Rumah Makan Minang

Some family recipes get written down. This one got a corner shophouse by the mosque.

Rumah Makan Minang is where to learn nasi padang beyond the sambal, and the dish to learn it with is a beef rendang still slow-cooked over charcoal the Minangkabau way. Come for breakfast or lunch, a few steps from the Sultan Mosque: it suits a slow weekend morning before a wander round Kampong Gelam, or a first lesson for someone new to Padang food. The compromise is the clock; it closes in the early evening, so dinner is out.

The family story is properly tangled, and worth knowing. It starts with a Sumatran cook, Haji Marlian, who opened Sabar Menanti in the 1940s; after he died his children set up their own places, and his youngest started this one in 1954. Grandmother Hajjah Rosemah cooked at home, the family rented a very small room in a Kampong Gelam shophouse until they could afford an eatery, and grandson Hazmi Zin runs it now, on the corner of Kandahar Street and Muscat Street. An old family photo hangs on the wall and the counter is lined with trays, which is all the decoration a place with this history needs.

Point at the rendang first. The restaurant has supplied its rendang and balado to the Shangri-La's The Line, a fair test for a recipe that started in a home kitchen. Then work along the counter: the ayam belado hijau, chicken in a green chilli marinade; the Indonesian tahu telur, a fried tofu-and-egg tower with peanuts and sweet soy that is built for sharing; sotong masak hitam, gulai ayam and a red sambal belado for whoever at the table wants the heat. The breakfast menu has mee rebus, soto Padang and lontong, and is the reason to set an alarm.

How to do it well: go in the morning, when the breakfast menu is on and Kampong Gelam is still cool enough to walk; Bugis MRT is a short walk away. The restaurant takes bookings through its own page, which is worth using for a group at the weekend. Check prices at the counter, since the figures we have come from older reviews.

The family has expanded with care rather than in a rush: there is an outlet at Our Tampines Hub, and its own posts mention a kiosk at New Bahru. The Kandahar Street original is still the one to visit, because that is where the history is, and the mosque is round the corner when you're done.

Good to know Rumah Makan Minang is a short walk from Bugis MRT; the Kandahar Street shop is not in MUIS's halal directory, so check certification at the counter if it matters. You can reserve through the restaurant's own booking page; check the official site for current hours before you go.

Rumah Makan Minang | 18 & 18A Kandahar Street, Singapore 198884 | Nearest MRT: Bugis