Naim Gulai Sembilang

Decided to drop by for late lunch after a visit to Tg Dawai at this roadside non a/c restaurant. Saw 4* rating on Google Map with 960+ reviews and decided to give it a try in the spur of the moment.

Ordered the favs - gulai ikan sembilang, deepfried sotong, sambal chicken, ikan sumbat (kambung fish stuffed with sambal), & kailan with salted fish.

This meal turned out to be one of my all time fav Malay-style meal. The gulai is well flavoured with spices (not overly hot) and has a full tomato-ish sour taste to it that titillates the senses. Flesh of the sembilang (marine catfish eel) is fresh and smooth. Shiok with rice. The gulai can be slurpped up as is, as well.

The DF sotong is really good. Fresh and batter recipe, retained the crunchiness throughout the meal. Reminds me of Malay style fried fritter. Blends well with the chilli and thick sweet soy sauce mix!

My favs personally, are both the ikan sumbat and sambal chicken. Mid-sized mackerel is used which is just enough for me. What makes it stand out is none other than the generous sambal and onion stuffings. The blend is soooo Delish! Sambal is not overly hot, full bodied, with spices, and the onion strips added that crunch to the mouth feel. Sambal tumis chicken, IMHO is to die for. I could have sworn both these dishes have lifted me up to the heavens for a not too brief moment.

The sambal chicken is very well executed. Chicken parts are bite-sized (think nuggets), enabling the sambal to penetrate deeply into the chicken chunks. The garnishes of onions curry leaves and parsley makes for a divine dish that goes so so well with white rice.

DELISH! SEDAP! 😋😋😋

It has been a long while since I last have Malay dishes of such level of execution! And did I mention that it's value for money.

Will be back again, for sure.

And, thank you to the wonderful boss' daughter and fellow staff for making our meal such a pleasant and memorable experience. Thanks for the recommendations and warmth.

Best of wishes to you and the family for a wonderful meal.

One of my favourite place to have gulai semilang whenever I balik kampung. Sedap ya ampun. Authentic gulai utara taste. Quite crowded during lunch hour, so please expect the food to take some time to be prepared because the lauk is made upon order. The price is reasonable. Highly recommended.

Came a long way from Selangor, for lunch. 7 of us, and we ordered the famous curry@gulai sembilang, ikan kembung sumbat, mix vege, ayam sambal, sotong goreng and ulam with sambal belacan etc. Thumbs-up for the gulai sembilang. Other dishes are tasty too. Services are good👍. Will definitely come again, if we are in the state.

5 of out 5!!

We were recommended this place by some local cyclists who said it’s “the best Malay restaurant in Town”. - and it was our favourite meal in Malaysia so far!

The restaurant was busy (always a good sign!) and really surprisingly VERY reasonably priced! We couldn’t believe our bill at the end - we were expecting to pay much more!

Being by the sea, the fish is fresh and delicious. I had the Bawar (steamed) with garlic, and it was incredible!👌👌👌 I would suggest getting this as it was my favourite dish out of everything we ordered.

Would highly recommend. And a special thanks to Aloo (not sure I’m saying/spelling this right!), our waiter, who was very kind and patient with us. 🥰

Came here for lunch after the Archeology museum. The restaurant was quite packed when we reached.

We were recommended to order fried chicken, gulai sembilang, kailan with salted fish, ikan sumbat and fried sotong. Gulai is my favourite!

They also sell paste, can buy and cook at home too.

Authentic local dishes (gulai) and wide variety of seafood to choose from.

You can choose a few type of fish to be cooked as gulai, asam pedas and any other option.

Sotong goreng tepung is a must try item.

Price is inexpensive and worth the value.
Overall, highly recommended 👍

It is so delicious and makes me lick my finger😋 the price is really cheap ☺ also dont forget to try naim sembilang fish spice(pes gulai ikan)

Meet expectation. Among the best kari sembilang ever tried. Staff friendly and price acceptable.

It was good and recommend…please visit if you come . Price is reasonable

The food portion is quite big so it's very filling. Flavour wise, its very flavourful and delicious. I liked the sambal they serve with their goreng dishes. The sambal enhances the flavour especially if u eat the nasi goreng ayam. Recommended to try their signature dishes(gulai) and nasi goreng ayam and kuey teow goreng. Staff were very nice and the service was quick.

The food is awesome and surpisingly quite cheap for some seafood price! Especially those big prawns.. But the ikan pari is quite expensive..well that is a balance on the price..

Prawns is a MUST! Fresh and sweet.. isinya sangat gemuk2 dan puas hati..

Sharing pictures and price for 2 person

Food was good and nice… dont forget to buy their instant paste too and it was really easy to cook yourself at home just like what they cook 😎😎

Good food, nice place

We had a great time here. Although pack with people, yet the customer service was pretty fast. The food was wow! As most of people said, the food was awesome! Really worth for money. Highly recommended!

It was really good food to eat here😇😇✌🏻✌🏻 Please come if you were never was. Try the food and feel the taste ❤

Food is delicious. but it has to improve the waiting period..👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼

Fast service, less than 15mins get the dish ready. Friendly waiter

Very delicious , serve hot from kitchen .. but peak hours (lunch) u need to he patient .. tasty & milky ..

Recommended. As always, marvellous 👌🏻

Food is very good. The gulai semilang is very spectacular in taste. Price is a bit pricey, but i think it is worth it.