Motormouth From Ipoh – Asian Food & Travel Blog

 A specialty of Malaccan origin; seldom replicated outside of the state; the Chicken Rice Ball may seem gimmicky and without substance, especially when most people tend to smash the lumps before eating them anyway.

Visiting Malacca/Melaka without dropping by at least once to any of the chicken rice ball restaurants seem like a sin. Or at least, a sign that you have read too much from the media, or well-informed by friends or families that there are way better options out there. But nonetheless, I am but one hungry, curious tourist and though I tend to skip familiar tourist haunts in Malacca, I did find myself settling for hotspots like a moth to the flame.

After the stories on Chung Wah and Hoe Kee, I thought that those would have been the end of my chicken rice ball pursuits. But here’s Huang Chang situated a slight distance away from town. The most alluring point? That even the locals throng this place in Taman Melaka Baru, Batu Berendam from the break of dawn until lunch hour. 

 Before you go … WHAT?! Let me tell you that this queue starts from morning until Chung Wah is closed for business. Really. Worse when it’s a long weekend or public holiday.

And so, the adventurous soul (okay, more like jaded since we lost track of where to eat that Sunday morning) ventured over to Taman Melaka Baru (trusty GPS in hand of course) for a jab at this supposedly locals’ favourite chicken rice stall in all of Malacca. Or so, they had me believing.

After all, seeing the picture of Chung Wah above, who would want to risk starvation while lining up for some balls?

That came out wrong somehow.

 It was 10am. No joke. And this was the scene at Huang Chang Restaurant

Just like how Klangites adore their Bak Kut Teh to bits that they extend their eating habit to cover from break of dawn until sundown, the Malaccans love their chicken rice for breakfast. Or so it seemed.

Not necessarily shaped into balls lah … actually. But if you visit Malacca and ask for a plate of normal chicken rice with roasted chicken, might as well stay in KL (or wherever you are) and go order your beloved ‘gai fan’ (chicken rice in Cantonese) from your preferred uncle’s stall. Correct?

Huang Chang practises a rather different type of ordering system. Much like Chung Wah’s, but more organized. There are even laminated A4-sized instructions on the wall directing you step by step on how to order and not to throw tantrum unnecessarily. We were lucky to have arrived 15 minutes before the mad crowd trickled in. Anyway, the shop can only accommodate a medium sized crowd of say, 40 pax or so.

So don’t go sipping on your Pu-Er and sing songs/play birds. Lest you get swatted like flies.

 A quarter of a chicken, and a few rice balls came to slightly more than RM10 only. Indeed … cheaper than the over-rated ones in town.

The chicken rice ball fest at Huang Chang was mediocre at best. Underwhelming, though the rice balls tasted okay … yet nothing that would attract me for subsequent tries. The platter of poached chicken was horribly dry and bland, saved by the specially-concocted chili sauce; a cross between chili sauce and sambal.

 Since each ball was merely the size of an old 50 cents coin, you can down at least 10 balls each. Or more, depending on your cravings for chicken rice balls.

I was stumped as to how they could have cooked the chicken to such dry and tough texture. Or maybe I was expecting too much from a local’s recommendation? After all, neither Chung Wah, Hoe Kee or Famosa managed to excite me back then.

Maybe I should have taken heed and stick to better options for breakfast in this beautiful town.

Now tell me, where is a safe bet for breakfast in Malacca? 

HUANG CHANG CHICKEN RICE RESTAURANT (non-Halal)
BB-376, Taman Melaka Baru,
Batu Berendam, 75350 Melaka, Malaysia
Business Hours : 6.45am – 3.00pm
Closed on Thursdays
GPS : 2.237917, 102.259464