A plate of hot and crispy Roti Tampal served with a dollop of sambal and watery dhal. Excuse the helmet and gloves, I did say I was on a bicycle trip.
To start off, I had breakfast at a food court (medan selera in Malay) named Medan Selera Kampung Dato' Abu Bakar Baginda.
I know that you cannot read what the sign says, my camera isn't the best in the world. Basically, the top part says that this is stall No.7 named Masakan Ibu. The menu lists Roti Canai and its many variations along with the price. Even though the menu says that my Roti Tampal should have costed RM 3, the nice lady at the counter charged me less than that.
I'll start with what a Roti Tampal actually is, it is just a Roti Canai (Roti Paratha if you are only familiar with the Singaporean way of naming things) with an egg (usually with a runny yolk) stuck on the roti canai. This is why it is named Roti Tampal (literally Glued Bread in english, reason why I hate translating our Malaysian Dishes name into english) as the egg is literally glued on the bread.
How the egg is "glued" to the bread however is no mystery as these stalls are usually open and you can have a peek behind the flat top grill to see the action. Usually, an egg is cracked directly on top of the flat top and a pre- cooked Roti Canai is placed on top firmly as to not break the yolk. As the egg cooks, the egg white solidifies on the Roti Canai, sticking itself.
This Roti Tampal served to me was piping hot off the flat top, which is always and A+ in my books. The roti was crispy and yet fluffy at the same time, giving it a dual texture. The egg yolk was still runny, turning itself into this yummy creamy sauce. The condiments however were a meh. Usually when you go to Mamak stalls, they serve you spicy curry and dhal, but it is different when you go to a Malay stall, your roti will usually be accompanied with sambal and dhal.
The sambal was okay, not the best but still palatable, the same thing could not be said about the dhal though as it just tasted like water with dhal powder mixed through. There were not even any lentils in sight, which is sad because dhal is literally the name of a lentil used in making the dhal.
All in all, this place gets a 3 out of 5 in the Taste-O-Meter. The meal costed RM 2 with iced water as my drink of choice.
The Double Special Beef Burger on a Charcoal sesame seed Bun with a side of fries.
After cycling for the next few hours, stopping here and there to savor the famous landmarks of Putrajaya and breathe in an unhealthy amount of haze, I stopped at the Selera Putra, which is another food court in Putrajaya located near the Putra Square (Dataran Putra). Just park your bicycle in the ample amount of bicycle parking facilities or park your car at the Putra Square. You will see an information counter, opposite the Perdana Putra, go there, a set of escalators should be on your right if you are facing the tourists informational counter. Take the escalator down and you will see signs of the Selera Putra. If you still managed to get lost following these simple instructions, then go ahead and ask the nice people at the info counter, they will gladly show you the way. Take some brochures with you while youre at it. They make good reading material while you wait for your food.
There, you will find a variety of foods from traditional malay cuisine, to the typical mamak and also western fare. I chose to get the burger because.. I don't know, just because, I don't have to justify my every actions you know.
The name of the burger stall is Steam N Grill Burger. I ordered the Double Special Beef Burger on a charcoal bun Set with fries and a drink ( You get a choice of soft drinks, or mineral water). You also get to choose the bun as they have charcoal, whole meal, regular and a bun i forgot about.
The burger was juicy, I liked the meat as it was well seasoned and juices were overflowing from it signalling that it wasn't cooked until it was basically charcoal. The bun however, had no "wow" factor at all. It is just a bun they made with added charcoal powder. It didn't affect the taste at all. It is just a marketing gimmick to differentiate themselves from other burger stalls from the rest of the country. They had this thousand island colored sauce which is good and better than just regular mayonnaise. The cheese was not the best, but then, this is an affordable burger, I cant expect imported Italian mozzarella.
The fries were not enough, that I could say. I was hoping for a handful of fries (my handful, not some midget handful), but what I got was a small packet equivalent to a Mc Donald's small fries. They were good but not hand cut, heritage bred, sea salt seasoned potato frites, so they just served as a side, nothing more.
All in all, I would still give this a 3 out of 5 in the Taste-O-Meter. The meal was Rm16.
So in conclusion, both meals are average, not above and below, as they had no 'wow' factor in taste. Would I recommend you to stop and eat at these places? Why not? They are not too terrible and moderately priced, so give em a chance.
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