Kedai Kopi Kwong Hong, Ipoh

Date visited : 27 May 2018

When I came here for the first time last year, I immediately fell in love with this place. I only regret that I didn't know about this place much earlier. This is a place that serves Ipoh style Yong Tau Foo. However, the locals don't call it Yong Tau Foo, they call it Zhao Liu (Fried Ingredients in Cantonese).

Their business starts at 12pm but the shop is open for preparation at 11am. You can sit around and order drinks but they will only start the food ordering when they are ready at 12pm.

Just by sitting around and watch them prepare made me so excited. For me it's like watching food porn. Just look at the spread of ingredients you could choose from!

They even have variations of noodles to choose from. They have 4 types of noodles, mee hoon, yellow mee, Ipoh kuey teow and laksa noodles. After choosing your preferred noodles, you then choose the method of preparation or soup base. You can have it dry (noodles tossed in dark sauce with no soup), clear soup, curry and sometimes they even have assam laksa.

Assam laksa

Curry soup

Don't expect the normal thick and strong tasting soup from the usual assam laksa and curry laksa, the soup base here is lighter in taste so that it does not overpower the taste other ingredients.

These are my selection of the day. We ordered some fried stuff and some soup based ingredients. The fish paste used has a soft and bouncy texture. Each ingredient has their own special taste and each so delicious.

All the ingredients are so tasty. There's nothing I don't like here. I just wish I had a bigger stomach so I could eat them all.

So if you were to come here, try one of everything. I promise you won't regret it.

OUR RATING

Ambience : 3/5

Service : 4/5

Food Quality : 5/5

Price Range : $

Status : Non Halal

Other information:

Address : No 309 Jalan Gunung Rapat, Taman Rapat Setia, 31350 Ipoh, Perak

Business Hours : 12pm - 5.30pm (Closed on Mondays)

Transaction : Cash

Restoran Kakak, Taiping

Date visited : 26 May 2018

I've heard of this place for quite some time now but I have never been here in person. 

The reason I've heard about this place is because of their signature coffee called Kakak Peng (Kakak Ice). My colleague bought it for me to try during my last visit to Taiping for work and I loved it.

Kakak Peng is a mixture of milk coffee and barley. It may sound strange and a bit exotic to some but you have to give it a try to appreciate it. It can be served hot or cold but I personally liked it cold. The sweetness from the barley gives the coffee a unique taste.

Other than their signature coffee, people also come here for their Kai Si Hor Fun (Kuey Teow Soup with Shredded Chicken). 

The texture of the kuey teow (flat rice noodles) here are similar to the ones well known in Ipoh. As you can see, they are generous with the portion of shredded chicken. If you are not comparing to the ones found in Ipoh, this is easily the best in Taiping.

OUR RATING
Ambience : 3/5
Service : 4/5
Food Quality : 3.5/5 (4.5/5 for the Kaka Peng)
Price Range : $
Status : Non Halal

Other information:
Address : No 111 Jalan Pasar, 34000 Taiping, Perak
Business Hours : 5.30am - 1.30pm (Closed on Mondays)
Transaction : Cash

Kolo Mee, Kuching

Date visited : 20 May 2018

Other than the Sarawak Laksa, there's another noodle dish which is also iconic to Sarawak... and that's the Kolo Mee.

The Kolo Mee noodles are almost similar to wantan noodles only springier and does not come drenched in dark sauce. It is usually tossed in clear sauce, topped with spring onions, minced meat and slices of barbecued pork.

I asked my colleague who was born and raised in Kuching, Sarawak, to recommend me the best Kolo Mee in town and he told me this is one of the best... Red Kolo Mee in the old open market near Kuching Waterfront.

Here you are given a choice of original Kolo Mee, clear in colour, and Red Kolo Mee, which is red in colour. Since my colleague ordered the original Kolo Mee, I ordered the red one so that I can try both to see what is the difference.

The toppings are the same for both and the difference is in the way the noodles are prepared.

This is the original Kolo Mee with the choice of flat noodle. It is tossed in clear sauce and topped with spring onions, mince meat and slices of barbecued pork. It may look very plain but the clear sauce used to toss the noodles is very tasty and compliments well with the toppings.

This is the Red Kolo Mee with the choice of curly thin noodles. What made it red in colour is not colouring nor chilli or tomato sauce. The noodles are tossed with the red oil from the barbecued pork used in the noodles. And because of this addition, it made the taste of this Kolo Mee different than the original ones. The aromatic taste of the barbecued pork is infused into the noodles thus making it very tasty and different from the original ones.

My colleague was right, this Kolo Mee is really nicer than the ones I had in Klang Valley.

Right opposite this stall was another interesting stall that sells soy bean drinks, steamed buns and Sio Bee. 

