IPOH, Jan 20 ― In its heyday, Tanjung Tualang was at the forefront of the tin mining industry.
The numerous mining ponds in the area also provided the perfect breeding ground for prawns.
Following the collapse of the tin industry in 1985, the mushrooming of seafood restaurants filled the void when disused ponds were turned into prawn and fish farms by locals as means to support themselves.
Second generation restaurateur Wong Ah Lee said when his family first came to Tanjung Tualang from Hainan island in China, his father opened a coffee shop selling delicacies from his homeland.
“Those who worked in the dredge would come to my father's shop for meals. Over the years, they grew tired of the food sold at our shop and started asking for some variety,” said the 69-year-old.
“One day, one of the dredge owners taught me how to cook some prawn and I took it from there.”
Wong, who had since passed on his seafood restaurant — Sun Mee Fong Seafood — to his son, said initially the dishes were merely side orders as the main stars were still Hainan dishes.
“After my father passed away when I was 18 years old, we decided to concentrate on only selling seafood dishes,” he said.
When he first started selling seafood in 1971, there were only three restaurants offering the delicacies in Tanjung Tualang.
Today, there are 13 seafood restaurants spread out over six roads in the small town.
“I do not have any professional training. My customers shared some recipes with me and I improvised from there,” said Wong, adding that his restaurant's dried fried prawn and fried beancurd are must-haves for seafood lovers.
The popularity of seafood in Tanjung Tualang also saw the growth of seafood farms.
Second generation seafood breeder Wong Hon Fatt said the prawns he bred in eight ponds next to his home at Sungai Durian in Tanjung Tualang were to meet the demand of the town’s seafood restaurants.
“I took over the ponds from my father who used to breed fish. But seeing the demand for prawns, I decided to change to prawn breeding instead,” said the 62-year-old, who is among the two prawn breeders in Tanjung Tualang.
Village chief Wong Soon Mun, 55, said among the freshwater fish bred in Tanjung Tualang were tilapia, keli and ikan hantu.
“To live up to its seafood haven tagline, we order other items such as squid, oysters and crab from other places,” he said.
Soon Mun, who operates the Kampung Udang MyPrawn Village restaurant, said the seafood restaurants at Tanjung Tualang were filled to the brim on weekends and public holidays.
“The restaurants are offering job opportunities for locals. Now, the younger generation need not seek work outside of Tanjung Tualang,” he said.
Kampar MCA deputy chairman Chang Gwo Chyang said the government had plans to turn Tanjung Tualang into a food haven.
“You can spend the whole day eating at Tanjung Tualang. Start with pan mee and lou shu fan for breakfast, followed by seafood for lunch and pau for tea,” he said.
He added Tanjung Tualang was one of 20 new villages in the country selected to receive a RM200,000 grant from the Prime Minister's Department for upgrading works.
