Buntong Wan Tan Noodle @ Cheong Kee
November 17, 2009 | 1,830 views| 36 Comments » |
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Almost clockwork-like, the camera-shy (or maybe I was a little intrusive?) owner of Cheong Kee dishing out plates after plates, and bowls after bowls of what could possibly be Ipoh’s MOST famous Wan Tan Noodle ………..
Buntong is a small community to the west of Ipoh, with a sizable Indian and Chinese community that are distributed almost evenly, with vibrant Indian temples lining the main street of Buntong, and Chinese schools scattered in the vicinity. Back when I was still a novice when it came to food-hunting of any nature, (read : before this blog was born) I had only the vaguest impression of Buntong; dismissing the town as a rural village with potentially unruly citizens. For which I apologize profusely now, and ate my words and a slice of the humble pie.
Then came the unabashedly-grateful virginal tour around Buntong, which had me downing some smooth “Kai See Hor Fun” (Shredded or Slices of Poached Chicken Meat served with Koay Teow/Flat Rice Noodles Soup) at Buntong Ayam Tauke, and a second excursion which had me eating inside some residents’ compound, relishing the bowl of beef noodles soup and stuffed fish paste (which we Ipohans proudly name them as “Liew” instead of the more common Yong Tau Foo).
With over 40 years of history in its bag, Cheong Kee Wan Tan Noodle is still going strong come rain or shine. Wait, scratch the latter, for the shop is only opened at night. So come rain, or under the moonlight?
But what some of you might not realized is that, during all those mini detours to Buntong, ALL of them were in fact my vain search for a taste of the famed, almost legendary, Buntong Famous Wan Tan Noodle. Or Wan Tan Mee, whichever term you prefer. A street food of Cantonese origin, the thin & springy egg noodles can be served in a stomach-warming soup base, or tossed in a mix of soy sauce, sesame oil, and dark soy sauce. But the common focal point between the two, and what gave rise to the name ‘Wan Tan’ Noodle is the Wantan/Wonton themselves, or meat dumplings (fillings of minced pork or shrimp).
The “Kon Loh Meen”, or Dry Wan Tan Noodle @ Cheong Kee
After failing in my attempts of tasting the humble yet immensely popular Wan Tan Noodle at Cheong Kee in Buntong, I gave up and only went back to Buntong once in a blue moon to replenish my “Kacang Putih” supplies. If you’re thinking what a wimp, for I shuddered at the slight hint of failure, let me clarify this. I actually went for not one, not Two, but THREE miserable attempts mind you. The first was when we went on a weekday evening but the stall was closed for renovation, and to be opened the following night. Second attempt was on a Sunday night, but as luck would have it, that was Cheong Kee’s rest day. And the final straw that broke the camel’s back, the third attempt was all it took to break my spirits. And I can’t even remember for the life of me, the reason why Cheong Kee was closed on the third try. Yeah, with tails between our legs, we scampered off on the third attempt to oblivion, stuffing ourselves with some other grubs. (And I even forgot what we ate after that!)
A funny remark here; The man helping around was actually stunned by my presence, holding a camera and all. Which prompted him to quickly rushed over and arranged the plates and ‘tools of the trade’ in an orderly manner, before I could snap my shot!
After a hiatus of 3 months or so, my courage returned to its full glory. Arriving at a rather late hour of 8.00pm (you’ll know why soon enough), the corner lot of Cheong Kee on Jalan Sekolah in Buntong was packed to the brim! And it did not help one bit that the weather was none too accommodating that evening, with light drizzles eliminating any hopes of being seated at the tables set up at the front portion of the shop. But we persevered, and soldiered on, for I was in no mood to return home empty-handed. Or should that be, with an empty stomach!
So the situation got slightly ugly, almost reminiscence of the Foh San’s vultures-by-the-tables scenario. You get my drift. And thanks be to the good Samaritans of Buntong’s, a table was vacated within minutes, and voila! The rest was history. Hehehe ……
Toss ‘em up REAL good, for the gravy to coat every single strand thoroughly, before slurping them into your mouth …..
A glance around the shop revealed that the majority of diners that evening were locals, most probably residents around Buntong area. For none of them was decked in shirts or suits (duh), and everyone looked so much at home (except us maybe). You know the feeling of eating at your favourite roadside hawker stall, when you know what to order without looking at the menu or price list, and you know exactly how you want your serving of Wan Tan Noodle to be; Single, One-Half or Double Mee. Wet or Dry. And additional bean sprouts, or sans the plump, crunchy ‘Tauge’. Or even with extra portion of soup.
