SANDAKAN - SEAFOOD PARADISE

Hong Kong of the East...Sandakan beckons adventure seekers and seafood lovers

True to its reputation as a seafood paradise, Sandakan is unrivalled when it comes King Neptune's deep-sea denizens. Be it at the Central Market  or the floating water villages that dot its coastline, seafood crazy foodies will find themselves inundated with the freshest catch of the day.

The Central Market is a hive of activity daily and diagonally across from the Four Points by Sheraton

Riot of colours...everything a passionate cook ever needs can be found here

Astoundingly fresh local ingredients are sold at the Central Market

Super spicy bird's eye chilli in vibrant hues

These strands of bubbly seaweed is known as Latok or Damai

A quick walking tour of the Central Market across from the Four Points by Sheraton Sandakan was enough to blow us away; the sheer amount and variety of seafood that's sold there left us simply in awe. Whether fresh and glistening or dried and salted...you name it, they have it in all shapes, sizes and colours.

 

Honestly, it was an eye-opening experience to see so many different and unfamiliar species of fish, shellfish and seaweed sold there. We spotted heaps of parrot fish, saury, clams, stingrays, giant groupers and mackerels, local mud and flower crabs, banana prawns, snappers and even puffer fish with doe-like eyes and spotted thorny hides. Locals told us that they would eat this deep-fried...talk about playing Russian roulette.

This unusual ray has a cute dolphin-like snout

 

Puffer fish all in a row

 

 

Dried salted fish that will leave you spoilt for choice

The market itself is a fascinating kaleidoscope of activities, chock-a-block with rows and rows of stalls selling the freshest and most vivid hued vegetables, herbs and spices, assorted seaweed, poultry and meat, dried goods, baking ingredients, confectionery and bakery items, local sweet treats and fruits.

 

We also nipped upstairs to sample the market's famous Char Yuk Meen (Fried Pork Noodles). According to our Sandakan friends, the stall started in 1940 but has continued to draw a capacity crowd daily with its famed homemade slippery smooth ribbons of 'kueh teow' (flat rice noodle) topped with sliced Hakka-style fried pork marinated in 'nam yue' (red fermented beancurd).

 

 
You can choose to enjoy the noodles 'kon lou' (dry-tossed with a drizzle of soya sauce) or laden with a hearty pork-based broth. The latter is undoubtedly the runaway favourite; the simple broth so hearty and flavourful that it's good to the last drop. 

 

Nearby are several stalls offering 'chap farn' (economical mixed rice) with a tempting selection of home-style dishes such as braised pork, deep-fried chicken, stir-fried 'hum choy' (salted mustard leaves), 'yong tau foo' (stuffed beancurd with fish paste), etc.

 

No visit to Sandakan is complete without a meal at Sim Sim Water Village. Friendly rivalry sees two similarly named seafood restaurants sited cheek by jowl but it's business as usual as both draw their own share of customers.

 

Built on stilts, the restaurant seating extends all the way out to sea on sturdy wooden platforms. Insulated boxes filled with oxygenated sea water flaunt live swimming fishes and other seafood: lobsters, prawns, sea cucumber, clams and oysters among others.  

On the night of our visit, we saw a worker brought in a huge lobster and oysters whose shells are as big as a dinner plate. Supply apparently came from local fisherfolks who sell their catch to the restaurateur here.

 

 

Our sumptuous feast included a slab of Sandakan's signature salted talang deep-fried and served with fresh kalamansi juice, steamed hard shell clams and oysters in lime juice, garlic and bird's eye chilli, stir-fried crabs and squid in caramelised dark soya sauce, Teochew-style steamed red snapper with tangy lime juice, minced garlic and chilli, and diced beancurd, stir-fried Sabah vegetables (a type of local fern known locally as cekur or sayur manis), honeyed lamb ribs and butter prawns.

Sandakan's answer to cheese? Salted talang deep-fried and served with fresh calamansi juice

Sweet and dark...chewy caramelised squid to exercise your jaws with

Crustaceans' inherent sweetness and buttery richness make for an irresistible combination

 

Taste-wise the dishes are unpretentious; the simple preparations merely a mean to enhance the seafood's freshness. The butter prawns, salted fish and steamed red snapper really had us hooked. I also like Sandakan's ham yue (salted talang) that's deep-fried until it's slightly crisp. Served with lime juice, its mellow brininess tastes surprisingly similar to blue cheese.

