Pork ball noodle is somewhat of a side kick in the world of hawker food that involves pork and noodle. While pork noodle is Batman, pork ball noodle would be Robin.
Just like Robin, pork ball noodle isn’t exactly as prevalent as pork noodle, and in places where both types are available, Batman usually takes center stage.
Of course, everything has an exception, and such is the case at Win Heng Seng where the pork ball noodle stall arguably busier than the pork ball counterpart (I love the kidney).
pork ball noodle stall at Win Heng Seng kopitiam
The pork ball noodle comes in soup or dry version, and you get to choose from kuih teow, mee hun, yellow noodle, loh she fun, and the combination of them as stomach filler.
While the stall get get very busy (as with the kopitiam itself over lunch), it usually doesn’t take very long for your bowl of goodness to be served.
dry version is my favorite, with kuih teow or lou she fun
I particularly like the dry version here, there’s the properly flavored minced pork over noodle and black sauce, and the side of homemade pork balls and those super addictive Chinese sausage (lap cheong siu cheong). This is a largely savory, non spicy dish with pickled green chili in soya sauce for those who likes to have that bit of kick to go with.
firm and flavorful pork ball, then there’s the Chinese sausage
I usually devour everything within 10 minutes or so, and maybe next time I should ask for more lapcheong. So irresistible.
The standard bowl goes for RM 5 or RM 5.50 RM 6, a pretty standard price for this area, and you won’t regret it. 
Address:
Restaurant Win Heng Seng
Jalan Imbi, Kuala Lumpur
GPS: 3.145479, 101.715087
Several weeks ago I braved the rush hour traffic and got myself to Changkat Bukit Bintang, a place I wouldn’t normally go during rush hours thanks to the horrible traffic situation and exuberant parking fees. That night, however, I had an invitation from Racks Bar & Baby Backs for a food review session.
More importantly, there was promise of good pork, and a lot of them.
Racks at Changkat Bukit Bintang
The setup at Racks is much like many other bars and eateries at Changkat Bukit Bintang – hip interior, a bar stocked full of all sorts of alcohol, alfresco as well as airconditioned dining area, and decorated by expatriate diners.
If the decoration of this place brings a sense of deja vu to you, it was probably because Racks is run by Paul James, the guy who is also behind The Magnificent Fish and Chips just a few doors down.
pigs in blanket, oyster with ham, peaches and parma ham
Anyway, lets look at the food.
We started out of course, with some pork laden appetizers. Pigs in blanket (meat in prosciutto, RM 24), oyster with ham (seafood in prosciutto, RM 32), and peaches with parma ham (peaches n parma RM 22).
All three involves parma ham, and all delicious in its own way. My favorite was naturally, the raw oyster which carries a punch with those pepper. The combination with the saltiness of parma, hotness of paper, and freshness of oyster worked well. Beats oyster with lemon anytime.
cold cuts platter
This cold cuts platter promises plenty of meat with jam, in house mustards, pickles, and freshly baked bread for the price of RM 54. The dish reminds me of the cold cuts I had at El Meson in Bangsar, but instead of the more common winter melon, the pairing of jam, mustard, pickles, and bread makes for very good light meal with beer.
Supper anyone?
molotov shooters, a happy Huai Bin, and “illusions”
Then the alcohol came out.
There were more Molotov shooters (a dozen for RM 200) than there were people on the same table, bad idea. This stuff was very potent and of course I only had one, Huai Bin, Horng, Michael, and Gareth were there to make sure nothing is going to waste.
We also had a rack of Illusion, a mixture of Midori melon, pineapple juice, and vodka. I actually find this quite tasty, a taste of festivity, almost.
Rack’s Big Bad Sandwich, Asparagus under prosciutto
The last of appetizer was aspagarus under prosciutto (RM 22), a pretty common combination. I often make bacon & asparagus, but parma ham makes an even better combination, and perhaps slightly healthier.
The main courses came next, we first tried Rack’s Big BAD Sandwich (RM 26) – BAD stands for back bacon, avocado, and dried tomato. I’ve never had sandwich with avocado, but the mixture actually works, the buttery taste of avocado goes well with savory bacon and the acidity from dried tomato.
pork burger, pulled pork burger, and hot & spicy pork ribs
Then there’s the standard pork burger (RM 28) with smoked back bacon, pork patty, dried tomato, smoked bacon, and even ahem, vegetable. This was as delicious as it was difficult to eat. Prepare to make a splendid mess.