With no prior idea on how the Wan Tan Mee at Cheong Kee is served, we ordered both the dry and soup versions, without asking for Char Siew (Barbecued Marinated Pork) or pork and/or prawn Wantan. And gladly so, for Cheong Kee does NOT serve Char Siew with their noodles, unlike the usual servings at other hawker stalls in Ipoh. And only minced pork meat wantan is served (correct me if I’m wrong though).
The springy, homemade egg noodles bears the torch for Cheong Kee, a testament of their classic recipe with emphasis on quality control, the man himself overseeing the whole process, to the extent of being partly involved (manually) in the process of making the egg noodles. Unlike the average wantan noodles, Cheong Kee’s version is stained with a lighter hue of yellow, smoother in texture and devoid (or minimal, as my dining companions claimed their noodles reeked of alkaline/lye water at first bites) of unpleasant, metallic lye water taste. At least my noodles in soup tasted nothing like slurping on alkaline materials.
The broth with a darker shade of brown was redolent with flavours, which may lead one to a false assumption of thinking that MSG (monosodium glutamate/flavour-enhancer) was added
The toppings of braised pork bits/slices with soy sauce, bean sprouts and garnished with chopped scallions completed the ensemble; a most simple combination to be paired with the dumplings in soup by the side, and of course not forgetting the pickled green chillies for that extra zest. The sweet, umami-flavoured soup was a joy to be slurped, or even drunk. And no hoarse voice nor thirsty spell thereafter, indicating the lack of MSG.
All in all, the wan tan noodles at Cheong Kee may not be the BEST Wan Tan Noodle I have ever tasted (for I prefer mine with decadent chunks of caramelized Char Siew!), and far from the worst. Above average I would say, for the QQ-texture of the egg noodles excelled, while the pork dumpling was somewhat lacking.
Be here early, or else ……..
The noodles come in three portions (the usual orders, but of course you can go for triple, or even quadruple portions!), being SINGLE @ RM2.90, ONE-HALF/MEDIUM @ RM3.70, and DOUBLE @ RM4.40. Extra order of ‘wantan’s is of course permissible.
Do arrive early for dinner, as the place can get really, REALLY packed during the peak hours. And since they cook at a slower pace than you might have expected, you may end up waiting for close to one hour for your serving of wan tan noodles !!!! But thankfully, we got ours within 20 minutes.
Address & Contact Numbers :
Cheong Kee Wan Tan Noodle
542, Jalan Sekolah,
Buntong, 30100 Ipoh,
Perak, Malaysia.
Tel No : +605-2550789 or +6019-5166781/+6016-5111282
(Contact numbers from the owner’s son’s blog HERE)
Opens daily from 7.00pm until 12.00 midnight, or until the noodle is sold off.
Closed on Sundays.
Here’s a GOOGLE MAP to CHEONG KEE WAN TAN NOODLE @ BUNTONG, IPOH
## For the other views on Cheong Kee, hop over to Simple Girl’s who claimed it to be Ipoh best, Joz Chan (the owner’s filial son) who gave an insight into his father’s 40+ years of legacy, and even WikiStreetFood‘s. ##
- This post has been filed under Ultimate Ipoh Food List -
Ipoh Buntong Famous Wan Tan Noodle @ Cheong Kee | Motormouth From Ipoh – A Malaysian Food Blog…
Over 40 years in business, Cheong Kee in Buntong has been serving their brand of Ipoh famous Wan Tan Noodle for dinner.Their egg noodles is homemade for that extra touch. This is Malaysia street food at its best; homemade, authentic and cheap….
hmm…i just had it last week…..i love thr dry wan tan mee, but the soup version is so so only ya!!! their noodle is springy and dry sauce is so nice, slurp slurp
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J2Kfm Reply:
November 17th, 2009 at 11:06 pm
aiks, I kind of like the soup version. very seldom you see me eating a soup-based noodles, but this one rather good. the soup very flavourful lah ……
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hey J, i havent tried this before.. Jalan Sekolah.. wonder where it is.. at night, my eyes cannot see so well… esp in unfamiliar roads such as Buntong…ahahaha.. ok, will try one of these weekdays..not weekends definitely, waitin for an hour is really too much! like that buntong char fun in Leong Sin Nam Street..
