With a storied history in re-creating authentic Asian hawker cuisine that’s borne of age-old traditions and recipes, the PappaRich brand today is synonymous with bringing the Asian hawker experience all over the world through the enjoyment of its carefully crafted food and homely ambience. Taking another step forward in its efforts to share its brand with Sri Lanka, the franchise opened its fourth restaurant.
Located in the heart of Thalawathugoda, PappaRich opened its latest outlet recently. Inspired by the flavours of Southeast Asia, PappaRich Sri Lanka dishes out authentic Malaysian food. As an international franchise, PappaRich is solely dedicated to bringing treats from the Malaysian streets.
We had the pleasure of trying out some of their signature dishes at the launch of the latest outlet.
Drinks
We had to try the classic Malaysian-Singaporean chocolate malt-based “Milo Dinosaur”, and we were not disappointed. How could anyone not enjoy a large glass of iced milo topped with even more milo powder for that extra chocolatey flavour! Fun fact: The Milo Dinosaur is considered Malaysia’s and Singapore’s joint colonial legacy.
We also tried their iced white coffee, which is made with an inhouse blend of coffee that customers can purchase by the bag as well. The coffee is certainly not for everyone, but if you’re an avid coffee lover like myself, then you’re bound to enjoy the bitter flavour of the grind; the combination of the vanilla-like flavour gives it the hint of sweetness that you need. Perfect for a hot day; the kick from the coffee will give you a nice boost too.
Food
We tried the nasi lemak with beef rendang and sambal prawns, curry laksa with seafood, and the char kway teow with fried chicken.
Starting off with the seafood laksa; we must note that the portion size is quite generous. As someone who usually has a laksa as a side dish, we can promise that it is filling enough to be the main meal on its own. The dish comes with egg noodles and rice vermicelli in spicy coconut broth with prawns, tofu puffs, foo chok (beancurd skin), fish cake, and bean sprouts. We found the beancurd skin to have such an interesting texture and flavour; if we hadn’t known better, we would’ve said it was cuttlefish. It had the perfect amount of spice as well, and the Asian flavours really come through in the broth.
Next, the char kway teow – we learned that char means “stir-fried” and kway teow refers to flat rice noodles – is essentially flat rice noodles wok-fried on a high flame loaded with fried chicken, egg, chives, and bean sprouts. I’m not a big fan, personally. We suppose it is an acquired taste. It did have a good flavour profile, but it was way too much on the sweet side for me to enjoy. This would still be a good option for those that like the sweet flavour that comes in most Asian dishes.
Moving on to the nasi lemak; it was my first time trying one. What you have to know about the dish is that it’s infused steamed coconut rice served with beef rendang, sambal prawns, fried anchovies and groundnut, hard-boiled egg, cucumber slices, and a spicy-savoury sambal. At PappaRich, they have a variety of options for different meat combinations; we chose beef and prawns because that was our personal favourite. Now, having tried this for the first time ever, I am ready to crown it as my second favourite meal ever. It is very simple and is a staple food in Malaysia, but it completely blew my mind. At the first spoonful of rice, I could almost hear a chorus of angels in the background – without exaggeration. The rice is actually similar to the Sri Lankan milk rice, except it’s less sticky. It has only a hint of sweetness, and you can taste all the goodness of good old steamed rice. We also have a lot to say about the beef rendang – hours of bubbling had turned the protein soft and spoon-tender, taking on all the intense tropical aromatics of the coconut, chillies, and spices. And along the way, the coconut milk adds a nutty, buttery sweetness, which complements the rice so well. The prawn sambal was also incredible; the dish heavily relies on the
Malaysian signature sambal sauce; every bite is bursting with the briny flavour of the prawn, complex flavour of fiery sambal, and a citrusy note of kaffir lime leaves. The dish has multiple flavour combinations – whether you take a bite with the beef or the prawns or the eggs or even the anchovies, it’s a celebration of flavours. We can honestly say, if we had to eat a dish for the rest of our lives, this nasi lemak would come close to it. Even though most would say that it is a simple dish, having attempted to replicate it at home (and failing) made us realise that there is no comparison to what PappaRich offers, and we have to strongly advise you to try it out. Even though the dish leans more on the pricey side, once you’ve had it, there really is no going back.
