JB Eats: What to Eat in Taman Sri Tebrau, Johor Bahru (新山大马花园)
- Rick
- Apr 29, 2024
- 5 min read
Updated: Apr 29
Many people, especially travellers from Singapore, will go to KSL City Mall for shopping, movies and dining, and will usually stay inside the mall. Those who are willing to wander out of the mall will be rewarded with many cheap and good local food in Taman Century (世纪花园).
For those who are willing to go a little further, about 600 metres more, there is another food haven in Taman Sri Tebrau. The name "Taman Sri Tebrau" may not be familiar to most people but just mention "大马花园" (Dai Mah Garden), "next to Pelangi" or "next to Sentosa" and it will probably ring a bell somewhere.
1. Restoran New Lucky (新运海鲜酒楼)
Restoran New Lucky is a Chinese seafood restaurant located near a junction along Jalan Keris. We were there for crabs and also ordered other dishes, such as sweet & sour pork, kailan (Chinese broccoli), etc. The dishes are delectable. This is a nice restaurant to go if you are in a group, especially for Chinese New Year reunions (reservation may be required) and other celebrations.
2. Seng Steam Fish Restaurant (成蒸鱼与肉骨茶餐馆)
Further down Jalan Keris, at the intersection with Jalan Rentaka, is Seng Steam Fish Restaurant that only the locals will know. Most people will not come this far as it is really quite some walking distance unless using cars. But if the food is good, there is no holding back regardless of how far we have to walk to get there.
We ordered four dishes, including boneless, crispy fish with mayonnaise, bak kut teh (pork ribs soup), braised beancurd with preserved vegetables and a small portion of dong po pork belly (东坡肉) and a green vegetable dish. All in small sizes for 2 person to try more dishes. Since we ordered most of their signature dishes, we are all thumbs up for the food.
Seng Steam Fish Restaurant may be a small restaurant, but it is the tastes of their food that count. The restaurant is usually crowded on weekends and during lunch time on weekdays. So, go early but not later as its signature dishes tend to sell out fast.
3. Kedai Makanan Ah Soon (亚顺肉骨茶茶室)
For those of you who like to have bak kut teh, try the pork ribs soup at Ah Soon. Located nearer to the main road along Jalan Keris 1, the coffee shop is easy to get to. And it is very crowded on weekends.
Ah Soon's pork ribs soup is nicely done with mild herbal and can be added with other ingredients such as cuts of pig tail or belly meat, enoki mushrooms, etc. Their sesame oil chicken (麻油鸡) is also another hot favourite among regular customers.
Additional info: There are at least another two restaurants selling bak kut teh along the lane of Jalan Keris 1 and Jalan Sutera 1. There is also a new setup along Jalan Keris. Including Seng Steam Fish Restoran, Taman Sri Tebrau is the place to go for pork ribs soup.
4. Restoran Ah Piaw Wanton Noodle (亚标云吞面)
There are quite a number of shops selling wanton (pork dumplings) noodle around KSL City and in Taman Sri Tebrau and Ah Piaw's wanton noodle stands out among them. Their noodle is made with duck eggs — which seems to be very popular in Malaysian dishes. The sauce used for mixing the noodle is also not oily.
Other than wanton noodle, they also serve Muar otak-otak (spicy fish paste in banana leave and grilled before serving). It's a great place to try two popular Johor dishes at the same time.
5. Restoran 59 Abalone Noodle (温59鲍鱼粿条汤)
Restoran 59 is located beside Ah Piaw Wanton Noodle. It's bowl of abalone kway teow (flat noodle) soup contains a lot more ingredients than expected. It has 4 slices of abalone, 2 big prawns, fish balls, oysters, a piece of fish maw, both minced and slices of pork and some greens. I can taste the freshness of both seafood and pork in the soup.
The slices of abalone were also specially prepared — they were not totally defrosted and deliberately placed above the hot soup to prevent it from being soaked and heated for too long. I dipped the abalone in the soup to warm it a little before eating, it is slightly crunchy and not too soft.
6. Zainal's Place
Zainal's Place is located near to one end of a row of shops along Jalan Keris. Their signature mee rebus Johor, a Johor-specialty, and sup tulang (soup with two big pieces of lamb shank bones) are popular dishes among diners.
Zainal's mee rebus Johor is different from other mee rebus that I have tried. The thick gravy is not too starchy, has mellow sweet-spicy flavours and without the sambal chilli that is usually added to spice up the dish. The Sup tulang can be added with noodles or lontong (Malay rice cake). A straw is provided for sucking the bone marrow. The meat is well-cooked and easily detached from the bones using just a fork.
A piece of lamb shank bone can also be added to mee rebus as "gearbox" option. It will be like trying both dishes on one plate. For those who like to have more mutton, try their lamb stew.
7. Restoran Yu-Ee Hong Kong Congee (友谊茶餐室香港粥)
Also located along Jalan Keris 1, Yu-Ee serves only Hong Kong congee during the day. More food fares are available in the evening.
Apart from traditional century egg congee, they also serve a variety of other congee, either with minced pork, shredded chicken, cuttlefish, sliced fish, crab, prawns, seafood, frog, or abalone, etc. This is the place to go for congee with different ingredients on each visit. You can even ask for ingredients to be mixed / added to have your "self-concocted" bowl of hot congee.
8. Restoran Rasa Ribuan (千里香餐室)
Restoran Rasa Ribuan is located in one corner of a row of shops along Jalan Keris, where Wang Xiang Noodle (万香生肉面) used to be and right beside Zainal's Place. The restaurant serves Hakka delights, such as Hakka yong tau foo (客家酿豆腐), Hakka-style fried noodle, noodle soup, rice and yam abacus seeds (算盘子).
The Hakka Yam Abacus Seeds (算盘子) is a dish with disc-shaped yam balls with nice flavours. It is mild savoury and a great alternative to rice or noodle as staple. The Hakka yong tau foo (客家酿豆腐) can be paired with plain rice or dry / soup noodle as a dish itself or as side dish to other main dishes.
Locations
How to Get There:
From JB Sentral, take myBAS T11, T14 or T20 to Taman Sri Tebrau or CT to various bus-stops in the estate. Read JB Bus Guide: Getting to Pelangi & Dai Mah Garden.
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