[Travel] What I ate at Petaling Street (Chinatown) during Lunar New Year Part 2

If you're in the mood for some airconditioned comfort without having to elbow to elbow with other strangers, then Waaron Kuus might be a good choice to rest the tired feets after a full day of walking around. 

Lunch

Waaron Kuus

entrance

We were there for a late lunch at 330pm and effectively, missed out on the Set Lunch promo where one could get a main course + drink + dessert for RM17.90++.

interior

The place gives cafe vibes and is pretty spacious. Staff is friendly. We ordered a couple of things to share and this place serves local favourites like toasted bread with soft boiled eggs, roti canai, nasi lemak. char kway teow etc.

Nanyang Teh (hot milk tea) @RM5.50+

Nanyang Kopi C (cold) @RM7.50+

I got myself something slightly more interesting to drink - Coconut Gula Melaka Coffee.

Coconut Gula Melaka Coffee @RM8.80+

My drink would likely to receive a grade E for being overly sweet. Had to ask the staff to add more ice to it to dilute and it was still sweet even after letting all the ice melt.

Nasi Lemak with Ayam Rendang @RM16.80+

Nasi Lemak with Lemongrass Chicken @RM16.80+

The chicken were well marinated and flavourful. However, the generous portion of rice was served lukewarm or somewhat room temperature, and hence, less enjoyable. Sambal was fragrant with shrimps and onion taste and not spicy. 

Char Kuey Teow @RM16.80

My dad loves the char kuey teow. Served piping hot, moist and delicious. Prawns though huge were overcooked and a bit tough for elderly folks. Noodles were great.

Sarang Burung with chicken curry @RM7.90+

charred and tasty

curry chicken with potatoes

There was some confusion over the sarang burong which translates to bird nest. It is a variant of roti canai but the dough would be shaped like a ring in the center, there should be egg(s). When it was first served to our table, there were 2 pieces of plain roti so we looked at the staff and before we can enquire, she sort of knew what was the issue and asked if I wanted egg for this. I said yes.. because sarang burong dish is expected to have eggs otherwise, it's just plain roti canai and the menu didn't indicate that we need to specify it with eggs. (One could google and see how a sarang burong roti canai looks like and it surely does come with eggs!) Anyway, she sent the roti back to the kitchen and when it came back out, it became one piece with one egg. Hmmm, pretty disappointing I must say.

Cucur Udang (prawn fritters - 2 pieces) @RM7.80+

Liked that the prawn fritters didn't skimp on the prawn but overall, it felt like the fritters had been sitting out for a while.

Expect to spend about RM25 per pax for food and drink. 

Address: 84, Jalan Petaling, City Centre, 50000 Kuala Lumpur, Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Contact: +60102202767

Business Hours: 

Daily - 8am to 8pm

Dinner

Hong Kee Claypot Chicken Rice 鴻记 & Portuguese Grilled Fish

queue to order first

claypot chicken rice and portuguese grilled fish

menu

Don't go inside to chope seats unless you want to get a scolding from the staff. Simply queue up outside and staff will hand you a menu for you to think think and to place your order first. Then when you reach to the front of the queue, someone will guide you to your table. I think we queued for about 20 minutes.

interior

Previous visits saw us being seated outside at the walkway (alfresco) of another shop that has closed for the day. This time round, we were led to the main shop and this section has air conditioning.

Claypot chicken rice seemed to have a shorter cooking time when compared to the grill fish as the fish only arrives like 25 minutes after the rice was served.

RM30 (large)

Remember to mix well otherwise, one might get chunks of salted fish in one mouthful!

beansprouts for healthy balance 

The blanched vegetables consist mainly of beansprouts with only a handful of leafy greens. It tasted like blanched vegetables, so one can eat alot of this with the salted fish in the claypot rice.

grilled Tilapia (with added petai) @RM55

yummy

smooth flesh

The best thing was the grilled fish. Well cooked and the decision to add RM5 of petai was a good one. More vegetable, better no? We enjoyed the fish a lot. Did you know that the tilapia cost the same as seabass?

Our meal costs RM104 in total as we had 2 cans of coke as well. These fed 4 adults comfortably.

Address: 83, Jalan Sultan, City Centre, 50000 Kuala Lumpur, Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Contact: +601136612838

Business Hours: 

Closed on Wed.

Thur - Tues: 5pm to 1130pm

正宗阿源面薄 – Original Guan's Mee Pok @ Capitol Singapore

It was late in the evening and we wanted to have a nice dinner, preferably something hot. As with any other Saturdays, restaurants are super busy during dinner time. Guan's Mee Pok at Capitol has indoor and 'outdoor' seats with the 'outdoor' version means the tables are located outside of the shop. Hmm, indoor seats please~

Order from the cashier and collect it when it is ready. Self-service style. Kris said she wanted the signature bowl but when I went to the counter to order, the lady informed me that there are two signatures. Hmm, so I bought both since not sure which one Kris wanted. Added a bowl of cuttlefish balls soup, for the vegetables.

dinner for two

Sesame Crispy Prawn Paste Mee Pok @$11

Guan's Mee Pok @$6.80

al-dente noodles

Took the default seasoning for the noodles which is with chili and it turned out to be quite spicy! The spice level is about 2 out of 5 for me. I think this outlet puts in more oil than the previous one that I had some years ago.

cuttlefish balls in boiled watercress soup @$6

Wash it down with a hearty bowl of watercress soup. The cuttlefish balls were rather normal but overall, just good to have alongside the noodles. 

