PETALING JAYA, Oct 15 — When it comes to unearthing food gems, the best finds come from people in-the-know, like those who live in the neighbourhood.
So when Leonard Lee started telling me about his favourite joints around SunwayMas Commercial Centre, I decided that he was the best man to introduce me to these eateries.
All these spots are places he regularly eats at since they are near his home... so much so that he even knows all their history. He adds, “I’m lazy and convenience is paramount to me.”
We start off with the curry mee stall that Lee jokingly calls “Google Laksa” since it has moved so many times around the neighbourhood; he has had to hunt them down each time they relocate.
It’s no fault of the operator, Yee Chee Meng, 43, as the reason is usually because of the various coffeeshop situations; whether it’s because the coffeeshop is closing down or the landlord increased the stall rental.
This stall traces its origins to Taman Megah when it was started by Yee’s mother in 1998. Yee’s father used to run a butchery selling pork at the Section 14 wet market.
Later when his father retired, the couple decided to open up a stall using Yee’s mother’s recipe. It’s an Ipoh style curry mee, a nod towards Yee’s father’s hometown.
Around 2007/2008, Yee decided to give up his photography equipment business and continue his parents’ legacy after they sold their curry mee recipe to another vendor.
Initially, he had to learn the ropes from his mother, shadowing her every move as she prepared and cooked the ingredients for the noodles.
After a short break, his parents got bored and they now run their own stall in Taman Melati Jaya in Puchong. Food runs in the family as Yee’s sister is also involved in a bak kut teh business.
At the stall, he serves two types of curry mee. He also offers Ipoh sar hor fun, a non-spicy alternative for those who can’t take his curry.
When you order his curry mee, it is served with a not overly thick curry broth that is fragrant and topped with fresh mint leaves. Beancurd puffs are also found in the bowl; they soak up the curry broth.
You can ask for your bowl to be topped with poached chicken, roast pork and pig skin. We found the roast pork to be exceptionally good — tender and juicy with a crispy skin.
Turns out that the roast pork is sourced from a roast pig seller so it has a far superior taste compared to the usual roast pork that is made from a slab of belly pork.
If you prefer a fuller flavour, opt for the dry curry mee. The blanched noodles are tossed with dark soy sauce and drizzled with a thick creamy curry sauce.
Yee scoops up a portion from his curry broth that he boils down to make it thicker and more oomph!
Yee doesn’t take any shortcuts as he prepares the curry paste once a week. Usually, he also cooks up a big batch for his and his parents’ stall.
About 60 per cent of his customers are regulars including Lee who’ll even get him to keep an eye out for his car when it’s parked outside the coffeeshop!
On certain days, depending on Yee’s market finds, he serves a special seafood curry noodles laden with fresh prawns and lala.
Our next stop is Hong Kee Chicken Rice which is just across the road. Lee tells us that a few years ago, this shop changed hands after the original owner sold it off when business slumped.
However, he restarted the business within the commercial area a few months later after that.
We discover after talking to its present owner, Chong Seng Sing, 31, that he took over this eatery about three to four years ago. Despite his young age, Chong has been helping out from age 12, at his relative’s restaurant in Kampung Subang.
When he turned 16, he joined the restaurant. He tells us that he took only 20 days to learn the ropes from the previous owner.
With his cooking expertise, he has made some tweaks to the food here like improving the raw ingredients. For instance, their poached chicken uses a type of free range chicken known as Tai Shan Kiok sourced from Penang.
You will give a thumbs up for the firm flesh and bright yellow skin that is delicious when it is accompanied with their ginger dip.
Most people tend to order rice with their BBQ meats but opt instead for their superb egg noodles. These noodles aren’t made in-house but sourced from a third generation family business in Jalan Ipoh.
The noodles are perfectly cooked, retaining its texture... enjoy with the fork tender char siew. We also loved their plump wantans, bursting with juicy minced pork. It’s so delicious that a whole bowl of wantans shared with a few others is a good idea.
