Yassin Curry House

Trust me when I say that Yassin Curry House is practically an institution in Tawau (they are at the front row of business centred Sabindo Square by the way, right next to the main Lover's Bakery). But I’m the first to admit that I usually avoid going to this place. The reason? Well, let’s just say that I did not agree with their ‘seating concept’ (I’ll explain below). But since my dad is a fan of their food, I relented and went there one evening, together with my mom in tow. The foods are obviously Indian in origin so you’ll get the typical Indian menu here. My dad recommended their Roti Arab, Ayam Masala and Sardin Tumis for our somewhat tea time meals. To be fair, I think the Roti Arab and Sardin Tumis were pretty good, what with the roti being very tasty and not oily at all (which was nice for a change) while their simple looking sardine dish was surprisingly sweet and savoury at the same time. But the Ayam Masala was salty as hell. And this is coming from the queen of all things salty!

So let us get back to why I actually avoided this place in the first place. Like you’ve probably guessed, this is not the first time I went to the eatery and it seems that they had expanded their originally single shop restaurant to three now. And their 3 shops (all adjourning to other another) had this concept where the price of your food was determined by where exactly you’re sitting. Yes, your seats definitely matters to them since they have the ‘low budgeted’ seating (which looked like any typical ‘kedai kopi mamak’), the ‘above average’ seating (same concept as the latter but with AC) and last but not least the so-called ‘high class/VIP’ seating (with fancier décor, private bathroom & drink station). You might think that I’m just being fussy about such things and it’s a matter of your personal preferences (to which I agree). But what peeved me the most about this was not about the place, but the fact that the food quality remains the same anywhere you choose to sit. Yes, if you’re sitting and ordering from the VIP section, you’ll get the exact same food as those from the lower sections. And I’m sorry, but that does not sit well with me.

** Current status – Still in operation (as of June 2016) 

Updated on 20/07/2016 - We went back a few more times (at the insistence of my dad of course) and tried out their Nasi Briyani Ayam, Roti Canai & Roti Cobra (which my parents said were just so-so but the curry gravy was nice) as well as Sizzling Ginger Chicken Rice & Fried Mee Hoon which faired better in terms of tastes