(More food indulgences after Roganic yesterday, albeit of a very different nature!) I visited C & R Malaysian Cuisine with a Malaysian friend this evening, to sample their dishes for an upcoming Singaporean/Malaysian food outing that he was organising for our hostel. We had received good reviews about this place from a Singaporean friend, and the dishes are very reasonably priced, so we were really looking forward to the dinner! C&R has two branches in London, one in Chinatown and the other in Bayswater; we decided on the Bayswater branch as it was bigger and could accommodate a larger group if necessary.
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| Front counter with a prominent logo of Tiger Beer, the ubiquitous brand found all over Singapore. |
There was only so much food that two of us could have, so we decided on a rice/noodle dish each, and ordered two side dishes to share. Here is the first dish and probably the most representative snack of the region, chicken satay with a spicy peanut sauce:
This was somewhat pricey for 4 skewers, but they were truly excellent while they lasted - the meat was tender, moist, really well-seasoned and grilled with just the right degree of charred taste. I doubt the kitchen was using a real charcoal fire, for that would have made the satay even more aromatic, but that is just being picky. The accompanying spicy peanut sauce (for us no less important than the satay itself) also hit all the right notes with its richness and intensity. The only element of this dish which was regrettably missing was the ketupat, small plain rice dumplings which one always finds in Singapore & Malaysia to accompany the satay, and to mop up the delicious peanut sauce with.
Another typical side dish: kangkong belacan (water spinach stir fried with a dried shrimp paste). You have to ask for this because it's not part of the standard menu.
This didn't disappoint either. The whole point of this dish, really, is the belacan, and this tasted really authentic, with generous use of the aromatic and slightly spicy shrimp paste (chewy bits of shrimp scattered all over the dish is always a good sign). The kangkong was also well-cooked - the leaves were completely soft while the stems retained a juicy crunchiness. Very good indeed.
On to our mains: this was my friend's dish of nasi lemak. The name itself merely means 'rice cooked in coconut milk', but the dish usually comes with an array of accompaniments (all present here!), such as (clockwise from the front) achar (pickled shredded cabbage and carrots with sesame seeds), sambal chilli (dried and ground shrimp chilli), fried peanuts, ikan bilis (deep-fried dried anchovies), sliced cucumber, hardboiled egg and chicken curry.
I tasted a little of each element in the dish and can testify to its excellence and authenticity. Standouts were the chicken curry (the chicken was tender and succulent, while the curry was very rich and only slightly spicy, with an intense coconut milk flavour), the ikan bilis (very light and crispy), and of course the rice (very fragrant and fluffy, with a strong hint of coconut milk). The sambal chilli was a tad disappointing - while it was as spicy as it should have been, the presence of shrimp was rather feeble, so it didn't quite go beyond being a mere chilli sauce. All things considered, I would still love to have this all to myself on my next visit!
My main: Penang prawn noodles - egg noodles with king prawns, chicken, beansprouts, kangkong, fried shallots and half a hardboiled egg, in a spicy prawn broth. This dish originates from the island state of Penang in Malaysia, hence its name.
The main point of this dish is the broth (similar to Japanese ramen), and on that count alone was somewhat disappointing. It wasn't bad - in fact, it was extremely tasty, but the flavour seemed to come more from the copious amounts of MSG used, than from real prawns simmered for hours to create an intense stock. Having said that, all the stuff in the broth was pretty good, from the chewy egg noodles, to the tender pieces of chicken and the fresh & succulent prawns. However, I would not recommend it as an authentic experience.
Now for desserts to finish the meal! While it might seem bizarre to have iced desserts in winter, they are hugely popular for us due to the warm and humid tropical climate back home. We did regret our choices slightly, but only because the restaurant was extremely drafty and the desserts made us feel even colder!
First up: ais kacang, with red beans, corn, chin chow (grass jelly) and the all-important attap chee (fruit of the Nipa palm, sweet, translucent and gelatinous, often used in desserts in Singapore and Malaysia), topped with a huge mound of shaved ice, and generous lashings of colourful flavoured syrups. Back home, further toppings such as mango, durian (a spiky and very pungent tropical fruit) or ice cream may be included; here, a single lychee does the trick:
This was a good portion, and all the prerequisite ingredients were present, so no complaints at all - very nice and authentic experience.
Finally: chendol, a popular coconut milk-based dessert drink, with jelly strips (at the bottom of the glass) made of rice flour & green colouring (usually derived from the fragrant pandan leaf), shaved ice, and a generous lashing of gula melaka (brown palm sugar). Simply stir and mix all the constituents together for a sinful but heavenly experience.
I personally felt that the one served here could be even richer in coconut milk and gula melaka, but that is probably just me being picky again, and making unfair comparisons to the ones found back home. It was already much better than I had expected to find it in London, and I would recommend it to any coconut lover.
In summary, it was a very satisfying meal, and I know that I will be back whenever I am craving for a taste of home!
(More pictures and descriptions will be added to this post upon subsequent visits.)
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