PETALING JAYA: The non-halal Nasi Kandar in Petaling Jaya is selling like a hot cake.

The term “non-halal” has landed the stall’s owner in the center of controversy after the local Indian Muslim community and the Malaysian Muslim Restaurant Owners Association (Presma) condemned a video promoting the non-halal version of Nasi Kandar. Nevertheless, the stall has attracted patrons making a bee line for its food.

A recent visit by Sin Chew Daily revealed that patrons were waiting in front of the stall at Good Old Days Restaurant and Bar in Damansara Jaya as early as 9 a.m.

The queue was long as of 11 a.m., and the food was sold out by 1.30 p.m.

A patron drove 40 minutes from Cheras just to savor the non-halal version of Nasi Kandar.

“I would like to try the food and support the owner,” she said.

Another patron said he used to frequent the stall at Taman Megah prior to this, but did not know that the stall had been relocated to Damansara Jaya until he read about the controversy on newspapers.

He learned about the stall’s new location from the newspaper report.

Stall owner G. Suresh said business picked up after the video went viral on social media.

“I have prepared more, but the food still sells out fast as many have come to try the non-halal version of Nasi Kandar,” he said.

The word “non-halal” is clearly displayed at the stall Besides its location inside a non-halal Chinese restaurant.

Presma said it had no issue with a non-halal version of Nasi Kandar as long as it is not sold in mamak restaurants or halal eateries.

Presma president Datuk Jawahar Ali Taib Khan said he had no choice but to accept the term “Nasi Kandar Babi” after the stall owner explained that the dish is sold in a non-halal eatery for non-Muslims only.

“One must understand that Nasi Kandar was originally introduced by mamaks.

“It is a halal food where a plate of rice is sold by mixing various curries.

“Customers believe all Nasi Kandar sold at various outlets are halal Muslim food,” he said.

The word mamak generally means Indian Muslim and Nasi Kandar is a dish long associated with the community, especially in Penang where it has become popular.