J.H. Lovely Sweets in Old Downtown Johor Bahru

J.H. Lovely Sweets is a small corner shop along Jalan Trus tucked between the Gurdawa Sahib Sikh temple and the Hindu temple. Was feeling famish as I was hurrying by and I remembered my friend Gwen mentioned this stall. So I decided to stop and check out the shop.



The shop is basically an one-man operation. Goldy the boss came from Punjab (India) about 10 years ago to work in a restaurant. When the restaurant closed two years later, Goldy opened J.H. Lovely Sweets and has not looked back since. Today, J.H. Lovely Sweets has become a popular gathering place for the JB Sikh community.



A happy group of Singapore tourists. Still with their luggage in tow, they checked in at J.H. Lovely Sweets first before proceeding to their hotel. They have been doing this for years as they love the food at J.H. Lovely Sweets. From them, I understand that J.H. Lovely Sweets is the only Punjabi food shop in JB.



I wanted something filling, so I ordered an Aloo Pratha which is Indian flat bread filled with soft curried potatoes.



Goldy flattening my Aloo Pratha, getting it ready for the pan.



The Aloo Pratha ready and on the way to my table :)



My Aloo Pratha at RM4.00. I heard one of the Singapore ladies exclaiming "power packed!" when she bite into her Aloo Pratha. For me, it certainly was a good filling meal though I prefer my bread more crispy. I also found the flavour of the curried potatoes and bread quite mild.

Next time, I shall try the kosong chapati and eat it with some of the side dishes.



The simple dahl that came with my Aloo Pratha.



Each table has a bottle of this "Lady's Choice" but it is not peanut butter.



The thing with me is, being unsure doesn't stop me from trying something in big portions. I scooped a large dollop from the "Lady's Choice" bottle and plonked it on my pratha. It turned out to be lime with salt and spices. Too sour for me :P As I was brought up not to waste food, I ate up what I took anyway.



My new found friends showed me that the best way to enjoy chapati is with our hands.



Prices of everything is neatly and clearly laid out. Such a small stall, serves so many things. Amazing.



Some of traditional sweets at J.H. Lovely Sweets. I am saving these for the next makan session with Gwen. She is very knowledgeable about Indian cuisine and it would be wonderful to have her help me appreciate these sweets. 



Goldy's business card on the squeeze bottle of mint sauce.



J.H. Lovely Sweets shop is to the right of Gurdawa Sahib Sikh temple.

Restaurant name: J.H. Lovely Sweets
Address: Jalan Trus (opposite Galleria Kotaraya shopping centre)
Map: http://goo.gl/maps/ch3uD
GPS: 1.459301,103.763535
Hours: 9:30am to 9:30pm
No pork, no lard, no Halal cert (vegetarian)

Date visited: 2 Aug 2013

J.H. Lovely Sweets is a small corner shop along Jalan Trus tucked between the Gurdawa Sahib Sikh temple and the Hindu temple. Was feeling famish as I was hurrying by and I remembered my friend Gwen mentioned this stall. So I decided to stop and check out the shop.



The shop is basically an one-man operation. Goldy the boss came from Punjab (India) about 10 years ago to work in a restaurant. When the restaurant closed two years later, Goldy opened J.H. Lovely Sweets and has not looked back since. Today, J.H. Lovely Sweets has become a popular gathering place for the JB Sikh community.



A happy group of Singapore tourists. Still with their luggage in tow, they checked in at J.H. Lovely Sweets first before proceeding to their hotel. They have been doing this for years as they love the food at J.H. Lovely Sweets. From them, I understand that J.H. Lovely Sweets is the only Punjabi food shop in JB.



I wanted something filling, so I ordered an Aloo Pratha which is Indian flat bread filled with soft curried potatoes.



Goldy flattening my Aloo Pratha, getting it ready for the pan.



