Kampung Baiduri

I met up with some good old friends for lunch. People from mat-saleh land... what do they miss most? I think banana leaf is probably at the top of the list. So we arranged to meet in an Indian restaurant in PJ. I told Eddy to go to the Krishna Curry House in Jalan 222. Somehow, there was a miscommunication and we ended up at the Kampung Baiduri instead.

After more than 40 years living in PJ, I did not even know this place existed. The reason was probably because it is located in a remote corner of the city - on Jalan 235/51A. To get there, drive along Jalan 222 from the Federal Highway, until you come to a tiny (perhaps the world's smallest) round-about. Go straight (12 o'clock) at the round-about. Not far from the round-about, turn left. The restaurant is there about.

It is really quite a nice mamak place. There is an air-conditioned dining hall and an more relaxing fan-cooled area. They had a good lunch time crowd.

Like all mamak makan places, there was a long food counter. The usual nasi kandar stuffs were on display. They all looked very yummy.

On this day it was the company that mattered more to me than the food. It was a surprise and was really to see Appu again. It had been more than 5 years since we last met.

And the food did not disappoint. The first dish we shared was this mutton curry. It was spicy, gamey and exactly how mutton should be. The curry was rich and flavourful. The serving of meat was generous.

The fried chicken was very well done. Crispy and aromatic.

So was the sotong (squid). In spite of being deep fried, it was not over done and was not rubbery. The squid was soft and succulent, in a crispy batter.

This was beef in a thick, rich kichap sauce. I thought the mutton tasted better.

A lot of Indian restaurants make very nice deep fried bitter gourds. They cut the bitter gourds into thin slices, sun dry and deep fry them to a nice crisp. The bitter gourds in this place were different. They were fresh gourds deep fried in a batter. But I liked it. It tasted good too.

Also, a lot of Indian restaurants murder their vegetables. They over-cook them. The bean sprouts (taugeh) in this place were different. It was refreshing to see taugeh so mercifully spared.

Some ordinary omelet.

Finally the curry fish head. It was the head of a large snapper. This shop trumpets itself as a fish head specialist. Well, I don't know which fish head school they went to. I did not find the fish head curry here spectacular. The fish was reasonably fresh. But the cooking was just ordinary. It was just a head floating in very ordinary curry, with a few miserable and aged okras (ladies fingers). No other vegetables accompany the lonely head.

Oh yes, the rasam. I love rasam and I never fail to order them whenever available. And they are always free - FOC. The rasam here did not disappoint. It was spicy, sour and had the full oomph. You have to stir it and drink it warm to get the kick.

Like all Indian lunches, the meal that day was heavy. We definitely ate too much. The food was OK. Not spectacular. I would perhaps go back again. My next Indian stop - Krishna Curry House....