Lankan Cafe @ Petaling Jaya, Selangor

I have been to Lankan Cafe a number of times and that's mostly for their ala-carte dishes and I have shared my thoughts on the place in my blogs too. I do know that they have this Sunday buffet but never really got the chance to come for that. This afternoon, since I had just the right partner for that, we decided to go head over for their Sunday Buffet Lunch. 

The Restaurant in Petaling Gardens

Located On The First Floor

I have had a number of friends who have come all the way here and not able to find the restaurant. The reason being, most of them only look at the restaurants on the ground level. Please do note that this restaurant is on the first floor, right above Shanar Curry House. 

Buffet Lunch @ RM 38.00 per pax

The buffet spread was good but it's more of a non vegetarian fair. There are vegetarian dishes but it would be a waste if you come solely for those as it no longer seems worth it. For the first round, I went for some crabs, Mutton Bone Marrow Curry, Spring Hoppers and Sothi. The Mutton Bone Marrow Curry was just awesome. Being a buffet spread, you could take as much as you want and me being a mutton lover, I was simply in ecstasy. Taste wise, the thick spice gravy was just superb and I would rate this at 10/10. Their Idiyappam's were good too and that I shall rate at 8/10. Their Sothi was nice as well and again, I shall rate that at 8/10. Their Crab Curry was excellent but the crabs itself weren't fresh. Nevertheless, just for the curry, I would give it 9/10. 

This round, I went for more Idiyappam's as I am not much of a Puttu fan. They also have White Rice for those who prefer to go for that. As for the curry, I tried their Fish Curry and Venthaya Kulambu. Their Fish Curry was off and even the fish wasn't fresh. I would not recommend going for that and if I were to rate that, 4/10 shall be my rating. Their Venthaya Kulambu was good and that deserves a rating of 8/10. There were two types of Brinjals, Kathirikka Paal Curry and a spicy perattal. Both were awesome and I would rate both at 9/10. Of course, I didn't stop here. I also went back for more of their Mutton Bone Marrow Curry because it was just too good. 

Masala Tea & Sukku Malli Coffee

Masala Tea @ RM 6.90

Masala Tea and Sukku Malli Coffee isn't part of the spread and it's an add on that is priced at RM 6.90 each. Their Masala Tea was good but their Sukku Malli Coffee could have been better. Would rate the previous 8/10 and the latter 5/10. 

Some Cakes

Porridge

To wrap up our meal, we also went for some cakes and a little bit of porridge. All the cakes were excellent and I would rate them 9/10. The porridge was too good and that deserves a rating of 10/10. 

If you're in the mood of having a heavy Sunday lunch, then I would recommend heading to Lankan Cafe for their Sri Lankan Sunday Buffet Lunch. It's priced at RM 38.00 per pax and it is truly worth it. Good spread of dishes and the food is delicious. Best to be there at sharp 12 noon since the crowd builds up after that. 

Address: No. 388, 1st Floor, Jalan 5/59, Petaling Gardens, 46000 Petaling Jaya, Selangor.

Business Hours: 0900 - 2200 Daily

Restoran Ahwa @ Petaling Jaya, Selangor

Restoran Ahwa is one famous Hokkien Mee place that has been around for many years. In fact, I have been seeing this place for at least 25 years now but never got a chance to visit them. One of the reasons for that is the lack of parking bays around this area. Having heard and read so many positive reviews about this place, I decided that I have got to try them tonight. 

The Restaurant Along Jalan 14/48 Petaling Jaya

I Wonder How He Keeps Track Of All The Orders

Every Night Is A Busy Night

We were here at around 9.30 pm and that's after the usual dinner hours and the place was still crowded. Business starts at 6 pm and goes on till 2 am. Finding a bay to park is one challenge, the other challenge would be to find a table in the restaurant. Even today, that was a challenge and finally we had to sit at a table that was close to the Kam Heong Lala stall, right beside the stove and by the time I finished my meal, I too was smelling like Kam Heong Lala. Despite there being a number of stalls at this restaurant, the highlight is definitely the Hokkien Mee stall. If you just look around, you would definitely see a plate of Hokkien Noodles on each and every table. Besides Hokkien Mee, they do other noodle dishes as well but those are fried by another guy. As for Hokkien Mee, there is one dedicated chef who fries the noodles using charcoal stove. Orders keep coming in and I wonder how they manage them all so well.

Chili Paste

They had stacked buckets of this Chili Paste and I assume they were all for that day's consumption. Literally buckets! This is a strong indicator as to the number of Hokkien Mee plates that they sell per night. As for this Chili Paste, I loved the taste. It was slightly pungent, had a deep and bold flavour and a dried shrimp after taste to it. Absolutely loved it and I would rate this at 9/10. 

Hokkien Mee (1 Pax) @ RM 9.00

We had ordered for one pax only since we wanted to snack and this was priced at RM 9.00 per plate. Yes, a little on the high side but it was absolutely worth it. The noodles were a little firmer, slightly chewy, rich in starch and blended so well with the sauces. A lot of lard and shrimps were added to the dish and that combination was just divine.  Though it took us a wait close to 30 minutes for this dish, it was worth it. I would rate this noodles at 9/10. 

Usually when a place becomes too famous, then the quality declines over time but these guys have managed to keep the taste consistent over the years. Despite the fact that one would need to wait approximately 30 to 45 minutes for the dish to be served, crowds of people still patronise the place and that speaks volumes about this Hokkien Mee. Glad that it is still prepared using charcoal stove. A must visit place for Hokkien Mee lovers!

