KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 18 — Good food can often be found in the most unlikely of places, like this home-styled economy rice stall at Dinty’s Pub in Bangsar.
Wong Sin Keong or “Uncle Keong”, 62 and his wife, Tan Kim Neo, 52, who run the stall rent the pub’s space during the daytime.
It’s a family affair as Wong’s brother, Wong Sin Min, 60 helps out with the fresh fruit stall that also sells freshly squeezed fruit juices. Before Uncle Keong ventured into cooking, he worked in the Dunlop tyre factory for 18 years.
The trio have close ties with the Bangsar area. From 1984 to 1996, they were part of the restaurant Home Nyonya Food on Jalan Telawi 3 that served Penang Nyonya fare. Unfortunately due to high rental, the restaurant closed down.
Subsequently the Wongs opened up an Ampang yong tau foo restaurant in SS2. After 12 years of running the place, they sold it off. About 7 months ago, they started this economy rice stall.
In affluent Bangsar, you will be hard pressed to find economy rice, including one that serves pork. Customers who frequent this place include older folks who live in the neighbourhood and office workers looking for a quick lunch fix that won’t burn their wallets.
On a daily basis, you get around 20 varieties. Dishes are dependent on the market produce. A plate of three items starts from RM5 onwards. Sometimes, the couple cater to Chinese festivals, for instance more vegetarian dishes when it’s the first or the fifteenth day of the lunar month when Buddhists abstain from meat.
Tan, who learnt to cook from her Nyonya grandmother, whips up their signature dish like the tangy assam fish with the smooth ikan pari or stingray and okra. They also serve an aromatic kari kapitan infused with kaffir lime leaves and tender tau eu bak or stewed pork.
You can also find crunchy acar awak or mixed vegetable pickles served here on a daily basis. Their Nyonya repertoire also includes dishes like lorbak, rendang chicken, assam prawns and sambal pork, to name a few.
The dishes are usually cooked per customers’ requests. Don’t expect to burn your tongue here, as Tan has toned down the Nyonya dishes to suit her customers. Initially, Tan cooked her Nyonya fare with an abundance of cili padi or bird’s-eye chillies, but customers complained it was too spicy for their stomachs.
Once the economy rice stall closes, Uncle Keong is busy with cooking for his catering business. He runs a home catering service for Bangsar residents, where he provides a daily dinner – two meat dishes and one vegetable dish.
The catering service has a monthly fee of RM180 per person from Mondays to Fridays. Delivery is free within the Bangsar area.
Mei Neo Recipe Restaurant, Dinty’s Pub, No. 34, Jalan Telawi, Bangsar Baru, Kuala Lumpur. Open: 11am to 3pm, Mondays to Saturdays.
Tel: 012–3718431.
This story was first published in Crave in the print edition of The Malay Mail on January 17, 2014
