Johoreans don’t need another person telling them where to eat nasi lemak. Ask five people where the best one is, and you’ll probably start a small civil war.
After several recommendations and more disappointing nasi lemak than we’d like to admit, we stumbled upon Nasi Lemak Hantu Baru in Taman Pelangi almost by accident. The funny part? Even the staff weren’t trying very hard to convince us. Their response was almost, “It’s okay lah.”
Dangerous words.
Either they’re extremely humble… or they’re hiding something.
As we waited for our food at one of the roadside tables – proper Malaysian al fresco dining, complete with passing motorcycles and the occasional curious cat – the unmistakable aroma of pandan and coconut drifted from the kitchen.
The first spoonful answered every question.
Malaysians have a word that’s almost impossible to translate properly: lemak.
It isn’t just rich. It isn’t just creamy.
It’s that perfect balance where the coconut milk is generous without becoming jelak. Hantu Baru absolutely nails it. Every grain of rice was plump and fluffy, carrying the fragrance of santan and pandan, while a gentle savouriness from shallots quietly rounded everything out.
That alone would have made us happy.
Then came the ayam berempah.
Ayam berempah is fried chicken marinated in a generous blend of herbs and spices. “Berempah” refers to this fragrant spice marinade, typically made with ingredients such as lemongrass, coriander, garlic, shallots, ginger and galangal.
Making a good rempah requires skill. Every spice has its own bold personality, and the challenge lies in finding harmony rather than letting one dominate the rest. Given enough time to marinate, the flavours penetrate deep into the meat instead of merely coating the surface.
At Hantu Baru, they also use fresh chicken instead of frozen, a small detail that makes a noticeable difference. Fresh chicken retains more of its natural sweetness, tenderness and juiciness after frying. The skin shattered with a crisp bite before giving way to succulent meat that was deeply aromatic from the rempah.
And then…
The berempah bits.
Those tiny crispy fragments are basically the unofficial national treasure of fried chicken. No matter how much they give you, it is never enough.
We even found ourselves doing what every Malaysian secretly does when nobody is watching.
Gnawing the bones.
The caramelised edges coated with crispy rempah somehow become the final bonus round of the meal.
Traditionalists may point out that there are no anchovies here, and the nasi lemak sambal itself is simply decent rather than remarkable.
Did we miss the usual condiments?
Honestly… not really.
When the rice is this fragrant and the chicken is this good, it’s surprisingly easy to forget what isn’t on the plate.
We Came Back
One visit is enough to tell us whether a place is good. A second visit tells us whether it was luck. And since we were already there, it would’ve been rude not to explore the rest of the menu.
One surprise was the Ayam Masak Merah, a classic Malaysian dish featuring fried chicken simmered in a sweet and savoury tomato-based sauce.
This was textbook.
The chicken had clearly been freshly prepared before being coated in the sauce, instead of being left to simmer endlessly as some versions tend to be. The sauce was bright, lively and beautifully balanced. Sweet enough to complement the tomatoes, but never so sugary that it coated the back of the throat – a common shortcut when sweetness is mistaken for flavour.
It was so good that somewhere halfway through the meal, we quietly abandoned the sambal altogether. The ayam masak merah sauce found its way onto our nasi lemak instead.
Then came the Maggi Mee.
For Malaysians, Maggi Mee hardly needs an introduction. It is probably the country’s most recognisable instant noodle, and chances are every Malaysian has grown up with a bowl at some point in life.
Naturally, we couldn’t resist making one small request.
“Boss… boleh tambah telur goyang dengan crispy berempah bits?” (Boss, can you add a sunny-side egg and crispy berempah bits?)
Thankfully, the answer was yes.
We may have accidentally invented our own menu item.
The Maggi Mee Goreng Humble Belly Special.
The recipe?
One plate of Maggi Mee Goreng Gila Pedas.
One glorious telur goyang.
A generous shower of crispy berempah bits.
That’s it – Pure Heaven!
The moment the runny yolk broke over the noodles, everything changed. The rich yolk coated every strand of Maggi, turning an already savoury plate into something wonderfully indulgent, while the crispy berempah bits delivered little bursts of spice and crunch with every mouthful.
We had ordered the Gila Pedas (Crazy spicy) version but found the heat surprisingly manageable. So, in true Malaysian fashion, we politely asked if they could make it even spicier.
Challenge accepted.
The second plate looked innocent enough.
The first few bites? Still okay. Then…
The chilli slowly introduced itself. It waited politely… then reminded us who’s boss.
If Hantu Baru ever decides to put this on the menu…
We humbly request naming rights.
Or at least…
A lifetime supply of crispy berempah bits.
It’s easy to overlook a small shop like this, but that would be doing Hantu Baru a disservice. Honest cooking, quality ingredients, good portions and prices that don’t leave your wallet crying – it’s the kind of value-for-money eating place every neighbourhood deserves.
Lemak rice? ✔️
Fresh ayam berempah? ✔️
Crispy rempah bits? ✔️
Ayam Masak Merah that deserves to steal your sambal’s job? ✔️
The Humble Belly Special? ✔️
Iced limau? ✔️
A roadside table under the Johor evening sky? ✔️
Now that’s Malaysia.