Tengku Syazwan Tengku Abd Halim (wearing cap) cooking the otak-otak over hot charcoal at the Kelana Jaya Ramadan bazaar.
THE Otak-Otak Cik Lan stall at the Kelana Jaya Ramadan bazaar in SS6, Petaling Jaya, has been operating since 1995.
Its proprietor Mazlan Yusof, 52, said the business was first started by his late mother Patimah Talib.
“After the Covid-19 pandemic restrictions were eased, many older stall operators stopped doing business at Ramadan bazaars.
Due to the fruit’s higher price, Roselinyanti’s fried cempedak now costs RM10 for eight pieces at the Kelana Jaya Ramadan bazaar.
“Sadly, most of them did not pass their cooking knowledge and recipes on to the younger generation.
“We used to have more nasi campur stalls in the past and the food tasted good but these days, the food may look attractive but it is not as tasty,” he said.
Mazlan said organisers of the bazaar should consider adding some festive decorations to make the atmosphere lively.
Despite the rain, there were still customers buying food at the Ramadan bazaar in Section 17, Petaling Jaya.
Fried cempedak seller Roselinyanti Che Ro said last year, one kilogramme of cempedak was sold for between RM6 and RM7, but this year the price had gone up to RM9 per kg.
As such, she now sells eight pieces of fried cempedak for RM10 compared to 10 pieces for the same price last year.
In Section 17, Petaling Jaya, there were only about 20 odd stalls at the Ramadan bazaar when StarMetro visited.
Saiful Omar, 44, said there were fewer stalls there now compared to previous years.
A customer getting meat and seafood dishes from a stall at the Ramadan bazaar in Taman Sri Manja, Petaling Jaya.
Caregiver Zia Hairuzzaman, 27, said her initial budget to spend at the bazaar was RM10 but she bought food for RM15.
“Food is generally more expensive these days but since I have no time to cook, I decided to buy from the bazaar,” she said, adding that the food she bought would be shared with her flatmates.
Mother of three, Ema Othman, 32, came to the bazaar with her husband and three children.
“Our budget is RM30 and it is to buy food for my family, including our children aged between three and 10,” added Ema.
Mohamad Azhan (left) visiting the Ramadan bazaar in Taman Sri Manja, Petaling Jaya.
Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) had prepared 22 locations for Ramadan bazaars this year, with a total of 1,374 lots and three new sites.
Petaling Jaya mayor Mohamad Azhan Md Amir said MBPJ received 917 applications compared to 660 last year.
“There are two new sites in Bandar Sri Damansara and one in Jalan PJS 8/12,” he said.
The theme for the Ramadan bazaars in Petaling Jaya is “Smart and Green Bazaar 2023”.
Various types of cold drinks like coconut water and watermelon juice are available at the Section 17 Ramadan bazaar in Petaling Jaya.
In line with this, MBPJ distributed 2,000 coupons of RM15 each at all bazaars.
The coupons worth RM30,000 in total came from the 20sen fee collected for the sale of plastic bags by MBPJ from bazaar traders.
The mayor said that based on a report by the Statistics Department, some 70% of Petaling Jaya residents were using cashless payments.
He said some 60% of customers at the Taman Sri Manja Ramadan bazaar were using the cashless payment mode.
He disclosed that MBPJ Ramadan bazaar lots this year were given to 34 traders that previously operated without licences in the Petaling Jaya Selatan area.
This initiative is part of MBPJ’s entrepreneur development programme.
Meanwhile, Mohamad Azhan said that for the whole of 2022, MBPJ issued compounds to 149 business operators and their helpers who did not take the compulsory typhoid jab.
Another 124 were issued compounds for not wearing aprons, caps or shoes while preparing food.
“There were 69 offenders who did not have rubbish bins in their restaurants and another 67 were fined for hiring foreign workers without work permits,” said the mayor.
