In the town of Serendah, there is a tiny shop with a handpainted sign proclaiming its sweet treats within. Palkova, it says in Tamil lettering. Barfi. I grew up eating this, a solidified milk and sugar confection, and so the extreme sweetness doesn’t bother me. The barfi here doesn’t have the anticipated rich buttery softness, but it is still good, and I can see why the shop carries the name of this Indian sweet. The rest of the sweets, however, are a bit of a letdown.
And across the universe, which, in Serendah’s context, is the main road between Rawang and Ulu Yam, there is a coffee shop which sells Chinese mixed rice, but if you so require, food can be prepared upon ordering as well. The hokkien mee is delicious, and despite lacking the desired charred taste, it contains the much coveted crunchy pork lard bits. Wild boar meat is available as well, and the dish is cooked in a thick curry, perfect with rice. The meat is tender, but the curry a little too spicy. The tilapia fish is cooked Thai style in a spicy sour sauce with brinjal, ladies fingers and tomatoes. A road trip always whets our appetite.
Who says dreams are in black and white? I dreamt in green, an hour away from the cacophony of sounds that is KL, where there stands a glass house with windows that open out to a forest awash in green, where in the night time it clothes itself in shimmery moonlight and where the morning after begs an encore from crickets and creatures and a gurgling brook, singing triumphant amidst the slumbering humans.
A perfect setting for nine friends who one day pledged in a drunken stupor, over Prosecco, at one of Fatboybakes’ legendary parties, that Sekeping Serendah would be as good a place as Monaco for a weekend retreat.
Punjabi Sweets Shop
Main Road, Serendah (after police station coming from Rawang)
Restoran Everyday
Main Road, Serendah (next to 7-11, opposite Punjabi Sweets Shop)
Sekeping Serendah (website HERE)
geez. I think I can only recognize FBB from the pic. distorted as that may seemed.
Simple food and nature a wonderful combination to find our rhythm of rest. Is there comfortable accommodation? The tilapia looks mean with those green stuff!
FBB told me he took a pic of the lake specially for me. I so wanna go fish there one day. I heard they have Peacock Bass there!!!
That looks like the perfect weekend! Shame about the sweets and non-charred hokkien mee, though. Cool headstand!
very interesting outing ~ ^_^
1. A thousand apologies over my apparent jakun-ness and ignorance of what barfi is (via Facebook). Just the name, mind you, I’ve eaten this delight many-a-time oredi. 😉
2. A dream of green, indeed. Many (my best friend the Diva and My Favourite Ex’s New Boyfriend) have tried seducing me to this verdant haven with their lyrical stories, but none have entranced me quite as much as you have, my dear. Consider me officially hooked. 😀
Ah, very nice indeed. I like that the glass doors and verandahs invite the green in and interior out. Oh, to have a place like that one day… *dreaming, dreaming*
Is it a pretty new place then?
LemonyG, you’re seriously inspiring me to make burfi. I like the vanilla and plain cardamom-flavoured ones, see?
Have fun, relax.
Until the next getaway, don’t grind an ax,
or work until you are tax.
do you need more pax?
just give nipples a fax.
the green tint is so cool… reminds me of a horror flick.. except that those smiley faces are the furthest thing from blair witch project.. then again with the woods and all… Ooooooo….
very interesting green tinting..that definitely looks like a good holiday!
Green faces and yet it does not look like a horror flick. Impressive collage!
J2Kfm : Oh dear…and here I was thinking that FBB looked like my mother in that pikcher. ^_^
Chin : The accommodation is not luxurious, but comfortable enough. Be prepared to sweat it out a little without any aircon.
Precious Pea: Peacock bass? Is that a new breed of bird? Wei ask your hubby to take you there…you’ll definitely enjoy yourself!
Manggy: The right factors were present to make it an awesome weekend. 😀 (booze and foie gras)
ling239: definitely!
LFB: I’ve always known barfi by another name too, so I’m as jakun as you are. (We can set up jakun club together, no?) As for SS, you’ll have to leave your Hugo Boss behind….can you bear to do that, bro? 😉
Argus Jellus: I couldn’t have described it better – re, inviting the green in and interior out. I don’t think it’s new. I’ve seen it featured in several magazines before for its architectural brilliance. Hey, I think barfi’s easy to make, but you’ll have to pace yourself when eating it all by yourself! Think major sugar overdose!
