PETALING JAYA, Apr 25 — Whether you believe it or think it’s a cliché, the idea that “grandma’s cooking is best” is a widely held truth for many.
It’s a powerful notion, tied to strong sentimental attachments to certain scents, flavours, even entire meals.
That emotional pull doesn’t go unnoticed. It’s often targeted by brands, and sometimes restaurants, usually to great effect.
Or at least, that’s what a cynic might think when walking into Granny’s Mansion. Though the restaurant only opened in SS2 in mid-2022, it already has branches in Kuchai Lama and Kepong, and it gets so busy at lunchtime that they’ve had to impose a time limit on dining in.
And sure, the fact that it’s air-conditioned and features a gorgeous mural alluding to a heritage of making porridge and noodles since the 1960s doesn’t hurt.
Granny’s Mansion’s branding is meant to evoke the warmth of nostalgia and… grandparents. — Picture by Ethan Lau
Neither does the cutesy logo of two old grandparents, so clearly, so deliberately designed to evoke a manufactured sense of nostalgia that it’s almost transparent in its artificiality.
But none of that really matters, because people keep coming back for the noodles and porridge.
Forget the mural, the grandparent kitsch, the branded nostalgia trip. What actually keeps me coming back is the noodles, particularly in their signature spicy and sour soup.
It’s a tangy, spicy, bright orange broth that punches well above its weight, thanks to ham choy (pickled mustard greens), tomatoes, and a few sizable chillies.
This is not soothing, calming stuff. It is sinus-clearing, eyebrow-raising, stern business.
The soup gets its trademark tang from lots and lots of pickled mustard greens and tomatoes. — Picture by Ethan Lau
A real kick up the behind, if you will.
My only gripe is that it’s served way too hot. Five minutes later, and it’s still at face-melting level.
Each spoonful threatens to scald the roof of my mouth, but satisfies my tongue. It’s pain and pleasure that I enjoy more than I probably should.
There’s a choice of proteins: pork, chicken, or fish. While deep-fried grouper might seem the obvious choice, I prefer the signature mixed pork noodle (RM14.90).
With razor-thin slices of heart, tongue, and crispy bits of deep-fried intestine, Granny’s expertise with zhu zhap (pork offal) is on full display, and it translates surprisingly well to this medium.
There are also sizable chillies thrown in for good measure (left). Crispy intestines and thin slices of heart and tongue in porridge (right). — Picture by Ethan Lau
The intestines, in particular, deserve singled-out praise for being shatteringly crisp, well-salted, and without any hint of off odours.
Add-ons like sliced pork belly (RM9.90) are available, but fair warning, what’s in the bowl is already more than generous.
Feeling like something mild and mellowed out? Granny’s got you. After all, porridge is their calling card.
Once again, there’s a choice between the same three proteins, and once again, I can only recommend the signature mixed pork porridge (RM9.90).
If hot and sour isn’t your thing, the smooth, silky porridge will soothe you right down. — Picture by Ethan Lau
When a place handles offal this well, why waste time with anything else? The firm, meaty slices of heart and tongue provide much-needed substance among the smooth and silky porridge.
The other options include deep-fried pork meat paste, a patty, or both together, but I found their halfway springy, halfway rubbery texture rather unnerving.
Granny’s Mansion might lean hard on nostalgia, but it’s hard to stay cynical when the food’s this solid.
The kickass broth, the homemade pickled mustard greens, the experienced handling of offal — these aren’t things you can fake with branding. There’s no granny in sight, but they’ve got this down to a science.
Granny’s Mansion @SS2 粥公面婆
88, Jalan SS2/60,
SS 2, Petaling Jaya,
Selangor.
Open daily, 10am-10pm.
Tel: 011-1680 2818
Facebook: Granny’s Mansion
Instagram: @grannys_mansion
* This is an independent review where the writer paid for the meal.
* Follow us on Instagram @eatdrinkmm for more food gems.
* Follow Ethan Lau on Instagram @eatenlau for more musings on food and mildly self-deprecating attempts at humour.