At first I was wondering what is a Sio Bee. Then my colleague explained to me that Sio Bee is a Hokkien word for our well known Siu Mai. In Kuching, the locals call their Siu Mai, Sio Bee.

The difference of Sio Bee and the normal Siu Mai is the meat used. Siu Mai uses a mixture of shrimp and pork while the Sio Bee uses only pork. The skin colour is also pale compared to the yellowish ones of our normal Siu Mai. The meat is very tender and is best eaten with chilli sauce.

So if you're here to try the Kolo Mee, why not give this Sio Bee a try too.

Other information:

Address : Tower Market Hawker Centre, Jalan Power, 93000 Kuching, Sarawak.

Contact No : 016-855 5665

Business Hours : Opens daily from morning till 11.30pm

Transaction : Cash

Other links : https://www.facebook.com/redkolomee/

Sarawak Laksa, Kuching

Date visited : 19 May 2018

Sarawak Laksa is an iconic Sarawak dish. It's a noodle dish served in an aromatic spiced coconut milk soup, topped with shredded chicken, shredded omelette, bean sprouts, prawns, and garnished with coriander.

Since I had the opportunity to travel to Kuching for work, I decided to make the most of my trip... to introduce to you the best Sarawak Laksa in Kuching. That's not just what visitors like me say, but it is acknowledged by the locals here. I came here twice before but the last I came was more than 3 years ago. I was told that even famous celebrity chef, Anthony Bourdain, has been here twice for the Sarawak Laksa.

The Sarawak Laksa here is the star of this humble neighbourhood coffee shop, Choon Hui Cafe. Other than the Sarawak Laksa, there are 3 other stall that serves Kolok Me (also a local Sarawak dish), porridge and popiah. However, every time I'm here, it would be just the Sarawak Laksa and a side of popiah for me.

The Sarawak Laksa stall is operated by two elderly ladies and not once did I see them take a break from the never ending orders. 

Every bowl is skillfully and tirelessly prepared by these two ladies.

Just look at this bowl of mouth watering Sarawak Laksa! 

What makes each laksa different is the broth and the broth that comes with the Sarawak Laksa here is so delicious. The thickness of the broth is just right, the sourness and spiciness of the broth are at the right balance.

While you're here, you may also want to try the popiah available in this coffee shop. It is the next popular dish in this place. There are many who come just to pack these popiahs for take away.

So if you happen to come to Kuching be it for business or for pleasure, make sure you make a stop at Choon Hui Cafe to taste the amazing Sarawak Laksa.

Other information:

Address : No 34, Jalan Ban Hock, 93100 Kuching, Sarawak

Contact No : 082-780 369

Business Hours : 7am - 2pm (may be sold out earlier than that) / Closed on Tuesdays

Transaction : Cash

Madam Chong's Prawn Noodle House, Kuchai Lama

Date visited : 15 April 2018

Many people travel all the way to Penang just to indulge in the many delectable food of Penang. Among those specialties is the Prawn Mee, also known as the Hokkien Mee in Penang. Good news to all Penang food lovers in KL! It may not be as perfect as the ones in Penang, but this is as close as it can get... Madam Chong's Prawn Noodle in Kuchai Lama.

Madam Chong first started her prawn noodles stall in Pudu in the year 1968 and gradually made a name for herself after enduring much hardship along the way. Her recipes were well received and her children decided to elevate her recipes and started this restaurant on 12 December 2009.

Their signature dish is of course the Prawn Noodles but they also serve other types of noodles such as Wan Tan Noodle, Pork Ball Noodles, Curry Noodles and light snacks.

Most would prefer yellow egg noodle in their Prawn Noodles but since I don't favour that choice of noodle, I opted for the flat rice noodle and rice vermicelli. The flavour of the soup was spot on and just look at the size of the prawns served in the bowl! They uses Big Prawns instead of the usual small prawns that we commonly get in most Prawn Noodles found in Klang Valley.

My brother was not a big fan of Prawn Noodles, so he ordered the Minced Pork & Big Prawn Dry Noodle instead.

We also ordered some snacks for sharing.

This is the Fried Three Treasure. This platter consists of 2 pieces of fried dumpling, fried chestnut wan tan and fried tofu each. The meat fillings wrapped in these crispy golden skins are juicy and tasty.

And last but not least, the traditional fried tofu skin. The tofu skin is very thin and crispy but it was a bit too thin for my liking. I prefer tofu skins to be a bit more meatier so that there will be more to chew on and the taste will linger a bit longer in every bite.

So if you're in Klang Valley and have cravings for some delicious Prawn Noodle, this may be able to fulfill your cravings till your next trip to Penang.

