I have been a runaway train wreck with my commentary lately, neglecting to edit myself. Jay Rayner called it ‘a bad case of blogorreah’ and I can’t say I disagree. Chop, chop, 574 words. Starting with Sedap, Malaysian in East London.
A minor change to structure. Separating the blurb from the photographs, let me know if this works…
Thoughts
Malaysians are proud of Malaysian cuisine, a reflection of the harmonious integration of the local culture, a lovely melting pot of treasures. There are wonderful examples of beautifully cross-pollinated dishes such as the augmentation of Bak Kut Teh (Literally “Meat Bone Tea”), a pork-rib soup of exotic herbs and spices, which has Chinese roots, but which evolved greatly in olden-day Malaya.
Sedap is also the Malay word for delicious, and this East London restaurant delivers Nyonya cuisine[1. Brief history of Singaporean Colonial cuisine]. A style of Chinese-Malay cooking that is a direct reference to the culture of settlers[2. Origins of Peranakan and Baba Nyonya] who lived in what was then the British Straits (Penang, Singapore, Melaka) infusing local ingredients such as coconut milk, tumeric, lemon grass, chilli as well as adapting entire Malay recipes into their cooking.
I was dining with a table of five, the tweat-up crew, we deliberately chose Sedap for its affordability and for sharing plates.
Okra (ladyfingers) is a great vegetable, slimy beans and coarse skin, an excellent distraction from the heat from spicy dishes, well illustrated in the sambal okra & prawns we began with – sambal being a sort of pickled chilli relish. I hugely enjoyed the Penang Char Kway Teow which is the Malaysian variety of wok-fried flat rice noodles which obviously is a re-jigged wok-fried Ho-fun of Canto-cuisine. Though it differs in execution, where the former is oilier, eggier and carries a distinct spiciness as opposed to soya sauce, bean sprouts and ‘wok-hei’. Sedap does them with fishcakes, prawns and Chinese sausages (‘Lap Cheung’ – like sugary salami) that gave it an intriguingly attractive fishiness.
You cannot do without rice in Malaysian/Chinese restaurants – it’s staple after all – and I’m so happy to report that all the variants from puffy plain-jane steamed rice (I grew up on Thai Fragrant), the aromatic coconut rice to the chicken-stock infused rice soaking with oily flavour, were excellent.
I enjoyed most of the curries, though they looked deceptively similar, of a muddy yellowish hue. The beef rendang swimming a thick, quickly drying, concentrated reduction with a dash of zest, meat mostly tender, though some bits were unchewablely sinewy. I liked the chicken curry, but found bitterness with the lamb. We also ordered a sweet and spicy sambal-pasted deep fried mackerel which was a little dry, similarly the sambal Brinjal (aubergines, sambal paste with shrimp) was equally deflated. I did not enjoy the roti pratha, reminiscent of the frozen supermarkets variety, too floury and carried a very subtle (but detectable) sweetness, rather than the savoury, spongy, eggy, twirl-in-the-air roti otherwise called murtabak[3. Zam Zam Murtabak in Singapore] which I am used to in Indian coffee shops dotted around Brunei, Singapore and Malaysia.
We ended with two versions of the Nyonya Kueh[4. A recipe for Nyonya Kueh] (which usually means bite-sized and sweet), the first a coconut and sugar based cake and the other a two-tier pandan jelly and salted sticky rice cake, warm and seductive. Just like buffets at Malay weddings. Teh tarik (cold) always a welcoming beverage to wash down the spice.
The final bill was a mere £100 split five ways, good value. It’s not half bad, the location prevents me from making a return visit, and I actually found the portions to be a tad small. Prices are reasonable, no single dish costed more than nine pounds. I think Sedap is good enough – personally I prefer Kiasu[5. My thoughts on Kiasu, visited Sept 09.] – and it is certainly worth a visit on your lunch break (assuming you work near Old Street), where there is a three course for six pounds deal.
Photographs
Kerabu Prawn, £6.50
Sambal Okra, £5.20
Penang Char Kway Teow, £7.25
Sambal Fish, £6.50
Roti Prata with Chicken Curry, £4.80
Three types of rice, £2.80 each.
Sambal Brinjal, £5.30
Beef Rendang, £6.90
Lamb Curry, £7.80
Nyonya Kueh, £2.00
The Gist of It
Sedap
£20pp, Malaysian.
