Thrill of the Grill - Grilled/Baked Seafood @ Petaling Street

Grilled and Baked Stingray with Petai in a sea of gray.

What do you get when a bank is crossed with an entrepreneur in Petaling Street? Business ventures? Yes of another kind. This makeshift stall qualify as a fly by night operation and is well frequented by locals and tourist alike. The food at RM12.50 a tray is also not expensive.

It is situated on the five-foot way of the Hong Leong Bank. And shielded (look for it) from the cacophony of incessant wheeling and dealings in night market stalls by plastic groundsheets that form the rear wall of these stalls fronting the road. Placed your order and be quick about it as the lady boss is impatient. They are running a tight operation. We were asked to pay up as the first of our 4 trays arrived.

The food is kind of limp (from a local used to overdosing with strong flavours). The fiery chili used by local Chinese and Malay in their ikan bakar (grilled fish) were not present. So were the must have sourish component that comes from the some lime juice or vinegar. Some say this stall is Macanese in style but looking at and tasting the condiments used for seasoning and marinating it is more akin to local stuff of a milder kind. Caveat emptor here: I am not an expert in Macanese fare though.

There were also some missing ingredients and maybe by grilling the food in aluminium foil bag took the zing away that only a direct flame can give. Maybe they were looking after the palate of foreigners not used to our local overdose of salt, chili and other hers and spices. Therefore the food did not reached its zenith best.

But the thrill of grill is the seafood in a sea of gravy! That was intact. I noticed that there were little salt and MSG. And the baking sealed in the natural juices. But alas that will have to give way to my last grouse, if only the seafood was fresher. I will rank the freshness at 5.5/10. The taste overall were 6/10.

Stingray with lady's fingers and longbeans. Baby SquidsLala