The Aloo Pratha ready and on the way to my table :)



My Aloo Pratha at RM4.00. I heard one of the Singapore ladies exclaiming "power packed!" when she bite into her Aloo Pratha. For me, it certainly was a good filling meal though I prefer my bread more crispy. I also found the flavour of the curried potatoes and bread quite mild.

Next time, I shall try the kosong chapati and eat it with some of the side dishes.



The simple dahl that came with my Aloo Pratha.



Each table has a bottle of this "Lady's Choice" but it is not peanut butter.



The thing with me is, being unsure doesn't stop me from trying something in big portions. I scooped a large dollop from the "Lady's Choice" bottle and plonked it on my pratha. It turned out to be lime with salt and spices. Too sour for me :P As I was brought up not to waste food, I ate up what I took anyway.



My new found friends showed me that the best way to enjoy chapati is with our hands.



Prices of everything is neatly and clearly laid out. Such a small stall, serves so many things. Amazing.



Some of traditional sweets at J.H. Lovely Sweets. I am saving these for the next makan session with Gwen. She is very knowledgeable about Indian cuisine and it would be wonderful to have her help me appreciate these sweets. 



Goldy's business card on the squeeze bottle of mint sauce.



J.H. Lovely Sweets shop is to the right of Gurdawa Sahib Sikh temple.

Restaurant name: J.H. Lovely Sweets
Address: Jalan Trus (opposite Galleria Kotaraya shopping centre)
Map: http://goo.gl/maps/ch3uD
GPS: 1.459301,103.763535
Hours: 9:30am to 9:30pm
No pork, no lard, no Halal cert (vegetarian)

Date visited: 2 Aug 2013

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Xiang Man Ju Vegetarian Restaurant 香满居素食馆 in Taman Gaya, Johor Bahru, Malaysia

 

I have often been asked for recommendations of vegetarian restaurants in Johor. This is a hard one for me as I am not naturally inclined to vegetarian food and I don't have many friends now who know much about this either.

 

Fortunately today, I stumbled upon a good vegetable restaurant Xiang Man Ju 香满居素食馆 in Taman Gaya in Ulu Tiram that I can recommend to anyone who asks.

 

Xiang Man Ju is a large Chinese vegetarian restaurant occupying two shoplots in Taman Gaya.

 

 

 

On one side, the food is laid out in buffet style with some seats here.

 

 

On the other side is an air conditioned dining area. There is piped in Chinese Buddhist music playing in the background. 

 

We were at Xiang Man Ju at about mid morning and there was a steady stream of people coming in for their meals. Many people were taking away packets of food for their lunch. We were so excited about our find that we actually came back again at mid afternoon for another round. At mid afternoon, there too was a steady stream of customers.

 

I am not really a fan of vegetarian food but what attracted me was the huge range of dishes available at Xiang Man Ju. I estimated that they must have around 30 to 40 different dishes, so there must be something for everyone. The staff was constantly bringing out steaming trays of freshly cooked dishes from the kitchen. 

 

Here are a few photogenic dishes that caught my eye.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Customers start at one end of the line of food, pick what they liked as they move along up the line, and pay the cashier at the other end of the line. Simple and sysmattic.

 

 

And, this is the heap that I had. All these for RM6 with free flow of soup. I didn't take any pictures of the soup as it was clear and plain looking. But the soup was quite tasty and I actually had two bowls of it.

 

 

In the afternoon, we came back for this because we couldn't resist trying out Xiang Man Ju's vegetarian BBQ "stingray" at RM15. I liked the novelty :P

 

 

The large and thick slab of "stingray" made with gluten was pretty tasty as it soaked up the tangy, spicy, salty sambal blanketing it. We found the dish rather overdosed with greasy oil. If we were to order this again, we will definitely ask the kitchen to take it easy with the oil. I am quite sure the friendly kitchen will accommodate our request.

 

Next time when I am asked to suggest a vegetarian restaurant in JB, I will confidently recommend Xiang Man Ju.

