The Pineapple Town, Sarikei

Famous for their good-quality pineapple, Sarikei is a small township along the bank of the longest river in Malaysia, Rajang River. It's basically a 40 minutes drive from my hometown, Sibu. People normally visit the town for certain renowned eateries that boast wonderful local cuisine, and one of them is...

Aik Seng Cafe at Jalan Wharf.

This is a very early established eatery even before my dad was born! It has won loads of praises from people of different social positions, and the most fascinating fact is that the patrons are comprised of folks of diverse races. This happens because the Chinese proprietor rents 2 different stalls to Malays which serve Halal food. Well, this is truly One Malaysia spirit! One of the Malay stalls (I forget which is which), has very nice Chicken Rice...

The rice is not as oily as some which you would find in other places but it does have the very fragrant aroma. The best part of this dish is the fried chicken pieces. They are very crispy on the outside while succulent on the inside.

This is Sarawak Laksa. For the uninitiated, there are actually a few significant differences between Sarawak Laksa and the other variety of Laksa which can be found in peninsular Malaysia. The most notable feature is the usage of rice vermicelli instead of the thicker noodle. Besides, Sambal Belacan (Malaysian traditional shrimp paste) is added into the broth which grants it its reddish colour. The Laksa served here is not spicy, and it gives a very rich coconut milk aftertaste that will linger for quite some time in one's mouth.

AND here comes the specialty of the house─ Roti Kahwin ( Charcoal toasted bun)

People usually associates Aik Seng with these seemingly unatractive buns, and the recipe has been passed down 2 generations (you are most welcome to correct me if I am wrong). As a matter of fact, these buns are nothing fancy like all those sandwiches vended by the food trucks all over KL but they have a very, very unique charcoal aroma which draw tons of visitors from all places.

They have been serving these old-fashioned buns for decades and even until today. In addition, they make their own Kaya (coconut jam) as well as peanut butter to spread on the warm buns. Not to mention that I once came across a travel guide written by a Taiwanese author recommending this toasted bun.