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Since trying out dahmakan food delivery numerous times in the past (some of which were documented in what I shall call the first wave of orders), I was pretty happy with the cooking, quality and taste of the food they put out.

At that time, the meals cost between RM18 - RM25, some even more.   Let's face it, it isn't all that affordable on a regular basis.  The more affordably-priced ones at RM17.95 (to be exact), unfortunately, don't quite set my heart aflutter, if you know what I mean, so I conveniently forgot about them.

But logging into their website recently, I noticed that they were running a promotion...and for RM29/month, I could be a dahmakan Select member and get RM29 cashback for the first month.  I thought why not since I've got nothing to lose, you get back the subscription paid and you can discontinue the membership at any time.

And that wasn't all, you also get to order the meals at preferential prices...woohoo!  You only pay a special price of RM9.90 for promo meals that cost RM14.90 and RM19.90 for regular meals priced between RM23.90 - RM35.  I thought it was a real awesome deal, so I signed up.

So, I had my second wave of orders from dahmakan and noticed some changes for the better.  Please brace yourself for a long post (this is only the first half!) and the reason why there are no cooking posts from me of late....haha! ^_*

Ordering System

The ordering system is still super easy to navigate.  There's even a dahmakan support live chat now if you have any questions you want answered and you get a reply fairly quick (usually within 15 minutes).

Delivery Time Zones

There used to be 3 delivery time zones for lunch and 5 for dinner but now the delivery times are every hour (some within 20 minutes intervals).  You can even order a meal as late as half an hour and choose a delivery time zone within the next hour...and that's super-duper convenient if you ask me.

Actual Delivery

Once your meal is intransit, you can check your Order History on an estimated time of arrival and if the time changes, you'll be able to see the updated times.  If there's a delay in your time slot, you'll get an update via sms to your phone.  And when your food arrives, you'll get another sms to meet your rider at the gate and a final sms when your food is delivered.  So, you're kept informed all the way until your food arrives which is great. 

Packaging

The packaging is still as canggih (stylish) and colourful as before, if not better.  Hmmm, I wonder just how many different colours they have for their packaging! :P

The one change I did notice is that the food is now packed in aluminium foil containers inside the same environment-friendly paper boxes.  I think this is much better as previously the food would wet the paper box and eating out of it was less desirable since the paper is not of waxed quality.  It's also easier to reheat the food in the foil containers directly in the oven (or even steam it over the stove top).  You can also easily eat out directly from the foil containers.

I'm glad to see that plastic containers are kept to a minimum (with the exception of small ones for sauces) though single-use plastic cutlery is still given with each meal (it's packaged together with the box along with a paper napkin).  Wish we could say no to the plastic cutlery though.

Online Support

There's even an online support now where you can chat with their staff on any queries or issues that you may have.  Time frame for replies are displayed before you send in a query (usually under 15 minutes).

So, here are some of my recent meal orders from dahmakan to give you a sneak peek of what the meal actually looks like.  I do know that some people (me included) like to see the real dish (before making a decision) since most won't look anything like those showcased in the menu pictures.  *Please note that prices shown indicate prices for the general public (or non-members) and prices in brackets are for Select Club Members (like me!).

#1 - Spaghetti Chicken Bolognese @ RM14.90 (my price RM9.90, savings RM5)

spaghetti, minced chicken in bolognese sauce, parmesan cheese, cherry tomatoes, parsley

Let's start with one of the cheapest meals in the menu.  You can, of course, eat directly out of the packaging but I believe in eating with my eyes too, don't you?  Plus, I need to make the presentation more appealing to my readers...and my blog. ^_*

I was quite blown away that the pasta was cooked just right which I wasn't expecting honestly.  I really liked this bolognese sauce (better than some of the cafes even) as this one was much lighter with less tomato intensity, so it wasn't as acidic (+ I can't taste the cheese...how lovely...wuahahahaha!).

I could see that the cherry tomatoes, which offered a burst of juiciness to the pasta, had signs of blistering. That's a good sign that they were cooked/baked first, not thrown in fresh, rendering them less sour in taste. No complaints on this dish and at RM9.90, you bet I'll be ordering this again.

