MOVED: Ramadhan Bazaar by Bus to Larkin Stadium in Johor Bahru

This is my third Ramadhan bazaar visit this year, and this time, I took public bus (SMRT 950 and 170) from Woodlands Bus Interchange to Larkin Bus Station.

I boarded bus 950 at Woodlands Bus Interchange. After clearing Singapore and Malaysia immigration, I boarded bus 170 at the JB CIQ. Bus 170 will take us to Larkin bus station which is a 10-15 minutes ride. Larkin stadium is another 10-15 minutes walk from Larkin bus station. Ask for directions when you are at Larkin bus station. To return to Singapore, just back track and take the buses in reverse order.

Like the Ramadhan bazaars at Plaza Angsana and Pandan that I have visited, the bazaar at Larkin also has plenty of interesting food on offer.

Let's just take a sampling of what we can find at Larkin Stadium Ramadhan bazaar.

This delicious looking dish is known as Roti Pita Kebab.

Mobile barbecue fish ball satay on the back of a Honda cub. Something that I've not seen before.

The fish balls are homemade in Kelantan and delivered by bus everyday to Larkin bus station. That's a very neat arrangement!

These are Sata, a traditional dish from the eastern state of Terengganu, consisting of spiced fish meat wrapped in banana leaves and grilled over charcoal. (Thanks to Laura Benjamin for the information.)

Nasi kukus originally from Kelantan is getting very popular in Johor. Frying chicken for the nasi kukus.

Customers pick the piece of fried chicken that they want to go with their nasi kukus.

Roti John. Another popular staple, there are several Roti John stands here.

There was a long queue waiting for this lady's fried kway teow and she told me that she had been to my johorkaki blog, YAY!

Grilling kebabs.

Ayam percik.

Barbecue chicken.

Spring rolls.

Flipping the dough for the murtabak. There are 3, if not 4, murtabak stalls here.

Grilled fish covered under a thick blanket of fiery sambal chili. 

Sup kambing or mutton soup. We can choose the parts that we want to go with the soup.

Frying keropok lekor or fish cake.

Location: Larkin Stadium (officially known as Stadium Tan Sri Dato' Hj Hassan Yunos)
Address: Junction of Jalan Dato Jaafar and Jalan Sentosa
Map: http://goo.gl/maps/PoUDV
GPS: 1.495955,103.751047
Halal

Sin Katong Rice Dumpling Bak Chang 新加东肉粽 in Taman Johor Jaya, Johor Bahru

We stumbled upon Sin Katong Rice Dumpling 新加东肉粽 in Taman Johor Jaya while looking for a quick breakfast.

Review of Seng Steam Fish Restaurant in Johor Bahru, Taman Sri Tebrau 成蒸鱼与肉骨茶 ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Back at Seng Steam Fish today for their legendary fried fish. It was as good as ever and I still have not found anywhere in Johor that does this fried fish as well as Seng Steam Fish.

Wanton Noodles @ Poh Kee 葆记云吞面 in Desa Tebrau and Kampung Pandan in Johor Bahru

Updated 12 Aug 2019. On my way north towards Ulu Tiram today, passing Kampung Pandan, I couldn't resist pulling over left into Jalan Loo Hong Joon. There are two well loved, old school wanton mee stalls I like here - the first has no name, and the other is Poh Kee. Today, I ate at Poh Kee.

Kway Teow Kia @ Solid Cafeteria 祖传果条仔 in Taman Johor Jaya JB

I liked Solid Cafeteria Kway Teow Kia when I first tried it back in 2012. When I visited this popular Johor Jaya KTK shop again recently, I realised that I liked it more than ever before. I used to find its KTK stock a bit "medicinal" but now I found it just nicely savoury sweet with subtle herbalness.

Ramadhan Bazaar near Carrefour, Pandan, Johor Bahru

This is my second Ramadhan bazaar this year because once a year is never enough. Actually, I am not sure if twice or how many times is enough for me. I never tire of Ramadhan bazaars because the sights, sounds, smells and atmosphere are always such wonderful treats for all our senses.

I doubled my walking pace towards the bazaar when I saw bellowing smoke and smelled the aroma of roasting chicken over charcoal.

The popiah stall where I could hear the crackers breaking when the lady wraps the spring rolls. 

Foot long roti John by the cheerful crew.

Satay ready for the charcoal grill.

Juicy kebabs roasting on the charcoal grill.

Smoking towers of yummy barbecue chicken wings and kebabs.

