Motormouth From Ipoh – Asian Food & Travel Blog

Breakfast Parfait (RM14.80/USD5) – Layered Greek yoghurt upon fruits and honey, topped with crunchy granola. Now this somehow lessened the CNY guilt of over-eating. Slightly.

Good Morning Ipoh!

Continuing the Ipoh Cafe Series this festive homecoming, we ended up at Something’s Brewing not once, but twice over the past 2 days. The relatively easy to access location plus ample parking spaces and short distance to home made this a no-brainer really.

Ready for the second chapter of the series? Here we go ….  Read the rest of this entry »

Ben & Lynette Maison Patisserie opened its doors barely two months ago; owned by the same people of Secret Garden

Happy Chinese New Year dear followers of Motormouth From Ipoh. The moment that I set my gaze upon the huge IPOH sign greeting travelers along the North South Expressway, my heart instantly melted. The body felt energized, the mind working into overdrive compiling a list of MUST-EATs this time around, and the sheer joy of reuniting (not that we were apart in the first place) with families and friends set the pulse racing.

The recent surge of cafes dominating the food and beverage scene has kept many foodies excited; some embarked on cafe marathon while others proudly embraced the shutterbug spirit in them and clicking away and sharing them through social media platforms.

I have to admit that Motormouth’s a bit rusty in this department. Once a month excursion back home could only rendered me with so much (or little) time for cafe runs; especially when you know this local Ipoh boy soul is still very much endeared by old school, straight up, no frills Ipoh hawker food.

Lest we need to remind you once again, the New Year belongs to the Horse. Stallions. Ponies. Unicorns. Or whatever you wish for your year to be represented by.

The list was compiled in a half-hearted manner though. This list of cafes (and by cafes I removed our delightful coffee shops from the list, obviously) consisted of almost a dozen names. Though I don’t reckon that I can achieve grand success of trying them all and writing about them this round (also contributed by the fact that some may be closed for the season), I shall try.

Here’s the first chapter on Ben & Lynette Maison Patisserie ….  Read the rest of this entry »

 Love for anything industrial; Artisan Roast HQ opened in the midst of a light industrial area in Section 13, Petaling Jaya near to the landmarks of Jaya One and Jaya 33. 

In 12 hours from now, I should be on my way back to Ipoh. Or maybe, a wishful thought of finally stepping home and munching on CNY snacks (usually arrowroot/ngaku chips), while contemplating on which new eatery to tackle first. After all, the recent boom in new lifestyle cafes in Ipoh got me a wee bit left behind.

Yes, Motormouth of all people. So, if you have the slightest ounce of empathy embedded within you … please share with me on what you think should not be held back from public knowledge. And eventually will benefit the ‘balik kampung’ crowd.

Already in a festive mode, let’s diminish the thought of work for a second and drink some really good coffee @ Artisan Roast in Section 13, Petaling Jaya … Read the rest of this entry »

To minimize the guilt of over-indulging prior to the festive season, we settled for lean pork only during our Bak Kut Teh session this morning. Yes, I let my cravings got the better of my judgment. 

Now hands up how many of you in KL or PJ got stuck in the congestion around shopping malls over the weekend? Or got caught up in perpetual queues at the check out counters? Last minute shopping frenzy seems to be the activity Malaysians love to indulge in the most; and retailers are having a whale of a time participating in extended hours shopamania.

In a blink of an eye, 2013 has come and gone; not without leaving a trail of memories. And devastation no less. Don’t hit the panic button yet, it’s not of the catastrophic kind but more to bearing witness to a failed healthy eating plan meticulously devised at the end of 2012. Yup, you can read snippets from the Top 13 Ipoh Food Finds post.

Anyway, after one too many cafe visits, I relented and gave in to my carnivorous calling. “Bak Kut Teh!” Waking up at a relatively early hour on a Sunday, to Klang we went.  Read the rest of this entry »

Every now and then comes a cafe (another cafe?) operating from a most unorthodox choice of location; almost like a close encounter of the hippie kind and yet drawing in hordes of die hard fans returning for almost the same reason. It’s either the coffee, the ambience or the company.

In the case of VCR, it could have been a (lethal) combination of all.

The cakes and coffee here speak volume of their passion in emphasising on only the good stuff. Barely half a dozen choices of cakes available, and no savouries, yet the younger crowd came in droves. And spend a good amount of time idling away.

Read the rest of this entry »

Tray Cafe @ Plaza Damas (Facebook page) was but one of the dozen or so interesting new cafes that have been shortlisted in most top cafes picks around Klang Valley; but the relatively obscure location had been losing out when jostling for our attention to more accessible choices in Publika, PJ or Bangsar area.

And I guess it’s a calling of some sorts. After a good many runs of bingeing on sinful fares no thanks to that extended year end break; Motormouth was seeking for something slightly healthier. And thus, a quick search led us to Tray Cafe; started by 3 passionate entrepreneurs; Victor, Dinesh and Allison.  Read the rest of this entry »

Springy strands of noodles coated with the gooey minced pork sauce; a signature of Soong Kee that has stood the test of time. A good seven decades of legacy relates to exceptional fan base and coming here feels like traveling through the tunnel of time.

I still remember the first time I fell in love with KL style of beef noodles. It was at Shin Kee in Chinatown, a stone’s throw away from the Petaling Street entrance. Whereas in Ipoh you don’t usually find beef noodles in the thick of all the rage (in fact, seldom do you see beef served in most Chinese hawker stalls; aside from a selected few like Yik Sun Hakka Mee and Buntong beef noodles), there are quite a number of good ones in town; especially centred around the Chinatown and Golden Triangle.

Shin Kee Beef Noodles Specialist was the first, followed by Lai Foong directly opposite the street. Then Ngau Kee around Tengkat Tong Shin came next, and finally we tried Soong Kee Beef Noodles at the junction of Jalan Tun HS Lee and Jalan Tun Tan Siew Sin.

For today, after a good half decade or more, we were back on a revisit to Soong Kee for dinner.  Read the rest of this entry »