[Melaka] Capitol Satay Celup

• Rating: 4 out of 5
• Price range: Stick - RM1.10, orange plate - RM3.30, purple plate - RM3.30, blue plate - RM4.40
• Non-halal
• Ambience: Hawker
• Address: 41, Lorong Bukit Cina, 75100 Melaka
• URL: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Restoran-Capitol-Satay/144848902236543 
• Business hour: Daily 5:00 pm till 12:00am

Known for its extremely long queue, Capitol Satay Celup is one of the most visited restaurant during the weekend. Don't be surprise to queue up to 1 hour or longer, that is a normal crowd to expect during weekend. Capitol Satay Celup has gained its reputation of being the best satay celup in Melaka and have been operating the same business since 1950s. 

Satay celup in general is a street snack and not meant to be eaten as a full meal. You can choose your dishes (served raw in satay sticks) on the display and the waitress will prepare the broth at your table. There are variety selections of meat, vegetables, meat balls, sausages, tofu and many more.

The broth of the satay celup is the main reason of Capitol's fame. Once seated, the waitress will serve you a plate of bread and cucumber. Immediately another waitress will bring the pot of satay sauce and heat it up at your table. A few ladles of "secret ingredients" are then poured into the boiling sauce. The sauce is rich with herbs and has a hint of spiciness. 

Abalone and big prawns are available based on season. They often run out fast during weekend.

To beat the long queue, go as early as 4:00pm. Otherwise, avoid weekend. It is usually less crowded on weekdays. Capitol Satay Celup is within walking distance from Jonker Walk. 

[Melaka] Pak Putra Tandoori Chicken & Naan

• Rating: 5 out of 5Price range: HalalAmbience: HawkerAddress: Jalan Laksmana 4Business hour: Daily 5:00 pm till 12:00amBonus: The location has a Pokestop

If you think having tandoori chicken means wrestling the hard meat with your teeth, you are right! Tandoori chicken are often overcooked or too dry due to the cooking process. However, there's one place that get it right, which is Pak Putra. Pak Putra, a Northern Indian cuisine restaurant is a famous and well-loved eatery place among the locals here.  

Typical Northern Indian food are spotted on the menu such as Chicken Vindaloo, Mutton Kolhapuri, Tawa Prawns, Mutton Roganjosh, etc. Unlike the usual Indian food in Malaysia (which is from Southern India), the taste of Northern Indian food are milder and tame in terms of the spiciness level. 

What is a trip to Pak Putra without ordering the Chicken Tandoori (RM9.00)? The meat is tender and juicy each bite. It is well marinated with what they claimed  to be a mixture of 11 spices including crushed hazelnut. Each serving is served with special mint sauce which is also one of their top secret ingredient.

The Jason Naan (RM8.00) goes very well with the Tandoori Chicken. Popularized by Jason Lioh (a photo journalist), the Jason Naan is a combination of all the naans available on their menu. Made with ingredients of boiled eggs, potato, cheese, garlic, onion and butter, the Jason Naan would be really filling. The texture of the naan is soft and packed with the ingredients.

For other choice of naan that is different from the usual cheese or garlic naan is the Pizza Naan (RM5.50). The naan is filled with shredded chicken, tuna and onion. 

One of our recommended dish (however, not on the top of the list) is the Butter Chicken (RM10.00). Stated on the menu, it is the all time favourite of their customers. The boneless chicken strips are cooked in creamy tomato and butter base. It is not spicy and definitely child-friendly.

Do remember to include the Potato Zeera (RM6.00) in your order. It is saute potato cooked in your choice of dry cumin or hot spicy sauce. It is one of the Indian comfort food and it suits everyone's different taste preference. 

All the dishes at Pak Putra was perfect and satisfying, except the Briyani Rice (RM3.50). It was rather hard and it doesn't have that hot and fluffy texture. There is also noticeably lacking of spices in the rice. 

Do not miss the Mango Lassi (RM5.00). It is freshly made from mango and it goes very well with other spicy meal you have.  

