Sunday, February 9, 2020

[Travel] Ipoh - Where to eat Bean Sprouts Chicken (芽菜鸡) and Best Ipoh Hor Fun (鸡丝河粉)

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There are tons of write-ups on where to go for 芽菜鸡 aka taugeh chicken (beansprouts chicken) and Lou Wong would be frequently mentioned as the spot for tourists. Well, we headed towards that direction anyways and decided to try Ong Kee (安记芽菜鸡) which is like beside Lou Wong. Similarly, Ong Kee has a big shop and busy with tourists. We sat alfresco, and the service staff will bring you the menu (has photos of the dish and prices).

shop front
menu

You have the option to choose either rice or sar hor fun (沙河粉).  My advice is, go for the sar hor fun because the soup was so darn tasty and it would make a good base for the gai see hor fun (thin flat noodles with chicken shreds). Of course, we didn't know because we were first-timers, and all of us ordered rice.

Bun Tong Bean Sprouts (文冬豆芽) @RM12 for large
Farm Chicken (whole) 菜园鸡 @RM66
must have chili
rice
super tasty chicken soup

The sprouts was really good and refreshing. It came as a mountain on a plate but we finished 'em all. All us 7 adults. The farm chicken was lean but not too chewy. The soy sauce on it was good. Slightly sweet savoury. Rice was cooked with ginger and garlic and not too oily.

Just beware of the streetside vendor who goes from tables to tables. She sold me an overpriced packet of biscuit which I later found out, was also available at the biscuit shops around that area.

night fall

Ong Kee Bean Sprouts Chicken Restaurant

Address: 48, Jalan Yau Tet Shin, Taman Jubilee, 30300 Ipoh, Negeri Perak, Malaysia
Contact: +60 5-253 1562
Business Hours:
Daily: 10.30am to 2am


Next, we sampled the best gai see hor fun at Thean Chun Coffeeshop but the wait was super long. At least 15 to 25 minutes to wait for a table and another 45 minutes for the noodles. That is considering we went after 1.30pm.

Thean Chun Coffeeshop
the famous stall for 鸡丝河粉

First, be warned that the coffeeshop is kinda old and dingy looking. Definitely crowded and we stood behind some tables to wait for our turn (like food-court!) and in-turn, sometimes got scolded by the stall assistants for blocking their way. And, often times, the table will have like a few that are already done with their lunch and one who was still waiting for the hor fun. So those are no-go as well.

Not easy when you're in a group of 7 pax and wants to eat at a crowded coffee shop. Finally, we got our table and since we had to wait 45 minutes for the hor fun, we went and ordered chee cheong fun and satay while waiting.

chee cheong fun and satay stall

Most of the stall owners are above 50 years old. So you'll get to taste authentic and old school recipe for the dish.

chee cheong fun

Old school chee cheong fun does not have the additional yong tau foo items as other places in Malaysia, and is served simply with pickled green chili, some shallots and good drizzle of the sauces. My mom says this was what chee cheong fun tasted like when she was growing up.

The satay stall had run out of the innards and only remained a few sticks of pork satay. So we had a mix of chicken and pork satay.

pork and chicken satay with peanut sauce
pork satay

Satay was good and the peanut sauce was thick and chunky. Not that spicy though.

Finally, the wait was over and we were served the hor fun. My first impression was...how come the soup got so many bubbles one? Putting that aside, the soup was flavourful and the hor fun was slightly soft. Loaded with lots of shredded boiled chicken meat and there were some prawns too.

鸡丝河 Chicken Shred Hor Fun Soup
close-up view of the noodles

After Thean Chun, we tried other gai see hor fun at other coffeeshops, but their soup couldn't match up with the stall at Thean Chun (maybe the Ong Kee tauge chicken one can).

Would I want to wait another 45 minutes for a bowl of gai see hor fun again? Well, if you have not tried Thean Chun's version, will recommend to try at least once.

