Malaysia road trip - Day 13 (Johor Bahru)

We kicked off our third day in Johor Bahru with brunch at Wang Wang F&B, a bustling kopitiam-style food hub filled with a variety of stalls serving local favourites. We decided to order chicken rice with roasted pork, with me choosing the drumstick while my partner went for the thigh. The chicken rice was fragrant, soft, and fluffy, pairing perfectly with the tender and juicy chicken. The chili sauce definitely packed a punch and was much spicier than we expected. As for the roasted pork, it was decent, perhaps not the most memorable we've had, but it complemented the meal nicely and added a satisfying crunch.

To wash it all down, we ordered an iced kopi O and an iced Chinese tea. The kopi O was rich, robust, and perfectly "kaw," delivering the strong caffeine boost we needed to start the day. Meanwhile, the iced Chinese tea was light, refreshing, and a great balance to the richer flavours of the meal. Overall, it was a simple brunch that set a good tone for the rest of our day exploring Johor Bahru.

Wang Wang F&B

Chicken rice with roasted pork - RM 10

Chicken rice with roasted pork - RM 10

Iced kopi O and iced Chinese tea - RM 3.40

Address:

Wang Wang F&B

25, 27, Jalan Kempas 16,

Taman Megah Ria,

81750 Masai,

Johor Darul Ta'zim

Tel: +6012 - 757 3330

Opening hours: 5.30am to 3pm

Our next stop was Restaurant Musa, where we decided to try their Laksa Johor. The dish was served with raw bean sprouts and cucumber on top, along with sambal on the side. Unfortunately, the laksa itself tasted quite bland with a noticeable fishy aftertaste, which didn’t quite work for us. The sambal, on the other hand, was very spicy and added a strong kick, but it couldn’t really lift the overall flavour of the dish. Overall, it wasn’t really to our liking.

Restaurant Musa

Complimentary iced water

Laksa Johor - RM 10

Address:

Restaurant Musa

64, Jalan Permas 1/25,

Bandar Baru Permas Jaya,

81750 Masai,

Johor Darul Ta'zim

Tel: +6019 - 759 7141

Opening hours: 6am to 5pm. Closed on Sunday

Soffa Patisserie and Bakery is just a 3-minute drive (850m) from The Mall, Mid Valley Southkey. We decided to stop by the dessert shop on our way to the mall. I randomly came across this place while searching for desserts nearby. I asked the staff for their best seller, and they recommended the Genmaicha Yuzu cake. It came with yuzu sake jelly, genmaicha tea notes, and a hazelnut crumble base. The cake was beautifully presented and visually impressive. Taste-wise, it leaned slightly bitter, with a crunchy base and a mildly sour jelly layer, all wrapped in milk chocolate. While it looked amazing, the bitterness wasn’t really for us. Parking was free, with reserved spots available for customers, but it operates on a first-come, first-served basis.

Genmaicha Yuzu

Genmaicha Yuzu

Address:

Soffa Patisserie and Bakery

C-01-25, Pusat Komersial Bayu Tasek,

Persiaran Southkey 1,

Southkey,

80150 Johor Bahru,

Johor Darul Ta'zim

We then headed to The Mall, Mid Valley Southkey and spent the afternoon there from around 1.30pm to 5pm. My partner went for a 1.5-hour foot and half-body massage at Siam Oasis, which ended around 3.30pm, while I relaxed and wandered around the mall.

We had our tea break at Oriental Kopi since my partner had a RM 60 voucher to spend. There was a queue when we arrived, but it was moving quite fast, so we decided to wait for a table. We ordered mango sago with aloe vera and Hainanese cham cincau ice. The cham was good and not too sweet, while the mango drink was slightly sweet with a mild sourness from the mango, which actually made it refreshing. I especially liked the chewy jelly texture. My partner also picked up some white coffee premix and Kopi O to bring back. We paid RM 5 for parking before heading off to our next stop.