#2 - Portugese Steamed Fish @ RM24.90 (my price RM19.90, savings RM5)

fish (perch fillet?), okra, brown rice, housemade chili dip

I'm not sure what fish they gave (I'm guessing perch) but it was nice, fresh (no fishy odour at all) and firm but flaky.  The fish portion was quite generous, the entire fillet from one side of the fish + a little bit more.

The marinade on the fish was slightly spicy.  What I thought was extra sauce (the same one as on the fish) turned out to be a different sauce...this one was tangy and delicious, not as spicy as what was on the fish.

The okra could be a bit more tender and a tad less woody.  I have no problems whatsoever ordering this again.

#3 - Braised Beef Brisket @ RM31 (my price RM19.90, savings RM11.10)


beef brisket, potato mash, tomato salsa, corn-on-the-cob, BBQ sauce

Sorry for the not-so-ideal presentation as the contents spilled out into a bit of a mess when it arrived coz the aluminium foil container came without a cover (unlike the chicken bolognese).  There were like more than 10 slices of beef brisket (though not as thick as the ones shown in the website's menu) and they were undeniably tender and went well with the BBQ sauce.

The generous portion of potato mash was both smooth and chunky (there were bite-sized pieces of potato in it).  The sides of a juicy tomato salsa (plenty of tomatoes but could do with more onions and fresh herbs) and corn-on-the-cob (I cut out the corn kernels and mixed it with the cherry tomatoes) were good accompaniments to the dish.

Overall, it was a very filling portion that I struggled to finish, one that even a blogger I know (who is blessed with a good appetite) would approve. ^_~  Again, it's a dish I can see myself making a repeat order.

#4 - Misoyaki Roasted Chicken @ RM24.90 (my price RM19.90, savings RM5)


roast chicken thigh, soy ginger rice, pickled radish & carrot, teriyaki mayo

The whole roast chicken thigh, sufficiently good-sized and adequately tender, was laced with teriyaki sauce and looked well-grilled but only had a faint charred flavour.

Couldn't taste the ginger nor the soy in the soy ginger rice but tasted more like the drippings of teriyaki sauce on the rice....and this was also the first time the rice was slightly mushy.

It was served with a crunchy radish and carrot pickle which was much needed to provide relief to the heaviness of the dish.  This was one of those meals with good portions too (I couldn't finish the rice).

The teriyaki mayo tasted exactly like what it was supposed to be...teriyaki + mayo.  This was one time where the little container of sauce was sufficient due to its thicker consistency and richness as we know mayo can be.

#5 - Tandoori Salmon @ RM35 (my price RM19.90, savings RM15.10)


tandoori salmon, pulao rice, cauliflower, mint mayo

This dish is among the most expensive by dahmakan (in fact, all dishes with salmon are priced at RM35).  If not for the discount I got as a Select member, I wouldn't even have thought of ordering this for my weekday meals.

The tandoori salmon (a fair-sized piece with fragrant curry leaves) had a coating of spice paste that was just nicely spiced.  It went well with the rather refreshing mint mayo which was a surprise to me since I'm not a fan of mint (+ this mint mayo was thinner in consistency compared to the teriyaki mayo).  Could use more of the sauce actually which could also act to cool down the spice paste for those who find it too spicy.

The pulao rice (much like rice pilaf) was made using long grain rice (basmathi) with sunflower seeds and a bit of herbs (very little) but none of the raisins or green chillies (I saw in the menu pic).  A bit of the spice paste from the fish managed to stain the rice to give it added flavour.  The only blip in what would otherwise be a very well executed dish was the under-cooked cauliflower (which I was more than happy to have instead of the dreaded carrot and broccoli), so I'm not complaining.

I appreciated the inclusion of a wedge of lemon (which seems trivial) but that little bit of lemon juice squeezed over top of the fish and into the sauce brought an even fresher hint to the dish overall.

This turned out to be my favourite meal of the week from dahmakan, so obviously there was bound to be repeat orders....hihihi! ^_~

Food Taste

Of course, it wouldn't be fair to compare the dishes to a restaurant-quality dish or a restaurant dine-in experience but for a food delivery entity, I'm more than satisfied with the results (sometimes even a little impressed).

