20 July, 2007

Ipoh Day 2 Part 1

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After previous night food exploits (this include supper consisting of Black Pepper Crab, Deep Fried Fish, Deep Fried Mantis Shrimp (瀨尿蝦), Frozen Beer, and a couple of other more dishes), we woke up with a heavy tummy. But nevertheless, I was looking forward to breakfast, as we are heading over to Ipoh Old Town for their Curry Laksa Noodles. Unlike Singapore’s Katong Laksa that will leave you ‘jelak’, or surfeited at the end of it due to excess coconut milk, the Ipoh version simply leave you to crave for more!

The spicy gravy is unbelievably easy and smooth on the throat. Topped with Cockles and Prawns, along with the unusual Peppermint Leaf, this is easily my favourite dish of the trip.

Opt for the thin yellow noodles instead of the vermicelli and you will never go wrong with this dish. And if you think Curry Laksa Noodles are too sinful for the morning, think again...... the girls' mother ordered a plate of Roast Pork and set it right in front of us.

And before you start ranting “WAH, Roast Pork for breakfast?” let me just say that - have a go at the meat - and whatever thoughts would be dispelled. The skin is just so crisp and roasted to perfection. Easily the perfect side dish to eat along with the noodles.

This was definitely the most enjoyable meal I had in Ipoh. Nice authentic old town ambience along with excellent food. Truly worthy of the title!

Rating

Food: 5/5

Service: 4/5
Ambience: 4/5
Price: 5/5
Total: 18/20

Kedai Kopi Ah Chow
Ipoh Old Town


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14 July, 2007

Ipoh Day 1 Part 4

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A dish synonymous to Ipoh would be that of Hor Fun. Even till today, my colleagues would tease me saying “Eh, you go Ipoh eat what? Hor Fun ah?” and laughter would filled the office, but without a doubt, my reply would be “Yeah! I did, and too bad you missed it.
Ipoh Hor Fun, or Flat Rice noodles (河粉), or commonly known as Sar Hor Fun (沙河粉) is served in soup with chicken shreds, prawns and spring onions.

And as mentioned in my earlier post, because of the PH in water, they are able to prepare top notch rice noodles that are smoother, silkier and tastier.

And in Ipoh, at the very famous Lou Wong Restaurant (老黃芽菜雞沙河粉), crowds come here not just for Hor Fun, but also what the locals known as Nga Choy Kai (芽菜雞), or the Bean Sprouts Chicken. Once again, due to the high quality of Ipoh’s water, their bean sprouts are shorter, thicker and difficult to find elsewhere.

As such, the bean sprouts are crunchier, and packed punch with each bite compared to the lean and skinny cousin of ours in Singapore.

The texture of the chicken was tender and smooth, and this was because they soaked the whole cooked chicken in ice water before serving, thus retaining the juicy and tender texture of the chicken.

On top of the main, we were also treated to a fare of Pork and Fish balls Soup laden with spring onion.

I realised that Ipoh’s fishball tend to be less salty to a point of plain, but I truly enjoyed the pork balls which was chewy almost bouncy texture and full of bite.

Rating

Food: 4.5/5
Service: 3.5/5
Ambience: 3.5/5
Price: 4/5
Total: 15.5/20

No. 49 Jalan Yau Tat Shi




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10 July, 2007

Ipoh Day 1 Part 3

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After a quick shopping spree at Parkson, we stopped by ermm… a Restoran for quick tea break. With huge trees that offer shade for a hawker centre in Ipoh, why am I not surprised that a coffeshop with a zinc roof is acknowledged as a Restaurant?

And in there we discovered another local delight – the Chee Cheong Fun, or 豬腸粉. Unlike those we found in our local market that comes with sweet sauce and sprinkled with sesame seeds, they look more like our very own pirated version of Ipoh Hor Fun. While in Ipoh, the Chee Cheong Fun is either served with the mushroom gravy or the curry sauce – that day, we tried the combination version.

The texture was simply sublime. Thinner and lighter than the usual dim sum version, they were so soft as to be almost pillowy. The mixed gravy was also rather unique and harmonised very well. To complete a meal, most locals would also add pieces of “Za Liu”, or “Fried Ingredients” in Cantonese, similar to those we had under those huge trees earlier in the day. We also had the Rojak, and I must confess it is the best version I had ever eaten in my life.

The rojak sauce was so thick and sapid, that I swear you can never be able to find one that matches it in Singapore. In fact, it was so good that each of us had to buy a small jar of sauce back home. I round up the meal with a bowl of Chendol, but besides the peanuts, it was nothing worth mentioning, as the ones from Malacca are still the benchmark to beat.