Pulled pork burger (RM 28) might be a Boston’s favorite, but it doesn’t work with me. I’m not a big fan of the drier texture on the meat, but your mileage might vary.
marmalade sweet and spicy pork ribs
Then there were of course, the ribs, after all ,this place is called Racks Bar & Baby Back for a reason.
There’s the more typical hot & spicy ribs, and then there’s the marmalade sweet & spicy pork ribs (RM 52 full rack, RM 32 half rack).
I wasn’t too crazy over the coleslaw, but the ribs were fantastic! Absolutely full of flavor and the meat falls off the bones easier than skimpy cloths from Las Vegas strippers. You gotta try this for yourself, if you think the photo of the ribs look good, it tastes at least twice as well!
the hungry diners, and the 3 friendly servers at Racks
And just like The Magnificent Fish and Chips, this outlet is another one worth visiting at Changkat. The food is good, prices are in line with other restaurants at the area, and services are commendable too.
It was a good night with great company, and bless those pigs too, they were delicious.
Address:
Racks Bar & Baby Backs,
18-1, Changkat Bukit Bintang, Kuala Lumpur
GPS: 3.147581, 101.707934
Tel: 03-2110 1550
I’m a curry mee lover, but I am bias, I almost usually only love the Penang style curry mee, you know, those with coagulated pork blood, prawns, and sea hum. My favorite Penang style curry mee at Klang Valley is the one at Restaurant Okay, SS2.
The KL/Ipoh style curry mee has always been playing second fiddle, and to me, almost always an inferior dish… until I tried this one from Blue & White kopitiam just behind Fahrenheit 88.
check out those cockles and chicken
The stall wasn’t a particularly busy one either, but I ordered a bowl of curry mee just to give it a try earlier this week. The lady asked if I wanted cockles, I told her yes. Cockles aren’t the healthiest seafood, but I like mine almost raw, I like them juicy, and that’s exactly how they serve cockles here, and in abundance too!
deep fried pork skin too, yums
The RM 5 bowl of goodness also comes with a few pieces of deep fried pork skin, another heart attack inducing agent that I can never resist – very yummy. The broth is of course, curry chicken based, and the were ample amount of chicken pieces too.
A few pieces of tofupok and some long beans made up the rest of the ingredients, it was a hearty meal and one that was way above my expectations. Revisit, I shall!
petai and (very small) prawns at the “siu chau” stall
By the way, the “siu chau” (小炒) stall at the same kopitiam also serves pretty good petai prawn that goes for RM 7 or so with an extra egg. It’s a bit spicy, and for sure will leave your pee smelling like petai for the next 2 days.
Bon Appétit!
Address:
Blue White Teow Chew Porridge Kopitiam
Jalan Gading, 55100 Kuala Lumpur
GPS: 3.14622, 101.71415
While walking to our original intended target – the pork free food court between Wisma Cosway and Wisma Genting, a few colleagues and I chanced upon this new little restaurant by the name of Siamese Cafe located just behind the interesting Yashi-no-mi Japanese cafe.
the glorious siamese nasi lemak with chicken, squid, petai & prawn
The restaurant has only some 10 tables that sits 2-3 people each, and on the menu there are less than 10 items on offer. This is fine by me, the bigger the menu usually only means the bigger the confusion and time taken to order.
The choices are simple, you can either have nasi lemak, or Siamese mee hun to go with fried chicken, Kristan chicken (a type of thick curry), ikan kembung, assam squid, sambal petai prawn, or kerang (cockles).
there’s siamese mee hun too, and those anchovies are darn good
Everything is priced at RM 8, except for Nasi Lemak (or meehun) special that comes with squid, petai assam prawn, and fried chicken, that is at RM 10. The set comes with an ice lemon tea, and the sides that includes half a hard boiled egg, peanuts, some potato + onion thing, and fried anchovies.
and here is winnie, as your eye candy
While the meehun tends to be a little on the dry side, the nasi lemak was fragrant and full of santan flavor. The chicken, petai, and squid were all very good too, and I particularly love the sweet and spicy fried anchovies they serve at the side.