OUR RATING

Ambience : 3/5 

Service : 3/5

Food Quality : 3.5/5

Price Range : $
Status : Non-Halal

Other information:
Address : 22, Dynasty Sentral, Jalan Kuchai Maju 19, Off Jalan Kuchai Lama, 58200, Kuala Lumpur
Contact No. : 03-7971 5396
Business Hours : 8am - 9pm (Close on alternate Wednesday)
Transaction : Cash

Raja Uda Tomyam Porridge, Butterworth

Date visited : 14 October 2017

A friend recommended for me to try out this place more than a year ago but we were out of luck because we happened to visit on the day that it was closed. I almost lucked out again when it was closed yesterday for an emergency but thank goodness I had the chance to make a second attempt during this trip.

There's no signboard of any sort at the shopfront, so I guess you just need to depend on Waze or Google Maps to find this place. Just search for Raja Uda Famous Kwong Wah Tom Yam Noodles.

This place is only open in the evening till late night and this place is packed most of the time.

The best part about this place is that you get to pick and choose the ingredients you want.

You have ingredients such as pork balls, fish balls, taiwan sausages, crabsticks, seafood tofu, minced pork, bacon, sliced pork belly, prawns, squids, mushrooms, fried fish meat, abalone slices, cheese slices, paddy frog meat and many more.

After you've done choosing your ingredients, you pass the selection plate over to the lady and decide if you would like to cook it with noodles or porridge, tomyam flavoured (spicy) or clear soup (non spicy). For noodles, you could choose between fine rice vermicelli, thick rice vermicelli or springy noodles (better known as Cintan noodles among the locals). The popular choice would be the springy noodles.

I came here to try the tomyam porridge. But when I saw springy noodles were available, I couldn't help it but to choose springy noodles in tomyam instead and hoped that my colleague would choose the porridge. But when she came back to the table and told me that she chose the thick rice vermicelli in tomyam, I decided to order an additional bowl of tomyam porridge so that I could complete this post.

This was my bowl of tomyam springy noodles. I had pork ball, vegetable fish ball, mushroom ball, fried fish meat, pork belly slices, seafood tofu and enoki mushrooms. The tomyam flavour is not like the regular Thai type of tomyam. It's sour with a bit of sweetness and not too spicy at the same time. For me I liked it this way because if its too spicy, I wouldn't be able to enjoy all the ingredients in the bowl including the noodles.

This was my colleague's thick rice vermicelli in tomyam soup. She had bacon slices, fried fish meat, abalone slices, seafood tofu, crab balls, quail egg and fish balls.

Now this is the tomyam porridge. The tomyam used in the porridge is the same as the one used for their noodles. I liked this porridge because it's not to watery and not too thick. I chose the shitake mushrooms, minced pork meat, abalone slices, a prawn and an egg.

I'm glad that I finally get to try out this place. It definitely did not disappoint and I would definitely go back for more visits.

OUR RATING

Ambience : 3/5 

Service : 4/5

Food Quality : 4/5

Price Range : $ (depends on what you choose)

Status : Non Halal

Other information:

Address : 7121, Jalan Raja Uda, 12300 Butterworth, Penang (Beside SRJK (C) Kwong Wah Primary School)

Contact No. : 012-479 0283

Business Hours : 6.30pm - 2.00am / Closed on Wednesdays

Transaction : Cash only

Lai Foong Beef Noodle, Puchong

Date visited : 18 March 2017

There are 3 types of beef noodles that I know of... the soupy kind, the dry and sticky kind (Seremban style) and the Kota Bharu style kind. This one's the soupy kind (you can also have it dry if you want).

This beef noodle stall started its business in Lai Foong Restaurant, KL in 1956 and has been serving delicious beef noodles to many customers since then. And that would make a total 61 years of goodness this year.

My parents used to bring us there for breakfast when we were kids and that was back in the days when the KL traffic condition was not as crazy. But I don't go there anymore not because it's not good but I really don't like the KL traffic condition and parking problems in this area. However, my father still goes to this coffee shop every time he takes the public transport down to KL to run some errands.

Recently I was informed by my father that they now have a branch in Puchong. So I took the opportunity to go reminisce the taste that I've known since my childhood.

And here it is... the famous Lai Foong Beef Noodle! The soup is a mixture of more than 10 kinds of medicinal herbs with addition of a secret recipe using the ox bone making it thick and flavourful.

There are 4 types of noodles for you to choose from, mee hoon, mee, kuey teow and lai fun. You could also choose your preferred combination of ingredients... beef ball, lean meat, brisket, tripe, tendon or leaf tripe. If you prefer to add a bit more spice to your noodles, you will love their homemade chilli sauce.

To me this is the best soupy beef noodle in KL. If you are a beef noodle lover, why not give it a try and tell me what you think.

Other information:

Address : 5-1, Jalan Kenari 18b, Bandar Puchong Jaya, 47100 Puchong, Selangor

Business Hours : 9am - 6pm (Closed on Mondays)

Transaction : Cash Only

Links : https://www.facebook.com/puchonglaifoong/