PETALING JAYA, Nov 25 — I spotted this interesting eatery on a friend's Instagram feed. Since she is from Sarawak, her positive response to the food served here caught my eye and it's on the delivery platforms so ordering lunch one day was really easy.
Their headline item seems to be a pimped-up version of Sarawak laksa....with cheese! Apparently it's a new fangled idea — melted creamy cheese mingling with the aromatic laksa broth. I guess it would work since cheese has been paired with ramen too.
Since that friend didn't think much of the cheese version, I just ordered the normal laksa for RM13.90. It's an extra RM5 for the cheese version.
I was not disappointed. The broth was a comforting one with well-balanced flavours. You get a mellow taste of the spices that makes it incredibly drinkable. Chilli fiends will find their sambal mild but I was pretty happy.
What makes it nice are their handmade noodles paired with the laksa. Be warned that the texture of the noodles tends to be soft. However I liked the fact I didn't get the strong alkaline taste from commercial noodles. You also have a choice of enjoying the laksa with their handmade mee pok noodles.
What makes this place unique is they offer stir fried sayur manis or manicai, as it is known in Chinese. We are more familiar with this leafy, dark green vegetable in our pan mee soup.
In Sarawak, they prefer eating the nutritious, vitamin-rich vegetable stir fried with eggs. Sometimes you even find it in an omelette. Another version involves frying it with noodles. You can get the stir fried and noodles versions at Er Lou Cafe.
I opted for the fried noodles version (RM12.90), which was a knock out. On its own, the thin beehoon is tasty with the slightly sweet tasting greens. Add a little of chilli sauce and you get an explosive tangy, spicy taste. It's addictive purely because of that appetising sourness. You can opt for other types of noodles like their signature handmade noodles or mee pok.
I ordered some snacks to accompany my noodles such as their popular chai kuih (RM6). Each piece is larger in size than our usual chai kuih with a soft, slightly sticky skin.
I'm not a fan of that skin but I really enjoyed the yam bean filling. It was perfectly cooked with a slight crunch and seasoned nicely. Maybe it could be better to order their DIY version that features the frozen chai kuih (10 pieces for RM18) which you can steam whenever you want.
Another snack I tried was their lorbak (RM6). Compared to the usual plump versions, this one was pretty flat and thin. But once you pop a piece in your mouth, you will forgive its appearance as it's a tasty bite.
Er Lou Cafe, 7A, Jalan 17/45, Section 17, Petaling Jaya. Open: 10am to 10pm. You can order via Grab or Beepit. Facebook: @ErLouCafe Instagram: @erlou_cafe