(Total bill - RM 48.10)

The Mall, Mid Valley Southkey

Oriental Kopi

Hainanese cham cincau ice - RM 10.80 and mango sago with aloe vera - RM 17.90

White coffee premix - RM 17.90 and Kopi O - RM 16.90

Address:
The Mall, Mid Valley Southkey
1, Persiaran Southkey 1,

Southkey,

80150 Johor Bahru,

Johor Darul Ta'zim

Opening hours: 10am to 10pm

We headed to Teck Sing Restaurant for dinner around 5.50pm, just as it started to drizzle. We ordered paper-baked chicken, Indonesian-style curry prawns, brinjal with minced meat and dried shrimp, rice, and filtered water. The paper-baked chicken was the standout dish. The chicken was tender and flavourful, and the sauce had a mild herbal note with a thick, rich consistency that made it really satisfying. The brinjal dish was also very good, packed with flavour from the dried shrimp. The curry prawns were decent. The prawns were tasty, but the curry was a bit too creamy and didn’t stand out for us. The chili padi on the side was extremely spicy and definitely not for the faint-hearted. Overall, the chicken and brinjal stood out, making it a solid dinner stop in Johor Bahru.

Teck Sing Restaurant and filtered water - RM 0.50 each

Restaurant ambience

Paper baked chicken - RM 37.60

Brinjal with minced meat and dried shrimp - RM 18

Curry prawn in Indonesian style - RM 35 

Chili padi

Rice - RM 1.50 each

Address:
Teck Sing Restaurant
3&5, Jalan Sutera 1,

Taman Sentosa,

80150 Johor Bahru,

Johor Darul Ta'zim

Tel: +607 - 334 7025

Opening hours: 11am to 9pm. Last order 8.30pm. Closed on Thursday

After dinner, we headed to Yamada Beancurd, a small van-style dessert stall set up out of a mobile vehicle rather than a fixed shop. It had a simple, grab-and-go setup with the counter right at the van, giving it a casual roadside feel. There were a few seats available if you wanted to eat there, but no proper tables. Just a basic sit-and-eat setup. The service didn’t feel particularly friendly, but we still went ahead and tried a mix of desserts, including pandan tau fu fa with white sugar, pure soya, and a beancurd set B that came with normal tau fu fa with brown sugar, sweet potato balls, peach gum, and grass jelly.

It was drizzling at the time, so we got everything takeaway and had it back in the hotel later. The pandan tau fu fa had a soft, silky texture but came with a slightly sourish note that was unexpected. The normal tau fu fa was rather plain and lacked that distinct soybean flavour. The pure soya drink was very sweet, almost overpowering the natural taste of soy. Set B was also just so-so overall. While it had a mix of textures like chewy sweet potato balls, soft grass jelly, peach gum, and kidney beans, the flavours didn’t stand out much and felt fairly average.

(Total bill - RM 17)

Yamada Beancurd

Pandan tau fu fa - RM 4

Tau fu fa with brown sugar, sweet potato balls, peach gum and grass jelly (set B) - RM 9

Pure soya - RM 4

Address:
Yamada Beancurd
Jln Sri Pelangi 4,

Taman Pelangi,

80400 Johor Bahru,

Johor Darul Ta'zim

Tel: +6018 - 385 5597

Opening hours: 6am to 10.30pm. Closed on Monday and Tuesday

Before heading back to the hotel, I decided to try the croffles at Sistas Cafe & Bingsu, which was just a 4-minute drive (1.6km) from Yamada Beancurd. I ordered the Nutella banana croffle (RM 23), but they had run out of banana, so it was replaced with strawberry instead. There was a strawberry option on the menu priced at RM 19, but we were charged RM 23 for the substitution, which caused some confusion as it wasn’t clearly explained at first.

The croffle came with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. We were told the strawberries wouldn’t be sour, but they turned out to be slightly tangy instead. Still, the croffles themselves were good. It was crispy and crunchy on the outside, with the Nutella pairing nicely with the sourish strawberries. The vanilla ice cream was creamy and smooth, balancing the flavours well. It turned out to be a nice final treat of the night, with the warm croffles and cold ice cream making a comforting end to the day before we headed back to the hotel.

Sistas Cafe & Bingsu

Nutella banana croffle - RM 23

Address:

Sistas Cafe & Bingsu

85, Jalan Maju,

Taman Maju Jaya,

80400 Johor Bahru,

Johor Darul Ta'zim

Tel: +6019 - 790 1343

Opening hours: 1pm to 9pm - Sunday to Thursday / 1pm to 11pm - Friday to Saturday. Closed on Monday