Motormouth From Ipoh – Asian Food & Travel Blog

A hefty portion of Red Wine Mee Suah for RM7.00/USD2.10; with plentiful of chicken, stalks of spring onions and slices of ginger.

Since I have not been writing much about food from outside of Ipoh, allow me to insert one short post here. Yesterday work took us to Ayer Tawar (wondering where’s Ayer Tawar? Read from Wikipedia HERE) to the west of Perak. If you’re on your way to Sitiawan, Seri Manjung, Lumut or Pangkor Island, you will be sure to pass by the town of Ayer Tawar.

Much like Sitiawan, Ayer Tawar is a predominantly Chinese town with a sizeable Foo Chow/Fuzhou population. Thus you know you can find great Foo Chow cuisine in even the simplest of coffee shops or restaurants.

Usually we have our lunch in Sitiawan, for the wide array of good food (from cheap and fresh seafood to Teochew style of Bak Kut Teh to authentic Hock Chew food) never failed to tantalize our tastebuds. But after awhile, eating at the same restaurants got a little repetitive, hence we decided to push our luck and seek for food in Ayer Tawar instead.

Ended up at Red Ruby Restaurant, an air-conditioned Chinese restaurant on the main road that is opened for lunch and dinner. How did Red Ruby fare in comparison to the more famous Bei King and Lido of Sitiawan? Read on to find out.

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Okay, I did promise a post on Foo Chow/Fuzhou (or Hock Chew) food in Sitiawan right? Before we headed over to Swiss Garden Golf Resort & Spa at Damai Laut to jump start the week, we detoured a short distance to Sitiawan for lunch.

I have written a considerably aplenty number of posts on Sitiawan food, ranging from the seafood delights to Foo Chow cuisine, or what you can devour in half a day flat. In short, I LOVE food hunting in Sitiawan-Seri Manjung, for you can find a diverse array of cuisines there.

Red Wine Mee Suah (Rice Vermicelli Noodles) – A classic Foo Chow delight, just don’t watch Saw, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, or even any of the Twilight saga before having this!

Lido Restaurant in Sitiawan is another one of those air-conditioned restaurant that opens for lunch and dinner (not unlike the famous Bei King), and from the looks alone you can pass judgment on its long-standing legacy, and most-revered reputation amongst the locals, and tourists alike.

The ‘menu’ on the wall, almost reaching the ceiling. Though sadly, I could not decipher even one dish. Pathetic eh? No worries, for I’m ever the thick-faced one and proceeded to ask for recommendations from the captain himself.

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To seek for some of the best in traditional Chinese cuisine in Kuala Lumpur may take some considerable effort, especially if one’s right in the midst of the Eating Hub of Malaysia, with an amalgam of influences all over the world. You get everything from Western to Eastern fares, from street foods to posh (read : over-priced) dining options.

So where does classic Foochow cuisine stand against these myriad of dining pleasures, with the looming element of commercialization threatening the very essence of good food (read : priceless finds, not pricey finds), constantly seeing us going back to the same old, same old restaurants in the malls, for the sake of convenience.

A bowl of blood-red Red Wine Meesuah with Chicken (RM6-RM7/USD1.70-USD2) – Not as strong as I expected, especially in comparison to some of Sitiawan’s best.

To find this place, named Taste of Foochow in an almost none-too-strategic location (right smack in the heart of Pudu, with the dreadful morning jams no thanks  to the jostling crowd at Pasar Pudu) of Jalan Gajah. But at least this is something different from the average Pan Mee, Hokkien Mee, and beef noodles we used to have in Kuala Lumpur.

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