Honeyed lamb ribs that are finger-licking good

 

Restaurant Seafood Sim Sim 88
Bridge No 8, Sim Sim Water Village 
Sandakan, Sabah
Tel: 012 816 3633

Fancy some sweet dreams in Sandakan? The Four Points by Sheraton is ever-ready to roll out the red carpet for slumber parties of travellers with its signature Four Comfort features. Read all about it here:

http://goodfoodguide2kl.blogspot.com/2013/08/sweet-dreams-in-sandakan.html

Serving soon! More Sandakan's homegrown fare to tickle your tastebuds.

CLAWS FOR CELEBRATION

Di Wei's bringing out the claws this Merdeka Day with the king of shellfish - lobsters taking the lead role. Chef Thian Taik Yong shows you five delicious ways to your heart through his tummy-pleasing lobster dishes: deep-fried with salted egg yolk, baked with cheese, sauteed with garlic, braised with ee-fu noodles or cooked in superior stock. Suffice to say, whichever cooking style you choose, the sweet and succulent luxurious Boston lobsters (RM128++ per portion) are guaranteed to ensure utmost satisfaction.

'Less is more' is the ruling maxim for our first serving that had a whole lobster sauteed with garlic. Speckled with minced garlic, the lobster's inherent sweetness was clearly discernible, amplified by the chef's choice of aromatic accent. Most importantly, the shellfish wasn't overcooked; it was pleasantly firm but not hard to the bite.

The second offering that had the lobster braised with ee-fu noodles was equally top notch. If you prefer landing dishes with greater substance, this option will float your boat. The silky noodle threads taste irresistibly rich; suffused with salubrious lobster jus and complemented by chunks of springy lobster meat to boot.

Although the Boston Lobster promotion runs until today (August 31), chances are the lobsters will still be available while stocks last.

Experience more heart-touching moments with your loved ones over sumptuous servings of Di Wei's latest Dim Sum selection (RM9++ per basket). We recommend the newest Steamed Three Treasures Prawn Dumplings and Deep-fried Twin Egg Rolls.

Har gaw or prawn dumpling - a timeless classic - is updated with tiny dollops of crunchy ebikko (prawn roe), chopped spinach and mushroom. A smart move on the chef's part as these add colours and textures to the otherwise plain, pale dumpling.

Crunchier and contrasting textures emerge from the latter. We also love how the century and quail eggs' presence brought a different dimension to the usual spring roll.

Best of all, I welcome the new dessert creations (RM8++ per portion) that lend a sweet finish to the meal. The Mango Puree Crystal Noodles will give your jaw a good workout thanks to the chewy, gelatinous strips immersed in the dulcet smooth, fresh mango puree with diced strawberries and basil seeds.

Love agar-agar? Then you'd go weak in the knees over the subtly sweet, beautifully cut Osmanthus and Wolfberries Jelly that look like oversized amber gemstones with wolfberries embedded in them.

For the Mid Autumn Festival on September 19, the restaurant has eight varieties of mooncakes for sale. While the fail-safe Pure White Lotus Paste with Single Yolk is notable, our preferred variants are the Baked Pandan Lotus Single Yolk and Snowskin Black Sesame Single Yolk mooncakes. Prices range between RM16.50 and RM20 each.

Dim sum is served at Di Wei daily from 11 am to 3 pm. On Sundays and public holidays, the hours are extended from 3 to 6 pm. The restaurant is open on Saturday, Sunday and public holidays from 10.30 am to 3 pm. Dinner hours are from 6 pm to 10 pm.

For reservations, call Di Wei at 03-5565 1388 or visit www.empirehotel.com.my for further info.

FIT FOR A PRINCESS

Our mission since we had chosen to accept it was to sample some new creations and fresh interpretations of Fa-Ying's mainstays by newly appointed chef Paphatson Singhakhat (simply known as Chef O at work).

Like Fa-Ying, the young Thai princess it's named after, this modern Thai restaurant cum bar draws punters in with delicious Thai fare and inventive drinks that bear contemporary flair. 

Come September a revamped menu will be in place; old faves will flaunt fresh, playful twists and new creations set to make their debut.

Our refreshing curtain-raisers of Pomelo Salad with Prawns (RM16++) and Thai Watermelon Salad (RM12++) captured all the essential Thai flavours: sour, sweet, briny, spicy and the merest hint of bitterness on that sultry evening. 

Thai pomelo is by far sweeter and juicier than local ones and tossed with carrot strips, fried onion and coconut shavings in a tantalising dressing, the enticing combo definitely whets the appetite.

