Motormouth From Ipoh – Asian Food & Travel Blog

 Ah Loi Restaurant in Pengkalan area of Pasir Puteh is one of the three stalls within walking distance from one another that specializes in Ipoh ‘nga choy gai’ (bean sprouts chicken)

Now, there could be a dozen or so reviews that I have done on Ipoh’s bean sprouts chicken outlets, so you must be wondering when is the next post or rather, where will the next stall be?

Although once again, the hankering was more for Cowan Street’s version, but knowing full well that they choose to close for what seems to be 3/4 of the year and from past experiences, they should still take routine, weekly breaks on Mondays and Tuesdays, I would rather save myself the heartbreak.

Venturing slightly off the mark towards Station 18 in Pengkalan area of Pasir Puteh, there are a couple of ‘nga choy gai’ (which means bean sprouts chicken) stalls along the main road, located on the right side of the main road after passing by the crossroad traffic lights.

One is named 33, another used to be 101 (I hope I got the number correct) but has since moved to the corner coffee shop opposite of 33, and the one we went for dinner earlier was Ah Loi, a stand alone premise designated to please fans of firmer, chunky poached chicken with a toothsome bite.  Read the rest of this entry »

*We started the Tourist @ Home Series with #1 at Sin Yoon Loong white coffee

Don’t flinch at the sight of the title. Please.

Lou Wong has got to be one of the most popular yet widely believed to be over-hyped, and at the unenviable end of the popularity spectrum of being repeatedly-bashed by the locals or ‘purists’.

If you have been living under a rock or plain oblivious to what Ipoh is famous for, or where Ipoh actually sits in the map (*insert facepalm moment here), then allow me a few seconds to get you warmed up.

Read the rest of this entry »

This story was first published on Malay Mail Online’s Eat/Drink section on April 6.

I remember how we used to stay up really, really late into the night pondering over school projects, peppered with mindless small chats and life anecdotes (well, whatever that’s significant during the teenage school years). That the few of us school mates would be struck by hunger pangs at the most inconvenient of times; say, way past midnight and wondering where to head for a quick bite.

But of course, when I mentioned ‘quick bite’ in Ipoh back in the 90’s, I don’t refer to the 24 hours ‘mamak’ stalls or fast food outlets, mind you. There probably was only 1 round-the-clock ‘mamak’ outlet back then; the still viable today yet less popular Salam Corner at the back of Jusco Kinta City. But since we usually would be gathering around Pasir Puteh area, it made sense for us to look for alternatives.

In the form of this really excellent place for late night noodles, chicken and bean sprouts.

Yup, imagine savouring Ipoh famous ‘nga choy gai’ (bean sprouts chicken or ‘ayam tauge’) in the wee hours of the morning. Kum Kee is the official name of the corner lot opposite of Pasir Pinji police station, yet most of us remember this fondly as the place famed for “Big Small Feet”. Let me tell you why.

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Fat. Crunchy. Juicy. Sweet. Pride of Ipoh; and what a humble sprout!

I tell you, there really is a HUGE difference between life in Ipoh, and life in KL. A jarring one, smacking one in the face almost immediately upon arrival in this metropolitan crawling with landlubbers perpetually stuck in the rat race, hours spent getting acquainted with your favourite DJ’s every morning and every evening, and the missed opportunity of actually seeing the sun sets on your drive home because you’re trapped within four walls, or the vicinity of that lifeless cubicle from sun up til sun down.

Phew. The pace of life has quickened, literally. Hence, the occasional homecoming moments will be relished to their fullest potential; to imagine savouring the good old tastes from humble food stalls and within familiar neighbourhood.

Tired of the same old Lou Wong vs Onn Kee debacle? You don’t even have to drive all the way to town, park at dark alleys and still got charged by those ruffians nicked ‘jaga kereta’ boys, then to endure minutes of standing around waiting for a table.

Two ‘nga choy gai’ outlets exist in Bercham (aside from Kah Seng that faces the main road, yet coming off short during the last visit) that share almost the same name; 818 and 118. Read the rest of this entry »

“Kai See Hor Fun” with Wanton @ RM6.50/USD2.20

If you’re cursing under your breath, I can understand that. If you’re sick of looking at chickens (real one okay … edible fowls), I buy that too. After the almost relentless onslaught of posts on chicken rice (Loke Yun Ampang and Kee Kee Bentong Chicken Rice), I would have balked at the sight of another. And another. AND another …..

Yet, I can’t help but pursue this medley of torment; if you insist on calling these ‘delicious’ posts that. Kar Heong Restaurant was started back in 2004 in Subang Jaya, then subsequently opened a branch at Kota Damansara in 2008.

If you go …. oh well, just another Nam Heong, New Ipoh Restaurant Chicken Rice or worse …. a Chicken Rice Shop-wannabe, think again. The “Kai See Hor Fun” (shredded chicken rice noodle soup) here can rival even some of the best in Ipoh. No joke.  Read the rest of this entry »

It’s always rewarding to share. This was essentially the reason why I compiled the Ipoh Curry Mee list, and then the Best of Ipoh Dim Sum list followed suit not long after. The lists saved the hassle of repeatedly recommending the best of Ipoh’s signature foods to visiting friends, relatives and even strangers from the web.

In a relatively shadowy/grimmer manner, this is also a stark reminder of how this Motormouth is being challenged gradually by depleting memory storage capacity; and needs a point of reference every now and then.

So dear cherished readers, in case you are already planning for a road trip to Ipoh this coming Raya holidays; here’s a handy compilation of some of the BEST bean sprout chicken (‘tauge ayam’ in Malay, or ‘nga choy gai’ in Chinese) outlets in Ipoh :

1. LOU WONG TAUGE AYAM KUETIAU

Hands down THE most popular place in Ipoh, and heck … probably all of Malaysia for good old ‘nga choy gai’. They have grown from strength to strength, albeit very stiff competition from Onn Kee situated beside AND diagonally opposite of them.

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“Kon Lou Sar Hor Fun” (dry kuey teow, or flat rice noodles tossed in a savoury mix of soy sauce, dark soy sauce, dash of sesame oil and shallot oil perhaps) is essentially the soup-less counterpart to the otherwise perfect companion to your serving of bean sprouts chicken.

And there you go. Some of you might stare in disbelief, wondering if Motormouth’s in his right state of mind. Hello?! An Onn Kee Tauge Ayam review after more than 3 years of blogging?!! (Yeah yeah … this blog’s getting old)

Surprisingly, yes. And it has been THAT long since my last visit to the famous ‘nga choy gai’ outlet in town. Back then, they did not even open for lunch. Only dinner-supper, and damn packed like sardines almost every single night. It’s slightly better now, but still come on weekends/public holidays and I bet you’d scurry away like roaches on a hot plate. Or something.

So please, you can say your prayers now if you’ve waited with bated breath for this (or not) . And enjoy what could possibly be my LAST post ….. on tauge ayam in Ipoh, that is. Read the rest of this entry »