CHUNG WAH CHICKEN RICE BALL
18 Jalan Hang Jebat, 75200 Melaka
Chicken rice balls is one of the many Malacca’s local delights. You won’t miss this Kedai Kopi Chung Wah with its snaking queue of hopeful locals and tourists. We got a seat right beside the butcher, continuously chopping away at steamed chickens in the middle of the stall. It was truly an authentic experience!
We had half chicken at RM24.60 and rice balls at RM0.40 each. Chilli could be spicier though, but tastes so refreshing with rice. The queue is forever there at Kedai Kopi Chung Wah but if you arrive super early before lunch (like we did) you may just have to queue for 15 minutes or less. Chicken rice for breakfast sounds unnatural. But for Chung Wah Chicken Rice Ball, we’ll take it.
JONKER 88 DURIAN CHENDOL
88, Jalan Hang Jebat, 75200 Melaka
There are more chendol stalls around but we’d always return to the Jonker 88. Pretty sure it’s the nostalgia, but the standards have been consistently high. Signatures are the Baba Chendol for RM4 and Durian Chendol for RM5. Durian Chendol — always. The stall is generous with the gula melaka, which is perfect because if a dessert’s ain’t sweet it ain’t a dessert.
Now, it’s quite a norm for food hunters to fit Jonker 88 into a mid-day food hopping break. The sun, the crowd.. we could forgive them with a good chendol. Though you really can’t say no to Jonker 88’s other dish, Assam Laksa at RM7. Please, try it. We’ve heard so many people saying this laksa should be the stall’s signature instead.
BAN LEE SIANG SATAY CELUP
53-C, Jalan Ong Kim Wee, 75300 Melaka
Long before satay celup got popular with tourists, I visited Melaka on a road trip with a bunch of Malaysian ex-colleagues. We went clubbing late and had satay celup for supper. You bet it was good! There was no queue then. Now though, expect to wait for at least an hour.
The place is very much like our olden days hawker centres, those bigger fancier ones where there are huge round tables for steamboats. Pick your sticks at RM1 each, as many as you please. Satay gets snatched up pretty fast, though we did enjoy the prawns, tofu, vegetables and plenty other options. Dip them into boiling hot peanut sauce (think peanut fondue) and pop them in your mouth.
All photos are author’s originals.