The special set is really value for money at RM 10 with drinks. Business seems to be quite brisk at this new place, and I certainly hope this cafe is here to stay.
Address:
Siamese Cafe
Ground Floor
Wisma Cosway
Jalan Sultan Ismail
50540 Kuala Lumpur
GPS: 3.150875, 101.711812
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By now, many of you are probably familiar with MilkADeal, a local discount site where you often find incredible deals on all sorts of stuff, like food, spa, travel packages, adventure activities, photo album, car tinting, and more.
Do check out the site for stuff that you need and many that you want for a steep discount.
And while discounts are neat, I want to highlight what that MilkADeal is also using their site as a vehicle to do good. There is a TLC Promise Me campagin that is running right now, and you can buy the “deal” at RM 20 with 100% of the money going to Rumah Aman Children Home, an orphanage that needs their electrical wiring and lightning protection upgraded.
For those who donate over RM 100, you can even request a receipt for tax exemption too.
p/s: this is not the first time MilkADeal runs community service “deals”, I remember there was one for Japan earthquake too.
A few weeks ago I was invited by Ollie to a mooncake sampling session at Li Yen, Ritz Carlton. The trouble about having a review session over lunch, and one that is set up more than a week in advance is that… there is a risk that I forget about them.
I was happily walking out of the office heading to lunch when my phone beep and I was reminded about the event on the day. I quickly made my way to Ritz Carlton, and of course did not have my SLR or my trusted Canon S90 with.
So you will have to be content with these photos taken with my phone under poorly lit condition.
Li Yen at Ritz Carlton, Jon & Cheng Yi
Our primary goal was to have a taste test on several types of mini mooncakes on offering here. I do like my mooncakes, and for me, a lunch consisting of pure mooncake actually sounded rather lovely. Furthermore, the session is conducted at Li Yen, a pretty posh Chinese restaurant of which I’ve tasted the food, but haven’t yet stepped foot in as yet at the time.
the glorious mini mooncakes from Ritz Carlton
We were served four types of mini mooncakes, two of which were new flavors introduced this year – the green tea with custard and salted egg in snow skin, and wasabi with lotus paste.
The wasabi mooncake is very subtle, you really need to let it swirl a little the mouth before getting the wasabi taste, I do like it. On the other hand, I like the salted egg in the green tea flavored mooncake, but not too big a fan on the custard bit, tends to be slightly too jelak I think, but not something a sip of hot tea can’t fix.
Then there’s the interesting Moët & Chandon Champagne with snow skin that has the most exquisite taste of any mooncake I’ve ever tasted. It’s like eating normal chocolates, and then having those with liquor inside, it’s definitely a different experience, and one that I received positively.
Lastly, the pink Rosé mooncake in snow skin too offers the experience as the name suggest, a hint of the flavor of rose that is unique to your typical mooncake tastes.
dimsum for lunch – spring roll, har kau, siu mai
As I stuffed my stomach at least 70% full of mooncakes, they brought in dimsum and some other dishes as a supplement for lunch, and how could I deny?
The spring rolls and prawn rolls gave a welcoming change of taste from those sweet mooncakes, then the har kau and siu mai were as good as any out there. Li Yen is a non-halal outlet, and thus these dimsum were made with the ingredients as dimsum should.
pork buns, seafood noodle, custard buns
The pork buns and custard buns at Li Yen were really, really, awesome! At this point I was already over-full and still I couldn’t stopped myself from stuffing another serving of each of them.
As I was going to surrender, the seafood noodle arrived… I noms down all the seafood, and left the noodle pretty much intact. It was a good session, and I am going to get more mooncakes before the end of the season, yes!
The mid autumn festival falls on the 12th of September, get your mooncakes before the date, you still have a week.
Read about Jon and Cheng Yi’s reviews too, and thank you Ollie for the invite.
Address:
Li Yen @ Ritz-Carlton Hotel
168 Jalan Imbi,
55100 Kuala Lumpur
GPS: 3.146960, 101.715406
Tel: 03-2141 8000
