You’ve gotta love them, really. No matter the traffic, the parking, the guessing of which food will be decent or horrible, the actual consumption of it afterwards – did you like it because you were hungry or did it genuinely taste good? It’s a sport, and one that I look forward to every year.

This year’s bazaars have been more than disappointing. My usual favourites of Taman Tun and Bangsar have garnered poor reviews. I haven’t yet been to the ones in Section 14 and Section 17 of Petaling Jaya because I’m scared they’ll let me down, messing up yet another cherished childhood memory.

Then we hear whispers, whispers of good bazaar. The good stalls have moved back to Kampung Sungai Penchala! A decent bazaar less than ten minutes away from the office? We leave at 4pm to check it out; we are so excited. Parking is still relatively decent here, but now that the word is out, we might have to walk there in the future.

But what of the offerings? I go through my usual MO and circle the bazaar like a hawk. The first stall already looks promising. Gulai kawah, ikan masin & nenas masak lemak, tempoyak ikan patin. I move along and spot not one, but two putu piring stalls (be still, my heart). A stall towards the end of the lot catches my eye: glass bottles full of sodas carted from Kelantan. “Orange Crush” and “American Ice Cream Soda” are among the choices; the collector in me grabs one of each.

I turn the corner. Several roti john stalls, but none that look sprightly enough. Fried breaded hot dog rolls here, chicken chop there – served with potato salad, no less. A fruit stall, where I grab some langsat for my dad. And right back where we started, a beriyani stall claiming to be from Batu Pahat, Johor (they were actually from Yong Peng).

“Good haul,” I think to myself as I make my way back home. Now I just have to wait 2 hours before I can eat anything. Nap? I think so.

"A Pasar Ramadhan worth visiting"

(2 hours later)

The putu piring is decent. It must be, since I am gobbling down about 3 at a go. The otak-otak is also decent. Squishy like how I like it, and just nicely spicy. The sodas are the highlight for me. All of them border on too-sweet, but are not as gassy as regular sodas are. Kind of like almost-flat soda, which I actually really like.

I try the beriyani next. It’s a little on the greasy side but oh, I do like the flavourful rice. Studded with sultanas, it goes well with the beef and gravy that comes with it. It may not be traditional Johorean beriyani, but I do approve of this heartily. The lauk, I try with plain rice. Tempoyak patin hits the mark for me as I like the soft flesh of freshwater fish and tempoyak, so the combination works like a dream. The ikan masin & nenas masak lemak is pretty good too, even though they skimped heavily on the ikan masin itself. The gulai kawah is nothing to shout about, perfectly average but generous with the beef. The ayam goreng rempah I picked up is really good, with lots of “sampah” (the fried bits that fall off fried chicken).

The nasi ulam is a real winner coupled with the ayam percik. The light blue rice speckled with bits of ulam and topped off with kerisik is a flavour explosion. The varied textures and the different herbs give this a beautiful zing that is lovely with the light coconut gravy and smoky ayam percik. The chicken is fall off the bone tender and really very good.

If you’ve been disappointed by the Ramadhan bazaars this year, I highly recommend that you check the one in Kampung Sungai Penchala out. Mostly good food with a cosy atmosphere, and none of those ridiculous lines for popiah basah and murtabak you get with the other bazaars. Just remember not to be greedy! There are at least two weeks left of Ramadhan, plenty of time for you to try everything here.

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Foodster's Verdict

Pasar Ramadhan Sg. Pencala

                   

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