ANA IKAN BAKAR PETAI (KUANTAN)

Recently we've been frequenting Kuantan the state capital of Pahang. This is brought by the requirement of my job which brings me to this place.... well if you are personality like me who enjoys traveling ...what more can one ask for, but to have a JOB like mine... it takes me alot of places and the best part about it i get to see new places all paid for by the company....

Anyway back to Kuantan...there is one nice seafood place which is quite famous for its unique IKAN BAKAR PETAI (broiled fish wraped in banana leaves with the exotic petai)... unfortunately i don't have the directions or map to show how to get to it...but i'm sure if you ask around the locals can give you the directions.... we just happend to discover the place by chance while driving exploring around.

For those who don't know what petai is, patai or "Parkia speciosa (petai, twisted cluster bean, yongchaak or stink bean), is a plant of the genus Parkia in the family Fabaceae. It bears long, flat edible beans with bright green seeds the size and shape of plump almonds which have a rather peculiar smell, characterised by some as being similar to that added to methane gas."[Wikipedia] It takes an aquired taste to love it.... i for one love the taste and can eat petai raw or in almost anyway it can be prepared...

the fish we selected was a medium sea bass about 1 kg in weight.... the way they prepare the fish for broiling, is wrapping it in a banana leaf, where it is seasoned with onions, some garlic, sambal (is a condiment that is usually made from a variety of chili peppers fried with pounded tomatoes), kunyit (tumeric powder), salt, and the crushed petai.

the place also offers other seafood variety that one can choose from.We ordered some lala that was cooked according to house specs....i'm not so sure what its called, it was wok fried with some spring onions, culliflower, red sweet halapenos, garlic, chili padis, and a dash taste of some belacan..fantastic exotic too.

we found this place a little bit past 8 and the cue is seen already at the seafood counter...what we've discovered that by 9 pm this place is fully packed and it would be quite difficult to find a place to sit. If you plan to venture for some Ikan Bakar at this place i suggest coming in early or making a phoned reservation for a table (which is pretty convenient by the way) you can also phone in your menu so by the time you arrive you can just start with your feast... recommended you try this place out....pricing is pretty cheap...fish 1kg, 1kg lala, 1/2kg sotong all for RM 42