Motormouth From Ipoh – Malaysian Food & Travel

Kong Sai Signature Poached Chicken – The condiments make all the difference

If you have been irritated by the fact that I respond to your e-mail or comment with a generous dose of tardiness lately, I sincerely apologize.

Or you’ve been deprived of the frequent doses of Motormouth’s ramblings, I felt bad too.

Been working my @$$ off the past few weeks, and I foresee no relenting until the fasting month. And that’s another month to go. Even my camera has been stashed away most of the time, only making periodic appearance in instances like this gathering at Kong Sai Restaurant in Paramount Garden last week.

Or maybe the week prior. Sorry, I’m in another dimension altogether. Let’s drool over some Guangxi cuisine this hazy Monday morning.

Guangxi-style Stuffed Tofu Balls

Stir-fried Bitter Gourd with Egg

Pig’s Stomach Pepper Soup

Braised Pork Belly with Yam

Now, this was not the first time I visited Kong Sai. I have been to their outlets in Paramount and Subang most of the time, yet ‘conveniently’ neglected the fact that I should carry around my camera and write a proper review of the food served.

Kong Sai resembles your common ‘dai chow’ restaurant wedged between old shoplots in your neighbourhood. You don’t expect ground-breaking dishes yet more often than not, you’d end up satisfied by the selection and quality of the food.

Kong Sai in Paramount Garden expanded to the adjacent premise not too long ago, as I still remember the last lunch with my ex-colleagues was at the previous single lot. A wise expansion as we have always felt like sardines in a can when dining there during peak lunch hour, and waiting for a table was not an uncommon sight.

They do have several outlets elsewhere, but I have been to the one in Subang Jaya (SS15) a couple of times; usually over dinner. Still, the one in Paramount Garden started this Guangxi cuisine fame and collate well with the niche offerings around the vicinity; comprising of Hainanese cuisine at Ping Wah (same row) and Hakka cuisine at Golden View (opposite of this row separated by Giant Hypermarket).

Most patrons would settled for their signature Poached Chicken rendered with golden hue skin, but the winning formula has to be the condiments mixing finely-chopped ginger, coriander, scallions, and a heady mix of soy sauce, chicken and sesame oil. A sinful thought to be drizzling oil onto your rice, but you’d be surprised how the seemingly basic concoction worked wonders with the chicken and rice.

The other dishes worth mentioning include Guangxi Stuffed Tofu Balls, Curry Pork Ribs (finished on that evening), Pig’s Stomach Pepper Soup and various Chinese dishes that will keep drawing you back to the restaurant.

That being said, the dinner experience at the recently expanded restaurant scored mixed reactions from fellow diners, as the 15 minutes of standing around for a vacant table was not justified by the quality of the food. The high traffic of diners could have impacted the cooking, as the usual QC was evidently not present.

Regardless, I foresee no qualms in revisiting the restaurant in due time; preferably over dinner on a quieter weekday and pass judgment from then on. After all, good chicken rice is hard to come by; plus Kong Sai‘s version will keep you salivating even over the condiments!

Kong Sai Restaurant (non-Halal)
No 39, Jalan 20/16,
Paramount Garden,
46300 Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia.
Tel No : +6012-298 4038, +6019-384 2922
Closed on Sundays. Opens for lunch and dinner on the other days.