Restoran Thean Chun 天津茶室

Address: 73, Jalan Bandar Timah, 31650 Ipoh, Negeri Perak, Malaysia
Contact: +60 5-255 3076
Business Hours:
Fri to Wed: 8am to 3pm
Closed on Thurs

Sunday, February 2, 2020

[Travel] Ipoh - 玉福满点心楼 Yoke Fook Moon Dim Sum Restaurant

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Tried this restaurant that's nearby Foh San. Walk-able distance from Ipoh Downtown Hotel. Went there seven early eight early (七早八早) at about 8.30am and the place was rather quiet with just a few tables taken. First impression was that the restaurant had a slightly stale musty smell.

entrance
interior
Its interior was well-kept and has clean bathroom too. Service staff are probably in their late thirties and some even older.

There are signs everywhere that informed customers to top-up their own hot water (for the tea) but since they are not busy, the service staff did it for us. They were rather friendly too. Near the cashier counter, they have a dedicated space for take-outs.

menu
takeaway counter

To order, you could inform the staff whatever that you'd be interested in having, or have them bring out the trays of goodies for you to choose at the table. Not trolley service but close. Having dim sum should have these kind of feels. The price range for the dim sum is between RM2.70 to RM11.30 (~SGD0.95 to SGD3.90). For tourists, the prices are pretty reasonable.

order chit

Ordered up a pot of "bou-lei tea" which is pu-erh tea (普洱茶) in Cantonese.

drink tea, eat dim sum

Let's see what we had for breakfast that fed a party of 7-pax. Started with the usual orders of har gao (蝦餃) and siew mai (烧卖), of course.

siew mai, har gao and more

siew mai (烧卖) close-up view
芋角 woo kok (fried taro puff) 
fish balls, chicken feet, beancurd skin and cheong fun

Another must order for us, is the porridge. They have century egg porridge with peanuts and it was gooey and tasty. 

yummy porridge

Hence, we ordered up a steamed pork bun (大包). Whoa, we were impressed by its size when it was brought out. It's like 4 to 5 times the size of the big bao version that we get in SG. Wow! Not only that it was big in size, it was also big in flavour too! Moist, loaded with well marinated meat of pork and chicken, shitake mushroom and that quintessential hard boil egg. Oh, did I mention that the bao skin was fluffy with slight chewiness too? Yums!

look at the size!
大包 that's bigger than my hand @RM10.20
loaded with pork slices, chicken, mushroom and hard boiled egg

Also ordered their special item, which is the fish paste noodles in pepper soup. No idea what it was but it is priced at RM11.30 for an individual portion.

'fish noodles' soup @RM11.30

The noodles are made of fish paste, so essentially we are chomping down on fish paste noodles. The soup has a peppery taste to it and loaded with pig's stomach. Nice tummy warmer on a cold morning.

Overall, we enjoyed the food and service from Yoke Fook Moon. Must order the big bao!

Yoke Fook Moon 玉福满

Address: 65-69, Jalan Leong Sin Nam, 30300 Ipoh, Negeri Perak, Malaysia
Contact: +60 5-241 6589
Business Hours:
Daily: 6am–1:30pm, 6:30–10pm

Saturday, January 18, 2020

[Tasting] The Famous Kitchen 名食小厨 Revisited to Usher in the Lunar New Year @ 54 Sembawang Road Hong Heng Mansions

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Had a chance to revisit The Famous Kitchen to try out their Lunar New Year menu. Thank you Jennifer (JY Consultancy) for the invite and The Famous Kitchen for hosting the tasting. It was great seeing our host; Jenny and Jeffrey again. Read about previous visit here.

The Famous Kitchen signage

The adjacent bar area for The Famous Kitchen had an updated vibe. "Famous Hangout" serves as an al-fresco area for diners to mingle over beer, wine and dine, or to wind down after a hectic day at work. It was pretty happening on the day of visit, which was a weekday. Imagine delish fried hokkien mee over a glass of iced cold beer, or snacking on prawn paste chicken with a glass of red. The vibe at the alfresco was vibrant with many merry-makers.

