The best Pau in Kajang ?

UPDATE : As at mid-2012, the pau seller has changed his supplier and no longer gets the paus from the 'si-fu'. The fare has become mediocre and business has gone down.

When I was still in school, a tai pau (big steamed bun) used to cost 80 sen (hahahahaha I just revealed my age). Now it costs RM2.80 ! Then again, nasi lemak was 50 sen at that time, and my Dad used to recall the days when it was only 2 sen or 5 sen !

There used to be a pau stall beside the Tai Wah Restaurant (yes the legendary Kajang Tai Wah Restaurant - in the same league as Pudu's legendary Sek Yuen Resturant) where we used to get the tastiest hand made paus. A small 40 sen char siew pau was enough to fill me up and a tai pau had to be shared with my tai kohs (elder brothers).

Fast forward 30 years and the paus these days are production line or factory made. Soft and tasty no doubt - but without character and without a soul. Most are more flour and less fillings. Not worth writing about.

Then gd discovered this pau seller in Sg Chua recently. Located in front of a book shop called "All the best books" (no joke) situated close to the Old Town kopitiam. I had one tai pau and I was hooked. The taste took me back 30 years. The pau skin was white and soft and even remained soft when reheated in the microwave.

The filling was old school - large chunks of pork, half an egg and a delicious savory gravy. A cross section pix below reveals the generous amount of filling in the tai pau. The white part is the hard boiled egg (and not pork fat). It's actually less oily than most other paus available these days.We chatted with the pau vendor who advised that the pau is specially hand made by a 'sifu' (guru) who is hired just to make the pau. Besides the tai pau, they have the usual varieties - char siew, vegetarian and sweet lotus seed plus some dim sum varieties - siew mai, lo mai kai etc.

Imagine having a full pau meal; vegetarian pau for starter, tai pau for main and sweet lotus pau for dessert? Give it a try one day, and this place is the best place to get your supply.

Location : A vendor located in front of "All the best book store" book shop, Jalan Berjaya 10, Taman Berjaya, Sg Chua, Kajang
Open from 2.00 p.m. until sold out - which is about 8.30 p.m.

Additional Pix, post review

The best Nasi Lemak in Kajang ?

Gd wrote about this place previously and it gets my vote as the best nasi lemak in Kajang (at the moment anyway). It doesn't have a proper sign-board but I found out the owner is Kak Maznah who also does catering services. Here's what the place looks like from the outside.
The beef rendang is well cooked and has that 'breaks-in-your-mouth' consistency which is the consistency that a rendang should have. Spicy with a tinge of sweetness, the coconut gravy is an almost perfect complement for the nasi lemak. RM3.00 for nasi lemak rendang daging.

If beef is not your cup of tea, go for the sotong. Kak Maznah (no, she's too young to be a Makcik lah) is pretty generous with the sotong. But ask her to pack it separately as she tends to dump a lot of gravy with the sotong, which makes the rice a little soggy. RM3.00 for nasi lemak sotong.

Best go before 9.30 a.m. as the rendang and sotong runs out quickly on weekends. It's usual to see customers packing 10 to 15 packets at one go! It really is value for money!

We're open open for feedback if you can suggest any place with better nasi lemak in Kajang :-)

Location : No. 112, Jalan 5, Section 5, Taman West Country (Langat Jaya?), Jalan Reko, Kajang
Telephone : 012-682 3063 (Maznah)

GPS coordinates : 2.964027,101.790132