Warung Nelayan Tanjung Piai (Southern Hospitality)

If you are ever in the vicinity of the southernmost tip of continental Asia, do pop into Tanjung Piai. Apart from the restaurant at Tanjung Piai Resort that provided us with breakfast and dinner at really decent prices, there is a humble little shack on stilts beside the resort.

Warung Nelayan Tanjung Piai is set up by the fisherman's association of Tanjung Piai, and provides good, cheap, homestyle Malay food catering predominantly to the fisherfolk and families of the cape. Run by Asmawi Bin Mohd and his wife, Lin, this little stall serves food from 7.30am to about 8pm.

Asmawi Bin Mohd making his super roti canai.

Asmawi has worked in the food business since he left school, and has progressed from dish washer to cook, learning all the tricks of the trade on the way up. He makes a really good roti canai, which is available throughout the day.

Great roti canai for under a Ringgit!

The roti is crisp and fluffy, with really good texture and bite. And for less than a ringgit, it is one of the cheapest meals to be had in the vicinity. Be informed, however, that the cats who roam the stall also think highly of Asmawi's roti and will paw your leg in hopes of a share!

My gift from a fisherman!

The kilah is the size on my hand, and is considered a small specimen!

Asmawi and Lin were nice enough to prepare a meal from a big shell which was given to me by a fisherman who caught it in his net while I was at sea with some of his friends. This large shell, called a 'kilah' is beautiful when  pulled from the sea. It is vividly striped, dark brown and ochre yellow, and can reach up to a kilogram in size.

The kilah curry was a killer! It was super good!

The one I was given is a smaller one, yet it was about as large as my palm. Lin cleaned it by steeping it in water, then Asmawi cooked it is a curry of garlic, onion and fish curry powder. It was really delicious. Any food is best eaten fresh, and this was only out from the sea for 20 minutes before it was devoured. The meat is chewy - a much more leathery version of escargot, but with softer parts at both ends of the snail.

Lokan from Tanjung Piai.

Lokan in garlic, chilli and ginger broth, made by Asmawi.

Another shellfish that calls Tanjung Piai home is the 'lokan'. The locals say that those found in Piai are the best tasting - a lot more sweet and tender, because they feed on the rich mangrove mud. Lin was able to get some local boys to dig for a batch for me, and Asmawi cooked these as well, in a simple ginger and chilli soup. Man, they are good! Salty sweet from the sea, with a burst of flavour in the soft centre. I tipped the boys RM10 for the lot, which they said was way too much, but it was worth my experience!

I was charged a mere RM9 for a plate of rice, the cooking of the two shellfish, and the five or six glasses of iced lime juice Kit and I downed that afternoon. Yum, yum, yum!