Selera Citarasa at Tea Garden for Ramadan

 

In January 2024, I read the news that a proudly Johor brand, Tea Garden, was inducted into the prestigious Malaysia Book of Records with two remarkable feats.

 

Facade of the Tea Garden outlet at Taman Molek

As I read on, my mouth watered at the memory of its taste because Tea Garden earned the recognition for the Most Sold Baked Herbal Chickens in a Year and the Most Sold Hainanese Milk Tea in a Year, a very interesting record of achievements.

 

During the recent Chinese New Year season, relatives and friends who came to Johor for a visit, happened to dine at different Tea Garden outlets and then shared photographs as well as their positive comments with me.

 

Chef Dzulkifi and Chef Stephen
with the Selera Citarasa spread

I have always enjoyed the menu at Tea Garden – that remained consistently good – and could not help but felt strangely proud to hear the good feedback from visitors who dined there recently.

 

Not long after that, I received an invitation from Tea Garden for a preview of the new menu for the Ramadan and Raya season, and did not hesitate to accept it.

 

Hosted at the Tea Garden outlet at Taman Molek, a giant outdoor banner announced that this café brand was certified Halal for diners to dine with comfort and confidence.

 

Established in Johor Baru in 2005 to serve a menu of authentic Malaysian cuisine, this café brand has since expanded with over 30 outlets locally in Johor and to the Klang Valley as well as abroad in Perth, Australia.

 

A serving of Hainanese milk tea:
You may wish to have another cup
after one delicious cup!

Founded by Hainanese with four decades of culinary experience, Tea Garden continues to maintain their founders’ original belief in serving homemade recipes and cooking from scratch using quality ingredients to ensure that diners will enjoy the wealth of Malaysian food culture and heritage.

 

This Ramadan, the culinary team led by Chef Dzulkifli Abdul and Chef Stephen Khiew have curated a menu of delightful dishes for the breaking-of-fast dubbed Selera Citarasa.

 

Staying true to its tagline, Serving Malaysia’s local best, the festive menu comprised rice and noodle dishes like Ayam Percik served with Egg Fried Rice, Nasi Lemak Ayam Goreng Berempah, Laksa Johor Spaghetti and Sup Kambing Mamak served with Rice.

 

Platter of Nasi Lemak Ayam Goreng Berempah

The platter of Ayam Percik served with Egg Fried Rice was a clever combination of Chinese-style egg fried rice with a grilled, tender and boneless chicken chop topped with a generous drizzle of Percik sauce, complimented by a side of achar pickles and papadam crisps.

 

Malaysian favourite, Nasi Lemak topped with a bull’s eye egg was featured in the Nasi Lemak Ayam Goreng Berempah platter.

 

This came with a quarter portion of chicken and sides of sambal, achar pickles, chunks of raw cucumber, toasted anchovies and peanuts.

 

Tea Garden version of Laksa Johor Spaghetti

The Tea Garden version of Laksa Johor was served garnished with slices of bunga kantan or torch ginger flower and sprigs of daun kesum or Vietnamese coriander.

 

Meanwhile the serving of Sup Kambing Mamak came with a portion of rice and salad that tasted just right with the side of mouthwatering blend of sambal.

 

This menu also offers a choice of popular snacks that include pan-fried Gyoza stuffed with minced chicken and Siew Mai made with minced chicken and shrimps.

 

Taste the rich flavour of Sup Kambing Mamak
 

Another popular pick at Tea Garden must be the Kentang Goreng Special, potato fries served with their signature sambal-mayo dip sauce.

 

Two refreshing thirst-quenchers featured in this new menu are Soda Bandung Selasih and Sparkling Kedondong Assam Boi, designed to awake an appetite for more food.

 

Diners may, of course, pick familiar favourites from the regular menu so I did not miss the opportunity to reacquaint my tastebuds with another taste of their popular Baked Herbal Chicken served with white rice.

 

Some items in the Heat & Eat range of food

It was good to see that Tea Garden now has a Heat & Eat range of precooked frozen food (inside a chiller) for diners to buy back, reheat and eat at their own convenience.

 

Among the popular items in this range were the quarter portion of Herbal Chicken, Chicken Rendang, Salt-baked Chicken, Glutinous Rice, BBQ Chicken Bun and Black Sesame Bun, Siew Mai and Gyoza, just to name a few.

 

In the current promotion, every purchase of Heat & Eat items worth RM39.90 will receive a Free cooler bag with a batik motif designed by a local artist.

 

A festive gift: twin-pack jars
of Nasi Lemak Sambal
and Curry Paste

This promo also includes ready-to-eat, twin-pack jars of Tea Garden, Nasi Lemak Sambal and Curry Paste (RM23.80) that comes with three pieces of RM5 vouchers (worth RM15).

 

Yes, I liked what I ate at Tea Garden and also bought some Heat & Eat items to savour at home, neatly carried in that cooler bag, designed with a beautiful batik motif.

 

The Selera Citarasa menu will be served at Halal-certified Tea Garden outlets* in Johor and the Klang Valley throughout the Ramadan and Raya season 2024.

 

Also available for takeaway and order delivery with Foodpanda, Grabfood and Shopeefood.

 

*EXCEPT at KUU Kopitiam Senai International Airport, Kuu by Tea Garden at Eco Botani and Aeon Tebrau City.

 

For updated info on Tea Garden, follow official pages on Facebook, Instagram and Tik Tok @teagardenmsia.