Restoran Pekin (Johor Bahru) – Famous Chinese Restaurant Serving Excellent and Affordable Delicacies

After we were done with shopping at Mid Valley Southkey mall, the wife and I decided to go to the famous Restoran Pekin at Taman Sentosa for dinner.

Restoran Pekin (北京海鲜酒楼)

Restoran Pekin (北京海鲜酒楼) is a well-known Chinese restaurant chain in Johor Bahru that serves premium Chinese cuisine at very reasonable prices.

It was founded in Taman Sentosa and has since expanded to five branches across Johor Bahru: Taman Sentosa, Taman Desa, Taman Sutera and Taman Johor Jaya.

The restaurant is also an extremely popular venue for Chinese wedding banquets, birthday celebrations, etc.

The wife and I went to the original Taman Sentosa branch.

Old-School Chinese Restaurant With Good Service

When we went on a Saturday at around 5pm, I was dismayed to see that the restaurant was fully packed.

Fortunately, we were led to an adjacent section which, to my pleasant surprise, was completely empty.

The restaurant has a traditional Chinese decor and is lined with rows of tables covered in white table cloths and lazy Susans. Cheesy instrumental music played in the background.

Visiting Restoran Pekin invoked a sense of nostalgia because it reminded me of the numerous Chinese restaurants (酒楼) in Singapore back in the 1990s, most of which have closed down.

The staff were all quite friendly and attentive, and our food came very quickly after ordering.

Menu (Click to enlarge)

The extensive menu offers a wide variety of Chinese delicacies like abalone, seafood, oysters, soups, poultry, vegetables, rice and noodles.

Some of the popular items include the Roasted Duck (RM25/ RM48), Pekin’s Traditional Braised Pig’s Trotters (RM39), Chilli Crabs (seasonal price), Roasted Suckling Pig (RM120), Herbal Chicken (RM20), and Specially Noodles (RM8/RM12/RM18).

Herbal Chicken

I really liked the Herbal Chicken (RM20), which was very well marinated with a rich and fragrant herbal scent. The savoury gravy was great for eating with rice.

I felt that the chicken meat could have been more tender, but on the whole this was a very satisfying and affordable dish.

Roasted Suckling Pig

The Roasted Suckling Pig (RM120) was my favourite dish at Restoran Pekin! The pork meat was very evenly roasted with a tender and juicy texture.

But my favourite was the smooth yet crisp skin, which was crunchy with a rich savoury taste. It was layered with a savoury-sweet sauce which added a tang and an extra dimension to the crispy skin.

Note that this dish has a seasonal price and is supposed to be ordered in advance, but somehow we managed to get it on the day itself.

Butter Fried and Cereal Fried Prawns

For our prawns, we ordered two flavours: “Butter Fried” and “Cereal Fried”. The prawns were very fresh and juicy.

I enjoyed the Butter Fried prawns more mainly because they were already peeled, but also because the prawns had a pleasant buttery, creamy and savoury taste.

The Cereal Fried prawns were delicious too. The highlight of this dish was the cereal crust, which was crispy enough to provide crunch but soft enough to melt away in my mouth.

This seafood dish has a seasonal price and we were charged RM98.

Specially Noodles

The Specially Noodles (RM18) is fried noodles with bean sprouts, eggs, and prawns. I’m not really sure why it’s called “Specially” noodles.

The noodles were moist and tasty without being overly greasy. I highly recommend ordering this as your carbs dish.

Mixed Mushroom Beancurd

The Mixed Mushroom Beancurd (RM15) is steamed beancurd topped with gravy, ground pork, and mushrooms.

The beancurd was very soft and tasted great with the savoury gravy, tender mushrooms and chewy ground pork. We ordered the small portion, but there are also medium (RM20) and large (RM25) portions.

Four Season Bean

The Four Season Bean (RM25) dish consists of a combination of eggplants and various types of green beans.

I would’t say it was a letdown, but I felt that it was run-of-the-mill and not really worth the calories. It was slightly too oily and the vegetables didn’t taste great.

There are also small (RM15) and large (RM25) portions available.

Conclusion

After dining at Restoran Pekin, I can definitely understand why it is so popular in Johor Bahru. The food is delicious and affordable, and service is good too. For Singaporeans, this is an excellent stopover for awesome Chinese food during your JB day trip. I dined with my family and the bill came up to just RM320 for the six of us, which was extremely reasonable considering the dishes we ordered.

I’ve heard that some JB folks feel that this original Taman Sentosa branch serves better tasting food than other branches, but I can’t verify this since I’ve not eaten at the other outlets before.

The restaurant gets extremely busy during peak hours, so you might want to go early to avoid the crowds.

Restoran Pekin
What to Order: Herbal Chicken (RM20), Roasted Suckling Pig (Seasonal price), Roasted Duck (RM25/ RM48), Pig’s Trotters (RM39), Specially Noodles (RM8/RM12/RM18).
Directions: The restaurant is a short six-minute drive from Johor Bahru Checkpoint.
Address: No 38 Jalan Baldu Lima, Taman Sentosa, 80150 Johor Bahru, Malaysia
Opening Hours: Daily 11am to 11pm
Phone: +60 7 333 2928
Other Branches: Click here