Shikai Restaurant
Yesterday in Bandar, we had lunch at Shikai Restaurant, a halal Chinese eatery at Batu Bersurat, behind the Happy Star SuperStore.
At the front, there is narrow pond with live koi fish with a tiny bridge to cross over. On one side there is a ceramic turtle and on the other side, was a big vase with continuously over-flowing water. I won't be surprised if the owner practices feng shui.
There are outdoor tables for al fresco dining and one table is in a gazebo. If you noticed from the pictures, this place is heavily decorated with Chinese calligraphy on its walls and pillars. Since I don't read Chinese, I can only assume that they are auspicious phrases which some feng shui school believes is useful to invite good fortune. There was a tiny garden, lush with green leaves and some blooming flowers. I doubt there is any other restaurant in the country that has this feature!
The interior was accented with a lot of dark timber, antique chairs, framed calligraphy on the wall, huge Chinese 3 Gods with some Chinese New Year decorations still hanging from the ceiling.
Apparently, as the waitress advised us, their speciality is the duck and that was obvious from the long rows of roasted ducks hanging near the kitchen.
Their almanac-like menu (2 cm thick!) has quite a wide variety of dish. This place is halal but if you're really desperate for the forbidden meat, there is always "char-siew" chicken (!)
Because of the square dining tables, this place has more of a kopi tiam feel than a restaurant but their menu clearly shows that it's a restaurant. My dry chili chicken is served in 3 sizes, the cheapest being $8.00 and even that comes without rice. But their portions are large so I guess they are worth the price.
It's popular too. A little later after we arrived, the place started to fill up and I was told that this place is usually packed to the max on weekdays.
Perhaps I'll try their duck rice next time. Read what Hunnie says about this place too.
It's good. (Comment this)