PETALING JAYA, May 15 -- I've been curious about NALE The Nasi Lemak Co. for some time as I often hear rumblings (mostly good ones) about its offerings.

The push to finally place an order came when a trusted friend recommended their food.

Their menu is like a nasi lemak wonderland. Of course, there's the basic variant with rice, sambal, hard boiled egg, cucumbers, crispy ikan bilis and fried peanuts.

Creamy sauce with spices paired with a piece of 'ayam bakar' are the winners for this Nasi Lemak Ayam Bakar NALE order
Creamy sauce with spices paired with a piece of 'ayam bakar' are the winners for this Nasi Lemak Ayam Bakar NALE order

The fun starts when you pair it with various items like their signature ayam bakar, the classic ayam berempah goreng, beef gulai or a decadent lamb shank. They also offer nasi goreng (including an intriguing nasi lemak goreng) and Indomie goreng.

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What is also interesting are the variety of sauces like their creamy NALE sauce or gulai to amp up your meal. You also have a tangy sambal hijau with crunchy ikan bilis, sambal merah and sambal nenas.

Faced with so many mind boggling choices, I zoomed in on the most obvious which is their number one bestseller, their Nasi Lemak Ayam Bakar NALE (RM18.90). I was also extremely curious about their Nasi Lemak Bakar (RM8.90 for the set) which needs to be pre-ordered a day in advance.

It was an excellent choice. Think nasi lemak bungkus given a smoky treatment on a hot grill. When you open up the banana leaf parcel and taste the rice, surprisingly it's not smoky but somehow the coconut taste of the rice seems more amplified.

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Your Nasi Lemak Bakar set comes with crunchy 'ikan bilis', peanuts, hard boiled egg and cucumbers. If you love spicy food, there's an extra portion of 'sambal' too
Your Nasi Lemak Bakar set comes with crunchy 'ikan bilis', peanuts, hard boiled egg and cucumbers. If you love spicy food, there's an extra portion of 'sambal' too

The rich rice grains pair so well with their thick sambal that has a deep savoury flavour so unlike the usual sweetish sambal found everywhere. The combination also works well with their crunchy fried ikan bilis and peanuts.

For the Nasi Lemak Ayam Bakar NALE, it's all about the grilled chicken. Maybe because it is delivered but I do find the chicken to have a firmer texture rather than a juicier bite.

This is easily rectified with a generous amount of their NALE sauce. It gives a creamy dimension to the chicken and you get the hit of eight different spices.

That sauce is pretty addictive. You can dip anything on the plate with it and it works. The spiciness is also restrained so mix it with the sambal to boost the heat if you like.

Their packaging for delivery is also well thought out. They double bag your orders, sealing them with plastic ties to prevent any spillage or tampering.

The 'nasi lemak' with all its components are packed individually to make sure you can enjoy it thoroughly
The 'nasi lemak' with all its components are packed individually to make sure you can enjoy it thoroughly

I especially liked how they packed the ikan bilis and peanuts in small plastic packets to keep it separate from the rice. This also keeps it crunchy for a better food experience.

NALE The Nasi Lemak Co. is located at Sunway Monash Residence, Persiaran Tasik Barat, Sunway South Quay, Bandar Sunway and LG-34B, Central I-City Shopping Centre, No.1, Persiaran Multimedia I-City, Section 7, Shah Alam. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nalenasilemak/ You can order at https://nale.beepit.com