PETALING JAYA, April 16 — One of my all-time favourite places is Makan Time, hidden in the depths of Kota Damansara.
This is where I get to eat daily specials like kai see hor fun, ayam masak merah biryani, ayam penyet and the list goes on. You also get homemade kuih, buns and nasi lemak bungkus.
It is run by Daniel Chong and his wife, Terri Chew. Chong's food history started with Yum Yum, a popular restaurant in Ipoh that is owned by his mother.
Later, he operated Little Yum Yum, which served similar dishes as the Ipoh place. Makan Time started as an alternative to Little Yum Yum but in 2018, they decided to close Little Yum Yum and concentrate on the cafe only.
With Makan Time, you need to watch their Facebook like a hawk for their daily menu. During the MCO, they pen out a handwritten menu in the evening so you can place your orders for the next day before 10pm.
It's simple. Just message either one of them and they'll arrange for the order to be packed the next day. You can pay online and they will arrange for an external delivery service to send it to your place. That delivery fee is separate from your food bill.
I was impressed by how they organised everything. As they start from 8am, I had asked my food to be delivered by 9am. It came around 9.08am.
My package was thoughtfully double-bagged, making it easier to remove the items to avoid any contamination. The biggest surprise when I unpacked my goodie bag was they had thrown in complimentary items like the kuih sago kelapa parut and peanut butter bun. How sweet of them.
I have a soft spot for their kai see hor fun so I ordered it straight away when it popped up as a daily special. It came in three packages. The noodles with the poached chicken, spring onions and fried shallots were in one. The broth in a separate container. Last was the soy sauce and chillies dip.
This made it much easier for me to heat up my broth and enjoy my noodles. Their chicken broth is free from MSG, hence every drop was drunk. If you have a huge family, there is also an option to purchase their frozen kai see hor fun soup base for RM20 that weighs one and half kilograms.
At RM10, it was incredibly satisfying without killing my wallet. The only missing item, compared to their eatery's dine-in version were the prawns. However I didn't even notice it was missing until much later as it still tasted like prawns.
What they had done was to thoroughly toss the blanched kuey teow with prawn oil. Not only did this make it an umami bomb, this meant the noodles didn't stick together when it lost its heat during delivery.
On a daily basis, you can also order their nasi lemak bungkus. It is usually served with ikan bilis (RM2.50 per packet) but sometimes, you can get the prawn version too.
Beautifully packaged (they tape down the folds), their nasi lemak is picture perfect. The sambal is not too spicy making it easy to eat it as you mix it with the rice, peanuts and fried ikan bilis.
I can never resist their own-made kuihs. The kuih bengka ubi kayu is always a win for me with its soft texture and caramelised top.
Even though the kuih ketayap is not the dainty type, you're satisfied with the pandan pancake filled generously with gula melaka grated coconut.
The pulut tekan seri kaya is different from the traditional versions. You get little bites of the soft glutinous rice tinged blue from the blue pea flowers from their own garden. Just add a spoonful of seri kaya and you will be a happy camper.
Other kuihs include a simple kuih bengka beras given a natural blue hue again from the flowers and chwee kueh topped with not-too-oily preserved radish. Usually, you get around eight varieties to choose from. The kuih is RM3.60 per box with two or three pieces inside.
Chong also makes his own sourdough bread and buns, which I have not tried before. What a surprise when I finally sat down to eat my complimentary bun as it was absolutely addictive.
I really enjoyed the fact the bun had a bit more bite compared to those buns with the fluffy texture. What made me savour the simple bun was the chunky peanuts filling. It had a savoury kick and the texture was just right. I'm definitely buying these buns for my next order. Based on their menu the bun is RM3.
If you prefer to cook at home, they have also launched their range of bottled sauces like sambal belacan and asam sambal. There is also seri kaya to enjoy with your bread.
If you love perut ikan with all its many herbs (Makan Time's version has 11 herbs), they also offer that tangy dish with their own salt cured grouper fish tripe. Bring it home and enjoy each spoonful of that flavour packed dish with lots of rice. This dish takes a lot of work especially the salt curing so it is a rare opportunity to have it prepped for you easily.
Makan Time, E-45-G, Jalan Teknologi 3/9, Kota Damansara, Petaling Jaya. During the MCO, they are open from 8am till 1pm from Monday to Saturday. They are closed on Sunday. You can WhatsApp Terri at 013-3239366 or Daniel at 019-7749366 for orders. The menu can be viewed at their Facebook https://www.facebook.com/makantime/
