A cosy Iftar Buffet at Sedap Corner

 

I thought I was early but when I was ushered into the dining hall at the rear section of the flagship Sedap Corner café, I saw that a few tables were already occupied.

 

Trays of signature Sedap Corner kueh
arranged in the Iftar Buffet spread

I am familiar with the cuisine at Sedap Corner and eagerly anticipated the pleasure of enjoying a buffet of all-time favourites in addition to items prepared for the Ramadan buffet.

 

At the entrance to the dining hall, my eyes were riveted to the trays of lovely local kueh arranged below a giant poster of the original building for this flagship outlet with logo and tagline, “The tradition lives on,” printed on it.

 

I had the privilege to document the Sedap Corner story in My Johor Stories 3: Proudly Johor, Then and Now, the final instalment to complete the trilogy of My Johor Stories, that included stories on brands that were proudly established in Johor.

 

Serving staff at the Selera Johor stall
adding rich gravy to complete the Laksa Johor
dish to serve a diner

As I was considering how Sedap Corner was keeping the tradition of serving Johor delicacies and family favourites since 1987, I overhead a man’s voice saying, “Come over here to see the Johor food…”

 

He was speaking to his two friends at the next table but his voice was clear.

 

And while two men followed where he led to the outdoor terrace, I paused a moment before I too joined them at the terrace where stalls were arranged on one side while a row of banquet tables opposite, was arranged with a hot buffet.

 

Diners helping themselves to the gravies
from the hot buffet arranged at the terrace

That man continued speaking loudly (so I was not guilty of eavesdropping) while I watched him point out the Johor Laksa at the stall with words printed on its canopy that read, Selera Johor.

 

I could not help feeling both proud and pleased with how this man was introducing Johor specialties to his friends – one of whom (I guessed!) was a foreigner – to encourage them to have a taste of these items for their breaking-of-fast meal.

 

In the many Ramadan buffets that I have had the pleasure to experience over the years, it was refreshing to observe that while we waited together for the breaking-of-fast, the table of three men (next to our table) only had saucers of dried dates and tumblers of chilled drinks on the table.

 

A diner waiting for her pick of Oden to be 
warmed up and served in Tom Yam soup

Their table was in stark contrast to other tables that were fully laden with plates and bowls, cups and tumblers, arranged both for photography and to savour at the breaking-of-fast.

 

I could not help but continued to surreptitiously observe the three men who broke their fast the traditional way, with a brief prayer followed by sips of drinks and nibbling the dried dates.

 

When I returned from taking my pick of seafood from the Panggang or Grill section of the buffet, I saw that the next table was vacant except for the empty saucers and tumblers. This was because the men had gone to do their prayers before starting on their main meal.

 

Freshly grilled seafood at the Panggang stall

As I savoured freshly grilled squid, prawns and siakap fish dipped in a choice of Thai seafood sauce, sambal kicap and panggang sauce, my foodie friends and I began to enjoy the leisurely pace of this buffet meal where dining was not only tasty, but affordable and simply unrushed.

 

When Sedap Corner’s Alisa Lamlertkittikul joined us at our table, she escorted me to the buffet spread and encouraged me to try their signature dishes among the gravies served to savour with white rice as well as the sambals to drizzle over salads.

 

A serving of Laksa Johor in rich, fish gravy
made from fresh Tenggiri (Spanish Mackerel)

Among the gravies were Beef Rendang, Chicken Curry, Ginger Fish, Sweet & Sour Fish slices, Fried Mixed Vegetables, Sambal Longbeans, Sambal Telur (egg) and Salted Egg Tofu.

 

In addition to the meat, poultry and fish dishes in the hot buffet, there was also Fried Mee Siam and Oriental Fried Rice to enjoy.

 

For the young and young-at-heart, there were non-spicy choices like Sedap Fried Chicken, Spaghetti Bolognese, Chicken Nuggets and French Fries.

 

Signature Sedap Corner kueh Sri Muka 

I was impressed that while this was a small spread, what was essential for a full meal was all here, including live-cooking stations for grilled seafood, Johor specialties, Sedap Corner signature dishes, Oden Tom Yam and Chicken Rice, where culinary staff were on hand to serve diners.

 

The drinks counter was set up indoors, along with the dessert section that featured a spread of Sedap’s range of local kueh, cupcakes and cubes of baked cakes, puddings and cut fresh fruits.

 

Besides their signature kueh Sri Muka, there were Rainbow Lapis, Bingka Ubi, Koswi, Dangai, Bakar Pandan and Talam Ubi.

 

A bunting with rates for
 the Iftar Buffet

The thought of helping myself to the buffet of Sedap Corner’s local kueh reminded me to save some space for desserts.

 

Signs for Ais Kacang and Cendol were hung at the counter to remind diners to place their orders and the staff will send these freshly-made orders to the table.

 

At the first taste of my bowl of Ais Kacang, the mix of Rose syrup and evaporated milk with bits of red beans, instantly transported me back to No. 154 Jalan Ngee Heng, when my cousins, siblings and I lived at our grandparents’ house.

 

Every spoonful of my Ais Kacang at Sedap Corner brought back fond memories and set me reminiscing about our family traditions, which I could not help but repeated for Alisa to understand what it meant to me.

 

[Readers who are familiar with my grandfather stories may recall that I shared about how we used to buy Ais Kacang from the neighbouring provision shop and instead of using a saucer, we would bring a dinner plate to buy takeaway Ais Kacang for the princely sum of only RM0.05 sen.

 

My serving of Ais Kacang

And when this mountain of sweetened shaved ice was brought home, we would add another drizzle from grandmother’s jug of evaporated milk before we took our time to enjoy this icy sweet treat.]

 

By this time, the noise level in the dining hall had grown significantly louder simply because the diners were enjoying a convivial time over dessert or hot drinks, laughing and chatting together after a satisfying meal.

 

The buffet menu, curated by Chef Azri Ismail and his culinary team, will be served on rotation for diners to enjoy a different dining experience at Sedap Corner throughout the Ramadan month.

 

The Iftar Buffet will be served at the Sedap Corner flagship outlet from now till April 7, from 6.30pm to 9.30pm. A space upstairs is available for Maghrib prayers.

 

Priced at RM85 nett for adult and RM53 nett for children and seniors while kids aged below six will eat for Free.

 

Sedap Corner café is located at No. 11 Jalan Abdul Samad, Kampung Bahru, 80100 Johor Bahru, Johor.

 

For reservations, Tel: +607 224 6566, +6011 1137 7652 and +6017 760 5679.

 

For updated info on Sedap Corner, follow official pages on Facebook and Instagram or visit website: sedapcorner.com.my.

Note: Get your copy of My Johor Stories 3: Proudly Johor, Then and Now to read the Sedap Corner story and my story on Growing Up in Grandfather's House. 

My Johor Stories books are available from MPH bookstores nationwide and online from mphonline. In Johor Baru, readers may get my books from JARO and YSpace.