Motormouth From Ipoh – Asian Food & Travel Blog

Kong Sai Signature Poached Chicken – The condiments make all the difference

If you have been irritated by the fact that I respond to your e-mail or comment with a generous dose of tardiness lately, I sincerely apologize.

Or you’ve been deprived of the frequent doses of Motormouth’s ramblings, I felt bad too.

Been working my @$$ off the past few weeks, and I foresee no relenting until the fasting month. And that’s another month to go. Even my camera has been stashed away most of the time, only making periodic appearance in instances like this gathering at Kong Sai Restaurant in Paramount Garden last week.

Or maybe the week prior. Sorry, I’m in another dimension altogether. Let’s drool over some Guangxi cuisine this hazy Monday morning. Read the rest of this entry »

A case of Penang Street Food in KL? (O&S Restaurant @ Paramount Garden – Penang Char Kuey Teow, Chee Cheong Fun and Yong Tau Foo)

My apologies, in case you were trying desperately to reach this blog yesterday, only to view an Internal Server Error screen. After missing out on the extended 3 days break due to a haphazardly-planned regional training session at Saujana, I thought at least I’d compensate by sharing a Malaysia Day story.

Only to be frustrated by an unprecedented crash.

I guess life has its own ways in telling you what to do (or in this case, what NOT to do) on a well-deserved holiday. Two days late, but better late than never ….. here’s an interesting piece to spice up your Sunday, and soften the blow of the impending Monday blues. Read the rest of this entry »

Can’t help but noticed the chipped and battered/broken container filled with the heart & tummy warming elixir to get one going after a laborious week. For one who’s always on the pounce for sinful food, it’s worthwhile going back to the roots and drink some homemade soup for a start. (Hor Sang Woo with Pork Soup @ RM6/USD2 per serving)

Another post like this, and Motormouth would have been officially cleansed himself off all the guilt-ridden extravagant fares for the whole week. The previous post on Steamhouse reinstated this fact, though that happened more than a month ago.

Just last night, after a barrage of heavy lunches (buffets for 3 days in a row!), I came to my senses. Okay, so Jason helped somewhat, successfully slapping (an analogy, of course) me back to reality. And while I was still contemplating on whether should I take a quick nap (read : 2 hours, at least) at such random hours, or settled for dinner and tuck in earlier, a decision was made.

Dinner @ Meng Kee, Paramount Garden – Not THIS sinful Meng Kee Char Siew, but at the opposite end of the spectrum; a hole in the wall shack with zinc roofs serving hearty, simple yet effective home cuisine. And in the middle of them all; their incomparable selection of steam soups ….. Read the rest of this entry »

The very basic/standard/generic/traditional Yee Sang – But we were not complaining though. After all, this Chinese version of a prosperity-laden salad is supposed to be tossed for the notion of it, rather than for its gastronomic value. Unless of course, you’re taking into consideration the many varieties of modern Yee Sang with abalone and such.

After two gastronomic feasts at Shanghai @ JW Marriott and Zing @ Grand Millennium, it’s probably time to set the mood back into place; and toss some Yee Sang the traditional way. This Chinese restaurant situated in Paramount Garden holds probably decades of legacy, judging from the outlook and the fact that the moment we entered and were seated at our reserved table; a warm, deja vu sensation washed over me. A kick back to the old school type of eateries; laid back, no fuss, no frills Chinese diner which was possibly once THE place to organize a banquet dinner, but has since relented to the fad (or maybe not?) of lavish celebrations at 5 star hotels instead.

Comparing Gold Dragon City to Mun Choong, Oversea or even Tuck Kee (yeah, a post to come after our Reunion dinner next week!) would be more fitting, and definitely in the same league since those Ipoh restaurants mentioned above are nothing but serial old players STILL attracting a constant stream of customers.

Initially, this lunch with colleagues was planned for dinner; but given the time constraints and logistic matters, we rescheduled to lunch hour instead. Saves time actually, since our office is located merely minutes away from this restaurant at Paramount Garden; opposite of Giant hypermarket. Read the rest of this entry »

Wantan Mee is one of the most famous Chinese hawker food, and especially popular in Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore. In some places, wantan mee is also known as ‘Tok Tok Mee‘, a fancy moniker given in reference to the knocking sounds of bamboo sticks made by the peddlers from the olden days, to attract the crowd.

For the best Char Siew, choose the corner cuts of the belly; For that smoky, aromatic and crunchy texture all rolled into one singular, orgasmic piece.

I first read about Char Siew Zhai Wantan Mee from several food posts circulating on the net. The name no doubt, sounds intriguing, whereby “Char Siew” refers to the charcoal-roasted marinated pork, while the “Zhai” part is an endearing call for “Son”, in Chinese.

When you put them together, it’s as though Char Siew Zhai refers to the “Barbecued Pork Son” …. Sure gives a whole new meaning to the Chinese phrase : “Better give birth to a piece of Char Siew than you !!!” (A laden-with-sarcasm scolding usually given to an unfilial child by a parent).

Crunchy Sui Kow (dumplings in soup) filled with lots of wood ear fungus, chopped carrots, minced pork and chives

So what makes this place particularly stand out amongst the rest? For sure you’ve read about Petaling Street’s legendary Koon Kee wantan mee, the Sungai Besi famous one, the bamboo noodles at Nippy’s, or even Char Siew from the rivalling FSF and SFS. (Go figure …..)

Read on to find out how they literally TOSS their noodles around !!!

Read the rest of this entry »