Address: No. 66, Jalan 14/48, Seksyen 14, 46100 Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia.

Opening Hours: 1800 - 0200 Daily

Lankan Cafe @ Petaling Jaya, Selangor

Lankan Cafe is a Sri Lankan Restaurant that has recently opened up in Petaling Garden, Petaling Jaya. If I am not mistaken, they had started some time in December 2016 and business seems to have picked up over the months. Well, there are not many Sri Lankan restaurants around and for Ceylon Tamil's like me, this definitely would seem like a boon. I had not heard about this restaurant until last month and having heard of such a place, I was very eager to visit them. Well, for someone who dines out most of the time, this sort of place is like home cooked food and having not had such kind of food for some time now, that itself contributed to my eagerness to visit. 

The Cafe Located On The First Floow

Entrance To The Cafe

Opening Hours

Trendy Design

Lovely Ambience

Fantastic Service

This cafe is located on the first floor, not too far away from the 7 Eleven that's located along Jalan 5/59. During weekdays, parking can be an issue but if you're okay to park near the houses, then it should not be a problem. We were here at around 5 pm and the place was packed with customers. Apparently, there was also a section that was closed off for a private function. I also heard from a friend that this was also the case the week before. Even today, many customers had to return solely because the place was running full house. So, if you're planning to come over, best to make prior reservations. The cafe was chic and trendy, the ambience was lovely and the service was amazing. Staffs were literally running around attending to customers. The owners were also very friendly and were seen striking conversations with customers. From what I had witnessed this evening, it is evident that there are many Sri Lankan Tamils like me who miss these food and hence, not surprised to see the reception that the restaurant had been getting from the public. 

I would say that their menu is quite comprehensive. Not too many items but sufficient and they were very reasonably priced. Comparing these with Aliya's, I would say that these guy's nailed it price wise. No wonder they have been getting such overwhelming response from the public. This is definitely a restaurant that one could patronise on a day to day basis, that's how reasonable the prices were. 

Mango Juice @ RM 6.90

Sukku Malli Coffee @ RM 6.90

My brother had the Mango Juice which was priced at RM 6.90 . For such a tall glass, I would say that it was very worth it. Taste wise, it was decent and I'd give it a 8/10 . Their Sukku Malli Coffee was above average only. I still vividly remember the Sukku Malli Coffee that I had at a road side stall in Kodaikanal, Tamil Nadu and this was nowhere close to that. They could have added more spices and that would have made it better. As for their Sukku Malli Cofffee, I would rate it at 7/10. 

Mutton Rolls @ RM 10.90

The Fillings

One of the starters that we tried was their Mutton Rolls and this was priced at RM 10.90 for three pieces. The outer layer was amazingly soft and tasty but when it came to the filling, I felt that it could have been better. In fact, ground mutton was quite scarce and I could hardly get that taste. Based on my taste buds, I'd give this 7/10. 

Egg Appam @ RM 8.00 Per Set Of 2

Paal Appam @ RM 8.00 Per Set of 2

They had two varieties of Appam, Pal Appam and Egg Appam. A set of mixed Appam which was what we had (one of each) was priced at RM 8.00 . I wouldn't complain price wise as the Appam's were really huge. For a small eater, one Appam is good enough to fill the tummy. Their Pal Appam was excellent, in fact it's one of the best Sri Lankan Pal Appams that I have tasted in Malaysia and yes, it's way better than the one that we get in Bangsar. Similarly, their Egg Appam was excellent as well. Both had unique tastes and were so authentic in taste. These definitely deserve nothing less than a perfect 10/10. A must try at this cafe!

Kothu Puttu with Mutton @ RM 11.90

As far as their Kothu Puttu is concerned, they have this dish prepared with various meat varieties and the prices vary accordingly.We tried two versions actually. One is the above one with Mutton and another one with Fish which we did take away. Both were decent and could have been better. The Puttu was a tad too dry and slightly lacked spices. The mutton chunks had some very tiny bones as well and that wasn't a very pleasant experience. Overall, I'd give this a 6/10. 

Kothu Idiyappam with Egg @ RM 7.90

This Kothu Idiyappam was a let down. There were a number of things with it that I was not happy. Firstly, it lacked salt. Secondly, it had a pungent oil smell and taste to it. And finally, I doubt that the spring hoppers were very fresh. Combine all these factors together, it was a below average dish. That was sad because this is one of my favourite dishes and that left me very disappointed. As for this dish, I'd give it 4/10 only. 

Our Bill For The Day

If I am to summarise my dining experience, the Sri Lankan Style Appam's were the best! They were extremely good and hand crafted to perfection. Definitely the best in the Klang Valley. Mutton Rolls were decent, Kothu Puttu was nice, Sukku Malli Coffee was okay but their Kothu Idiyappam was below average. I would definitely come back for their Appams and maybe Kothu Puttu but not the rest. Perhaps, I should come another Sunday and try their Sri Lankan curry varieties instead. Sunday's specifically as they have Sri Lankan Crab Curry available every Sunday. Prices versus portions, I would definitely say that they are cheap. But taste wise, lot's to improve.

Address: No. 388, First Floor, Jalan 5/59, Petaling Garden, 46000 Petaling Jaya, Selangor.

Opening Hours: 1000 - 2200 Tuesday to Sunday