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J2Kfm Reply:
November 17th, 2009 at 11:08 pm
erm, go from town towards the roundabout of Buntong.
on the way, take note of Caltex station on your RIGHT.
turn into that road, Jalan Guntong, then go straight.
once you reach the slope going up, turn left immediately into Jalan Sekolah.
after about 100metres, you’ll see Cheong Kee at a corner lot on your RIGHT.
if all else fails, ask me again.
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Beside curry noodle ( curry meifan min ) , wantan mee ( ??? ??pinyin : yun tun mian) is my favourite noodle ! Always go for these two until nothing else to be publish !
How I wish I can taste this wanton mee but it is too far away from my place ( Bercham )
!
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J2Kfm Reply:
November 17th, 2009 at 11:09 pm
hey I am somewhere very near to you only. haha … yeah Buntong a bit far off, but comparing Bercham-Buntong, and any two locations in KL/Selangor, you can almost heave a sigh of relief!
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bet u thought third time would be the charm when u went back, huh?
the noodles for the kolo mee do look fantastic. i don’t think i’ve ever had springy noodles in kolo mee before… the strands are always limp, soggy and only a few inches long … but one hour’s wait? hmmmmm….
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Goodness. Their wan tan mee must be damn delicious. People are lining up. :p
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yeah i love how ipoh has tat option of single, 1.5 n double..can always size up haha
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J2Kfm Reply:
November 18th, 2009 at 3:55 pm
eh I thought its the same everywhere else? hehe, its too normal for Ipohans to go “Chek Bun Meen”, or “Mah Meen” ……
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wah… everyone is giving a thumbs up for this wan tan mee. Must go try out d
.-= allie´s last blog ..Christmas Lunch Buffet at The Brasserie, Traders =-.
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looks like my kinda place. tell my is the chili spicy?
.-= cumidanciki´s last blog ..Restoran Bukit Tinggi BBQ @ Bentong, Pahang =-.
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J2Kfm Reply:
November 18th, 2009 at 10:33 am
of course not. haha, as usual.
but oklah, tangy, a little kick, and crunchy.
not the soggy ones that has been soaked forever.
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Thanks for making me hungry at this hour.
Wan tan mee has always been one of my favourites! Love the ones from HK the most. But I’m like you, prefer those with huge slabs of char siew… Perhaps next time you’ll introduce the other version of wan tan mee with char siew eh? 
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J2Kfm Reply:
November 18th, 2009 at 10:34 am
in Ipoh, I have YET to find one that serves really good Char Siew. so I’ll be needing some help here.
but there’s one chicken rice stall that sells amazing caramelized Char Siew, almost resembling KL’s Meng Kee/FSF varieties.
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D-Tourist Reply:
November 18th, 2009 at 11:16 pm
if good charsiew is what u want, then u need to try Overseas Restaurant’s Charsiew Meen. but be prepared for the most expensive charsiew meen in ipoh lor.. hahaha… but overseas restaurants’ charsiu is very good.. well caramelized and with nice proportion of sinful fat and meat…
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J2Kfm Reply:
November 19th, 2009 at 2:11 pm
wait, they sell char siew meen in Overseas?!! the old or the new swanky outlet?
aiyo, I doubt I’ll eat char siew in Overseas though.
but if ngam ngam bun fei sau, and perfectly sticky, sweet and glistening,
maybe I’ll give that a try.
how much per portion eh?
D-Tourist Reply:
November 19th, 2009 at 5:45 pm
yupe… they do… i’ve tried the old outlet one. .. but i’m not sure about the new outlet.
u should try oversea’s charsiu, its supposedly one of their signature dish.
yes… perfect ratio of fat and meat, well caramelised and sticky, sweet and glistening. …
if ur ordering ala carte charsiu only… then easily >RM20 per plate of the purely sinful charsiu
and if charsiu meen its btw rm8-12 for single person portion (mind u, if u r big eater, it may not be sufficient) – somehow i think for charsiu meen, they may not be giving the prime cuts. Whereas the ala carte charsiu is definately their prime cuts.
D-Tourist Reply:
November 19th, 2009 at 6:00 pm
here is a pic of the charsiu meen http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=2887795&id=30490763961
shot wif a mobile camera… so lighting not so good.
I must ask Claire to take me along when she goes there :p that’s the advantage of having a colleague who is an ardent food blogger!
)
.-= Elin´s last blog ..Korean BBQ Buffet At ‘Riche Montana’ =-.
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omg. i wana try!
.-= kampungboycitygal´s last blog ..Restaurant Hong Kong Dessert aka Tim Pan Gor Gor @ SS2 =-.