But, it sure fill us up pretty fast. So full after having the noodles and the soup. The noodles actually looked small, but enough for someone who is not a big eater.

Saw many who ordered the herbal chicken, so probably that's a good option if you're dining with your family and wanted something different other than those normally served at a noodles shop.

For me, the draw of Guan's Mee Pok is the texture of the noodles, the adequate ingredients in the original bowl and its hanjuku egg,

 正宗阿源面薄 – Original Guan's Mee Pok 

Address:  13 Stamford Rd, B1-55 Capitol Piazza, Singapore 178905

Website: https://guanmeepok.com/

Business Hours:

Daily  9:30am–9pm

Beast and Butterflies - 2022 @ 90 Robertson Quay

Not a stranger to this place, read more from this post. Went back there in May 2022 with Tracy, Hence and Ivan. Our visit was more memorable as Fiona really made sure we had a good time there. Thank you!

It is quite obvious that my favourites there are the Hokkien Mee and Pork Knuckles. This time round, I wanted to try the lamb rack, so we got that too. Also took the chance to enjoy their weekend 2 hours free-flow cocktail with top-up of $25++. You could select the Mimosa, Aperol or Sangria. I tried the Sangria and I do agree with Fiona that the concoction is delicious!

Claypot Hokkien Mee @$14

Crispy Pork Knuckle @$22 (half portion)

Is it just me or the portion of the pork knuckles seemed to have decreased? Hahaa, I think I could do a full portion next time! Crackly skin and moist meat. Hokkien mee is as flavourful as I remembered it albeit it had lesser crispy pork lard but I am sure if you request for more, it will likely be acceded.

Lamb Rack (300gm) @$48

Lamb Rack was the most expensive item but it was pretty good and we liked it for its succulent texture. Well seasoned too, so each bite was precious. No additional sauce was required.

We were kept happy with our cocktail. Mood was light and jovial with a touch of sweetness, and Fiona did check on us to see if there's anything else that we needed.

Sangria

Of course, we ended our meal with dessert. Not just one or two, but four!

(from left to right) Molten Chocolate Cake, Apple Pie, Lemon Tart 

Pandan Panna Cotta @$12

The Pandan Panna Cotta has that distinctive pandan fragrance and the rich sweetness from the gula melaka sauce. It was wobbly and not too dense.

The Molten Chocolate Cake, I just love digging into all the chocolatey gooey goodness for that decadent bite. 

Molten Chocolate Cake @$17

For the apple pie, I liked the version here because it is not too sweet. Lovely to enjoy by yourself or with friends.

Apple Pie @$10

The lemon tart was lovely too with some tart/tangy/sweetness from the lemon flavours and to be honest, I think you can find something that you will like.

Lemon Tart @$8

Thank you Tracy, Hence and Ivan for the birthday treat. Am glad to have all of you in my life to enjoy the delicious food and our adventurous impromptu travels. 

Special shoutout to Fiona and team at Beast and Butterflies.

Beast and Butterflies

Address: M Social Singapore 90 Robertson Quay Singapore 238259

Website: https://www.millenniumhotels.com/en/singapore/m-social-singapore/beast-and-butterflies/

Contact: 9183 9420

Food Delivered from Yishun Park Hawker Center

Ordered food via Makanguru with "HH56" promo code. Minimum order is $40 otherwise, there will be a small order fee surcharge. Delivery fee is $8, and with the promo code, there will be an offset of $5.60. This is a not a sponsored post, but rather sharing of experience. To tell you the truth, I have not been to Yishun Park Hawker Center. None at all, since its inception. Hence, it makes sense to have food delivered from there if I wanted to try any. A thing to note about Makanguru deliveries, is that if you specified a timing between 6 pm to 7pm, the food will likely reach by 6.15pm. So far, that's my experience with them.

Wong Heng 旺兴小炒

Stall No.: #01-22

Business Hours: 

Monday – Sunday | 11.30am – 9pm

Closed on Thurs.

Lor Mee @ $ 7.50

The menu seemed to be just the typical zichar fried noodles. Chose one that is more interesting, which is lor mee. I have not tried any zichar lor mee and this was the first. There was only 1 size and priced at $7.50 per serving. No photos on the delivery menu, so I was anticipating if it'd be looking somewhat like the Malaysian style of zichar lor mee. Alas, it was not.