Famous Hangout bar

If you don't fancy the alfresco area to have your dinner, fret not as the air-conditioned dining area is just two steps away. Indoor is a welcome respite from the hot humid weather of Singapore.

air-conditioned dining area
promotion
CNY Set Menu

Let's start dinner with Prosperity Salmon Yusheng. This is the good 'ol version of yusheng done in the traditional way, nothing fancy but symbolic for Lunar New Year. If you prefer the Prosperity Shun De Yu Sheng 顺德鱼生 version, which is an iconic dish at its sister restaurant Famous Treasure, you can also enjoy it here. Advance reservation is required.

Prosperity Salmon Yusheng 七彩三文鱼捞生
顺顺利利开开心心

The set was served with Braised Shark's Fin Soup. Loved that black vinegar is available here instead of the red ones. The soup consistency was good and plenty of ingredients. The stock used was tasty and flavourful.

Braised Shark's Fin Soup

having soup with Stella

Next up, we had our quotient of vegetables in the form of braised sea cucumber with beancurd and mushrooms and broccoli. The sea cucumber was well braised that's soft enough yet retained some bouncy-ness in texture.

braised sea cucumber with mushrooms, beancurd and broccoli

Then, there's steamed fish. The Lunar New Year set menu typically serves Steamed Marble Goby in Soya Sauce. For tasting, we tried the Signature Steamed Fish with Preserved Vegetables on Hotplate. The sauce was a combination of tangy, savoury taste that's refreshing on the palate and goes well with a bowl of white rice. 来一碗白饭吧!

Signature Steamed Fish with Preserved Vegetables on Hotplate 招牌铁板酸菜蒸鱼 

steamed fish with preserved vegetables (market price)

For Lunar New Year, one gets the Herbal Chicken in the set menu but we ordered up the signature of Famous Kitchen; The Oven Baked Volcano Chicken. Advance reservation is required to enjoy this dish.

Oven Baked Chicken

The service staff would bring out the oven baked chicken to the table, pour some rum over it before igniting the fire. The chicken would then be brought back to the kitchen to be chopped up. It was delicious! Crisp skin that retained some of the rum flavour and tender, moist meat that was flavourful. No additional salt nor sauce required.

Oven Baked Volcano Chicken @$58++

Prawn is another auspicious dish to have during Lunar New Year as it signifies happiness and laughter. Lovely presentation of the caramel prawns.

Caramel Prawns 雪花焦糖虾
closer view

The caramel prawns were lip-smacking good! It was deep fried to a good degree and the upper part of the head (yes, including the shell) and legs were so good! I've never eaten so much shell before but this one was definitely worth it.

If you are still feeling hungry, let's wrap up with Fried Rice with Waxed Meat Wrapped in Lotus Leaf. Am liking this version at Famous Kitchen. Adequate flavours (though the fried rice could do with more wok-hei) that's balanced between sweet and savoury, and lovely lap cheong that tasted fresh.

Fried Rice with Waxed Meat Wrapped in Lotus Leaf 腊味荷叶饭

For dessert, we had the Soya Bean Gingko Nuts with Snow Fungus. Ooh, they have certainly improved in the dessert department! Sweetened soya bean milk loaded with plenty snow fungus and gingko nuts. What's there not to like? I find that the sweetness level was just right to end a meal. I thought I could eat no more but this warm dessert makes you want to go on and finish it up!

Soya Bean Gingko Nuts with Snow Fungus 豆浆福果雪耳

Set Menus range from S$488++ for 8 diners to S$1388++ for 10 diners and is available from 10 Jan to 10 Feb 2020. The CNY Ala-Carte menu is available from 25 and 26 January 2020. Please call direct to the restaurant to enquire more.

Thank you Jenny and Jeffrey for your hospitality, Famous Kitchen staff for taking care of us and Jennifer for the invite.

Happy New Year and Gong Hei Fatt Choi!

The Famous Kitchen 名食小厨

Address: #01-01, Hong Heng Mansion, 54 Sembawang Road
Opening Hours:
Mon - Sun: 11:30 - 14:30, 17:40 - 22:30
Phone: +65 6636 8333
Website: https://www.famouskitchen.sg
Facebookhttps://www.facebook.com/famouskitchensg/
 
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