Nadeje Crepe Cake

Nadeje is a café in Melaka specialising in crepe cakes. There are 3 outlets in Melaka and there are another 3 branches in the Klang Valley. Business must be good that drives the fast expansion of the brand.

There are about 18 flavours to choose from the display fridge, but not all flavours are available at all time. It depends on the availability.

The most sort after has got to be the Original.

The Berry Strawberry is for the berry lovers.

For those who love coffee, there is always Café Mocha.

There is Praline Lover for those nuts about nuts.

The Malacca is for those who want cendol in the form of crepe cake.

The Mango Yogurt is also for those who like it in the form of crepe cake.

The Strawberry is for those who like only a single berry in their cake.

During my visit two years ago, we had the Original, Tiramisu and Double Chocolate. The Original flavoured mille crepe had a very creamy custard cream with a great taste of vanilla. The crepe and the custard cream layers provided a concoction of chewiness and smoothness in the mouth. The Tiramisu and Double Chocolate also provided the same sense of indulgence but in different flavours. These were the best mille crepe cakes I have ever had! If you are in Melaka looking for some authentically nice desserts, Nadeje is the place second to none!

Jonker Street

Jonker Street by the day is a street full of traffic. It is one of the busiest streets in Melaka. The atmosphere is totally different when it is transformed into a night market during weekends. If you want to admire the straits style architecture of the shop lots, then it is best done during the daytime when there is no obstacle to the view except the vehicles.

Baba Charlie Nyonya Cake

Baba Charlie is a home-based bakery hidden inside small lanes. Its secluded location doesn't hinder the enthusiasm of food hunters to track it down. We needed a local who was in the neighbourhood to show us the way. This bakery specialises in Nyonya kuih that are mainly made from coconut and glutinous rice flour. There are many types of Nyonya kuih to choose from.

Other than Nyonya kuih, Baba Charlie carries also some snack items. This kuih kapit that we bought was extremely crispy and delicious.

We were there at around 2 p.m. and there was still new kuih being produced. This place closes at 3 p.m. and that shows how good the business is. The lady boss told me that I was lucky to witness her cutting the kuih at this hour because normally they are already tidying during this time.

The onde-onde was just hot from the oven. Since it was labelled as the hot-sale item, we bought it as well. It was quite nice with the warm coconut syrup exploding in the mouth from the outer glutinous rice skin.

By the time of this writing, Baba Charlie has already established a café at a shoplot nearby the bakery. Do check out this place when you are in Melaka hunting for some authentic Nyonya kuih.

Poh San Teng Temple

Legend has it that Admiral Zheng He is somehow associated with the Poh San Teng Temple. Therefore, this temple is also known as the Sam Po Kong Temple, where Admiral Zheng He had somehow become the deity Sam Po Kong. The well inside the temple was also called the Sam Po Well. However, all these legends have been replaced by the contemporary history during my visit two years ago. It is unfortunate that the legend of Sam Po Kong will slowly be forgotten in the generations to come.

Christ Church and Stadthuys

The red Christ Church and Stadthuys are two iconic buildings of Melaka. The church was originally white but it was painted red together with the Stadthuys in 1911. They remain red in colour until today. Coupled with the red clock tower nearby, they form the holy trinity for tourism of Melaka. They are just by the waterfront where the entrance to the famed Jonker walk is just nearby. Therefore, this place is where locals and tourists congregate.

St. Paul's Church

The St. Paul's Church in Melaka is the oldest church building in Malaysia, even more so in Southeast Asia. It was originally built in 1521 by a Portuguese nobleman as a small chapel dedicated to the Virgin Mary. The church was later enlarged to include a second floor in 1556. When the Dutch conquered Melaka in 1641, the church continued to serve as the main church for the Dutch community before they built the Christ Church. What is remain today of the St. Paul's Church are the four masonry walls and some tombstones. Being high up on St. Paul's Hill, the church ground also offers some good vantage points to look at the City of Melaka.

A Famosa

A Famosa was a fort built by the Portuguese when they defeated the Sultanate of Melaka in 1511. When the Dutch drove the Portuguese out of Melaka in 1641, the fort changed hands. It changed hands again when the Dutch handed Melaka over to the British in the 18^th century. Thanks to Sir Stamford Raffles, the fort was spared from total demolition when the British was trying to tear down the fort to get away from fortification. That's why we are still able to see the only remaining gate today.

The Chicken and the Balls

When it comes to chicken rice in Melaka, most people are recommending the two places at Jonker Street, i.e., Kedai Kopi Chung Wah and Hoe Kee Chicken Rice. However, the Melaka Top 3 begged to differ. It was a difficult decision to make for us as we were going to have only one chicken rice meal, so we decided to go for the No. 1 listed in the Melaka Top 3 website, i.e., Huang Chang Chicken Rice Restaurant.

This place is a bit outskirt of the city, humbly hidden inside a housing estate. Nevertheless, it was not difficult to find with GPS.

The first thing you see inside the shop is the big signboard with the standard operating procedure. You order the food and drinks at the counter and a receipt will be issued. You place the receipt on the table and your order will be served.

The serving stations were full with workers manning the rice balls and chopping the chicken. They were working non-stop as the crowd was building up when we visited this place. There were many packets prepared for take-away too.

The food and drinks were served quite promptly after making payment. The standard operating procedure really helps in the efficiency. The poached chicken was very juicy, succulent, tender and flavourful. The chilli, garlic and ginger dip was top notch too. Adding a bit of soy sauce to the dip is highly recommended.

The chicken rice balls were quite sticky and moist. They were full of the chicken flavour and you can tell that they authentically cooked with chicken stock.

If you want a taste of the Melaka chicken rice, I highly recommend this place. However, the queue can be as long as the two famous shops at Jonker Street.