 

 

Restaurant name: Xiang Man Ju Vegetarian Restaurant 香满居素食馆

Address: 27-29, Jalan Gaya 25, Taman Gaya, Johor Bahru

Map: http://goo.gl/maps/Q7VhB

GPS: 1.568102,103.800909

Hours: 7:30am to 10:00pm (closed on Tuesday)

No pork, no lard

 

Date visited: 2 Nov 2012

 

I have often been asked for recommendations of vegetarian restaurants in Johor. This is a hard one for me as I am not naturally inclined to vegetarian food and I don't have many friends now who know much about this either.

 

Fortunately today, I stumbled upon a good vegetable restaurant Xiang Man Ju 香满居素食馆 in Taman Gaya in Ulu Tiram that I can recommend to anyone who asks.

 

Xiang Man Ju is a large Chinese vegetarian restaurant occupying two shoplots in Taman Gaya.

 

 

 

On one side, the food is laid out in buffet style with some seats here.

 

 

On the other side is an air conditioned dining area. There is piped in Chinese Buddhist music playing in the background. 

 

We were at Xiang Man Ju at about mid morning and there was a steady stream of people coming in for their meals. Many people were taking away packets of food for their lunch. We were so excited about our find that we actually came back again at mid afternoon for another round. At mid afternoon, there too was a steady stream of customers.

 

I am not really a fan of vegetarian food but what attracted me was the huge range of dishes available at Xiang Man Ju. I estimated that they must have around 30 to 40 different dishes, so there must be something for everyone. The staff was constantly bringing out steaming trays of freshly cooked dishes from the kitchen. 

 

Here are a few photogenic dishes that caught my eye.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Customers start at one end of the line of food, pick what they liked as they move along up the line, and pay the cashier at the other end of the line. Simple and sysmattic.

 

 

And, this is the heap that I had. All these for RM6 with free flow of soup. I didn't take any pictures of the soup as it was clear and plain looking. But the soup was quite tasty and I actually had two bowls of it.

 

 

In the afternoon, we came back for this because we couldn't resist trying out Xiang Man Ju's vegetarian BBQ "stingray" at RM15. I liked the novelty :P

 

 

The large and thick slab of "stingray" made with gluten was pretty tasty as it soaked up the tangy, spicy, salty sambal blanketing it. We found the dish rather overdosed with greasy oil. If we were to order this again, we will definitely ask the kitchen to take it easy with the oil. I am quite sure the friendly kitchen will accommodate our request.

 

Next time when I am asked to suggest a vegetarian restaurant in JB, I will confidently recommend Xiang Man Ju.

 

 

Restaurant name: Xiang Man Ju Vegetarian Restaurant 香满居素食馆

Address: 27-29, Jalan Gaya 25, Taman Gaya, Johor Bahru

Map: http://goo.gl/maps/Q7VhB

GPS: 1.568102,103.800909

Hours: 7:30am to 10:00pm (closed on Tuesday)

No pork, no lard

 

Date visited: 2 Nov 2012

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Vegetarian 素食 Stall @ Kim Ling 金岭 Coffee Shop in Taman Perling, Johor Bahru

I have been on the lookout for vegetarian restaurants and stalls as I have been frequently asked for recommendations on vegetarian food in Johor.

Seeing how popular the vegetarian 素食 stall in Kim Ling 金岭 coffee shop was, I decided to give it a try.

MR Goh is the owner of the vegetarian stall. The other stall owners in Kim Ling affectionately call the affable MR Goh, "the principal". I gathered that this is because MR Goh had been running his vegetarian food stall in a school tuck shop for many years, until he shifted to Kim Ling.

MR Goh enthusiastically shared that cooking had been his life long passion since he was a teenager. MR Goh said that he enjoys experimenting with different dishes and that he conducts vegetarian cooking classes on his rest days.

MR Goh’s vegetarian stall offers an extensive menu of different dishes – no doubt many of these have the hallmark of MR Goh’s tinkering with the recipes and techniques.

