Motormouth From Ipoh – Asian Food & Travel Blog

Wong Fee Kee @ Bercham Main Road/Lorong Bercham 5 corner

Porridge aka Congee aka Bubur aka Kanji.

KYT was the one raving about this porridge stall at this restaurant in Bercham. Directions to come at the end of the post. Pretty easy to locate, but parking your vehicles may be a chore. Most drivers park theirs haphazardly by the roadside. And guess what? The authority just couldn’t care less.

Zhu Zhap Chuk (Mixed Pig’s Innards Porridge) @ RM3.00

The man sells a variety of porridge, from the average pork meat and innards, to fish and eels, and even shark’s meat. Yup, anything and everything goes. Sometimes having some plain and smooth, good ol’ porridge’s perfect for detoxification purposes, and “clearing the bowels”, or so they say. But with so much temptations around us, plain porridge ain’t cutting it, no?

Coagulated blood, intestines, liver, and what-nots from the swine, cooked in the smooth and tasteful porridge base

Finding good porridge nowadays is tough. Finding a good pig’s innards porridge is even tougher. And this one did not disappoint. The deep-fried parts stole the limelight, providing some crunch and texture in contrast to the smooth and piping hot porridge, while the jelly-like coagulated pig’s blood was fortunately lacking in unpleasant aroma. The pig’s liver cuts were generous, though may evoke paranoia and havoc in a health freak’s diet.

Crispy, sinful Siew Yoke (Crispy Roasted Pork) RM5 and ….

…. sweet, caramelized Char Siew (BBQ marinated pork) RM5

If you consider porridge to be somewhat lacking as a meal on its own, do not fret. “Help” is on the way. Or rather, a few stalls away. The aunty selling roast pork and BBQ pork was doing brisk business, and I’ve full faith in her products, as my family’s been loyal customers since aeons ago. Mostly during festivities.

The crispy roasted pork was delicious, the meat not too salty and the accompanying chilli sauce not too overpowering. Some serve theirs with too much garlicky taste, drowning the meat’s flavour. Surprisingly, the Char Siew won me over with its sweet, sticky, and slightly charred, caramelized ends, drizzled liberately with the luscious sweet and savoury sauce. No chilli sauce needed for the scrumptious cuts of meat. (Btw, she doesn’t sell chicken, or rice for that matter). Perfect accompaniments for your noodles, or porridge.

Still craving for more?

Deep-fried Popiah (Spring Rolls) RM1.50

Egg Skin Popiah RM2.60

Right beside the Siew Yoke aunty, was this stall selling Popiah. Tried their deep-fried popiah before, and was pleasantly surprised she’s selling egg-skin popiah as well. Something Jason might wanna take notice. 🙂

Whoops. Our plan to eat a “Healthy & Simple” meal was thwarted by my glutton instincts. But I’m sure the others wont mind, right? RIGHT? =P

Location : WONG FEE KEE @ Jln Bercham/Lorong Bercham 5. Exiting from PLUS highway Ipoh Selatan toll, you’ll reach a traffic lights, then turn RIGHT. The sign should say Bercham. Then at the next traffic lights at a slope, turn right again, and you’ll see Tesco Extra on your left. Go straight for a while, passing by rows and rows of shops on your left and right, and 3 consecutive traffic lights. Then the road will get narrower, and you’ll be able to see Lorong Bercham 1, 2, 3 and so on. Wong Fee Kee is on your left, at Lorong bercham 5’s junction. Daytime only.

Trivia : What’s in THOSE buckets?

A short and simple post today ….

Situated right behind East Ocean Seafood Restaurant in Chemor

Very up-to-date post, as today after toughing it out around Chemor and Jelapang area in Ipoh, me and KYT decided to have our simple & light lunch in Chemor town itself. The scorching hot weather did not help either, and the countless rounds we went searching for a “needle in a haystack” somehow rendered us hungrier than usual, and dizzy from all the gear-shifting.

KYT’s bowl of thick vermicelli soup with homemade fish paste (yue wat)

I for one, never ventured to Chemor in search of good food all this while. Though I was made to understand that Chemor’s banana leaf curry rice stands as a strong contender in any foodie’s wishlist (Time Warper, mind to guide the way? =P).

Fortunately, KYT mentioned about his mum’s previous positive endeavour at one of the restaurant in Chemor town, purportedly serving great noodle soup. Well, something light never hurts, true?