The second is no less ingenious. Who would have thought fresh watermelon cubes can be an outstanding salad when tossed with blanched green beans, cherry tomatoes, green apple and pineapple chunks in a deeply flavourful Thai dressing?

Despite the presence of springy crustaceans and crunchy cashewnuts, I reckon the Lemongrass with Tiger Prawn Salad  (RM22++) may prove quite a mouthful for some. You either love or loathe the chopped lemongrass since it can be a little fibrous and overpowering on the palate.

Andre Shum the charismatic owner and GM of Fa-Ying and Rama V is full of beans with Chef O being part of his team. "She has previously worked at the Jim Thompson restaurant in KL and was from The Oriental Bangkok before. I have tasked her to come up with some new dishes and inject her own touches to existing favourites. Also expect more communal-style offerings that allow larger dining groups and families to share effective from September."

We were privileged to be among the first to savour Chef O's Thai Fettucini with River Prawns - one of the impending new offerings. Smaller than a lobster, the Thai river prawn still bestowed an eye-catching dimension to the flat pasta. Its muted sweetness also lent depth to the robustly flavoured noodles, making it a surefire winner in our book.

Variety's the spice of life here and those partial to small bites will be happy to tickle their tastebuds with notable temptations of Mieng Kam (RM16++), Thai Fish Cake (RM12++), Thai Minced Beef on Cucumber (RM12++)  and Grilled Scallops with Spinach (RM16++).

Tender and slightly charred, the scallops on little mounds of blanched spinach is the show-stealer here. Touched with  manow sauce – a piquant spicy-salty-garlicky dressing that amplifies the shellfish's natural sweetness, nobody can resist this...unless they eschew scallops of course.

Presented in little shot glasses, ready to tease your palate is Mieng Kam - little wild pepper leaf cones that's filled with chopped onion, ginger, garlic, fresh lime, toasted peanuts, bird's eye chilli and roasted grated coconut.

For some enjoyable jaw exercise, succumb to the chewy fish cakes speckled with shredded kaffir lime leaves and bird's eye chilli.

Less common but no less noteworthy is the dainty 'bowls' of cucumber stuffed with minced beef; its tangy-brininess sending an unexpected jolt to the taste receptors when one chews on the meat.

Our tongues were then set ablaze by a sweat-inducing albeit sublime Traditional Tom Yam (RM16++) that's smoothened with some evaporated milk to blunt its fiery hotness. In the soup a treasure trove of seafood, mushroom and carrot slivers awaits.

I rank the delectable Thai Crab Cake Burger (RM20++) as a right royal treat that no modern princess or prince can turn their back on. The toothsome crab and minced chicken patty comes sandwiched in a fluffy soft, sesame seed-flecked burger bun, layered with shredded cucumber. Adding scrumptious textural contrasts to it are some som tom (pickled papaya salad) and crispy batter-coated kangkung (water spinach).

We were ecstatic when the irresistible manow sauce made a return in the Grilled Cod. This mildly acidic, robust sauce balances the fish's inherent oiliness perfectly. A splendid offering that will have you hooked at first bite.

Tea time will also see typical Thai snacks like Mee Krob served for tea. It's been years since I last had this delightful treat so I relished every mouthful of the deep-fried meehoon (rice vermicelli) tossed with wispy, crispy threads of fried egg, diced fried beancurd and beansprouts in sweet-sour tamarind sauce.

Bar crawlers will find ample sustenance in between tipples with tasty crowd-pleasers such as Mixed Seafood Skewers (RM22++) and Dory Fish Skewers (RM18++). The former easily reeled me in with its spectrum of tender, succulent textures.

Even familiar Thai dessert such as Tako (RM2.80++) is given a modern makeover, having jettisoned its usual pandan leaf casing for mini glasses and the creamy pudding studded with sweet corn. 

Much more successful and appealing to us is the Deep-fried Mango and Sticky Rice with Ice Cream (RM16++); the ethereal batter coating outside the sticky rice roll giving the dessert additional textural dimension.

The jewel that crowned our kingly feast was Green Curry Chocolate Cake (RM12++), a luscious confection that tastes way better than it sounds. I won't spoil the surprise and let you guess where the green curry comes in for this one-of-a-kind cake.

Other indulgences that may pique your interest include Malibu Dream. Just like the classic cocktail it's named after, this alcohol-infused creation will leave you on a happy high. For us rebels without a cause, I'd say the dark and bewitchingly rich Blackout Cake really takes the cake.

Fa-Ying By Rama V, The Boulevard, Paradigm Mall, Petaling Jaya,Selangor. Call +03-7451 2933 for reservations.