For today, I picked “mock chicken” rice for lunch.

The first thing that struck me about this "chicken" rice was that the rice had the same aroma and flavour as real chicken rice. So, it’s thumbs up for the rice.

The pieces of "roast chicken" of course merely looked the part and tasted only of gluten. Still, the gluten "chicken" was tasty, and was neither too salty nor oily.

For vegetarians, MR Goh’s vegetarian 素食 stall is a tasty choice.

Kim Ling 金岭 is a good coffee shop for people travelling in groups as there is something for everyone. There are many stalls at Kim Ling serving a wide variety of hawker fare including pork organ soup 猪杂汤, kway tiao kia (kway chap), Penang char kway teow, yong tau foo, you char kway, chicken rice, chee cheong fun, mixed vegetable rice 经济饭菜, and more.

MR Goh’s vegetarian stall makes Kim Ling coffee shop’s already good mix of stalls more complete.

The hawker stalls at Kim Ling open from 7:00am to about 2:00pm. In the evening, a zhi char stall takes over.

Restaurant name: Vegetarian 素食 Stall @ Kim Ling 金岭 Coffee Shop

Address: 19, Jalan Simbang, Taman Perling, Johor Bahru

Map: http://goo.gl/maps/LhmB
GPS: 1.482709,103.681223

Hours: Hawker stalls operate from 7:00am to 2:00pm

(Closed on alternate Wednesdays)

Halal

Date visited: 13 July 2012

I have been on the lookout for vegetarian restaurants and stalls as I have been frequently asked for recommendations on vegetarian food in Johor.

Seeing how popular the vegetarian 素食 stall in Kim Ling 金岭 coffee shop was, I decided to give it a try.

MR Goh is the owner of the vegetarian stall. The other stall owners in Kim Ling affectionately call the affable MR Goh, "the principal". I gathered that this is because MR Goh had been running his vegetarian food stall in a school tuck shop for many years, until he shifted to Kim Ling.

MR Goh enthusiastically shared that cooking had been his life long passion since he was a teenager. MR Goh said that he enjoys experimenting with different dishes and that he conducts vegetarian cooking classes on his rest days.

MR Goh’s vegetarian stall offers an extensive menu of different dishes – no doubt many of these have the hallmark of MR Goh’s tinkering with the recipes and techniques.

For today, I picked “mock chicken” rice for lunch.

The first thing that struck me about this "chicken" rice was that the rice had the same aroma and flavour as real chicken rice. So, it’s thumbs up for the rice.

The pieces of "roast chicken" of course merely looked the part and tasted only of gluten. Still, the gluten "chicken" was tasty, and was neither too salty nor oily.

For vegetarians, MR Goh’s vegetarian 素食 stall is a tasty choice.

Kim Ling 金岭 is a good coffee shop for people travelling in groups as there is something for everyone. There are many stalls at Kim Ling serving a wide variety of hawker fare including pork organ soup 猪杂汤, kway tiao kia (kway chap), Penang char kway teow, yong tau foo, you char kway, chicken rice, chee cheong fun, mixed vegetable rice 经济饭菜, and more.

MR Goh’s vegetarian stall makes Kim Ling coffee shop’s already good mix of stalls more complete.

The hawker stalls at Kim Ling open from 7:00am to about 2:00pm. In the evening, a zhi char stall takes over.

Restaurant name: Vegetarian 素食 Stall @ Kim Ling 金岭 Coffee Shop

Address: 19, Jalan Simbang, Taman Perling, Johor Bahru

Map: http://goo.gl/maps/LhmB
GPS: 1.482709,103.681223

Hours: Hawker stalls operate from 7:00am to 2:00pm

(Closed on alternate Wednesdays)

Halal

Date visited: 13 July 2012

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Annalakshmi Indian Vegetarian Restaurant in Johor Bahru

Annalakshmi is an Indian vegetarian restaurant founded in Kuala Lumpur in 1984, and today has branches in Johor Bahru, India, Singapore and Australia. (Special thanks to my friend, Devesh Sharma, who introduced me to Annalakshmi restaurants.)