The crowd was somewhat reassuring, as situated at a backlane, directly behind East Ocean Seafood Restaurant (Tung Hoi, in Chinese), was unnerving to say the least. They serve plain noodle soup, or dry noodles, with their famous fish head, fish paste, fish maws (see a pattern here?), crabs (!), and so forth. There is a stall frying noodles as well.

Motormouth’s bowl of fish maws and fish paste with thick vermicelli in soup

Once she asked for our choice of noodles, and rambled a looooong list of possible ingredient combinations, we both opted for thick vermicelli noodle, the springy type commonly used in fish head noodles. For ingredients-wise, KYT chose only fish paste (as he’s wary of anything too fishy) while I opted for a combination of fish maws and fish paste. No crabs for me, as I’m on a tight budget. Hehehe ….

The broth was thick, and flavoursome, infused with the natural sweetness of the flesh and bones of the fish. Slightly thicker than your usual clear broth (ching tong), the soup was pleasantly devoid of fishy taste (even KYT agreed) and complemented the noodles well. The fish maws were slightly spongy after being soaked in the soup, and one piece of annoyingly reeking of overnight oily taste. Luckily, the fish paste (yue wat) fared much, much better, as they were springy (QQ), very tasty with slight peppery aroma, and generously served.

My bowl of noodles plus iced milk tea was charged at RM6.80, while KYT’s noodles plus 100 Plus was RM5.10. Go figure …..

Location : Restoran Hoong Wan @ Directly behind East Ocean Seafood Restaurant in Chemor town. Pretty easy to locate the restaurant. The address is 2, Jalan Silang, 31200 Chemor, Perak. (I think). If in doubt, ask the locals.

*** NOTICE ***: Motormouth will be gone for a week. Not for work, but for some much needed rest, relaxation and recreation. I’ve uploaded some scheduled posts periodically, to clear my backlog of food endeavours. Do drop your precious comments, and I’ll get to them as soon as I’m back. Til then, tata !!!

Stall No 19 – Sri Asoka Corner

Banana leaf curry rice is no doubt, a most popular Malaysian favourite, more so in Klang Valley than any other states. But Ipoh has a few gems here and there, one fine example being Sri Asoka Corner at Stadium Ipoh’s food centre.

Famed for their banana leaf rice, which is essentially white rice with mixed vegetables served on banana leaf, with your choice of curries. The leaves are supposed to be aesthetically pleasing, and believed to impart a fragrant aroma to the rice. Not scientifically-proven though. But who cares? …. Read the rest of this entry »

Sin Eng Heong – They moved a few shops away from their original location, expanding their business in an air-conditioned shop

Anyway, I’m still stressed out from the drive to oblivion (somehow the images of the underworld in Hellboy II struck my mind, but rest assured it’s not THAT bad). And haven’t sort my photos yet. Probably tomorrow I’ll share my experience staying at Sg. Klah Hot Spring Resort, and of course, some of the food we ate along the way.

For now, be contented with something I’ve wanted to share with you for a long, long time. =)

Lady in Red : Which one you want? This, this, this, or that?

Lady with handbag : Ish, hmmm …. (pondering).

I’ve always been a fan of Sin Eng Heong‘s kaya puffs, and various pastries, from mini mooncakes to lou por peng (wife’s biscuits). Mum had been buying them since years ago, before Ho Chak (a food programme in Malaysia courtesy of 8TV) and various media started raving about their kaya puff.

Fresh from the oven, fragrant and crispy delights ….

Previously operating two doors away, they moved to this new location, and revamped the ambience, albeit increasing the price by a minimal margin. However at a mere RM0.60 per piece (5 April 2010 – Now it’s RM0.70 per piece), the puff may look mini, but in fact packed with flavours from the awesome kaya (egg jam) fillings, and the flaky, crispy-when-hot pastry.

A box of 5 delicious kaya puffs to satisfy those cravings for something sweet and flaky.

Fragrant, and sweet egg-licious “kaya” filling

Perfect when consumed hot, or fresh from the oven, the puff retain their crispiness even after several hours. Some may find the kaya filling a tad too sweet, but for me, it’s perfect. Pair them with a piping hot cup of frothy milk tea, or white coffee, and tea time ain’t boring no more. 😉

There’s no denying their pulling power, ya?

