The roti man was always careful to ride through the neighbourhood slowly, keeping his eyes peeled for eager and oftentimes hungry customers, who would frantically wave him down for their daily order of bread.

“The rotiman is here! Quick, buy some bread before he leaves!” mothers would impatiently call out to their kids when they heard his familiar bell.

The kids in turn would rush to his side, squealing excitedly with fists full of coins, hoping to score a packet of chocolate wafers with the leftover change.

Many enjoyed it for dinner, expertly mopping up chicken curry with thick slabs of fluffy, freshly-baked bread.

Leftover bread was saved for breakfast the next morning, and often slathered with thick lashings of rich, fragrant kaya and creamy butter or dunked straight into piping hot coffee or tea.

So popular was Benggali bread that it even made its appearance in restaurants like Sup Hameed where customers who ordered a bowl of “sup kambing” often enjoyed the delicious broth with a thick slice of this white and light bread.

Yes, Benggali bread was a favourite among Penangites once. However, many of the younger generation are completely unaware of this one-time staple.

One Penangite hopes to change this by re-introducing Benggali bread among bread-lovers, especially the young.

Speaking to FMT, M Kumaresan Mariadas, chief executive officer of Maliia Bakery in Transfer Road, Penang, said many wrongly assume Benggali bread was introduced by the Punjabis.

Kumaresan explained that the name in fact originated from the term ‘Panggali’ which means ‘shareholders’.

He says the bread was actually introduced to Penangites in 1928 by Sheik Mohd Ismail and his friends, a group of Indian Muslims from Madras.

However, locals mispronounced the word ‘Panggali’, referring to it as ‘Roti Benggali’ instead and the name stuck.

The original name of the bakery also underwent an evolution of sorts, changing names through the years, from British Malaya Bakery to Malaya Bakery to Ismalia Bakery.

In 2007, Maliia Bakery bought over the business with the intention of reviving the love for Benggali bread and introducing it to the younger generation.

Maliia Bakery not only sells bread to customers but also caters to restaurants in Penang, Kuala Lumpur and Selangor.

“It’s not easy to produce Benggali bread,” Kumaresan says, adding that one batch takes up to three hours to make due to its rather complicated process.

He notes sadly however that Benggali bread is still mostly popular among his older customers only who likely grew up on this staple.

However, Kumaresan is unwilling to give up on the younger generation just yet, and has introduced variations to the original recipe in hopes to entice this segment of his customers.

As such Maliia Bakery also bakes wholemeal, charcoal and chocolate Benggali bread although truth be told, the bestseller remains the wholesome, original recipe of yesteryears.

In hopes to reintroduce Benggali bread and other varieties of bread to a younger market, Kumaresan is opening a cafe in mid-January, with items on the menu such as roti bakar and steamed bread, served with sup kambing and chicken curry – traditional comfort food that almost everybody, young and old, will love.

“I have plans to open the cafe in Karpal Singh Drive. Yes, new varieties of bread are popping up everywhere these days but I don’t want Malaysians to forget the original bread we ate as children.”

If you find yourself in Penang, make a stop at Maliia Bakery for a slice of history – it will be worth every morsel you eat.

Maliia Bakery
114, Jalan Transfer
George Town
10050 George Town
Penang

Business hours: 8am – 11pm