Whether the charcoal (kayu arang) enhances the roti canai in either aroma or taste is debatable.
I for one, couldn’t detect any enhancements.
It could be that our orders were roti tampal (eggs + roti canai) and Roti Nachos (a pizza with roti canai as base) and since both were not plain roti, the presumably added smoky flavours were lost on us.
But the argument of charcoal vs gas cooking aside, this Roti Canai Kayu Arang @ Bachang Melaka is one outlet that I would personally recommend; 70% due to the humble and kind people running it, 30% for the food.
Food is good, no doubt about that, but I can get good roti canai at Limbongan (Melaka) too.
So why here?
Like I’ve said, dining here is an experience itself.
The centrepiece is the large griddle over the charcoal. Surrounding it is where the action is; the men and women manning the pan, plus the one guy arduously flipping one roti after another.
A few feet away is the “nasi lemak station“, where a bunch of lovely women worked in harmony packing hundreds of nasi lemak for takeaway orders, all the while assembling plate after plate of nasi lemak for those dining in.
Such lovely, happy smiles!
It makes the dining experience so much more pleasant when the proprietors or staff are kind right?
I do not know how these ladies manage, but manage they did. Plate after plate, packet after packet.
The business runs like a clockwork and while the situation can get chaotic and the wait long, everyone here, staff and customers included, were patient and calm with no one looking stressed or raising their voices to be heard.
Truly muhibbah!
And this is probably one of the few places that you can get satay (chicken/kambing/beef) at wee hours of the morning.
If you are a fan of the current craze of deep fried big sotong, a plate of this goes for RM10.
I won’t recommend it though as it was rubbery.
But the nasi lemak deserves praise.
The basic one (RM2.00) consists of one fried egg, a sizeable portion of rice, kangkung, anchovies and peanuts with a dollop of delicious, sweet yet mildly spicy sambal.
The rice grains are loose, firm and fragrant with coconut milk aroma.
Meanwhile for those who prefer a more substantial plate of nasi lemak, you can opt to add on ayam rendang or ayam goreng.
A plate of nasi lemak with an additional piece of chicken goes for RM5.
Heck, most places are selling a piece of chicken for RM5 (or more!) so a whole meal like this for RM5 is cheap indeed, even by Melaka standards.
Drinks were RM1.50 each for our hot milo and an iced Nescafe.
In KL, a glass of milo in mamak is RM2.00 – RM2.70. The same can be said for Nescafe.
But of course, this is Melaka so lower food prices are expected. Still, coming from KL, I’m glad to know that dining in Melaka can be an inexpensive affair IF you know where to go.
Another popular variation of roti canai here is the roti tampal/dangdut (RM2.00).
What is roti tampal you ask?
Well, this was how it was prepared here at Roti Canai Kayu Arang.
2 eggs were cracked on the hot pan. As the eggs cook, a plain roti canai is slapped on top.
This roti tampal is then taken off the pan.
The egg whites are cooked but the yolks remained molten. Once you break the yolks, sunny, creamy lava oozes out to soak your roti.
I eat my roti tampal by dunking it in the dhall with sambal before popping each piece into my mouth. 🙂
Ordering 2 sunny side up eggs or half boiled egg to eat with your roti canai (I do that all the time at mamaks) would be equivalent with a roti tampal/dangdut, but what is the fun in that!
One more interesting variation of roti canai here is the Roti Nachos.
The 3 of us turned it inside out and upside down seeking for nachos but we failed to find any.
However pizza lovers would enjoy this as it is alike a pizza made using roti canai base.
The toppings were minced chicken in sauce, red, yellow and green capsicums, raw purple cabbage and a whole load of mozzarella.
Tasty? Yes!
Cheap? Yes. One Roti Nachos is just RM5.00 and look at the amount of cheese!
They were generous with the minced meat too.
The Roti Nachos is not available daily so it is best to call ahead and check.
Other food options available are satay (as I’ve mentioned earlier), lontong, mihun soup and local kuih. And of course, the usual variations of roti canai such as roti bawang and the works.
It is advisable to head here early to beat the crowd and to grab the best of the breakfast spread as some items sold out quickly.
Roti Canai Kayu Arang
Lot 459
Kampung Bakar Batu Mukim,
75350 Bachang, Melaka, Malaysia.
Waze: “roti canai kayu arang”
Hours: DAILY 7:00 am – 12:30 pm
Puasa month: 5:00 pm to late.
Contact: Kak Ayu – +6 016 -6612 434
i’d order a plate of nasi lemak from those ladies too. and the roti tampal looks really irresistible and perfectly executed!
Yes, it was perfect – whites cooked but still soft while the yolks remained round and molten! 😀
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