Situated within the vicinity of the old Foh San Dimsum, Lou Wong Ayam Tauge, Funny Mountain Soya Bean/Tau Fu Fa, Yin Yau Kui Hakka Mee (relocated to New Paris opposite the road), Xin Quan Fang’s Curry Noodle, Aun Kheng Lim’s Salted Chicken and various other popular eateries, this area smacked in the middle of Ipoh town is an ideal spot for food crawl, for locals and tourists alike.

On weekends and public holidays, the acclaimed pastries may run out fast, therefore give them a call before you go, to avoid leaving empty-handed and sour-faced. v_v But their other pastries are equally nice, and should satiate your cravings for some snacks.

Location :
Sin Eng Heong Foodstuff Manufacturers
No. 64, Jalan Mustapha Al-Bakri (Jalan Clare)
30300 Ipoh, Perak.
Telephone : 05- 2439659, or 012-4534596 (Elaine).

Big Tree Foot @ Pasir Pinji, Ipoh – Plateful of deliciously succulent and bouncy deep fried fish paste stuffed in various manners.

The Famous BIG TREE FOOT …. years of cultivation led to a most fruitful shade?

A popular spot for quick, cheap and satisfying lunch among the locals, tourists and even the blue collars, this stall coined as “Dai Shu Geok” literally translated as Big Tree Foot, is located behind Tuck Kee Restaurant in Pasir Pinji of Ipoh.

Not to be confused with THE other stall (now a shop) on Jalan Prince (click HERE for my previous take on those yummy fried goodies), this stall has a great following of its own, normally crowded during lunch hour, although the hygiene factor of dining under this shack is slightly compromised. But for a taste of good food, you can throw caution to the wind for once …. Read the rest of this entry »

A’Shore Spicy Noodle (RM6.50)

Though it takes two to tango, two aren’t a crowd however, and ordering ‘dai chow’ type of dishes would be irrational. Thus, we chose to order something lighter from their noodles menu. They serve a multitude of noodles, and rice suited for individual diner. Price ranging from RM5.90 to RM10.

One usual tactic I practise when it comes to ordering food from a menu with vast selections is to either choose what the other customers are chomping (in this case, doesn’t work as we were the ONLY ones there), OR browse the menu for the dish with the brightest/vibrant/biggest picture, indicating signature dishes. That was how I chose their A’Shore Spicy Noodle (Ma Lat Meen).

Strictly one for spicy food lovers, the noodle came in a BIG bowl, garnished with so much minced meat and vegetables that the noodles were totally buried underneath, hidden from daylight. The type of noodles they use reminded me of ramen/pan mee variety, springy (QQ?) and delivers a satisfying bite. The freshly shredded vegetables provided a refreshing crunch and adequeate fibre (hehe). The minced meat topping, with 2 big medium-sized prawns kind of resembles ‘Cha Cheong Meen’, a type of Szechuan noodle dish. Dried chilli flakes, bird’s eye chilli, and red chilli provided much of the kick, and poor Jason was probably burnt from the fire I breathed. =O

Kong Kam Noodles (RM6.90)

Jason had the Kong Kam Noodle (or Kam Kong? correct me, yeah? =P) which came with shrimps, squids, pork slices, and various vegetables (LOL, I just describe from the pic as Jason was quiet when indulging in his bowl. His bowl of noodles, that is. Tastewise? He claimed it was OK, not sure leaning more towards the tasty end or vice versa. But from the looks of it, fried egg noodle (yee mee?) in ‘wat tan hor’-like gravy can’t go wrong. Plus the serving was rather huge.

Papa, where’s the egg? =P

Jason had carrot juice, or something like that. I opted for their Icy Desserts section, choosing Soursop (durian belanda) flavour (RM5.50), which arrived in a bowl with lots of shaved ice ala ABC, plentiful of soursop flesh to sink my teeth into, and some strange, wriggly, colourful (albeit slightly obscene to the corrupted minds) creatures that provided plenty of bite. (heh heh)

The food and drinks are reasonably priced. Customers started to trickle in soon after we parked out butts. The place may be hidden from public view, at a backlane, but through word of mouth, is starting to gain momentum. Let’s hope they do not surrender to inflation/temptation/success and mutates into another run-of-the-mill expensive restaurant with no substance.

Location : Kindly refer old post, HERE.

For Jason’s recollection of the meal, PLUS better quality photos (=P), click HERE.