Saturday 14 March 2009

Nasi Lemak Stall

29/02/12

Portion reduced by half an egg three years later but the killer sambal remains 2 Die 4. Still the best nasi lemak bungkus in London at £3.50.

21/02/11

Nasi dengan semur ayam kentang (rice with chicken and potato stew plus a bit of pungent belacan)- £3.50

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Nasi Lemak, and not satay, is the national dish of Malaysia. Says who? I do, because I’m so full of it and this is my blog (or isn’t it?). Nasi Lemak in Malay is literally Rice Fatty (personally I prefer plummy). To all intents and purposes Lemak (fatty) is the colloquial term for coconut rice. It’s a traditional breakfast dish consisting of the said rice that’s cooked with coconut milk and accompanied by a dollop of sambal (mind-blowing hot spicy condiment), fried peanuts and anchovies, hard boiled egg and some cucumber (to ying the yang of the sambal). Like Dim Sum, Nasi Lemak is no longer served exclusively for breakfasts, it’s now an all day dish and a Malaysian restaurant wouldn’t be one without featuring it. These days, restaurant versions include posh prawns, squid and chicken to enhance the perceived insubstantiality of the original dish.

This one dish meal is sold primarily at stalls all over Malaysia. They can be found at roadsides, stations, shopping malls, isolated villages, beaches and now (well for the past twenty year anyway) the High Commission of Malaysia in Belgravia.

The Nasi Lemak stall is located in the basement of the High Commission where the passport and visa offices are located. Originally there wasn’t a stall to speak of; a man and woman (of some maturity and obviously related) took turns to peddle boxes of Nasi Lemak within the confines of the waiting room to people queueing (actually more milling about) patiently to rectify their passport/visa matters.

Nasi Lemak aside, there are containers of different types of noodle dishes, cakes and savouries; none of them cost more than £3.50 each. If one so wishes the food can be heated up in the microwave and eaten there and then. Seating is limited to three; this is fast food after all!

Beehoon Goreng- Fried rice vermicelli. That red dollop of sambal means business, it's spicy!
The classic and purist Nasi Lemak- no additonal adornments or accompaniments needed.

The food here is ok and it's nowhere near the quality of either the Malaysia Hall or Makan. It's novel (Malay stall food!), convenient if you're in the vicinity and cheapish. Give it a go as there's nothing to loose (except the chilli).





45-46 Belgrave Square

London
SW1X 8QT




10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Brilliant! How did you find out about the food stall? Is it aimed at Malaysian expats homesick for food or for visa applicants?!

Hollow Legs said...

I've never tried Nasi Lemak, I'd love to - now I know where to go!

bellaphon said...

Ladies- Nasi Lemak in its inherent form is basic at best, the only fireworks you'll expect is from the chilli sambal! Yup if you're from an indeterminate place like Mesopotamia, you'll need to come here to apply for a visa.

kerstin said...

Can we go there pleeeease!
Love coconut sambal, teach me how to make it?

Anonymous said...

Oh, how neat is this! Have you had the nasi lemak from the little shop across from C&R? They are wrapped in those little pyramids with banana leaf!

MsMarmitelove: This sambal is mostly chilies and onion - no coconut. That's more Indian.

bellaphon said...

MMl- Su-Lin is right, the Malaysian sambal is also pungent and sweetish.

S-L- Every time I head to Chinatown I spend whatever change I've left at the Kowloon Restaurant's bakery. I'll give that C&R concession a go, thanks.

Anonymous said...

They make good curry puffs too - at the concession, I mean. Can't say much about C&R the restaurant though...

danieltan said...

Hi everyone...sorry to pop in this blog and leave comment..

Can somebody tell me the opening time of the nasi lemak stall in high commission of malaysia?
I've been looking for it and went there once solely for the famous nasi lemak last sunday.
Apparently they were closed at the same time and the same day as the office. It was a big disappointment for me and my friends sigh..

Oh ya by the way, may I know what's the C&R please? I'm hoping to eat some good food in China Town or any good Malaysian food anywhere....any recommendation anyone? Thx ;)

bellaphon said...

Hey Daniel,

Thanks for stopping by, yes, the stall is only operational during admin hours. Give Malaysia Hall Canteen a go instead, they're open 7 days a week. I'm not too keen on C&R, Rasa Sayang is my choice. Good luck.

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