KUALA LUMPUR, May 12 — By 7am, the streets of Taman Yulek in Cheras are already busy. Residents have risen with the sun — or earlier, as some are already returning from the pasar pagi with their morning market haul of fresh fruits, vegetables and meat.
Time for breakfast next; we hear the clatter of chopsticks and the hiss of boiling water. The low, whispered gossip and the loud banter of regulars who have claimed their usual tables.
(I understand the practice: we too have a table we prefer at our favourite café, one that we claim with the quiet authority of habit. That, and the head barista always reserves it for us.)
Every row of shophouses has at least two or three kopitiams. Each offers another possibility, another stall making its case through aroma alone; each one suggesting it might be the place to begin the day.
With so many options, choosing just one could prove a real headache. Fortunately for us, a friend who lives in the neighbourhood had already given us her recommendation, backed by a history of excellent suggestions in the past.
And so we followed her lead to Restoran Meng Shiang, a kopitiam located along the always bustling Jalan Kaskas 2. It’s easy to spot the shop; there are two stalls operating in tandem at the entrance. One handles drinks, the other noodles.
When there aren’t too many customers, when it’s early enough that one isn’t blocking foot traffic at the entrance, it’s a simple pleasure just watching the cooks at work: portions blanched, tossed, assembled with part muscle memory, part noodle choreography.
But most people don’t stay at the cooking station for long. Orders are placed, and you move inside with purpose towards empty seats, if any still remain.
Our kopi arrives first, stronger than we had expected, brewed to a near-viscous intensity. This is extra kaw, the sort that guarantees insomnia if drunk even a minute after midday.
Makes me wonder why we even need double espressos when good old kopitiams have been reliably plying customers with these robust cuppas since before we were even born.
Before the tiny, winged barista on my shoulder (the one with the halo, or the one with the pitchfork — I’ll leave that to your imagination) could reprimand me for my disloyal thoughts, the server approaches with our noodles.
First is the shop’s signature tai yang mian or “sun noodles”. The noodles are springy, lightly dressed in savoury soy sauce and rich rendered lard.
There are thick slabs of char siew, crispy fried wantans and a soft-boiled egg, its yolk spilling out in slow, golden rivulets that coat everything luxuriantly.
What truly elevates the dish, what makes it worth rising with the sun for, is the chilli crisp. Dry, fiery, textured with crunch and heat, it provides the punch of chilli pan mee (another noodle dish on the menu).
Every mouthful is a delightful play between fat and fire, between salt and spice.
Our second bowl of noodles is their curry mee, as suggested by the shop’s proprietor. The Malaccan boy in me detects a broth in the style of aromatic Nyonya curry.
Airy cubes of taupok soaking up the curry, fish balls with their gentle bounce, more fried wantans adding crunch, and again that chilli crisp for more welcome heat.
Squeeze fresh lime over your bowl and everything brightens. The acidity cuts through the richness; the curry feels less heavy and cloying.
Somewhere between the last sip of kopi and the final tangle of noodles, we agree that this is indeed a breakfast worth getting out of bed for — though, perhaps, not rising in unison with the sun. Better sleep means a bigger appetite, after all, no?
Restoran Meng Shiang 茗香茶餐室
Open daily (except Mon closed) 6am-3pm, 5-10pm
Phone: 018-320 1059
* This is an independent review where the writer paid for the meal.
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