Why ‘popiah satay’ made Sate Kajang Hj Samuri an overnight sensation (VIDEO)

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 19 — Meet the latest food fad in Klang Valley: the popiah satay.

Imagine a satay — skewers of marinated meat pieces grilled over charcoal — only this time wrapped in spring roll skin.

However, in recent weeks the issue has caused debates as Malaysia-based actor-singer Mark Adam promoted his version at a local food festival, with a new name of Satay Bhalut — priced as steep as RM21.90 in a set that comes with three pieces with mutton fillings, and a drink

The Philippine-born celebrity defended his price, but was his stall was later visited by the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Costs of Living over allegations of price gouging.

However at the sidelines, demands for the popiah skyrocketed at satay chain Sate Kajang Hj Samuri — which claimed to have sold the snack since 2019.

Sate Kajang Hj Samuri was perhaps the biggest satay franchise to ever branch out from its initial origins in Kajang.

However, the brand has in the past few years lost its lustre as customers complaint over dwindling and inconsistent quality between their franchise outlets — in addition to them switching to automated griller to meet mass production, rather than keeping to traditional charcoal grills.

With the new interest in popiah satay, Sate Kajang Hj Samuri seems to have found a new following.

The chain sells theirs at a much affordable price between RM7 to RM9 for 10 pieces, so it came as no surprise that sales have skyrocketed at all 18 outlets in Klang Valley.

Talking to Malay Mail, its operation manager Yusnizam Mohd Naguib said that their popiah satay was already one of their best-selling frozen products and the unexpected viral incident had doubled their sales.

“The effects were overwhelming and it was truly unexpected on our side. We are currently pushing our production line to produce more in order to cope with the demands.

“Usually, we would produce [the popiah satay] based on demands and we would keep extras in stock for the upcoming festive season but now we had no choice but to use our festive season’s stock to meet this growing demands,” Yusnizam said.

The 48-year-old also said that even though it has been a few weeks since the incident involving Mark Adam, the demands still have not died down.

He said customers keep visiting their franchisees to not only have a taste, but also bringing back home frozen packs of the snack so they can deep-fry them themselves.

Sate Kajang Hj Samuri is among the few who are offering satay popiah, selling it since 2019. — Picture courtesy of Sate Kajang Hj Samuri

“Our branches would keep us up to date on the stores via our WhatsApp group and the last few weeks, they have been sharing all sorts of photos from customers queuing in long lines to non-stop ordering bills.

“Some also shared photos of takeaway orders piling up on the table and more – the impact is just huge,” he said.

“Even I myself have received calls from people asking me if I could set aside some Popiah Satay for them but I couldn’t make any promises to them as stocks are fast selling,” he added.

He added that there are also customers who were willing to go the extra mile by buying frozen popiah satay at different outlets as some have sold out.

“They would buy three to five packs from this branch then if the branch sold out, they would continue to buy at the next branch.

“Some bought it for themselves while others bought it for their families back in their hometown,” Yusnizam said.

When asked about their pricing, Yusnizam said that they don’t mind selling it at that price, pointing out that affordable prices creates a steady demand from the public.