KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 21 — A victory for perseverance, Pudu’s Ah Fa Chinese Restaurant proves that sometimes you just got to keep trying until you strike it big.
This humble place run by Steven Cheng Soon Fatt, 35, and his China-born wife, Cheng Zhi Hua, 38, originally started out as a wantan mee business about 10 years ago. Since the noodles business didn’t quite take off, they switched and became a typical dai chow about three years ago.
About six months ago, Zhi Hua, who hails from Hunan, introduced her version of hot pot filled with an abundance of seafood, vegetables and bean curd kept bubbling in a rectangular metal tray over a portable stove. That dish is now their pot of gold — drawing hordes of customers from as far as Mainland China — as word has gotten around about the deliciousness of the fresh seafood coupled with a tongue numbing spiciness that can be strangely addictive.
The origins of the dish can be traced back to Zhi Hua’s hometown, where it was common to sit down and enjoy bubbling hot pot over a stove. Usually mouth-numbingly spicy and covered with a layer of oil, the original dish wasn’t a hit with the locals when she first introduced it here.
She took it upon herself to tweak its taste, using locally available ingredients, to create an appealing dish with spicy overtones and a balanced sourness.
For instance, the heat comes from her homemade preserved green chillies. It also adds a sour tinge that balances out the spicy kick which makes it an irresistible combination that you can’t stop eating. The sourness is also amplified with her homemade preserved white radish slices and ham choy or preserved cabbage. She had no choice but to omit like the pickled green cucumbers, as it turned bitter in the broth.
Unlike the hot pot version where you dip your ingredients in the hot broth to cook it, this version is cooked ahead in the kitchen by Steven and brought to the table, steaming and bubbling.
Most of the ingredients are prepped ahead, like the prawns and the fish head that is deep fried. Once an order is placed, Steven cooks up the vegetables, mushrooms, cuttlefish and clams with the special broth.
The mountain of vegetables is topped with two large prawns and a piece of freshwater prawn that is halved. Eating the dish is an adventure... you dig around to discover goodies like perfectly-cooked cuttlefish (without any rubbery texture) or clams.
It’s a treasure hunt, as there’s mung bean sprouts, tomatoes, silken bean curd pieces, leeks mingling with dried red chillies, oyster mushrooms, enoki mushrooms and an abundance of garlic cloves. Underneath the mound of ingredients, you will find the deep fried Soong fish head. It’s an irresistible combination; smooth fish flesh that soaks in the piquant tasting broth.
Should you be spice-challenged, we suggest you avoid biting into those deceptively innocent looking pale green chillies... as they are so potent, it can burn your tongue! The stall also allows you to customise the spice levels with six levels depending on your tolerance. What you will find as the broth slowly bubbles on the stove is you can’t stop drinking the addictive soup even though you end up with swollen lips and a burning sensation in your stomach.
Without any kind of promotion, many customers have discovered her unique hot pot via social media or through word-of-mouth recommendations. It’s no surprise, as the hot pot has proven to be incredibly Instagram-worthy with the juicy-looking fresh prawns topping it.
We spotted diners asking others if they could snap pictures of their hot pot to make their friends envious. One regular customer we talked to has been here 10 times, since she was introduced to the dish about two months ago. It’s a weekly fix for the lady who is often accompanied by her girlfriends. She’s even got her own special way to eat the dish where she splits the fish head into one tray, while another tray holds the prawns and clams as it slowly boils in the delicious broth.
The hot pot comes in one size only and is best shared among four persons. It’s RM88 for just the shell fish, or RM99 with everything including the Song fish head. You have the option to add more ingredients like the mushrooms, bean curd, clams or sotong to your hot pot at an extra cost. The menu also allows you to order other dishes like stir fried vegetables, fried egg and BBQ pork, but customers usually focus on the hot pot which is eaten with rice.
With business on the upturn, the couple have also expanded to an air-conditioned space along Jalan Yew that will be open the whole day. Previously only available in the evening, this means you can enjoy the hot pot for lunch. During Chinese New Year, the couple took a month’s break as they had to return to China to visit Zhi Hua’s family. When they return to open their business on February 23, it’ll be a new chapter for them with the opening of their new premises.
Along Jalan Seladang, that stretch has seen a boom for the other eateries that sell economy rice, noodles and porridge. Their popularity has even lured 68-year old Ng who relocated his 30-year old roasted meats business here about two months ago. He used to peddle his food items under the bridge in Pudu and the pasar malam but decided to shift here since it’s so happening.
The old man sells char siew, siew yoke, BBQ pork ribs and Teochew stewed duck from 5.30pm onwards.
Ah Fa Chinese Restaurant
Jalan Seladang, Pudu, KL.
Tel: 016-9163999.
The eatery reopens on February 23 after their Chinese New Year holiday. Opening hours: 11am to 3am (new premises), 6pm to 11pm (existing eatery).
