Restaurant Asam Batu Laut - Review

Authenticity of restaurant identified

The restaurant review that was discussed in this assignment is based on a seafood restaurant located in Batu Laut, the south-west part of West Malaysia, named ‘Restoran Asam Batu Laut’. It came into the group’s consideration as its high rating of 7.6 from customers on an active website, foursquare.com. Not only it marked the 1,080 visitors at this restaurant, a number of qualitative comments are also available on the food served in this eatery (Foursquare, 2014). Apart from that, the restaurant itself also has its own Facebook page, to tap into a wider customer base. The contact number and the address of the restaurant are easily available from the various sites on the internet.

The manager of the restaurant, named Jess was interviewed because the owner of Restaurant Asam Batu Laut was busy preparing a wedding function that day. She took the interview as an opportunity to increase their venture’s popularity. According to her, Restaurant Asam Batu Laut has been in business for more than 20 years. When asked on why the restaurant is located near the sea and far from city, she did not know the real reason behind it but she mentioned that the land belonged to the previous owner of the seafood restaurant. Then, ten years ago, the business was handed over to the current owner, Mr. Zuan because he was a chef and the best among others before this, according to Ms Jess. He also brought out an extension plan to the restaurant premise as previously, the premise was small to cater more customers. When the extension was made, it not only managed to accommodate up to 300 customers, but also allowed the restaurant to host special events such as wedding dinners, businesses annual dinner as well as social gatherings.

Wedding dinners

Ms Jess suggested to try their signature dishes which were the “Asam Pedas” fish (fish steamed in hot and sour gravy), “Asam” prawns (prawns stir-fried with tamarind paste), Buttered prawns, salted-egg prawn mantis as well as “Kam Heong” (Golden Spices) crab. 

"Asam Pedas" fish

"Asam" prawns

Buttered prawns

"Kam Heong" (Golden Spices) crab

Apart from the recommended dishes, their specialties also include lobster stir-fried in garlic and chillies as well as oyster fried eggs. Jess mentioned that they try their best to provide fresh seafood to their customers but it can be a challenge when it comes to checking the freshness from the supplier. She also made it a point that their crabs are imported from Indonesia because the texture is softer compared to Malaysia. To further maintain the quality of their food, they have chefs who are responsible for different dishes, for example, chef A is responsible for seafood only while chef B is responsible for meat. This enabled them to identify the problem easily if customers made any complaints. When asked on the most popular dish in the restaurant, it was no doubt the “asam pedas” fish as stated in their restaurant name. However, the researchers personally thought that the taste was different compared to the other “asam pedas” fish that they had. Jess stated that the recipes have been improvised for seven years based on customers’ feedbacks. Some suggested cooking it less spicy as some could not stand the spiciness, or more sour to create more impact in terms of flavour, so the owner had decided to make it in different styles. One is less spicy where the cook will fry the fish and wrap it with lotus leaf and another is the one that researches had, which was the spicier one.  

The restaurant is an attraction to both local and foreign tourists as well as the local community because of its location which is by the seashore. The restaurant also welcomed Malays and Indians to visit their restaurant as they are serving Halal food. There are a few hotels nearby the restaurant, so this makes it easy for tourists to travel here and usually tour guides will bring the tourists here. Tourists are able to enjoy the sea breeze and the scenery before them, while being served with fresh seafood. According to Jess, there are around ten other seafood restaurants in Batu Laut, such as Bee Ho Ho Seafood Steamboat, Golden Sea Restaurant and Ocean Seafood Restaurant (Tripadvisor, 2014).

The view from Restaurant Asam Batu Laut by the seashore.

Group picture.

Validity of cultural information posted

In the early 15^th century, there were a lot of cultural exchanges between the Chinese, Thai, Malays, Indian and many more. Various kingdoms from China, Siam (current day Thailand), Sumatera and others were having trading activities in Malacca as it was located in between South China Sea and Indian Ocean. The Chinese and Malays grew closer ties as Admiral ‘Zheng He’ visited Malacca. Malay-Chinese arrangements let to the birth of Baba Nyonya culture and became a prominent part of Malaysian heritage (Peranakan Life, 2014). This could be the reason why Chinese or Baba Nyonya now are able to cook “Asam Pedas” as the Malays state that this dish is a part of their food heritage, so the sharing of recipe may occur between ethnic groups (Darus, 2006). In Restaurant Asam Batu Laut, Mr. Zuan did not include "Asam Pedas" dish into their menu at first, but customers suggested it to him, thus he learned the basic Malay recipes and improvised it according to customers' feedback and serve it to all ethnic group of customers.

Picture shows Chinese traders landed in Malacca (The Melaka Trip, 2011)

Map illustrated the routes used by traders from various places.
 (Collectible-Museums.com, 1999)

Another signature dishes served in the restaurant is the “Kam Heong” (Golden Spices) crab. In the early age, crab was only served for the King of China or upper class citizens. Crabs were introduced during the reigning days of the Jing Dynasty. There were many poems written by the Chinese to describe crabs; from the shape, taste, and cooking styles. Together with wine drinking, flower viewing and poetry writing, eating crab became one of the most enjoyable things people seek for during the olden days (Baike, 2014).  As generations pass by, although crab is served to anybody of any status in today’s society, it is still regarded as a luxurious dish as it is expensive. In Malaysia, crab has become one of the dishes that are prepared in most Chinese restaurants, and it is mainly consumed during special occasions such as weddings, festivals or celebrations. This makes crab a social marker for the consumers. Since crab is generally an expensive dish, the price typically ranges between RM 40 to RM 80 (depending on which restaurant prepared the dish and also the type and weight of crabs used to prepare the dish). Due to the exquisite taste and also the variety of styles used to cook crabs, it has become a popular dish among locals and tourists, too.

