Grand Bayview Seafood Restaurant @ Johor Bahru in Malaysia

When it comes to seafood in Johor Bahru (JB), the one that comes to most Singaporeans' mind would be Restoran Todak (旗鱼海番村) which is east of JB and with over 5,000 reviewers on Google Map! 

For my birthday in April, Alex decided to bring me to Grand Bayview Seafood Restaurant on the west side of JB; where a large lobster statue beckoned us to go in! While it doesn't have that many reviewers as Todak, 1,400 reviewers and a score of 4.1 on Google Map were decent enough.

First thing that greeted all diners would be these aquamarine displays of live seafood! It's quite a sight and the variety was mind-blowing; latter of which didn't matter much to us since there were just two of us.

One thing for sure, I would love to have crabs! 

There were three dining sections; sheltered, non-air-conditioned area like the above, an air-conditioned space on the side, and an open air one overlooking the Skudai River. As our arrival was at 4.30 pm, there weren't many customers.

Five dishes for two persons; one of whom has a tiny stomach. For one who doesn't like to waste food, I know a weight gain by the end of the day shall be inevitable. 

Here's the full display; fit for four persons! 

Braised Shark's Fins Soup - I am not that huge a fan of shark's fins compared to Alex and this was his only order since I am the birthday boy. Not exactly cheap and it was just so full of starch. We were better off with the 300 baht one at Werng Crab Fried Rice in Bangkok. 

Green Dragon Vegetable - I usually have only good words for green dragon vegetables but this plate was disappointing; oily, overly garlicky and salty! I need vegetables to give me a false illusion I am eating healthy and having this one from Grand Bayview Seafood just made me guilty! 

Crispy Oats Prawns - as far as freshness was concerned, the prawns were amazing! Pity the flavor of oats was too weak and I guess I am better off having the prawns steamed instead.

Deep Fried Buns - At just RM 1.10 ( about Singapore 30 cents) each, these shall be our carbohydrates for the day. Boy were they good; although they featured an oily sheen, the texture was crisp on the outside and soft on the inside!  

Chilli Crab - the 850 grams meat crab that was priced at RM 240 a kilogram. Given we had so much food, this size would be sufficient for us.

Meat was solid, non-mushy and satisfying! 

Now on the all-important gravy. 

Tomato based with a touch of garlicky spiciness that absolutely appealed to me! It wasn't too spicy and the only thing I thought needed improvement was having more eggs beaten into the gravy! 

Nonetheless, the gravy was perfect for the buns, and the de-shelled oat prawns. If not for the fact that I am cutting down on rice, I would have ordered a bowl of white rice to go with the chilli. Wait, I didn't do that because I was simply too full! 

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Would i come back? I will for the crabs and the buns!

Maybe next time, it's one crab, all for myself. 

Address

Lot PTD 21349, Batu 3 1/2, Skudai Hwy, 

Danga Bay, 80200 Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia

Map

As above. 

Pricing

Braised Shark's Fins Soup (S) - RM 80.00

Green Dragon Vegetable (S) - RM 20.00

Crispy Oats Prawns (300g) - RM 37.50

Deep Fried Buns - RM 204.00

Chilli Crab (0.85kg) - RM 1.10 each

(Subject to Service Charge and Tax)