Motormouth From Ipoh – Asian Food & Travel Blog

Nothing short of a typhoon, earthquake, Armageddon or political meltdown (hehe) will stop me dead in my tracks when I set my mind to it. I’m talking about a food hunt of course; in particular this trial & tribulations of covering a small, almost non-descriptive shop in Pasir Pinji of Ipoh selling Nyonya kuih for more than two decades.

Yes, Khoo Eng Chee‘s the brand that has since been categorized as one of the stalwarts of Ipoh’s Nyonya kuih scene, though even many of the locals are not aware of its existence. Can’t put the blame on you, really. Since apparently, their main source of business comes from wholesale of their sweet creations to various kuih stalls around Ipoh.

Ready for the lowdown? (And can you say FINALLY?!!)

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Since the Mid-Autumn Festival is dawning upon us; the clearest hint being carts and stalls loaded with (over-priced) mooncakes in shopping malls, restaurants and practically invading every single corner of the street. Seriously. Go to any night market (pasar malam, for the uninitiated) and bear witness to branded and non-branded mooncakes being sold in the open.

But come on … a piece of mooncake going for RM15/USD5 nowadays?! To imagine slightly more than a decade ago, nothing was beyond RM10 each! (or maybe let’s back up a few years more, but I do remember vividly the good old days when mooncake was priced merely RM7 or so!) And let’s not step over the realm of ‘five-star’ mooncakes (Chynna @ Hilton KL sells Musang King mooncake at more than RM30 for a smaller than palm-sized piece!)

But, you’re on Motormouth From Ipoh. You know I never really bothered to write about the umpteenth piece of over-rated mooncakes from the big names in the industry. Year in, year out we hear of new creations/fusions of mooncakes swaying far from the conventional “lin yung” (lotus paste) and “tau sar” (red bean paste).

Wanna read about Ming Yue; a name possibly not known outside of Ipoh but creating ripples and waves in the neighbourhood? Imagine every piece at less than RM7 each (yes!), made in-house and baked freshly every day.

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Disclaimer : Pardon me if I come up with a half-baked post today. Not a walk in the park for sure, for more reasons than one. Firstly, I’m still burping from those extra cheesy, caloric-laden pizzas loaded with salami and Italian sausages from dinner. More on that in a later post.

Shat Keh Ma (literally translated to “Kill Ride Horse” …. don’t ask why because I don’t know) is but  one of those snacks that most people would never bother to write about. But then again, I am an anomaly/freak of nature/weirdo of a food blogger.

Tonight’s my last night here in Ipoh for this Raya/Merdeka homecoming fest, and the 5 days of non-stop eating relived all those bittersweet memories of the glory days when I was still working here.

Ahhh … the better days when life was more than just work and traffic jams.

No turning back now I guess, so might as well expand my horizons to territories uncharted, street food unwritten and stories untold. For today, allow this Motormouth to share his story on Hong Kee Confectionery; another priceless gem of an outlet famous for their ‘shat keh ma’, egg tarts and ‘gai dan gou’ (egg cake with kaya) ….. Read the rest of this entry »

Good Rejects? – Just like an abundance of GOLD; a tray full of irresistible Heong Peng (fragrant biscuits) will just have to do for now. And who cares if the biscuits were not of top notch quality?

In the previous post, I did summarize some of the food haunts I have visited over the course of one week; when the festivities granted everyone with an opportunity to indulge (sinfully) without guilt for once. And of course, the aftermath’s deadly ….

To make Heong Peng of uniformed sizes and of the right texture, with a standardized dollop of molasses; this takes skills.

If you have been one loyal/keen/ardent follower of this blog (please make my day and nod in agreement!), you would have noticed that generally, I stick to eateries and confectioneries that still pride on their original roots; the most authentic of flavours can only be savoured if you’re using charcoal to fry your noodles, charred claypots to cook your claypot chicken rice, and nothing beats ‘heong peng’ (or heong peah) broiled in a specially constructed cement contraption fuelled by coconut husk.

