Motormouth From Ipoh

This article was first published in The Malay Mail. Read it HERE.

Loke Wooi Kee serves one of the oldest and most popular versions of Hor Hee in Ipoh

Nestled within the centre of what has increasingly been acknowledged as the tourist hub of the city where you can literally walk to famous food outlets like Lou Wong Bean Sprouts Chicken, Sin Eng Heong kaya puffs, Aun Kheng Lim salted chicken and Funny Mountain Soya Bean, is this decades-old coffee shop named Loke Wooi Kee (LWK).

The name might sound unfamiliar to those not born and bred in Ipoh; the looks of the unassuming corner lot may not seem appealing at first glance, but this establishment has definitely stood the test of time and outshines so many other newer kopitiams or food courts that came up in recent years.

I still remember how our family used to visit LWK back in the early 90s for the Hor Hee stall. I was brought up tasting my first bowl of the comfort food at this shop, before gradually learning about the existence of other outlets serving the same, e.g: See See Heng at Embassy Restaurant and Hotel along Chamberlain Road, Li Heng Fatt in Old Town etc.

What’s a bowl of Hor Hee you ask? Read the rest of this entry »

Let’s not disregard the fact that this old chap with a perpetual frown etched on his face, has been laboriously cooking up pots after pots of claypot chicken rice for more than 30 years now. And still goes on and on; driven by passion.

I remember someone left a heartfelt plea in a recent post;

“Motormouth, I hope you follow your grassroots. Do what you do best.”

Okay. Wish granted. Still struck by the rainy spell this chilly Tuesday evening, in the midst of the Nine Emperor Gods’ Festival (Kau Ong Yeh), let’s turn back the clock and reminisce on a few forgotten gems in Pasir Pinji; overshadowed by swanky cafes, posh diners and erm, possibly hampered by lack of coverage.

Read the rest of this entry »

What used to be Tai Ka Lock, became known affectionately as Tai Kar Rock, to something more contemporary … Let’s Rock. Tell that to a foreigner and none would have expected Yong Tau Foo and curry fish head to be the stars.

And right after the revisit to the revamped Italia Mia (changed owners, same premise, same name), we proceeded to try our luck at the ‘new’ Let’s Rock on Cowan Street.

Can’t brand this as new though, as aside from the new location (they were from the next street - read previous review HERE), nothing much has changed. The premise got more spacious now and the place opens until so late at night; giving the pubs within the vicinity a run for their money. Or the relationship could be symbiotic. Read the rest of this entry »

After a few months of some serious honeymoon-ing, finally Motormouth got back to action. It’s been quite some time since ze butt got off from ze daily routine of sticking to ze office chair. (But of course, there are exceptions). If it’s your first time here, probably you’re not used to the onslaught of food posts from the other towns and states, no thanks to the immense frequency of travelling owing to the nature of my job. But if you’re a regular, then that most dreaded feeling of ‘Uh-Oh … here he goes again …. >_<” might be all too familiar.

And to kick things off,  here’s a short recap of the whirlwind ‘tour’ around the mainland of Penang – Seberang Jaya and Butterworth.

Hello Kitty Leng Chee Kang. How SWEET, huh? Another one in the book of ‘Names That Got Stuck to One’s Mind’

Thanks to CK Lam (she’s like ze walking directory of Penang food), my stay at Chai Leng Park of Butterworth, Penang got lifted with a short detour to Wai Sei Kai (Food Street) of Butterworth, Penang. Not one who’s accustomed to food-hunting on the mainland of Penang, I was a lost sheep. We were required to stay somewhere on the mainland, instead of on the glutton’s paradise (read : Penang island).

Like only Penang could. The northern intepretation of Leng Chee Kang; with EVERYTHING thrown in for good measure!

This was my first visit to Chai Leng Park of Butterworth, and a Google search for food in and around the vicinity will reveal the name Wai Sei Kai (Food Street in Chinese) more often than not. Situated near to the Market Square of Chai Leng Park in Butterworth (was a little confused, since I never knew Seberang Jaya and Chai Leng Park share the same perimeters).

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