Henry Yeo: Quite a poet, aren’t ya? I like the part about grinding an axe!
cumidanciki: Yerrrrrr…..you call my pretty collage a horror flick ar??? *whacking you with axe from Henry* Hey, if you saw FBB’s face at 9am the morning after, I assure you it’s enough to scare any hantu away.
lotsofcravings: interesting? lol. That usually means something bad, hor. 😛 But yeah, it’s a good holiday!
Tummythoz: With mostly cute harajuku-ish faces, it’s hard to be scary, methinks. 🙂
LFB, i am MOST offended that MY post didnt seduce or entrance you!!! chis bedebah.
eeeks, how did j2kfm recognise ME of ALL ppl?
I like the shot of the tree canopy – very tropical and almost ethereal! Very nice getaway and not so far from KL, too!
in some parts of the world, green is a lucky colour.
i guess a green collage of a green dream of green food and green plants and green faces goes to show that we indeed green (lucky) to have had such a good time at sekeping serendah!
green us! 🙂
opppss, “we are indeed”, i mean..hehe
the shot of nic holding a plate of cold cuts with foie gras pate on a plate amidst all that green says it all doesn’t it?
fatboybakes: LOL…I’ll leave that for LFB to respond. But rest assured that you inspire plenty, including me….especially in the decadent-self-indulgence department. Also in all aspects of funerals and wakes.
Pureglutton: thank ye! Glad you like it. 🙂
Hairyberry: Only in Ireland. The green collage is supposed to reflect environmental awareness, but yeah, I guess we can say we’re green *roll eyes* to have had a good time together in SS. 😛
chuishia: Yeah, shows our OTT indulgence, even when trying to rough it out in the wild. 😛
I’ve been curious about that glass house…sounds like a nice place but some have said it’s overpriced…which is prolly why I haven’t been there yet…
Alexandra: A glass house costs RM450 if you book for Friday (which is what we did). That’s for 4 people and you have the whole house together with kitchenette for yourself. Additional people pay abt RM50 per head, i think. That’s quite reasonable. Understandably, it is pretty expensive on a weekend where it goes up to RM600, if I’m not mistaken. I guess you shouldn’t compare it with a 5 star hotel with 5 star facilities. Here, you’re paying for the experience as well. 🙂
I will passby Serendah eveytime go back to granny house @ Kuala Kubu Baru 🙂
You mean, there’s no restaurant? Not even a cook?? Have to cook your own meals, bring your own food??
i read all 3 of the sekeping serendah post ( you, hairy and fbb) and all are so different, yet each mesmerizing me nonetheless 🙂
mimid3vils: Must be a lovely drive, except for the awful jams in Rawang!
GFAD: Serendah town is less than 10 minutes drive away, so no one can go hungry. 🙂 Of course, we chose to bring our own food as we have strict dietary requirements. 😛
sc: It’s good that there are 3 different perspectives…that’s the beauty about blogs, isn’t it? 🙂
Hmm is the guy serving that platter mr hairy berry? hehe..
have not had those keping-keping of agar agar for some time!
i watched on tv (the australian food safari series) on how to make barfi. so easy like dat. loads of condensed milk and pistachios. looks so so so sweet, makes me think of clotted fudge. (which i brought back from UK haha..)
all different writings of sekeping serendah..marvelous pic..marvelous descp..
ah, serendah. missing it already. and i thought our bbq there was decadent. but with all your foie gras… lol.
keropokman: Wah you can recognise hairyberry from that pic? You da man! Yeah, atcherly ar, barfi is easy to make. But I think there’s a lot of stirring involved, no? If you make, I’ll visit you in Singapura, k. 🙂
christinelee: thank you….yes, 3 different perspectives, eh? 🙂
jasmine: Yours was a decadent BBQ too! I was drooling when I read your post! Of course, foie gras does make a difference…hahaha.
Sekeping Serendah; Glass House. Tell me more! Sounds interesting for a get away during weekend.