The gastronomic delight 'nasi kandar' introduced in the country by migrant Indian Muslims, known as mamak, has been synonymous with Penang.

Over time, the dish's popularity spread far and wide and it is safe to say that there is no town in Malaysia that do not have restaurants offering nasi kandar.

Nasi kandar has also been making its appearance in culinary and food promotions held in posh hotels including that which have the five-star tag.

In this city, there is one mamak shop that has earned its own reputation as a popular nasi kandar joint since decades ago.

Ironically, the nasi kandar served at this eatery has a rather unpleasant tag as it is popularly dubbed 'nasi ganja' which means addictive or intoxicating rice.

But the term is actually coined to show the dish's extreme delight has pulled the crowd of gluttons in, including the locals and those from outside Ipoh.

Despite the cooks at this nasi kandar outlet have come and gone, the nasi kandar business there which began in the early 1960s has flourished due to it being able to retain the 'exotic taste' right through the years.

Actually, the nasi kandar joint shares the same premises that belongs to a Chinese coffee shop or kopitiam, 'Restoran Yong Suan'. But the kopitiam's name simply faded and is now longer on the lips of diners.

That particular restaurant is located at Jalan Yang Kalsom and for the long-time residents of Ipoh, the area where the shop is located is popularly known as the Tanjung Rambutan bus terminal due to its location near the now closed down bus terminal.

Among the dishes popular with the nasi kandar afficionados is the restaurant's selection of chicken dishes being the 'ayam wangge, ayam merah, ayam hitam and daging hitam'.

Nobody knowns how 'nasi ganja' came about. But the general agreement is that the nasi kandar served there is tantalising to the taste buds and made diners to drool and crave for more of this particular gastronomic delight.

Nasi ganja's original proprietor was Kamal Naseer Abdul Rahman who had long died. Now the business is carried on by his descendants.

A descendant of Kamal, 44-year-old Nihmatullah Syed Mustafa who now runs the restaurant said the main draw in the menu is the 'ayam merah' that uses coconut sambal which could not found in other eateries.

"This nasi kandar uses our own family recipe. We use the spices that are grinded and this is available only in Penang. We usually sells about 1,000 plates of nasi kandar a day", he said.

On the nasi ganja tag, Nihmatullah said he has no idea how the name cropped out and sometimes there are patrons who cheekily asked him whether the 'illegal and banned herb' is used in the shop's nasi kandar's recipe.

According to Nihmatullah, since the nasi kandar outlet began business 49 years ago, the 'nasi ganja' received overwhelming response from locals as well as tourists from Singapore, Thailand and Australia.

Nimatullah advised first timers to the shop to be patient as in order to enjoy the nasi kandar lunch, they have to be in a queue that sometimes are quite long.

He said many of the patrons told him they were drawn by the shop's 'ayam merah' dish that could not be equalled by other nasi kandar eateries.

As for ayam wangee, the chicken dish resulted from the shouts of the shops waiters who called out 'Wangge, Wangge, Wangge' in Tamil which means Come! Come! Come! to passers-by.

Meanwhile kopitiam owner Yang Yong Suan, 58, said the good response for the nasi kandar has also brought good returns to his business of beverages and toasted bread. Yang inherited the kopitiam from his late father.

According to Yang, people from all walks of life and various ethnic origin patronised the restaurant to sample the exquisite and unique taste of the nasi kandar sold there.

"Many of those who dine at the restaurant have been coming for the past 20 years... before their parents brought them along and now it is their turn to bring along their families.

"There are those from the north and south who stopped over in Ipoh for the food," he said.

- Bernama