Breakfast of champions: 'Bánh mì chảo' and more at Sea Garden YP in Old Klang Road
KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 25 – Bánh mì. Few dishes are more iconic and more significant to Vietnamese cuisine, and even fewer capture the essence of fusion food quite like this sandwich, a delicious vessel through which one can get a glimpse at Vietnam’s colonial past.
However, only a fool would suggest that centuries of history and culture can be reduced down to a sandwich; it is a pretty recent invention after all and the French get too much credit already anyway.
But one thing is for sure: the marriage of Vietnamese ingredients like chả lụa (Vietnamese pork sausage) and a load of pickled daikon and carrots with French ingredients like a crusty baguette and smooth pâté is genius at work.
There are many varieties of bánh mì with a multitude of fillings used, but my favourite is one I ate seven years ago sitting on a short metal stool in a Ho Chi Minh City alleyway.
In front of me lay a small steel skillet: Its contents included a fried egg and all the fillings you’d expect in a bánh mì.
The baguette and pickled vegetables arrived on the side, for one to enjoy against the backdrop of a million revving motorcycles.
This is bánh mì chảo, and it is probably unlike any other variety of bánh mì you’ve eaten.
Chảo means pan, and in that pan is where you’ll find any and every bánh mì filling conceivable, with more modern interpretations taking more liberties with it.
It also resembles bò né, which is something of a Vietnamese steak and eggs and is also eaten with a light, airy baguette on the side.
Look for the brown sign, right next to the famed Restoran Wai Kei.
Picture my surprise then, when I hear that bánh mì chảo might be found in Sea Garden YP, a restaurant just off Old Klang Road that’s been open for just over a year.
With cars zooming down the main road, I took my seat on a stool once again, absolutely thrilled about this reunion seven years in the making.
A closer look at the contents of the pan. Spot the 'pâté', meatball and 'chả lụa' amongst the egg and pickled vegetables.
The bánh mì chảo (RM17) here comes with a sunny-side-up egg, a dollop of pâté, slices of chả lụa, fish cake and a stewed pork meatball.
An assortment of pickled vegetables including cucumbers, carrots and daikon are served in the pan, with the requisite baguette on the side.
It’s a breakfast anyone would dream of waking up to: A simple, comforting egg, topped with various slices of meat and a rich and intense pâté providing savoury pockets of flavour all over.
This version is distinctly saucier, helped by the braising liquid from the stewed meatballs, which makes for a satisfying baguette dipping experience.
Unlike French baguettes, these are characterised by their airy crumb, usually an indicator of the use of both rice and wheat flour.
A more conventional sandwich can also be found here.
'Bánh mì thập cẩm' at Sea Garden YP comes loaded with an assortment of sliced meat and some pork floss as well.
Bánh mì thập cẩm (RM14) is the mixed option, filled with various types of sliced meat and some pork floss in addition to the usual suspects.
While it was a pretty good version, I found it a little light on the pickles, as the considerable amount of sliced meat, pork floss and pâté left me calling out for something sharp and invigorating to balance out the heavy meat fest threatening to smother me to sleep.
Fret not if getting up for breakfast sounds too tall an order for you.
While the breakfast combos are only available from 8:30am to 11:30am, all the bánh mì are available all day till sold out.
Parking is a challenge, though it won’t deter me from a return visit: the promise of more bánh mì chảo and the allure of trying their version of bò né here proves difficult to resist.
Sea Garden YP
3, Jalan Klang Lama, Taman Hock Ann, Kuala Lumpur
Open Tuesday to Sunday, 8.30am-9.30pm
Tel: 014-713 1570
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