Motormouth From Ipoh – Malaysian Food & Travel

Good Bak Kut Teh stalls are hard to come by, unless you’re residing within the town of Klang where you can throw a stone from anywhere and 50% probability of hitting someone who’s cooking Bak Kut Teh at their restaurant or home. (read Best of Klang Bak Kut Teh for a dizzying range of BKT specialists in town)

Outside of Klang however, I have countless disappointment with BKT outlets claiming to be the ‘authentic’ Klang bak kut teh, or the BEST bak kut teh, or whatever else they conjured up with. So far, the only ones noteworthy outside of Klang are Yap Chuan in Puchong for their irresistible dry bak kut teh, and Ah Sang Bak Kut Teh in Sungei Way.

And no, I did not enjoy Jalan Ipoh’s Ban Lee or Fatty’s on Old Klang Road.

But now … there might be a piece of good news. A saving grace in the form of Ah Ping Bak Kut Teh in SS14 in Subang Jaya.  Read the rest of this entry »

Dry Bak Kut Teh; a pot of various cuts of pork cooked in a thickened gravy that’s nothing like the conventional bak kut teh perfumed by herbs, but resembling a ‘kung pow’ touch with dried chillies, dried cuttlefish and lots of okra (ladies finger) and topped with chopped coriander.

Now I have been itching to write about (worthy) Bak Kut Teh outlets in Ipoh; albeit well aware of the fact that this essentially Hokkien dish has been jostling for the limelight (and guide books) in this city populated by an array of lip-smacking street foods in a futile manner.

If you ask me to name a few good BKT stalls in Ipoh that’s commendable AND recommendable to the outsiders (aside from Klangites, perhaps), there are 3 major names that I can think of.

Lee Soon (or was it Soon Lee?) near to the secondary school on Jalan Pasir Putih (SMK Jalan Pasir Putih), Sun Tong Chew off Jalan Kampar near to Ave Maria Convent, and this Tung Lok Hin at Medan Bendahara.

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DRY Bak Kut Teh @ Tan Kee Klang BKT – Chunks of pork cooked in a dark, thick and slightly starchy sauce with dried chillies, bird’s eye chillies (cili padi), lots of garlic and some halved button mushrooms. (A portion for one at RM8.00/USD2.40)

This supposedly “Klang-style Bak Kut Teh” on Gopeng Road (actually Jalan Raja Dr Nazrin Shah, though I seriously doubt one can identify the roads with their new names nowadays) has caught my attention since late last year when I went for a meal at Restoran Waritha. The restaurant was packed; almost overflowing with customers that evening, which surprised me because I never even knew about such a place before that.

Fast forward a good 8 months later (hehe, talk about being a slow poke … ), and we finally embarked on a maiden journey to Tan Kee Klang Bak Kut Teh; which is located a short distance away from the Ipoh’s famous Sam Poh Tong caves. Their specialties? Wet (Soup-based) & Dry Bak Kut Teh, Steamed Fish Head, Vinegar Pork’s Trotter and Thai-style Beancurd. Ready with the napkins? Here we go …… Read the rest of this entry »

Bak Kut Teh is a wonder in itself. Best to be served for breakfast, the “Meat Bone Soup” (literally translated) also qualifies as a substantial lunch, or even a most heart warming dinner. How ’bout serving it round the clock, I was left wondering? Is there any place in Malaysia that serves Bak Kut Teh (BKT for short) for 24 hours? Now that would be a pleasant substitute to ‘mamak’ food after those glitzy & glam partying hours.

Wait, doesn’t that boy in the picture look somewhat familiar? (Hop over to this post and tell me I’m not seeing things)

You get presented with a bubbling hot cauldron of the most carnivorous of picks; The ribs, the large and small bones (ask BKT aficionados and you’ll learn), the 3 layered-meat (pork belly), the offals (innards, or spare parts, if you would), and an assorted amalgam of optional sides – The beancurd sheets (Foo Chuk), the enoki mushrooms (Kam Cham Koo), some with lettuce, and some even with …. chicken feet !!!

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