Move over Vicchuda, the glory days of the humble Kelantanese-Thai restaurant are back! These small unobtrusive ‘tom-yam’ shops seemed to prosper long before the age of the ‘MAMAK’, with humble premises but quality food. Alas! Today’s family owned Tomyam shops are few and far between. Tucked away in a shoplot in Kota Damansara however, lies a little gem called CHUN BURI, which has renewed my faith in the Kelantanese ability to do it right (by way of food I mean).
If you’re not looking for it, it is very easy to miss Chun Buri. The shop is plain at best and the name doesn’t sound remotely appetizing. But once you’re seated, the menu looks a little bit more promising. What is surprising are the prices, really reasonable, cheap even- for a shop located in the affluent Kota Damansara area.
Aside for the typical Kelantanese-Thai fare, they also serve bubur nasi, ikan bakar and kerang bakar here. The house speciality would have to be the Tomyam Poktek, ‘poktek’ meaning ‘claypot’.
We ordered the main staples- Nasi Putih, Kailan Goreng Biasa, Telur Dadar, Kerabu Sotong, Ikan Siakap Stim Limau, Daging Goreng Kunyit and a seafood Tomyam Poktek.
The tomyam poktek is a clear white-ish broth and comes steaming hot in a claypot. The taste is sour and hot as tomyam should be, but slightly more subtle when compared to the typical red tomyam that is usually served. What was most pleasing was the seafood. I was expecting the usual; small, ‘not-particularly fresh’ prawns and a few token squid rings, but instead the soup was filled with tiger prawns, lala, crabs, fish and squid, and each morsel was as fresh as a daily catch. Chun Buri also serves up the normal red tomyam, which is just as good but really Hot! So if you can’t stand the chillies, go for the white variety- which also comes sans ‘Poktek’.
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