The thick yellow noodles used seemed to be similar to the one in hokkien mee. There wasn't any wok-hei in this dish but that's ok. The ingredients seemed aplenty and liked that the portion is generous enough to feed 1.5 pax. There's a couple of prawns, fish cake slices, pork slices and yam. Initially, I thought got sio bak, but that turned out to be yam. Keke. With yam and noodles, enough to fill-up one's tummy.

two servings for me

Roasters Delight　烧味世家

Stall No.: 01-16

Business Hours: 

Monday – Sunday | 11am – 8pm

Closed on Wed.

roast pork @$7.50

closer view of roast pork

Danggui Duck @$15 (half)

The roast pork was of the wet market kind, and its skin wasn't crispy by the time it got delivered. The porky smell was a slightly stronger too. Nevertheless, the meat itself was moist and made a good accompaniment to the noodles. I had these with a Syrah.

The duck smelled nice but not too strong with the herbal stuffs. Keeping these for instant noodles in a day or two.

花花 Cooking & Eating 

Stall No.: 01-41

Business Hours: 

Monday – Sunday | 8am – 9.30pm

Closed on Thurs.

beansprouts with cockles @$6

tiny tiny

Hmm, gotta have my vegetables and hence, ordered this stir-fried beansprouts with cockles. Ok lah, actually wanted to eat cockles. Liked that there's lardo but these were not exactly crisp by the time it got to my place. The beansprouts were still crunchy and that's lovely. But the cockles were almost non-existent due to its scarcity and its tiny size.

I was that close of ordering white carrot cake but luckily, I chose oyster omelette in the end. The version here is plentyful of eggy goodness and the surprise factor? There's sweet cai poh inside as well! Yay! I chuckled at the presentation, where there's a lone oyster ontop of the fried egg. Don't tell me there's nothing inside..*gasps*

Oyster omelette @$6

plump oyster

Was somewhat relieved to find that there's plenty of plump oysters hidden insde the omelette. I took one third portion of it, and in there was about 3 good sized oysters. I liked the eggs. So yummy.

egg~

Super full after eating the noodles, beansprouts and the oyster omelette. $10 per pax for today's meal.

Happy 56th Birthday Singapore! Happy National Day peeps!

Makan Time @ Xin Tekka Food Hall

So we just had breakfast nearby, but that didn't deter us from continuing our food hunt. We walked around the area for a bit to burn off some of the earlier calories before heading towards Xin Tekka. If you are not aware of the location of Xin Tekka, just head towards the Tekka Place building that's easily seen from afar.

Tekka Place

And soon enough, we found the Xin Tekka Food Hall. On weekdays, the place was rather quiet but on the weekend of our visit, the place was somewhat busy.

entrance to Xin Tekka Food Hall

Pang's Hakka Noodles 小彭客家面

Monday to Thursday: 10.30am – 2.30pm

Friday and Saturday: 10.30am to 7.30pm

Close on Sunday

Pang's Hakka Noodles

This stall serves Hakka delicacies curated by Chef Pang Kok Keong. We tried the Signature Hakka Noodles set with the chicken wings. On our first visit, the food took 20-25 minutes to be prepared.

Signature Hakka Noodles Set @$9.50

The noodles were flavourful as it was tossed in fragrant oil and minced pork. Pretty yums! The chicken wings were good too. During our first visit, the items were served in take-away style while on second visit, it was served in proper plates and bowls.

yummy noodles

Hakka Yong Tau Foo

chicken wings

Liang Ji 梁记

Daily: 10.00am to 8.00pm

Liang Ji stall front

I wasn't feeling adventurous that day, hence chose the normal char kway teow instead of their creative versions. The char kway teow was pretty generic with the sweetened soy sauce and has cockles, lap cheong, fish cake and bean sprouts.

char kway teow @$5.80

Casa Bom Vento Express

Daily: 11.30am to 7.00pm

Casa Bom Vento Express shopfront

Decided to get the Dry Mee Siam simply because it was a "Today's Special" that appears once a week and, the lady at the stall said, only a few portions left. Tell me something like that, and I'm easily convinced to try. Hahaa!

 

Dry Mee Siam @$7.50

The mee siam was actually very good. I liked it quite a bit. The flavours of the noodles was on point with balanced sharp tangy, sweet and spicy. That big prawn was aesthetically pleasing as well.

Ayam Buah Keluak with Blue Pea Rice @$8.50

The presentation for the buah keluak with blue pea rice was rather pretty. The kacang botol ulam and the pineapples cubes were good too. However, I still prefer the mee siam.

The kopi from the drinks stall was decent.

kopi

Thank you makan buddies; Shermaine, Tracy, Hence and Ivan for sharing the calories.

Xin Tekka 新德卡 Food Hall

Address: 2 Serangoon Road, Tekka Place Annex Building, # 01–55/56/57/58/59, Singapore 218227

Website: https://xintekka.sg/

Business Hours:

Mon-Fri: 8.00am–10.00pm

Sat-Sun: 9.00am–10.00pm