May 01 2012
Would you love to try the famous food of Penang and Melaka, but just don’t have the time to add Malaysia to your travel itinerary? Now you can feast on Malaysian streetfood favourites like char kway teow and chicken rice balls right here in Singapore. Malaysian Food Street is the newest dining destination at Resorts World Sentosa as well as its most affordable. Let the pig-out begin!
Before Malaysian Food Street opened in January 2012, a Resorts World team of street-foodies spent eight months eating their way across Malaysia to hand-pick the best hawkers and invite them to set up shop south of the border. The result: 17 stalls serving up Malaysia’s best eats, including local legends like Penang’s Lim Brothers char kway teow and Kuala Lumpur’s Petaling Street porridge, which have been in business for more than 50 years. Other offerings include bak kut teh (herbal pork rib soup from the Malaysian town of Klang), Penang lor bak, Melaka chicken rice balls, mutton curry, sliced cuttlefish, kaya toast and dim sum.
In true Malaysian style, many of the stalls are certified Halal including the nasi lemak (coconut rice with side dishes), roti prata, and chicken biriyani. Wash it all down with a cup of kopi or bandung, and do try to save room for dessert. Take my word for it that the Penang cendol with green jelly noodles and beans tastes better than it looks.
Malaysian Food Street doesn’t just offer a taste of Malaysia, it also tries to recreate the country’s ambiance. Despite being completely indoors (with much-appreciated air-con), it features traditional shophouse frontages, old advertisements in bahasa Malay, Kuala Lumpur street signs, and an antique cycle rickshaw. It’s a little gimmicky, but you are on Sentosa after all.
Malaysian Food Street is slightly more expensive than your average hawker centre, but it represents great value for generally over-priced Sentosa. I paid just S$4 for a plate of KL-style wanton mee (with a darker, sweeter sauce than the Singapore version). A mere S$5 will get you Hokkien noodles with plump prawns or a bowl of chicken curry with roti prata.
If you can’t decide what to eat, pick up a copy of the free Malaysian Food Street newspaper which explains each dish and its heritage in detail.
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