Lemang, traditional glutinous rice and coconut milk cooked in bamboo with wood fire.

Kambing (mutton) soup where you can choose any part of the lamb you like.

Colourful, mouth watering nasi briyani.

Freshly barbecued quails basking in the afternoon sun.

Ayam percik is a favourite from the peninsular east coast.

Freshly grilled stingrays or ikan pari painted red with a thick coat of sambal chili.

Listen to the sizzle of grilling fish.

Frying fish keropok or crackers.

Putu bambu, traditional cake made with ground rice and coconut in bamboo.

Popular staple murtabak.

Plenty of pretty cakes to tempt people with sweet tooth.

Dazzling colours and endless varieties of delicious traditional home cooked dishes. 

Sweet icy drinks in multi colours.

Location: Next to Carrefour, Pandan, Johor Bahru
Address: Just before the Tebrau Highway and Pasir Gudang Highway interchange
Map:  http://goo.gl/maps/TgZSH
GPS: 1.535037,103.784172
Halal

Date visited: 25 July 2012

Johor Bahru Chinese Temple Tour and Makan Day Trip by Car

Friends have asked me to suggest an itinerary for a one day Chinese temple tour and makan day trip to Johor Bahru.

This suggested day trip itinerary is based on three Chinese temples in Johor Bahru, namely, Johor Old Temple 柔佛古廟 in downtown JB, Kuan Yin Temple 观音廟 in Taman Perling and Tin Hau Temple 天后廟 in Skudai.

The suggested eateries are conveniently located near these three temples. I have also added a shopping stop at Sutera Mall for the shopaholics.

As always, this is only a suggested itinerary. We are encouraged to freely change and modify it according to our preferences and to use only what we find suitable for our own needs.

Timings are also rough estimates only as time required varies according to the queues at the checkpoint, waiting time for food, and traffic conditions, just to name a few influencing factors.

If you are driving in a convoy, a convenient assembly point is Woodlands Town Garden.

Once cleared immigration, we start the day with a hearty breakfast. There are three suggested breakfast choices.

We can have otak otak, nasi lemak and fried bee hoon at Storia Café. Storia café is famous for their otak otak.

If you like Hainanese coffee and toast, Kin Wah may be the choice for you. Kin Wah is famous for their half boiled kampung chicken eggs. Kin Wah also serves popular nasi lemak, mee siam and mee rebus for breakfast.

Another popular choice is Hua Mui which is an old established, traditional Hainanese coffee shop. Hainanese coffee and toasts are the hot sellers here. Hua Mui's signature dish is their fried chicken chops.

After a hearty breakfast, we visit Johor Old Temple 柔佛古 in downtown Johor Bahru. This is the oldest temple in Johor Bahru. I suggest we take a 10 minutes walk from Kin Wah or Hua Mui to the temple as parking is difficult in downtown JB, except on weekends.

After visiting the Johor Old Temple, we proceed to the Kuan Yin Temple 观音廟 in Taman Perling.

After visiting the Quan Yin Temple, we break for lunch at Kim Ling coffee shop. Kim Ling coffee shop has a wide range of hawker stalls, such as chicken rice, you char kway, pork organ soup, kway teow kia (kway chap), yong tau foo, Penang char kway teow, and more. There is also a vegetarian food stall in Kim Ling.

While at Taman Perling, you may want to pop by Daily Grain Café for their freshly baked, homemade multi grain bread and banana cakes.

Our stomachs filled, we proceed to the Tin Hau Temple 天后廟 in Skudai.

After visiting the Tin Hau temple, we proceed to Taman Sri Skudai for the famous braised duck shops there.

The oldest established braised duck shop is Skudai Duck Mee.

Just across the same street is Sin Hai Cheng which is also another very popular braised duck shop.

After the sumptuous duck meals, we stop over at Sutera Mall for retail therapy and to burn off calories.

After shopping, we shall proceed to Ban Heong Seng for a special dinner of beggar's chicken / duck, country fish, oyster rice and melon soup.

Please call Ban Heong Seng at least one day in advance to make bookings for the dishes as the "beggar style" of cooking needs long cooking times. Ban Heong Seng is in a quiet old bungalow house. It is cool, breezy and laid back. A good place to chill and catch our breath before the drive back to Singapore, after a long day.

I have also worked out a Skudai Highway shopping and makan day trip. It is a good idea to switch items between the two itineraries based on your own preferences. Mix and match as you wish.

Wish you a safe and fruitful trip.