Kampar Food Court – Char Koay Teow Uncle On A Stool, Lou Shu Fun & Char Siew Glutinous Rice
September 24, 2010 | 9,855 views
Seated on a stool, at such a low height; will this affect the amount of ‘wok hei’ or strength and passion that goes into a plate of Char Koay Teow? Highly doubtful. Given the usually 30 minutes or more wait.
Friday in a Flash. This week started slow, then picked up halfway through. Yesterday we were down to Kampar, en route to Teluk Intan and subsequently Hutan Melintang. If you knew two out of the three places mentioned above, I don’t blame you. Why oh why does Hutan Melintang sound so familiar?
A case of me and my bad mouth, perhaps? Refer to the previous rants on the prawns of Tanjung Piandang and you’ll understand why. Since I only have myself to blame, I relented and embarked on this journey ….
Anyway, to reach Teluk Intan from Ipoh (about 1.5 hours worth of journey) you can take a few routes. The shortest being the Kampar-Kampung Gajah trunk road, but you have to give the expressway a miss. If you can’t survive without speeding precariously on the roads, you can take the North South Expressway and exit at the Tapah toll, then proceed to Tapah Road from Jalan Stesyen and proceed to Teluk Intan from there.
If you somehow crave for some Langkap pau (though I myself am not sure where’s the original stall or factory in Langkap town), you can use the Langkap way from Kampar, or if coming from the south (Kuala Lumpur, Johor) then exit at the Bidor toll exit and proceed from there. Lengthy enough? Contact me for more precise directions, if you ever need them.
The fish ball noodles stall at the food court; Stall number 13 – Gerai Mee Sup Lee Chak Kian
Naturally, when passing by Kampar, we would automatically (almost) find ourselves scrambling for a table at the food court near the morning market, which leads to a full blown breakfast of simple hawker fares washed down with a cup of frothy milk tea or coffee (all made on the spot; none of those pre-mixed beverages in a jug).
Medan Selera Kampar is hands down THE place to be for breakfast in Kampar, as you can find at least one type of food to your liking. Roti Canai? Checked. Fish ball noodles? Checked. Glutinous rice with char siew and curry? Checked! Curry Chee Cheong Fun? Checked.
Dry version of the Kampar lou shu fun (silver thread noodles, or rat’s tail noodles literally) with various sides of Liew.
Surprise, surprise. The place was packed to the brim! Yes, at every corner, every stall, and every alley was parked with tables of patrons stuffing their faces. I am not joking.
Then we remembered that this was the day after Mid-Autumn Festival. A festival where the locals working outstation would be back for an annual gathering, eating mooncakes under the moonlight and burning lighting up lanterns and candles. Yeah, this probably explained the sudden influx of people.
After being repeatedly disappointed with the missed opportunities of trying out the famous Char Koay Teow fried by an old uncle seated on a stool, I had my mind set. Can’t be having the same savoury glutinous rice with BBQ pork/char siew right? Though I don’t deny that the plate of sticky rice served with peanuts, slices of lean ‘char siew’ and optional drenching with curry gravy is darn enticing. Don’t take my word for it. Try one for yourself. RM2.00/USD0.65 per portion.
Yes, Stall No 42′s glutinous rice remains my favourite choice for breakfast at the market. But try to be there early, as sometimes by 11am+ they would have called it a day.
Alas. My gripping determination did not meet its intended outcome. The aunty (wife?) of the uncle frantically frying up a large metal wok of Char Koay Teow dampened our spirits.
“Must wait for 30 minutes ah ….!!! Many people today !!!”
Likened to an ordeal of being showered with a pail of cold water, we retracted with tails between our legs. And wandered like lost sheeps for alternatives. NK’s sudden burst of optimism at the wantan mee stall was met with an equally disastrous comeback;
“Busy lah …. wait for 15 minutes or more …”
Pork Porridge from the same stall that I patronized back then. And yes, to CPK, this IS probably the porridge stall you were griping about when you asked about this famous porridge from the food court.
Guess what we ordered then? No brownie points, sorry. Back to the same old offering of glutinous rice with char siew, and curry gravy. Since that’s the fastest, and you can choose to self-serve by carrying your own plate from the stall. A 30 cents increase in price since the last visit. But understandable, given the escalating price of pork?
The porridge still is a wise choice, and you can choose between pork, chicken or fish to fuel your protein needs. Or go for the offals, if you’re a fan of crunchy pig’s intestines. Find the stall next to one of the entrance from the side. There is a newspaper cutting from The Star pasted on the glass display.
In the heart of the action : She – Tucking into her noodles. She – In a trance blanching the noodles in an almost clockwork manner. He – Scooping up balls after balls of goodness. And Me – Lining up like a fool when the queue’s meant for those taking away the noodles …..
There are various stalls in the market selling the same Kampar famous lou shu fun with various meat balls, and stuffed fish paste (yong tau foo or yong liew). This time I walked over to the stall nearest to the porridge stall, since there was a queue snaking in front of it.
And I joined the line albeit the fact that I was not required to. Since I am dining in, and not doing the take-away option. Silly me. But the short period of time when I was behind the ladies was utilized wisely. I browsed around for what the person in front of me was taking, and taking photos along the way. Maybe I was being inconspicuous enough as I did not sense hostility from the hawkers, as well as the customers.
Or maybe I was just being myself; a thick-skinned guy with no remorse? 
MEDAN SELERA KAMPAR (Kampar Food Court)
Between Jalan Masjid & Jalan Ampang,
Kampar, Perak, Malaysia.
GPS Coordinates : E101 9′ 1.6″ N4 18′ 51.5″
Google Map to Medan Selera Kampar
HAPPY WEEKEND PEOPLE !!! SHARE YOUR FOOD FINDS WITH MOTORMOUTH?
