Soup's on

Published on September 14, 2007

Despite being right next to the road, You-Soup is mostly hidden behind a huge real-estate advertising banner. But that does not stop lunch-hour crowds from streaming in to taste delicious Muslim dishes.

You-Soup Maleng is the young owner of this busy eatery. While many locals are already familiar with dishes like mataba and roti, You-Soup says he's taking street-side Islamic cuisine to another level by using ingredients he brought from Saudi Arabia.

"When I went to Saudi Arabia for my religious pilgrimage, I found their food very interesting. They use certain herbs that are unique to their country. I bought some of those back and began cooking until I got my own recipes," explains You-Soup, a local Muslim who runs two You-Soup restaurants in Bangkok.

At You-Soup's, you can find the typical array of Middle Eastern and South Asian dishes, from biryani rice with chicken, beef, mutton or fish (Bt35-Bt85), which can be had with a bowl of ox-tail soup (Bt55), chicken soup (Bt35) or beef soup (Bt45). Pan-fried mataba (meat-stuffed roti) is available in beef, chicken and sweet (Bt30). The curry corner features Islamic-style beef and chicken massaman curries (Bt45-Bt55), beef, chicken and mutton kuruma (Bt45-Bt90) and chicken curry (Bt40).

"While many of my curries are typical, you might want to try our kuruma curries, which are found in Saudi Arabian kitchens," says You-Soup. "It is a highlight of my restaurant because I've adapted the original recipe to fit the local palates by reducing the amount of pungent herbs but retaining the rich texture of the curry."

Kuruma at You-Soup is mild in spice, yet a bit pungent with lookhen seeds imported from Saudi Arabia. You-Soup explains that lookhen is what gives his cooking an aroma that distinguishes his food from other places in Bangkok.

But You-Soup's hearty cooking does not end there. He also features Islamic curry noodle with beef or chicken (Bt30), Islamic salad (Bt30) dressed with the unique savoury peanut-coconut and curry. You can even snack on beef and chicken satay (Bt40-Bt80) as an appetiser before the curry, with either rice or roti.

If you're looking for some exotic, new tastes, all of the aforementioned dishes are very good and worth trying, but the chicken kuruma curry with roti are particularly good.

And You-Soup's roti is so good, that calorie-counters will have to make sacrifices. You-Soup's explanation about how he achieves the dish's rich taste does not give any comfort, either. "I just put in extra loads of butter in the flour mixture," You-Soup says nonchalantly. "The butter makes it rich and my mixture of flour gives roti a special tender texture when fried."

If you tend to indulge yourself once in a while, you will order one of those sinful fried rotis to end your meal. The good news is that the Bt10 plate is enough for two people to share.

You-Soup is always packed during lunch hours. But if you go early, you can not only secure a parking in the small lot behind the premises, you can ensure yourself a complete array of the food available that day. More parking is available kerbside.

You-Soup Pochana

Kaset Nawamin Road, on way to Nuanchan, opposite pole No 98

Daily, 8am to 4pm

(or when the food runs out) Closed every 3rd Monday and Tuesday of the month

(089) 923 8099, (081) 659 6588

Sirin P Wongpanit  

The writer can be contacted at www.ohsirin.blogspot.com.