Laurence and I tracked down a Malaysian restaurant which was located in Redondo Beach. It was a mere 15-20 minutes drive from the I-405 from where we were, Marina Del Rey. Ratings for it as compared to another Malaysian, Indonesian and Southeast Asian fusion restaurant was up the roof. Needless to say, this true Penangite was curious and my appetite got the best of me!!
Belacan Grill - 2701 190th Street, Redondo Beach, CA 90278 (310) 370-1831
The chicken satay and roti canai was excellent. Just like home... although, the curry chicken accompanying the roti canai can be improved. It was a tad watery to my liking. But overall, the best chicken satay and roti canai in the continental USA.
Char Koay Teow was not bad. Lotsa beean sprouts/ "taugeh" for me... just the way I like it. Chili crabs... oh gosh darn.. where should I start? Well, to justify things a bit, the type/species of crab available from the pacific shores of California cannot be compared to the ones we get from home. However, the method it was cooked was problematic. The crab was slightly flour coated and then deep fried and later coated in a sweet chili sauce which tasted very much like the sauce they use in the American Chinese take-outs in their sweet & sour chicken dish. A disappointing dish seeing that the meat in the claws and crab-body was to hard and dry from the deep fryer which makes the attempt to get any crab meat out a chore.
The long beans stir-fried in belacan and sambal was delish. It was not overcooked, therefore, no "limpy" and/or chewy of a texture. I could smell the aroma of the fried belacan coating the green bean as our server brought our vege dish out. As for dessert, the cendol was just too delish that I forgot to take a picture before Laurence and I feasted on it. The gula melaka used was top notched and I could go for another one then if I had the room in me tummy!
Laurence said he enjoyed the food... so coming from someone from the Aloha islands, and a true Penangite who thinks she knows what good food is...
I rate Belacan Grill 4/5 stars!!
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