To find out the ‘REALIpoh Hor Fun, stay tuned for Day 1 Part 4 of my escapade…

Rating

Food: 4/5
Service: 4/5
Ambience: 3.5/5
Price: 5/5
Total: 16.5/20

Restoran Sum Yi Fatt

328 Eatery


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Ipoh Day 1 Part 2

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After a hearty breakfast, we made our way back to the house for a quick shower and a change of clothes. With a renewed vigour, we headed out for an early lunch and this time, it was another renowned local delight – Sun Yuan Loong famous Ipoh White Coffee!

Made from coffee beans specially roasted with palm oil margarine, Ipoh white coffee can be found everywhere in the Old Town. The aroma, taste and texture of the traditional "white" coffee blend are just superior compared to those found outside Ipoh.

Even for a non-coffee drinker, I cannot but help myself to two cups of it – one served cold, the other version, hot – and believed me when I exclaimed that both are just as superb! Another excellent fare that you cannot miss in the coffeeshop is the Claypot Yee Mee.

Although it looks simple enough with an egg and some chicken meat, the noodles are tangy and bouncy. The soup was also surprisingly delicious, and with the aid of the metal claypot, the sweltering broth was a delight to guzzle down. Besides the noodles, another local delight is what I deemed the Chinese version of Nasi Briyani.

What seems to me like glutinous rice cooked in Turmeric, or Yellow Ginger, topped with thin egg slices, was accompanied by Malaysian Curry Chicken – it did not WoW me, but it was still a pleasure sampling something unlike away from home.

Rating

Food: 4.5/5
Service: 3/5
Ambience: 3.5/5
Price: 5/5
Total: 16/20

Old
Town, walking distance from Kong Fatt Textiles

__________________________________________________________

Ambitious enough, we headed to another location for Round 2 of our lunch.

Seated under an environment of the Big Tree Foot, or 大树脚 (pronounce Tai Shu Keok in Cantonese) lies a collection of shanty make-shift stalls – and over there, everyone seems to be queuing for what they locals called the “Fried Ingredients” in Cantonese.

It is basically our familiar Yong Tau Foo freshly deep fried.

Amidst it came with other variations of ingredients unseen in Singapore.

E.g. Egg Wrapped with Fish Meat and deep fried – most of us were unfortunately too filled to enjoy wholeheartedly. However we all agree that the Peanut Mua Chee was a scrumptious after meal dessert.

The texture of the skin so soft yet chewy and the peanuts were nicely roasted to produce an aromatic whiff.

Rating

Food: 3.5/5 (Too filled to fully enjoy)
Service: 2.5/5
Ambience: 2.5/5 (Enjoy the fallen tree leaves when you sit in the open)
Price: 5/5
Total: 13/20
“Big Tree’s Foot”, located at Pasir Pinji


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05 July, 2007

Ipoh Day 1 Part 1

Finally, I had a short break after 6 months of work. After a nine hours bus ride from Golden Mile Complex, My colleagues and I arrived at Ipoh, the capital of the state of Perak. And by a stroke of good fortune, we have 2 sisters – Baygie and Baysie (Thank you for making it such a wonderful food trip), whom I befriended from Perth, to bring us around. Ipoh is famous for its cuisine, as locals believe that their water, which is relatively high in alkali content - owing to Ipoh's location on top of a large karstic formation - makes the food especially tasty. As soon as we arrived at 7am, we headed straight to our first stop, the legendary Foh San Restaurant, for a hearty breakfast of Dim Sum.

Locals will have you believed that this ever famous Foh San is really for the early risers. A favourite haunt for the older folks - after their morning exercises and in for a cup of tea and scrumptious dim sum to start the day - it is no surprise therefore, that getting a seat is difficult. Providentially, we found one within seconds as a table just left when we arrived.

As there are so many dishes we tried, I shall spare everyone with the lengthy description and head straight to the point – here are the photos of the food we sampled that morning.

From what I could remember, the skin of the Char Siew Bun was really soft and the meat was well marinated. The skin of the Har Cheong Fun was also really smooth. While some of them preferred the dry and greasy version of the Fried Carrot Cake, Baysie and I felt that Steamed Carrot Cake was delicious – it was soft, sweet and flavoursome and was easy for the stomach early in the morning. Overall, the meal cost RM56, or approximately S$25, making it S$5 per person! No wonder they say when Singaporeans travel to Malaysia, they start to make noises like birds everywhere they go – Chirp, Chirp, Chirp (Cheap, Cheap, Cheap)!!!

Rating

Food: 4/5
Service: 3.5/5
Ambience: 3.5/5
Price: 5/5
Total: 16/20
No. 2, Jalan Dato Tahwil Azar
(used to be known as the Ozbourne Street)



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