Chong tells us he roasts his meats using a charcoal fire at the back of his eatery. Since he is short of workers, you will find the young man handling everything by himself. The eatery starts serving rice from as early as 9.30am so you can also score an early substantial breakfast to fill your stomach here.
Last but not least, there is Restoran Jiang’s Duck. Previously opened for lunch, it’s now restricted to the evening since they are short of workers.
The business is run by KK Low, 55, and in the kitchen, he is assisted by Michelle Chen, 52. She helps out with cooking the other dishes while he takes care of the roast duck, char siew and roast pork.
Low is a dedicated roast duck fan. Even though his family was running a kedai runcit in Selayang, he decided to learn as much as he could about creating the best ever roast duck.
Throughout the years, he has worked with many other roast duck stalls, picking up various techniques to perfect his recipe. With a lot of experimentation on his own, he started his business in 1994, selling his roast ducks at a roadside stall in Petaling Jaya.
Later he decided to open this restaurant about 11 years ago since it gave his customers a chance to enjoy the duck fresh from the oven with other dishes rather than just take away the roast duck.
What makes his roast duck exceptional is the usage of freshly slaughtered ducks sourced from nearby farms. When you bite into the meat, there’s still a slight bouncy texture to the meat.
His method of roasting also yields a juicier fowl with none of the gamey smells. Since he is not a fan of the strong smell of star anise, the herbal taste is also milder compared to that at other places.
He uses a duck weighing around 2.5 kilograms that is about two months old for roasting since the texture of the meat tends to get too rough if it’s too big.
As they open for business at night, Low starts from as early as 8am to prepare the duck. It takes them nine hours to marinate the duck and leave it to dry. They roast the ducks by batches and you can sometimes get the ducks fresh from the oven up to 8pm, until it’s all sold out.
If you prefer paper crisp duck, try their Pei Pa duck, which is butterflied and roasted. Low recommends it to be paired with a bottle of wine or even a cold glass of beer.
Just further down the street, there’s a wine shop where you can select your favourite tipple with this crispy duck. As the duck is butterflied and it needs a hotter fire, it takes a much shorter time to roast. You can order the Pei Pa duck about an hour ahead of your meal and Low will prepare it fresh for you.
Don’t forget to order a plate of char siew here as well. You will discover each piece is juicy and succulent and you won’t be able to stop eating it.
What makes it outstanding is how it’s not overly sweet and still maintains a charred taste. Equally good is their simple fried beancurd which uses silky smooth bean curd prepared by their friend.
It’s worth your time to try out their unusual duck dishes that are only available by pre-order. This includes the little known pak ngap, or poached duck, a dish popular in Taiwan.
They also offer a herbal duck and Teochew style braised duck, as long as you pre-order. Another superb pre-order, we hear from Lee, is their roast chicken.
You can also find their roast ducks sold at the roadside. Low has two stalls, one is located at Jalan SS24/1, Taman Megah, next to the rojak and cendol stall while another stall is located along Jalan SS3/39, Taman University.
Previously, his two brothers helped him run these stalls but recently one of his brothers retired.
Who knows, when you visit these places, you may even bump into Lee frequenting these spots. Just give him a friendly hello, as it’s through his persistent patronage of these spots that we have been able to discover such delicious eats.
Meng Meng Curry Mee Stall
SFS Kopitiam 747
31-1, Jalan PJU 1/3D
SunwayMas Commercial Centre
Petaling Jaya
Tel: 012-288 1119
Open: 7am to 2pm
Closed alternate Sundays
Hong Kee Chicken Rice
25-1, Jalan PJU 1/3C
SunwayMas Commercial Centre
Petaling Jaya
Tel: 016-698 9486
Open: 9.30am to 4pm
Closed once a month on Tuesday
Restoran Jiang’s Duck
20-1, Jalan PJU 1/3A
SunwayMas Commercial Centre
Petaling Jaya
Tel: 03-78804788
Open: 6pm to 10.30pm
Closed on Wednesday
