Sambal Shiok a pop up residency at Sun and 13 Cantons. Started as a market stall they have now taken over a pub serving laksa and other Malaysian delicacies, flavours resembling much like how they served at school in Malaysia, during Mandy Yin's (owner) childhood days.
A lovely choice of location, a classy American style diner like pub with its leather booth seating, dark walnut wooden tables and floor against sleek green tiled walls. Gives the place a very warm comfortable atmosphere.
Herbal grass jelly drink and Teh Terik
The herbal grass jelly was incredibly refreshing for a hot Summer's day. A good light dose of the bitter herbal taste and nicely balanced out by the sweetness. The firm springy jelly pieces added a lovely texture to the drink making it more interesting than your usual drink.
Teh Tarik was probably one of the weakest ones I've had in London. It tasted no difference to your average milky Assam tea, lacking foaminess and richness from the condensed milk to provide that velvety texture it needed
Vadai Kerepak
Lentil fritters had an interested texture, almost similar to couscous. Nicely pan fried created a lovely crisp and crunchy texture into a slightly more softer interior. Sadly it lacked flavour and was slightly on the salty side. The lentils could have been mixed with other ingredients and spices in there to give a better bite and for more flavour. The tomato chutney was quite tangy and added a nice heat to it along with the sweet picked onions but not enough to make it a memorable dish
Prawn Kerabu noodle salad
Once again this succeeded better in texture than flavour. Firstly it was quite a dry dish so I couldn't help but felt like it could have been wetter (more fish sauce and lime dressing) so the flavours could have diffused more across the dish. It was quite moisture sucking from all the dry ingredients in there to make the dish. It was very refreshing though and the prawns were nice and plump which made a welcomed contrast to the rougher texture of the dish.
Kari Laksa Ayam
Luckily the mains out shone everything else and I honesty say that it's the best laksa I've had in London. The only thing that let it down was the overcooked chicken that became dry and dense in the process. However it was a minor issue compared to how delicious this laksa was. The flavours were bold and strong yet seasoned perfectly. It had the depth and the heat keeping my tongue buzzing from all the different spices. The soup itself was thick and creamy from the long simmering process of the coconut milk, coconut cream and homemade chicken broth made from broiler chicken in there to give it that gelatinous consistency too. The mix of both rice vermicelli and thick egg noodles was clever. Egg noodles added a lovely al dente texture to the dish whilst the rice noodles cling onto the laksa better, bringing in the flavour in each bite. Tofu puffs also added like a sponge as well as giving the dish a more chewier bite so the flavours linger longer.
Kari Laksa Udang
Much similar to the other laksa, the prawns here were also slightly overcooked so it lost some of its springiness. But once again it was very minor compared to how flavoursome the laksa was and the perfection of all the other textures in there. It was very interesting to have green beans in there giving a slight crunch as well as holding done laksa in there. We learnt that all the vital ingredients of the laksa was made from scratch, from the chicken broth to the laksa paste itself, made a day in advance so the flavours released. It's that dedication that gives the dish its complexity and richness. The spiciness creeps in slowly so have some tissues prepared.
Nasi Lemak Ayam Goreng
Quite an average dish to be honest, falling behind the quality of the laksa. The chicken was deep fried from the dried pieces of chicken breast, most likely from the old hen they used to make the broth. Therefore the meat inside wasn't very tender, quite dry and stringy. The batter was quite plain and needed some spice in there. Luckily the sweet peanut sauce added a lovely nutty sweetness to it but only wish there could be more of it. It became quite dry and bland dish after the sauce was used up with only the roasted peanuts and cucumbers in there to add some taste and break the stodginess of the dish. I was lucky enough to have some extra soup from the laksa to have with this dish to make it more enticing to eat it.
In all honesty I believe Sambal Shiok does offer the best laksa in London. Not many restaurants invest so much time in making the laksa paste themselves hence why the flavours and complexity you get here is one of a kind and like no other laksa you have ever tasted in London. Sadly none of the other non laksa dishes we ordered was anywhere near as good and was actually more a let down. But for their laksa alone I am willing to come back many times over hence why I'm giving this 4 stars. read more