Nusa & Tara – Lemak & Luscious Lontongs With More Serundeng Please!

Despite being a regular at ABC Brickworks Market & Food Centre, I have never tried Nusa & Tara because of the daunting queues during lunch hour. You see, lunch break is extremely precious to a typical OL who usually has only 1 hour to eat, drink, and, perhaps, catch up on that latest Netflix series. Having the time to queue at one of the stalls with the longest lines in the food centre is a luxury.

However, I was bent on trying Nusa & Tara after witnessing how customers of various age groups and races all left with more than satisfied grins. I must have been lucky to secure my Lontong, Nasi Sambal Goreng and Gado Gado in 15 minutes on a rainy Wednesday morning!

One sip of the Lontong ($3) gravy, and it was clear why this dish was Nusa & Tara’s most popular item. Beneath a mountain of sayur (vegetables) simmered till soft was a large piece of fried tau kwa (firm beancurd), homemade lontong (compressed rice cakes) and hard-boiled egg. The star, however, was the generous shavings of homemade serundeng (spiced grated coconut) lying atop the mountainous pile. Fried till golden-brown, the serundeng was wondrously juicy and moist with piquant hints of spices.

The coconut-based broth brimming with spices was extremely lemak, and the mildly spicy and sweet sambal on the side made the entire combination even tastier!

You can also choose to have the dry version, Lontong Kering ($4). But you probably wouldn’t want to miss out on that lemak broth, trust me.

I was tempted to also get the Nasi Sambal Goreng ($4) after seeing almost everyone in front of me ordering it. The visually appealing set came with tender pieces of beef rendang, a bergedil (fried potato patty), chicken wing and more serundeng! The beef rendang was exceptionally flavorful with a dreamy melt-in-your-mouth texture, while the chicken wing was fried to a golden crisp perfection. I was bowled over by how fluffy yet wholesome the bergedil was. And serundeng? There can never be too much serundeng. Period.

It is difficult to find a decent Gado Gado these days. The Gado Gado ($3) at Nusa & Tara sees boiled sayur, diced tau kwa, fried tempeh slices, sambal, a hard-boiled egg and keropok crackers doused in a creamy peanut dressing. Similar to our usual satay sauce, but sweeter, the peanut dressing had a thinner consistency but was definitely not thin on flavors.

It is not difficult at all to see why Nusa & Tara has garnered a staunch fan base, and consistently sports one of the long queues at ABC Brickworks Market & Food Centre. Offering traditional and authentic Malay cuisines, Nusa & Tara has earned itself another return customer as I will definitely be back to try the Mee Siam and Nasi Lemak!

MissTamChiak.com made anonymous visit and paid its own meal at the stall featured here.