This is one of those restaurant that has been around since the mid 70's and I have been a loyal customer of theirs for at least 20 years now. Whenever I am on this side of town and crave for some Banana Leaf Meals, I have never looked further. This would definitely be my destination. The food has consistently been great and the crowd is usually overwhelming. Most days, in fact it wouldn't be wrong to say everyday for lunch, guests would be waiting in line for a table. That is the kind of reception this restaurant gets. I am sure that PJ folks would probably have the same sentiments as well. One major issue here is parking. We were here yesterday afternoon and being a Friday, it took me a long time to get a bay. After doing like 20 laps around the neighbourhood, I finally got a place right at their doorstep. Must be my lucky day. Fortunately we were early and managed to get a place right away. The usual Friday crowd had not built up yet. Moreover, it was Ponggal (the Harvest Festival celebrated grandly by the Tamils) and many would have been vegetarians. And I could just imagine how the place would have been in 30 to 40 minutes time.
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| The Restaurant in Seksyen 11, Petaling Jaya |
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| Banana Leaf Meals @ RM 8.00 |
Once seated, a waiter is usually assigned to a table and he gives his fullest attention to that set of customers. He is solely responsible for serving them all the dishes along with the sides. And once done, he writes the bill and hands it over to the cashier. Very systematically managed. The moment we sat, he was working like a programmed robot. Non stop, one by one the items were served on the leaf. Of course, the above set isn't complete as I took the photo before the pickles and some other sides were served. Was just too hungry having not taken my breakfast. But it was basically those three vegetables and three or four different curries to choose from. For RM 8.00 , it was a worthy meal.
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| Potato and Long Beans in a sour Kerala style cooking |
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| Cabbage and Dhall Perattal |
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| Tomato Pachidi |
I guess the theme today was Kerala style dishes and they were all fantastic. Two sour style vegetables and the commonly found Cabbage Perattal along with some Inji Puli, Pickled Chilies, Pudina Sambal and Mango Pickles. The preparation was just awesome and I would rate them at 9/10 .
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| Sambar |
For my first round, I tried their Sambar and it was good. Second round was their Venthaya Kuzhambu and that was awesome. If I were to rate those, I would give their Sambar 8/10 and their Venthaya Kuzhambu 9/10.
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| Vegetable Cutlet @ RM 2.00 |
We also added a Vegetable Cutlet to the orders and this was priced at RM 2.00 per piece. I have tasted their Fish Cutlet before and that was fantastic but this, was just okay. The adding of bread crumbs spoilt it. To me, it was just too dry and not sufficiently flavoured. It would have been better if it was a Potato Cutlet. I'd rate this at 5/10 . Just okay!
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| Tofu Sambal @ RM 2.00 |
Their Tofu Sambal was good. Personally, I felt that it could have been better if it was a tad spicier but I guess that that level of spiciness would not be one that is preferred by many. Nevertheless, it was still good. For the price, the portions were good too. I would rate this preparation at 9.3/10 .
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| Rasam |
Rasam is complimentary as it is provided with the set. Their Rasam was lovely and a perfect one to conclude a sumptuous meal. Good but could have been better. I would rate this at 8/10 .
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| Kerala Style Payasam |
This again was complimentary and it was just awesome. Absolutely loved the taste. Thick, creamy, sweet and a burst of ingredients gave the Payasam a royal touch. Perfecto!!! And I would rate this at 10/10 .
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| Masala Tea @ RM 3.00 |
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| Kopi Tarik @ RM 2.65 |
Once we were done with our meal, time to sit back and enjoy a cup of tea. I ordered the Masala Tea which was priced at RM 3.00 and my Dad the Coffee which was oddly priced at RM 2.65 . Both the drinks were good and I would rate them at 8.5/10 . The only setback was that by this time, the crowd had built up and people were just waiting for a place to sit. And since we were having drinks, all eyes were on us, Probably they must have all been thinking 'when would these guys get up and leave'. Okay!!! We read your thoughts and had to force down the drinks and got our bill. Would have been better if it was a little more relaxed but I understand. They too had limited time in their hands and had to have their lunch within the specified time and return to office. So we cooperated. It was not like we had to gulp it down. No. Not like that. We took around 10 minutes which seemed sufficiently relaxed.
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| The Bill For The Day |
Overall, the food was good. I won't say that this is the best South Indian Meal in Petaling Jaya. Instead it is a place where you are guaranteed to have some good food but of course there are better places too. Somehow, I love the air-conditioned ambiance here and so just favour them over the others. And their prices are pretty decent as well. So no reason why I shouldn't.
Address: No. 51, Jalan Dato Mahmud 11/4, Seksyen 11,
46200 Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia.
Opening Hours: 0700 - 2230 Daily
Telephone: +603 7957 3158
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