ROASTED LAMB AND DEER DRAW CROWDS AT PENANG'S MADANI 2025 AIDILFITRI OPEN HOUSE

BUTTERWORTH, April 12 (Bernama) -- The roasted lamb stall at Penang’s MADANI 2025 Aidilfitri open house drew a large crowd at the PICCA Convention Centre @Arena Butterworth today, thanks to its special menu featuring a whole roasted deer.

Operated by catering company Solehudin Sanusi Sdn Bhd, the stall also served five whole roasted lambs for the estimated 10,000 guests. 

Staff member Mohamad Akmal Amirudin said the five lambs, each weighing between 17kg and 20kg, and the 40kg deer were prepped a day earlier to ensure the roasting proceeded smoothly.

“I believe this is the only open house that features roasted deer. We received requests to serve this and it has proven to be very popular among the crowd,” he told Bernama at the event.

A Bernama survey also found that the roasted lamb stall was one of the main attractions, with people beginning to queue as early as 1.30 pm, well before the event started at 2 pm.

There were also more than 20 other food stalls offering a variety of popular local dishes, such as Penang laksa, curry noodles, nasi impit with peanut sauce, lemang, ketupat, satay, roti jala, mi sotong, cendol, pasembor, apam balik and other Penang signature dishes. 

Almost all the stalls were crowded with visitors from diverse communities, all eager to enjoy the delicious and appetising fare. 

The celebration was made livelier by performances from local artistes, including Malaysian rock legend Datuk Hattan, 1990s favourite Aris Ariwatan, and popular singer Black Hanifah.

They entertained the crowd with festive Aidilfitri songs as well as their hit singles, captivating both the general public and dignitaries in attendance.

Hattan performed his iconic song Rendang Tidak Berbuah, while Black, whose real name is Hanifah Muhammad Hanafiah, 38, sang his latest single Hijab Rindu.

The fourth stop of the MADANI Aidilfitri 2025 celebration tour, following earlier events in Melaka, Pahang and Kelantan, was officiated by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, drawing a crowd of over 10,000 people. 

Also present were Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow, Human Resources Minister Steven Sim Chee Keong, Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek and Chief Secretary to the Government Tan Sri Shamsul Azri Abu Bakar.

It was jointly organised by the Penang government and the Ministry of Human Resources as the lead ministry. 

The MADANI Aidilfitri 2025 open house kicked off in Melaka on April 5 with the national-level event before continuing in Pahang yesterday, followed by Kelantan and Penang today.

The celebration will move on to Sarawak on April 19 and Perak on April 25 before concluding in Perlis on April 27.

The Selangor leg, originally scheduled for April 6, was cancelled as a mark of respect for the victims of the gas pipeline explosion and fire in Putra Heights, Subang Jaya.

-- BERNAMA