Gerai Lum Kee: Where delicious assam laksa, curry laksa and laksa Siam have stood the test of time

PETALING JAYA, May 21 — Old is gold. Despite their age, the two owners of Gerai Lum Kee — Wai Lum, 82, and Lee Seng Hin, 76 — are not showing any signs of slowing down.

The brothers, who hail from Penang, migrated to Kuala Lumpur at a young age in search of opportunities. Wai used to work for a plastics manufacturer. The moment Lee, who is his third sibling, said he was moving to KL to seek his fortune... Wai joined him.

Gerai Lum Kee is an eatery that has stood the test of time

In 1970, they opened up a stall at the open-air food court in Section 14, PJ. Armed with their Nyonya mother’s recipes, they set out to conquer the market by selling assam laksa.

Later they added on curry laksa, prawn mee and mee soup (a clear broth with fish balls) to the menu. Lastly, they also included laksa Siam, a variation of laksa that is rather uncommon in the Klang Valley.

The brothers take a lot of pride with their food. Every ingredient is prepared with care and from scratch. There’s absolutely no pre-mixes used here, just like how their Nyonya mother would have done in her own kitchen.

Laksa Siam has a sweeter, richer taste with the addition of coconut milk (left). Gerai Lum Kee started out by selling assam laksa that is absolutely slurp worthy to the last drop of its delicious broth (right)

Mindful that most of their clientèle are Malays, they have even rented a house to prepare the ingredients in a completely pork-free environment. Halal-certified ingredients such as chicken is used.

Let’s start with the assam laksa that launched their 47-year-old business. The fish-based broth is sweet and tasty on its own. Here you’re given a spoonful of undiluted hae ko — a sweet, gooey and pungent-smelling shrimp paste — specially brought in from Penang to mix into your bowl of assam laksa.

Mixing that paste into the broth gives it a more well-rounded taste. We guarantee you’ll be slurping the whole bowl down to the last drop.

The broth is cooked ahead and heated up before serving

Lee tells us he uses fresh sardines to make the broth. He specially sources that particular fish from PJ Old Town market.

Next, move on to the curry laksa that is topped with raw cockles freshly shucked by the brothers. You will also find shredded poached chicken and bean curd puffs mingling with your choice of blanched noodles.

The broth is a little thin but aromatic. What makes the curry laksa exceptional is their fragrant chilli paste. You can really taste all the goodness in that dark reddish paste that is redolent with dried prawns.

Garnishes like fresh mint, pineapple, torch ginger flower, chillies, onions and flaked sardines are added on top of the assam laksa (left). Just before serving, the piquant fish-based broth for the assam laksa is boiled and poured over the prepared bowl of noodles and garnishes (right)

According to Lee, they make a big batch every three weeks. It takes more than two hours to slowly fry the chilli paste over a low heat until it is aromatic.

Still have stomach space? Go for the creamy laksa Siam that has a sweeter and richer taste. Usually served in Penang, this particular laksa is made from a paste that has lemongrass, chillies and shallots.

Each bowl of this particular laksa is garnished with chillies, prawns, pineapple and fresh mint leaves. It is perfect for those who enjoy laksa with a less piquant taste.

Ingredients for the prawn mee are prepped ahead like fish cake, hard boiled eggs and shelled prawns

Last but not least, have a bowl of prawn mee. It’s a delicate light broth made with prawn shells and sweetened by the fried shallots that garnish each bowl. Here it is served with kangkung, sliced hard boiled eggs, poached shelled prawns and fishcake slices.

Today, the food court has undergone a lot of changes from its heyday as an open-air food court. In fact, most folks have forgotten about this rundown Medan Selera in Section 14, PJ.

A fragrant prawn broth is made by boiling prawn shells and chicken carcasses

It still draws a pretty good lunch crowd of college students and office workers within the vicinity. Most times, the stall counts on their loyal clients who have grown up eating their food.

There’s a certain loyalty among their customers who bring their children and grandchildren here.

Brothers, Wai Lum (left) and Lee Seng Hin have been running their stall for the past 47 years

As parking around this area can be quite tricky -- especially if you’re trying to score a lot as near as possible -- most of their regulars usually pack home their food.

You can call the eatery to place your orders and they will prepare it. Alternatively, underground parking is available at the refurbished Jaya Shopping Centre that is just a short walk away.

Relish the delicious curry laksa with the fragrant chilli paste and freshly shucked cockles (left). Slurp up the prawn mee with its appetising prawn broth (right)

The future of their business seems uncertain though. Despite their age, the two siblings have continued to work to ensure they keep active. This we understand is done without the consent of their children who have urged the two to retire.

However, they both quip that they’ll definitely quit by 2020.

When asked if they passed their cooking skills to anyone in the family or even an apprentice, both of them shake their heads. None of their children who have better careers are interested to follow in their footsteps.

Your choice of noodles being blanched for your order

They also believe that without them at the helm, people won’t trust what is served to them since they are familiar with the taste of their food. Sadly for us, that means this old school eatery may have a time limit to its lifespan.

So make sure you come try their food before it is gone as this taste from yesteryear is hard to come by.

Gerai Lum Kee

Stall No. MR22

Medan Selera Section 14, Jalan 14/24, Section 14, Petaling Jaya

Tel: 012-3943928

Open: 9am to 5pm (Mondays to Saturdays)

Closed on Sundays