol 4.5/5

My wife and I thought we had the BEST cendol when we visited Melaka recently.
But I think Pak Abu just stole that title with this one.

PS if you want the dessert version, be sure to tell Pak Abu. If not, you'll get the watery drink version.

Gerai Pak Abu (MS16)

Kompleks Pengangkutan Awam Larkin (3rd Level)

Operating Hours:
9.00am til - 9.00pm Daily

Larkin Bus Terminal: Mee Bandung

Mee Bandung (RM4.00)

So my darling wife and I headed down to Larkin again with my parents in tow.
After we settled our errands, it was makan time!

Everyone was having Nasi Campur but I wasn't in the mood for rice.
In the end, I settled on some Mee Bandung.

I've actually never had Mee Bandung outside before as in I've never ordered it when eating out.
In fact, the only other time I've had it is when my darling wife cooked it for me at home once.
I really wasn't sure why I ordered it other than I didn't know what else to have. Was it going to be yummy?

YES!

This was definitely a tasty serving of Mee Bandung!
The gravy was really tasty and the shrimp taste was  not overpowering at all.
And they definitely were not stingy with the topping either. Chicken, egg, fishcake and vegetables galore!

One thing I have to point out is the big serving of noodles that comes along.
I do like my noodles but I got tired of it after awhile and ended up scooping the remainder out while I finished up the delicious gravy.


According to checks on the internet, Mee Bandung originated from Muar which is in Johor.
I'm not sure if the people are from Muar but they sure know how to make a decent bowl of Mee Bandung.

Adam's Verdict:
Mee Bandung 3/5

This is the 2nd best Mee Bandung I've ever had.
My wife's version still wins :)

Gerai Mak Milah (MS24)

Kompleks Pengangkutan Awam Larkin (3rd Level)

Operating Hours:
9.00am til - 9.00pm Daily

Burger Bakar

Okay so we've heard so much about this famous Burger Bakar.
A few people who hopped over the Causeway come back and say to me "Hey man, go try the Burger Bakar it's really a monster!"

Challenge accepted!

Okay so maybe it took a really bloody long time but we finally had the chance to try it.
However, we didn't get to try it at the place where everyone recommended us to try it.
B Point (just past the customs checkpoint) was closed when we passed by so we followed the advice of some of our neighbours and tried a secondary place instead. It's still in JB and it's near our place too!

So the first thing I see when I walk up to the stall is a grill with some burger patties sizzling.
It's not the stovetop grill you normally see them using when you buy Burger Ramly. This is the charcoal type.
This is obviously how Burger Bakar gets it's name - it's being bakar-ed!
Kinda gets the mouth watering whenever I see meat being cooked!

Firstly, you have a choice of either beef or chicken.
Next, you have to decide if you want cheese or not (Normal or Mozarella).
Last and cretainly not least - choose how many patties you want!
A single patty is apparently 200gm. Top up for a double if you'd like.
Really hungry? Go for the TRIPLE!!

Single Beef Burger Bakar (RM7.50)

Well, they were right. It looks like a monster that's for sure.

The patty itself is actually pretty tasty on its own despite being minimally seasoned.
I guess that's why they feel the need to pile on the sauces in overdose levels. This not only takes away from the taste of the beef but also makes it a really messy burger to eat.

And for the record, the centre of the patty was (surprisingly) raw-ish.
Not to be confused with medium-rare, this was just before that point but definitely too rare for my taste.
I guess if you're cooking meat over a grill like that, it's important (and quite a challenge) to make sure your meat is cooked but not overcooked (or undercooked for that matter) to the point it loses its moisture.

Single Chicken Burger Bakar (RM7.50)

The Beef Burger has a skewer through it too by the way.
Actually, I saw a few people eating it with the skewer still in the burger and they ate around the sides.
Is that the correct way I'm supposed to eat it? No wonder we were so messy!

The Chicken version of the Burger Bakar is quite a monster too.
But the patty had just a little too much flour in it and this made the patty taste a little pasty.
It was still quite okay for me but my darling wife didn't really fancy it.

Adam's Verdict:
Beef Burger Bakar 3/5 -- Chicken Burger Bakar 2.5/5

Maryah's Verdict:
Beef Burger Bakar 2.5/5 -- Chicken Burger Bakar 1.5/5

Well we started out with the single. Maybe if we're really hungry, we might try the triple next time.
We may have had just the single this time, but we sure made one big mess.