Arriving Pak Putra during dinner time on the weekend is a guarantee that no table or seat will be available. To avoid disappointment, go during weekdays or early on the weekend.

[Melaka] Calanthe Artisan Loft

• Accommodation type: Homestay
• Price range: RM500 per night (min 4 pax, max 7 pax)
• Facilities: Carpark, Family lounge, Kitchen with cooking utensils, Wifi
• Address: No. 16, Jalan Tun Tan Cheng Lock, 75200 Melaka.
• Phone number: 019-6565619 (Joe) / 019-3559829 (Christie)

Following the success of their cafe, Calanthe is expanding their business function into the lodging business with their Calanthe Artisan Loft. The Calanthe Artisan Loft embraces a home-away-from-home concept by providing a place where guests will feel as comfortable and contented as if they are at their own home.

Located one minute away from their café, it is within the Malacca UNESCO World Heritage Site, the famous talk-about night market of Jonker Walk, Shopping and Entertainment district.

The loft is fully furnished with a mezzanine bedroom with two king size beds and bean beds in the AV room at ground floor, dining area, kitchen with simple cooking utilities, a living hall and a gated car porch. It is comfortably fits for 4 persons and a maximum for 7 persons.

Nearby Attractions:

-          Jonker Walk               2 mins

-          Clock Tower               3 mins

-          St. Paul Hill                  5 mins

-          Shopping Complex  10 mins

-          Porta De Santiago    12 mins

To book the home, you can contact the owner directly through email, through Agoda or through Airbnb.

Email: calantheartisanloft@gmail.com

Website: http://calantheartisanloft.wix.com/calantheartisanloft

Facebook : Calanthe Artisan Loft 

[Melaka] Urban Food Hall @ Dataran Pahlawan

Unlike other food court which operating by stalls, the Urban Food Hall at Dataran Pahlawan is operating by restaurants. This means, there are a few restaurants within the food hall and you are able to order from any of the restaurants in a single seating. 

The Urban Food Hall is located inside the same building as the cinema on the second floor. 

Currently, the restaurants serving at Urban Food Hall are:

• Johnny Rocket
• The Library Coffee Bar
• Franco
• The South East
• Quiznos

And coming soon, Ichiban - The Izakaya.

The open concept dining is the first in Melaka. We love the flexibility of ordering from different restaurants which allows a laidback dining experience. It is a good place for casual meet-ups or for family to sit together and enjoy variety of foods. 

The food hall uses a centralized ordering system where each table is given an iPad to order your food and track the progress of your order. Although the system improves efficiency, there are some shortages. For example, the order form does not come with a "comment" or "remarks" section. Diners are unable put in remarks such as "less sugar", "less spicy", etc. There's no description on the food listing too which directing you to refer to the menu and make the order on the iPad.

Here are some of the food that we have tried from various restaurants. No bad experience, but some are better than others.

Franco (previously known as Miam Miam) is a Japanese-French fusion restaurant. The Yumeina pasta from Franco is a huge bowl of spaghetti cooked with shitake, onion and sausages. The base sauce for the pasta is soba soy sauce. For something different, you can try this.

Green curry chicken from The South East restaurant, which is the only Asian restaurant in the food hall currently. The broth of the green curry chicken is rich in spices and the texture is creamy. It was superb and you can devoured it all within minutes if you are a fan of Thai food. Totally recommended. 

Quiznos serves pizza, deli sandwiches, sub sandwiches and salads. For a test, we ordered the honey mustard chicken pizza. The crust is crunchy and the ingredients are fresh. The serving is perfect for one person. Although it tasted decent, it is not exceptionally great.

 The one which we highly recommend is a dessert from Franco, the Cheese Souffle. Bake to order, the cheese souffle is served hot. The texture of the souffle is fluffy and airy. Scoop after scoop, we couldn't get enough of it. If you happen to be there (or any Franco outlet in fact), do not miss it. 

Overall, the dining concept is unique and convenient. The price is reasonable, expect to pay around RM20 for the mains. Separate review on each restaurant coming soon.