NASI kandar, a popular rice-based meal, will see a price increase following the government’s decision to remove subsidies for certain items, introduction of new ceiling price for chicken and also rise in price of raw materials and ingredients.

Restaurant operators told The Malaysian Insight they are left with no choice but to increase the price of nasi kandar to keep their businesses running.

Malaysian Indian Muslim Restaurant Owners Association (Presma) vice-president Abdul Mukthahir M. Ibrahim said restaurant operators would probably increase their meal prices between RM0.50 and RM1 to sustain their business.

Although reluctant, he said, they have no other choice but to increase the food prices as besides the new ceiling price for chicken and egg, the cost of raw materials and other ingredients have spiralled.

“Definitely we have to increase our prices. All the prices of goods, materials and ingredients have increased. It leaves us with no choice.”

“The increase will also depend on where the restaurant is located. If the restaurant is in Bangar, Kuala Lumpur where the rent is high, the price increases maybe around RM1 but if the restaurant is in Tanjung Malim, Perak, it may be RM0.50,” he told The Malaysian Insight.

Abdul Mukthahir, who own Restoran Salam Sentosa, said currently the price for a plate of nasi kandar consisting of rice, a piece of chicken and one vegetable is RM7.50, which includes the Sales and Service Tax (SST).

He said the same meal would be increased to either RM8 to RM8.50 starting next month.

He said customers should also understand that besides chicken, egg and oil, prices of vegetables and Indian spices have also increased.

“We use a lot of spices for nasi kandar and the prices of these have doubled or tripled.”

“For example, before this a kg of cardamom was priced at RM71 but now it has increased to RM150.”

“One big bundle of curry leaves which we could get for around RM3 is now around RM10 and one box of 10kg cili padi which was priced at RM38 is now RM100.

“I know the prices because I buy them. So, with these increases, how can we maintain the same price?” he asked.

He said apart from the rise in the price of goods, employers now need to pay their staff a minimum salary of RM1,500.

“We don’t want to reduce the quantity or quality of our food and at the same time we have to pay rental and staff salaries.

“So, to balance all this, we have to increase the food prices and people should not blame us for it. It is not our fault. We are not raising it because we want to but we have no other choice,” he said, adding that he had closed two of his restaurants as he was unable to bear the high expenses.”

Abdul Mukthahir, who currently operates three restaurants, urged the government to continue to look into the welfare of the people and suggested that they should monitor the prices of goods and continue its subsidies.

Increase inevitable

Price increases can be expected across the board due to the rise in the prices of raw materials and ingredients, and there was no exception to Penang’s oldest Nasi Kandar restaurant, Hameediyah.

Restaurant director Muhammad Riyaaz Syed Ibrahim told The Malaysian Insight that the price of a plate of nasi kandar at their restaurant could rise between RM1.50 and RM2 after the removal of subsidies for oil and setting of new ceiling price for several items, including chicken.

He said the hike is unavoidable, claiming that chicken and oil are the core items used in a Nasi Kandar restaurant.

“A meal consisting of white rice, spiced quarter chicken (Ayam goreng berempah) and fried cabbage currently costs RM12.20 but this can go up to RM13.50 or RM14,” he said.

Riyaaz, however, said that the change in price will not be immediate but customers can expect it soon.

“We understand that the people are also struggling with a lot of issues.”

“We can’t just increase as we want. So, we will do it slowly, maybe in a couple of months or so but we have to because the prices of ingredients are very high.”

“We will discuss this with the other directors before reaching a decision,” he said.

Nasi Kandar Penang Town owner Shaik Fazrin said that he will need to revise the price of the famous rice-based meal soon.

Having just raised the prices for some of the food items on his menu, he said the price for Nasi Kandar now needs to be revised following the rise in the price of chicken and other raw materials.

Besides raw materials and ingredients, Fazrin said that there are also other factors that make restaurant operators increase food prices.

“People have to understand that pre-Covid-19 restaurants operated around the clock but now most restaurants close at 12am.

“We are closing early because there are no customers but regardless of the time we close, the rental, the salaries off the employees are the same.

“So considering all this, coupled with inflation, we have no choice but to increase the price of nasi kandar and other foods to balance the books,” he said.

Starting today (July 1), the subsidy for bottled cooking oil in bottles of 1kg, 2kg, 3kg and 5kg has ended.

Besides this, the government has set a new standard retail ceiling price of chicken capped at RM9.40 per kg, also taking effect today.  

This will be an increase of RM0.50 from the current price of RM8.90 per kg.

Meanwhile, the new ceiling price for chicken eggs in the peninsula will be priced at RM0.45 each (Grade A), RM0.43 each (Grade B) and RM0.41 each (Grade C). – July 1, 2022.