The nasi lemak diaries: Lunch at Ali, Muthu & Ah Hock

Date of visit: 28 December 2023 | Last updated: 19 September 2024

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Nasi lemak. It's practically Malaysia's national dish, and one of my favourite foods of all time. It was my first meal in KL and is an addiction I need to feed on a regular basis.  

Traditionally a breakfast dish, nasi lemak is often eaten on the go, wrapped in a pyramid shape with banana leaf (called nasi lemak bungkus). But these days, nasi lemak can be found most any time. 

'Nasi' means 'rice', and it's one of the first Malay words you'll learn here. 'Lemak' means 'fat', referring to how the rice is cooked in rich coconut milk. Pandan leaf is also added for flavour - it sort of tastes like vanilla, but in my opinion is way better. In fact, back in 2017, Nigella called pandan the next big food trend. 

Then there are the accompaniments to the rice. A hard-boiled egg, cut in half. Sliced cucumber. Fried peanuts, skin on. Little deep-fried anchovies called ikan bilis - cooked right, their crunchiness is a sheer delight. And the pièce de résistance, sambal - a chili paste made with shallots, garlic, chillis and dried shrimp, among other things - which could be considered Malaysia's national condiment.

For a more substantial meal, a chicken leg is often added. Marinated with spices and deep-fried, it's one of the chief joys of eating nasi lemak. But there are lots of different proteins that could be added, like beef curry or spicy squid. 

[UPDATE: I've since learned that these types of proteins are not traditional. In fact, even the ubiquitous chicken was a later addition. Originally, nasi lemak was served with fish - which ironically isn't common today.]

When I asked locals to recommend nasi lemak restaurants, a few names kept popping up. Village Park. Wanjo. Ali, Muthu & Ah Hock. So when my sister visited from Vancouver over the Christmas holidays, we decided to check out Ali, Muthu & Ah Hock's Chinatown location. 

After a wonderful pre-lunch exploration of the area (post to come), we made our way to the eatery. It's housed in one of the colourful pre-war shophouses that Chinatown is famous for. The faces of fictional characters Ali, Muthu and Ah Hock looked upon us from everywhere, atop the slogan "Biarlah real" ("Keep it real"). 

These words reflect the restaurant's founding philosophy as a place where people of any ethnicity or religion can share a meal together, in the simple surroundings of a traditional kopitiam (coffee shop). Founded in 2013 by three friends - Ernest Ong, Colin Soh and Bruce Wong - the chain is now run solely by Ong, who has ambitious plans for expansion. 

The menu reflects kopitiam classics like roti bakar kaya (toast with kaya, an scrumptious coconut jam), kopi (coffee with condensed milk), and teh tarik (tea with condensed milk - the unofficial national drink). There are also perennial favourites like nasi goreng (fried rice) and laksa (a spicy noodle soup). 

But it was nasi lemak we were after. We both ordered the Nasi Lemak Ayam Goreng (nasi lemak with fried chicken) - their most popular dish - which was RM16.40 (£2.78), including tax. The first one arrived fairly quickly. Then we waited...and waited. My sister had nearly finished her meal by the time mine arrived. 

I should point out that this is par for the course in Malaysia. Food comes out when it's ready. Just the day before, I'd been admonished by a restaurant manager: "You should have said you wanted the food to come out together!" Lesson clearly not yet learned.

I was excited to dig in when my dish finally arrived. The rice was cooked well, and had a subtle coconut flavour. The ikan bilis and peanuts were crunchy, and as good as any I've had. 

The sambal was tasty, but personally I like it a little sweeter. My sister liked the flavour but prefers her sambal cooked with ikan bilis and onions. As you can probably tell, there are a million different opinions on sambal, and no one version is going to please everyone.

The chicken, meanwhile, had good flavours and was beautifully tender. But the outside was a little too crispy, even for me, with the skin coming off in big chunks. Again, it's a personal thing. 

Overall we rated our meal 8/10 - everything was cooked well and we came away satisfied. 

Visit Ali, Muthu & Ah Hock on Facebook or follow them on Instagram.

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