Sunday lunch today was a casual Nyonya meal by former home delivery caterers, ๐ฆ๐ถ๐ป๐ธ๐ต๐ฒ๐ธ ๐ฃ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฎ๐ธ๐ฎ๐ป ๐๐๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ฒ, but who now offers dining-in service in collaboration with the folks at Gusto Cafe.
The dishes we had were certainly very much tastier than Iโd expected for such a new place (dining-in only started on 15 Oct 2022) - all served freshly cooked a la minute.
What we had:
๐๐ช๐ถ ๐ฉ๐ถ ๐ค๐ฉ๐ข๐ณ - the quintessential Penang-Nyonya dish of finely julienned jicama, braised with equally finely julienned dried cuttlefish, which imparted an intoxicating umami aroma and flavor to the dish.
The version here at Sinkhek also included carrots and shitake mushrooms, and the essential sambal belacan condiment that gives the dish a sharp chili kick!
๐๐ต๐ข๐ฌ-๐ฐ๐ต๐ข๐ฌ - the Nyonya spiced fish pudding - the version in Penang-Nyonya cooking would normally see it wrapped in banana leaf and steamed.
But the version here seemed to tilt towards Singaporean/Malaccan Nyonya version, where itโs baked instead, giving the dish a firmer texture.
I quite liked it, as the flavors were clear and distinct: fresh turmeric, galangal, coconut, fish. Absolutely delicious.
๐๐ฐ๐ณ ๐ฃ๐ข๐ฌ - this dish is called โngoh hiangโ in Singapore-Nyonya cooking, an allusion to the Chinese five-spice powder used to scent the marinaded strips of pork loin which are then wrapped in tofu skin, and deep-fried.
The ones here were some of the very best Iโd ever tasted!
๐๐ฐ๐ต๐ช ๐ฃ๐ข๐ฃ๐ช, with โang moh tau euโ Worcestershire sauce plus cut red chilis dip.
These were actually bread sandwiches filled with minced pork, dipped in a light egg batter and deep-fried. Very good rendition here.
๐๐ถ๐ญ๐ข๐ช ๐ต๐ถ๐ฎ๐ช๐ด ๐ธ๐ช๐ต๐ฉ ๐ฃ๐ญ๐ข๐ค๐ฌ ๐ฑ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ง๐ณ๐ฆ๐ต - this fiery sour-spicy-sweet fish curry, cooked with pomfret fillets and okra, fragrant with torch ginger, lemongrass, turmeric, chilis and tamarind, was very well-done here. Pity that the okra used were a bit tough and under-cooked.
๐๐ฆ๐ณ๐ข๐ฃ๐ถ ๐ฃ๐ฆ๐ฆ ๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ฏ ๐ธ๐ช๐ต๐ฉ ๐ง๐ณ๐ช๐ฆ๐ฅ ๐ข๐ด๐ข๐ฎ ๐ง๐ช๐ด๐ฉ - the cold rice vermicelli salad, tossed with chili, toasted coconut shreds, and belacan.
Itโs served with a whole fried tamarind-marinated fish - again, an allusion to the chefโs Singaporean/Malaccan Nyonya cooking approach, as Penang-Nyonya never pair kerabu beehoon with a side-dish of meat or fish.
We were the first guests to arrive at lunch today, but were told that the ๐ช๐ฏ๐ค๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ฌ๐ข๐ฃ๐ช๐ฏ (spiced fried chicken) dish was already all booked-out in advance! Too bad.
Desserts served here were not Nyonya - just ice-cream with toppings. We chose two different options.
Biscoff & Gula Melaka (palm sugar) ice-cream
Passionfruit & coconut ice-cream
Overall, an enjoyable Nyonya meal, in a very casual (almost rustic) al fresco garden setting.
Address
Sinkhek Peranakan Cuisine @ Gusto Cafe
4, Jalan Sungai Kelian, 11200 Tanjung Bungah, Penang, Malaysia
Tel: +6011-1681 4841
Opening hours: 10.30am to 3pm Tue to Sun. Closed on Mondays.