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“Which prompted him to quickly rushed over and arranged the plates and ‘tools of the trade’ in an orderly manner, before I could snap my shot!”
See? Even the chefs and cooks are alert to food bloggers and their paparazzi-like cameras, hehe. Take it as a compliment, mate.
.-= Life for Beginners´s last blog ..Tell You Something =-.
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J2Kfm Reply:
November 18th, 2009 at 8:28 pm
aiks, maybe they were thinking I’m someone from Jabatan Kesihatan or something.
doing spot-checks?!
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Funny ! Why didn’t you stop that guy from busy arranging plates etc “Ok lah, brother..” ?!
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if good charsiew is what u want, then u need to try Overseas Restaurant’s Charsiew Meen. but be prepared for the most expensive charsiew meen in ipoh lor.. hahaha… but overseas restaurants’ charsiu is very good.. well caramelized and with nice proportion of sinful fat and meat…
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the wanton noodles really looks SPRINGY!!
and it’s kinda tough to find food owners that still manage to maintain their specilty standard so firmly after years, even for decades these days. i wanna try too!
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I was staying in First Garden for nearly 20 years and yet I’ve only tried it once or twice. Can’t even remember how it tasted. Well, must go back down memory lane again.
Btw, have you heard of the Chee Cheong Fun with mushroom sauce sold at night in First Garden by a few brothers. I’m not sure whether they are still selling it. I used to like it.
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J2Kfm Reply:
November 19th, 2009 at 2:17 pm
in first garden at night? hmm, no idea lah. I seldom go over to Buntong/First Garden/Menglembu for dinner for I stay quite a distance away.
the Buntong Wantan Mee to me, may not be the best version out there, but remains a novelty, for the authentic homemade noodles deserve a mention.
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Whenever mom went to out to ta pao meals home, I would have wanton mee set at default. Such is my love for wanton mee
Therefore, one look at the noodle and I’ll know if its up to par or not. At least up to my taste or not. In this case, by looking at the picture of this Cheong Kee wanton mee, I know I’d still prefer my personal favourite, and that is at the Perak stadium food stalls. Didn’t take note of the outlet no, so sorry, usually I just remember the people. In this case, a senior couple would be manning the outlet.
The pickled green chillies must be well pickled. The ones as pictured above looked ‘fresh’ @ not well pickled. Can’t judge the wanton itself by the pic. A nice wanton must carry a combination aroma pepper and sesame seed oil…yummy!
Who am I to judge by just looking at the pics. Must ‘pong chan’ (visit-la) this place some day to be fair, maybe in a not so near future as I’m on a slimming spree. CNY is around in three months. Must start early
Maybe I’ll visit this place during CNY, anyone wanna acompany me?
.-= ahlock´s last blog ..What the Inventor of the Flu Shot NOW Thinks of the Vaccine… =-.
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J2Kfm Reply:
November 19th, 2009 at 7:54 pm
you know, back then I was just like you. I liked the corner coffee shop in Ipoh Garden East, named Taman Timur Baru or something. but then the quality dropped.
Cheong Kee’s version is different, the sauce is almost like a mushroom gravy type, thicker and coating every strand of the egg noodles. the pork strips add to the novelty effect, something common Wantan Mee dont have.
the stadium one in the morning or night? I tried the morning one @ http://www.j2kfm.com/ipoh-street-food/
but the portion damn small, and tastewise ok only. some more the wait was VERY long.
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Stanley Reply:
November 20th, 2009 at 10:19 am
Cheong Kee’s sauce is the first thing I noticed when I tried it years ago. It is different than most run-of-the-mill wanton mees around Ipoh.
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J2Kfm Reply:
November 20th, 2009 at 8:55 pm
yeah, it’s thick, dark and almost like the ubiquitous mushroom gravy, commonly served with chee cheong fun. but with only strips of pork and bean sprout instead.
I used go there when I was in secondary school time, and the shop is still wooden type. Now realize that its already upgrade with concrete type of shop. I used to order “che pun” one and half. hahaha.
You have done very good job by creating this blog, I enjoy to read it, at least act my guidance when I want to find food in Ipoh. It also remind me lot of old day memory. BTW I am Ipoh lang, but now stay in KL due to work.
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J2Kfm Reply:
November 26th, 2009 at 12:39 pm
Hi Wong. Thanks for the visit. They’re just relocated to this new shop not long ago, in the middle of this year.
Anyway, most Ipoh langs also went off to KL, Penang or even Singapore for greener pastures.
Just that I’m stuck here for the time being.
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