Burger Bakar (Taman U)

Junction of Jln Pendidikan 2 and 4
(Look out for Al Ikhsan and Maple Hotel)

Operating Hours:
5pm til 10pm Mondays to Saturdays
Closed on Sundays

Larkin Bus Terminal: Satay & ABC

I can still remember back in my secondary school days when a good buddy Ashraf Tank brought me to Larkin Bus Terminal for makan.

Our plan was to spend a day out in JB just to relax but we still had to eat right? So we took the bus from Singapore-JB from Queen Street in Singapore and that bus ended its journey at the Larkin Bus Terminal. And now after all these years, we can drive up and it still brings back memories when I get there.

So when you first arrived the main thing you'll see are all the bus companies and some money changers.
There are also some stalls selling some Malay food and snacks (maybe we'll go there for the next post?) but the stall we are looking for at on the 3rd floor.

A lot of people have the impression that the Larkin Bus Terminal makan area is dirty and unhygienic.
Well maybe in the past that may have been the case but they have since renovated the place and really cleaned it up. Stalls (including utensils) and eating area are really clean. But this is, in the end, hawker food so if you have a sensitive stomach or are really squeamish then maybe be a bit more cautious.

So back in the day, Ashraf Tank brought me to this stall selling Satay which he claimed was the bomb.
And boy was he right.

And this stall is still around today and believe it or not, the same guy is still burning the satay at the side of the stall and I've never seen him take a break because the orders seem to be non-stop.

I don't know what this guy's name is...
but they should call him... The Satay Master!!

He uses and old-school Satay burner and keeps his coals at just the right intensity to give the Satay a nice charred crisp on the surface while keeping the meat tender and juicy.

There are other stalls around that also sell Satay but everyone seems to be flocking to this stall and I can tell you that the Satay really lives up to its hype.

Okay enough talk and let's get on to the Satay.

Satay Kambing and Ayam

They serve the Satay with a soy-sauce gravy and some sambal.
If you want the usual peanut gravy, you can request for it but sometimes it is not available.
And even if it's not, trust me - the soy-sauce gravy is power.

Look at the char on that meat!
And it's still so juicy and tender when you bite into it.
Coat it with the sauce and you'll be having a taste party in your mouth I tell you.

But they only have Kambing (Mutton) and Ayam (Chicken) Satay though FYI.

Satay Kambing

One of the secrets of the Satay flavour is the fact that they include a small piece of the fat on the skewer with the meat. (See the 2nd segment from the bottom? That's the fat.)
I guess it really makes a difference with this Satay!
But if you don't fancy it, just remove the fat before you chomp down on the rest of the meat. The meat itself is already infused with enough flavour to savour.

The stall also sells other stuff like Soto, Gado-Gado and Nasi Rawon by the way.

Just a few stall down, there's a stall that sells drinks and dessert.
So he has Chendol and stuff like that but we saw this guy at the opposite table with this delicious looking thing and we couldn't resist so I actually asked him which stall he bought it from!
Semangat or what?!

 ABC (RM3.00)

Now can you see why I bothered to ask the guy?

Air Batu Campur (ABC) is basically like our Ice Kachang here but a simpler version.
This version has chin-chow and red beans and jelly and topped off with some sweet corn.
But instead of Atap Seeds (Kabong), he adds longan!

And at such a low price, I'd say this was definitely worth every RM.

The ice is bathed in red and green syrup.
And get this - instead of dousing it in Evaporated Milk like here in SG, the guys gives a nice pour of Condensed Milk instead!

So if you have a sweet tooth - this is definitely the dish for you!
But my advice is perhaps get it to share with 2-3 people should be just nice.

So what did we think of the food?

Adam's Verdict:

Satay Kambing 4.5/5 -- Satay Ayam (5/5)

ABC - (3.5/5)

Maryah's Verdict:

Satay Kambing 3.5/5 -- Satay Ayam (3/5)

ABC - (5/5)

There are other stalls to cover that sell so many other things and I'll probably cover it in future posts.
But I have a feeling that I'll probably still order some Satay to go along.

And my wife says "MUST TRY PAK ABU ICE KACANG!".

No Name Satay (MS20)   Gerai Pak Abu (MS16)

Kompleks Pengangkutan Awam Larkin (3rd Level)

Opening Hours: 0900-2100 Monday - Sunday