CMCO takeaway: It's all about bouncy handmade noodles at Kepong's New Ban Lee Restaurant

KUALA LUMPUR, April 19 — I admit I am a noodle head. Whenever I hear of handmade noodles, I must give them a try.

I had stumbled upon New Ban Lee Restaurant via someone's social media account. What they excel in is making handmade noodles known as sang mee. Similar to udon, the strands are thicker with a little more bite. The texture has a slight bounce, thanks to manipulating the dough rather than more artificial additives.

There's a long list of noodle dishes to try: the dry version, spicy, paired with clear soup, curry and more. If sang mee is not your favourite, they also offer various noodles like kway teow, wan tan mee and loh shue fan.

Zoom in on the dry version. The thick strands are lovely when eaten with the dark sauce and minced pork. There's also a distinct aroma of lard, perfuming the strands to make it a bowl you can easily finish up in a few minutes.

The portion may look like a mountain when you start your meal but once you start eating, it'll disappear quickly. This is paired with a bowl of clear soup, fish balls, foo chuk with fish paste and pork balls. It's RM7 for a small portion and RM7.80 for a large portion.

If you love a spicier kick, try the dry version with dried chillies, minced meat and poached egg, served just like at the pan mee stalls. I reckon that will be my order the next time.

The thick noodle strands have a nice bouncy texture that absorbs the sauce well

As they offer a curry version, I gave that a try. This came topped with similar items from the dry version except they replaced the fish balls and pork balls with sliced char siu. The curry broth is the mild type made with curry powder that makes it easy to eat especially if you cannot stand spicy food. Even the sambal served on the side is incredibly mild. The curry noodles is the same price as the dry version.

In addition, the shop also sells chee cheong fun. Select from curry, sweet sauce or soy sauce to pair with those rice flour sheets. Go for the curry version.

f you prefer something a little different, pair the noodles with a mild curry broth served with beancurd puffs, 'foo chuk' and sliced 'char siu'


The restaurant also offers 'chee cheong fun' like this version served with curry and the flavour bomb of dried shrimps

The curry used is the same as the one served with the noodles but two things make it incredibly enjoyable. First it is accompanied with a spoonful of addictive, incredibly fragrant fried dried shrimps. Sprinkle this over your chee cheong fun as those shrimps are a flavour bomb.

The second item to make this chee cheong fun worth ordering again are the crunchy foo chuk. Since it is served as a topping for the chee cheong fun, it's left untouched by the gravy. You get a much nicer bite as it's crispy which contrasts nicely with the smooth chee cheong fun. Give it a try and you may get hooked.

A small plate is RM6.50 while a large plate is RM7.50.

Your noodles are packed in various bags that you can easily take away to eat at the comfort of your home


The 'chee cheong fun' is packed in a box hence the fried 'foo chuk' retains its crispy texture before you mix it with the curry sauce

I did a takeaway for my noodles but from what I read on their Facebook page, you can also WhatsApp them to arrange for delivery if you live within Kepong. They have two outlets in Kepong. The original outlet is at Taman Ehsan while there is another one located at Restaurant Yue Lee, No. 134, Block B Jalan 17A, Taman Usaha Jaya, Kepong.

New Ban Lee Restaurant, 592, Jalan E 3/5a, Taman Ehsan, Kepong, Kuala Lumpur. Open: 7am to 5pm. Closed on Sunday. Tel:03-62620509. You can WhatsApp 012-3950715 to arrange for delivery within Kepong. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/New-Ban-Lee-Restaurant-201066979913743