阿嬷好料 Ah Ma Ho Liao @ Jonker — Restaurant in Malacca

High Prices, and right next to a Funeral Undertaker...

An update: The place is no longer Ah Ma's. Auntie Koh's Cendol has taken over. Smart decision to move out of this location man😀

I was in Malacca, and decided to check this place out, as I like going to Hainanese kopitiams to have their kopi and kaya butter toast.

We ordered kopi, with steamed kaya butter and kaya butter toast.

Kopi was just okay, nothing outstanding. The kaya butter toast was also ok, mainly because the kaya was decent. However, the toast was a bit soft, as it had probably been prepared for some time, I guess in anticipation of the big crowd coming in. Btw, we were amongst the first, and there was already quite a long queue.

The steamed kaya butter was also just ok, nothing out of the ordinary.

Now for the outstanding part. The prices. Amazing. Kopi was $3.90 for a small cup. Outside, other kopitiam would probably be $1.90 or thereabouts topside. The kaya butter toast was $6.90. You'd probably pay no more than $2-2.50 at any other kopitiam.

The fact of the matter is that this isn't some high class kopitiam place. It is actually located at a lane in an open area, between two old buildings. And when the sun is up, it gets really hot.

Now ordinarily, I'd say old buildings can evoke nostalgic memories. As an example, go to Kafei Dian at Jalan Panggung in Chinatown, KL. That's a nice old building with dilapidated walls, made into a nice kopitiam. Over here, the left side of this kopitiam is a funeral undertaker. So it's not pleasant anymore.

The reality is Jalan Tan Cheng Lock is a very narrow street, and people have to queue right along the sides of this road in the morning, while waiting for the locked gates of Ah Ma kopitiam to be opened. Now, if some unfortunate accident were to happen, and some reckless driver were to plough into the queue, well how convenient, there's an undertaker next door.

I feel that the management should allow people to come in and sit down, even though business only starts at 8.30am, instead of having them wait and queue outside, where it's hot and honestly quite dangerous. Mind you, many are families with kids, some even babies. Why make them wait in the sun. Let them come in and sit down, you can start taking order at 8.30am.

Now, for the good bit. Apart from the okay tasting kaya, I'd say the staff are very polite.

To conclude, there are many other Hainanese kopitiam in Malacca which offer pretty much the same fare, taste good, and are far more reasonably priced. Examples are the ones in Limbongan. You may need to take a relatively short drive to get there, but it's...

Long queue when we arrived at 9.30am. Had to wait for around 40mins. Not advisable if you're going there with elderly or children as there is no place to wait besides the roadside at the entrance. When you arrived, there is a guy who will take your phone number and put you in a queue. When your turn arrived, he will call you either by name or phone call, if you're not nearby. Be careful though as he will release your spot for others in queue if you did not respond.

Environment was OK. Nothing fancy. Better go early in the morning before the sun is up as you'll be sitting outdoor. We foresee situation might get worse if it rains.

Food was average. You can get similar at other shops. We tried almost everything on the menu. The chicken rendang was too watery to our liking. The steam bread was the worst as it was squeezed in the container and it lost the fluffy feeling and the bread sticking to each other. Maybe a bigger container will help. If we were to choose the best, then the curry claypot noodle is our recommendation. Drinks was OK. You may want to try Hokasai.

Price is on the moderate level.

The workers are energetic and friendly. This is a plus point. Even with so many customers and non stop queue, they're still pleasant, friendly and patient.

All in all, an average place to come to for the change of place to eat. If you see a long queue, it is not worth the wait. Enter only if you can get a seat immediately or queue less than 5 mins. If not, come another day. You...

Wahey, a fancy lil corner serving a variety of local nom noms.

The tastebuds on the tongue was wagging for some soupy breakfast meal, so ordered the Signature Curry Meehoon supplemented by soft boil eggs and and the, in my dismay, expensive toast, though quite a few slices served.

Toast and the runny soft boils are pretty standard. But the curry concoction is yummy! The soup is thick and flavourful and coupled with the usual taufupok, fuchok and sambal on the side, it is quite a combi. But...slices of chicken meat is pitiful, just 2 small bits as if from the wing tip. With crunchy taugeh served, it would be quite worth the touristy price of RM12.90. Oh wells~

Now, what is breakfast without a good cuppa? The ice coffee and ice tea is niceeee A tad too much ice albeit asked for a reduced portion. One can feel the gaoness in each sip of the frothy coffee.

All in all, the gem of this venue, in my very own opinion, lies on the service crew. Attentive, polite, fast to serve and clear tables away, and food is served without much wait. They are everywhere and did not group up and mingle as any youngsters would. For that, kudos!

Will I come back? Yeap, I would wanna try the pan mee and nasi lemak...