Oooh my territory! yes that CKT ALWAYS has a 30-minute waiting time, but usually you’ll get it within 20 minutes. There’s actually another CKT stall that I quite like and serves much faster than this stall, cooked by a rather plump lady. AND, you should also try the loh mai fan stall from outside, just by the road. Our family unanimously agree it’s much better than the stall inside the food court
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J2Kfm Reply:
September 24th, 2010 at 4:09 pm
Yeah, I tried that one from the outside before. Not bad, but many people that morning. And some more we decided NOT to have glutinous rice at first.
Only to be disappointed from various stalls with snaking lines ….. even the Chee Cheong Fun stall was crowded. Mad.
I will look for the other CKT stall. Usually we ordered the one in the middle, by a man. Not bad too.
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Hey J2Kfm, I have been to that place before too =] All the food is very cheap there, ranging from RM2 to 4 only.. Somemore, they are very delicious.. That day I passed through the CKT stall too and saw an uncle sitting there frying CKT but never try it as we had eaten.. Next time must really try it, the smell is good when passed by there.. Haha.. CCF stall is crowded you said? Kampar’s CCF is very famous for their taste, that’s why the queue will always be insanely long.. lol..
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J2Kfm Reply:
September 24th, 2010 at 6:20 pm
I have eaten that Chee Cheong Fun before, where it’s self service one. You line up, pick your choice of gravy (curry, mostly) with fish balls and various ingredients, then pay and carry your own plate.
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wyyv Reply:
September 25th, 2010 at 1:57 am
hmm.. may i know wad is the name of the stall? wad time u went there? i went there at night and there is one CCF stall known as “Shui Kei” sells very nice CCF one.. the line is very long even when the shop havent open for business.. yes, it is self-service oso with a lot of “liew” to choose from =D the CCF is so unforgettable…
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J2Kfm Reply:
September 25th, 2010 at 12:10 pm
I am not sure of the name, but it’s just next to this CKT uncle’s stall. In the morning-afternoon.
lao su fun Reply:
October 10th, 2010 at 8:45 pm
the food stall 36..o0o
Eh I thought the one who fries is an auntie? Or the aunties does night shift? Haha.
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Ah Kwan is the uncle’s name btw….We have been patronizing his stall for more than 20 years and counting….a tip for u if u really wanna try his CKT, there is no crowd during lunch hour and u can get it within 15 minutes….he fries each and every plate individually so it takes longer….his homemade sambal belacan is great to go with his CKT.
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J2Kfm Reply:
September 24th, 2010 at 11:25 pm
Thanks jeremy0 for the name and the tips. We never thought of having our LUNCH there though, for I have always thought that only breakfast is available.
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Waaa..its alws the old towns that you will find such gems. And tht red char siew so so so so remind me of Pg. heheh..i think in KL, the KL-ites wil balk at such char siew!
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J2Kfm Reply:
September 25th, 2010 at 12:35 am
Haha … not really. You can read about masak-masak’s post on the glutinous rice from Kampar, and the slices of artificially-red char siew that goes along with it.
Somehow, I don’t think that fat, caramelized and charred homemade char siew suits the equally sinful glutinous rice with curry.
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The glutinous rice looks good!
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That CKT uncle appeared in Axian TV program before, sure got long queuing line lah ^^
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J2Kfm Reply:
September 25th, 2010 at 12:11 pm
Yes ah? No wonder lah …. so famous already. And the lady was a little arrogant though. Told us off say 30 minutes, then another customer right after that she said wait 1 hour! >_<
Erm …. miscalculation?
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mmm, i love that brown ball like thing in kampar noodles. i can’t find it anywhere else but ipoh
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jeremy0 Reply:
September 25th, 2010 at 7:21 pm
that thing is called chao yuen btw….it is a kampar speciality
….the bests one can be found at the laksa stall behind gold wing food court in the afternoon
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J2Kfm Reply:
September 25th, 2010 at 7:59 pm
Gold Wing Food Court?! Mind telling on which road the place is at?
Yeah, chao yuen.
In Ipoh one can find them at the Law Shi Fun restaurant in Bercham, and the original branch in Pasir Puteh.
http://www.j2kfm.com/restoran-law-shi-fun-bercham-ipoh-fishball-noodle/
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jeremy0 Reply:
September 26th, 2010 at 9:35 am
Its on the road at the town’s end where there are 36 stalls beside the river. Most of them operates only during the afternoon. If you’re familiar with the kampar Onn Kee noodle stall, its just next to it.
spursfan Reply:
November 22nd, 2010 at 5:46 pm
that’s abit hard … well, can’t complain if it’s 10 cents each …
btw, motor, u didn’t try ham kok chai?
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J2Kfm Reply:
November 22nd, 2010 at 7:44 pm
spursfan – Aiyo, somehow ah … whenever we had breakfast at the food court, the ham kok chai uncle was never there!
Hahaha
yeah! That little baby is indeed motormouth in the making. 
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[...] to fried meatballs is one of the more famous export of Kampar; a town about 40km south from Ipoh. This stall serves good ‘zha yuen’ in the food court in [...]
Is there any ppl can tell me tat the business hour??if I arrive there about 4.30pm still got a food to eat or not?
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J2Kfm Reply:
August 22nd, 2011 at 9:32 am
I don’t think so. That’s a little too late already.
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Went to Medan Selera Kampar, and took the Char Siew Glutinous rice, porridge, char koew toew, coffee, dried Lou Shu Fan, and we loved the food so much, and finished every single dish! and we found that the Ban Chang Kueh or Dai Gou Min is also damn tasty!!
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The Dai Gao Min also very nice.
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J2Kfm Reply:
April 28th, 2012 at 12:05 pm
I see … but which corner eh? The soft type of dau gau min or the crispy type?
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