This prompts restaurants in tourist spots to add crab in their menus and make it the most wanted crabs in Klang. Most of the restaurants is striving for it and that is one of the reason eating crabs in Klang is relatively pricey compare with having it in rural areas. There are around 300 restaurants in Klang, around 90% of them is serving crab. Some of them even make it as a signature dishes. This is proven that crabs has become part of the Malaysia food culture and is accepted by most of the Malaysian.  So do Restaurant Asam Batu Laut, “Kam Heong” Crab is one of the signature dishes in the restaurants. Ms Jess told us that almost 80% of her customers are ordering crab and that is higher demand during festivals like Chinese New Year, and other public holidays. There is also a time when the demand was low, which is during Qing Ming Festival (Tomb Sweeping Day). The ingredients for preparing this dish include crabs, curry powder, ginger, onions, garlic, some lemon juice, starch, oil and wine (depending on the individual’s preferences). “Kam Heong” is a Malaysian cooking style and is famous in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah. There were many good reviews about Best “Kam Heong” Crabs in Sabah. There are 25 methods to cook the dish, including steam, stir-fry, deep-fry, stew, braise, and roast. “Kam Heong” uses the Chao Technique to cook it which is one of the techniques under stir-frying. It was developed in Song Dynasty and it became popular in Ming Dynasty. Compare to old times, Chao technique now is more mature and requires better cooking skills to handle it (Baike, 2014).    

Role as Malaysian Food Heritage

Malaysian cuisine was greatly influenced by other cultures of the world, mainly from Indonesia, China and India. As mentioned before, Malaysia, particularly Malacca was a strategic and famous trading port for merchants from various countries back then. So, Malaysians today are lucky to experience such diversity of cuisines and to add on to this point, Malaysians from different races are now able to cook cuisines from other races. Malays know how to cook char-kuey-tiaw (fried flat noodles), Indians have skills to prepare ‘nasi lemak’ (rice cooked in coconut milk) and for Asam Batu Laut Restaurant, the owner who is a Chinese, incorporated “Asam Pedas” which was originally prepared by the Malays into their menu. To add to this, this restaurant prepares Halal food, so all races can enjoy the food at the same place. Take “Asam Pedas” fish as an example, is famous in both Malacca and Johor, and it was listed as one of the National Heritage by Ministry of Culture, Arts and Heritage, 2014. Now, all ethnic groups are able to experience this dish and this indirectly promotes unity and harmony among Malaysians.

Culinary or gastronomy tourism is becoming a trend in most countries such as France, Thailand and even in Malaysia and it acts as a platform to gain worldwide reputation by promoting their cuisine as a positioning tool of a destination. “Asam Pedas” being a National Heritage have a great potential of being a major attraction for tourist, particularly food lovers from different countries. Former Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Ali Rustam of Malacca personally stated that “Asam Pedas” fish should be easily available and become one of the traditional dishes served to tourists (melakatravel, 2011).

In 2009, the former Minister of Tourism, Dr. Ng Yen Yen, proposed that Chilli Crab should be part of the Malaysian identity. By making this statement, she tried to claim that these dishes originated from Malaysia and should be part of Malaysia’s heritage (Teh, 2009). By doing so, it was made obvious how much Chilli Crab is of importance to Malaysian locals.

References list

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Darus, M.B. (2006) Asam pedas goes global. Available at: http://www.thestar.com.my/Story/?file=%2F2006%2F11%2F7%2Fsouthneast%2F20061107085024&sec=southneast [Accessed 10 June 2014].

Foursquare (2014) Restaurant Asam Batu Laut, Tg Sepat. Available at: https://foursquare.com/v/restaurant-asam-batu-laut-tg-sepat/4c04db88f423a5936019d216 [Accessed 10 June 2014].

melakatravel (2011) Asam Pedas To Be Featured As Tourist Attraction In Merlimau. Available at: http://www.melakatravel.com/2011/03/asam-pedas-to-be-featured-as-tourist-attraction-in-merlimau/ [Accessed 10 June 2014].

Ministry of Culture, Arts, and Heritage (2014) Intangible Heritage Object. Available at: http://www.heritage.gov.my/index.php/en/heritage-register/national-heritage-register-list/object/intangible-heritage-object [Accessed 10 June 2014].

Teh, E.H. (2009) Laksa and nasi lemal among our pride, says Yen Yen. Available at: http://www.thestar.com.my/story.aspx/?file=%2f2009%2f9%2f17%2fnation%2f4734354 [Accessed 9 June 2014].

Tripadvisor (2014) Restoran Assam Batu Laut. Available at: http://www.tripadvisor.com.my/Restaurant_Review-g2037761-d5617879-Reviews-Restoran_Assam_Batu_Laut-Banting_Kuala_Langat_District_Selangor.html [Accessed 10 June 2014].

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