Malaysian food is as rich as its history. In between our exploration of the heritage sites in Malacca, we got a chance to experience Peranakan Cuisine where it originated -- Malacca. Recipes dating as far back as the 15th century still exist, evolving to what is now known as Nyonya Cuisine. In a restaurant tucked beside the hidden side street of Taman Melaka Raya, we found Seroni Nyonya Cuisine Restaurant. The establishment is owned by one of the last descendants of the Baba-Nyonya family, so we’re expecting to taste authentic Nyonya Cuisine.
The Place
The restaurant was a bit hard to find as we had to do a few circling around the street. The façade has a decent signage and the interior was warm and inviting. The furnishings have that classy antique quality and the eating ware was nice and decent.
The Food
Dish after dish came fast and each looked very elegant placed on white plates on top of red tablecloth. The first dish I tried was the Anchovies with Cili Garam. I loved the spices placed on top and the flour breading was tasty. I just wished they put more anchovies in it as each ball only has a piece.
Then I tried the Fish Fillet on Tamarind Sauce. The fillet was tender and tasty and I liked the sourness of the tamarind. I also liked that the sauce didn’t look greasy.
Up next was the Ginger Venison (Deer). As expected from a ginger dish, it has a moderate flavor while n its meat was tasty. It tasted good and safe.
What made me get out of the chair and reach out for more food on the table was the Stir Fried Okra. I’m not a fan of okra dishes but this one made me eat each piece like it was candy. Very good.
The Lemak Prawns had that nice deep spiciness in the soup that I also liked. The sourness seeped into each prawn that made it real tasty.
The Chicken Tempra was just okay, not really standing out from the other dishes even if every viand was eaten along with the very tasty Kampung Fried Rice.
To cap off our meal, we were each served a small bowl of Cendol, a popular Malay dessert and snack made up of shaved ice, coconut milk, grass jelly and beans. It was just perfect to wash down the strong flavors of the foods and for cooling us down as well.
Seroni Nyonya Cuisine Restaurant
No 60 & 62 Taman Melaka Raya I,
Jalan Melaka Raya 25, 75200 Melaka, Malaysia
seroni4848@yahoo.com
Telefax: (6) 06.281.4848
H/P: (6) 012.611.8081