Annalakshmi restaurants are named after the Hindu Goddess of Plenty.

At Annalakshmi restaurants the food is cooked and served by volunteers. The chefs are usually housewives and thus the food have that distinct home cooked feel - lovely!

All walks of life and all races enjoying lunch at Annalakshmi

The traditional Indian vegetarian cuisine is simply presented in a buffet spread and the guests eat as much as they wish and enjoy.

Uniquely, at Annalakshmi there is no fixed price for the food. The guests pay any amount as s/he wishes. The concept is "Eat to your heart's content, pay what your heart feels."

This was my hearty lunch. Isn't it beautiful? The dishes were made with fresh vegetables and no artificial flavourings such as MSG were used. It was refreshing and delicious. It was a nice blend of spice fragrances, and textures of the different vegetables served.

Business is brisk as groups of guests stream in and out constantly. Yet, the atmosphere remains serene and unhurried. The friendly and smiling staff sets the tone of calm and serenity.

I also enjoyed the ambiance at Annalakshmi. The well appointed dining room is simply yet attractively decorated with beautiful carvings and paintings from India. Even the heavy wooden furniture are authentic pieces from India
with intricate inlays.

As it is staffed wholly by volunteers, Annalakshmi's opening hours are relatively short - just 4 hours a day, from 11:00am to 3:00pm.

Try Annalalshmi for a sumptuous, healthy and hearty authentic traditional Indian vegetarian meal and a unique cultural experience.


Restaurant name: Annalakshmi
Address: 39, Jalan Ibrahim, Johor Bahru
Map: http://goo.gl/maps/6oCV
GPS: 1.455971,103.763326
Hours: 11:00am to 3:00pm (closed on Sunday)
Halal

Date visited: 12 Jun 2012

Annalakshmi is an Indian vegetarian restaurant founded in Kuala Lumpur in 1984, and today has branches in Johor Bahru, India, Singapore and Australia. (Special thanks to my friend, Devesh Sharma, who introduced me to Annalakshmi restaurants.)

Annalakshmi restaurants are named after the Hindu Goddess of Plenty.

At Annalakshmi restaurants the food is cooked and served by volunteers. The chefs are usually housewives and thus the food have that distinct home cooked feel - lovely!

All walks of life and all races enjoying lunch at Annalakshmi

The traditional Indian vegetarian cuisine is simply presented in a buffet spread and the guests eat as much as they wish and enjoy.

Uniquely, at Annalakshmi there is no fixed price for the food. The guests pay any amount as s/he wishes. The concept is "Eat to your heart's content, pay what your heart feels."

This was my hearty lunch. Isn't it beautiful? The dishes were made with fresh vegetables and no artificial flavourings such as MSG were used. It was refreshing and delicious. It was a nice blend of spice fragrances, and textures of the different vegetables served.

Business is brisk as groups of guests stream in and out constantly. Yet, the atmosphere remains serene and unhurried. The friendly and smiling staff sets the tone of calm and serenity.

I also enjoyed the ambiance at Annalakshmi. The well appointed dining room is simply yet attractively decorated with beautiful carvings and paintings from India. Even the heavy wooden furniture are authentic pieces from India
with intricate inlays.

As it is staffed wholly by volunteers, Annalakshmi's opening hours are relatively short - just 4 hours a day, from 11:00am to 3:00pm.

Try Annalalshmi for a sumptuous, healthy and hearty authentic traditional Indian vegetarian meal and a unique cultural experience.


Restaurant name: Annalakshmi
Address: 39, Jalan Ibrahim, Johor Bahru
Map: http://goo.gl/maps/6oCV
GPS: 1.455971,103.763326
Hours: 11:00am to 3:00pm (closed on Sunday)
Halal

Date visited: 12 Jun 2012

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