Rasa Istimewa Waterfront – Dinner With A Gorgeous Sea View

Rasa Istimewa Waterfront offers an affordable and memorable seaside dining experience. Rarely do we get restaurants that are located this close to the sea, the restaurant is located near a jetty situated along the Straits of Johor. The distance, and travelling time, might deter potential diners from visiting, but I promise that the view is worth travelling for.

Rasa Istimewa is popular with families and large groups. The spacious restaurant dishes out Halal Chinese cuisine which is obviously very well loved, judging by how packed the restaurant was. While the eatery serves an array of a la carte options, set menus are also available for those who are too dazzled by the abundance of options. We opted for the set menu 2 ($88++), which was sufficient for 4 persons.

Awaken your palate with a serving of Salted Vegetable Seafood & Tofu Soup. The tangy soup will whet your appetite. There’s a good amount of squid, shrimp, mushrooms and carrots amongst other ingredients. The soup is decent, but not stellar.

The Rasa Istimewa Curry Fish Head certainly stole the limelight. The delicate flesh of the snapperhead boasted a mild sweetness that we enjoyed. The milky and thick curry carried a fiery kick, but the richness of the santan kept it from being overwhelmingly spicy. A warming trivet keeps the delightful curry warm as you enjoy your meal. The fish head is accompanied by an assortment of vegetables and tau pok.

I always order a hotplate (Seafood with Fried Tofu & Egg) when I visit a tze char place. Since we don’t particularly fancy peas and baby corns, we left most of the greens untouched. The smooth fried tofu was well received though. There were also a few pieces of squid and peeled shrimps included in the mix. Unfortunately, the entire dish was bland and didn’t leave much of an impression. 

Who doesn’t love their seafood topped with crispy cereal? While the fragrant cereal bits were a pleasant addition, the fairly large prawns failed to impress. They weren’t as succulent as I had hoped. Make sure every prawn is coated with a healthy helping of cereal flakes before you bite into it!

If every vegetable dish was as unique as the Dual Flavour Baby Kailan, I might become a vegetarian. The kai lan here is done in two ways — stir-fried kai lan which is armed with a subtle fragrance of garlic lies below delicate and crisp deep-fried kai lan. If this is your first time having deep-fried kai lan, you’ll be amazed at its texture. It could very well be an addictive snack! 

While the food was not outstanding, the view made up for it. I’ll definitely return to give their a la carte menu a try! 

MissTamChiak.com made an anonymous visit and paid its own meal at the stall featured here.

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Check out our article on what you can eat near the Johor Bahru checkpoint or visit the KSL Night Market for some really affordable and tasty street food!