I have to admit that the food for this second wave tasted even better than the first.  It wasn't as salty and oily (than what I had in the first round)...and that should be the way since they promote healthy eating.  We can always tweak it to suit our own tastebuds and add more if we feel that it's under-seasoned (I was happy to do just that for the chicken bolognese...an extra twist of sea salt and a crack of black pepper).  Besides being less salty, the flavours were also much better this round.

Food Condition

If you receive your food in the first half of your requested delivery time zone, the food arrives still slightly warm, so I eat it as it is without the need to reheat.  If you happen to receive towards the latter part of your delivery time zone, then you might want to warm it up which can be easily done in its convenient tin foil packaging.

There were times when the food box arrived a little messed up due to spillage of sauce (either through fault of the packaging or the delivery rider) but that doesn't happen very often.

Portions

Portions tend to lean towards medium-sized eaters, so they're ideal for ladies or anyone who wants to exercise portion control (portions may be a tad small for men with normal appetites).  Since dahmakan is supposed to promote healthy eating, I'm all for the smaller portions as it's an enforced way to not overeat which is good.  There were some choices that came with generous portions too.

Choices

You can choose from high protein to low carb meals.  Choices for regular dahmakan meals ranges from 12 - 20 options daily (sometimes even more than 25) with a selection of promo and premium meals included, so there are enough choices for everyone.  But just know that you may be confronted with lesser choices towards the latter part of the day (when some of the dishes sell out).

Also available are different side dishes (like seasonal rojak buah, chicken caesar salad, seasonal fruit salad), drinks (by True Juice or The Cool Juice) and desserts (chocolate brookies, coconut jelly, vanilla sliced cake, custard crumble, mango jelly, tiramisu, red velvet cake, apple crumble) that are subject to change daily or weekly.

Pricing

The preferential pricing (for Select members) is very reasonable, especially the prices for meals at RM9.90 which seem super affordable (as a packet of chap fan nowadays can cost anything between RM7 - RM9 already).

The RM9.90 meals can be ordered on a more regular basis while those at RM19.90 perhaps less frequently if you need to keep to a certain monthly meal budget (we all do).  But knowing that you can buy meals costing RM35 for under RM20 sounds like a steal! :P

Convenience

So why not pay as little as RM9.90 for a meal to be delivered to you...no hassle of driving (or walking) out for food, no getting stuck in traffic jams, no parking nightmares, no waiting for seats at crowded eateries and not having to brace the heat or the rain sounds mighty fine to me.

Savings

Savings can be from as little as RM5 to as high as RM15.10 per meal...and that's pretty awesome for a good quality meal that's delivered right to your doorstep!  Even without the cashback promotion, you can easily recoup the RM29 membership paid through the discounts offered in your first 2 - 3 meals already.

My Personal Opinion

   

From a simple ordering system to usually (but not always) on-time deliveries, stylish and practical packaging to healthy choices, quality ingredients to good-tasting food, generous portions to awesome prices (as a Select member), you can't ask for any more really.  

From my previous experience with dahmakan's food delivery and taste to the current one, I'm glad to have seen some marked improvements.  I will delve into the areas I'd like to see further improvements in greater detail in another upcoming blog post (that's why this can't be a paid post...kekeke)! ;P

But, for now, I do have a unique invite code that I can send to friends to let them try dahmakan's food for the first time.  When they (first time users only) sign up using the link/code I provide, it'll entitle them to a RM40 credit to try out dahmakan's food (to be used according to the terms of dahmakan).  I can also extend this link to my regular readers (who genuinely want to try out dahmakan's food delivery...and oh, I do get something small out of it though this is not about me getting something out of it but about spreading the love of good and healthy food), so let me know if you truly need this code by sending me an email request.  If you like it enough, you can then sign up for your own Select membership (on a month-to-month basis which can be cancelled at anytime) to receive the fantastic discounts.

Note: Dahmakan has since been rebranded to Pop Meals (in late 2020)