A Dry Curry Noodle Rivalling Ipoh’s?
September 21, 2011 | 8,432 views
Ipoh style of Dry Curry Kuey Teow (Sar Hor Fun) with abundance of juicy bean sprouts, handful of chopped scallions, perfectly poached chicken, potatoes and beancurd (tau fu pok) underneath. Options include crackling roast pork (siew yoke), char siew (caramelized BBQ pork slices) or even curry cockles!
Pardon the slight hiatus between posts lately. Must be the almighty’s way of telling this glutton to rest up and concentrate on the finer things in life. Those precious little moments we tend to neglect of their existence …. their importance and prominence.
Internet connection at home has been down for two days. To no solid reason yet, at least according to the lady on the other line from TM. Whatever it is, keeping my hopes up for some optimistic outcome tonight.
A short filler of a post today; since Boo threw me a question on where to get the closest thing to the real deal in Ipoh; and we are on to dry curry mee, let me share this place in Ara Damansara …..

Good quality “sar hor fun” should be thin, smooth, of a bouncy texture yet not overly hardened/chewy/soft. And of course almost devoid of any chemical taste, from over-processing of the rice noodles.
I have been eating at this place for the last 10 months …. ever since I moved to PJ, actually. You know, something funny about us food bloggers is that, we tend to shy away from writing about the food that we eat on a daily basis, or the closest neighbourhood kopitiam we frequent the most. At least that’s my impression, judging from the feedback I garnered.
This stall housed in a coffee shop named Do Re Mi (what a name huh?) in Ara Damansara serves Ipoh style of ‘kai see hor fun’ (chicken kuey teow soup) and curry noodles in the mornings. The old couple are a patient lot, although they do compromise on their speed of serving the bowls of noodles to the customers, especially on busier mornings.

Don’t dismiss this as just another run-of-the-mill stall proclaiming dominance with the “IPOH” moniker. And you’d imagine foreign workers lifelessly blanching the noodles and tossing the ready-made pot of curry with nary a glimmer of passion. Oh no ….. see the Chinese couple at work, and be amazed at how they shower each bowl with utmost passion.
A friend recommended this stall to me. A fellow Ipohan who has been residing in this city on steroids for a good few years now. He must have sensed my longing for good old Ipoh style noodles, and urged me to give this a try. Since it’s the closest thing to what Ipoh has to offer.
Verdict? I dare say, he’s right. So far. A very thick gravy redolent with spices and not overly greasy, coating the beautiful strands of flat rice noodles in a sizeable portion. The accompanying roast pork, poached chicken and potatoes added much substance to the serving.
Not tongue-numbingly spicy, yet with a pleasant tingle to the palate, and a creamy gravy that went really well with the noodles. Crunchy bean sprouts upped the ante for I have always hated limp, lifeless, wriggly sprouts served commonly here.

Mee Sapi (Beef Tripes Noodles) from another stall – Not too bad, but came across rather bland. This Sarawak/Sibu-inspired stall also serves classic Kampua mee etc.
I won’t compare the curry noodles to the BEST of what Ipoh has to offer. But on a serious note, this old couple’s version can really kick some a$$es. I for one, found myself relishing in the thought of weekend brunch here, slurping on their creation with a half-hearted attempt of imagining I’m back in my hometown, sipping on white coffee to wash them all down.
Wait, did I mention that Do Re Mi serve pretty good beverages too? On good days, the milk tea is of superior quality compared to the average coffee shops; a well-balanced milky and astringent taste from the tannins. But then again … quality may differ when your cup of tea is prepared by a different person. And yes, they hire quite a number of foreigners running the place.
At night, the stall serving ‘siew chow’ (mini-fry, literally) individual portions of rice with a variety of meats/vegetables is a winner. Good sweet and sour pork, with sweet pineapples to boot. The Indian stall serves a reasonably good thosai, poori and chapati too.
Restoran Do Re Mi Mini Food Court
Jalan PJU 1A/20G,
Dataran Ara Damansara,
47301 Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.
Simon Seow has been here before too. Nigel Low loved the bitter gourd noodles. Meals I Had fell for the fried noodles from the ‘siew chow’ stall.
*If you have been itching to know why I was so engrossed in seeking for a dry curry noodle worthy of Ipoh’s standards, read this post – All About Ipoh’s Curry Noodles

“You know, something funny about us food bloggers is that, we tend to shy away from writing about the food that we eat on a daily basis, or the closest neighbourhood kopitiam we frequent the most.”
I think that is very correct actually!
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[…] Motormouth From Ipoh – Malaysian Food & Travel Blog Filed Under: Asian Cuisine Tagged With: asian cuisine, asian recipes, chicken recipes, food […]
“You know, something funny about us food bloggers is that, we tend to shy away from writing about the food that we eat on a daily basis, or the closest neighbourhood kopitiam we frequent the most.”
It applies to non-food bloggers too 😛
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J2Kfm Reply:
September 22nd, 2011 at 2:40 pm
Oh okay … haha, forgot about that. But of course, people who blog about food more often than not should be termed as food bloggers I supposed …
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I relocated from Ipoh a few years ago and I frequent Doremi in Ara Damansara. I have tried many curry mee stalls in the Klang Valley and I find this stall is the closest to Ipoh’s version esp. if you add mint leaves. He could do away with the tow foo pok and it will be just like our Ipoh version.
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J2Kfm Reply:
September 22nd, 2011 at 2:40 pm
Oh wow … glad that I have someone of the same opinion. True, Ipoh’s version has chicken, roast pork and cockles at times, but the curry paste resembles Ipoh’s version most.
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The hor fun got the sour taste or not? Some place when I eat the hor fun carries the sour taste which potong stim pretty much =.=”
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J2Kfm Reply:
September 24th, 2011 at 10:29 pm
Erm … no sour taste woh …. the curry with a squeeze of lime juice; yes. But slightly tangy with a very pleasant piquant taste.
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Ipoh style of Dry Curry Kuey Teow , I love to taste it as I nearby that place 😛
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[…] up late last year, though I almost always passed by the corner lot while going home from a meal at Do Re Mi; what could possibly be the ONLY worthy coffee shop/food court in all of the area. […]
Hi there. I am the residence of Ara too, and Doreme is no doubt the best coffee shop around. Sarawak mee store has improved so much recently….can really be one of the best in KL now. I was disappointed earlier with their way under par noodle. Their Sarawak wanton is already, in my opinion, the best. Eat it dry with chili + soya sauce…yummy.
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J2Kfm Reply:
May 28th, 2012 at 9:20 pm
Hey! I was back there and tried the Kolo Mee this time, and yeah .. like you said, not too bad. They have certainly improved. But still, I am a sucker for the ‘siew chow’ (small fry?) stall serving individual portion of rice or noodles.
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Ya…siew chow is the best choice at night, especially the fried mee hoon!!
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The curry mee is the best i hv ever eaten.Portion also big! Very unique bcuz of siew yuk.Must try!!! The tauke also very friendly, always smiling
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J2Kfm Reply:
November 7th, 2012 at 10:38 pm
Hi DKNY … a bit slow service, but definitely one of the instant reminder of good old Ipoh’s curry mee.
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