Kedai Makan
1802 Bellevue Ave
Seattle, WA

Phone: N/A
Hours: Weds-Sun 5pm to 11pm

Tyger Tyger, burning bright,
In the forests of the night;
What immortal hand or eye,
Where’s a place in Seattle to dine?

The answer: Capital Hill at Kedai Makan. On an evening exploration of all points east of the Washington State Convention Center, the search for something new to try was worth it! Between all the conventions I come to this city for and my carnivorous desires for this particular food scene, there’s no denying it’s easy to find something new each trip.

This operation have spicy frog legs and catfish! Though considered a mostly Southern American dish, I was torn in what to order. The Malay style roasted peanuts was practically a meal in itself and had enough heat to get my feet smoking. It’s mixed with anchovy oil, lime and roasted chili. It was a snack to share, than anything else, and I saved it for my cooler noodle dish. It needed to be hotter than hell. It looked so good, and by the time I left the building, I was feeling very well done.

Yes, Gene Simmons was on my mind and while he was singing about his latest conquest, with the song Hotter than Hell, my praise is for a meal fit for Hephaestus. The broth is separate; it’s poured over the meal so parts of it can cook. The stygian nectar was just wildly appropriate. I tasted a ginger flavour and when I added the peanuts on top, my glasses fogged up faster than I can say, hallelujah–or should I say hell yeah?

The highlight of my three course meal (well, technically two since I did not finish the sizeable bowl of nuts) was with the pig’s tail. These porky pigs must have big butts because they were impressively big, and while I was mostly chewing on fat, it was so satisfying in so many levels. The chili sauce drizzled over this roasted pork only added to the flavour. If you can imagine cotton candy and chili combined into a super soft taffy, that’s the closest analogy I can make. Forget pork rinds, I want more tail! They can shake it up, twist it up, smoke it up and I’ll be there. While I risk condemning myself to the third circle of hell and waving hi to Dante along the way, at least I’m going out in style.

From having eaten gator and other parts of the pig not commonly considered edible, I can say all I’m missing is taking a bite out of the snake himself! Some countries cuisine fear no animal to cook up. I will not cross the line with protected species, but I’ll say bugs and certain critters from the jungle are fair game.

5 Blokes out of 5