Born(eo) Again in Alhambra
Neither of us are super familiar with Indonesian or Malaysian cuisine yet for some random reason we got a sudden urge to have Indonesian for lunch today. After a quick Yelp of Indonesian restaurants in the area, we decided that Borneo Kalimantan Cuisine looked like a winner. The meal we had at this restaurant was the the eyes closed, lips puckered, eyebrows scrunched kind of dankness.
Both the interior and exterior are completely unassuming. The restaurant itself is really small and narrow with only about 10 tables inside. The tables are practically butted up against the kitchen. This restaurant is your textbook case of a hole in the wall restaurant with a cozy mom and pop feel.
Based on Yelp research, we decided to try the Mie Kecil Hokkian (thin noodles) and the Curry Laksa Vermicelli. Yelp reviewers also recommended their milk tea with grass jelly so we also tried these to start and they did not disappoint. Their milk tea isn’t overly sweet and very pleasant. The grass jelly is a nice alternative to boba and a nice soft, texture. The food came out really fast after we ordered; it probably took less than 5 minutes for everything to come out.
The Mie Kecil Hokkian was a complete surprise. It was out of this world. If you’re a fan of the Jade Noodles from Sapp Coffee Shop, you would LOVE this dish. There are many similarities between the two dishes in terms of flavors and ingredients. The egg noodles are on the thinner side and have a nice springy, chewy texture. Piled on top of the noodles were BBQ pork, a super flavorful marinated chicken and mushroom mixture, fried onion, green onion, and a marinated egg. Seriously so dank. Accompanying the noodles was a side of clear chicken broth that was also very tasty. A little bit on the sweeter side than other broths we’re used to but a nice complement nonetheless. Immediately after our first bite, we were like, “Yup… This place is a 5 for sure.”
The Curry Laksa Vermicelli was also super tasty but not quite up there with the Mie Kecil Hokkian. The curry-based soup was very rich, sweet and sour. The vermicelli were the super thin kind that weren’t really anything special. The marinated eggs in both the Mie Kecil Hokkian and this dish had a sweet and very strong allspice flavor. While this dish tasted yummy, we will probably reserve this spot in our order for something new next time because we will definitely be ordering the Mie Kecil Hokkian every time we come.
This place is such a gem in the Alhambra area. We wanted Indonesian and we certainly got more than we could have asked for. We can’t wait to come back and explore more of their menu!
Borneo Kalimantan
19 S Garfield Ave #A
Alhambra, CA 91801
