Ali, Muthu & Ah Hock

The Oasis is spanking new commercial centre in Ara Damansara, PJ. It is located at the flyover junction at the Saujana exit along the Subang Airport Road. As you enter Ara Damansara from the airport road, it is on your left - you won't miss it. When it was first launched by Sime Darby, it generated a lot of interests and fanfare; many touting it as great investments which would flourish with the Ara Damansara township. Sadly, it has yet to turn out to be so. The shops and commercial lots are still largely empty and deserted. 

The whole area is beautifully constructed. The buildings are modern. The roads are wide and nicely paved, The atmosphere is very conducive. They even have an area with pools and fountains - ideal for restaurants and alfresco dining. Yet it has not caught on commercially. It reminds me very much of Plaza Kelana Jaya - well planned and beautifully built - but largely still remaining as white elephants. 

Perhaps they need more makan places to stimulate interests and attract the crowd - like the nearby Citta Mall, which is beginning to look good with the many food outlets that have established themselves there. Perhaps it is starting for a small number of eateries have started businesses here. One such early bird is a quaint makan place called Ali, Muthu and Ah Hock.

This is the Chinese version. I feel Ah Hock should be 阿福 (Hokkein) instead of 阿學 (Cantonese).

It apparently is the Malaysian equivalence to Tom, Dick & Harry. In fact I was told that the owners of this place also own the Tom, Dick & Harry pubs in Taman Tun Dr Ismail and at The Pavilion in KL. 

The set up in Ali, Muthu & Ah Hock (AMAH) is simple, rustic and charming.

On one wall hang the portraits of 3 balding guys - apparently the owners.

Living up to its name, AMAH projects itself as typically Malaysian. There are framed old pictures of 3 different families - one Malay, one Indian and one Chinese. Very muhibbah. 

However its menu is not so cosmopolitan. The servings are almost totally Malay. And the selections are very limited. The visuals I post here were taken over a few visits.

Perhaps the most popular in the house is the nasi lemak with fried chicken. And it was good. The rice was rich in santan flavour. The sambal was great. And the chicken, though a little dark and over-fried, was very tasty and well marinated. Highly recommended.

We also had the nasi lemak with kerang (cockles) sambal. The kerang was over-cooked. But the flavour was very good.

The mee rebus was very very good. The gravy was rich and thick. It was served with the usual mee rebus stuff - egg, sotong, fried tofu, potato, etc. May not be the holy grail, but certainly another must try.

The curry mee was comparatively lacking. The curry did not have that oomph. Still I enjoyed it.

The lontong was simply great. I dare say it was one of the best lontong I ever had. The soup was rich and very flavourful. The sambal complemented the lontong perfectly. The taste was yum yum. On subsequent visits, I asked them for lontong without the nasi empit - just the soup and vegetable. They served me small bowls each time and did not charge me for them. 

The Nasi Goreng Ali or nasi goreng kampung was another delicious dish. The rice was very nicely done. It came with an egg. In the rice were pieces of chicken and crunchy ikan bilis. 

The Mee Goreng Muthu or mee goreng mamak was the only non-Malay dish I saw in the menu. It was also very nicely done, with a lot of vegetables. Delicious.

Besides these limited selections in the menu, AMAH also serves various Malay dishes as well as kuih-muih during lunch time. They have a typical food counter. Unfortunately I do not have any visual of the dishes.

The next time you come to Ara Damansara or if you are in Subang Airport, make a visit to The Oasis. Ali, Muthu & Ah Hock is certainly worth your while.