“Let’s have chicken rice for dinner,” said rif on Tuesday.

I thought he was joking as rif and I both dislike eating chicken rice. We avoid eating it whenever possible.

“But you hate chicken rice. You sure you want that for dinner?”I replied.

rif suggested this place because he thought I’ve been putting up too many non-food posts over the past two weeks *cough* *pageant* *cough*. I remember eating at the chicken rice shop next door with my dad many years ago, but rif’s parents prefer Restoran Satellite. According to them, the chicken is tastier and the rice is more flavourful. Service was prompt; our food came is less than 10 minutes. The pork meatballs (RM2 for 4 pieces) were larger, bouncier and had more ‘snap’ than the ones available commercially. I spied some noodles at the counter, and asked rif about it. Turns out, they also serve noodles (hor fun, yellow noodles and mee hoon) done “kon loh”, clear soup or curry style. I ordered the curry hor fun (RM2 per bowl), which was nothing to shout about. But I’d choose curry noodles over the yellow rice (RM1) anytime. rif had the rice. I stole a bite and found it fragrant, fluffy and infused with chicken broth. Our order of ½ a steamed chicken (RM16) was served on a bed of sliced cucumbers and drenched with light soy sauce and sesame oil. The chicken was good. And this is coming from someone who has reservations towards this dish. The flesh was firm yet tender, smooth and fragrant from the sesame oil. I usually don’t take chicken breast because I can’t stand its cardboard-like texture, but this chicken breast was tender and juicy.The spicy, garlic-ky and sweetish chilli sauce complemented the chicken well. We asked for an extra serving each. Come prepared with breath mints, or better still, toothbrush and toothpaste — you will be smelling of garlic after that. We also ordered a plate of beansprouts (RM1) to balance out the meal. The beansprouts were fat, short and crunchy – much like the ones served in Ipoh. Topped with fried onions, chives and chilli, I enjoyed this.

On a whole, I enjoyed the food, especially the steamed chicken. Dinner came up to RM22, and we were very full. I wouldn’t mind coming back for this chicken rice.

Ambiance: 5.5/10
Price: 6.5/10
Food: 6.5/10 (non-halal)
Verdict: Pretty good steamed chicken, reasonable prices.

Restoran Satellite Ipoh Chicken Rice
103, Jalan Gasing 10/1,
46000 Petaling Jaya.