Dahlia Cafe (Golden Landmark)

Fried rice and chicken leg, which is their signature. The portion is generous and it comes with inhouse chilli souce on the side, which brings the dish to next level. The skin of the chicken is thin and crispy which is to my liking, however the chicken is not as flavourful as the fried rice. I need to dip into the chilli source.

Situated just around the corner from Haji Lane is a no-frills lunch option. Grab your colleagues and come by for their Nasi Goreng Ayam ($6) that sees well-fried rice served alongside a large piece of crispy deep fried chicken. Burppler Veronica Phua recommends rotating between the three chilli options — a spicy, tangy “chicken rice chilli sauce”, a savoury belachan-based one and a pickled sliced green chilli option. If you're a fan of sambal belachan, go for their fragrant Nasi Goreng Kampong ($5.50).
Photo by Burppler Veronica Phua

Paid a visit to the halal eatery that I use to lunch at pretty often when I worked in the area. Choosing their Nasi Goreng Ayam was a no-brainer as it was my standard order then.
It’s good to know nothing has changed. The rice is still well fried without being too oily. Which does slightly alleviate the guilt of having it with a large piece of crispy deepfried chicken. They still offer not one but three kinds of chilli to enjoy with the dish too. There’s a spicy, tangy “chicken rice chilli sauce”, another that’s savoury because it’s belachan-based, and last but not least, pickled sliced green chillies that’s almost fruity. Since all of them work for me. I just rotate amongst the three with each mouthful.

A perk of going when this place isn't crowded means the makcik (auntie) frying up your order isn't being rushed off her feet, and can take her time to goreng (fry) the nasi (rice) with the sambal belachan (fermented shrimp paste pounded with chili) till banyak wangi (very fragrant).

It was my first time trying their "Laksa Goreng" although I have been coming to Dahlia Cafe for a couple of years.
Not sure if the cook missed something out or I was under a wrong impression but my tastebuds couldn't detect any "laksa" flavour in here. It was also sweeter (in a "chilli sambal" plus tomato sauce way) than I anticipated. Having said that, these factors did not detract from it being a tasty thick "beehoon" dish. The amount of prawns, squid, fish cake and egg was rather plentiful for the price too.
Therefore, as long as you don't expect a classic Nonya laksa fried dry-style (which is what I had in mind), you won't be disappointed.

You might need ear plugs because the fried chicken is covered in a batter with the most resounding crunch! Douse it in their house-made garlicky chilli sauce for maximum yumminess. Although the fried rice can be a little clumpy in parts (probably from being slightly damp during the frying), its tastiness level still ranks pretty high to me. Super "shiok" when eaten with the pickled green chillies.