So if you do not mind the extra miles taken to grab something of sentimental values, worthy of your effort (satisfaction guaranteed) of venturing all the way into the residential area of Gunung Rapat in Ipoh, then by all means, do read on ….. Read the rest of this entry »

Pretty alluring for some fresh strawberries and blueberries pastries huh? At Levain, you can effortlessly go overboard with your breads and pastries if you’re not careful. Temptations abound at every corner!

And so, after weeks of procrastination, delays, unexpected excursions and of course …. the occasional need to recharge Motormouth’s batteries (and somewhat detox?), I finally made it (yay!) to Levain Boulangerie & Patisserie (let’s shorten that to Levain for the remainder of this post, okay?).

Been months, since I first read the review from Rebecca on this charming premise with a colonial touch; contemporary decor with a fine British element to it. We felt as though we have stepped into the comfort of someone’s secluded/luxurious bungalow; almost akin to the warm sensation one gets when having scones and tea at The Smokehouse @ Cameron Highlands.

Two floors of meticulously-designed facade and interior, reflecting the quaint charm of a high tea session on a Sunday evening. When coupled with an inner desire to binge on fresh, stone oven-baked breads, a visit to Levain will be sure to please ….

In case you’re wondering, wah …. this must have caused an arm, a leg and maybe half of the a$$, then you’re wrong. Read on for an idea of what’s brewing (or rather, baking) inside this increasingly famous patisserie-cum-restaurant …… Read the rest of this entry »

A Meat Floss Puff now? Something different from Sin Eng Heong for a change, in case of the legendary “Kaya Kok” (Kaya puff; a type of pastry filled with a smooth, creamy and sweet coconut and egg jam)

To imagine I started this post way early this morning, waking up early and more refreshed than the projected complete devastation of Motormouth’s spirit and soul after a weekend in the Klang Valley.

Today’s a public holiday in Selangor too, hence the whole day of rest. Can’t say I am pleased and fully adapted to the traffic in KL, and the general speedier pace of life.

For someone hailing from good old Ipoh, this is a very, very jarring difference …..

And yup, you read that right. This post took me a good 16 hours to complete. Not that I wrote a whale of a masterpiece. In fact, that is so far from the truth. Do read on for more incoherent nonsense from Motormouth, and the new creation from Sin Eng Heong; hands down one of the top confectionery in all of Ipoh. Frankly, how often do you see Yee Hup, or even Ching Han Guan crowded to the sidewalks?! Read the rest of this entry »

And I was scratching my head in vain. Not trying to relieve the itch but with a confused stand on should I categorize this post into Perak Food, or Penang Food. Or is there a category in between?

Technically, Swee Garden Restaurant is in Nibong Tebal, a town on the mainland of Penang that shares the border with Parit Buntar; a town to the north west of Perak. And from Parit Buntar we travelled a short distance of about 15 minutes before crossing the border and reaching the township of Nibong Tebal.

Their famous crispy pork knuckle; a fusion of German-Chinese cuisine served with no particular sauce but pickled shallots and slices of cucumber and tomatoes.

And Molinja* (not her real name, of course) kept on raving about this deliciously sinful and gelatinous rendition of a pork knuckle, back when we were having the Sitiawan’s red wine pork knuckle at Lido Restaurant. Being the lover of anything porky, I set my mind to it and ended up at Parit Buntar for work with LZP and hopped over the border (sounds like a major sacrifice, right?) for some delicious ‘chu char’ dishes.

Did not expect the place to be swarmed by the lunch crowd way before 1pm, and they are also famous for their ambra juice.

No wonder Molinja herself suggested for us to arrive earlier for lunch. 12.30pm is far from early, even on a weekday. Ended up we waited for some time before being seated, and a good 30 minutes or so before being served. So was the wait worthy and the hype justified?

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