102 Old St EC1V 9AY
Tel: (020) 7490 0200
Tube: Old Street
In Summary: Dependable Malaysian cuisine with a more than reasonable price tag, portions a little wanting, but overall not bad.
More than Words: Time Out ; Thecattylife ; The Happiness Project London ; WFG
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Tags: barbican, london, Malaysian, restaurant
Hi Kang L,
It’s been really great reviews you’ve written in this blog with awesome photography. I just can’t stop drooling looking *lol* at those pics complemented with profound narratives.
As for this new structure, honestly I prefer the old one. It’s just nicer to look back and forth from the pic to the review. Just my 2 cent.
Thansk for the link! I cant get over how great the photos are…
I’d prefer the words and photos together so when you’re describing I can see evidence, prefer it that way
Agree with Bram above, the photos are best appreciated next to the text describing them (to my brain anyway).
I didn’t ask when I was last in Sedap, but I’m guessing their roti isn’t freshly made and is actually from the frozen variety.
Ah, I don’t mind the new layout but to be honest, I didn’t mind the old layout either! Your photos are amazing as usual and I am drooling over the okra!
Likewise, I actually prefer the previous layout. Then again, maybe it’s me.
Was a bit disappointed with my last visit to Sedap. Realised that they have reduce the size of their kuehs, effectively cutting the portion in half. Well, it used to be a mouthful each.
Did you get a chance to speak to the lady boss, Julie?
With the layouts, both are good and easy on the eye. As always great photo’s.
I’ve heard mixed reviews about Sedap and I am reluctant to hand over my money to places that are reducing their portion sizes.
Good point on the curries, they all do look alike.. Maybe they have gone down the Indian restaurant sauce method. Not good.
This place is very close to where I work, so I am glad to hear about the lunch deal. It sounds like a mixed bag, but I suspect to a Malaysian novice such as I it would be a good intro.
As for the layout, I disagree with pretty much everyone else above
I slightly prefer the new layout. With the reduced word count, I think the pics would break up the text too much. With longer pieces, that is less of an issue because they then act to chunk the test into sections. I also then get to have a look at all the food together giving me a visual feel for the meal.
But as others said, it’s a close run thing. The quality of the pics means you could do pretty much anything to the layout and I would still come back.
Hi guys,
Thanks for the feedback so far
I will mix and match as and when appropriate, it’s an extra option I suppose, I think for some pieces, especially the longer ones, the first-person ‘blog’ format reads better.. We’ll see how this goes.
Kang.
i think your blog is just fine. Jay Rayner can jog on.
this looks like a cool place, love malay food
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Sedap is handy not only if you live near Old Street, but also if you work in the City. In any case, I drop by Sedap every few months, and I like it a lot better than Kiasu. Curry laksa and the char kway teow are the two staples of my order.
M’sia is a melting pot of wonderful cuisines. If you visit the state of Melaka, you must try the Nyonya food. Excellent stuff!
Thanks for your post, the pix looks fab!
I have frequent Malaysian Kopi Tiam 3 times a week since i arrive London 6 weeks ago! Looks like it is time for me to explore this new place… can’t wait to try out Sedap’s Char Kway Teow.
Hello,
My name’s Aidan and currently I’m working on a new television show for ITV called ‘No Taste Like Home’. The show is about real, honest and delicious home cooked food. Food with a story, potentially passed down through generations.
We’re basically in the process of searching for passionate people with stories behind their main dish. Dishes from all over the world, or just down the street, but ones that have a special meaning!
I would love if you could reply so I could send you the official flyer, and that you may help me suggest it to anyone you think may be a suitible candidate!
Thanks and hope to hear soon.
Aidan Belizaire
0161 952 0831
[email protected]
Hello,
My name’s Aidan and currently I’m working on a new television show for ITV called ‘No Taste Like Home’. The show is about real, honest and delicious home cooked food. Food with a story, potentially passed down through generations.
We’re basically in the process of searching for passionate people with stories behind their main dish. Dishes from all over the world, or just down the street, but ones that have a special meaning!
I would love if you could reply so I could send you the official flyer, and that you may help me suggest it to anyone you think may be a suitible candidate!
Thanks and hope to hear soon.
Aidan Belizaire
0161 952 0831
[email protected]
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